USMNT 2022

[Braff Zacklin 13664]

And no added time cuz of the shithousing from Honduran fans and players. This ref needs more work.

 

Well done, US. Mission accomplished. Let's get that trophy, though.

[Bottlecap 1523]

nice! so, uh, where do we play the final? hopefully in a place with more cages around the pitch

[Braff Zacklin 13664]

Just now, Bottlecap said:

nice! so, uh, where do we play the final? hopefully in a place with more cages around the pitch

San Pedro Sula.

 

(Honduras)

[ztejas 43537]

Honduras' keeper just got caught out of goal again. 

[shnsajax 3591]

San Pedro Sula.
 
(Honduras)

It’s going to be a pretty empty stadium too.

[Captain Ron 12922]

17 minutes ago, Braff Zacklin said:

San Pedro Sula.

 

(Honduras)

You might remember the stadium from Mexico-Guatemala. 

Edited July 2, 2022 by Captain Ron

[kingkoopa6 8377]

Bout time 

[shnsajax 3591]

Its a good morning!

[Napoleon 8700]

1 hour ago, shnsajax said:

Its a good morning!

I just saw that the Dominican Fucking Republic 😳 is the other country going to the Olympics from CONCACAF! WTF?!?!

That’s awesome and that’s a joke!

Love that México is out of everything. 😁

[shnsajax 3591]

I just saw that the Dominican Fucking Republic is the other country going to the Olympics from CONCACAF! WTF?!?!
That’s awesome and that’s a joke!
Love that México is out of everything.

Did the DR get a free pass into the Round of 16? Didn’t see them listed in group play at all?

[Captain Ron 12922]

50 minutes ago, shnsajax said:

Did the DR get a free pass into the Round of 16? Didn’t see them listed in group play at all?

There was another qualifying tournament that I didn’t fully understand. But basically the idea was that 18 teams played for 4 spots in the KO round. While 16 teams played for the other 12 KO round spots. 

It’s why the groups in the tournament are E, F, G, H. A-D we’re in that qualifying tournament. 

[ztejas 43537]

59 minutes ago, shnsajax said:

Did the DR get a free pass into the Round of 16? Didn’t see them listed in group play at all?

Forget it, Ajax. It's CONCACAF. 

[Knoxtnhorn 6066]

Late to the game, but a few observations...

1. I freakin' love whoever is coaching this team.  When I first began watching the US, like in recruiting, I was far more excited about the future of the team.  I watched a lot of youth tourneys.  Hell, I was on Sportscenter once after a goal by Fredy Adu in Olympic qualification circa 2007.  *generalizations incoming*  At first, the US was really gritty and could hang with most teams, but could never get over the hump due to lack of team-wide talent, technical ability, and coaching.  Eventually, we got some talent and developed some technical acumen, but the coaching was lacking.  IMO, this is the first time I've watched a US youth team out talent AND out coach other teams.  The last Olympic qualification cycle with (I think) Jason Kreis as coach was frustrating as hell.

2.  I thought the ref did relatively well compared to what we would have seen 15 years or so ago.

3.  Crazy that DR is going to both the Olympics and the World Cup while Mexico will attend neither.  

 

[ztejas 43537]

2 minutes ago, Knoxtnhorn said:

Late to the game, but a few observations...

1. I freakin' love whoever is coaching this team.  When I first began watching the US, like in recruiting, I was far more excited about the future of the team.  I watched a lot of youth tourneys.  Hell, I was on Sportscenter once after a goal by Fredy Adu in Olympic qualification circa 2007.  *generalizations incoming*  At first, the US was really gritty and could hang with most teams, but could never get over the hump due to lack of team-wide talent, technical ability, and coaching.  Eventually, we got some talent and developed some technical acumen, but the coaching was lacking.  IMO, this is the first time I've watched a US youth team out talent AND out coach other teams.  The last Olympic qualification cycle with (I think) Jason Kreis as coach was frustrating as hell.

2.  I thought the ref did relatively well compared to what we would have seen 15 years or so ago.

3.  Crazy that DR is going to both the Olympics and the World Cup while Mexico will attend neither.  

 

I think this is quite clearly one of the best U20 sides in the world. I mean I know we aren't going up against the best competition but we are kicking the absolute dogshit out of some of these teams. Honduras isn't some pushover U20 side, either, they've been really good in recent years.

We have an insane amount of talent at every level right now and like you said they are playing in a beautiful system. I would almost expect them to make a nice run next year and wouldn't be surprised at all if they won it. 

[Knoxtnhorn 6066]

2 minutes ago, ztejas said:

I think this is quite clearly one of the best U20 sides in the world. I mean I know we aren't going up against the best competition but we are kicking the absolute dogshit out of some of these teams. Honduras isn't some pushover U20 side, either, they've been really good in recent years.

We have an insane amount of talent at every level right now and like you said they are playing in a beautiful system. I would almost expect them to make a nice run next year and wouldn't be surprised at all if they won it. 

Between Texas, the Cowboys, Mavs (before this year), Rangers, Garland High, etc..., I'm so used to bitching about the coaching.  I wanted to give props for once. 

Garland, for example, made the playoffs this year.  They played Tyler (Legacy?).  Garland's XP success rate was something like 25%.  And, no, I'm not exaggerating.  So Garland is down 2 with a minute left.  They get down to the 5 yard line.  1st and goal.  35 seconds left and one timeout.  They ran the clock down to 2 to win the game on a field goal.  The crowd was going crazy expecting an easy 22 yard FG/win, and my son is trying to keep me from absolutely losing it in public.  Of course, they fumbled the snap.

Edited July 2, 2022 by Knoxtnhorn

[shnsajax 3591]

I think this is quite clearly one of the best U20 sides in the world. I mean I know we aren't going up against the best competition but we are kicking the absolute dogshit out of some of these teams. Honduras isn't some pushover U20 side, either, they've been really good in recent years.
We have an insane amount of talent at every level right now and like you said they are playing in a beautiful system. I would almost expect them to make a nice run next year and wouldn't be surprised at all if they won it. 

The back line gives me some worry but they have done such a good job of holding possession and completing passes that it hasn’t been as much of an issue. Honduras had a couple of chances on the 2nd half but didn’t get the shot on goal.

Also I read that Mbappe has it in his contract with PSG that they have to let him play in the Olympics. Would be fun to send both Aaronson’s to Paris.

[ztejas 43537]

3 minutes ago, shnsajax said:

The back line gives me some worry but they have done such a good job of holding possession and completing passes that it hasn’t been as much of an issue. Honduras had a couple of chances on the 2nd half but didn’t get the shot on goal.

Also I read that Mbappe has it in his contract with PSG that they have to let him play in the Olympics. Would be fun to send both Aaronson’s to Paris.

Does any U20 team have a great back line? I feel like you just have to be passable. CBs especially usually aren't worth a shit until they're in their early 20s at least. 

[Bottlecap 1523]

Seems like since we haven’t been to the Olympics since Beijing we’d have a few U23 senior guys who’d be interested in the chance to play a major international. The cool thought is, which +23s would we bring?

[Ted Lange 16143]

And by way of LA hosting to the 2028 Olympics, the us has effectively qualified for the next 2 Olympics.  

[shnsajax 3591]

Does any U20 team have a great back line? I feel like you just have to be passable. CBs especially usually aren't worth a shit until they're in their early 20s at least. 

Assuming they get the release from there Club to go to the U20 World Cup we should see Slonina in goal and Che at CB.

[Napoleon 8700]

14 minutes ago, shnsajax said:

Assuming they get the release from there Club to go to the U20 World Cup we should see Slonina in goal and Che at CB.

I rather this other Chicago keeper in goal. Slonina seems to lack decisiveness and shot stopping ability. 

It would be nice to see Pepi, Musah, and Reyna in the Olympic squad. Since the USA won’t be qualifying for 2026, a trade off of national team call-ins may be able to be worked out. Add in Che & Reynolds… maybe Tessman (don’t really care for Busio, but many worship his set piece ability), Scally and maybe more from the USMNT pool and we could have a starting 11 composed of players from the USMNT’s Pool of Top 35 Players.

Jesús Ferreira misses being automatically eligible by 8 days. 🤬

With 3 overage players, we could almost roll out out full squad to treat the Olympics like a practice run for 2026. 

More likely though would  be for US Soccer to buy our way into the 2024 Copa America and then use that as our trial run for 2026. 

[shnsajax 3591]

I rather this other Chicago keeper in goal. Slonina seems to lack decisiveness and shot stopping ability. 
It would be nice to see Pepi, Musah, and Reyna in the Olympic squad. Since the USA won’t be qualifying for 2026, a trade off of national team call-ins may be able to be worked out. Add in Che & Reynolds… maybe Tessman (don’t really care for Busio, but many worship his set piece ability), Scally and maybe more from the USMNT pool and we could have a starting 11 composed of players from the USMNT’s Pool of Top 35 Players.
Jesús Ferreira misses being automatically eligible by 8 days.
With 3 overage players, we could almost roll out out full squad to treat the Olympics like a practice run for 2026. 
More likely though would  be for US Soccer to buy our way into the 2024 Copa America and then use that as our trial run for 2026. 

We should absolutely roll out our best team in the Olympics for the reasons you just said and they should market the hell out of that team leading up to 2026. I didn’t realize that it’s only 18 man rosters, that will make for some interesting choices but I’m calling Pulisic, McKennie, and Adams to play in it too. Brenden A as an alternate to Pulisic since he just misses the u23 cut off.

Forgot about Malik Tillman too.

[Napoleon 8700]

6 minutes ago, shnsajax said:

We should absolutely roll out our best team in the Olympics for the reasons you just said and they should market the hell out of that team leading up to 2026. I didn’t realize that it’s only 18 man rosters, that will make for some interesting choices but I’m calling Pulisic, McKennie, and Adams to play in it too. Brenden A as an alternate to Pulisic since he just misses the u23 cut off.

Forgot about Malik Tillman too.

Malik would totally be in the group, but if the USMNT is invited to participate in Copa America, that will unquestionably be where the first choice team goes. 

Playing against kids in the Olympics in a shortened format vs playing in a tournament with the full squads of the 10 countries of CONMEBOL isn’t even up for discussion  

I would love to win the Olympics, but the Copa America overlapping the Euros when the entire world is watching those two competitions vs about 3 games of interest dropped in the middle of televising 50+ different sports at the Olympics is like comparing the NFL playoffs vs college football playoffs.

 

[Braff Zacklin 13664]

19 hours ago, ztejas said:

I think this is quite clearly one of the best U20 sides in the world. I mean I know we aren't going up against the best competition but we are kicking the absolute dogshit out of some of these teams. Honduras isn't some pushover U20 side, either, they've been really good in recent years.

We have an insane amount of talent at every level right now and like you said they are playing in a beautiful system. I would almost expect them to make a nice run next year and wouldn't be surprised at all if they won it. 

Before the tournament, I would have laughed at your first sentence ... but that would have been out of ignorance. This team has been absolutely dominant and the stats are difficult to dispute--65 percent or better possession versus every opponent, pass completion percentage 80 percent or better, 25 goals scored, and only 2 allowed (both relatively soft goals on defensive lapses versus Canada). Honduras had only given up two goals all tournament before surrendering three in the first half versus the US.

And on and on.

Mexico was similarly dominant in statistics, but the key difference to my eyes is Mexico often possesses just to possess. There doesn't seem to be any real purpose, direction, or ambition aside from denial (which is not a poor strategy in of itself). The El Tri youth saw a lot of the ball, but too often it came to nothing, not even a service toward goal, let alone a shot.

These US kids, meanwhile, seem to have a thirst for getting forward, for attacking. They transition and build quickly. Finishing has been suspect, but they're generating so many quality chances, that (fortunately) hasn't been much of an issue.

I would still argue that opposing teams should press high and press often, but even then, there's been progress in how the US backline moves without the ball to help teammates under pressure. Second half of the Honduras match was especially impressive in this regard, as Honduras had no choice but to chase the game and the US was content to defend and counter.

Youth tournaments are mostly a chance to discover future stars (i.e., watch the matches and see who pops). For me--and I think we all knew this beforehand--that person is Paxten. The kid has a nose for opportunity, for creating chances. I don't know what it is with that family, but the Aaronsons are just relentless in attack. They are fucking mongooses, always probing and pestering for weaknesses to the extent that, even if a defense remains fundamentally sound, Paxten and Brenden will still ultimately wear it down.

Diego Luna is arguably the most technically gifted, but he's probably reached his ceiling on account of being a midget and slow as molasses. Hope I'm wrong here, but if he's going to break into Europe or become a star in MLS with his physical limitations, then he's going to have to hone his service, passing and decision-making to god-tier levels. I genuinely hope someone has conveyed this to him.

Clark has also stood out but, again, this was to be expected. One can tell he's been playing against men for some time because he is comfortable with contact and shields the ball well. He's not an imposing figure like Cowell but he utilizes his body and momentum better.

Overall, there has been more on-the-ball skill and creativity than I've seen from any US youth team to date. Passing is crisper and faster. Dribbling is more natural and difficult to mark.

How many will become club stars or USMNT standouts? Hard to judge, but the talent level across the board is the best it's ever been. I don't know if the credit for that goes to Coach Varas, the Beerholders, the Youth Academy, the USSF, Aladdin's lamp or what ... but it is encouraging and refreshing to see.

Anyway, TL;DR let's hope the kids kick some ass tonight.

[shnsajax 3591]

55 minutes ago, Napoleon said:

Malik would totally be in the group, but if the USMNT is invited to participate in Copa America, that will unquestionably be where the first choice team goes. 

Playing against kids in the Olympics in a shortened format vs playing in a tournament with the full squads of the 10 countries of CONMEBOL isn’t even up for discussion  

I would love to win the Olympics, but the Copa America overlapping the Euros when the entire world is watching those two competitions vs about 3 games of interest dropped in the middle of televising 50+ different sports at the Olympics is like comparing the NFL playoffs vs college football playoffs.

 

Got all of the Olympic buzz and totally forgot about Copa America. 

[Ted Lange 16143]

Hard to believe, but the last time we played in the Olympics Freddy Adu was on the team.   
 

Here is the team from 2008

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Football_at_the_2008_Summer_Olympics_–_Men's_team_squads#United_States

[ztejas 43537]

25 minutes ago, Braff Zacklin said:

Diego Luna is arguably the most technically gifted, but he's probably reached his ceiling on account of being a midget and slow as molasses. Hope I'm wrong here, but if he's going to break into Europe or become a star in MLS with his physical limitations, then he's going to have to hone his service, passing and decision-making to god-tier levels. I genuinely hope someone has conveyed this to him.

I think Luna is going to be a good player. Whether that's in MLS or on a meh Euro team or a good Euro team. He is really, really, really sharp on top of the ball at his age and that's something that you can't really teach past a certain point. For him to become a good player I actually think he will need to become a good defender and shot maker. I see him as a CM type player if he could work on his speed. 

[shnsajax 3591]

51 minutes ago, Ted Lange said:

Hard to believe, but the last time we played in the Olympics Freddy Adu was on the team.   
 

Here is the team from 2008

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Football_at_the_2008_Summer_Olympics_–_Men's_team_squads#United_States

I still think Freddy Adu gets a bad rap, so heres the video of him being the best player on the pitch vs Brazil and Marcello and it really wasn't even close.

 

[shnsajax 3591]

In transfer news

[Braff Zacklin 13664]

CONCACAF U-20 Tournament Final about to touch off. For those in need of a link:

http://tv247us.com/watch/foxsports1/

[ztejas 43537]

Pretty raucous crowd. 

[shnsajax 3591]

Good first 10 minutes.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[ztejas 43537]

This keeper seems like he sucks less than the Honduran. 

[shnsajax 3591]

Here is the lineup as well

[ztejas 43537]

Cuevas having an... interesting game. 

[ztejas 43537]

Oh my God that's a fucking gorgeous goal. 

[shnsajax 3591]

Oh my God that's a fucking gorgeous goal. 

That was perfect!

[Braff Zacklin 13664]

That was brilliant.

Long pass along the sideline to free Hopkins and then that service was pinpoint. Couldn't have set that on Wolff's head any better.

[ztejas 43537]

Damn. Almost braced it. 

Oh nvm. Wolff had the header. 

Edited July 4, 2022 by ztejas

[Braff Zacklin 13664]

How does Hopkins skin two or three defenders like that and then blast it straight into the keeper's arms? Weird.

[shnsajax 3591]

That was a great piece of possession, patience, and breaking down the D. Would have been a fantastic goal.

[shnsajax 3591]

How does Hopkins skin two or three defenders like that and then blast it straight into the keeper's arms? Weird.

Guessing he is right footed.

[Braff Zacklin 13664]

1 minute ago, shnsajax said:

Guessing he is right footed.

Probably. But he'd done all the hard work. All he had to do was side foot toward far post.

Still, impressive display of skill on his part prior to that.

[ztejas 43537]

Paxten is cooler than Billy Dee Williams. Just strolling through the box. 

[Braff Zacklin 13664]

Just now, ztejas said:

Paxten is cooler than Billy Dee Williams. Just strolling through the box. 

I love those brothers.

Nice find from Luna or whoever it was to send it back in after the corner was cleared out.

[ztejas 43537]

[Braff Zacklin 13664]

This is going to get ugly.

Edited July 4, 2022 by Braff Zacklin

[ztejas 43537]

Better side - this U20 team or Pep's Barcelona? 

[Braff Zacklin 13664]

[ztejas 43537]

Luna just embarrassing fools out here.