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US Men's National Team (23 Viewers)

Ramsay Hunt Experience said:
It has to be said that Zardes had some really nice first touches through the knock out rounds in the Copa.  He might have had the second best tournament behind Brooks.  I know he works on them with that ball feeder thing, but he's such a streaky player.  I should have probably mentioned that he's more likely than Nagbe to make the lineup against St. V. I had completely forgotten him.  I still prefer Nagbe for these purposes, but unlike others, I appreciate what Zardes does bring to the team.  It's what's so frustrating about having Wood, Zardes, and Morris because if any one of them could file off the rough edges, he could be special.  But none of them are all THAT young.
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huh- I totally forgot about zardoz for that lineup too.

and totally agree with you about his copa, where he was at the top of his game. I still think part of what makes him great is his ability to read and make fantastic runs forward... which IMO he learned from Landog and Keane... so he can learn. hopefully that ball machine is providing dividends.

also agree that none of them are that young. zardoz, nagbe, wood... it's gotta be 2018 for them. will already be at the end of their viable careers by 2022.

 
Ramsay Hunt Experience said:
  It's what's so frustrating about having Wood, Zardes, and Morris because if any one of them could file off the rough edges, he could be special.  But none of them are all THAT young.
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Add Yedlin to that group too.  We have a bunch of guys that "almost" have the complete package but they are missing the technique piece to keep them from being considered above average or better pro's.

 
El Floppo said:
- but as opposed to those others just mentioned, pulisic really is still young.
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Agreed.  I feel like with the Old Man and Pulisic, we have at least 12-18 more months before we start to get twitchy as to whether they are getting first team minutes in some first division.

Pulisic spoiled us last year because he got decent minutes and you always kind of hope the line progresses upwards but this is part of the drawback of hoping our players play for great teams.  Great teams just reload constantly. 

 
NewlyRetired said:
Agreed.  I feel like with the Old Man and Pulisic, we have at least 12-18 more months before we start to get twitchy as to whether they are getting first team minutes in some first division.

Pulisic spoiled us last year because he got decent minutes and you always kind of hope the line progresses upwards but this is part of the drawback of hoping our players play for great teams.  Great teams just reload constantly. 
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Yedlin at least will still be in his prime, more or less, at 29 for the 2022 WC.

 
and getting back to the central MF for the US...

another name not said- Mix. 

he's not even dressing for NYCFC any more and viera has said that he's open to offers (none have apparently come).

 
El Floppo said:
and getting back to the central MF for the US...

another name not said- Mix. 

he's not even dressing for NYCFC any more and viera has said that he's open to offers (none have apparently come).
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I have to double check this but I think Mix is one of if not the most expensive NON DP in the league.  That makes trading him really hard because he destroys cap space between his salary and the alloc money he is chewing up.

I don't know if it is just the specific situation in NY but it seems MLS is too hard for him.

I still think he is a fairly talented player and hopefully he finds another team to start over with him.   Like many others, he no longer young anymore at 25 now.

 
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Things like this make me so hopeful for the future.  

This did not grab the ground breaking headlines the new LA stadium did but in many ways it might be more important.

=========================

Standing on a dusty 57-acre plot in the far reaches of the Salt Lake Valley, Real Salt Lake owner Dell Loy Hansen dreamed aloud and grandly of Olympic medals and World Cup victories.

"I call it the Harvard of soccer and education," Hansen said, as dozens of trucks and tractors roared during a groundbreaking ceremony Tuesday for the Major League Soccer club's new $50-million training facility and youth academy. "We literally will have no academy finer in the nation or in Canada than what we're building here."

The project calls for eight soccer fields, which would be used by Real Salt Lake; its minor league affiliate, the Real Monarchs; and the club's Under-16 and Under-18 teams. The Monarchs will play in a 5,000-seat stadium on the site off the Mountain View Corridor, near 14700 South and 3700 West.



 




"With this facility … and the opportunity we're going to have to continue to develop young talent, the sky is the limit," said RSL academy technical director Martin Vasquez, who along with his staff and current players will move from RSL's youth academy in Casa Grande, Ariz., to Herriman when the facility opens next August.

RSL officials estimate the facility will be home to about 50 full-time staffers as well as a 250-student charter school with a science, technology, engineering and math emphasis. About 40 of those students will be members of the youth academy.

Herriman city officials said they had been courting Hansen and Real Salt Lake for years. The city spent roughly $5.6 million from a Community Development Agency fund to purchase 30.1 acres land for the project and has entered into a longterm lease with Hansen and RSL. City council member Coralee Wessman-Moser said Herriman officials expect to recuperate that money within 12 years through impact fees and tax increment funding. Wessman-Moser also said Hansen had spent roughly $5 million on water infrastructure for the area, which will benefit other future developments in the area.

"The heavy equipment is going, the dust is floating in the air and you can smell diesel fuel. I don't think there's anything sweeter happening in Herriman today," said mayor Carmen Freeman, who believes the city will benefit from national and international publicity because of the project.

City manager Brett Wood said the facility would be a "great economic driver for our community."

Herriman youth players would be given special access to the facility's indoor and outdoor fields as part of the relationship with the city, Hansen said.

RSL officials said the franchise intends to continue to keep a footprint in Arizona and could continue operating its Casa Grande academy on some level, but would funnel about six to 12 players each year to the new academy.

Hansen, meanwhile, has plans to build regional training facilities in Utah and Arizona, where youth players, ages 7-14, would learn an "RSL-designed curriculum" with the hopes of developing talent to feed into the Herriman academy and eventually promoting the best to the Major League Soccer club.

 
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love the idea of combining the charter school.

is Utah a hotbed for youth soccer? or will they be importing kids for that academy?

IIRC, Philly set up a school... but I don't remember if it was only for United academy players or open to the public as well. Any sense of how that's going? ted?

 
El Floppo said:
love the idea of combining the charter school.

is Utah a hotbed for youth soccer? or will they be importing kids for that academy?
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Utah is average but because of where RSL lands on the map, they have control over a large region, including Arizona (where they set up their previous academy).  They are going to move those kids over to populate the new one in Utah.

 
El Floppo said:
IRC, Philly set up a school... but I don't remember if it was only for United academy players or open to the public as well. Any sense of how that's going? ted?
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That is correct.  I don't have any specifics of how the school is going but instinct tells me they love what is happening.  Earnie Stewart is trading away draft picks like they are meaningless.  I think one can read from that they must have a strong sense that they are going to be able to populate the young part of the team with home grown talent.

If we can can get 4 or 5 of these academies to hum along like what is already happening in Dallas, it is going to make a difference for the US National Team down the road.

 
El Floppo said:
article highlighting some comments from Sunderland fans (on one of their message boards, that) about Yedlin going to NU. worth a read.
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For the most part the mood seems to resonate what we all were thinking.  The main thought of those threads were "He's not a great RB, but he improved greatly last year and his pace pushing forward really helped take pressure of the defence.  Also, he's better than anyone they currently have."

It seems like Moyes either didn't watch Yedlin at the end of last year or has a different plan in place for how his backs play.  Kind of nice to see more than a few Sunderland fans miffed that they lost out on Yedlin to Newcastle.  No love lost between those fans.

 
So, US Soccer has suspended Hope Solo for 6 months and terminated her contract.

Seems a bit harsh for some inappropriate, but otherwise non-offensive, remarks following the loss in the Olympics.

 
Sinn Fein said:
So, US Soccer has suspended Hope Solo for 6 months and terminated her contract.

Seems a bit harsh for some inappropriate, but otherwise non-offensive, remarks following the loss in the Olympics.
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You act like it's her first offense and they have important games in the next 6 months. 

 
Poke_4_Life said:
You act like it's her first offense and they have important games in the next 6 months. 
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:shrug:

she was rude, and disrespectful. I get the public backlash, just seems harsh to terminate her contract for some comments made in the heat of the moment. 

I'll be surprised if she ever plays for the US again, which is fine, still seems a bit heavy handed here. 

 
Sinn Fein said:
:shrug:

she was rude, and disrespectful. I get the public backlash, just seems harsh to terminate her contract for some comments made in the heat of the moment. 

I'll be surprised if she ever plays for the US again, which is fine, still seems a bit heavy handed here. 
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It's probably safe to assume she was already on triple secret probation after her other stunts. 

 
Yeah, this wasn't 6 months for the comments. It was "We're tired of dealing with you and you're getting old anyway, so please go away so you don't embarrass us anymore".

 
Ramsay Hunt Experience said:
Stoke testing Dortmund's resolve with a big offer for Pulisic. 20 million Euros. 
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So at least we are not the only ones who think he might be something special.  That would obliterate the previous record transfer fee for an American.

If this amount is any where near true, I have no idea how Dortmund could turn it down.   It would be near 100% profit as Pulisic was signed for free out of the US Soccer academy system.

 
Poke_4_Life said:
It's probably safe to assume she was already on triple secret probation after her other stunts. 
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The statement by US Soccer alluded to what you are saying.  It would not surprise me if one of the US Soccer sponsors made a phone call to Sunil and said "enough is enough".

==============================================================

"The comments by Hope Solo after the match against Sweden during the 2016 Olympics were unacceptable and do not meet the standard of conduct we require from our National Team players," U.S. Soccer president Sunil Gulati said in a statement on Wednesday. "Beyond the athletic arena, and beyond the results, the Olympics celebrate and represent the ideals of fair play and respect. We expect all of our representatives to honor those principles, with no exceptions.

"Taking into consideration the past incidents involving Hope, as well as the private conversations we've had requiring her to conduct herself in a manner befitting a U.S. National Team member, U.S. Soccer determined this is the appropriate disciplinary action."

 
El Floppo said:
Kinda doubting the veracity of that pulisic offer.... because, whoa.
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Stoke's in this weird position squad-wise.  They have a bunch of 27-29 year olds and really need to continue to roll the roster over.  They started that last year with Imbula and Shaqiri and continued with Allen this summer, so he'd sort of be the icing on the cake and they'd be able to roll with what they have on offense for the next 4-5 years (assuming no one transfers out).  

They still need to roll over the defense, but I see why'd they do this, if they were sold on him (Cameron must give glowing reports about him).

I guess the more interesting question is why he'd go there besides the money.  They already have Arnautovic as the attacking LW, so it's not like he'd start immediately and the chances you ever play any European football are slim at best.   

 
Sammy3469 said:
Stoke's in this weird position squad-wise.  They have a bunch of 27-29 year olds and really need to continue to roll the roster over.  They started that last year with Imbula and Shaqiri and continued with Allen this summer, so he'd sort of be the icing on the cake and they'd be able to roll with what they have on offense for the next 4-5 years (assuming no one transfers out).  

They still need to roll over the defense, but I see why'd they do this, if they were sold on him (Cameron must give glowing reports about him).

I guess the more interesting question is why he'd go there besides the money.  They already have Arnautovic as the attacking LW, so it's not like he'd start immediately and the chances you ever play any European football are slim at best.   
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Serious question about Pulisic.  Would he qualify for a work permit in UK?  I don't think he has an European passport and he's only played a few USMNT games.

(I know if an EPL team pays 20mil Euro then he'd be permitted as an exceptional talent or whatever, but that requires an appeal I believe.)

 
Poke_4_Life said:
Serious question about Pulisic.  Would he qualify for a work permit in UK?  I don't think he has an European passport and he's only played a few USMNT games.

(I know if an EPL team pays 20mil Euro then he'd be permitted as an exceptional talent or whatever, but that requires an appeal I believe.)
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I believe he has a Croatian passport (or access to one), but I'm not 100% sure on that.   

 
NewlyRetired said:
here is the latest U17 roster:

No Ben Lederman.  

Good to see Weah.  

Atlanta United must be gobbling up the youth talent from their region.

Roster by Position:GOALKEEPERS (2): Alexander Budnik (Sockers FC; Arlington Heights, Ill.), Justin Garces (Kendall FC; Miami, Fla.)DEFENDERS (6): Jake Arteaga (LA Galaxy; Glendora, Calif.), Carlos Asensio (Atlanta United; Roswell, Ga.), Kelee Cornfield-Saunders (LA Galaxy; San Marcos, Calif.), Christopher Gloster (New York Red Bulls; Montclair, N.J.), Rayshaun McGann (Philadelphia Union; Royal Palm Beach, Fla.), Arturo Vasquez (FC Golden State; Mira Loma, Calif.)MIDFIELDERS (7): George Acosta (Weston FC; Hollywood, Fla.), Christopher Durkin (D.C. United; Glen Allen, Va.), Blaine Ferri (Solar Chelsea SC; Southlake, Texas), Christopher Goslin (Atlanta United; Locust Grove, Ga.), James Sands (New York Soccer Club; Rye, N.Y.), Adrian Villegas (Portland Timbers; Hood River, Ore.), Akil Watts (IMG Academy; Fort Wayne, Ind.)FORWARDS (5): Ayomide Akinola (Toronto FC; Brampton, Ontario), Andrew Carleton (Atlanta United; Powder Springs, Ga.), Zyen Jones (Atlanta United; Clarkston, Ga.), Joshua Sargent (St. Louis Scott Gallagher Missouri; O’Fallen, Mo.), Timothy Weah (Paris Saint-Germain; Rosedale, N.Y.)
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Good start for Carleton

https://twitter.com/ussoccer_ynt/status/768840217620905984

 
huh- that twitter feed led me to other stuff... (probably already posted in here)

USMNT u18s won a tourney in Czech Rep, beating Slovakia and Hungary by 3-1 each, Russia 5-3 and host CR 4-2. Impressive stuff!

With four goals in four games, striker Nick Taitague earned Most Valuable Player honors. Meantime, goalkeeper Brady Scott was recognized as the tournament’s top goalkeeper. Seven different goalscorers found the back of the net for the United States.

“Nick is a talent. Wherever we play, I think people are in awe of his technical ability and his ability to pass defenders.
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anybody know this kid?

 
El Floppo said:
Kinda doubting the veracity of that pulisic offer.... because, whoa.
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I have strong doubts myself, only because if the amount was true I think Dortmund would have sold him immediately.

Think about it from Dortmund's standpoint.  They "only" spent 15m on Dembele, who by all accounts is a fabulous young player.

 
NewlyRetired said:
El Floppo said:
Kinda doubting the veracity of that pulisic offer.... because, whoa.
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I have strong doubts myself, only because if the amount was true I think Dortmund would have sold him immediately.

Think about it from Dortmund's standpoint.  They "only" spent 15m on Dembele, who by all accounts is a fabulous young player.
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Stop it, you two.

 
Goff said we should expect the roster some time on Sunday.

We should get some leaks before then.  The first leaks I saw was Howard is in, Jones is very iffy (but JK has a habit of calling in hurt players to evaluate them for himself so he still could get called)

===============================

“Yeah, I’m heading into training camp for sure,” Howard said Wednesday.

Howard said he’ll join up with the U.S. after the Rapids’ match Friday against Real Salt Lake. The U.S. travels to St. Vincent for the Sept. 2 contest and will host Trinidad and Tobago on Sept. 6 in Jacksonville, Fla.

Despite losing the U.S. starting job to Brad Guzan during Copa America, it was still business as usual for the Rapids goalkeeper.

“Keep playing and performing. That’s all I’ve ever done,” Howard said of his mind-set heading into camp. “As far as player personnel decisions, I don’t make those, I never have. (I’m) trying to perform as best I can for the Colorado Rapids, then when I get into training camp, make sure I’m doing the business there. If selected to play, I’m fit and ready and hungry.”

Midfielder Jermaine Jones could find himself out of the World Cup qualifying picture next week as the U.S. international continues to work his way back from a knee injury that has sidelined him since July 4.

“Jermaine Jones is still day-to-day,” Rapids coach Pablo Mastroeni said Wednesday. “He’s still struggling with a little bit of the pain around that joint and the LCL.”

Mastroeni said Jones has not yet rejoined the Rapids for a full training session and declined to put a timeline on the midfielder’s return.

 
I think we all acknowledge that the US needs to improve every where, so lets set that aside for a second.

If you had to focus on one position (or place on the field) that you think needs to be improved during the Hex and before the WC, what would be your choice?

For me it is in the central midfield.

JK's 3 favorite players at that spot are Jones, Bradley and Beckerman. 

I believe Beckerman is past it now, at least at the Hex level of competition.  Jones is not only not getting younger he is continually hurt.  To expect him to be healthy and good in the next couple of years seems very risky to me.

And Bradley is a really big concern because mostly it is not age nor injuries with him.  He is just not performing to the level we need either at club or country.  

 
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