OT: Bradley Announces Gold Cup Roster (USMNT)
The Men's National Team announced the roster for the 2011 Gold Cup today, and one of the surprises is that Freddy Adu was named to the team.
Those left off include Bunbury, Gomez, and Davies.
http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5hSm1XgA1MelLBCXD9LZI…
I'm going to the game in Detroit and am really excited to get to see some of the younger guys like Lichaj & Agudelo in person. Thoughts?
damn, i thought this was the year i finally would make it.
Adu? Wondolowski? Rogers? Maybe Bradley since he had no impact since coming to Euro.
Omission of Chandler, Bunbury. Some people say Davies but I disagree since he hasn't made any signficiant impact and his goals were right place, right time IMO. On the bright side, no Robbie Findley. Thank goodness!
I can see Clint Dempsey playing striker and is the only capable player who can score from striker spot. Altidore and Agudelo aren't compatiable pair as a striker
I know he's a totally sketchy pick, but I can't help but maintain some shred of hope that he'll end up having a productive career.
Adu has been playing well for his club team as of late even if it is the 2nd division of the Turkish league.
The only reason why I can think of the inclusion of Rogers is the injury to Stu Holden. I would have honestly like to have seen Alejandro Bedoya instead of Rogers.
What the hell happened to Gringo Torres? I really like the way he plays and is very capable to making passes and being creative. He seems really comfortable with the ball at his feet and can hold it despite his size.
The problem with Torres is 1) he's been stuck on the bench a lot for his club, and more importantly 2) he's got nowhere to play with the current crew. In the 4-4-2, Bradley will pick two center midfielders from the Bradley/Edu/Jones group. In the 4-5-1, he might use all three, or will use an attacking midfielder in the center or use a wing and move Donovan or Dempsey into that CAM spot. Torres is a holding midfielder, not an attacking midfielder, so he's kind of stuck behind several guys, and doesn't really play on the wing.
I think Jones basically took all the PT that Torres might have seen. I know that Jones is a good player, but I'm just not sure how much time he has left since he is aging and has had injury problems.
It just killed to see RIcardo Clark in games when clearly Torres is more skilled and more comfortable on the ball.
Can't fault a player for being in the right place at the right time though, thats half the battle in soccer.
but I would feel better if Davies have showed the ability to score from anywhere at striker position like he had done in CONCAF cup which he hasn't done that this season.
Agreed. No Robbie Findlay is a positive.
Would have liked to see Bunbury instead of Wondo. Nothing against him, he's probably better than Bunbury right now, but I doubt he'll factor into the next world cup, and Bunbury might.
I didn't even realize Robbie Rogers was significant anymore, and dammit I thought we were done with Kljestan.
No Timmy Chandler?! Not gonna lie, I hope someone has to drop out for some reason cus I was really excited about this guy.
He (or his club, or a combination) opted out due to being tired from a really long season and wanting some time to recuperate (also some conspiracy talk that Germany may be trying to talk to him about playing for them...he's not yet tied to the US)
And trust your first instinct, Robbie Rogers is not significant anymore.
I really hope Chandler decides to play for us. We haven't had a left or right back with pace and crossing abilities in quite some time.
Having an incisive attacking back who can cut inside and create a shot would be awesome, but it's sort of asking for a lot.
But the complete inability of our backs to even get forward in a wide position and deliver solid crosses is just shocking and so fundamental for a fullback.
I read somewhere about maybe trying Rogers at LB, which in theory sounds like a fun possibility for a speedy guy who has some on-the-ball skills and a good left foot. And most importantly has experience taking corners, which would in theory help out on crosses.
One of the few semi-plausible explanations I've heard for Rogers' inclusion
How capable is Rogers at defending? I guess his speed will help him from getting beat, but I wonder if his speed will make up for it if he is in the wrong position.
You know we have a bad situation at LB when we have to put our CB there because we have no other options. Bocanegra is not bad, but like you said he doesn't forward enough in wide positions. Also I think his lack of speed is holding him back from making those necessary runs.
It always sounds good in theory, but playing outside back requires much more than being able to get up the touchline and put in a good cross. Most importantly, playing outside requires a good feeling of when to go forward and how to protect space in the back, otherwise you're very easily caught out. It's hard to see how someone who has played offensive winger his entire career would be able to pick up the positional fundamentals of outside back over a short training camp and tournament.
It hasn't worked in the past (eg Beasley) but If there's anywhere to try, it would be the Gold Cup, as there are only 3-4 teams there with the offensive capability to hurt the US for bad positioning (Mex, Hondo, CR, maybe Canada) in the back..
Oh I agree, I certainly wasn't suggesting that Rogers would slot right in and have success, or that the defensive aspect of fullback is somehow less important than crossing. Defense is the bare minimum and first requirement. Assuming you can only do one thing, defense is the reason why Bornstein/Boca have a job on this team and Pearce/Spector don't (Spector obviously has been playing MF for West Ham, I doubt he sees the field much for us)
Due to the black hole at LB, US fans get giddy at any new possibility that isn't one of the already failed experiments, so you mention Castillo, Zach Lloyd, Brek Shea, and people start to say "that sounds ok" because at least it's not Bornstein.
And I freely admit falling into that trap with Rogers, knowing full well that he probably would not be very good in that role. Just generally, Rogers is a good-not-great MLS player and well below international level, so there's not much reason to expect success other than blind hope.
Question for you FBG - How is chandler not tied into the US yet? I thought as soon as you played an international game for the SR team you were locked up? Are there certain games that you have to play in? FIFA sanctioned or something? Thanks in advance for the answer.
It has to be in a major competition to be tied to a team without the one-time option to switch -- basically, World Cup, World Cup qualifying, Confed Cup, or a continental championship (like the Gold Cup or Copa America). Chandler could still use his one-time option to switch to Germany since he has only played in international friendlies with the US.
Did they ever get down to the bottom of the controversy regarding Adu's age?
It was more of a conspiracy theory rather than a real controversy.
I would have also liked to see Bunbury, but forward is a tough position to crack for the US right now with Dempsey, Altidore and Agudelo all there. Going forward from this Gold Cup to the 2014 World Cup...the defense scares me...I do not like the depth on the back end.
I cannot wait for the game against Canada at Ford Field...it will be my first time seeing the USMNT live.
I also kinda wanted to see Bunbury, as I think that he's pretty good with his back to the goal which seems to be one of Jozy's weaknesses. Although, its hard to argue against Wondolowski since he's arguably the best striker in MLS right now
I don't really have any problems with it. 3 years is a long time. I think winning this thing is extremely important as we got a big boost from playing well in the Confed Cup back in '09.
I would've liked to see Davies, but if Bradley doesn't think he's fully on form, then it's the right call.
And, yes, Robbie Rogers is no longer a crucial part of the USMNT.
Why is Adu a surprise? I'm more surprised that Dempsey is still on the team. He's the flopmaster general. Guy never stops complaining.
Clint Dempsey? The same player who is in top 20 in goal scored in the Premier League, a league that is regarded as one of the most competitive and toughest league in the world? He is Fulham's best player. You must be blind if you surprised that Dempsey is still on the team.
Clint Dempsey offers creativity and goal scoring ability which is something that USMNT is sorely lacking.
Maybe he feels entitled to complain. Perhaps he doesn't feel like he gets the respect he deserves from the refs. Not behavior you would expect from a consummate professional. For all his accomplishments, he was a disappointment in the USMNT's last go around.
because he complains to the ref? Every players complain to the refs all the time. Dumb reason on not wanting Dempsey on the team.
But this guy takes the cake for complaining. Seriously. I've never seen someone complain so much. Just play the game. When the ball is in play, suck it up and help your team win. What's done is done.
He really disappointed me when he basically willed the ball into the goal so that we can get a draw against England. Without that goal we wouldn't have advanced. You really have no idea what you are talking about.
No Richardo Clark! No Findley and Clark is a great thing! Even with some questionable selections by Bradley, he made the right decisions to exclude them from the team.
Timmy Chandler was our best midfielder in the last two games. Dude made some beautiful runs up the right side and some even nicer crosses. How the hell do Robbie rogers and Sacha Kljestan make the team ahead of him?
And I know I will be villified for this but Dempsey plays way better for Fullham than he does for the USMNT. It's like he just dicks around when hes playing with the National Team. Never moves off the ball like he does for Fullham, keeps the ball too long, and doesn't hustle on defense.
Bradley is a joke.
EDIT- Hope I didn't come off suggesting that Dempsey doesn't deserve to be on the team, cause he is clearly our best player. Just wish he would play for the US like he does for Fullham.
Bob Bradley doesn't really take advantage of Dempsey's skillset and his scheme limited Dempsey IMO.
I'd love to see the US try to line up in Barca's 4-3-3 with Dempsey operating as a false 9, basically the Messi role, with freedom to fall back and link with midfield, or do go forward. If Holden was healthy, it might work. Jones or Edu are well suited to sit front of the back 4 in the shield/initiate Busquets role.
We'd likely get torn apart b/c of our poor possession retention, but it would be interesting to watch, and gets a lot of players into spaces where they play well (I think Jozy works best where he's more apt to get the ball at his feet). It would look something like this. The place it would fall flat is in our limitations in transitioning from defense into offense (that's where Ream is potentially very promising).
'Dolo ---- Ream ---- Boca/Gooch ----- Ugh
Edu
Holden -------- Bradley
LD ------------ Dempsey ---------- Altidore
I really don't see how Agudelo or Altidore would do if they're the lone striker over the top. I think this position is best suited for Dempsey but that takes away from him being able to play midfield. Davies would have been much better at that spot with Altidore at lower striker where Altidore can use his size and can get the ball to Davies.
If Bradley wants to do this formation, the lineup would be:
---------------------Howard----------------------
Cherundalo---Onyewu---Spector----Lichaj---
Donovan--------Bradley-------------Adu-----
-----------Dempsey---------Altidore--------
--------------------Agudelo-------------------
You can probably switch Altidore and Agudelo with Wondolowski subbing for Agudelo at striker.
I can see Fielhaber playing the left mid subbing for Adu at some point.
Left side of defensive spots are up in the air. I think Lichaj will start at LB. Not sure who will start at LCB alongside Gooch. Spector, Ream and Goodson are all candidate at LCB spot.
I don't know about Spector playing the LCB. I know he is versatile, but I haven't seen enough West Ham games to know how he would fair at LCB. Didn't he play mostly in the MF for West Ham this year?
Our defense is our weakest and oldest spot. I think it wouldn't hurt to experiment with some new players to see if we can upgrade our team.
the exclusion of Tim Chandler are puzzling IMO. USMNT could really use the youth like Ream, Lichaj and Chandler to gain some experience playing for USMNT so they would be better equipped to play the '14 WC at Brazil.
Spector did play at MF for West Ham but he did play LCB at times for USMNT. As long as I don't see Bocanegra on the field, I'm happy.
Defense is still a major weakness for USMNT and they don't do a good job of pressuring the ball and let striker/middie slip through the crack. If it weren't for Tim Howard, USA would have bombed in some of the games they played for the last few years.
USMNT weakess is obviously defense, goal scoring from striker position and ball possession. They don't do a good job of possessing the ball and generally gives the ball away. With that being said, USMNT is one of the better team in counter-attack. With Dempsey and Donovan at MF, they can get upfield in a hurry.
Even with all of the USMNT's weaknesses, the talent level is much better than a decade ago and it will continue to get better in the future. There are more players playing in overseas and MLS has improved with regards to competition. What I really want USMNT committee to do is to start a youth soccer academy or emphasize with soccer coaches in the country to start working on ball possession and passing.
I don't hate Bocanegra as much as you do, but I do think he is playing out of position when he is at LB. If he were to play I would rather see him play CB, he doesn't possess the speed or offer enough of a threat to get wide.
Timmothy Chandler IS 100% locked in to the United States unless Germany splits into multiple new countries.
Germany have a lot of players who are 25 and under and they're expected to be a WC championship contender in a few years. I don't see Chandler making the squad and there's still time for Chandler to make the WC squad anyway.
I wish chandler and torres were on this team and I think it is somewhat important to win just to get to play in the confeds cup for extra expirence against close to top rate teams ... i dont mind adu being on it ... i dont get rogers being on it ... really hope mike bradley returns to his form from last summer when I though he was just great
i was very vocal last summer on this board that i didnt think bradley should be brought back (see findley and to me starting clark against ghana was unacceptable)
i really hope to see a 4-5-1 (3 holding middies) of
howard
'dolo, guch, (young CB who looks best in june), boca ....(don't mind if we try going young)
dempsey, jones, bradley, edu, donovan (torres would be a great backup, holden is missed)
altidore (Agudelo or Wondolowski both seeing time ina game or 2 late)
but it is bradley so we will see a 4-4-2
I'm with you on the Findley and Clark thing. I felt like having Ricardo Clark out there was one of the reasons why we lost that game.
The two things I have learned about BB is that he is loyal and hates change. I remember we came out it a 4-5-1 look once only to siwtch right back to 4-4-2.
Bornstein? I shudder whenever he is on the pitch.