He has. I also really like Omar Gonzalez (possibly a homer pick but whatever) and I was disappointed he didn't get the call for the Gold Cup. I also live in fear of Timmy Chandler getting capped by the Germans. There is some young talent in the back... its just that what we have now isn't particularly inspiring.
I wouldn't say anyone is looking good since there's not really any competition against them. I can say some people are not looking good though. The top scorer little Willy Wonka guy up top doesn't deserve to start. I think Dempsey should be pushed up and another midfielder (maybe Klej) should be started in mid. Does anyone know why Edu is not playing? Is he in the dog house or injured?
I love Mo (also a homer pick), but do you want him over Jones? I know Jones hasn't looked great in this competition, but he's simply a more talented player than Edu.
Edu yes. I'm not sure what was up with Clint and Landon. They were just off. However, Jozy's strike was nice.
USA v Panama A bunch of dumb asses taking pictures at the bottom, instead of watching the game... Blah!
There's a whole lot for me to disagree with in such a short post. I don't think we played poorly at all. On an average night finishing, we win that game 4-0 or better. The effort was there and we were consistently dangerous. The problem was finishing. Yes, its a problem we have often. But never to that extent and I don't anticipate that type of finishing to happen against Jamaica. Additionally, I understand wanting a new coach for each 4 year cycle, but Bob has consistently overachieved in his other competitive tournaments. Won the Gold Cup in 2007, made the final and nearly won the Confed Cup, won the group in South Africa. To say that we're "playing worse than normal" is pretty harsh when you consider his accomplishments. I'm not necessarily disagreeing that we should have gone in another direction coaching wise for this cycle, but Bob is by far the most accomplished coach that we've ever had.
Have you watched the Guadoluope players at all? I play against more skilled guys than some of those guys. Anything that looked good last night should have looked better. Do not let anything looking good last night fool you. If it was Mexico last night, it'd be a night you'd want to forget.
Honestly, we could play our A game and still lose to Mexico. They're simply much better than us at this point. The finishing was horrid last night. I won't argue that. But that is the main flaw people saw in our game, and it won't happen again. It's pretty much impossible for us to do that poorly in front of net again.
Exactly. This was the Canada game all over again. Guadeloupe didn't really pressure us at all and we were still not press them enough in their end. Dempsey's tap-in epitomized what is so wrong with this team. They act like they got the respect of the world now and they are not up for it. The issues they've been suffering from since the Confederations Cup are ever more present with how poorly they start matches. Can someone answer this question? If this team likes to believe they are the kings of CONCACAF why do they play two holding mids in Jones and Bradley against GUADELOUPE? CANADA? For crying out loud if you think you are better go out there and prove it. This team is just painful to watch. The squad we have is XI men deep with the rest of the guys on the bench Bradley chooses are not game changers that can give this team a lift when things aren't right. If Freddy Adu is going to be called in to this squad and be your only player that can at least try and create chances off the bench then he better be in the 18. Why call him up if he isn't going to play? Could've called up Torres or Mix instead. This is just too painful to watch. I am so sick and tired of Bradley's conservative approach. The US even for their lackluster displays have still managed to get the easiest side of the bracket. they get through Jamaica and they get a rematch vs Panama most likely in the semis. Interesting note: Donovan and Dempsey are going to be at weddings this Saturday right before the game in CA and TX respectively. I don't know what to think of that.
I don't wanna judge anyone's mental state, but this seriously looks like a case of not giving a shit. Especially the veterans who have accomplished the most. I know, never judge a book by its cover, but i just see no passion...
What? We had 20 shots! Did we have to break 40 to have been sufficiently dangerous? Pressure wasn't the problem. Finishing was. I'm not trying to say that I'm excited about the results we've gotten so far. I'm not. But I think you're making too much of it. And I don't really like your suggestion in your second paragraph. It's just horrible for the team to do that. You're suggesting that we change our shape against lesser teams to put on a show and then try to put it all together at once when we face a legit side like Mexico. It doesn't work like that. Jones and Bradley need work together if they want to build any semblance of a partnership going forward. That's especially true in the case of a newcomer like Jones. That partnership will be key if we want to have any chance of slowing down Chicharito. I'm also not sure why you hate Bob so much. We're not capable of playing a beautiful, flowing game right now. The talent doesn't exist. If we had a coach come in and try to get us to play that type of game, we'd get slaughtered by any int'l side worth a damn.
We are playing against some pretty poor teams. Our talent alone is good enough to create decent chances. The problem is not the chances we create, the problem is how we create them. Is it because the opposing team does offers no resistance? YEAH. Canada and Guadeloupe offered nothing. The attack was not about combining with each other. The only time I saw the US combine well was at the end of the Panama game where Bradley missed the tying goal. That is what is missing. That is the coaching. It's always been about us having "great athleticism and team spirit." How can you ever progress with this thinking? We may not be Spain, but we do have the players in our Best XI to play good game that is based on possession. You say we don't have the players, I say that we have enough for our Starting XI at the very least. Dempsey, Donovan, Bradley and Jones aren't schmucks. Then you have the likes of Chandler, Holden, and Lichaj. Technically this team is good enough. They have the pieces. The problem is the coach and his tactics. We Bradley the guy who is from the same coaching tree since Steve Sampson. How can you progress when you are hiring coaches that have learned the game the same way? Let's also look at the qualifications Bradley had as a Manager in MLS. He won how many MlLS Cups? 1. When? In 1998. After that what did Bradley do? Fail in NY and do an "decent" job at Chivas USA. That's what it takes to be a manager for this national team? One MLS Cup. We have such high standards. Our players play in Europe at the highest level in the football world. Our manager won one MLS Cup. Their is definitely a disparity between the level of our players and the manager. I believe this team has not reached its' potential of being a competitive team in every match it plays. Also you say we get slaughtered by any decent side if we play a more attacking style, well if you look at our last match vs Spain we got slaughtered playing conservatively. You want more examples look at the Confederations Cup. Look at the Olympic team Brazil beat us with last year. More often than not the best team will win. You want a poor man's example of how I think we should play? I want to play like El Salvador did in their first half vs Mexico? That's how you play a 4-5-1. With energy and belief that you are good enough to attack and take it to the opposition. Versus the big teams that's how I expect us to play. With Confidence. We are not playing that way right now and haven't really played that way. You say we aren't good enough, I say we are.
What f.in channel is this on? I want to set the DVR for the Mexico game tomorrow but I can't find it anywhere.
I was hoping it was on Gol or Fox Soccer. I guess I'll have to push through all my channels to find those. Thanks for the tip.
