USMNT Talk
- Thread starter MyBoyVilla
- Start date
yea. i think GB has spent the last 4 years calling in too many different players and not making any real decisions as to who plays where and what formation to play. yea there is a general idea, but the lack of consistency with players in the starting XI is definitely to the detriment of the squad chemistry and cohesion. It doesn't matter if they all get along. they have limited time together. they need to spend that time learning the nuances of each other's play and learning the style GB wants them to play together.
too many inconsistent lineups. players who didn't look like they were taking the game seriously. just doesn't look good. i'm not sure we are favorites against wales or iran to be honest. Iran will know they are seen as the underdogs of the group and will come out swinging. a US team who probably thinks they are too good for Iran will probably get sucker punched and fall flat on their face. Wales are also no pushover for a US squad that plays like this. If they don't pick things up and play like a US team should play (with passion, tenacity, full tilt for 90 mins) we are gonna crash out of the group stages fast.
To be fair to Berhalter in some regard, there were a LOT of injuries to deal with during that period so he almost couldn't actually play the "best squad" at all times, let alone call them in to the camps.
Positives:
Turner looked great and has 7 starts with Arsenal to get into top form for WC.
Our attack was so non-existent Greg may be forced to call in Pefok for WC.
Our D was so bad Greg may be forced to call in Ream for the WC.
Our system was picked apart so easily, hopefully Greg decides he needs to be more flexible and find one that suits his best players for the WC in an attempt to keep his job.
Turner looked great and has 7 starts with Arsenal to get into top form for WC.
Our attack was so non-existent Greg may be forced to call in Pefok for WC.
Our D was so bad Greg may be forced to call in Ream for the WC.
Our system was picked apart so easily, hopefully Greg decides he needs to be more flexible and find one that suits his best players for the WC in an attempt to keep his job.
4 years of injuries keeping him from calling in somewhat consistent camps? i dunno about that.
he should have his starters and backups... and then add in some talent if people have breakthrough seasons or something.
as it stands, we have zero consistency at #9 and no definitely #1 keeper, two of the most important positions on the field. Those are big deals, imo.
Our pool of CBs can be broken down between those with pace and athleticism and those who are technically stronger.
Berhalter wants faster CBs in order to play a high line, which in turn allows us to press aggressively. The tradeoff for that is having CBs who aren't as good on the ball and not as good in distribution. We saw the downside of that today.
In the end, our CBs simply aren't up to the level of the rest of the team. We've got guys at winger, midfield and fullback who play in top leagues, often for top teams. For all the attention to the depth at striker, that position isn't too far behind. Centerback, however, isn't even close. Right now, we have all guys at MLS and playing in smaller leagues. Of the two guys in a top league, one has limitations and doesn't fit the plan, and the other is hurt and has barely played when healthy.
Centerback is a problem, and it's one we should have been focusing on more than we have been.
Berhalter wants faster CBs in order to play a high line, which in turn allows us to press aggressively. The tradeoff for that is having CBs who aren't as good on the ball and not as good in distribution. We saw the downside of that today.
In the end, our CBs simply aren't up to the level of the rest of the team. We've got guys at winger, midfield and fullback who play in top leagues, often for top teams. For all the attention to the depth at striker, that position isn't too far behind. Centerback, however, isn't even close. Right now, we have all guys at MLS and playing in smaller leagues. Of the two guys in a top league, one has limitations and doesn't fit the plan, and the other is hurt and has barely played when healthy.
Centerback is a problem, and it's one we should have been focusing on more than we have been.
He played our best available in the Gold Cup and Nations League final in 2021. Even better, he played guys who then won tournaments for him. Since then he has been dealing with injury after injury. The Octagon USMNT roster was a MASH unit.
2020-21 pre Gold Cup was Covid.
He was appointed in December 2018.
So unless you dispute the above, I understand your twice-stated complaint about "4 years" to be that he did not immediately identify our best players and play them consistently in 2019. I'm impressed if you even remember the injury and rosters from then. I don't, but I do remember he inherited an old, failing roster and completely turned it over, which I think required some experimentation. I'm kind of flabbergasted anyone would disagree about 2019 specifically, but otherwise why bring up the 4 years point? Twice?
I acknowledge that he probably has failed to call in some best players when available (ie not just when injured) in the last 15 months, especially for Camp Cupcake and other friendlies., but I think that's warranted precisely because of the injuries. He cannot rely on anyone to be there in Qatar, so you need to find out who can step in if needed.
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We were missing 5 outfield players today who usually start when healthy. And, that wasn't particularly out of the ordinary.
Your last sentence is exactly what I mean. Since he took over and knowing he can't rely on anyone to be healthy for the WC, shouldn't he have his 2nd and 3rd string pretty much set in stone by now? But to me, it seems like he's still experimenting with who those 2nd and 3rd string players will be. Because of injuries to many starters and covid and not calling in definite starters for cupcake friendlies, he should have had good looks at potential 2nd and 3rd string guys and know exactly who will fit in to the style he wants to play. I think it's a little late to still be trying to figure out "who can step in, if needed".
The US CB pairing was supposed to be Miles Robinson and Walker Zimmerman. Then Robinson got injured. Still, both aren't good enough for the international level.
This press release has no numbers and is crafted to avoid them. We have no reference as to whether there was an exclusive window previously, or what percentage of sales come through US Soccer (or just after release).
Also, qualification for the World Cup after the disaster of 2018 was a guaranteed boost no matter the jersey.
Nike will never share actual data, but this design has been panned - notably by the players themselves - and I would venture that sales will be lower than they could have been.
It seems like a no-win situation. In previous eras, the roster was more fixed and people complained that new players weren't being given a fair chance. Now the roster is more dynamic, lots of players are being given a chance to show what they can do and people are unhappy that the roster isn't stable enough.
The biggest issue I saw in today's game was just a lack of effort and urgency from the squad for large stretches of the match. I don't know if they didn't adjust well to the time change or something but the team just looked flat. The lack of effort seems particularly alarming when you consider some of the guys that saw time today are still fighting for spots on the roster. It won't matter who is on the team come WC time if they are going to play like they did today we are in trouble.
I think this is really the key. Basically, we flipped the table over. And he had to reconstruct the squad while dealing with all the pandemic-related complications. Tough job.
Not only that, but the size of the talent pool was also astounding. And super young. If I'm reading the numbers right, he's had 83 different players in camp since taking over, with 52 of them getting their first cap.
Let's also not forget how complicated WCQ was. We had so many 3 match in 6-8 days stretches, with long travel between host cities, after many players flew in from Europe, playing an already congested club schedule due COVID catch ups.
It would have been impossible to play our best XI in every game, even without injuries.
It would have been impossible to play our best XI in every game, even without injuries.
All true. And if I'm not mistaken, we still haven't had our Core Five -- Pulisic, Reyna, Adams, McKennie and Dest -- all on the pitch at the same time, let alone starting when fit and in form. I think the friendly against Japan was supposed to be it, but then Puli picked up a knock at the last minute.
Talk about bad luck.
We also don't have Tim Weah, Yunus Musah, Antonee Robinson, Miles Robinson, Daryl Dike or Chris Richards available right now, for various reasons. Reggie Cannon just got hurt in camp. Just one damn thing after another.
So, for all the tactical criticisms (we all have them, it's part of the fun) and questionable roster calls (like Pefok, but personally I think he's on the plane already), we have to acknowledge the good things Berhalter has managed to do under some pretty trying circumstances.
Need some offensive inspiration somewhere. KSA dropping back into a 6-4-0 at times didn't help, but there looks to be a lot to figure out...
don't think pefok would have helped them today. just a lot of sloppy play. no urgency.
scally looked good when he came on.
I don't know -- I feel like we are doing the equivalent of watching someone try to build a car with parts from 11 different manufacturers. Just no identity or cohesion. I don't think any one player in our pool is going to save us. It's either going to click/gel in two months or not.
Unfortunately, Jordan Pefok isn't the difference between a first round out and a run to the knock out stages.
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