Support NeoGAF

[xbhaskarx]

Johannsson had a pretty forgettable game up until that point, not really providing enough help to the midfield, but he did what he's best at which is finishing, despite being surrounded by defenders.

Great job by Bradley and Jozy (receiving the ball from his new teammate and getting it to his old one) there...

 

[Clydefrog]

God bless America

 

[Meier]

http://streamable.com/1wsl

AJ goal for those who missed it.

 

[Mully]

One thing I've noticed since the World Cup is how little we switch the field. We either play straight down the middle or one side.

That probably has a lot to do with how shitty our possession has been since Brazil. Hopefully that gets better as the younger starters get more time.

 

[Cystm]

I can't unsee Kevin Bacon now.

E:

One thing I've noticed since the World Cup is how little we switch the field. We either play straight down the middle or one side.

That probably has a lot to do with how shitty our possession has been since Brazil. Hopefully that gets better as the younger starters get more time.

I agree.

 

[Esch]

Team is playing a lot better after 65' than I've seen them play for a long long time.

 

[xbhaskarx]

Ventura Alvarado makes his debut...

 

[Mully]

Unbelievable.

 

[smokeandmirrors]

ugh

 

[ActStriker]

ffs

 

[Esch]

Too easy lol.

 

[Cystm]

This defense

Jim from The Office with chance for a hat trick now.

E:

 

[Mully]

87" is a perfect example of them not switching the field. Right wingers were standing still. No runs. Nothing.

 

[smokeandmirrors]

That's so not raven

 

[TheChits]

Wow :/

 

[Esch]

The worst defending

 

[Cystm]

Fuck everything

 

[B-Dubs]

You've gotta be kidding me!

Fuck the defense!

 

[ActStriker]

christ.

 

[Mully]

Fucking hell.

Maybe we'll be like Liverpool and have a mid season turnaround?

 

[xbhaskarx]

LOL

Almost another

 

[B-Dubs]

Come on! We should have had that!

 

[xbhaskarx]

Ugh Brooks needs to put that on goal

 

[Nesotenso]

Defense needs a lot of work. Alvarado got his debut but at the cost of a result. Problem is possession. Guys are just not keeping the ball for long times.

 

[Meier]

Someone came into my office and I missed the final 15 mins or so. Sounds like that was a good thing. :*(

 

[Azuran]

#FreeJozy before Sunday.

 

[Cornballer]

Someone came into my office and I missed the final 15 mins or so. Sounds like that was a good thing. :*(

I missed the 2nd half, which sounds like it worked out for me in the end.

USMNT coughing up late goals again, smh.

 

[smokeandmirrors]

They had flashes of playing well decently, but that's all they were. They played better for a few minutes after each goal, until all hell broke loose and Denmark scored, wherein they played like garbage again.

*sigh*

 

[Nesotenso]

They had flashes of playing well, but that's all they were. They played better for a few minutes after each goal, until all hell broke loose and Denmark scored, wherein they played like garbage again.

*sigh*

yup. They looked good when they were stringing passes together or pressing to get the ball back. The defensive lapses in the first and second halves was just poor play and less exhaustion. The first goal was just woeful marking. Everyone failed.

As an aside I don't think Zardes is ready yet (or he ever will be). I hope he proves me wrong.

 

[xbhaskarx]

I was watching one of the bloggers I follow on twitter get attacked by Klinsmann fanboys...

From this morning:

Hamlet lines, Christian Eriksen videos, and Klinsmann confusions- my #USMNT And Denmark preview has all that
http://www.yanksarecoming.com/something-rotten-in-denmark-us-hope-not-the-tyac-preview

Interesting to me that objective criticism of Klinsmann is viewed as "anti-Klinsmann bias."

Klinsmann is the one who asked for media to engage in reasoned debate. Shouldn't be relevant that I've defended him in past (I have).

Job is to point out issues or areas of concern. Have to write those types of things in preview or else I'm not doing job.

After the game:

Ghana. Portugal. Ecuador. Honduras. Chile. Denmark. US keeps losing leads.

The US has now won just 2 of 11, marking its worse stretch this century. #USMNT #KlinsmannRevolution

My question for the folks who thought my preview dripped of anti-Klinsmann bias: what should I write now?

Matt Doyle:

It's only a friendly. Never mind that it's the same damn thing that happened to the #USMNT in the World Cup. Nothing to see here.

Brian Sciaretta

Klinsmann: "I think the backline overall did a fine job"

This guy is delusional, I'd say he's lost it but I don't think he ever had it to begin with....

 

[xbhaskarx]

so true...

Best sign of USA's inferiority soccer complex is that we're 5 years into JK's tenure and some still see him as transformational.

(except that it has only been 3 1/2 years, it just feels longer because it's so painful)

 

[xbhaskarx]

Armchair Analyst: New faces, same problems in the latest late USMNT collapse

"It doesn't matter the stakes, the opponent, or the personnel: The US under Klinsmann are more direct and have fewer ideas in possession than at any time over the last two decades."

 

[Nesotenso]

Armchair Analyst: New faces, same problems in the latest late USMNT collapse

"It doesn't matter the stakes, the opponent, or the personnel: The US under Klinsmann are more direct and have fewer ideas in possession than at any time over the last two decades."

As someone who has been following this team since Bradley was at the helm, I fail to see how we were better at the possession game under him.

 

[Mully]

I like that Klinsmann is experimenting and adding a lot of youth right now. That said, I think he's believing his own bullshit and media hype. It's clear he honestly believes he can turn any squad and mold them into a powerhouse like what happened in Germany '06.

I guess he's working with a similar formula here, but it's not working. Klinsmann needs to take a step back, and reassess his approach.

 

[Nesotenso]

I like that Klinsmann is experimenting and adding a lot of youth right now. That said, I think he's believing his own bullshit and media hype. It's clear he honestly believes he can turn any squad and mold them into a powerhouse like what happened in Germany '06. Young talent with some experience

I guess he's working with a similar formula here, but it's not working. Klinsmann needs to take a step back, and reassess his approach.

We don't have the same talent to make it work.

 

[Mully]

We don't have the same talent to make it work.

We don't.

The 2002 German squad and the 2006 German squad are very different from one another. 2002's squad was filled with veterans, while the 2006 roster had a lot of new blood. 2006's new blood's talent was much higher than US' current stock of young players.

Hopefully Klinsmann understands that and changes his plan, but it's pretty clear he wants to recreate the luck he had in 2006 with far less talent.

 

[tim.mbp]

Matt Doyle:

But it is only a friendly. I serious doubt either Orozco or Brooks would've started if the game meant something.

Jurgen's comment about the back four was pretty silly though. I'd guess he's just trying not to kick them while their down or something.

 

[smokeandmirrors]

Hopefully Klinsmann understands that and changes his plan, but it's pretty clear he wants to recreate the luck he had in 2006 with far less talent.

We'll see. I think the only way this happens is if we blow out of the Gold Cup super early, and even then.

 

[kIdMuScLe]

I just hope usmnt fails to advance in the group stage of the gold cup and finally get rid of this hack of a coach

 

[Cornballer]

- Jeff Carlisle @ ESPNFC: Jozy Altidore impressed but U.S. suffer a dispiriting late defeat vs. Denmark
- Grant Wahl: Second-half woes continue for USA under Klinsmann in loss to Denmark

 

[jamesinclair]

Whoops, read that wrong. Either way he's saying the Open Cup is not taken seriously by most clubs in comparison to the FA Cup. Fans of teams like Seattle will disagree because they do take it seriously, but for fans of Metro that's the sad fucking truth.

Yes this is what I meant.

For 90% of the league, there is no US Open Cup because they don't even bother to play. Saying it makes for a busy schedule is insane when they're fielding a team of water boys

 

[jamesinclair]

I just hope usmnt fails to advance in the group stage of the gold cup and finally get rid of this hack of a coach

Is there any team in the world that would have not fired him by now?

Mexico will win the Gold Cup again, 4-0, book it.

Hopefully USA has it's act together for Copa 2016 to show CONCACAF power.

 

[xbhaskarx]

Apparently that was the first time the US has given up a hat trick since 1997. Plenty of "just a friendlies" between now and then, including many against better opposition than Nicklas freaking Bendtner...

"It doesn't matter the stakes, the opponent, or the personnel: The US under Klinsmann are more direct and have fewer ideas in possession than at any time over the last two decades."

As someone who has been following this team since Bradley was at the helm, I fail to see how we were better at the possession game under him.

You are stating your subjective opinion. Doyle, who has probably been following this team since you were in diapers, was making that statement based on OPTA stats.

 

[smokeandmirrors]

You know I was thinking about this for a bit, but assuming Guzan is our number 1 for the Gold Cup, why is Rimando even starting anymore? We definitely have a decent pipeline of good keepers, why not throw Yarbrough out there, or call in Hamid and let him get some time in.

 

[Nesotenso]

Apparently that was the first time the US has given up a hat trick since 1997. Plenty of "just a friendlies" between now and then, including many against better opposition than Nicklas freaking Bendtner...



You are stating your subjective opinion. Doyle, who has probably been following this team since you were in diapers, was making that statement based on OPTA stats.

from previous WCs, where the level of competition is dependent on the group you are placed in. You would think your 'analyst', who was apparently doing this since I was in diapers, would look at more than just WCs. Just like 2 of 11 is a misleading stat if you don't compare the level of opposition.

but lets gripe about how the coach caused someone to score a hat trick against the US.

 

[xbhaskarx]

Sorry but not following the US national team for longer than the current cycle plus part of the last one pretty much means having little idea of how the current player pool (I'm not sure how anyone can argue it isn't deeper in 2013-15 than it's ever been) and opposition (This was the best Portugal team we've ever faced right? Know anything about Romania in the days of Hagi without consulting Google?) compares to those from previous World Cups.

 

[xbhaskarx]

Plush: Six cities interested in NWSL expansion

Expansion is a telltale sign of league health universal to all sports.
...

Attempt No. 3 at a women’s professional league is showing optimistic signs of a healthy pulse as expansion goes. The National Women’s Soccer League enters its third season next month with nine established teams and a half-dozen cities considering joining the league.

“I’d say there are six cities right now that are more than interested, that I’ve either visited or plan to visit,” said NWSL commissioner Jeff Plush, who has been on the job for three months. The conversations have ranged from “pure exploratory” to in-depth, Plush tells The Equalizer.

Atlanta and Salt Lake City are the two Plush was willing to name. Potential investors from both cities — along with those from Indianapolis — have been public about their interest in starting an NWSL team.

 

[xbhaskarx]

Why Billy Beane was right to avoid the EPL and work with AZ Alkmaar

Soccer is an insular sport, and the idea that an outsider, even a successful one, can come in and improve results is often met with suspicion. Beane, however, thinks that an outsider can sometimes be the answer. His long-time right-hand man Farhan Zaidi, a Berkeley-educated economist, was never into baseball, but was last year appointed general manager of the LA Dodgers. “Farhan has no experience-bias when he comes to my office, so he is able to question the obvious,” Beane told The Guardian in an interview last year. “A guy like myself, who has been in the game his entire life, may not be able to spot when the emperor is not wearing any clothes.”

Emperors with no clothes like Diego Maradona, Ruud Gullit, and others...

 

[Broder Salsa]

Bendtner truly is the best striker in the world

 

[The Chosen One]

Well if you're going to throw shit on the wall and see what sticks, then this is probably the best time to do it.

For me, I just want to see at least some style/tactical progression by the Gold Cup. I've been following the US national team since 1990 when TNT televised Italia '90. We've made HUGE strides since 25 years ago when we were basically fielding semi-pros and college players to the World Cup. But the last 10-12 years have felt very stagnant. We've become a relevant soccer nation and a regional power but we still struggle to be competitive for a full 90 minutes against Non-CONCACAF nations. I'm really surprised that here in 2015 with all the resources and money we've put into soccer, we still can't hold possession for more than a couple of minutes against decent opposition.

I like that JK has expanded our scouting network. But we should be moving past just being those "scrappy" Americans who play with heart. We really need a manager who is going to push our USMNT from a technical and tactical standpoint, not just fitness. I actually like some of JK's roster choices, but it seems he just throws them to wolves and let's them fend for themselves with little tactical guidance.

But who knows, maybe I could be wrong. Maybe our current roster just isn't technically proficient to play possession. What are some teams that play good possession in the MLS?