**Official USMNT Soccer Thread**

[Kimchi Papi]

i mean it started with a Zardes looking fumbling first touch, then he pouted, and walked back to defend, but yes 1000 pushups and sit ups to Pulisic

You're right... I'm working from home & didn't see Zardes beforehand. I did a rewind to see what happens... Both of them would owe me laps, push ups, & sit ups...

When I used to do Tae Kwon Do/Hapkido (black belt 2nd degree), my uncle trained me. He was an ex Korean Special Forces Colonel... If I half a**ed it or didn't perform well, he'd beat the crap out of me in sparring & I'd owe him laps around his neighborhood along with a 1000 push ups & sit ups throughout the day. I didn't have to do them all at once, but I had to rip sets of 100 at a time of each... Then at the end of training, I had to run laps around his neighborhood. It wasn't long before I was always fundamentally sound. None of that, "I'm trying or I tried BS." Either do it or don't do it...

 

[DsLee]

-Goal on Pulisic

Don’t say it
Don’t say it
Don’t say it
Don’t say it
Don’t say it
Don’t say it
Don’t say it
Don’t say it

Me: Sancho way better...

 

[rck3sactown]

guys, im gonna be honest we look pretty terrible in the first 45

idk how much it matters because friendlies are stupid anyways and we dont have a coach

anyways, everything with the USMNT and USSF still sucks

i lowkey wanna take a 100 laps and 1000 pushups and situps. We will see how my back feels after I loosen up

 

[rck3sactown]

pls explain what the strat is when the opposing defence is kinda just packed in and waiting for you to come at them; why is nobody making any runs??

tbh I run into this same issue when i play fifa online and i know you cant just dribble at them.

 

[sonoftony]

Just saw the recap

 

[Kimchi Papi]

The play of the US should've gotten better under the time the Sarachan has had the reigns but it hasn't. The only thing that's been good about his era has been getting the young players caps, but not sure they benefited from the acumen or lack there of from Sarachan.

Yesterday's game, he had the US just sit deep which invited England to just keep coming at the US with their speed which resulted in them bagging 2 relatively easy goals.

Hard to judge how much better the second half was for the US bcs England dialed it back after leading by 2 goals. You could tell they dialed it down. Biggest issue again is England ran train on the US midfield. They got run over like they weren't even there. Just a really really poor effort.

I've asked this before.... WTF happened to DeAndre Yedlin?!?!?!?! He hasn't progressed at all. In fact, I'd argue he's gotten worse. He's fast, but that's all US players are. His passing specifically his crosses were terrible. I think he missed everyone he attempted (& missed badly to).

 

[sonoftony]

That whole team looked flat and unmotivated the entire match especially after giving up the first goal. I do agree that one of the only good things was getting the younger players caps. I recall days before the match, they had Klinsy Jr. on the roster. I would've like to see what he can offer instead of f**king Guzan . I would've rather liked to see a CCV paired with Miazga since they looked good together matches ago and FFS, please start Sargent.

But again, unless they don't address the obvious problems from coaching to all the way to the top, it's gonna be more of the same. Can't wait to see us get outclassed by Italy next.

 

[Fozz]

So, it sounds like things haven't started out well for Team USA.

 

[Kimchi Papi]

It's a stark contrast on how well the US women play vs the men.

 

[Nike Jordan]

It's a stark contrast on how well the US women play vs the men.

If the men's team was half as good as the women's team...

 

[Kimchi Papi]

Lets see what we look like today...

Oscar Pareja has left Dallas FC.... Shame he wouldn't get much consideration for the US job... If not Tata, I'd take Pareja over any of the other candidates.

 

[Kimchi Papi]

Not sure who has the worse first touch, US or Italy... This Italian team is so beatable but US can't muster anything. Twice, there was a nice combo of passes & then the final pass was so heavy...

 

[rck3sactown]

Lets see what we look like today...

Oscar Pareja has left Dallas FC.... Shame he wouldn't get much consideration for the US job... If not Tata, I'd take Pareja over any of the other candidates.

Julen Lopetegui

why tf do the ppl in charge still have their jobs

 

[sonoftony]

Julen Lopetegui

why tf do the ppl in charge still have their jobs

I still can't wrap my head around that. I hope we catch nothing but Ls from here on out

We can't be this daft....oh wait....

 

[rck3sactown]

I still can't wrap my head around that. I hope we catch nothing but Ls from here on out

We can't be this daft....oh wait....

tbh i truly believe the vast majority of us aren't.... its just the actual key decision makers who were unaffected by the Sunil upheaval are still in place, and therefore, we are still in the same position as before

 

[sonoftony]

tbh i truly believe the vast majority of us aren't.... its just the actual key decision makers who were unaffected by the Sunil upheaval are still in place, and therefore, we are still in the same position as before

as long as status quo stays within USSF, SUM and MLS nothing will change

 

[rck3sactown]

in some ways USSF is more screwed up than the country now that i think about it.

IRL at least we have media fairly criticizing and keeping the ppl who run the country in check

with USSF/MLS/SUM the vast majority of american soccer journalists and reporters that actually matter; none of these mother ****ers are even making a peep about this outside of "oh the hiring process is taking too long"

 

[sonoftony]

in some ways USSF is more screwed up than the country now that i think about it.

IRL at least we have media fairly criticizing and keeping the ppl who run the country in check

with USSF/MLS/SUM the vast majority of american soccer journalists and reporters that actually matter; none of these mother ****ers are even making a peep about this outside of "oh the hiring process is taking too long"

I'm glad you're not the only one that thinks this

the shenanigans of the federation and the government are waaayyyy to similar to each other. There are a (very) small handful of journalists that are very critical of American footy but they're not mainstream. The mainstream journalists that we know of don't have the balls to criticize the current climate of soccer and will say everything is great. Those that did critisize, got pushed out the paint (ex: Wynalda). I know Taylor Twellman has had it but he is holding himself back from spilling too much tea

 

[Kimchi Papi]

Lopetegui's agent said his client never approached the US or anyone. The agent went on to say it hasn't been too long since his firing from Madrid so he's taking some time off & hasn't even thought about what he's going to do next.

 

[DsLee]

Piece from The Athletic by Paul Tenorio:

It’s beyond time to make USMNT players earn their caps at the club level

By Paul Tenorio Nov 20, 2018

51

I was standing outside Luminus Arena on the cold and windy day before the U.S. friendly against Italy, speaking with a pair of German journalists who had driven four hours for the chance to interview Werder Bremen prospect Josh Sargent, when they asked me a simple question that has a complex answer.

Why was a striker who had yet to break into a senior club side been called in for an international match? The U.S. was continuing to cap a player who had yet to make his Bundesliga debut, and these journalists wanted to know what Americans made of this fact.

To them, it was a rarity. For this U.S. team, it is a reality. But that shouldn’t be the case any longer.

The World Cup failure exposed a yawning gap between Michael Bradley’s generation and Christian Pulisic’s. The U.S. team’s lack of in-their-prime players contributed to its disastrous qualification cycle. Its lack of players competing in the world’s best leagues likewise betrayed the team’s weakness. It was natural to be excited by the sudden rise of Christian Pulisic; that he was the lone bright spot in the U.S.’s Hexagonal effort is also a damning indictment of the national team’s shallow pool.

The gap between generations continues to define the early transition from the 2018 World Cup failure to cycle that will, hopefully, culminate in an appearance at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar. Another team, in another universe, might have begun that cycle the day after Couva. Instead, this year has been all about the Play Your Kids movement that has galvanized so much of American soccer Twitter.

Overseen by interim coach Dave Sarachan, 2018 was largely about finding out who fits into the future plans of the national team. Sarachan called up 50 players during his year in charge. He gave 23 players their first caps. On Tuesday in Belgium, he trotted out the youngest lineup in the modern era of U.S. Soccer and made Christian Pulisic the youngest player to don the captain’s armband. The inexperienced team held on for 93 minutes before succumbing to Italy.

It was a hopeful lineup, which is fitting, because hope and optimism are pretty much all that U.S. fans have to sustain them right now. They hang on the potential of Sargent and Weston McKennie and Tyler Adams and Tim Weah. They point out the positives of Antonee Robinson and Aaron Long and Reggie Cannon. At the same time, many of them scorn the notion that this team has any use for veterans, from Jozy Altidore to Michael Bradley to Jorge Villafaña and anyone else on the wrong side of 27 years old.

It’s an understandable reaction to a World Cup failure. And it shows just how important it will be for the team to get this roster right for 2022 even if it means losing games in 2018. But it’s time for this era of transition to come to an end. And Sarachan—who acknowledged after the loss to Italy that he had coached his last national team game—said as much.

“There are no givens with the national team,” he said. “The messaging we’ve tried to bring to the table for all these guys is to understand it’s not everybody’s right, it’s a privilege, and just because you’re in now doesn’t mean you’re in. And that’ll take hold certainly as the calendar flips.”

When the U.S. hires its new head coach, that person will need to balance the importance of preparing the team to be ready come 2022 with forcing the players to earn their call-ups in 2019, 2020, and 2021. The U.S. national team needs its players to be performing not just when they’re handed international caps but also for their club teams. The international stage cannot be a training ground for young prospects, no matter how much potential they may have. If you’re not playing for your club’s first team, you shouldn’t be playing for the national team. Period.

Sure, the U.S. loss to Italy could be called a good experience for these young players to have lived through. But it’s no substitute to the experience and skills they will gain by climbing the ranks with their clubs.

This means that Weah and Sargent need first-team minutes. Cameron Carter-Vickers and Matt Miazga need consistent playing time. And it means that the teenagers shouldn’t be replacing veterans like Altidore, Villafaña, John Brooks, DeAndre Yedlin, Brad Guzan, and others until they are actually forcing them to the bench through their consistently excellent play away from the national team.

“That’ll be up to the coach,” Pulisic said about the role of veterans going forward. “I don’t think it would be a bad idea (to keep older players in the team). I think some guys need the direction and (need to) see where this team is going to go, and veteran guys can always help that.”

There should be a certain prestige that comes with a national team call-up. The events of 2018 didn’t cheapen the value of a cap; what might charitably be called a year-long coaching search made clear that this was a period in which results would be secondary to identification. Even Italy played 18-year-old Moise Kean on Tuesday night as the Azzurri go through their own transition. But as this team moves into games that count, that attitude has to change. Those young call-ups must be the exceptions, not the rules.

“Definitely,” said U.S. midfielder Wil Trapp when asked if players need to earn call-ups with first-team club performances in the future. “That comes with the coach and the style and what he wants and who is in form and who is playing. That’s just a natural given the progression of the group.”

“There is no more experimenting,” Sarachan said of the task that faces his successor. “Now it’s building a team.”

We’ve seen what happens when you put a group of largely unproven players on the field against good national teams. The evidence was there against Brazil and Colombia and England and Italy. And it’s not the fault of the young players. They can develop. Some will undoubtedly become regular national team players. But the majority of a player’s development needs to happen at the club level.

As for the veterans, there is absolutely still value in playing older players who can contribute in 2019 and 2020, even if they lose their starting jobs by 2021 and 2022. The U.S. team will be better for it, and they can do it without sacrificing results down the road.

We’ve seen the kids. They’ve gotten a look at the top level and tasted the thrill and expectations that come with representing their country. Now it’s time to bring back the players who have earned it, and to call in all deserving players regardless of their age.

Those German journalists were right to wonder about Josh Sargent’s presence with the national team. And though he has shown that he can hang at this level, it is undoubtedly true that this team will only thrive if he and the rest of his teammates demand their places through their club play first.

 

[Kimchi Papi]

Sad thing is we'll get some gringo USMNT manager & next summer a majoirty of the younger players won't get caps bcs the older vets will most likely return for next summers CONCACAF Gold Cup...

I can't believe the federation went a year without hiring anyone. Whats the point of playing the young fellas when they didn't benefit from a permanent coach who would start implementing their tactics & philosophy with the young guys?!?! This whole year was essentially lost...

The only somewhat sad sack silver lining is that Tyler Adams, Sarget, & Weston McKennie established themselves as players that will help build around Pulisic.

I'd like to see Horvath & Bill Hamid split time. I know Steffen is younger but I liek Hamid more. These 3 should've gotten all the playing time this year instead of any of the older vets.

The biggest thing the new manager will have to develop is keeping possession, establishing effective passing, movement/running off the ball & providing service to our forwards.

The biggest weakness the US is a lack of effective creative midfield...

 

[DsLee]

I agree with the lack of effective creative midfield, which is why it always baffled me why someone like Lee Nguyen wasn't given more looks at the national level.

 

[DeadsetAce]

The biggest weakness the US is a lack of effective creative midfield...

forever has and will be...

 

[rck3sactown]

Lopetegui's agent said his client never approached the US or anyone. The agent went on to say it hasn't been too long since his firing from Madrid so he's taking some time off & hasn't even thought about what he's going to do next.

i hope this is true... rather than trying to save face from "USSF turned Julen down"

 

[Kimchi Papi]

I said this in the footy thread but there are no players that fit Lopetegui's profile on the US roster that can carry out his tactics/philosophy. Paticularly in the midfield.

That Italian team was one of the most beatable Italian sides in years yet the US looked pitiful. Passing accuracy was dismal & they couldn’t string together more than 2 passes before either coughing up the ball in some way.

Even B4 his agent came out & refuted the rumor I doubted the veracity of that story. It’s a dumb *** lie..