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Jamaica 1, USA 2: Match Highlights

USAWinnerVsJamaica (ISIPhotos.com)

Photo by ISIPhotos.com

[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xFVtb4G_pic]

Comments

  1. We have caught “europitis” — which is absolutely no patience for players to mature. Altidore played very well in Holland — and thats a good league. he is youg and just needed time. i dont think that there is any question that he is now ready — and on the cusp of being an excellent player.

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  2. I was a the game and want to give props to the very cool Jamaican fans. Many shook my hand after the game. Very cool.

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  3. Beckford was offside wasn’t he? Looks like he is standing behind the line when the ball was kicked. No wonder the goal looked so easy.

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    • Ys. He was offside. That’s why he was unmarked. Criticism of Gonzalez are barely half-right. He did lose his mark, but that was the guy standing behind Beckford. Beckford was offside when the ball was kicked and probably also should have been called for pushing Bradley away.

      We won, so this isn’t a big talking point, but it would have been scandalous if it ended in a tie due to that blown call.

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      • The ref was pretty terrible I thought. Jamaica could have had several yellow cards, we should have had a bunch more free kicks, and then there was the stupidity of him playing an advantage to us when we had no advantage.

    • +1
      (…….or Stuart Holden if he was 100% fit and game ready. Wait a minute SH is on the bench! Maybe he can give us 20-30 minutes as a sub and help us keep possession, kill off the game, score a late second half goal.)

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    • You know what would also be nice if he didn’t quit on the team and “need” to get away from the game during our most difficult away road qualifiers!!! He chose this path its time we move on and allow others who want it to fill in. He’ll be back we just need to focus on the next two games with what we have.

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      • This sounds like cutting of your nose to spite your face. Yes, everyone was disappointed by the timing of his sabbatical, but perhaps that’s as much the MLS fault as anything. The bottom line is he has carried this team for years. If he needed time off, it’s because he has played a tremendous amount of soccer for years. I’m glad for the opportunity to integrate younger players like Zusi, but if he wants back in and he’s still better than whoever else is available, then it’s petty to hold him out because of pride. And frankly, it seems a little ungrateful.

      • Then color me ungrateful. I’m glad he isn’t in the lineup. EJ or Gomez will slot in for Zusi.

  4. I can’t wait to read Paul Gardner’s article in Soccer America following the Germany game and the thrilling victory in Jamaica.

    What will the Gloom Merchant have to say?

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  5. It’s so nice to wade through two USMNT threads without reading about Jozy’s “poor work rate” or how “lazy” he is. We’ve been saying “get him some service” and he’ll take care of the rest.

    We should do this again.

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    • I still think his fitness/stamina is a concern. His tired body language is something that every coach I ever played for HATED to see. I can’t see him ever being a 90 minute player for a great team. He’s a 65-70 minute player right now, and that’s with only a moderate work rate. That’s fine as long as we have depth behind him. It should be said that this is really the last thing for him to improve. He has the physical strength to hang with any defender, and he’s actually faster than people give him credit for because he’s so huge. Everything else, his touch, shooting, passing, play in the air, have all improved tremendously in the last year.

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    • ‘service’ meaning passing, passing to the feet, passing into space (through ball), chip passes, give and go, etc…of course 🙂

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  6. I love all of the young guys getting chances, but for the love of god can we stop putting Omar on the back line? Brad Evans in the last two games has been a stud, as much as I thought he wouldn’t work playing defense, he continues to prove me wrong. I hate the idea of midfielders playing defense but he’s rubbing my face in it similar to Beasley. But Omar needs to get off the JK teat. I would love for him to mature the way he should, but it’s not happening. Give him a break and let him earn himself back onto the lineup. How many times can Omar, who’s in there primarily to stop headers as the tall CB, lose his man on a cross and destroy the backline. It’s getting borderline ridiculous at this point. Every game he concedes at least one or two goals. Make him earn his way back if you’re going to require it from Donovan. Omar is killing this defense right now

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    • It kills me that he can be so consistently beaten in the air and on the dribble. Is his only “talent” his size?

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    • The commentator blames the goal on Gonzalez, but he is wrong. It wasn’t his man who scored. Your point is still somewhat valid though because Gonzalez did lose his man as well. There were three or four yellow shirts in good position. I think Gonzalez is likely the future at CB, but I don’t know if he’s ready either. World Cup qualifying is not the right place for growing pains. That being said, perhaps beggars can’t be choosers.

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    • Omar wasn’t at fault on the goal even though it appears he lost his man by not lining up goal side and up field from the line the D had set. It appeared EJ’s man is the one that scored. That said if you look at the replay he not only was offsides the entire time he also pushed off EJ just to make sure he was in front. Poor officiating there, not much can be done about that. The replay after the goal is a perfect angle to see it.

      Omar is definitely green and making some mental mistakes. But I’m wondering if we weren’t playing Evans and Beasley as our outside backs if Omar and Beasler would look a bit better since they wouldn’t have to cover and/or be exposed in the middle as often. Almost every time a man came down the wing and challenged Beasley 1 on 1 they were able to cut inside or cross. Not without him being in their face but that is still just not good enough. Hell there were more than a couple of instances where they just ran around Beasley which was supposed to be his big strength. Evans was better but did not look as sharp against Jamaica as he did against Germany. That one play in the highlights where is man faked pulling out for a back pass and then went to the line and was scot free for a cross was a prime example. The one play I saw where Omar really looked bad was that chip over him which let to Jamaica hitting the post. He was in a no win situation on that one because Evans didn’t pinch in on the runner and both Bradley and Jones were ball watching and didn’t track him either. At that point Omar was 1v2 in that pocket of space at the 18 despite the fact there are 4 or 5 blue jerseys around them. I suppose he shouldn’t have allowed his man to turn but the runner made him hesitate to step out on the ball handler too aggressively and for good reason at that point you risk giving up a through ball that is easier to control instead of a chip if things go wrong. I also suppose he could have gone with the runner but that would have given the guy that chipped it an opportunity to shoot. It never should have gotten to that point someone else needs to pick up that runner. Likely Bradley is at fault for letting the guy that passed it to Omar’s man run by him scot free to overlap.

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    • Omar wasn’t at fault on the goal even though it appears he lost his man by not lining up goal side and up field from the line the D had set. It appeared EJ’s man is the one that scored. That said if you look at the replay he not only was offsides the entire time he also pushed off EJ just to make sure he was in front. Poor officiating there, not much can be done about that. The replay after the goal is a perfect angle to see it.

      Omar is definitely green and making some mental mistakes. But I’m wondering if we weren’t playing Evans and Beasley as our outside backs if Omar and Beasler would look a bit better since they wouldn’t have to cover and/or be exposed in the middle as often. Almost every time a man came down the wing and challenged Beasley 1 on 1 they were able to cut inside or cross. Not without him being in their face but that is still just not good enough. Hell there were more than a couple of instances where they just ran around Beasley which was supposed to be his big strength. Evans was better but did not look as sharp against Jamaica as he did against Germany. That one play in the highlights where is man faked pulling out for a back pa$$ and then went to the line and was scot free for a cross was a prime example. The one play I saw where Omar really looked bad was that chip over him which let to Jamaica hitting the post. He was in a no win situation on that one because Evans didn’t pinch in on the runner and both Bradley and Jones were ball watching and didn’t track him either. At that point Omar was 1v2 in that pocket of space at the 18 despite the fact there are 4 or 5 blue jerseys around them. I suppose he shouldn’t have allowed his man to turn but the runner made him hesitate to step out on the ball handler too aggressively and for good reason at that point you risk giving up a through ball that is easier to control instead of a chip if things go wrong. I also suppose he could have gone with the runner but that would have given the guy that chipped it an opportunity to shoot. It never should have gotten to that point someone else needs to pick up that runner. Likely Bradley is at fault for letting the guy that pa$$ed it to Omar’s man run by him scot free to overlap.

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  7. 4-1-3-2 formation!!!! fill in the blanks on that one and everybody in the USMNT player pool is eligible

    ——-Howard—–

    Cherundolo—–Onyewu—-Bocanegra——Chandler

    ——————————Bradley——————

    Corona—————–Donovan—————–Holden

    —————-Dempsey————-Altidore

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    • forget it bro. We are back to the “empty bucket.” this team functions now exactly how it did under Bradley. Klinsmann tried to change it, but we are back to emphasizing wing play with two deep center mids.

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      • We’re playing a possession heavy 4-2-3-1 which is not the counter attacking 4-4-2 “empty bucket” style we played under Bradley. And we’re playing it pretty damn well at the moment.

      • i disagree. zusi and johnson play wide and dempsey is not involved in the midfield at all. we are playing 442, the same as bob played — which is fine.

      • You’re not watch very closely. Demspey is very involved in the midfield. He is not hanging out up top waiting for long balls. He is coming back to Jones and Bradley to find the game. Demps is even pitching in some tackles in the middle of the field. It is a 4-2-3-1 with Dempsey given a lot of freedom and Jones pushing up to fill the space left open by Dempsey.

  8. Say what you will about American play-by-play announcers, they just don’t work for me. I’ll take the Queens English any day….Sweet touch for the winner by Evans and equally sweet cross and goal by Zusi and Altidore!!

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      • I did like Cobi better than I normally like Twellman. The color man was decent too but I do like me some English color men.

    • I was listening very carefully and trying to be crtitical, but I really didn’t find anything wrong with the announcers last night. Coby did a good job as the analyst. The play by play man was consistent, professional and new the game well. I actually enjoyed their style. But even my ten year old likes the English announcers so I get what you are saying.

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  9. was anyone else disappointed that eddie johnson didn’t hit the gas on that last second breakaway? he instead stops and tries to cut across the defender to his left. I would’ve preferred him to get into a footrace. do you think he was just trying to hold posession until the whistle?

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    • I thought it was a youth soccer flashback or something…He should have took off at 110% speed and burned out his lungs…again…the point of soccer is to score GOALS!!!!!!!

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      • I think in that instant he was remembering Deuce (the captain) yelling at TBoyd for not wasting time

      • i figured that was the reason, but couldn’t he have easily dribbled to the corner rather than cut across the defender? thus wasting time or forcing a foul from behind? oh well i’m being nitpicky. win’s a win.

      • C’mon guys, really? Holding up play? I don’t buy it at all. My personal opinion is that it was a total lack of belief and confidence. On a few occasions during the Germany match when he had space to run at people he made similar decisions — he just rolled the ball back or sideways to the midfield. These are the little things that separate us from the rest of the world, and it’s all about decision-making. Eddie Johnson’s soccer IQ is just not that good. Any other top nation (or Jamaica, or anyone in CONCACAF) would take that ball to goal and look to bury it. I don’t care what minute of the game it is…you have a breakaway…you take it. For me, no matter the “reason” behind his decision to hold up, it was a poor decision. This is going to be so cliche, but that’s a decision made by someone who doesn’t want to lose, not by someone who wants to win. That’s the mentality JK ad the U.S. is trying to change.

    • A part of me wanted to see us put in a 3rd goal, but I’m fine with Eddie’s decision to play to kill the game, and he did. Had the score been 1-1, of course I’d be furious with him.

      I like Eddie. I think he has the touch, and I prefer him to guys who have been in his role in the past, like Edson Buddle.

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      • Comparing the EJ from the lass qualifying campaign 4-5 years ago, to the EJ of today, it is clear to me that he has worked very hard on several aspects of his game. His first touch, his hold-up play, his ability to dribble out of danger and keep possession, his passing – all have improved significantly. Those years in England served him well – he got some proper English football schoolin’ – yet, he has room for improvement, needs to read the field better, and improve his ability to link up with other players on the fly in fast breaks.

  10. After months and months of questions and scrutiny it seems like JK team is finally coming around to the style of play he promised. Not only is the team creating more chances and becoming “dangerous”, we’re also building from the back and retaining possession better than any incarnation of the team I’ve ever seen.

    When JK took over he had 4 distinct challenges:

    1. Can MB90 and Jermaine Jones play together? Solved
    2. Can Jozy fit in w/ the USMNT? So far (after two strong performances) – Perhaps
    3. Is there life after Donovan? – It appears so
    4. Who will be the CB pairing in 2014 – Undetermined

    The team still has room to grow and is by no means a finished product, but after all the scrutiny I think it’s worth pointing out that JK may know what he’s doing after all.

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    • I have more disagrees than agrees with JK. The USMNT is not even close to reaching its’ full potential. I think Howard is getting creaky. I feel like we need to get more possession in the final third and one way to do that is pair another player with Altidore. I am thinking Dempsey. We need to go with a two forward formation. Our midfield will have more passing options and that will result in more possession, passing, and space for the forwards and midfielders to get into. Dempsey will be the withdrawn forward and come back to midfield as necessary. Donovan can play this role too. Adu can play this role.
      A two forward formation would change the two DMF Bradley and Jones or remain the same. With a box midfield Jones and Bradley play where they are…while needing two midfielders with good possession and passing ability to complete the box…the option is the empty bucket with two fast wingers…Beasley or F Johnson counts as two players that can make it happen on the left side, but no real outside speed on the right for an empty bucket. A diamond formation can work but requires two speedy wingers and either Jones or Bradley play up top and one plays back. No speedy wingers for a Diamond midfield…so another good way to have two forwards is to have a 1-3 midfield or a ‘ T ‘ midfield. Bradley or Jones as DMF and a combination of three ‘playmaker’ type of players like Holden, F Johnson, Donovan, Kljestan, Adu, Diskerud, Corona…

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      • – Not sure how “Howard getting creaky” is Kilnsman’s fault. Dempsey can’t play forward.
        – He wanders all over the pitch. He’s best with flexibility.
        -Adu needs to get some PT in Brazil before he warrants being discussed
        -Bradley and Jones have been a wonderful pairing as of late. Not sure why we’d want to break that up by moving one of them forward

        I don’t mind criticizing JK when it’s warranted, but considering our current position in the HEX after earning points at Mexico and at Jamaica, I just don’t see it.

        The formation we are currently employing took down Germany and won a qualifier against Jamaica in Jamaica for the first time ever. I say we stick with it before overhauling everything.

    • Glad to see the win and the poise after falling behind at the end. I still don’t think we are there possession wise. Jamaica actually retained more possession than we did in the match, and I can’t recall a match yet in the Hex where we have won the posession battle. We seem to go through stretches of truly impressive passing, and then others where we just clear the ball or where we play especially errant passes or lose the ball with a poor touch.

      That said, I do see some special passing taking place, and I am just praying that the team chemistry evolves enough so that it becomes a true strength.

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      • I’m eager to see what they do during these home games that are up north. We should see an improvement in the passing due to a lower altitude, cooler climate, and better/not snow-filled pitch.

      • The sage ESPN commentator Tommie Smith (“……and Altidore buries it in d’ back o’ da net, right in d’ ol onion bahhg! “) agrees with you big time. This team will be far more dangerous and technically complete with Donovan.

      • He’ll be there come Sept unless he lays an egg at the Gold Cup, gets injured, or needs another sabbatical.

  11. Biggest thing I noticed with the midfield is they are playing more compact and moving off the ball in support of the player with the ball. The biggest improvement was shown in the US-Germany game. The midfield is beginning to work like an engineered machine. We do have improved individual parts for that machine like: Donovan, Holden, Corona, and Adu to name a few.

    Edu, Bocanegra, Onyewu, Chandler, and Cherundolo: mutiny on the ship or all Klinnsman doing?

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    • For some reason I don’t think we’ve seen the last of Gooch Onyewu. If he gets some playing time next season he can still be the power man next to Besler.

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      • Omar Gonzalez needs to go to Holland, Germany, or Italy and really polish the last 20% of his game and that 20% is the mental part. The speed of play, tactics, and anticipation of play is on a higher level in Europe than MLS. Gooch needs the same thing, but not so much the mental part…he needs to get the playing/physical part down and the mental part will come along at the same time.

      • Omar needs to work on his passing!! If we are going to be passing out of the back he must work on this part of his game!!! His constant long balls to no one in particular are killing the buildup process.

      • Gooch is done. There’s absolutely no chance he plays in 2018 and there’s no reason to think he’s going to be one of the best 2 CBs by 2014. He’ll finish out his career earning a paycheck on limited minutes before maybe playing a year in MLS. I never liked his game that much. He was imposing on set pieces but generally too slow for the international game, and his distribution from the back had us on the back foot quite a bit. I think one of the major changes Klinsmann identified right away was getting to a more technical style of play and Gooch doesn’t, and never has, fit that style.

      • I don’t entirely disagree with your assessment of Onyewu, but to be fair, just about everything you said could apply to Gonzo.

    • i think missing zusi will actually hurt more than jones in the next match. we wave other versatile defenders midfiielders to take that spot vs panama. but zusi has been connecting well with altidore. and guys like holden and donovan aren’t ready.

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