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USMNT/Soccer Thread

With the window closed we finally get a good look at what teams are going to look like for the forseeable future.

Premier League:
Dont understand Man U shipping so many players off tbh. Chelsea could not do much due to transfer ban. I thought Eriksen was gonna leave Tottenham---guess not. I was shocked to see Man City not buy another CB. Now their worst fears are come about with the season ending injury to Laporte. I like Liverpool to win the league now. Top 4 goes Liverpool, City, Tottenham, Arsenal. The club to keep an eye on to shock with a top 4 finish is Leicester City. Dont have the wear and tear of european competition and have what they had in their title year--- a really solid midfield in Tielemans and Maddison.

La Liga
I like what Atletico Madrid did with Joao Felix. Kid is a budding star.Taking some time for them to gel though. Real Madrid is a question mark and Barca should be very good when healthy.

Bundesliga-
I'd like to see RB Leipzig win it. Think they are a very good squad. Bayern is Bayern but something is off there--- then Dortmund is very good but still has those unexplained losses like this past week.

Serie A -

Juve has just a shit ton of players. Napoli can give them competition--- their game earlier this year was a phenomenal watch. I think Conte will do well with Inter as well. I like their signings in Sensi, Barella, Lukaku, and Sanchez.

Other:

PSG IMO made out like a bandit. To finish the window with Keylor Navas and Mauro Icardi is insane. If they can just get healthy and get buy in from Neymar and Icardi--- that attack may be the best in the world.


Should be a fun year.
 
Yeah PSG could be nuts. How the hell do you line them all up?? I mean when healthy you have Mbappe, Neymar, Cavani, Icardi, Dimaria, Sarabia its gonna be fun to watch how Tuechel uses everyone when healthy.

I think too with Verrati, Gueye they have a good midfield. If their defense can step up, maybe they can actually make some noise in the Champions league. They get Real right off the rip so we shall see

Liverpool and Man city look set for an epic battle. But you're right Sean. Leicster is very capable of pushing for top 4 this year. They have a very underrated squad this year and Brendan Rogers is out to prove something after Liverpool canning him

Atletico indeed looks primed to fight the big 2. Felix is a freaking star and Simeone always gets the most out of his teams

Inter can definitely be the sneaky good team in Serie A. Conte just wins everywhere and Lukaku is motivated to prove haters wrong.

Dortmund and Lepzig will challenge Bayern. But I don't think either have Bayerns depth. Still like Bayern to repeat

Anyway should be helluva alot of fun this year.

Premiere League mornings on the weekend are becoming must watch TV at my house.
 
Going out on top.


Yeah, I understand it. I would love to be retired at 52 as well......but man, the Olympics are coming up and the USWNT still are the kings of the world. She could have several more Gold Medals and World Cups won by the time she's 60.
 
ManU was indecisive. If you're going to go young, do it. Depth is poor at most positions. Did not pull the trigger on many supposed deals which I think comes from a lack of experience in the front office. Need a dedicated talent evaluator/negotiator. Teams now know they can jack the price on ManU, see Harry Maguire.
 
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Looking forward to tonight against Mexico, especially seeing where exactly Dest is positioned and performs and a potential cameo of Pomykal though I think it's more likely he plays in the next friendly; apparently the U17 squad beat Mexico yesterday 2-1 with Mexico having little more in attack than Efra Alvarez and the US had goals from stalwarts Ricardo Pepi and Gio Reyna. Our teen pool appears to be significantly deeper than Mexico's if you put much creedence into the last couple years of U17, U18 and U20 results.
 
I see potential. The goalkeeper is pretty bad. Dest has the ability to be a very good player but got schooled early. Morales is a nut. USA going no where with zardes. Need a big fast guy up top and another guy at holding mid who has size. Lots of w players with ability just have to put it together over the next several months
 
Berhalter ain't the guy. Not sure how Josh Sargent can barely see the field.

Mexico nailed their coaching search, we didn't....and ti shows. We try to play like France and Belgium with players that don't have the technique, skill and creativity to do so. Mexico plays directly to their strengths.
 
I see potential. The goalkeeper is pretty bad. Dest has the ability to be a very good player but got schooled early. Morales is a nut. USA going no where with zardes. Need a big fast guy up top and another guy at holding mid who has size. Lots of w players with ability just have to put it together over the next several months
To Zardes, you can add Altidore & Bradley & Brooks - all has beens, assuming they were beens at one time. McKennie doesn't seem to be the same player he was before being injured last season.

Pulisic is a lightweight trying to play with middleweights. He's fine in open space but he gets knocked off the ball without much of a bother. Never mixes it up - except to show how tough he is.

We're always 3 years away.
 
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Brooks falls into the same category for me as Fabian Johnson and Timmy Chandler--very talented German-Americans who don't fill the American jersey with much more than passing indifference. If Brooks was half of what we got in Jermaine Jones it would be great but when I saw him on the roster for the friendlies my first reaction was I will believe it when it actually happens. Queue the music when he is starting when Wolfsburg lines up next just the same as Johnson begging off in the Rose Bowl in extra time against Mexico with an injury then making the 18 a week later for Monchengladbach.

I am not fully down on where we are...there is a clear gulf between us and Mexico at the Senior level and that much is obvious. But should we really be shocked? I still am of the mindset that much looks different when Tyler Adams is the 6 rather than Will Trapp or Bradley. Playing out of the back isn't a bad deal when you have Dest at a FB rather than Deandre Yedlin because Dest is a de facto wing and fantastic on the ball. People can have their Berhalter whipping boys of Trapp and Zardes and it is classic USMNT Barstool/Twitter soccer-tough-guy fodder...but what is also clear is those two in particular get on the roster because other whipping boys are held off. Of course Will Trapp doesn't belong even in a training camp when you are going through the Hex and Zardes damned sure doesn't either. But consider the possibility they are included because they know what Berhalter wants and are little more than practice coaches and beyond that are included because others weren't made available. I honestly think Trapp is being groomed to be a coach or a technical director well down the line; he is awful under any sort of pressure.

The youth groups U17, U20 and U23 are still performing at a level we haven't quite seen in the last twenty years and that allows for some modest encouragement; of course there are a whole bunch of those kids who are Mexican duals so the alleged thin layer of talent in Mexico's youth systems see our duals really getting scrutinized. But they are in our system now. Beyond that this sudden emergence of someone like Mason Toye with Minnesota and in the last week with the U23 group is encouraging.
 
The youth groups U17, U20 and U23 are still performing at a level we haven't quite seen in the last twenty years and that allows for some modest encouragement; of course there are a whole bunch of those kids who are Mexican duals so the alleged thin layer of talent in Mexico's youth systems see our duals really getting scrutinized. But they are in our system now. Beyond that this sudden emergence of someone like Mason Toye with Minnesota and in the last week with the U23 group is encouraging.
Yep, same 3 years away as 20 years ago.
 
Not out of question to assume the EPL title is all but decided. City showing some lapses already and their back line is a struggle- while Liverpool seem to keep rolling right along. If anyone coming from the pack fighting for 3/4 gets on a roll they may be able to challenge for the 2nd spot- but that group of 4-5 teams hasnt been consistent either.

Arsenal looked like contenders in one half and looked mid-table in the next. Any positives from their midfield or guys in the back and they would be guaranteed top 4. Looks like they are just going to try and outscore people now though.

Chelsea kids looking sharp- they are probably going to lay some duds going forward too but their academy guys getting a chance has worked out fairly well. I'm not sure why they seem to get a ton of credit for that strategy though since it wasnt a strategy at all but merely a product of their ban. They may get thumped on the CL.

Spurs took a baby step back toward decency. A game they shouldve won but they were convincingly better this weekend. Think they have like 7 games in 3 weeks counting CL so they will need guys to get healthy quickly.

Grind of the season coming into full swing now- the next couple of weeks will be pretty telling.
 
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'pool has played a soft EPL schedule so far with Gunners at home by far toughest match. Net, they are yet to be tested imo. That said, they're my rooting favourite amongst the top sides.
 
Not out of question to assume the EPL title is all but decided. City showing some lapses already and their back line is a struggle- while Liverpool seem to keep rolling right along. If anyone coming from the pack fighting for 3/4 gets on a roll they may be able to challenge for the 2nd spot- but that group of 4-5 teams hasnt been consistent either.

Arsenal looked like contenders in one half and looked mid-table in the next. Any positives from their midfield or guys in the back and they would be guaranteed top 4. Looks like they are just going to try and outscore people now though.

Chelsea kids looking sharp- they are probably going to lay some duds going forward too but their academy guys getting a chance has worked out fairly well. I'm not sure why they seem to get a ton of credit for that strategy though since it wasnt a strategy at all but merely a product of their ban. They may get thumped on the CL.

Spurs took a baby step back toward decency. A game they shouldve won but they were convincingly better this weekend. Think they have like 7 games in 3 weeks counting CL so they will need guys to get healthy quickly.

Grind of the season coming into full swing now- the next couple of weeks will be pretty telling.


No comment on the topic... just wanted to state that I freaking love Dreamland sauce and your username is great.
 
Great flick on by Sargent vs. bVb. Dortmund looking gutless again. Sean right about Leicester looking good.
 
Hugo Perez has been hired by the Mexican Federation. I swear every conceivable possible misstep you can imagine has been committed by the USSF in the last three years and I don't understand it.
 
This guy needs to stay involved with US Soccer in an administrative capacity. Hell make him the president of USSF Dude is 100% correct in everything he says:

 
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I have to be honest...I had debated whether I was going to watch the US last night or not; my inner voice said watch it. My inner voice has been banished from further conversation.

I am close to checked out on the USMNT. What a lifeless, putrid display that was.
 
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I have to be honest...I had debated whether I was going to watch the US last night or not; my inner voice said watch it. My inner voice has been banished from further conversation.

I am close to checked out on the USMNT. What a lifeless, putrid display that was.
OK, 5 years away.
 
Pulisic hat trick deserves getting this back on the first page. Hell of a game by the young man. He was very decisive and attacked, attacked, attacked. Very happy for him, he had been playing well with the assists in recent games.

All the big leagues are rolling again. Time to talk Soccer ladies and gentleman.
 
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Pulisic hat trick deserves getting this back on the first page. Hell of a game by the young man. He was very decisive and attacked, attacked, attacked. Very happy for him, he had been playing well with the assists in recent games.

All the big leagues are rolling again. Time to talk Soccer ladies and gentleman.

Massive accomplishment for this young american player. Glad I DVR'd the game.
 
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Great game by CP. Puts up him to tied for 23rd in EPL goals scored & tied for 37th in assists. I have & still do question his durability. I put Josh Sargent ahead of CP.
 
Great game by CP. Puts up him to tied for 23rd in EPL goals scored & tied for 37th in assists. I have & still do question his durability. I put Josh Sargent ahead of CP.

In what way? Sargent is a striker... CP is a wing.
 
He's a more influential, quality player; i.e. more important to the team. He starts. How hard is it?

That's too funny. I dont see any teams lining up to pay over $60 mil for JS. Thats just a ridiculous take. Pulisic has far more Bundesliga goals than JS. And again, in football in Europe if youre that good, a big team will pay and come scoop you. I never even see JS name mentioned with any notable teams being interested.

I'm not knocking JS, he is young and very promising. But they are different players as has been noted. But seriously, when JS is worth $60 mil you can start this arguement. Now its just dead wrong.
 
That's too funny. I dont see any teams lining up to pay over $60 mil for JS. Thats just a ridiculous take. Pulisic has far more Bundesliga goals than JS. And again, in football in Europe if youre that good, a big team will pay and come scoop you. I never even see JS name mentioned with any notable teams being interested.

I'm not knocking JS, he is young and very promising. But they are different players as has been noted. But seriously, when JS is worth $60 mil you can start this arguement. Now its just dead wrong.

Chelsea paid what they did not necessarily for his quality, but rather for the profits possible by getting into the american market.

I like Sargent better too. Yes, they are different. But Josh has a unique ability with his movement that is next level. His hold up play needs some work, but his ability to exploit space and then finish clinically is elite. I recently saw a video somewhere comparing him and his movement/finishing with Lewandowski. Not saying he is going to be that level of world class. But he is immensely talented and really should be our #1 choice at that position over Zardes and Altidore without a quesiton. Give Sargent 2 more years and lets see the fee's that come his way.

From a US perspective there is simply no reason we shouldn't be far better than we currently are.

Tyler Adams, Weston McKennie, Christian Pulisic, Zach Steffen, Tim Weah, Josh Sargent, Paxton Pomykal, Sergino Dest, John Brooks, CCV, Tyler Boyd, Reggie Cannon, Giovanni Reyna

If you cant get more from a player pool with those guys you don't need to have the job. I have always said, I would love to see Jorge Sampaoli as the coach. I just think his style fits our personnel to perfection.
 
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Dest is probably good enough to save us from Yedlin's erraticism during the Hex, unless they play him more at LB.
 
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