The Official US Soccer thread

[Lorenzo]

Agreed it can't be all hung on MLS.

Dempsey is on the decline due to age.

Until Jozy stops believing he is a creative, finesse player and realizes he should be a physical, target forward... it will always be more of the same.

Bradley has probably reached his peak. There is nothing wrong with being a very good player, but when Michael is seen as one of the US best the mediocre talent of others is reflected poorly toward him.

Also agree with the US talent pool. There are a number of youngsters (Wood, Morris, etc.) that are exciting, but other then Yedlin there have been no roster "locks" for many years.

good post. I think youth has to be a push for the USA team. we had a nice run of established players for a long time that were very reliable. and you cannot complain about the international results at the end of the day I think we either met expectations or in the last world cup even overachieved if you consider the group of death. 2009/2010 were also special years. but with landon Donovan gone and Dempsey and Bradley aging...it's time for new guys to step up. with a few exceptions...JK is not going to allow older guys to just go through the motions. I don't understand his ties to certain guys like Beasley for example who clearly struggled in key moments, but for the most part he is a younger players coach(or at least has that reputation). and now is the time to show whether or not he is truly capable of developing youth in the USA program. he might be in over his head, but we shall see.


what do you guys expect to see from this wave of matches early in the year?

 

[Lorenzo]

Not just practicing though, they have to play consistently. I'd much rather have our players play in MLS than sit on the bench in Europe...and not just anywhere in Europe, because playing in Finland, Norway etc is not any better than playing here.

this is basically how I feel. I do think guys should strive to play in the best leagues, but our guys don't have the best track record of having success on big euro teams/leagues with maybe few exceptions.

I think a guy like Dempsey I question because he could have stayed in the EPL as a starter. He may not have been able to remain at whitehartlane, but even that year he still scored big goals for them. clearly he could have stayed in England if he wanted to. I feel like he wanted that pay day and maybe wanted to come home. his move also started a trend for USA players being ok with staying the MLS. 5 years before that Dempsey would not have been caught dead playing in the USA and basically refused to stay in the MLS. but money talks I guess. another example is Donovan. he didn't want to earn his way overseas..he had that entitled attitude and it hurt him all the way to the end of his career. he really could have used a tough mentor, but maybe he was ahead of his time for an American.

 

[cardfaninfl]

Ok, it was only Canada but that was a fun match to watch. Saw promise from the US youngsters and first cappers. Crepeau had an outstanding performance in goal or the score line would have been different. And in Canadian fashion, Crepeau apologized after every save.

 

[Stout]

Ok, it was only Canada but that was a fun match to watch. Saw promise from the US youngsters and first cappers. Crepeau had an outstanding performance in goal or the score line would have been different. And in Canadian fashion, Crepeau apologized after every save.

Did he have to apologize in both English and French?

Early on, it wasn't at all a fun match but, once all the subs started coming in, and the second half got going, yeah, we took it to them. Okay, we came on a bit at the end of the first half, but kind of late. Really impressed with some of the youngsters, too, so that was encouraging. I do think Ngyen (sp?) is a waste--it just didn't happen for him soon enough, and his time is past.

 

[cardfaninfl]

The RUMOR on Nguyen (in the past) was he is not a good teammate or locker room personality. If that is even partially true, and he has matured, his skill set is better than most.

 

[cardfaninfl]

https://twitter.com/ussoccer/status/701587634007760896

After the draws from Pots 4 and 3, I thought the US would draw Uruguay. Dodged that bullet, but Costa Rica and Paraguay will be tough matches.

 

[Stout]

Yeah, this is going to be TOUGH, but 1--it's a major tourney, it's supposed to be tough, and 2--We HAVE to advance, as we can't afford another ginormous embarrassment.

 

[MaoTosiFanClub]

There's always the chance some of the South American teams come to party not play.

 

[dreamcastrocks]

I see them making it out of the group. Costa Rica peaked in the last WC and Paraguay is definitely beatable.

 

[Dr. Jones]

I will be in the 17th row at the Paraguay game. CANT WAIT!!!

 

[Zeno]

I am really interested in seeing what kind of roster the US brings, the good news is that MLS players will be in mid-season form so we should see no rust or fitness issues. The bad news is we still lack talent in a lot of areas.

I plan to see the match against Costa Rica in Chicago.

 

[Stout]

I see them making it out of the group. Costa Rica peaked in the last WC and Paraguay is definitely beatable.

Except I have little confidence in the US team right now, so...ugh.

 

[Lorenzo]

Being the home team anything less than advancing from the group and making a legit push beyond that is a disappointment. In this tournament the home team usually has a distinct advantage. I can see Mexico doing well in this tournament but I really hope we get a shot to knock them out


I hope that kinsmann brings a younger team and with an exception or two leaves off older players that will not be in Russia. But with the pressure on I see him going with a status quo approach. Maybe the upcoming matches will tell a story. I am not happy about our recent results but am intrigued by our younger players in the pool that have yet to break into the senior team.

 

[Stout]

Being the home team anything less than advancing from the group and making a legit push beyond that is a disappointment. In this tournament the home team usually has a distinct advantage. I can see Mexico doing well in this tournament but I really hope we get a shot to knock them out


I hope that kinsmann brings a younger team and with an exception or two leaves off older players that will not be in Russia. But with the pressure on I see him going with a status quo approach. Maybe the upcoming matches will tell a story. I am not happy about our recent results but am intrigued by our younger players in the pool that have yet to break into the senior team.

I hate to say it, but Jones needs dropped. He seemed old and out of it during the last friendly, because he hasn't been--and, to my knowledge, won't be--getting any games. With that stupid suspension he picked up, he might just have ended his chances at the international level.

 

[Lorenzo]

I hate to say it, but Jones needs dropped. He seemed old and out of it during the last friendly, because he hasn't been--and, to my knowledge, won't be--getting any games. With that stupid suspension he picked up, he might just have ended his chances at the international level.

Yeah i tend to agree. I'm sure klinsmann will call him up because he is like a son to him or whatever. Probably Dempsey too since jozy can't keep his hamstring together. I think Bradley needs a better partner in the middle. One that can either defend more or one that can create more like a true 10 in front of him. Someone with pace. But of corse that seems to be what we don't have. I think we need to see younger players in general. I want them to do well but I think we are behind most of these countries right now. I think they should be able to take advantage of home but realistically we just aren't there yet. Maybe I'm wrong about expecting them to advance from the group and beat a good team after. I'll settle with a second place group finish. That would be better than recent struggles.

 

[coyoteshockeyfan]

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Possibly leaked jersey. Awesome new crest, not crazy about going with black. Maybe that's their training jersey or something, but we just saw Nike go with white, black, and highlighter yellow for the Women's World Cup.

 

[coyoteshockeyfan]

USWNT roster for the SheBelieves Cup, facing off against England, France, and Germany starting March 3rd. Watch Horan and Pugh if you haven't seen them play, this team may quickly become even better than the WWC winners.


Goalkeepers (3): Ashlyn Harris (Orlando Pride), Alyssa Naeher (Chicago Red Stars), Hope Solo (Seattle Reign FC)

Defenders (9): Lauren Barnes (Seattle Reign FC), Whitney Engen (Boston Breakers), Jaelene Hinkle (Western New York Flash), Julie Johnston (Chicago Red Stars), Meghan Klingenberg (Portland Thorns FC), Ali Krieger (Washington Spirit), Kelley O’Hara (Sky Blue FC), Becky Sauerbrunn (FC Kansas City), Emily Sonnett (Portland Thorns FC)

Midfielders (6): Morgan Brian (Houston Dash), Tobin Heath (Portland Thorns FC), Lindsey Horan (Portland Thorns FC), Carli Lloyd (Houston Dash), Samantha Mewis (Western New York Flash), Heather O’Reilly (FC Kansas City)

Forwards (4): Crystal Dunn (Washington Spirit), Alex Morgan (Orlando Pride), Christen Press (Chicago Red Stars), Mallory Pugh (Real Colorado)

 

[Stout]

Yeah, I saw that jersey over on the Pittsburgh American Outlaws site on Facebook. Terrible, terrible jersey. Let's hope it isn't correct.

 

[cardfaninfl]

Possibly leaked jersey. Awesome new crest, not crazy about going with black. Maybe that's their training jersey or something, but we just saw Nike go with white, black, and highlighter yellow for the Women's World Cup.

Somebody at Nike figured out their white logo is more prominent on a black background, so screw the National colors. The black would be tolerable if they kept it simple. With the WNT, it looked like they had giant military epilates on their shoulders. This multi-colored sleeves scheme is going away from what makes black attire stylish.

You really have to wonder about the people in the Design Department of these companies. Is it so difficult to have a jersey that doesn't look like stone washed jeans, have a Miss America sash, be inspired by "Where's Waldo?", a golf shirt stolen from your Dad's closet, or this crap?

 

[Lorenzo]

just add some yellow and we will be almost german...

 

[cardfaninfl]

https://twitter.com/FOXSoccer/status/713474264041586688

 

[Zeno]

https://twitter.com/FOXSoccer/status/713474264041586688

Finished tied, pretty good result considering the next leg is at home.

 

[Zeno]

Anyone else watching the US VS GUA WCQ? US down 2-0 at half.

Remember when Dempsey, Bradley and Howard were good players? Yeah, they aren't anymore.

 

[Stout]

Anyone else watching the US VS GUA WCQ? US down 2-0 at half.

Remember when Dempsey, Bradley and Howard were good players? Yeah, they aren't anymore.

Hard to blame Howard for either of those, though a howler on a silly back pass set up the corners. Dempsey's actually doing well, considering, and has had a few slick passes. The ref sucks and is letting a lot go, but we're letting Guatemala game us and get in our heads. And, btw, JK--this isn't baseball--chicks DON'T dig the friggin' long ball! What, are we watching classic Stoke City matches or something?

 

[Stout]

Looks like we came out flat in the 2nd too. We could already be down 3-0 by now.