World Cup and European leagues

Started by Jim Matson, June 11, 2006, 12:00:45 AM

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WLCALUM83

Final:  Costa Rica 0, Mexico 0.   (El Tri sees another opportunity to gain more than one point at home slip through the fingers).

jknezek

Quote from: WLCALUM83 on June 11, 2013, 10:11:33 PM
Final:  Costa Rica 0, Mexico 0.   (El Tri sees another opportunity to gain more than one point at home slip through the fingers).

More importantly the U.S. takes care of business at home beating Panama easily 2-0. Panama had a few opportunities down the U.S. right side early with Eddie Johnson and Evans struggling to find the defensive form Zusi shared with Evans, but overall the U.S. did real well until some late game lapses as Panama pushed everyone forward. A nice game for the U.S. where they could have gotten 2 or 3 more (hit the posts twice and the crossbar once), but 3 points puts the U.S. top of group. Certainly there is still a lot of room for defensive improvement, but offensively that was one of the more creative displays for 75 minutes I've seen out of a U.S. squad.

16 points usually assures qualification from the hex. The U.S. has 3 remaining home games, including one against bottom feeder Jamaica. While playing in Costa Rica and Panama won't be easy, both those games could yield points. The Mexico game could be way more interesting for El Tri than for the U.S. I still expect Mexico to get it in gear, they have too much talent vis a vis the competition, but the pressure mounts if they have a bad showing at the Confederations Cup. Chepo probably won't survive them not progressing past the group stage...

jknezek

Big game tonight. Win gives the U.S. a very good shot at going to Brazil. Honduras is missing a lot of key parts and the game is in the U.S. This should be a good opportunity for the USMNT to get some payback for that first hex game.

U.S. will be missing DaMarcus Beasely but otherwise should be a complete team with Jones back from his concussion and Zusi cleared of his yellows. However, 9 other U.S. players are sitting on yellows, meaning if this game gets chippy the U.S. could be short-handed for the first game in September.

A win puts the U.S. in clear control of the group, but depending on the outcome of Costa Rica hosting Panama, the U.S. could be as much as 4 points ahead of the next team in the hex (Panama win or tie). A loss could put the U.S. team 1 point behind Costa Rica (Costa Rica win), who hosts the remaining game between the two teams. It doesn't seem like much, but there is a massive difference between winning and not winning this game.

Every team but Jamaica in the hex is pulling for Honduras tonight to muddy the waters. Five of the six teams still have a good chance at being in the top 3, let alone in the do or die 4th spot. Jamaica is not mathematically eliminated yet, but sitting on 2 points with 6 games played leaves them in very bad shape and hoping that Panama and Honduras lose so they are still within realistic striking distance of the 4th spot.

woacfan

That was a tale of two halves last night.  Just some random thoughts, Graham Zusi continues to impress and is executing well from is midfield position.  Altidore is in top form...finally.  The commentators didn't say much, but Mike Bradley was solid.  I haven't been a fan of his, but thought he looked very good last night.  Finally, what do you do with Jermaine Jones?  He is a maddening player to watch- one moment he is brilliant and the next moment he is brilliantly bad. 
Second half US squad played with pace and executed well.  Klinsmann had them playing up top with high pressure and a quick tempo...I liked it.
Its worth noting that in the first half the U.S. looked lethargic and tentative.  It might have been the heat or lack of confidence.  In any event,  the second half was much better.
"We talk about it for 20 minutes and then we decide I was right" - Brian Clough

jknezek

Quote from: woacfan on June 19, 2013, 07:30:45 AM
That was a tale of two halves last night.  Just some random thoughts, Graham Zusi continues to impress and is executing well from is midfield position.  Altidore is in top form...finally.  The commentators didn't say much, but Mike Bradley was solid.  I haven't been a fan of his, but thought he looked very good last night.  Finally, what do you do with Jermaine Jones?  He is a maddening player to watch- one moment he is brilliant and the next moment he is brilliantly bad. 
Second half US squad played with pace and executed well.  Klinsmann had them playing up top with high pressure and a quick tempo...I liked it.
Its worth noting that in the first half the U.S. looked lethargic and tentative.  It might have been the heat or lack of confidence.  In any event,  the second half was much better.

It was an interesting game and you've got some great points. Zusi does look good, though his delivery last night was not as good as it has been. Some of the corner kicks, especially, looked off. But I'd say that for the whole team. Not sure if it really was a case of having a problem trying to unlock a team with 10 behind the ball, but I saw more "junk" from the U.S. than I had seen in a while. Too many backheels to no one, dummies that didn't find a tuck in runner, and there was a stretch from the mid first half to a few minutes into the second where I felt like I was watching England play a Route 1 game. Long balls up the middle that were easily choked out.

I've always been a Bradley fan, so I'm coming at this from the other side. The charges of nepotism were just junk when his dad was in charge, but he did need to mature and has done so. I think that frustrating 1/2 season at Villa was really good for him, and he has come into his own as the most indispensible player on the field for the Americans. Jones has had some great games, and some bad ones. Last night was one of the latter. I prefer Cameron in that role right now, but it is a trade off. With Jones on the field Bradley and Jones have a good understanding and split the defensive and offensive responsibilities, with Cameron on the field Bradley takes a more forward role and they become a bit more predictable. But Cameron seems more steady if not quite as athletic. In qualifying I think Cameron is a better asset. If you have to win on an explosive counter, Jones might be of better benefit. Although Cameron's long passes have been very, very good.

The player that really concerns me is Gomez. I know he is young, and inexperienced especially at this level, but he just seems to fall asleep every game. He needs to be able to concentrate for 90 minutes, and I still haven't seen that out of him except for the Mexico game. In these games where the U.S. is dominant, he seems to lapse out, and that is no good for a centre back. Bessler on the other hand, has been a revelation. I do worry about the outside backs as well. F. Johnson is wasted in that role, much better than E. Johnson as a winger and not as good a positional defender as Beasley, but Beasley is too small. And Evans... well, we'll see. I don't want to pass judgement on him since he has been in an unusual position and playing well, but he doesn't strike me as a natural in that position. Just a step slow and without the experience to make it up positionally. Dolo is too old for me to want to rely on him, though he has more than paid his dues in an American uniform.

13 points is great at this stage. Leading the group is great at this stage. The U.S. definitely looks good to qualify for Brazil without taking it to the nail-biting wire. The team looks to have much more cohesiveness and understanding of the roles Klinsmann wants them to play. I think a lot of that is the month long camp they have gotten out of this. Not playing in the Confed Cup is a real downer, as another week or two together would really help this team and it is clear we are not taking a first choice team into the Gold Cup.

On the other hand, I'm hoping the Gold Cup helps bring a bit more depth into the fullback and centre back positions. We could also use another striker or two, though Landon, Dempsey, E. Johnson can all fill that role. Terrance Boyd, as he showed with an amazingly bad decision against Germany, simply isn't tactically ready. 

woacfan

I've grown to appreciate Bradley in recent years.  I thought he was a tentative player who was as likely to give up the ball as to take it away.  I really didn't care whether or not he was coach's son,  it was the fact that he just didn't seem to be authoritative in his position.  However, I have done a 180 on that.  Either I was wrong, or he has gotten better or a combination of both.
Gomez does seem to be in over his head at the moment....
"We talk about it for 20 minutes and then we decide I was right" - Brian Clough

jknezek

Quote from: woacfan on June 19, 2013, 09:35:11 PM
I've grown to appreciate Bradley in recent years.  I thought he was a tentative player who was as likely to give up the ball as to take it away.  I really didn't care whether or not he was coach's son,  it was the fact that he just didn't seem to be authoritative in his position.  However, I have done a 180 on that.  Either I was wrong, or he has gotten better or a combination of both.
Gomez does seem to be in over his head at the moment....

He broke into the national team so young it doesn't surprise me he was a bit tentative for a defensive mid. Then he had to contend with being the coach's son. It was a tough road but he was good to start and kept getting better as he learned his role. Now he's one of the best box to box CM we've had in my memory. Reyna and Ramos were both more creative but not as hard nosed and John O'brien was injured before we really could find out just how good he could have been. The pairing of Reyna and O'brien was so good in 2002, adding in Donovan and Beasley's breakthrough and the lucky knockout round draw, not surprised that team did so well. Having O'brien healthy would have really helped in 2006. But none of those guys were box to box the way Bradley has turned out. Although a little more creativity would be welcome.

jknezek

U.S. U-20 men's team opens the U20 World Cup today against Spain in Turkey. Spain is the reigning UEFA U19 champions and has an incredible team. The U.S. bracket is simply miserable with Spain, France and Ghana, a team that won the U20 World Cup not that long ago. I don't expect much from this U.S. team, especially since it has a very makeshift backline. Seems like defense is proving to be a problem at all levels of the USMNT program right now. Bit scary looking forward...

ScotsFan

Anyone watch those Confed Cup matches yesterday?  Man, that was some entertaining futbol to watch.  The 3rd place game was actually more entertaining even though it had to go to PK's to get a decision. 

And how about Brazil?  They were being left for dead by their fans prior to the start of this tournament and then they absolutely DOMINATED from start to finish including a 4-2 thrashing of Italy and last night's 3-0 beatdown of the world's best team!  The Brazilians look like they're going to be a pretty formidable home side by the time the World Cup rolls around next summer...

Gray Fox

Why do they need PK's for the third place game? ::)
Fierce When Roused

WLCALUM83

Canada and Mexico both drop their Gold Cup opening matches. (Interesting to see how far Canada's opponent can go in this thing).

Gray Fox

Quote from: WLCALUM83 on July 08, 2013, 06:07:48 AM
Canada and Mexico both drop their Gold Cup opening matches. (Interesting to see how far Canada's opponent can go in this thing).
How far will Mexico's coach go?  But they did lose to a good team.
Fierce When Roused

jknezek

Quote from: WLCALUM83 on July 08, 2013, 06:07:48 AM
Canada and Mexico both drop their Gold Cup opening matches. (Interesting to see how far Canada's opponent can go in this thing).

Both Martinique and Panama have made Gold Cup runs before. Canada's team is experimental, to say the least. When you take a country that isn't very good to begin with, and then send an experimental lineup, odds are you aren't going to be good. They were outclassed by Martinique, which is in the unique position of being able to cherry pick a few former French internationals (so long as they haven't played in 5 years) to round out an experienced squad. They aren't a bad team, and will probably battle for the second spot in the group. Canada appears to be the worst team by a longshot.

Mexico sent a largely youth squad with some B/C team veterans. Panama sent an A/B squad to continue to build a team to challenge for the last couple World Cup spots. Mexico, as usual, has more talent but less... I'm not sure, but it's something intangible. I'd call it heart, but it's more along the lines of general teamwork and self-belief.

Chepo is in big trouble if Mexico don't make the Gold Cup final. Winning with his disjointed bunch will not be easy, but the talent is there.

Either way, the games yesterday should be a good warning to the B/C team the U.S. has assembled. There just isn't a big enough gap in CONCACAF that you can send scrubs to the Gold Cup and guarantee yourself wins. That being said, I still expect to see the U.S. and Mexico play at some point, but if Panama tops the group it could come before the final. C1 (hopefully the U.S.) will play A3 or B3 in the quarters, C2 could play A3 in the semis. I don't expect Mexico to fall that far, but it is possible. C3 (lets hope not the U.S.) might play A1 in the quarters or A2 in the semis. Most likely A1/A2 will meet C1/C2 in the final. Funny how the Gold Cup is set up that way!

Honduras in Group B and Costa Rica in Group C is like Panama, an A/B team, so both could be dangerous as well.


jknezek

#2488
U.S. opens the Gold Cup tonight against Belize, which is mostly a semi-pro team. Shouldn't be too hard for the U.S. to get a win, though I wouldn't be surprised to see Belize park the bus in their defensive third. After watching the raw athleticism Haiti put on display last night in an unfortunate losing effort, and the strength Martinique played with to garner their opening win against Canada, I have to think the Jaguars are the weakest team in the tournament.  Anything less than a convincing U.S. victory will be disappointing.

The game starts at some absurd time like 11p.m. est, so it is doubtful I will watch it. Hopefully the U.S. will build on their Guatemala success and make it look as easy as it should be. A good home crowd in Portland should help.

In the early game Costa Rica should handle Cuba, depending on how strong a team the Ticos put on the field. Just from what I've seen so far, I'm thinking Group C should be the group without a qualifying third place team, making it the easiest group in the tournament. Quite a change from the Group of Death the U.S. U-20 team got hammered into, and quickly eliminated from, in Turkey.


jknezek

I stayed up to watch the Belize-US game last night. Not sure why, but I got sucked into it. About what I expected. Belize is not a good team. Looked the weakest in the tournament. They parked the bus and it worked for a while. They had 2 or 3 scoring opportunities on fast breaks and a few more because the US set piece defense looked awful. Belize got a goal out of it, which was definitely what the U.S. defense deserved.

As for scoring 6 for the second game in a row, the 6th goal was a penalty kick that should never have been called. The other 5 were solid goals, with Wondo getting the first 3. Two were sitters, one was a nice header. He's good for this level of competition, but Jack Mac would have gotten 2-4 goals the same way Wondo got 3 and missed 2 more. The U.S. could have scored 10, or they could have misfired and gotten 2 or 3, but the game was never in doubt. Seemed like the US had close to, if not more, than 70% possession.

As far as players, the central defense pairing did not look good. Beckerman may be one of Klinsi's favorites, but he's not good enough. Especially against a weak team. Beckerman looks to go back or sideways first, and when playing a team that parks the bus, he's useless. Came off at halftime and Holden was an improvement. Nice to see Holden get a goal. Overall he had some good moments, as did Torres and Corona, in the creative role. Then again, they should since they were playing a semi-pro team.

Donovan had a strong game, Beasley had a strong game. Diskerud did not have the accuracy I want to see at this level. He wasted some good passing and movement opportunities by being off target more than he was on, but he kept his motor running.

Cuba is next and I expect the US to have a marginally tougher time of it. There probably won't be 3 six goal games in a row, but it wouldn't surprise me to see a 3-1 or 4-1 score. Don't have a lot of faith the US will keep a clean sheet. Cuba is better than Belize, but shouldn't present a challenge. Costa Rica did not impress in their win, especially given they brought a good chunk of their A team. We'll see how the games go, but the US should win all 3 group games. Nice to see a ramp with Guatemala, Belize, Cuba, and then the Ticos. Should give the team a chance to gel considering it is not a group that plays together much.