Germany is a freak. I love watching the German team. They don't flop like little bitches. Mueller is a fucking beast. What's the deal with Schweinsteigger? I didn't see him play the other day.
Yeah they are who I have wanted USA to model their style of play and ability after for years. Klinsman agrees lol. Schweinsteigger got hurt in training right before the World Cup started I think.
Of course by ability I mean with how their youth system is run. They are exactly what it would look like with our athletes' size and speed, but with technical ability x 10 and knowledge of the game.
Whats up with all of the injuries? Too hard of training? Altidore and Besler had hamstrings. Bedoya had something going on with his hip. Cameron's calf was bothering him all 2nd half (maybe just cramps). Hopefully we don't lose anyone else in the next 2 games. Having to make 2 injury subs before the start of the 2nd half really hampered our game. Jones was my MOTM. He was played out of position (LM, albeit pinched in) and just bossed it out there. I always like it when they show how far a player has run in a game. I'm sure Jones would have been the most for the team. By the end of the game he was gassed (which he usually never seems to be). That late run towards the corner flag looked like it was slow motion. luckily the Ghanians looked that way too. JAB could end up being our first truly great CB. He has the size, agility and technical ability to become a top player. He had one awful clearance that he mishit right into a Ghanian player's chest. But after that he was constantly snuffing out crosses and other long passes. And then his goal. He went from undeserving of a roster spot to hero in some peoples eyes, all in 50 minutes of play. His reaction afterwards was priceless too. I think it's safe to say that Ghana had the better game. I think that is mostly attributed to Michael Bradley having his worst game in a US shirt in years. He was truly awful in the attack. He was constantly losing the ball, had that awful ball to Bedoya where he (Bedoya) ended up gimpy and that cross wither 30 seconds to go was boneheaded. Of course he still worked extremely hard and did well on defense, but without him in top form I don't think we can manage a point vs Portugal. Once Jozy went out, our hope of hitting it long to him to hold up was out the door. With a super narrow midfield, our next best option was to go through Bradley. Since he was off, our offense was off all night, which led to wave after wave of Ghana attacks. Luckily they suck at crossing and shooting from 25 yards out, though they insist on trying those two things over and over again. I guess we have to assume that Jozy is out for at least the entire group stage. I'm curious as how we change up our formation. Assuming Besler is good to go, I think our starting back 4 goes unchanged. Chandler could replace Beasley, though his play got better as the game went on. I think the core of the mid stays the same. Beckerman as a pure DM, Jones on the left, but maybe we move Bradley to the right and put Mix at the top of the diamond. Then Clint and Aron up top. If we had Boyd or EJ I think we could go with one of them in Jozy's spot and keep everyone else the same. Without them I think we need someone more suited to ACM (Mix) supporting the strikers, which would push Bradley out wide (but pinched in like Jones was). Or, Klinsmann could scrap this formation altogether, who knows. This is the greatest celebration I've ever seen (too bad the gif cuts it off though). You can feel his joy/disbelief. It was also responsible for at least 2 minutes of the extra time. Plus, apparently he had a dream 2 days ago (and told his teammates about it) about scoring in the 80th minute. I guess his dream was 6 minutes off. Clint being Clint. How is this not a yellow card? Same for the tackle on Jones that ended in the near fight between the two players. Ref was decent overall, but I thought Ghana was lucky to have 11 players by the end of the game. And Mr. MOTM
hey Porkchop.. around these parts its spelled CLINT thank you very much! (give it a while you guys will see it )
Okay I have a question, say Jozy is out for the tournament can we call Donovan up to replace his roster spot? Or is everything set in stone?
I think its just that the way they play (and Barcelona plays) is extremely precise. If they are off their game, even just a tiny bit, they are left extremely exposed. Since the CL semifinal last year, both teams have been much less sharp. They still end up with a ton of possession, but now they lose the ball more often, and every time they do there is a counterattack. All that and Casillas sucks. I don't think either goal goes in on De Gea. Plus, he was at fault for all but 1 goal in the first game.
Well, all I can say is I'm happy about this downfall right now. Spain is like the mid 2000s Spurs of soccer, boring.
Oh, also there are rumors that Ronaldo might be ruled out for the rest of the World Cup. That would suck for the WC in general, but be a huge boost to our chances vs Portugal. I have a hard time believing he won't play, but he did leave practice early again today. http://www.espnfc.us/fifa-world-cup...xits-portugal-practice-early-with-ice-on-knee
