Avoiding the Drop

Following the last two World Cup qualifying matches- a disgraceful loss at Costa Rica and a solid win against Honduras at home- the staff here at ATD World Headquarters decided to assess the current strengths and weaknesses of the team and, changes we thought could benefit the national side.

1.  What do you see as the main shortcoming of the USMNT?  What changes would help in this area?

Magnakai Haaskivi: The main shortcoming of the team that I can see is their lack of creativity. That’s not to say that they don’t have their moments, but they seem to be missing the extra “something” that you see when a truly world-class team steps on the pitch. Tim Vickery once said that he didn’t like watching U-17 tournaments because the growth of players tended to skew results; a late blooming 17 year old will always look inferior to an early bloomer at that age, but by the time they’re 21 that’s evened out and often the early bloomer – who was stronger and faster his whole life – has fallen by the wayside. I feel like that sometimes with the USMNT; when speed or strength aren’t enough, we don’t always show the mental ability to solve problems on the field.

Adam: The defense is the most obvious answer here. The fastest most sustainable change you can make would be to play a more holding and controlling game so that the defense is much more immune to the bad marking that’s caused goals to go in. This isn’t the most exciting way to play, but it can work, especially when facing off against superior teams.

Two Yellows: The main shortcoming of the USMNT is coaching and tactics, in my opinion. I feel that the players themselves likely get better coaching at their club level, and Bob Bradley’s tactics have never quite been settled upon. He seems undisciplined to me, and it’s reflected in the often-sloppy play from his outfield players, particulary Clint Dempsey (who’s much more disciplined and focused at Fulham) and Oguchi Onyewu (who makes schoolboy mistakes at central defense, which is the biggest recipe for disaster). I feel that Bob Bradley needs to settle on a first team of 17, and then instill in that first team a belief in each other and the formation/tactics.

thefuseproject: Lack of a plan.  Is this an attacking team?  Is this a counterattacking team?  Is this a team that wants to play it close and poach a goal, or a team that wants to win 4-2 shootouts?  What this team needs, more than anything else, is for Bob Bradley to say, “THIS is who we are and THIS is how we play.”  American players may trail their international counterparts in technical ability or match “savvy,” but you won’t find a fitter squad and, despite the shambolic display against Costa Rica, this team has heart and a will to win.  Their shortcoming is that the leadership is either lacking or not communicating its goals well.  Finally, I think MLS and the USSF are often working at cross-purposes.  In any other country the national team coach will tell a player, “If you want to play for the national team you need to play against better competition.”  The problem is that for a lot of players, that means leaving MLS and that would sent the league’s leadership into hysterics.

2.  What do you see as the greatest strength of the UMNT?  How can the US capitalize on this strength?

Magnakai Haaskivi: On their best days, the US team is nothing if not dogged. When things are going well, they resemble a team of Dirk Kuyts: no real standout talent to speak of, but a lot of solid role players who do what they do well. There’s nothing more infuriating than a team that doesn’t know they’re beaten, and on their best days the US can be that team.

Adam: They have some pretty decent finishing and a good attack coming from the midfield and running a single striker, preferably Jozy, up top can work real well for this team. They seem to get in trouble when they try to get cute, and while this stuff might work when facing off against guys in MLS, it doesn’t work at an international level. When they play a quick passing attack that feeds into a lone striker, it seems to work real well. That sort of attack seemed to work real well against T&T, so it should continue to be implemented.

Two Yellows: The greatest strength of the USMNT is Tim Howard, hands down. While he cannot always make up for the undisciplined play in front of him, he is a true rock and can be counted upon in the biggest of circumstances.

thefuseproject: Tim Howard.  He’s gone from being a top MLS keeper, to a top EPL keeper, to arguably one of the best in the world.  How can the US capitalize on this strength?  As a coach I’ve always believed the the spine of a team (keeper, central defenders, center midfielder, and striker) needs to be made up of the teams best players, and that the other positions should be filled in based on the strengths and weakness of the remaining players in the pool.  This might mean having some players learn to play different positions, or looking for a different kind of player to bring into the player pool.  For example, if you bring in Conor Casey to replace Brian Ching and then he spends most of the night running the sideline with the ball at his feet rather than at the top of the box with his back to goal, you are not making the most of the available talent’s strengths.

3.  What player(s) need to see more minutes/be brought into the USMNT player pool?

Magnakai Haaskivi: I liked what I saw of Feilhaber in the second half of the Honduras game, and I think that what he could potentially add could help the team improve on their lack of creativity. In addition, I’d like to see more of Eddie Johnson. I know he had some bad outings, but he’s been out for over a year and I wonder if he’s worth another look. If Conor Casey, with ten caps and no goals, is still getting a run-out, than the team surely can find a place for the 37 caps and 12 goals of Johnson; one more goal and he’s tied for ninth all-time, in a lot fewer games than Dempsey, Balboa, or Perez.

Adam: Jose Francisco Torres. I think he’s one of the better players, and he’s still rather young.The US plays a vast majority of their games against South and Central American countries and he’s got a lot of experience in those type of stadiums and against those players, it certainly showed on Wednesday as he was the least rattled player on the pitch.

Two Yellows: Benny Feilhaber needs more minutes. The Jonathans need to play wing defense (Spector and Bornstein). Jozy Altidore needs more minutes but those minutes must be more focused and disciplined than his recent minutes have been. Conor Casey needs more minutes based on the idea that I didn’t get a full idea of what he can do against Honduras.

thefuseproject: First, Jose Torres should be in the side every time.  The end.  Second, where is Michael Parkhurst?  A former Rookie of the Year and Defender of the Year in MLS, now playing successfully in Europe and he only has five caps?  Perhaps Bob Bradley is too focused on height and bulk on the back line to be bothered with Parkhurst, but he should take another look.  Parkhurst is about as mistake-free a defender as MLS has ever seen and he doesn’t pick up cheap cards or give away dangerous free kicks, hence winning MLS’s “Fair Play Award” twice.  At the very least, if Bradley isn’t confident in him as a back, why not put him in as a defensive/holding midfielder and phase out some of the deadwood at that position.  Finally, Kenny Cooper, he’s is a better technical player and athlete than Conor Casey.

4.  What player(s) need to see less minutes/be removed from the USMNT player pool?

Magnakai Haaskivi: I could do without ever seeing Conor Casey again; he didn’t really add anything to the game. I also think that Damarcus Beasley at left back is a stupid project and should never again be attempted. Also, while I like Kljestan, he’s been less than impressive lately.

Adam: DeMarcus Beasley and Pablo Mastroeni. DMB at left back was just an experiment gone horribly wrong. They’ve both sort of regressed and I’d prefer to see younger guys get their shot at it. Seeing someone like Kljestan or Feilhaber get a chance and committing an error is easier to stomach than seeing a veteran do it. At least you know the young guy can probably learn from his mistake while the veteran might have committed the mistake because he’s lost a step. While DMB and Mastroeni probably shouldn’t be completely removed from the pool, they shouldn’t be starting anymore.

Two Yellows: DMB needs less minutes at left back (but more minutes at his natural left wing position). Brian Ching needs less minutes. Heath Pearce needs to never wear the US kit again. What happened to Steve Cherundolo?

thefuseproject: Pablo Mastroeni.  Pablo has always been prone to the ill-advised/hot-headed foul, but usually made up for it by being willing to get stuck-in and to run his legs off.  However, having lost a step, he is a liability over ninety minutes.  I see him, maybe, as a player to come off the bench in the last 10-15 minutes to lock down a victory or preserve a tie, but that’s it.  Even then, I’m not sure he’s worth the roster spot at somebody else’s expense.  Next, and this won’t be popular, I’ve seen enough of Ricardo Clark.  He’s young, and maybe in a couple of years I’ll change my mind, but I see him as a one dimensional player.  He does well chasing and winning the ball, but he needs to be able to hold it, pick his head up, and distribute it outside or forward.  He makes too many aimless/errant passes, and probably gives the ball up as much as he wins it.  He’s also prone to the stupid foul/card and that’s something this team doesn’t need.

5.  What is your assessment of Bob Bradley and his tenure as the USMNT coach?

Magnakai Haaskivi: According to the Football Lineups Database, the US has played six different formations (4-4-2, 4-3-3, 4-2-2-2, 4-1-3-2, 4-2-3-1, and 4-4-1-1) in their last eight matches. For a team that doesn’t practice regularly, formation tinkering only gets in the way; it also muddies the waters on player evaluation. Take Altidore’s outing in Costa Rica; as the left player in a 4-3-3, he’s expected to do completely different things than he’d be expected to do on Saturday against Honduras as one of two strikers up top in a 4-4-2. When creativity is your issue, you’re better off sticking with one formation and playing that well; often, the US look confused, and this relates directly to Bradley’s coaching. He can’t recruit players, but he can try to figure out what formation and tactic works for the players he has; I haven’t seen him do that yet.

Adam: I don’t think he’s been horrible, but I think he’s done two things wrong. For one he’s done a little too much tinkering, by now he should know what works with this team and what doesn’t. He doesn’t have the advantages a club team has with seeing the guys for 50 games a season where tweaking the lineup 10 times isn’t a big deal. He’s got to figure out a strategy he likes and stick to it. Not having the absolute perfect lineup or the perfect strategy doesn’t hurt if you continue to use that strategy or some form of it as the players will be more accustomed to running that formation and what their roles are and will produce better.  I think he’s gotten complacent with his early successes and doesn’t push the team as hard as he should. Soccer in America is unique in that there isn’t a large public outcry if they don’t do as they’re expected to. If Nick Saban goes 9-3 at Alabama, he very well could be fired and have his life threatened, If the US loses to Cuba 4-0, you might not read anything bad about Bradley in mainstream media. This makes it an easier job to do when you don’t have to wake up every morning and face the papers. As such the complacency can come to a person much easier than someone who’s up against the media daily.

Two Yellows: See question 1′s answer for my feeling on Bob Bradley. There’s been an interesting point raised recently about the overall lack of pressure that Bradley faces. Honestly, it’s true. If that loss to Costa Rica had happened to England against, say, Ukraine (a good but not world-class team in their group) the pressure and outcry against Fabio Capello would have been deafening. Here, it’s a “bad loss” but not many will remember full details of the disaster other than those of us who pay true attention to such things. Bradley needs to step up his game. CONCACAF is not the toughest region in the universe, to be sure, but these teams love to stick it to the US. Bradley needs to instill a sense of ruthless aggression now while he’s got the chance. He’s also got to make sure his team understands that a road trip means going to war in another country’s stadium in cauldron-like atmosphere, not this “we’re having a laugh down here in Costa Rica” type attitudes from last week. He needs to be better. His tactics and substitutions need to be better. His players need more stay-at-home discipline. He needs to wean Clint Dempsey off of cute tricks. He needs to focus Landon Donovan so that every game feels like a final to him. He needs to get more from Jozy Altidore and settle on a second striker for the US. He needs a lot of work at this point.

thefuseproject: In short, he tinkers too much.  Teams that are successful- whether on the club or national level- are ones where there is competition for every position.  Bradley’s tendency to change formations and to shuffle dozens (by my count 40+ players have earned a cap during Bradley’s tenure) of players in and out of the squad has prevented any kind of meaningful competition for spots from taking place.  I’m all for experimentation and for giving new players a chance to break into the national player pool, but Bradley seems to throw players into matches whether they’ve beaten out a starter for the spot or not.  If players knew that the team would under most circumstances play in one or two formations and who was considered a “starter” in each of these, they could focus on winning one of those spots.  Additionally, the “starters” would know who was nipping at their heels and this would keep them from becoming complacent.  This, in my opinion, is why some players (Dempsey, Onyewu, etc.) tend to be better players for their club teams than for the national team.  Until there is some continuity and competition in the national side it will continue to stagnate.

Alright, listen up, USSF, here are the points on which this panel of experts has shown some consensus-

-The Beasley experiment was a bust.  End it now.  Move him back up to the wing.
-Tactically, the team is a mess, be it in terms of formation, style, or direction.  Relatedly, Bob Bradley may not be the man to solve this problem.
-Tim Howard is good, very good.
-The team has heart, fitness, and determination- a way needs to be found to make the most of it.
-Jose Torres and Benny Feilhaber need to play more minutes.
-Pablo Mastroeni’s time as a USMNT player is over.
-Bob Bradley has done “okay” as coach, but the lack of competition in CONCACAF does not require him to get the absolute best out of the team to be successful, and that is a problem.

Well, there you have it, dear readers!  Now it’s your turn to use the comments section to nod sagely at the wisdom of our analysis, or to chase us away while brandishing pitchforks and torches.