USMNT roster for June qualifiers

[JSM1970]

The US goal was borderline luck, a great play and shot by Bradley, but not a conventional one

Guzan is awful, so good to get a point.

Gotta give Arena his props. Only the 3rd time we've taken a point in Azteca. Only scored like 6? goals there.

Arena drops Howard, Brooks, Johnson, Dempsey, Altidore (almost guaranteed starters) and we come out 1-1? Either really lucky, or nice job.

 

[businesslawyer]

The US goal was borderline luck, a great play and shot by Bradley, but not a conventional one

Guzan is awful, so good to get a point.

Is there any thread that you will leave alone so we don't have to deal with your ridiculously pessimistic and entitled anger? Thanks you.

 

[LIuconn]

Nice to see that bunkerball & kick and run is back in fashion. I'm surprised we didn't corner the ball more after going up 1-0

And to those questioning CP - please watch some Dortmund games from this year. His time is right now. As for last night's game, he was 1v3 every time he touched the ball. Bruce didn't give him any options.

 

[HuskyHawk]

Nice to see that bunkerball & kick and run is back in fashion. I'm surprised we didn't corner the ball more after going up 1-0

And to those questioning CP - please watch some Dortmund games from this year. His time is right now. As for last night's game, he was 1v3 every time he touched the ball. Bruce didn't give him any options.

Yes, and several times he beat the 3 and created something, although he blew one pass to Woods. A few other times, especially early, he was run over and got no call. That was not a good lineup for him to make much of an impact. His role was to be just scary enough that Mexico had to keep someone back besides the keeper.

 

[Excalibur]

Nice to see that bunkerball & kick and run is back in fashion. I'm surprised we didn't corner the ball more after going up 1-0

I'm fine with the way we decided to play it in this game, on short rest, at altitude, in a location where we rarely come away with anything. I don't expect to be a long term strategy, nor should it be.

 

[SubbaBub]

Thought the same thing. We have better options now.

When you are subbed on in the 70th minute, you are there to run your assistance off pressing the ball because the rest of your team is dead on their feet. Doubly so protecting a point at Azteca. You don't stand around, walk up field, and jog without a purpose. You damn sure don't club foot one to the opponent that woukd have been a sure goal if not for the bar.

The big lumbering ox looks put of place on the field compared to the rest of the squad.

Putting Pulisic wide on this team dilutes his effectiveness. Maybe it works with Dempsey and Wood up top as opposed to the 3-4-2-1 that they effectively played with the ball. Pulisic and Arriola effectively split the field underneath Wood. Bradley and Acosta worked the middle interchangeably while Yedlin and Beasley pushed forward from the backine.

With a second striker this formation becomes a 3-4-1-2.

In order to play a 4-4-2 diamond. Only one of Bradley, Acosta, Jones will see the field. That's the end game when the older two fall out of the squad, but until then expect to see the 3CB formation as the base going forward.

The flat 4-4-2 puts Pulisic, Bradley/Jones/Acosta and Nagle across in some combination with Dempsey/Wood/Altidore up top in some combination.

 

[Waquoit]

When you are subbed on in the 70th minute, you are there to run your assistance off pressing the ball because the rest of your team is dead on their feet. Doubly so protecting a point at Azteca. You don't stand around, walk up field, and jog without a purpose. You damn sure don't club foot one to the opponent that woukd have been a sure goal if not for the bar.

Thank you. That was just a brutal, yet unremarked upon . That's why I prefer non-USA commentators. They don't worry as much about kissing ass. One thing I can't stand is a player who thinks he's better than he is. Jozy fits that bill and so did Landycakes. You're a late game sub to add energy. So add energy already! I would leave him off the squad entirely.

Sub, can you tell me why Sacha Kljestan can't make this squad. He gets Pulisic. He puts Pulisic is positions to succeed.

 

[SAMCRO]

That's why I prefer non-USA commentators. They don't worry as much about kissing ass.

This... a thousand times this. My brother (his wife is Mexican, and as such he has learned to speak/understand Spanish) watches the Spanish language broadcasts (Telemundo/Univision) and refuses to go back to the Fox/ESPN feeds if he doesn't have to.

 

[meyers7]

This... a thousand times this. My brother (his wife is Mexican, and as such he has learned to speak/understand Spanish) watches the Spanish language broadcasts (Telemundo/Univision) and refuses to go back to the Fox/ESPN feeds if he doesn't have to.

4.5 Million. 96% more than FS1.

Univision gets most viewers for 2017 soccer game

 

[SubbaBub]

Thank you. That was just a brutal, yet unremarked upon . That's why I prefer non-USA commentators. They don't worry as much about kissing ass. One thing I can't stand is a player who thinks he's better than he is. Jozy fits that bill and so did Landycakes. You're a late game sub to add energy. So add energy already! I would leave him off the squad entirely.

Sub, can you tell me why Sacha Kljestan can't make this squad. He gets Pulisic. He puts Pulisic is positions to succeed.

He has never consistently shown anything against anyone other than concacaf minnows and is another guy who lolligags about the pitch.

 

[Palatine]

JA could be a mismatch against the right team. He is strong enough to be a handful down low. His assist to Pulisic against TnT was a great pass.

But I don't have strong feelings about him starting. And his getting injured in the first few minutes of the last world cup didn't help his image any.

 

[meyers7]

He has never consistently shown anything against anyone other than concacaf minnows and is another guy who lolligags about the pitch.

Well to be honest he has scored against Spain, Germany, Bosnia, Nigeria and Mexico too.

Not that I'm more than willing to give Wood and Morris some run time.

 

[businesslawyer]

Well to be honest he has scored against Spain, Germany, Bosnia, Nigeria and Mexico too.

Not that I'm more than willing to give Wood and Morris some run time.

Morris has a long, long way to go before anyone is fairly comparing him (favorably) to Jozy Altidore. Wood is a totally different type of forward, but I have no problem with someone saying he's better. But my view is that Jozy's overall good and valuable play for the national team is totally ignored because he flamed out in the Premier league, and some here can't forgive that. Just like there are some who can't accept that Landon Donovan was, by far, the best career national team player we ever had because he wouldn't stick with Europe and make a mark there.

 

[LIuconn]

Jozy has a place on this team. He's a heck of a passer, just wish he could keep the ball closer to his body in traffic

 

[Da_Aisijimo_Gou]

It feels like 10 years since I've experienced a 90 degree day, so I'm not even sure where I am right now...

Which may be better than knowing I've consistently experienced ship loads of 90+ days each year for over a decade. So, that's my new excuse for any knucklehead post. As much as I wish better players replace inconsistent players such as Altidore, I'm perfectly OK eking out a point at Azteca and 4 points in these last 2 matches.

 

[UConnDan97]

Morris has a long, long way to go before anyone is fairly comparing him (favorably) to Jozy Altidore. Wood is a totally different type of forward, but I have no problem with someone saying he's better. But my view is that Jozy's overall good and valuable play for the national team is totally ignored because he flamed out in the Premier league, and some here can't forgive that. Just like there are some who can't accept that Landon Donovan was, by far, the best career national team player we ever had because he wouldn't stick with Europe and make a mark there.

Yeah, I don't get the Donovan hatred either. He sucks as an announcer, but he was undeniably one of our top two players of all time (I'll still argue that Dempsey is the better player, but it's an argument that no other player to this point has a right to be in).

As far as announcing, I wish they would just stick with Holden, because he's quality...

 

[ZooCougar]

Seriously? You're going to pretend that we played the 3-4-3 with the same level of understanding and cohesion in Colombus that we did last night?

You have always worshipped mediocrity. You tee off on par 5s with a three iron and you probably have a hybrid club in your bag. Am I right?

Formations in soccer are dynamic. There is a defensive shape, a transitioning shape and an attacking shape. Bruce's team was too inept to show us what the attacking shape looked like.

 

[ZooCougar]

Yeah, I don't get the Donovan hatred either. He sucks as an announcer, but he was undeniably one of our top two players of all time (I'll still argue that Dempsey is the better player, but it's an argument that no other player to this point has a right to be in).

As far as announcing, I wish they would just stick with Holden, because he's quality...

Because the only time he gave a consistent performance was when he was on sabbatical in Cambodia.

 

[UConnDan97]

Because the only time he gave a consistent performance was when he was on sabbatical in Cambodia.

And.... This type of post is why I struggle to take you seriously.

To say that Donovan was not at least a top 3 American soccer player is just being stubborn to admit the truth. And I'm being generous when I say "top 3" because the third person likely isn't close. Maybe McBride? Reyna? Ramos?

None of those players had the career he had. Please stop the random hatred of him. It makes you sound like JSM with Pulisic...

 

[ZooCougar]

And.... This type of post is why I struggle to take you seriously.

To say that Donovan was not at least a top 3 American soccer player is just being stubborn to admit the truth. And I'm being generous when I say "top 3" because the third person likely isn't close. Maybe McBride? Reyna? Ramos?

None of those players had the career he had. Please stop the random hatred of him. It makes you sound like JSM with Pulisic...

No. He is top 3 but he underperformed to his potential and spent his career hiding in MLS. I don't put him on a pedestal like others do.

I like steely eyed killers, not introspective whiners.

 

[UConnDan97]

No. He is top 3 but he underperformed to his potential and spent his career hiding in MLS. I don't put him on a pedestal like others do.

I like steely eyed killers, not introspective whiners.

So you're willing to admit that he is a top 3 American player (which is commendable, by the way), but you still find it in your heart to bash him every third post. Kudos to you, I guess...

 

[ZooCougar]

So you're willing to admit that he is a top 3 American player (which is commendable, by the way), but you still find it in your heart to bash him every third post. Kudos to you, I guess...

Well, people need to stop bringing him up and stop putting him on a pedestal.

 

[SAMCRO]

Well, people need to stop bringing him up and stop putting him on a pedestal.

G...O...A....T.....
(i keeed, i keeeeed... just couldn't resist)

Donovan is without question one of the top 1 or 2 USMNT players ever, to date. He scored or was involved in some of the bigger goals in USMNT history. You can debate/argue if you think he's soft, if he's a whiner, or if he handled himself the best at the end of his career, especially with JK .... but hard to argue the point that he was one of the greatest USMNT players to date. I would have loved to have seen him stick it out in Europe, and IMO it would have elevated his game even higher. That, and how he conducted himself at the very end of his national team career are my only call outs about him.

Pulisic is ahead of where any other US player was at this stage/age of their career, and it is not even close. That goes for performance with club, country, you name it. It's not just goals, assists, it is the other impact he makes, where teams need to account for him and game plan specifically for him. He creates room for other US players because of the attention he draws by the other teams defense... that doesn;t show up in his statistics. He's the team leader om the pitch already, at 18 y.o. If his career arc is what most experts believe it will be, he will be a special, special player. He is off to a great start.

 

[ZooCougar]

G...O...A....T.....
(i keeed, i keeeeed... just couldn't resist)

Donovan is without question one of the top 1 or 2 USMNT players ever, to date. He scored or was involved in some of the bigger goals in USMNT history. You can debate/argue if you think he's soft, if he's a whiner, or if he handled himself the best at the end of his career, especially with JK .... but hard to argue the point that he was one of the greatest USMNT players to date. I would have loved to have seen him stick it out in Europe, and IMO it would have elevated his game even higher. That, and how he conducted himself at the very end of his national team career are my only call outs about him.

Pulisic is ahead of where any other US player was at this stage/age of their career, and it is not even close. That goes for performance with club, country, you name it. It's not just goals, assists, it is the other impact he makes, where teams need to account for him and game plan specifically for him. He creates room for other US players because of the attention he draws by the other teams defense... that doesn;t show up in his statistics. He's the team leader om the pitch already, at 18 y.o. If his career arc is what most experts believe it will be, he will be a special, special player. He is off to a great start.

He's already made a bigger impact in club soccer, particularly at the champions league level than any other American.

There is a reason why the biggest clubs on the planet are tracking him.

 

[businesslawyer]

You have always worshipped mediocrity. You tee off on par 5s with a three iron and you probably have a hybrid club in your bag. Am I right?

Formations in soccer are dynamic. There is a defensive shape, a transitioning shape and an attacking shape. Bruce's team was too inept to show us what the attacking shape looked like.

Thank you for complimenting me when trying to insult me. I tee off on par 5s with driver because I still need to make 3 good swings to reach in regulation.