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USMNT/Soccer Thread

He's slightly involved still - as a parent and fan.

I agree with you - the youth academies are doing great and it could be a while before we really see the advantages it created.
 
Vandalayindustries said:
He's slightly involved still - as a parent and fan.

I agree with you - the youth academies are doing great and it could be a while before we really see the advantages it created.
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People forget, Klinsmann was a pivotal part in the restructuring and evolution of the German National Team's changes in the mid to late 1990's up to about 2006 when he didn't renew his contract. Look at some of the guys brought into the youth teams and called in during that time... Guys like Manuel Neuer, Mezut Ozil, Thomas Mueller, Toni Kroos, Marco Reus, Hummels, Boateng, Sami Khedira, Andre Shurrle, Gundogan, Ter-Steigen, Max Kruse, all brought in around that same time to the u-18,u-19, and u-20 teams...

Hopefully we see a fraction of the same result down the road... Again, it took nearly 8-10 years to see the fruits from that labor....Could make for a special 2026 World Cup in our back yard...
 
BigBlueSean said:
People forget, Klinsmann was a pivotal part in the restructuring and evolution of the German National Team's changes in the mid to late 1990's up to about 2006 when he didn't renew his contract. Look at some of the guys brought into the youth teams and called in during that time... Guys like Manuel Neuer, Mezut Ozil, Thomas Mueller, Toni Kroos, Marco Reus, Hummels, Boateng, Sami Khedira, Andre Shurrle, Gundogan, Ter-Steigen, Max Kruse, all brought in around that same time to the u-18,u-19, and u-20 teams...

Hopefully we see a fraction of the same result down the road... Again, it took nearly 8-10 years to see the fruits from that labor....Could make for a special 2026 World Cup in our back yard...
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Jurgen sucks as a coach. He does't really believe in tactics. He believes in winning individual battles with skill and athleticism.

What he was very good at was organizing youth programs and emphasizing the way the rest of the world approaches soccer for younger kids. Don't worry about winning, worry about becoming a really good soccer player first.

In america we've treated soccer like our other sports for way too long. We put an emphasis on winning for young kids as opposed to training and skills development. This is starting to change with the usmnt academy system and rules they've put in place as well as the mls academies. We still have a ways to go because in the rec leagues around america the coaching sucks and that's where most kids come up. As opposed to in europe where any kid who wants to play organized soccer gets really good coaching. But that's slowly starting to shift here.
 
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BigBlueSean said:
People forget, Klinsmann was a pivotal part in the restructuring and evolution of the German National Team's changes in the mid to late 1990's up to about 2006 when he didn't renew his contract. Look at some of the guys brought into the youth teams and called in during that time... Guys like Manuel Neuer, Mezut Ozil, Thomas Mueller, Toni Kroos, Marco Reus, Hummels, Boateng, Sami Khedira, Andre Shurrle, Gundogan, Ter-Steigen, Max Kruse, all brought in around that same time to the u-18,u-19, and u-20 teams...

Hopefully we see a fraction of the same result down the road... Again, it took nearly 8-10 years to see the fruits from that labor....Could make for a special 2026 World Cup in our back yard...
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There is a little bigger reason for that in Germany, and it was consecutive major tournaments in three years played there...the World Cup in 2006 and Euro Cup. All of the money gained from those tournies was sent right back into the infrastructure of their system, so coupled with the Bundesliga development academies you see a massive amount of capital by comparison to virtually any other country in the world in youth development. Klinnsman was something of a coincidental benefactor; his pyramid belief in the US is spot on, but I'll maintain and continue to maintain that the US will never approach the European or South American models for one reason, and that's pay to play. It relegates soccer in the US to being a suburban and exurban sport for middle and upperclass kids, and that's upside down to the remainder of the world. The US soccer federation announced a surplus of $100 million last month...do you really think any of that money will end up at the grassroots developmental level defraying the cost to the poor latino kid Southern California? I don't. At best it will go into MLS development academies to defray their developmental costs.
 
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goukcatsgo said:
Exactly...
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That's why I love the sport of soccer so much. The NBA, NFL and MLB are made of the best athletes in the world and so much rides on physical gifts be it height, or weight or what not. Soccer IMO is the 1 sport that Technical ability is key. Sure you can be 6'5 with a 40 inch vertical and fast as shit.... But if all that means absolutely nothing without technique, skill, and having a clinical aspect.

The USMNT doesn't lack in any of the physical attributes... It's that Technical aspect that hinders us.
 
BigBlueSean said:
That's why I love the sport of soccer so much. The NBA, NFL and MLB are made of the best athletes in the world and so much rides on physical gifts be it height, or weight or what not. Soccer IMO is the 1 sport that Technical ability is key. Sure you can be 6'5 with a 40 inch vertical and fast as shit.... But if all that means absolutely nothing without technique, skill, and having a clinical aspect.

The USMNT doesn't lack in any of the physical attributes... It's that Technical aspect that hinders us.
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Word.
 
I don't watch much soccer outside of World Cup but decided to watch the Champions League Final today and.....that is probably the best goal I've ever seen.
 
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This might sound a little weird, but what separates the great soccer players from the average at virtually any level of soccer is imagination and creativity. The ability to try something on the fly that you might have never seen before is one of the most fascinating things about the sport. You might see something like that in basketball, but you really don't in football or baseball. Backheels, stepovers, bicycle kicks are necessities of the game to unlock space just like crossovers, behind-the-back dribbles or passes or no look passes are in basketball.
 
goukcatsgo said:
Ronaldo's improvement under ZZ is remarkable.
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The way Ronaldo has shifted his play is ingenious. Gone are the days of Ronaldo just outpacing people and using all the stepovers on the wing. He plays much more as a out and out striker now and has simply become a clinical finisher. At this rate, Ronaldo, depending on his national team involvement, could easily get 3-6 more high quality years. He just is so clinical and creative in the final third.
 
And that was a very underwhelming 1st half for the USMNT....

I still can't believe we went with Bruce Arena again...
 
BigBlueSean said:
And that was a very underwhelming 1st half for the USMNT....

I still can't believe we went with Bruce Arena again...
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Coaching wasn't the issue last nigh. Having a bunch of our players together under arena for the first time was. I bet we kill t&t.
 
vhcat70 said:
Pulisic is too small to mix things up. Lots of talent, yes, but limited to usefulness on the outside unless he bulks up.
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Over/under games you've actually watched in your life? 5?
 
So, we have WCQers against Mexico and T&T..

I think we win T&T 4-0 and get beat by Mexico 3-1.

Then its CONFEDERATIONS CUP time-

The groups are A) Russia, New Zealand, Portugal, Mexico ----- B) Cameroon, Chile, Germany, Australia.

I think Mexico wins group A with Portugal in 2nd, and Chile win group B with Germany in 2nd.

Semis: Mexico v. Germany, Chile v. Portugal

Finals: Mexico v. Chile

Champ: Chile
 
BigBlueSean said:
So, we have WCQers against Mexico and T&T..

I think we win T&T 4-0 and get beat by Mexico 3-1.

Then its CONFEDERATIONS CUP time-

The groups are A) Russia, New Zealand, Portugal, Mexico ----- B) Cameroon, Chile, Germany, Australia.

I think Mexico wins group A with Portugal in 2nd, and Chile win group B with Germany in 2nd.

Semis: Mexico v. Germany, Chile v. Portugal

Finals: Mexico v. Chile

Champ: Chile
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Portugal wins group a... Russia gets second. Mexico is bizarrely fragile right now IMO. They've got a strong pool of players but they don't seem to be very mentally tough. I think Portugal grinds them into the ground and they tie russia. Russia beats New Zealand by a bigger margin than portual does.

I see a portugal v. chile final...
 
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Anybody encouraged by the friendly vs. Venezuela on Saturday is deluding themselves. They currently sit last in CONEMBOL qualifying, with 6 points from 14 games. They bad...they really, really bad.

The USMNT is good enough to beat T&T at home with their eyes closed. However, they're going to get smoked by Mexico at the Azteca. While getting rid of Jurgen Klinsmann was the right move, hiring Bruce Arenas was a step-back for the USMNT. He's has a pattern of selecting American-born players over foreign-born Americans, even if they're not the right player for the position (i.e., Dempsey and Bradley).

Anyway, looking forward to heading to DSG Park for the game tomorrow. [thumb2]
 
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Pretty subpar performance. Don't know how it came across on TV, but the stadium was dead until CP scored his first goal.

Jody and Clint are so damn lazy. Simply can't play them together.
 
The two guys I liked the most in the game was Yedlin and Villafana. Very solid game from our FB. They can really create.
 
Dempsey playing deep was odd, he can't blow past people. He tried a lot of flicking the ball on instead of 1 v 1, crafty but a sign he is slowing down. Further, a lot of balls in middle were poor, deflected, and turned over. Only when they got it out to the wings, including the defenders, were they effective, as well as on the counter. They go at Mexico with that passing and it will be over quick.
 
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BigBlueSean said:
The two guys I liked the most in the game was Yedlin and Villafana. Very solid game from our FB. They can really create.
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Couldnt disagree more. They squandered most of their opportunities when they found themselves in space. Their service was somewhere between bad and atrocious - often just playing a ball into the box rather than trying to pick out a pass. TnT made short work of most of their crosses.
 
10x better than old ass Beasley or Zusi/Fabian Johnson playing out of position. Both goals were a result of well timed runs and contributions from Yedlin. Villafana also had 2 pull backs that should have been goals and a cross to Altidore that should've been a goal as well. Now are they gonna be Marcelo or Jordi Alba good? No. But both are massive improvements.
 
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