Commentary
Panama-USA Men's World Cup Qualifying Player Ratings
- by Mike Woitalla @MikeWoitalla, Oct 10, 2021
Oct. 10 in Panama City
Panama 0 USA 1. Goals: Godoy 54.
Att.: 23,000.
The USA looked starkly different in personnel and performance from its 2-0 win over Jamaica on Thursday in Texas as it fell, 1-0, in Panama City on Sunday. With seven changes to the starting lineup, the USA never tested Panama keeper Luis Mejia and failed to discover the second-half surge it has become dependent on.
USA Player Ratings
(1=low; 5=middle; 10=high.)
GOALKEEPER
Hesitant to come off his line on early service from Rolando Blackburn, Matt Turner also looked shaky on first-half in-swinging corner kicks that he managed to tip away. With its first second-half corner kick, while Turner was stuck in a goal area crowd, Panama found the net from Aníbal Godoy's in-swinger via the Gyasi Zardes' head. Forced to play plenty of back passes, Turner did OK except in 44th minute, when he gifted Panama the ball before saving Yoel Barcenas' long-range shot. (Freddy Gondola was called offside when Turner blocked his close-range 34th-minute shot.)
Player (Club) caps/goals (age)
4
Matt Turner (New England Revolution) 12/0 (27)
Presumably, the outside backs were supposed to provide offense down the flanks but the inability Shaq Moore and George Bello to connect with the wide players was one example of the USA's disjointed play. Moore struggled to contain Gondola while Bello had to contend with a dynamic Bárcenas. When Bello made it upfield he crossed poorly. Central defenders Walker Zimmerman and Mark McKenzie intervened when Panama's wingers broke through. Despite having gotten a clear view of Panama's corner-kick strategy in the first half, the U.S. defense still fell victim to it on the game-winning goal.
Player (Club) caps/goals (age)
4
Shaq Moore (Tenerife/ESP) 13/1 (24)
5
Walker Zimmerman (Nashville SC) 19/2 (28)
5
Mark McKenzie (Genk/BEL) 8/0 (22)
4
George Bello (Atlanta United) 5/0 (19)
Yunus Musah struggled defensively, as when he unsuccessfully tried to mug Edgar Barcenas, and offensively during his 45-minute appearance. Kellyn Acosta, who delivered poor corner kicks and free kicks, roamed the central midfield without bringing cohesion to it. Sebastian Lletget appeared only fleetingly capable of connecting useful passes but troubled Panama, which fouled him three times, more than the other midfield starters.
Player (Club) caps/goals (age)
3
Yunus Musah (Valencia/ESP) 8/0 (18)
4
Kellyn Acosta (Colorado Rapids) 42/2 (26)
5
Sebastian Lletget (LA Galaxy) 33/8 (29)
Unsurprisingly, forwards playing in front of a disjointed midfield failed to pose problems for Panama. Los Canaleros stifled Tim Weah, who had shedded Jamaican tackles when he came on as a sub on Thursday. Neither Weah, nor Paul Arriola or Gyasi Zardes managed a shot. Zardes appeared more in front of his own goal, successfully heading clear in the first half but deflecting the ball past Turner on the goal in the second half.
Player (Club) caps/goals (age)
4
Paul Arriola (D.C. United) 41/8 (26)
3
Gyasi Zardes (Columbus Crew) 64/14 (30)
4
Tim Weah (Lille/FRA) 15/1 (21)
SUBSTITUTES
Ricardo Pepi's one shot, made more difficult because DeAndre Yedlin had fallen on the grass in front of him, went wide. Brenden Aaronson, subbed on at halftime, brought high energy into a team that needed more than hustle on Sunday. The other halftime sub, Tyler Adams, couldn't solve the USA's cohesion problem. Pepi's 70th-minute shot would be the final time the USA got close to Los Canaleros' goal.
Player (Club) caps/goals (age)
4
Tyler Adams (RB Leipzig/GER) 19/1 (22)
5
Brenden Aaronson (Red Bull Salzburg/AUT) 12/5 (20)
5
Ricardo Pepi (FC Dallas) 3/3 (18)
4
DeAndre Yedlin (Galatasaray/TUR) 68/0 (28)
4
Cristian Roldan (Seattle Sounders) 29/0 (26)
NOTABLE: The USA is scoreless in the first half of its last eight games.
TRIVIA: The loss to Panama was the USA's second in 24 meetings and first in World Cup qualifying.
Oct. 10 in Panama City
Panama 1 USA 0. Goals: Godoy 54.
Panama -- Mejia; Murillo, Escobar, Cummings, Davis; Quintero (Yanis, 89), Martinez (Ayarza, 89), Barcena, Godoy (Cooper, 69), Gondola (Stephens, 57); Blackburn (Guerrero, 69).
USA -- Turner; Moore (Yedlin, 68), McKenzie, Zimmerman, Bello; Musah (Adams, 46), Acosta, Lletget; Arriola (Aaronson, 46), Zardes (Pepi, 68), Weah (Roldan, 68).
Yellow cards: Panama -- Stephens 76; USA -- none. Red cards: none.
Referee: Cesar Ramos (Mexico)
Att.: 23,000.
Panama/USA
Shots: 8/5
Shots on target: 4/0
Saves: 0/3
Corner Kicks: 7/6
Fouls: 12/10
Offside: 1/2
Possession: 50%/50%
One team was inspired.
"The Fish Stinks From The HEAD"...As I Predicted; Forward "GegenPress" was totally Disjointed because of Weah... This Time, instead of Lack of Effort, it was "Overcompensating" for previous Criticism of his Poor Pressing Contribution, by Running all over the Field..
He was over on the other Wing pressing same player as Arriola, other times he was in the Middle causing Zardes to "Freeze"... Meanwhile, By Weah/Arriola Never getting close enough to Block Long Crossfield passes,
Panama was able to implament their plan to beat the USA Press by having their Fullbacks, "Dropping" the Ball over The Weah Press and into the Wide Right Midfield spot that USA leaves Open, because we played 2 Attacking Mids up the Middle and Lt.FB does Not "L" up on the Back Side(See Sacchi Video on "Flat" back 4 of AC Milan)...Ggg INCORRECT Adjustment was; 1st to Drop, Weah Deeper at Lf.OM, then Panama "Countered" that adjustment, by Dropping the Ball Into the USA Rt.OM area, over the Now hard Working but never arriving in time of 2v4 of Arriola/Zardes, Ggg Countered by moving Arriola back to Rt.OM. Leaving Zardes on his Own to Press 4 players....and USA Dodged a Bullet, but Surrendered Tactical Advantage to Panama, USA Managed to Limp, 0-0, into the Half-Time; Playing a 4-5-1***
The CORRECT On Field Adjustments during 1st Half would have been: 1. Get better Organized FORWARD Pressing by Getting Weah "Locked" in on the Rt.Front and Arriola over to Left Front. (Why was Weah on the Left Front,???..Only ever seen him on the Right Front, Only Aaronson and Arriola have shown they can play both wings...BAD COACHING.!!!)2nd Correction; Move Musah and Lletget out FLATTER. Musah is better out a Little wider to the Right anyway... (Panama was Smart to force him Inside and Lateral across the Field where they kept Stealing the Ball from him)... 3rd Correction; Get the Farside, Fullback to "L" Up on the Back Side, thereby putting the Panamanian Receiving the Long Switch Ball under immediate Pressure, even create some "Pick 6" Trap Plays.!!!
Next Post...Hahaha, I feel like Frank
"Santiago 1314 replied, October 8, 2021 at 1:30 p.m.
Peter, until Weah can LEARN to Press in the USA system, He can NOT Start; and that Goes for any of the Forwards... AT THIS Stage of USMNT Development... We are still Primarily "Winning" Off "GegenPress"... This has now shown to be True of Reyna also...We can "Carry" (1) Forward who is only So-So at Pressing... In the Past this has been CP.... Now it is Pepi....That is why Sargent was Starting; because he could Press, even if he Didn't Score, he and Aaronson could "Cover" for CP or Reyna... Now, Arriola(Who Looked like he was 18.!!!.Wow) Arriolla was the Original Pressing Forward before these YOUNGSTERS came along...Last night he Showed that he is Still Excellent at Forward Pressing... So, in order for Weah or Reyna to Start ahead of Arriola, (Consistemtly) they are going to have to work on their "Team Play" "GegenPress""
***In other words; Starting Front vs Panama should have been;
Aaronson--Pepi--Arriola. Or Aaronson--Zardes--Arriola
BAD COACHING.!!!
Santi,
Yes, the fishead stinks so badly I can smell it all the way here in Germany watching this game at midnight!! I saw the pressing problem from our midfield players not being in the correct positions to force play back and to be close enough to prevent the outlet pass. Panama often did not have to swing the ball, but played quickly to a midfielder who then immediately hit the outside back or other midfield player upfield because of the huge gap left by the defense of not closing on players. We chose to play grind it out soccer which is exactly what every Central American team wants us to do and our coach is stupid enough to oblige them with our piss poor lineup. I don't care what forwards were on the pitch.....Llegett and Acosta cannot press in the midfield. That is where the breakdown happened. Each level of the team (defense, midfield and forwards) seem to have a different game plan.
JS, It's very Hard to be a Midfielder or Outside Back and Predict, WHEN and WHERE to Step Up on The Press, When the Forwards ahead of you don't take the Correct "Attack" Angles at The Correct Moment, with the Correct Support Network(Kloops famous "GegenPress") I agree the Midfielders were Poor at Pressing, but I still think the issue was Caused by the "Randomness" of Weah.
Beyond comprehension the lineup put on the field with the result that happened all but assured. It is clear the head coach has no clue about effective starting lineups or having a team prepared. How does Arriola rate starting over Aaronson or Zardes over Pepi? Same old MLS lineups that get you nowhere. Should have been saved for Columbus, not trotted out in Panama. Every MLS player except for Zimmerman had a terrible night.
Pepi is a MLS Player.!!!
JMcG... See my post above about why Arriola deserves to Start and NOT Weah.
I am curious does GB know what qualifying means?
Maybe you should rate the manager/coach for each match. Roy Curtiss
I Rec. this:rating the HC.
Yes Peter... REC indeed ... Be " The NICE Coach" and Let Everyone Play.!!!... I wonder if Ggg and his "Staff of Nobodies" have one of those Excel Spreadsheets that Tells them WHEN and WHO to Sub.!?!?!?
TERRIBLE COACHING.!!!.. and we have another Stupid Coach Quote, Comparable to: "Get the Popcorn Ready.!!!"...Ggg said; "The trap is going to be us thinking we’re great and us thinking we’ve qualified for the World Cup,” Berhalter said. “If we do that, we’ll get our asses kicked in Panama.”... Only CBS Field Reporter, Jenny Chiu, Called him out on it; "It was DISRESPECTFUL(to Panama) to change 7 Players"...
Panama only made 2 "Rotations" and they LOST in El Salvador..USA made 7...Well, We Got our A$$es Kicked.!!!... Thanks for Nothing Ggg... ZEROs for Everyone.!!!
LOTs More to say, Got to Cool Off a little first.!!!
I saw a lot of US players, but no team. I don't know if the coach failed them, but I do know its his responsibility. The second half team had no clue as to how to attack.
Musah in particular looked lost in the midfield. (In my experience players look lost while they are learning to read the game. The confusion goes away with experience.) No doubt Valencia plays differently than the USMNT under GB. I suspect that putting him in a situation which needed someone to lead the midfield and carry the team in an away match in CONCACAF was expecting too much of such a young and inexperienced player.
Playing an away match in Panama is enough to shake any European player the first time.
The thought a 4 for Turner was too harsh. He kept us in the game until the deflected header.
Musah thought he was going to come into "Panama" from Valencia Spain and just Run Past them... He got a Lesson about Bad Fields and Determined HOME Defending in CONcacaCrApF... I'll bet he's NEVER played on Field with Grass THAT TALL...(Done on purpose to Slow USA Down...Old CONcacaCrApF Trick).. I still would NOT have Subbed him at Half... Score was 0-0
By Subbing Musah, Instead of Acosta; Ggg sent the wrong Message to the Team... "We are going to play for The TIE".. (I have always said; USA does NOT know how to play for a Tie.!!!)....The Player who Deserved to be Subbed THE MOST, was Left IN, and the Player who could HELP you the Most was Taken Out.. Scape Goated.!!!... WHY.???... Didn't want to Scape Goat one of his "Pets"... Usually Ggg let's Struggling Player Stay IN.. HE PANICKED... It was 0-0 @ Half... There was 2 other TACTICAL Things to do before making Personal Changes.
Santiago I completely agree. Acosta was easily our worst player and in such a key position! Musah on his worst night is still a more dangerous offensive player than Acosta will ever be. Lletget has good soccer savvy but his lack of speed and quickness makes him largely useless in WC qualifiers unless he is surrounded by all of our best players (Pulisic, Reyna, McKennie etc). Wasn't this game crying out for the offensive spark that Sergino Dest can sometimes supply? Was there some reason that he couldn't play in this game?
Sam, if there was a Physical Reason Dest could not Play, I am Unaware of it... I Don't disagree with having Bello Starting, But, if Dest was Available, why Take out Moore and put on Yedlin.???... Moore was as Bad as Bello(actually, Neither was a Major Problem... CONcacaCrApF AWAY games are about GRINDING IT OUT, and they both were doing just that)... I can only Guess that Ggg was Hoping for some "Honduras" Yedlin-to-Pepi Magic again... Ggg also had to Hold Dest in Reserve, in case Bello went Down(See now why it was important to bring Scally.!?!?!?)... Ggg should have left Musah IN, and Brought on only Adams at Half...We almost Finished the Game with 9 Players... Acosta Head Injury(I can't Believe they put him back In.!!!) and (at same time as Head Injury) Zimmerman was Cramping So Bad they put him up at Ct.forward just to be out of the way...He would jump to head and then Cramp...But Ggg made All 5 subs within 65 minutes...MAJOR NO-NO.!!! (Sure would have been Nice to have Dike or Pefok for Last 17 minutes of Aerial Bombardment on Tired Panama Defense, But, Ggg SCREWED UP by Not even Inviting them.!!!)
Bob, most of his Rating had to do with his "Sketchy" Footwork...Very UnNerving to your Team, when his 1st Touches and Passes where going Everywhere, But, as I have Stated before: This is a Ggg "Insanity"(just like our Olympic team GK) "Live by the Play Out of the Back, Die by Play Out of The Back"...Matt Turner should not be "Controlling" the Back Passes in Bad Central American fields, Especially with 3 of your Short Passing Options being Moore(Bad), Bello("Badder"), Acosta("Baddest")...Just "Boot it Long" and let Forwards Press them, in their half.!!!.
About Turner, if the complaint is about his lack of ballskills, that should be on the coach who selected him, not Turner.
I do agree with you 100% about Musah, the coaching, and the rest. Chances are Musah would have improved in the second half if left in.
I thought that the Mexican officials were solid. Panama tested them in the first 10 seconds feigning a strike to the face and falling to the ground. At the end it was an unbelieveable farce. Concacaf! The fact that the ref put the US out of its misery by not extending the match for the delays is really a condemnation of the US team's clueless play. I thought he would add a minute or two and was surprised when he didn't.
Bob, Ref was Pretty Good until the End...3 different Spectators Ran out onto the Field and 2 even Kicked Balls off the Orange Cones onto field during Play.... Rule is Clear: 2 Balls on Pitch, STOP Play... Also, on 2nd Field Invasion; he Never Stopped Play... Should have Stopped the Game and Added MORE Time, as Punishment to Panama... But, like you said... USA would Not have been able to take advantage of it... Funny to see McKenZie back there by himself, Gesturing to the Coaches: Where is my Help,???...Where is Zimmerman.!?!?!?
Bob,
Musah was not lost, look at the huge gaps in the midfield opposite of him. No one to play the ball to, when he plays back to Acosta or to the fullbacks we lose possession. Panama knew their game plan and executed it. Valencia uses Musah wider in a 4-4-2, but he has people to play to who know what the hell they are doing.
I agree Acosta was the worst palyer on the pitch, mainly since he was holding the #6 spot. He cannot read the game and he has been playing much longer than Musah. Should have started Busio here, I think it would have been better at linking play. We needed another offensive minded midfielder, should have plugged Aaronson with Musah at halftime. I believe this would have settled our midfield and got us some possession.
The one item that is frightening is that our backline defense is bad as a whole no matter who is in there. We must move to a back 3 line. I say again that our CBs are our best overall defenders and will do much better at stopping all teams that are going to counterattack the US. I agree with Santi from another thread, Scally should have come, as he could play both sides as a fullback or a wingback. He is versatile.
Can't hammer Turner too hard. This game showed his strength and weakness. He is a shot stopper, but has horrendous feet. His teammates did not help his confidence with their terrible play so even when he did try to use his feet, the lack of confidence showed in his passes. I agree he was the biggest reason we kept the score 0-0 into halftime.
On Turner, for me his feet are not bad. It was his distribution. He was rushing when he did not need to. There was no leadership in the back to calm him down, so he did this repeatedly. It was poor decision making. Understandable given the context, but a risk that could and should have been mitigated by coaching before and in the game.
Rotating players b/c of tight schedules is ok, but that does NOT mean throwing individuals in just to share playing time. Example: Yunus had been very good against Jamaica, in part because he had Adams and McKennie next to him, Dest behind him and Pepi + Aaronssen in front. Today he was alone, flanked by players not up to the style used against Jamaica.
It is obvious that GB does not see what so many of us here see: a proper team plays "a system", be it Spain's tiki-taka with small triangles ,or France's counter-attacking style with Griezmann feeding Mbappe and Benzema,(to use examples from earlier today). You cannot rotate "turbos" to quote Frank S. alongside passers as he did today. Even if his team qualifies for Qatar, they have no chance of surviving group play if players like Zardes and Llegett and Acosta and McKenzie are on the field. Also, why did he not play Busio and Richards who were fresh ?
Richards should have Started ahead of McKenZie, alongside M.Robinson... except by Starting Zimmermann AGAIN(someone, who was NOT on the Original Roster and Didn't see the Field in 3 Sept games) Ggg felt the Need to give Zimmerman someone he was Familiar with AGAIN.!!!... Richards should have Started 1st Game this Window with M.Rob; Not Zimmerman. Having said that, Zimmerman was Not the Problem, except when he Started Cramping at End of Game. There is NO Upside to the Older Zimmerman,(Dime a Dozen like him) Richards on the other hand is possible Long Term Starter.
Rotation".???...Rotation in a Squad, that must Win games every 3 days, occurs "Naturally" and "Normally" due to Injuries, Illness, Fitness, Poor Form, Need to Contain a Certain Opponent, Inconsequential Cup Games, Introduction of "New Blood"...All of our Players who play on "Euro" Champion/League/Confrence are used to this...Ggg as a MLS Coach has Rarely experienced this, at this Level...I didn't have any Problem with the Starting Line-up Ggg used for Home Game versus Jamaica. Jamaica had a Weakened Squad and didn't worry me: IN A ONE-OFF GAME.!!!... But Ggg didn't Scheme Out the Whole 3 Games Series...How are Players Supposed to get Familiar with each other, and Develop Patterns of Play, if you "Rotate" more than ONE Player PER LINE.???...(Maybe 2 in Def)...
7 Players was "Un-Natural".!!!...There was already "Natural"(actually UN-Natural) Rotation going to Occur for A.Rob at Left Back... And Dest, I'm OK with that, Moore is MORE Athletic(and Because we know Dest is gonna struggle on the Road in CONcacaCrApF)... So, Ggg should have stuck with 2 CBs from Jamaica... Which should have been RICHARDS and M.Robinson... Zimmerman should Not have been Starter in Game 1...3 Changes in Back Line is BAD COACHING.!!!
In Midfield "Natural Rotation" was going to occur due to McKenNie Injury...So, why Rotate 2 on the Midfield Line.!?!?!? Adams should have Started and gone as Long as Possible, And LucaDLT should have Started as SUB-In who did Well in the Previous Game in that Previous Position. BAD COACHING.!!! ... On the Forward Line, there was NO ONE that was So "TIRED" that they Needed to be "Rotated". (Hoppe for Arriola was the Logical Choice, to "Blood" a Younger player AWAY in CONcacaCrApF) Changing 2 Players was a UN-Forced Error...It was BAD COACHING.!!!!
Kind ratings...Moore and Bello easily were 3s, as was McKenzie...Acosta and Lleget also get threes...same with Arriola and Weah up front...Berhalter gets a 3 or 4. My biggest beef is not starting Hoppe -- he is a warrior and this is a tough match (Weah has no business being on the pitch) where our execution on corners would be critical and Weah gives you nothing on those set pieces.
GB and whomever gave him advice put an awful lineup on the field and got a predicatble result. Okay, so you rotate players and find someone else to play the vital role of Antonee Robinson in the Jamaica match. But switching seven players is bound to cause lack of cohesiveness, never mind that there were all too many MLS players on the pitch, playing in the awful MLS style. Only Turner deserved to be there. The rest, a resounding NO! Well, maybe an MLS central defender like Zimmerman plays out of necessity.
This result shouts loudly for Berhalter's ouster replaced by someone with a clue for what the international game and top European leagues are all about.
The US will probably squeak thru the Octagonal to qualify, but with Berhalter, it will never be pretty and he will drive us all crazy with his lame decisions.
For all the tens of millions of Americans who actively hate soccer, this debacle could easily be Exhibit A. Both teams displayed terrible passing and horrendous first touch on the ball. Neither team showed any offensive fluiidity or cohesion -- heck neither team showed any offense at all. There couldn't have been 3 decent shots by both teams put together the whole game. Meantime there was tons of fouling, a lot of it was deliberate and nasty, and some of it was downright dangerous. And of course, the cherry on top, all the usual soccer shenanigans of faking fouls and injuries, shameless time-wasting, and "fans" taking turns running on the field. If you were a regular sports fan who didn't know much about soccer, you would have to say, "Why does anyone play this sport? There's tons of running and fouls and physical pain without anyone ever making a good play, or an exciting play, or coordinating a good team move. It's all pain with no pleasure. I'd rather be on the stairmaster." Ugh.
Yup Sam, We Gringing on a Treadmill with this Coach... Not getting anywhere FAST.!!!
I agree Sam. Boring except for the high stakes. I just watched the first 30 minutes of last night's game to see how comfortable our players were on the ball compared to Panama's. Well, Panama is more comfortable. Only Musah had a couple of moments where he got away from his 1v1 confrontation with a move or two and attacked open space. He looked confident with the ball these couple of times. Maybe we had players on the bench or unavailable to play that are comfortable on the ball in matches like this one. Pulisic? McKennie? Not many. Shouldn't we have bunches? Yesterday's Spain v France match was a pleasure to watch since it featured artistry: players comfortable on the ball conneting with teammates. Where is our artistry? Without it who really wants to watch this soccer besides us? I thought Coach B. said he was going to revive US soccer. Call 911.
Perfectly summed up, that was a shameful display in all aspects. A few weeks ago I played in a pick up game that looked about like this and within the first 20 minutes one of the better players went ahead and excused himself, myself and a few other guys following not far behind. Was the kind of game that's not worth your time and just feels gross to be a part of.
You are not crediting Panama. They took step forward as a unit. They played better. Turner made two finger/hand saves, it could have easily been 3-0. He showed his deficiency in distribution over and over, rushed when he should have slowed things down, but his two saves were top class. U.S. was poor, disconnected, but Panama upped their game from previous matches. Cheers!
The best that can be said about the US performance in Panama is that Mr. Berhalter should learn from it who will NOT qualify the US for the World Cup.
...the new tinker man, will tinker this side out of the finals?
This constant harping about how "tough" playing away is, or how young the side is now just a crutch. The team he fielded tonight was not....YOUNG.. This man is one dimensional, but he will get cover from the USSF apologist who feed at the " non profit " trough.
He (GGG) has proven, that he's not equipped to manage this team. Only the quality of the 13 ~ 15 able players gave saved US(A) thus far. His pass results have covered up the ongoing deficiencies in his methods, dating back 2 years now., but he's gotten a pass due to recent results., even from ongoing poor performances.
We played poorly in the Nation's League and The Gold Cup, but got favorable results...are the chickens now coming home to roost?
We've played 2 good halfs thus fart in my view. WE will qualify for the finals, but I can't see USA moving through a tournament with GGG at the head...JMHO.
Excellent Analysis Anthony.!!!
Berhalter Makes US Soccer History Again,
Once again Berhalter shows his ineptitude with coaching the USMNT being the first coach to ever lose to Panama in WC qualifying history. There was no visible game plan to see being executed. There was no need to have 7 changes made to the starting lineup. Don’t give me the excuses of no VAR, bad playing surface, this was as embarrassing as the last lost to T&T last WC cycle. Inexcusable.
The top line was pressing, the midfield was holding back and the four backline did not exist with trying to push the fullbacks forward there was no stability. Again, the coach failed to prepare his team, especially against a pressing team. There was no connectivity anywhere on the pitch without Adams. Llegett was invisible the whole match, yet Berhalter did not substitute him out. He takes Musah out, are you @$%ing kidding me. Musah was the only offensive threat in midfield and he takes him outl!!! The rating of a 3? There was no one in the midfield for Musah to connect the ball. When he played to Acosta back we lost the ball.
Another idiot move, lets take out Weah instead of having Weah and Aaronson on at the same time. The midfield was totally dominated by Panama with Musah going 1 v 3 until he was taken out. I hope all of us can now see that we do not have not fullbacks that can play offense, except for Dest. Lets face facts, all of the FB defenders were terrible on defense and offense. They are running up the wings before the ball was 20 yards from our penalty area, this meant they were not in position to receive passes from the CBs. Once again we are launching balls down the pitch. I want to know why someone other than Acosta was taking set piece kicks? He was absolutely horrible.
GB should have went to a back three and actually tried to press higher up the field. The US is so lucky with the other results in the group to keep us at #2. It was quite obvious how much the team needed McKennie; hope he is fit as he will be needed to help win the midfield battle again.
Santiago and all Soccer fans that passionatly follow USMNT : it is time to express loudly that this game was a loss primarily because of POOR COACHING. The time might be right to demand for a new coach preferible american like Tab Ramos. We dont want to see this type of coaching in the world cup ( I think we will classify even as a 4th team). We will be lamenting and crying to see our best players not have been selected rightfully by a coach that has demostrated that his mind is in to something else rather than selecting the best players.
Peter Vermes, with Assistants from Tab, Brian Bliss, Frank Klopas (Maybe John Harkes, not sure how those Relationships are Nowadays)
Have you been watching Houston Dynamo games mate? Tab is a good coach with a future, he is still growing. He needs some wins. If when we make a change, we need a coach with a winning mentality that has demonstrated winnings. The boys deserve as much. Keep it going!
Yes EV, I said 7 points or FIRED.!!! I Stand by that.!!!
This Latest Fiasco with 7 "Rotation" just Underlines the Peter Principle that we have Reached with Ggg... We are having to Watch a Good Group of Players be HELD BACK in their Development while the "Coach" Learns on the Job, and we are Living on the Precipice EVERY Tournament and Every Window... And He doesn't seem to be Learning Anything.!!!
Hey, Guys, was there a writing class that I missed while chasing chicks on campus that teaches you how to write like Santi?...
Boy, trying to read all of your guys comments is interesting...I can't believe I missed seeing this game. I'm still trying to find a repeat, but I can't find it anywhere. So I watched a 5min. highlight.
The only thing I noticed, aside from all the comments, is that we are great at making a FLATBACK DEFENSE !@1@!@!@! Boy that stuck out like a sore thumb. To me, that is probably the worst defense ever invented by man. We are so good, and precise at it that our guys on defense could make the Ohio State marching band blindfolded.
This is the problem that I find in the US with soccer. When we win a game, its like, the enthusiasm meter goes way beyond normal bounds ,going all the out to Mars. It's 'this guy is great!" , or ' he has so much talent",' or 'he has the potential to be one of best in the world!' or 'WOW, he's gonna go to Europe and be a star". And what happens, all we send over to Europe are 'HEAVY EQUIPMENT' operators, piano carriers, ditch diggers,etc. etc...Come on guys!, our soccer system the way it is run does not produce creative players!
So don't be surprised if we get beat by smaller countries, countries whose players lack busfare to get to the stadium... But one thing these poor countries do have and it doesn't take much money at all is PICKUP soccer. In other words by the time they reach 16 ,they have already so much more touch on the ball, and 'footballing' sense than our guys, who try to make up their lack of feel for the ball with extra physical and turbo power. And don't forget, these players as they get older and maturer, are learning, the other aspects of soccer that isn't so much stressed by PICKUP soccer...
Ask yourself, what did Weah contribute to the game, he's playing in Europe. We get rave reviews from SA about him. A player like a Weah, should have a presence about himself, fans should be able to notice right away his better quality of play in everything he does, due to better competition and coaching . Do you get that sense about him? For example watch this minute video, and watch this young player's PRESENCE with the ball....This is the kind of presence we should see from our boys that come back from Europe to play....
Dragan dzajic playing for yugoslavia only 19 years old by ivan pobran. - YouTube
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One of the problems is that we have too many inexperienced players on the field at one time. A good coach always brings younger player like a couple at a time to be guided and coached by older players. Our socalled veterans from Europe coming to play here are young themselves and still need older players to guide them. We DON'T have older players, We DON'T have a structure whereby we feed in the young into the old. WE LACK LEADERSHIP OUT ON THE FIELD. This begins in the locker room itself, who are the leaders??? for they have to also lead on the field.
We have have players out there that need to be put into their place on the field during the game. That's not happening. A. Robinson in the last game ran 40yards with the ball down the flank and then gives a 5yard pass directly forwards to Arriola whose positioned right in front of him... If I had a U13 team , you wouldn't see this stupid play occurring....Or, Arriola who sees Robinson running with the ball, remains standing on the flank instead of going inside ,taking his men with him and allowing Robinson to run an open flank. Guys, do you see what I'm trying to get at? They are pro players and don't have the brains to figure this out!!! In Holland these two idiots ,on the field, would be cussed out by their leaders....for this should never have happen. I"ll betcha nothing was said out there.
Has anyone notice how Adams asks for the ball at midfield when he's open. He comes at you, stands flatfooted, legs apart, asks for the ball with his arms down next to his legs with the palm of his hands facing the passer. Well anyone with a half a brain and has some defensive soccer sense , can tell by Adam's stance what he will do next. By his stance , he won't come to meet the ball, but remains stationary receiving it with the inside of best foot (right) and will turn inward. That is telegraphed by him if he gets the ball. So much of the game is sensed ahead of time but I"m afraid that has not been made clear to him by his coaches ,that he's telegraphing.
These are details our boys are not getting. So many of the game details are taught by older players, not coaches(especially those who played simple centerback in the second division).
Also ,everyone is suggesting what tactical system the team should play;43231, 433, 343, etc 532, whatever....It is not the system but how the players fit in,in a manner that each hides the other's weakness or make a particular player better....Without going into that part, we're just whistling in the wind like this coaching staff......You have to know the players weaknesses and strenghts and that is never talked about, or read in SA or other publications or by commentators who have played....Without going into those types of discussions, details ,the how's and why's the US fan will remain uneducated about the game, and just remain at the HORNS AND TOOTERS stage....
Frank,
You keep going to the same old sayings with your posts. We are talking about the lack of development of the team because we don't have a coach who knows what to do with these players. Stop talking about crap pick-up soccer and so on. There a millions of guys playing pick-up basketball and all but .001% make the NBA and maybe 1% play pro somewhere else. The US is developing much better players and the smart ones get to Europe to develop even further. I have not gone overboard with any analysis from the US games win or lose. Look at the game objetively as a whole. As someone stated the marginal wins have kept the naysayers like us at a minimum, because USSF only cares for wins and not looking years down the road to win in major tournaments. You did not even watch the game, so please keep the comments on this one to a minumum about game analysis. The best players we have are finding ways to just get a Win inside the chaos that is GB coaching. You mention the talk of different formations being said. I am one of those who said to make the line up to match the players best attributes.....not as the stand alone system no matter what, but for this game and who was available. Playing his sysyem is what GB is doing now and has been doing the last two years!! Have you watched Adams playing at RB Leipzig. He does not do the things you stated when he does with the USMNT. Why, because these guys don't play at the same level. He has to tell them where to put the freakin ball because these other guys don't know. Hell GB had Adams back at CB for the last 15 minutes of the game because GB used all his subs, Zimmerman was cramping so bad he could not move so put him up at CF to try and win long balls. Thats how desparate this game got to be. Adams gave an immediate lift to the team, the problem, not having the right players in position around him. Refer back to all the line up and sub comments on this one as the disaster could not be undone.
John , I can tell you have little clue what pickup soccer really does to a player or youth for his development. You totally missed the point about pickup basketball. You should ask which NBA player did NOT play pickup basketball for his majority of his development as a youth. I can't imagine a youth becoming a PRO who did not spend his majority of time playing pickup, basketball.
You have a total lack of understanding how important Pickup to a player is in his youth. Like myself, youth playing are unaccosted by some idiot coach with a license telling you what to do ,where to go ,what you can't do. The important thing in pickup is you just play and learn from the older and better players playing in a mixed soccer .The kids are not programmed by programmed coaches. They have the freedom to experiment. And more importantly as in my youth days, kids on average played anywhere between 10-30 hours a week. The touches, the experience, the game insights ,the skills gotten is unmatched by the youth today for they spend lot less less time on the ball/experiences. As Cruyff states, judging pro players today to when he played on skill level, he would give today's players a 5 as compared to when he played 8.
A youth doesn't need a coach ,instead he needs as much experience with a ball learning under playing conditions. A coach becomes more in to play when he's around 16. Like Rinus Michels once stated, the best training grounds for players was pickup soccer.
I'll leave at that for pickup ,you really idea how important this to youth develop.
Whether Adams plays as FB or at Mid, or goalie, the point I'm making is that he has a tendency to do this at times, which is not helpful to his game.....so what is your problem with that? What logic is that,if you haven't seen him do it at Leipzig means he doesn't do it?
"I have not gone overboard with any analysis from US games win or lose". John , did I accuse or state that you did. I haven't even read your posts. You state, that I should keep my game analysis to a minimum for I didn't see the game. Where did I give a game analysis about this game? The only thing I saw was a highlights, upon which I noticed often the defense to be flatback. I talked about lack of real leadership, which is a problem when you have so many young players. I mentioned Robinson in the last game...I'm trying to find where this game analysis that I talk about, that should be kept to a minimun. Everything I stated was general observation, not about the game but about the bigger picture....
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You stated, " I am one of those who said to make the line up to match the players best attributes". OK,Show me the system you prefer and explain and place the players you want in the system according to their weakness and strengths and also explain the concept within the system you want that best suits the players as you think it is...
Frank you are so very correct in your 'pick-up soccer' points. It is the 'skills' development where we fail in soccer. If you accept that 'skill' is 'technique' that can be executed in 'game' context, this is the key. In my youth I played hours of pickup basketball, what I was doing was developing my 'skills'. This is why the U.S. excells at basketball, as you so correctly point. In the pick-up culture, again, technique is formed into skill. Our players can be perhaps very technical in practice, but in game situations you see they are not. The Panama team, on this evening appeared to be the more skilled team. When we play Mexico, Honduras, El Salvador, I notice the same. We may have the better, fitter athletes, but not the more skilled players. This will need to change for the U.S. to get to the next level in soccer. This can only happen with pickup culture. You can never ever develop skill as organized soccer necessarily stunts skill development. This is why the Brazilians, and Argentines continue to produce 'skilled' players. One of the most under appreciated players with street honed skills that continues to astound is Luis Suarez from tiny Salto Uruguay. Street soccer skiills are formed and hardened from age 0 to 14, mostly. This is why Leonel Messi can leave Argentina at 13. His skill are hardened. He can and has continued to refine his technique and tactical play, but probably 80% of his skill was formed by 13 and the rest is history in the making. This is ok, skills can still be developed after 14, but it must always be remembered that they require game context to fully form and reveal themselves. Keep it going Frank you are so correct!
Agree 100%. Playing other sports helps a lot but it doesn't prepare players for the 5 minutes per match spent playing on the ball. Practicing solo is a poor second choice for developing ball skills.
I firmly believe that players who don't develop the ball skills during the pre-teen years can never catch up to the elite players who do. Doesn't matter how good their training opportunities are later. This doesn't doom those players, but their future is on the flanks where pressure is less and athletic ability goes further. Only the best skilled players will prosper in the central positions.
Having said that, I can't explain why we don't develop good wingers. I suspect, like 1-footed players, it is a coaching error.
What can I say, Humble ,Bob....I can't believe John doesn't see that. It's so simple