qwksndmonster Posted June 17, 2014 Report Posted June 17, 2014 Ghana crushed us statistically. 59-41 possession percent and they outshot us 21 to 8. The big difference is that we blocked a lot of shots. Ghana managed to get 8 of 21 on goal and we got 7 of 8. We did much better on D than I was expecting. The possession was about where I figured. The timely goals? Hell ###### yes.
Ghost of Dwight Drane Posted June 17, 2014 Report Posted June 17, 2014 Ghana crushed us statistically. 59-41 possession percent and they outshot us 21 to 8. The big difference is that we blocked a lot of shots. Ghana managed to get 8 of 21 on goal and we got 7 of 8. Are you a Tortorella fan yet?
darksabre Posted June 17, 2014 Report Posted June 17, 2014 Are you a Tortorella fan yet? Nope. This is not a sustainable approach.
dudacek Posted June 17, 2014 Report Posted June 17, 2014 (edited) Kind of an interesting exercise for us hardcore hockey/casual soccer fans. http://www.thehockeynews.com/blog/heres-what-a-32-team-hockey-world-cup-would-look-like/ Edited June 17, 2014 by dudacek
Huckleberry Posted June 17, 2014 Report Posted June 17, 2014 These uniforms are far superior to our unis 4 years ago. All the time i was thinking i was wacthing chilli with ugly uniforms :P
wjag Posted June 17, 2014 Report Posted June 17, 2014 question for all you serious futbol fans. Is the game plan we saw yesterday, i.e., collaspse in the D zone and opportunistically counter attack, going to be the game plan for the US team, or was that the game plan only to counter Ghana's speed? I'm not sure I want to sit through another game like that.
Huckleberry Posted June 17, 2014 Report Posted June 17, 2014 I don't see many other options in that group for you guys then to play counterattack. USA is simply the weakest link in the group, 1st upset is over, play like that against portugal and 2nd place is all yours.
wjag Posted June 17, 2014 Report Posted June 17, 2014 I don't see many other options in that group for you guys then to play counterattack. USA is simply the weakest link in the group, 1st upset is over, play like that against portugal and 2nd place is all yours. But presumably it only gets harder, if they survive the first round. So the game plan for the US team would have to be repeated again and again. Sooner or later, they are going to need to attack.
LastPommerFan Posted June 17, 2014 Report Posted June 17, 2014 With Altidore out, the entire team apparently unprepared for the humidity, and a 1 goal lead, I think the wait and counter mode was a pretty solid option regardless of the opponent. If Jozy gets good news today during his scans, and the team is better hydrated or the conditions are better, I think the games against the European teams will be more balanced.
Guest Sloth Posted June 17, 2014 Report Posted June 17, 2014 Have watched the US play w/ a counter attack for years. Had hopes Klinsmann would take US soccer in a new direction. I'll admit I didn't pay much attention to the qualifying games, so maybe yesterday' style of play was a choice. The first 10 minutes or so were dictated by the US. After that is was all Ghana. In my opinion, our country looked like a deer in headlights for most of the game. If the US plays that poor against Portugal, there is no way they can win. Especially w/ Portugal coming off an embarrassing loss to Germany. Sure, Germany was the favorite to win, but not by a blow out. I understand Portugal played a man down for more than half the game, but they did give up 2 goals when the teams were even. US cannot lose to Portugal. If they do, count them out. Germany is at a much higher level.
Ghost of Dwight Drane Posted June 17, 2014 Report Posted June 17, 2014 With Altidore out, the entire team apparently unprepared for the humidity, and a 1 goal lead, I think the wait and counter mode was a pretty solid option regardless of the opponent. If Jozy gets good news today during his scans, and the team is better hydrated or the conditions are better, I think the games against the European teams will be more balanced. I did find ironic the hubbub about Landon Donovan not being on the team.....and him being the halftime analyst for the game as the US was down to 1/2 a striker. If I were an ESPN producer, I would have cut to him eating a bag of Lays, smoking a cigarette, and talking on the cell phone, "No...nothing going on tonight, sure I'll go bowling...."
Guest Sloth Posted June 17, 2014 Report Posted June 17, 2014 Another disappointing number is the amount of players we have playing in the MLS. 10 players on our World Cup team play in the MLS. Klinsmann slammed the league. Mentioned good players only have to play at 70 or 80% to have success in the MLS. How is that going to make them better? I like Klinsmann's philosophy and the direction he wants to take US soccer. Have the youth playing the same style of soccer the national team tries to play. Must be done nationwide. Also have teenagers choosing professional soccer over college. That's practiced in Europe. Klinsmann also feels Dempsey is overrated. The guy is being honest and direct. Klinsmann has already had his contract extended to the 2018 World Cup. Change takes time. Hopefully it all works out.
Sabres Fan in NS Posted June 17, 2014 Author Report Posted June 17, 2014 Good win for the US, but they will be in a war of attrition with Portugal. Neither side, especially Portugal, can afford a loss ... Portugal in a must win situation, pretty much. I don't see the Germans with a loss, or draw, in the group stage. After the scoreless draw between Iran and Nigeria the Bosnians have them both right where they want them now.
dEnnis the Menace Posted June 17, 2014 Report Posted June 17, 2014 We definitely cannot play like that again and expect to go far. Altidore going down is big. his replacement looked lost out there at times. The conditioning (lack thereof) scares me. Brooks' goal was huge there! absolutely awesome outcome either way.
Eleven Posted June 17, 2014 Report Posted June 17, 2014 USA, like BiH, marks too closely and does not distribute the ball well or keep possession well. There is no need for a constant push upfield. The better teams know how and when to pass back and redistribute. And don't tell me that team couldn't use Landon Donovan.
Sabres Fan in NS Posted June 17, 2014 Author Report Posted June 17, 2014 USA, like BiH, marks too closely and does not distribute the ball well or keep possession well. There is no need for a constant push upfield. The better teams know how and when to pass back and redistribute. And don't tell me that team couldn't use Landon Donovan. Landon is missed, but it sure worked out OK in match 1. The Argentina match is not a typical BiH match. They were determined not to have Messi work his magic at will. I expect you will see a different approach from the Bosnians against Iran and Nigeria. I have watched them as much as I could in qualifying and that Argentina match was not typical.
dEnnis the Menace Posted June 17, 2014 Report Posted June 17, 2014 USA, like BiH, marks too closely and does not distribute the ball well or keep possession well. There is no need for a constant push upfield. The better teams know how and when to pass back and redistribute. And don't tell me that team couldn't use Landon Donovan. Landon is missed, but it sure worked out OK in match 1. The Argentina match is not a typical BiH match. They were determined not to have Messi work his magic at will. I expect you will see a different approach from the Bosnians against Iran and Nigeria. I have watched them as much as I could in qualifying and that Argentina match was not typical. Landon is definitely missed, and sure, it seemed to work out match 1, but Altidore's replacement was invicible! They need a better replacement in my opinion. USA needs to learn to possess better, and like they were talking about yesterday, just hold the ball to give the midfielders and backend some rest.
TrueBlueGED Posted June 17, 2014 Report Posted June 17, 2014 Landon is missed, but it sure worked out OK in match 1. The Argentina match is not a typical BiH match. They were determined not to have Messi work his magic at will. I expect you will see a different approach from the Bosnians against Iran and Nigeria. I have watched them as much as I could in qualifying and that Argentina match was not typical. If falling ass backwards into a win when you're badly outplayed is your idea of working out, alright. I'm no soccer fan and even I can see the USA was totally out-classed. They could use Donovan even if it's just a halftime sub.
Derrico Posted June 17, 2014 Report Posted June 17, 2014 Upset brewing? Still the first half but Algeria up 1-0 over Belgium. I, like I'm sure many others though of Belgium as a great darkhorse to win this whole thing.
Sabres Fan in NS Posted June 17, 2014 Author Report Posted June 17, 2014 Upset brewing? Still the first half but Algeria up 1-0 over Belgium. I, like I'm sure many others though of Belgium as a great darkhorse to win this whole thing. 1 - 1 now. I must say that I am lovin' the brightly coloured boots. Belgium with two goals in 10 minutes to take the lead with about 10 + to go.
Taro T Posted June 17, 2014 Report Posted June 17, 2014 With Altidore out, the entire team apparently unprepared for the humidity, and a 1 goal lead, I think the wait and counter mode was a pretty solid option regardless of the opponent. If Jozy gets good news today during his scans, and the team is better hydrated or the conditions are better, I think the games against the European teams will be more balanced. Pretty sure next game is also to be played near the Amazon, so not much chance of that, at least for the next one. I did find ironic the hubbub about Landon Donovan not being on the team.....and him being the halftime analyst for the game as the US was down to 1/2 a striker. If I were an ESPN producer, I would have cut to him eating a bag of Lays, smoking a cigarette, and talking on the cell phone, "No...nothing going on tonight, sure I'll go bowling...." :lol: USA, like BiH, marks too closely and does not distribute the ball well or keep possession well. There is no need for a constant push upfield. The better teams know how and when to pass back and redistribute. And don't tell me that team couldn't use Landon Donovan. Why would you need 2 legit strikers on the team, when your formation only calls for 1? /Doug Marrone
Eleven Posted June 17, 2014 Report Posted June 17, 2014 Landon Donovan is not a striker. Right. He is a forward, but a distributor and not a true striker. Distribution was a big problem last night.
MattPie Posted June 17, 2014 Report Posted June 17, 2014 Landon Donovan is not a striker. Sure, and next you'll tell me he can't play center either.
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