To kick off the Jurgen Klinsmann era, The Yanks scrapped their way to a draw with El Tricolor in Wednesday night's friendly at Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia. There's a strong emphasis on that particular verb. That's because the USMNT will rely heavily on that verb in all of its tenses if it wants to continue getting results against moderate to high level opponents (All apologies if you were expecting a blog about how we "[...]really pulled it together in the second half," or how certain players' stock rose). Here are a few harsh realities to chew on as we continue the brand-recession of US Soccer:
Yes... we're usually stronger and in better physical condition than other teams, BUT we are still generations behind the rest of the world in terms of technical ability...
After drawing level in the 2nd half, we blew half-chance after half-chance to go ahead. Be it bad spacing on our runs, poor touches, or poorly weighted passes, we simply didn't have the quality or clinical finishing to close the game out.
Yes... Break Shea is a young talent with a bright future, BUT the last time I checked, a 6'3" striker in his early twenties should be able to hold off a couple 5'8" Mexican defenders to keep position routinely...
It's called a mismatch in any sport and it should have been utilized more effectively. On the field we need to be locating weaknesses and exploiting them. Our Footballing IQ needs to improve and our style of play needs to incorporate more reconnaissance.
Yes... Kyle Beckerman has dreadlocks, as did Cobi Jones, BUT we are 4 years removed from Cobi Jones' playing days and Kyle Beckerman is ever further away from playing at his level.
Is anybody else sick and tired of seeing players with basic technical ability, no high-level experience, no stand-out physical abilities and no potential getting called into the national squad? It seems like every time the quality in MLS drops, we see Kyle Beckerman suiting up during international breaks. I implore the USSF to be more honest about the level of play in its top domestic league. MLS players need something to look forward to, but let's not sell them false hope, especially at the expense of USMNT development.
P.S. If I hear another announcer commend him for executing rudimentary elements of the game again, I'm learning German and demanding a sit-down with Jurgen Klinsmann himself... yes I know he speaks English!
Yes... Jermaine Jones plays club soccer in Europe, BUT I'm not sure what he brings to the table because he hasn't been at full strength (or at least appeared so) since joining the squad.
We finally got his paperwork taken care of and we were so excited to have him, but since he broke his leg he's looked like a shell of the man who bossed the midfield box-to-box for Shalke FC. Maybe it's just bad timing and he's still got something left in the tank. But he's not even showing the guile and creativity becoming of a 29 year old midfield virtuoso. He makes Maurice Edu look like a UPS employee with ADD.
It is worth noting that he was the player that quelled the brief scuffle between Cherundolo and Guardado. All the flyweight tough-guy shoving quickly gained perspective when Jones stepped into the ring.
The Big Picture
With Landon Donovan putting on the miles, Oguchi Onyewu crocked and Clint Dempsey looking more and more like Hugh Laurie, we need to find some stability solutions quick. We can't continue to rely on scrapping alone when our stars are unavailable. Our style of play has to be fluid & more intelligent and our personnel can't spend the first 70 minutes of every match starstruck and in awe of the other team's ability to move without the ball, string together passes and finish.
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