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US Men's National Team (6 Viewers)

I think we missed some of Dempsey's guile in there. The players have so little imagination in the final 3rd.

At least we had some decent possession in the second half (I am grasping at straws here).

 
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Some good news came out today about the exciting young player Kekuta Manneh who said he is expecting his US citizenship on September 20th.

Even though he has been playing for Vancouver, he commutes to the US every day to make sure he keeps his residency in the US for this specific purpose.

He will be 21 when he receives his citizenship. He moved to the US when he was 15.

I think he is a player who can add something different for the US.

 
NewlyRetired said:
Some good news came out today about the exciting young player Kekuta Manneh who said he is expecting his US citizenship on September 20th.

Even though he has been playing for Vancouver, he commutes to the US every day to make sure he keeps his residency in the US for this specific purpose.

He will be 21 when he receives his citizenship. He moved to the US when he was 15.

I think he is a player who can add something different for the US.
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He will be a great add to the team. Pacey and plays wing. Decent dribbling. About all I know.
 
Huh.

I actually thought they played well- liked what I saw from the team, especially in how they held their shape and seemed to have an edge through the middle. Too bad that individually they were a #### show. I started substituting my own cartoon sound affects every time Jozy, Yedlin or Zardoz touched the ball. Boing. Clang. Kapow. Crunch. Even Bradley kept missing passes.

But honestly, if the players didn't give the final ball away over and over with mistraps and horror show passes, it would have been a blowout. No schtick. I liked how they moved the ball around and especially how jones and Bradley kept close and were able to link up. Really liked seeing Nagbe complete that triangle. I do agree that Deuce would have helped open things up up front

Orso looked good on the flank imo. Ream even better, other than giving up a step. And Besler Cameron did well limiting a very tough Kenyan jones.

I'm not even drunk.

 
NewlyRetired said:
sigh, I will take the 4 points but we looked like ### most of that game.
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And ftr, I expected ###, but thought the US looked the better team and deserved to win... which is a nice change, especially away. TnT looked like they were desperate to hold onto getting a point there for the last 20 minutes; given what I saw from them at the GC, I expected it to be the other way around.

 
again- given how they've been playing, how TnT have been playing and a lot of what could have been if the forwards could have consistently controlled the ball- a solid result and away point. yeah, given how well the team played, the individual play let them down and really should have opened up the offense. but I still am really happy with how the team, not individuals played.

strange to see Bradley's many give-aways... but it looked he was seeing something in the runs upfield (off camera) that had him and other deeper lying players trying to put the ball into tougher spots forward vs the easier short ball. disappointed that it repeatedly failed, but I was happy to see them trying something other than side-to-side or backwards. and MoM for was Jones who was all over the place defensively, playing the smart and easy ball out, but also seemed to buy into holding back to help the D more than roaming forward as he usually does.

some quotes:

"It was a great performance," Cameron said of his side's showing. "This is qualifying. This is what happens. They always make it difficult when we're playing away, and they did. We could have done better in the final third, but that will come. It's still a great point on the road."

"In the middle, especially in the first 20 minutes, we had some issues," Klinsmann said. And after five years, there's still the question of how Jones and Michael Bradley can best coexist in the center of the field. "They took a little bit to find their balance in midfield with Michael and Jermaine, especially going forward because they were too often next to each other instead of actually staggering," Klinsmann said. "So we corrected that after about 25 minutes. I told Michael to go higher up so we could find better outlets there." It worked, too, with the best scoring opportunities for either team coming for the U.S. in the second half. "We had the better chances," Howard said. "I thought defensively we were good. We didn't give them too much. [it went] exactly how we figured it would go: Tight game, point on the road. All is well I think."
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El Floppo said:
NewlyRetired said:
sigh, I will take the 4 points but we looked like ### most of that game.
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And ftr, I expected ###, but thought the US looked the better team and deserved to win... which is a nice change, especially away. TnT looked like they were desperate to hold onto getting a point there for the last 20 minutes; given what I saw from them at the GC, I expected it to be the other way around.
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Talk about damning with faint praise.

 
I agree with Floppo. We were composed, worked the ball out the back repeatedly, but we're just a tad off in the final third.

I also think at home we only need one of Ream or Oro at the back and either Fabien or Yedlin at OB. Both guys seem to combine better with a dedicated left or right midfielder.

 
and in spite of some real sitters that were missed (zardez x2 with his head, and Jozy played through perfectly by.. Fab?.. and clanging his first touch), the US didn't ultimately pay. this is WCQ, not friendlies any more- away points in ugly games are the bread and butter of moving on to Russia.

 
I must have watched a different game then Floppo... I thought we were horrible. The field didnt help as it was thick and slow but we didnt move well and had no imagination going forward. Jozy played better then he has (but thats not saying much), Ream is horrible and takes 20 minutes to decide where to throw the ball on a throw in. Bradley was poor at every pass. yedlin doesnt see the runs and Im sure even if he did no one would have seen him to pass the ball.

It really looked like we played for the draw and not to win....

ETA: I thought Jones looked good. Zardes and Altidore didnt play well off each other (Zardes never seemed ready for the flick or knock down from Altidore).

As far as keepers, I agree we need to be looking for the GK who will be our top man at the WC. Guzan isnt it. Howard shouldn't be it. But whos next? So at the moment, we go with our top keeper, and to me thats Howard.

 
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B Maverick said:
I must have watched a different game then Floppo... I thought we were horrible. The field didnt help as it was thick and slow but we didnt move well and had no imagination going forward. Jozy played better then he has (but thats not saying much), Ream is horrible and takes 20 minutes to decide where to throw the ball on a throw in. Bradley was poor at every pass. yedlin doesnt see the runs and Im sure even if he did no one would have seen him to pass the ball.

It really looked like we played for the draw and not to win....

ETA: I thought Jones looked good. Zardes and Altidore didnt play well off each other (Zardes never seemed ready for the flick or knock down from Altidore).

As far as keepers, I agree we need to be looking for the GK who will be our top man at the WC. Guzan isnt it. Howard shouldn't be it. But whos next? So at the moment, we go with our top keeper, and to me thats Howard.
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He's more than good enough. If all our outfield players were as good as Guzan we'd be in great shape.

 
B Maverick said:
I must have watched a different game then Floppo... I thought we were horrible.
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I don't want to speak for Floppo here but I think he is saying that compared to how bad we have played, at home, against clubs probably weaker than T&T, this was actually a step up from that.

Now granted, I think Floppo and I both agree we are coming off arguably the worst run of games since 1990, so there is really only one direction to move, even if it is a small step.

We should just be thankful we landed in the easiest group and that we should have some time to get this sorted before the hex starts.

 
aside from the throw-ins, in what way did you think Ream was horrible?

dead horse and all- but I thought they showed ideas going forward... just the combination of poor touches from Jozy/Zardoz and poor passes from Bradley and everybody else really, made a mess of it. spacing-wise, it was the first game I remember where they always had numbers around the ball on both sides of the ball. Jozy wasn't getting isolated- he always had zardoz and a MF nearby to help him out.

I agree about playing for safety at first- but by the last 20 minutes of the game, TnT looked like the team hoping to just hold on and salvage a point.

honestly- maybe I was overestimating TnT based on GC performance and/or understimating the US- but for an away WCQ game, I was happy with the overall team performance. and it gave me some confidence going forward that this combination of players is starting to figure out how to play together. ideally, they learn to how... play... too.

 
Does anyone know if there will be a replay of last nights game? Had work to do in hotel and never did stream it.

Given the mixed opinions I'd like to watch it even though I now know the result.

 
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Poke_4_Life said:
Does anyone know if there will be a replay of last nights game? Had work to do in hotel and never did stream it.

Given the mixed opinions I'd like to watch it even though I now know the result.
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I was just popping in to say that I was also traveling and instead of reading the thread, was looking for a good recap. But if it's going to be replayed, that's good too. I don't get BeIN or NBC Universo though so probably no options for me.

I watched the St. Vincent game on delay on Saturday morning and never really recapped it, but what is there really to say? You'd hope that early goal allowed knocked some sense into em. Not sure what else to expect other than a 6-1 win. I thought Bobby Wood looked pretty decent.

 
http://www.mlssoccer.com/post/2015/11/18/report-us-soccer-adds-az-alkmaar-academy-director-aloys-wijnker-youth-advisor

US Soccer may be bringing in help for its youth development program.

Reports emerged early this week that AZ Alkmaar academy director Aloys Wijnker has been brought on as an advisor for youth development.

Prior to being named his current position in 2005, Wijnker was a youth coach with Alkmaar’s U-15 and U-17 sides. Last year, Alkmaar received academy of the year honors in the Eredivisie.

US Soccer has yet to make an official announcement.

 
http://www.soundersfc.com/post/2015/11/18/sounders-fc-confirms-jordan-morris-offered-richest-homegrown-contract-mls-history

Seattle Sounders General Manager and President of Soccer Garth Lagerwey confirmed Wednesday that the club has offered the richest Homegrown Player contract in MLS history to Jordan Morris, in hopes that he’ll join the club after wrapping up his college career at Stanford University.

Lagerwey made the announcement during a conference call with media members recapping the season and discussing potential moves during the offseason. The signing of Morris – a Sounders FC Academy product and college standout who is also a rising star with the U.S. National Team – appears to be one of the club’s top goals.

NCAA rules prohibit Lagerwey and the Sounders from speaking with Morris until the end of the college season in early December, but Lagerwey said he is “confident we have a feel” for how Morris feels about the club and his future in Seattle.

“It’s up to Jordan,” Lagerwey said. “Jordan will come out when he wants to come out, and he’ll go where he wants to go. We hope he signs with us, but it’s out of our control.”

Morris, 21, was named the Pac-12 Player of the Year on Tuesday after leading Stanford to its second-consecutive outright conference title. He was also recently called into Jurgen Klinsmann’s 23-man camp for the USMNT's first two World Cup qualifiers, and came on as a sub in a win over St. Vincent and the Grenadines last week.

LA Galaxy midfielder/forward Gyasi Zardes is currently the highest-paid Homegrown Player in MLS, according to numbers released earlier this year by the MLS Players Union.

 
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NewlyRetired said:
NCAA rules prohibit Lagerwey and the Sounders from speaking with Morris until the end of the college season in early December, but Lagerwey said he is “confident we have a feel” for how Morris feels about the club and his future in Seattle.

“It’s up to Jordan,” Lagerwey said. “Jordan will come out when he wants to come out, and he’ll go where he wants to go. We hope he signs with us, but it’s out of our control.”
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Club managers in other countries must laugh so hard when they read stuff like this.

 
CletiusMaximus said:
NewlyRetired said:


NCAA rules prohibit Lagerwey and the Sounders from speaking with Morris until the end of the college season in early December, but Lagerwey said he is confident we have a feel for how Morris feels about the club and his future in Seattle.



Its up to Jordan, Lagerwey said. Jordan will come out when he wants to come out, and hell go where he wants to go. We hope he signs with us, but its out of our control.
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Club managers in other countries must laugh so hard when they read stuff like this.
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I'm 99% sure the rest of the world laughs at the entire NCAA setup. Any other place in the world a 21-year old would be on year 3 as a pro...and that not just a Jordan Morris problem

 
None of that is wrong, per se, but if we look at the US program as a whole, is it really true that kids that are being developed by clubs are turning out as better players than those that went to college?

I mean, historically, Tab Ramos, Claudio Reyna, Clint Dempsey, and Eddie Pope all went to college. But even recently, are we really sure that Jozy turned out better going off to Villareal compared to Nagbe going to Akron?

There are a lot of problems with the college game, but getting developed by a Bruce Arena at Virginia or a Caleb Porter at Akron could very well have been better than going and being allowed to rot in some European team's youth system.

EDIT: One more point. A lot of those 21 year olds are players that European teams have already given up on. If everything breaks right, maybe that kid works his way up through conference/lower league football and becomes Jamie Vardy. But maybe that late bloomer never develops instead. There's no one ideal system.

 
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As a guy who runs a youth soccer organization I would love to hear examples of guys that went either way with success. I don't watch MLS much and I rarely watch college. I'm too busy with my club.

 
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Sinn Fein said:
Not a huge deal, but CCV traveled with Spurs for their Europa league game tomorrow. Decent chance of making the bench.
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I hope he doesn't decide to play with England. In all honesty- better chance of getting to play int he WC every cycle playing with the US. not like either country is going to win it any time soon- might as well maximize your chances of at least playing in it... and likely starting.

 
El Floppo said:
Sinn Fein said:
Not a huge deal, but CCV traveled with Spurs for their Europa league game tomorrow. Decent chance of making the bench.
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I hope he doesn't decide to play with England. In all honesty- better chance of getting to play int he WC every cycle playing with the US. not like either country is going to win it any time soon- might as well maximize your chances of at least playing in it... and likely starting.
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England's chances of qualifying each cycle are at least as good as ours'. Plus Euros>Gold Cup

 
Sebowski said:
El Floppo said:
Sinn Fein said:
Not a huge deal, but CCV traveled with Spurs for their Europa league game tomorrow. Decent chance of making the bench.
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I hope he doesn't decide to play with England. In all honesty- better chance of getting to play int he WC every cycle playing with the US. not like either country is going to win it any time soon- might as well maximize your chances of at least playing in it... and likely starting.
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England's chances of qualifying each cycle are at least as good as ours'. Plus Euros>Gold Cup
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nothing's better than the gold cup. Cuba vs Antigua? lights' out excitement.

ok- yeah. Euros > GC.

 
Sebowski said:
El Floppo said:
Sinn Fein said:
Not a huge deal, but CCV traveled with Spurs for their Europa league game tomorrow. Decent chance of making the bench.
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I hope he doesn't decide to play with England. In all honesty- better chance of getting to play int he WC every cycle playing with the US. not like either country is going to win it any time soon- might as well maximize your chances of at least playing in it... and likely starting.
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England's chances of qualifying each cycle are at least as good as ours'. Plus Euros>Gold Cup
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Our highest risk games come against Trinidad and Tabago. The entire CONCACAF qualifying is designed so that the US and Mexico qualify. Look at how bad Mexico was last qualifying cycle. They STILL qualified.

 
PIK95 said:
As a guy who runs a youth soccer organization I would love to hear examples of guys that went either way with success. I don't watch MLS much and I rarely watch college. I'm too busy with my club.
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I guess success is a bit in the eye of the beholder as it looks like a mixed bag to me.

Below I will list out some National team players (limiting it to the past couple of years) on whether or not they have attended college for at least 1 year.

* First, all of the German Dual nationals did not go to college (Brooks, Wooten, Chandler, Green, Williams, Boyd, Jones and Fab), as well as Bacon and Mix not attending.

*Keepers

Guzan, Rimando, and Johnson attended college

Howard, Hamid and Yarbrough did not

*Defenders

Yedlin, Ream, Besler, Cameron, Evans, and Gonzo attended college

Shea, Miazga, Orozco, Alvarado, Spector, DMB, and Garza did not

* Midfielders

Nagbe, Ibarra, Bedoya, Nguyen, Zusi, Corona, Davis, and Kitchen attended college

Bradley, Beckerman, Morales, and Gil did not

* Forwards

Morris, Zardes, Gordon, Dempsey, and Wondo attended college

Jozy, Wood, Agudelo, and Rubin did not

 
Sebowski said:
El Floppo said:
I hope he doesn't decide to play with England. In all honesty- better chance of getting to play int he WC every cycle playing with the US. not like either country is going to win it any time soon- might as well maximize your chances of at least playing in it... and likely starting.
Click to expand...
England's chances of qualifying each cycle are at least as good as ours'. Plus Euros>Gold Cup
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I disagree with this a little.

Not only do I think England has a slightly tougher path to qualify than the US does, but CCV is going to face significantly more competition in England than he would here.

Those two items added together means his overall opportunity is better with the US.

And while I agree that the Euros are >>>> than the GC, I think the Euro's == the expanded Copa America next summer.

My guess is that once CONCACAF and CONMEBOL see how outrageously lucrative the games will be next summer, that this may not be a one off tournament.

 
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JK on many different US topics

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

Portland Timbers midfielder Darlington Nagbe has only made two substitute appearances for the the United States, but coach Jurgen Klinsmann is already calling him a "great fit."

Klinsmann had to wait to call up the 25-year-old until he became a U.S. citizen in September, and he played in his first international games in two World Cup qualifiers last week against St. Vincent and the Grenadines Trinidad and Tobago.

And the U.S. coach said he liked what Nagbe has brought to the squad so far.

"We found a player that is really good handling the ball in both directions," Klinsmann said. "He is responsible defensively, to always go behind the ball and to defend, and help out. When we go forward, he knows when to pass, when to dribble, when to keep things racing forward, and also when to take some risks in a certain moment.

"He has a change of pace in one-on-one situations when he goes at defensive midfielders. He has the confidence to get past them and to get closer to the box.

"Darlington is a real nice option now going forward. He had to wait a long time, and we've been waiting for him as well, but it's a great fit and we are glad to have him on board."

Nagbe's international debut came in the middle of the Timbers' MLS playoff run, with the club now one step from reaching its first MLS final after Sunday's 3-1 win over FC Dallas in the first leg of their Western Conference final.

Klinsmann called the MLS playoffs "tremendously exciting."

"The games in the first round with the penalty shootout, to Portland and Kansas City, to games that were very close, very tight and hard fought. It's been very exciting. The stadiums are packed, the fans are fully engaged and the teams battle themselves through."

"Sometimes you have your favorite pick then you realize after a game or two, your favorite is not there anymore and out of the playoffs. It's at another level this year and I can't wait to see the MLS Cup final."

Some of the futures of other American internationals in MLS are more uncertain, with Jermaine Jones' contract with the New England Revolution expiring.

But Klinsmann said Jones' spot in the U.S. squad is not in danger.

"He's not ready to give his spot up," Klinsmann said. "He's 34 years old, but he's a rock. He's in there every time it matters, he stands his man. He makes it clear to the younger players that he's not giving up his spot. These kind of competitions are real important with the team."


As Klinsmann continues to bring young players into the squad, he insisted that Jones and Toronto FC's Michael Bradley remain the core of the team.

"It's real critical between Bradley and Jones, like all the fans know, they are important to our team," Klinsmann said. These two always coordinate themselves on the field. They are experienced and know what to do in specific situations. We constantly go over their tactical approach in a game because they can play many different ways.

"Now you can complement a Jermaine Jones or a Michael Bradley with a more defensive midfielder, like a Kyle Beckerman, or you can complement them with more offensive midfielders, like a Darlington Nagbe or Mix Diskerud. But the heart of this team is always in the center of the park, which is Bradley and Jones."

Klinsmann also said he saw improvement late in the MLS season from striker Jozy Altidore, whose U.S. future seemed in jeopardy after a disappointing Gold Cup in the summer.

"2015 for Jozy Altidore has been a transition year, but it has become a year where he has gotten stronger toward the end," Klinsmann said. "He had some injury issues. He had some fitness issues in the beginning of the year. We had the episode in the Gold Cup where he was not in the shape where he needed to be.

"Toward July, August and September he got more into a flow. He started to score goals for Toronto and he got stronger for the national team, as well. This is a very positive sign for us to have Altidore playing well.

"We plan to bring him into a very busy 2016 with the biggest highlight of Copa America next June."

 
I haven't seen a ton of Nagbe beyond some highlights and the odd 15 minutes here and there, but is it fair to say he slots into the creative midfielder role in a way no one else can?

Seems like he could add a lot of value as part of a three-man central midfield, with Bradley and "Beckerman" (whoever that ends up being). Or in a four-man midefield, with he and Bradley as the forward players and two D-minded mids behind them. Intuitively he seems like a really strong partner for Bradley at least. Is that more or less right?

 
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wdcrob said:
I haven't seen a ton of Nagbe beyond some highlights and the odd 15 minutes here and there, but is it fair to say he slots into the creative midfielder role in a way no one else can?

Seems like he could add a lot of value as part of a three-man central midfield, with Bradley and "Beckerman" (whoever that ends up being). Or in a four-man midefield, with he and Bradley as the forward players and two D-minded mids behind them. Intuitively he seems like a really strong partner for Bradley at least. Is that more or less right?
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That is a good read on the situation. He does not play the creative role in Portland (as that is Valeri's job) but he seems suited to it.

 
PIK95 said:
Mix needs to start!
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I like Mix even though he had a very poor year at NYCFC this year. He just could not keep up with the MLS pace. Some of it is likely just a poorly constructed team but he has a history of not excelling at the club level (similar to Benny before he finally figured it out in KC late in his career).

Do you foresee JK starting Mix, Nagbe and Bradley all at once? I think that could work but not if JK continues to want Mike's non stop engine far up the field.

 
I would like to drop Bradley as far back as possible. Mix needs to be up ahead of him. I haven't seen Nagme yet so I need to wait on that end.

 
The Z Machine said:
Can Nagbe play on the wing in a 4-4-2?
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as a traditional drive to the end line and cross type winger? That is not really his game.

But those are a dying breed these days it seems. He works best on combination with other players, but with Dempsey being phased out, there are not a lot of players in the team with whom this could work well.

Jozy, Bradley, Yedlin, Zardes, etc are not really players that one can consistently pass through since they all have issues with keeping the ball to some extent.

 
Really cool story about Dave Romney, an undrafted player who in one season went from a tryout to play for LA2(Galaxy USL team) to getting called up to the Galaxy to getting MLS minutes to getting called to the U23 Olympic team.

Very cool but still pretty scary how players like this are still going unnoticed. Thankfully the USL is big enough now to give this lost souls a place.

http://www.mlssoccer.com/post/2015/11/26/profile-world-class-center-back-how-la-galaxys-dave-romney-went-undrafted-us

 
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There has been discussion about Nagbe. I know a lot of people have not seen him play so if you are interested, he is playing in the biggest game of his life tomorrow in the second leg of the MLS Conference Finals in Dallas.

The game is on ESPN at 5:00pm

 
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