Stars and Stripes Vs. Black Stars Ingame thoughts
fratboy
Senior Member
USA D looks weak early. Altidore is also moving slow without the energy needed to advance any further in this competition.
Comments
I'm fairly confident that the US will be able to generate some scoring chances in the 2nd half, especially as the half goes on and we're forced to get more offensive (and likely make subs to that effect). Whether or not we convert those chances while avoiding defensive breakdowns is another story.
...and the addition of Feilhaber. Someone can explain to me later why this isn't our main lineup. I posted before the tourney that I'd like to see Dempsey up front (mostly for lack of a better option). Clearly Feilhaber helps create scoring chances. This is the lineup Bradley has gone to twice now when we were behind. And perhaps most importantly, our defense doesn't seem to suffer any.
Bradley is a terrible coach always has been and I dont think anyone will ever know how he became the national coach besides doing some serious work behind the scenes.
Sounds like you agree. If the defense is a wash either way (regardless of calling it good, bad, or mediocre), yet the offense is clearly better with this lineup... common sense says USE THIS LINEUP.
they guy is terrible end of story.
What did they do specifically that seemed arrogant to you?
Thanks, that makes more sense. If they sounded arrogant to you, fair enough.
Who you guys think just played in their last WC, other than essentially the entire back line?
Dempsey, Donovan, Howard, Gomez all go to Rio in their early 30's?
Howard 35
Cherundolo 35
Bocanegra 35
Demerit 34
Bornstein 29
Bradley 26
Clark 31
Donovan 32
Dempsey 31
Findley 28
Altidore 24
Edu 28
Feilhaber 29
Gomez 32
That just does very little to inspire me. Granted, a healthy Davies, Ching and Onyewu it coulda been a different story. I know that WC teams have a pretty high turnover these days, unless you are Italian or French (and we see how well that worked for the previous holders)
The range this WC from youngest to oldest average age on a squad is from 24.1 (Ghana, and this debatable...) and England 28.7. The US, as a team is 26.9, which is just shy of the median at 27.1.. I know we have less than 1% chance of trotting out the exact same starting 11 in brazil, but our average age from today's 11 in 2014 would be 30.9.. I just look at some of the key pieces of this team and wonder how productive they could possibly be next WC, where a non European team will likely win it for the second consecutive time, assuming a South American team takes it this year. For a lot of countries, the talent waiting to fill in and blossom is huge, I can't say for certain as I'm not real familiair with any feeder teams/programs we have here but it's pretty depressing to think about on an already somber evening.
I propose a nationwide prohibition of basketball. No kids will be allowed to play pick up games and no organized basketball should be played in the United States from this day forward. The reason I say basketball is because it's not an enjoyable sport to watch and I think they have the best skill set that translates into soccer success. The US would already have a worldwide monopoly on international soccer if this was the only sport we played, or primary - you know what I mean, and so just basketball players will be used and we can maximize that crop's potential in the future.