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US Men's National Team (11 Viewers)

wdcrob said:
:shrug:  We're not Argentina, but sometimes #### happens and you win these games.

If you didn't like the US play in this tournament you should probably just quit watching.  The game against Ecuador, comfortably up 2-0 and up a man if Jones doesn't lose his mind, is about as good as we've ever played.  
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gb your heart, you must be a Liverpool fan to be able to handle that much pain :lmao:  

#suckitgator

 
SlimShady said:
I'm seeing it at the youth level, the best athletes are playing soccer instead of football around here.  A lot of parents don't want the kids getting their bell rung.  You'll see a far better athlete coming up the jr soccer ladder
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For the most part, I don't think even the second or third best tier of athletes are playing soccer. If they are not playing basketball or football, its because they can't. 

 
TwinTurbo said:
For the most part, I don't think even the second or third best tier of athletes are playing soccer. If they are not playing basketball or football, its because they can't. 
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Not what I'm seeing (7 year old).  Kids aren't playing football, and while some are playing basketball most realize they have to be 6'+ to even compete and that isn't most kids.

 
SlimShady said:
I'm seeing it at the youth level, the best athletes are playing soccer instead of football around here.  A lot of parents don't want the kids getting their bell rung.  You'll see a far better athlete coming up the jr soccer ladder
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With a few notable exceptions, the US wasn't out-athleticed tonight.  I think the US can produce players with better skills and awareness but so can other countries.  Everybody is improving but only half improve relative to the world.  That's the area where the US hasn't improved for a decade.

World soccer is a game of strata.  The top tier is established and aside from the occasional comet, don't change quickly.  Today's result showed how far away we are from the top.    September will show how far from Trinidad & Tobago.

 
rascal said:
Not what I'm seeing (7 year old).  Kids aren't playing football, and while some are playing basketball most realize they have to be 6'+ to even compete and that isn't most kids.
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We need to get more inner city kids playing. Our best athletes, by and large, aren't in upper middle class suburbs. 

 
Eephus said:
With a few notable exceptions, the US wasn't out-athleticed tonight.  I think the US can produce players with better skills and awareness but so can other countries.  Everybody is improving but only half improve relative to the world.  That's the area where the US hasn't improved for a decade.

World soccer is a game of strata.  The top tier is established and aside from the occasional comet, don't change quickly.  Today's result showed how far away we are from the top.    September will show how far from Trinidad & Tobago.
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Belgium & Germany revamped their entire youth structure years ago (post-2006) & now both are bearing the fruit...don't think it's necessarily because they have better athletes...

 
Kafka said:
Belgium & Germany revamped their entire youth structure years ago (post-2006) & now both are bearing the fruit...don't think it's necessarily because they have better athletes...
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Germany has always been Germany and always will be.

Belgium hasn't proven anything to me yet.

 
@JasonLaCanfora "Pulisic needs to replace Bradley in this lineup ASAP as the supposed central attacking midfielder.  Let him cut his teeth with Jones"

 
Kafka said:
"They've"... #### off, caveman.
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:eyeroll:

Great contribution.  The "we'll be better in 10 years" mantra is going on its 3rd decade.  Many (myself included) had great hopes that it was coming true when Klinny was hired.  It has not come to fruition.  It was said 10 years ago, and it is not true today.  Many of our better athletes are now playing soccer earlier, but under the current regime I don't think we're progressing to the elite level.

I'll still root for the USA with all I have, but I've tempered my expectations.  You can take your worthless comment elsewhere.

 
gianmarco said:
The game was out of control by the end there, but we looked SIGNIFICANTLY better in the 2nd half, IMO.  More possession, it seemed, and some actual purpose moving forward.  I think if we had started that way when it was 0-0, things could have definitely been different.  We completely threw away the 1st half of the game.  And CP was not a defensive liability whatsoever. 
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Argentina wasn't pressing the same way once they were up by 3. No need to give up the clean sheet. Pulisic got banged around a lot, and while he didn't embarrass himself, I didn't see the skills to call him a must start.

I'd rather see If we can find someone to play the #6 without giving the ball to the other team a half dozen times per game.

 
Grades

Guzan:  D+(did have a nice save v Messi)

Fab:  D

Yedlin:  C+

Brooks:  C

Cameron:  C

Bradley:  F (wish I could go lower)

Beckerman:  F

Zusi:  C

Zardes:  B-

Wondo:  F(wish I could go lower)

Pulisic:  C+

Birnbaum:  D

Klinsman:  FFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFF

 
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I don't understand how making the semis of a major tournament (and playing well in the first 4 games) and then getting outclassed by maybe the best team in the world and one of if not the best players ever isn't good enough for some of you.

Your expectations are entirely and laughably out of whack. 

 
Its a culture thing that I don't think will ever change. The youth clubs in the soccer powers will spend millions of dollars and let thousands of 8-12 year old kids wash out to find ONE player good enough to star for their team.  They don't care about winning youth games, getting their players college scholarships, pleasing parents or making a profit (on the youth teams). They care about developing stars to fit their systems and win big games at the senior level.

I just don't see the US ever getting there. Our sports culture doesn't allow for that sort of cut-throat mentality and too many youth teams are set up as for-profit organizations. The MLS academy system is a good start and seems to be going in the right direction, but I just don't see it ever getting anywhere near the point where we're churning out players like the elite clubs in Europe (or even the 2nd tier ones).

In order for the US to have any shot of winning a world cup, we'd basically need like 7-8 players who are significantly better than ANY player we've ever produced. And even then, that would really just put us even with the elite upper tier.

 
Kafka said:
Just talking development of young talent....Belgium has always been Belgium and always will be.?
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I'd be happy if the US could emulate Switzerland in terms of development.

Belgium has produced a wave of talented individuals.  Time will tell if its sustainable or just dumb luck.

 
Premier said:
I don't understand how making the semis of a major tournament (and playing well in the first 4 games) and then getting outclassed by maybe the best team in the world and one of if not the best players ever isn't good enough for some of you.

Your expectations are entirely and laughably out of whack. 
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Is that the hottest you can do? 

You're laughably out of whack.

 
Premier said:
I don't understand how making the semis of a major tournament (and playing well in the first 4 games) and then getting outclassed by maybe the best team in the world and one of if not the best players ever isn't good enough for some of you.

Your expectations are entirely and laughably out of whack. 
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Realistically, you're right.

But we're America.  We expect our sports teams to be better. :shrug:

 
The Gator said:
yup

Pay to play is killing the development 
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Gator, know anything about the Liverpool youth academies here?  They seem to have 1 in California, 1 in Florida, 1 in South Carolina, 1 in Michigan and 3 in Texas..

Ironically, 3 of those states are recruiting hotbeds (in college football).

Are other EPL teams doing this?  I think it's a brilliant idea and if I owned an EPL or La Liga team, I'd build academies all across America.  

The key, of course, is to make soccer "cool" to the best athletes in school.  That's easier said than done, but the concussion stuff in American football has to a a positive as we move forward.

 
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