USMNT Roster for Panama, T&T

[UConnDan97]

We probably could have done better by starting Bradley, Feilhaber, Pulisic and Dax in a narrower diamond and let the fullbacks (I would have gone Yedlin and Arriola) provide the attacking width with overlapping runs.

Bingo! Absolutely right. Both Yedlin and Villafana are more than capable of making those runs all game long. Add to that the fact that we knew a draw sends us through anyways.

That is the most maddening thing about the game against TNT. It was a game plan seemingly made by someone who just learned soccer from a book at the library 15 minutes before the match started...

 

[meyers7]

I lost track of what you guys were arguing about.

4-3-3 vs 4-4-2 diamond. Which were we playing. They listed it as a 4-3-3 in the pregame, but we were playing the same 4-4-2 diamond we played against Panama.

I lost track of what you guys were arguing about.

Seems like formations are pretty dynamic. You have a defensive shape, a transitional shape and an attacking shape. I think that with the personnel we had out there, it would have looked like that with any formation. What I thought I saw was Jozy realizing that there was too much space back there so he was like “he guys, I guess I’ll run back here and try to connect with Michael.”

Yes, neither Altidore or Wood were getting much service in the 1st half. Altidore came back looking for the ball. Dempsey does that too when he plays up top (or as a 2nd striker). Wood, not so much.

T&T saw the space we gave Panama and they game planned it. Their coaches and players bragged about it before and after the game. Nagbe did his usual get the ball and dribble into traffic thing. He’s a a winger anyways. The whole thing was a shambles.

It was mentioned on one of the talk shows that T&T's manager had said something to the effect that if the USA came out again in the 4-4-2 diamond they would eat it up. And they did.

 

[SubbaBub]

Nearly everyone here saw the roster as a 3-5-3 roster. Playing any version of a 4-4-2 was dumb for the midfield and Jozy reasons stated.

The former would have had Bradley and anyone else under Pulisic in the midfield allowing easy transition from defense to attack and plenty of cover for ill-chosen Omar. Villafana and Yedlin working the flanks with Wood and Pulisic with Clint or Jozy in box to finish.

You leave it to the wingers to track back and the holding midfielders to cover them. If you could manage thar then you bear TT easily and are in Russia.