Scholarship table
Back line has been bad but this is the worst I have seen it in years. If Panama had more skilled forwards this would have been real ugly. Is it the players on defense or the keeper not working well with them? or even how they are being coached? Having played defense it is not the easiest thing but these guys make it look like the most difficult job in the world.Mark your man and communicate.Interesting how a few months ago we played so well in Europe and now this. Makes you wonder just how serious the Dutch and Germans took those friendlies
Some good reads:http://www.sbnation.com/soccer/2015/7/23/9020133/jurgen-klinsmann-usa-jamaica-the-usmnt-beat-germany-just-a-month-agohttp://www.mlssoccer.com/goldcup/2015/news/article/2015/07/25/armchair-analyst-gold-cup-epitaph-usmnt-and-reason-worry-going-forward
I said it last month, but beating the Dutch and Germans in friendliest just doesn't mean much in my opinion. People got way too excited. It's like when a power team in NCAA hoops loses an exhibition game and folks freak out....doesn't mean squat.
Well interestingly enough, those games featured timely and effective scoring attacks from guys like Bobby Wood and Jordan Morris, and good minutes from Danny Williams. I think people were justifiably excited cause they were good results against top tier teams featuring MAJOR contributions from younger US players, who then didnt play in the Gold Cup for a variety of reasons related to club and health. I think some people are overplaying it and you're definitely underplaying it. As it relates to the future of the USMNT, I think they were huge wins. Not biggest in history, cause that's just silly, but big.I agree the defensive backline is a huge concern. I really wonder how a healthy Geoff Cameron would factor in. I personally don't care about yesterdays result in the slightest. A third place game in the Gold Cup is meaningless and completely unsurprising that the team didn't seem inspired. Focus your efforts and energy on the playoff. If there is another head scratcher of a lineup and uninspired result, then the questions can be brought up. If they beat Jamaica or Mexico in October, its a moot point and a disappointing stretch following a promising stretch. The Gold Cup is a joke anyways as evidenced by most of Mexico's matches thus far.
My point is that those opponents aren't giving it their all, they aren't even fielding all of their best players. It is an exhibition game, they're playing like it while our guys are playing like it's a World Cup game.
To be fair, since we did play men like Bobby Wood and Jordan Morris, neither was the US fielding all of their best players.
Yes, but their best are better than our best....by a decent margin in my opinion.
Taking that notion and running, if our second best was better then the second best from the World Champions I'd say Klinnsi has had a measurable impact on US Soccer.
Taking that notion and running, if our first best was worse than the first best from Jamaica and Panama, I'd say Klinnsi has had a measurable impact on US Soccer as well, however not in a good way.
Pre-Klinny: Win about 40% of Gold Cups. Qualify for the World Cup with relative ease. Possibly get out of the group stage but rarely go further.Under Klinny: 1 for 2 in Gold Cups. Qualified for the WC with relative ease. Got out of the group state and lost in the round of 16. (My guess is that we will also qualify for the WC with relative ease and finished second or third in the group.)So I really don't see that much measurable impact either way. Perhaps down the line with some of the players he has recruited.
Thats not true at all. Maybe in some friendlies, but that was 85%+ of German roster only missing Neuer, Muller, and Kroos from their regulars. Ozil, Schweinsteger, Gotze, Khedira, Schurrle, etc... all played. It wasn't the C squad the US beat a few years ago. And that Dutch team was full strength and playing hard. You're playing a common friendlies storyline that just wasn't true with those two games. Sure they weren't results in the World Cup, but that shouldn't cheapen them at all. Those are two squads prepping for final Euor 2016 qualifying, they aren't lollygagging around.
How do you measure will, intensity, caring about playing? Because the bodies are out there doesn't mean they are putting in the same effort, care about the result, etc. It's the US on the other side of the field, and as much as many here don't want to admit, in the game of soccer that doesn't mean a whole lot. Put another way, it means a lot more for the US to play Germany than it does the Germans to play the US. There are 20+ teams that the Germans are going to be more fired up for.
Well so how do you know? How do you know that the Germans and Dutch weren't all that fired up?