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USA-Mexico: The morning after

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                                                                            Photo by ISI Photos

What a match.

That’s what comes to mind when thinking of last night’s USA-Mexico friendly. Yes, there were plenty of mistakes and turnovers and missed chances but the intensity and back and forth nature of the match made it a truly memorable encounter.

The story of the night had to be Jozy Altidore, who delivered in a big game yet again. The kid loves the spotlight and anybody who questions whether he’s ready for Europe needs to think twice. Yes, he struggled to find the ball and make things happen, but he was a handful for Mexico all night and I can’t see him coming out of the United States starting lineup for the next decade. Seriously, can you imagine what Altidore will do against CONCACAF competition?

I’m traveling back to New Jersey today so there won’t be much posting between now and this afternoon but I want you all to use this post to talk about the match and talk about the other news that circulated last night.

Share your thoughts on all things USA-Mexico and other soccer news in the comments section below.

Comments

  1. Where in the world is Cory Gibbs playing these days?? Is he healthy?? I remember he was a very good left-back. I believe he’ll still be under-30 in 2010.

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  2. Whoever says that dempsey should move back into a right winger role is wrong. I think while it would be a temporary fix, he does not have the pace of an outside mid, and in big games against world class wingers (Ronaldo, Florent Malouda,Ambrosini, Wright Philips, etc.) you’d probably be able to see the mismatch. The best place for him id say is a withdrawn striker or maybe an attacking mid? worth a shot.

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  3. Fly the coop. Not really true. Bis misconception.

    Studies have shown that [players in some of the most creative environments in the world (Brazil-Holland-Portugal) are brought into organized, coached ball as early as possible (wea re talking 4-6 years old). The exception is probably Africa.

    Yes, they grow up with the passion and culture but they are in organized ball very young. Very.

    The issue is how they are taught. Our youth system is set up to promote youth tourney wins, not to develop players. Take the biggest, strongest, most physically mature guys and let them dominate. Don’t teach team play, tactics or passing. That’s why we produce so many EJ types, and EJ is the top of that pyramid. The big strong faster kid with little tactial sense, touch or abiltiy is a dime or dozen in the US. It’s what we teach and promote. Winning youth tournies is the goal, not developing players. That, along with a dearth of coaches who understand the game at the youth level.

    That is where the major problem lies. We are finally trying to address it but it will be a long process and pay for play powerfull clubs won’t take it lying down. Winning is everything at the cost of developing and skill. Welcome to the US.

    BTW – What you point out in B’ball is why other countries, with much smaller population and skill can compete with our guys. They are taught tactics, team play, outside shooting, team defense and passing at young ages. We want showtime. Your example actually hurts the point you were trying to make.

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  4. I think that many on this board would agree that the lack of a creative center midfielder is a SERIOUS problem for the squad right now – one who can orchestrate and distribute.

    Unfortunately, I don’t see a bright light at the end of this dark tunnel that we find ourselves in. Why? Simple. Our current system of player development.

    A creative orchestrator is born and bred out of street soccer – playing pickup on the streets, impromptu games at the local park, or messing around in the backyard with friends.

    Thats not the case with the current system of development that we have in place – club soccer, travel soccer, “developmental” programs like the one down in Bradenton.

    Lets use basketball as an example. Where do the most creative and exciting players come from? The streets of the inner city where pickup bball is the norm. It doesn’t matter who its with or the size of the game, just so long as players are playing.

    Soccer needs to be promoted everywhere in the US – not just in the suburbs but in the inner cities. It is there that we will find our gem of a central midfielder.

    Lets hope that someone has already thought of that and somewhere some American kid is out messing around with a ball and playing with his friends on the street.

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  5. Tim,

    He isn’t even that good? For the US?
    This is what makes me wonder about LD. It is love or hate. No in between. For the US he is very good. Just the way it is. Better get used to it. He was double teamed all night becuase he is th eonly player Mexico repsects.
    I pointed out that one play becuase it was an excellent play, but he had several others during that stretch.

    As usual it seems that LD can only play for stretches.

    I guess that with LD it is the same as politcs in the good ole US.

    You are either for or against and there are no in betweens and no party cross over/opinions allowed. It’s only one path and if you deviste you are dumb or a traitor to the cause.

    To think that LD is not one of our better players shows me an incredible personnal bias and you will ignore his good attributes and contributions no matter what.

    He is what he is. He could have been a lot more of course but he is still clearly better than almost all we can offer. To not get that boggles the mind. Be fristarted as he continues to be a big part of th eteam through 2014, no matter who the coach.

    Remember, I am not a big LD booster and wish the guy had more steel and drive, but I won’t let personnal bias make me blind to reality also.

    Are you comapring him to US players or top players in the world? Can’t be comapring him to US players if you don’t think he is any good.

    Want a guy who is a biggr loser and waste of supreme talent to shift your bias towards. Why not look at Clint Mathis? The guy is still only 29. Talk about a waste, lack of ambiton and drive.

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  6. Ives – what happened to Convey? I just read in an english paper that he has stayed in the US to get knee injections and not available for this weeked. Also, he didn’t dress last weekend because of a shin problem. Maybe there is more to his poor play on Thursday? Should we cut the guy a break?

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  7. YankatOxford:

    I suppose it can be easy to twist statistics sometimes to support your point, but I think the point people are trying to make on Convey is that he eventually achieved a high level of play with Reading, but after an injury, he has never regained it, and is still missing a lot of time. As I recall, they even asked him to play though his knee injury at one point.
    Convey has missed a good chunk of games this year. Here’s a statistic that says a lot, even if it can be misleading, like your statistics that didn’t show this part of the picture. Reading has played 29 games total this year. Bobby Convey has started and completed 3 of those games.

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  8. Thank God! we are not a South American Country in 1994! or ELSE! there would be no MOOR !! Wenesday the US deserved to loose and Bradley Sacked ! How does a Manager Start a Hen at the defensive right side when you have a Rooster (Parkhurst) on the bench! And Corrales what a Trunk! And dont give me this BS about its just a Friendly! No its a meaninful game with plenty of HONOR behind it!

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  9. Can we now finally give Cherundolo his due? He has been solid for Hannover and US for the last five years, and we haven’t got many other options at RB. Why has he not been mentioned as a possible captain?

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  10. Eh, I wrote a long post at another forum discussing my thoughts so I’m just going to post it here too.

    1. Everyone needs to just chill out. Someone said earlier in the thread that the corrales/moor tandem was only there because there was no one else left, and whoever that was hit it right on the button.
    a.Spector wasn’t released by west ham because they are going to release him for U-23 qualifying and the olympics, and the agreement with West Ham and the USSF was that he wouldn’t be released for the mexico game as long as he was released for olympic qualifying.
    b. Cherundolo was out with an injury he picked up last week.
    c. Simek I think has been out with a long term injury no?
    d. Frankie Hedjuk is too old, and while he may have been a better start than moor, I’m guessing BB was thinking its better to get our younger guys used to bigger matches on the way to 2010 rather than have our decent old farts that aren’t going to be in the 2010 picture make it past one game.
    E. Bornstein=?
    F. Pearce has been told he won’t play another game at hansa rostock, so maybe BB thought of keeping him on the bench until he gets a new deal?

    Now this isn’t justifying how the left/right backs played. I wasn’t really impressed with corrales at all. At times he seemed gassed, and even when he wasn’t, the mexicans were dominating that side. Moor had his moments, but overall I don’t think he is quite ready to play at that level just yet. I think it would have been better had they brought DeMerit in, and then pushed Boca out to left back. Boca played left back throughout the 06 world cup campaign, if nobody remembers. This formation wouldnt be bad at the back anyway because they are all good, and also that dolo, boca, and demerit are all 28, which is a prime age and it helps that they are all part of the same generation (Gooch is 25 which isnt far behind).Not saying its our best backline, but until we try it we’ll never know.

    2. Convey right now is the best natural left winger we have, whether he put on a good game last nite or not. Mapp is out of form because he is still shaking off his injury and trying to be match fit, beasley is injured, and eddie lewis is getting up there in age. I say give him another shot at poland and see how he does.

    3.The young guys had their ups and downs, but I think it’s safe to say:
    a. Bradley and clark shouldn’t play together in the midfield. And by that I mean Clark shouldn’t start alongside bradley anymore. They are both very similar and I think they sometimes cancel each other out. I think Clark subbing in for bradley when he is gassed or not doing so well is a good option. Other than that, I would try Bradley with either Feilhaber, Edu, or Adu. Edu is a good choice, although I find him to be somewhat similar to bradley as well. Feilhaber played suprisingly well, not that I am suprised he is playing well, but the fact that he is playing well despite minimal playing time. At times in his prime he can remind me of a watered-down pirlo(I know thats a big comparison, thats why I said watered down). I think he needs to sort out his club thing first though before he starts in our midfield again. And then Adu is very good, very creative with the ball, and going forward I think he gives us the best chance on goal. However, he also needs to start coming along with his defensive game if he plans on being a center mid, and some people prefer him as a withdrawn striker. Overall I’d say it’s a tossup between the 3, as LD looks like he is staying in the right mid role.

    b. Altidore played well despite the fact that at times he looked lost. At the same time though, he is only 18, and to play the way he did and score a goal against a top team is impressive. He should be called in on a regular basis now.

    Overall like everyone said, it was a decent game to showoff our young guys and for mexico to do the same. But we all missed Dolo, Spector, Bornstein, Pearce, and Beasley.

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  11. To all these people who are uninformed about BOBBY CONVEY-

    He is MATCH fit, and he is STARTING.
    He is NOT on form.

    He has started 12 of Reading’s last 14 matches. He has 22 appearances this season.

    He missed Reading’s match prior to his friendly with a nasty shin cut. Otherwise he would have started.

    http://soccernet.espn.go.com/players/gamelog?id=33093&cc=5901

    Prior to this extended starting spell, he was out one month (October) due to a groin injury. Before that he scored against Liverpool in the Carling Cup on a terrific volley. He won back a starting spot, after becoming first sub off the bench at the outset of the season having recovered from his knee surgery.

    He also had an excellent game against in Liverpool in the league at the beginning of December. ON the 1st January he was pulled off after 7 mins because a central defender picked up a red card, and Reading were down to 10 men. Steve Coppell starts him when he is healthy.

    In short question Bobby’s form or his performance, but he is playing the vast majority of the minutes available to him.

    It remains to be seen if he can cover his 2005-2006 form.

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  12. All in all, the game showed the lack of depth at the flank backs and the lack of current playing time for some players (MLSers, Feilhaber- not getting the start).

    But just think if Cherundolo had been there? (yeah, yeah, I know – you still need depth because you never know…)

    Bradley was off his game for some reason and should’ve been subbed out earlier for Edu. Clark was rusty and since Benny had the same amount of current playing time should’ve got the start anyways (or at least a half time sub). Was Pearce injured? Why not Pearce instead of Moor or Corrales? Sure, maybe Moor’s was a try-out but Corrales is 30 and has to be seen as 3rd string left back at best.

    Dempsey looked good but should’ve been subbed at the half because of being tired.

    In the future, I’d like to see them line up like this to get a feel for the game and to shore up the defense/tire opponents out:
    ———-Altidore————-
    ———-Donovan————-
    -Beasley————-Dempsey–
    ——Bradley—Feilhaber—-
    Spector———–Cherundolo-
    ——Boca—–Onyewu—–
    ———-Howard———-

    But switch to this in attack:
    —-Altidore—Dempsey—
    ———Donovan———-
    –Beasley——-Feilhaber–
    ———Bradley————–
    Spector———-Cherundolo-
    —–Boca—–Onyewu—–
    ———Howard———-

    Later in the Game:
    * Sub Adu in for Beasley/Dempsey/Donovan as needed.
    * Sub Edu in for Feilhaber or Bradley as needed or sub in a true flanking/crosser right midfielder if need more attack. Do we have one of those? I guess you could sub Adu in on the right, if that’s all we’ve got…
    * Hopefully EJ in the Prem will make him an offensive sub option as well… Go You Fulham!

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  13. Exciting, tense game as expected. US dominated the first half, Mexico the second. Set pieces killed us. Drew Moor needs to recognize that marking your man is different at this level — you’ve got to MAN UP!

    good: Howard, Boca, Gooch, Bradley, Landon, Dempsey, Altidore, Feilhaber
    poor: Moor, Clark, Convey

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  14. As a TFC homer, I wanted to see more Edu but all in good time, methinks.

    The thing that made me happiest about the game was the civility afterwards. I always hated how bad the Mexican team acted after previous games in the US.

    Anyway, the future is now. Altidore, Feilhaber, Bradley, Vela, and, to a lesser degree, Dos Santos all played well. I can’t wait to see more out of Dos Santos. He’s going to be a massive star.

    I can’t say enough about Altidore. I’m very, very impressed. The rest of MLS was put on notice last night that it’s Jozy’s time. He’s worth the price of admission himself.

    I love these games. The atmosphere is electric. I stood up and cheered for every big play. Amazing.

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  15. I think Feilhaber looked a lot better in the limited minutes he saw than Clark looked all game. I think Benny and Edu are both better options than Ricardo.

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  16. I like Feilhaber, too, guys–but I’m also a firm believer in club before country. He’s talented and I hope he starts finding clock SOMEWHERE very soon.

    BobCon…I’m not condemning him, but it’s a fact that he hasn’t been the same since he returned from his lengthy injury. I hope he finds his form, cos he’s talented.

    Corrales is not only bad, but old. Leave him out…please. Drew Moor was terrible, but he has some years ahead of him. He needs to prove himself defensively before he gets another shot. I’m writing their starts off as “no other real options.”

    As bad as the US performance was, at least we have some excuses. Our outside backs have NO chance of starting in the WC, and Moor was almost entirely responsible for both goals. Convey was out of form. It was Jozy’s first start for the nats. Clark, Landon, Moor, Corrales, and Jozy are in their off-seasons. The performance was pretty bad on the whole, but I’m confident we have much more to offer than that. Put a healthy dolo and pearce in there, and we could have easily stolen a win.

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  17. Mexico dominated possession and shots too much to my liking. One of the worst US performances against Mexico in recent memory. Need to find two other outside backs!

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  18. gino, don’t know which Bradley you’re watching. His poise on the ball is one of his best characteristics. Sometimes I worry that he’s almost TOO poised and doesn’t take enough risks. Don’t get me wrong, Feilhaber’s brief appearance last night reminded me why I like him so much, but Bradley’s poise on the ball is well beyond his years.

    Matt F, Guardado is a left winger. But agreed, that is a fearsome foursome. We’ll have to rely on being greater than the sum of our parts, which we tend to be against Mexico.

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  19. It’s pretty funny how quickly, and sometimes conclusively, we make our judgments on players. Quite often it doesn’t seem reality based. Certain players seem to get judged way too harshly, while others are praised way too highly considering what they have really done.

    Taylor Twellman has been made into a pariah. It’s funny because I always thought he was overrated in MLS, but even I think that if he went and got some overseas experience, he could still be a big factor for the U.S. team.

    Then there is the constant attacks on players who appear to be very good players but every time they have an injury they struggle to get their performance back, and when they do, they get injured again, starting the cycle all over again. You might say they have John O’Brien Syndrome. Pat Noonan and Bobby Convey fit into this category. Pat Noonan and Bobby Convey should not have been brought back to the national team yet. I don’t understand why Bob Bradley did this. It serves no constructive purpose. He is actually hurting their confidence and people are trashing them. Convey had developed to the point of being a terror for Reading at one point, making runs and spraying dangerous crosses everywhere, even scoring some goals. He has not been able to regain his form yet. Noonan has actually played a lot of time while injured. The funny thing is, Eddie Johnson seems to get a pass in this category. He was at first underachieving, then suddenly goes on a tear on the U.S. team and looks unstoppable. Then he gets injured and the magic is gone. Granted his form hasn’t been hurt quite as badly as the others, but he has not really played anything close to the level he played at before his foot injury. Yet we still seem to think he’s pretty good.

    Then there is Josmer Altidore. Apparently, he is the next Pele! I am not knocking him. I like him a lot too, but we are putting way too much pressure on him and need to do a reality check. Clint Dempsey has earned his accolades, but now it seems like he can do no wrong. If he has a quiet game where he just had one really good touch, a lot of people are talking about the great touch and think he had a good game because of it.

    The calls for Drew Moor and Ramiro Corrales to go away are about right. Moor should get another chance IF and WHEN he shows high level form for his club team on a consistent basis. Ramiro Corrales should go back to Raisin Bran FC, or wherever he plays, and stay there. He has had enough chances.

    Bob Bradley needs to get the timing right for these players he experiments with. They need to be called in when they are playing well, not when they played well about a year ago. I’m beginning to think he is waiting for Frankie Simek and Jay DeMerit to fall out of form before he calls them in! (I know they are injured now, but he has still ignored them plenty.) Also, on such a horrible defense, why isn’t Robbie Russell being given a chance? Champion’s League experience is not good enough?

    Brian Ching is another guy people keep giving a free pass to. He has not played well for quite a while. He has completely lost form. He couldn’t even guarantee himself a spot in the starting lineup for Houston, even after his injury. Yet people are calling for him to come back to the USMNT.

    I’ll shut up now, and no, I don’t like the sound of my own voice!

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  20. both Bradley and Clark (and many of our other CM’s) would ne good alongside reyna circa 2000, but none can play the holding role. Except feilhaber. Give this kid minutes, and he will lock it down.

    Also, Dempsey is awesome.

    And, while he played a mostly solid game, Howard should have done better on the first goal. Most of the saves he made are the ones he should as a top flight keeper. And he needs to work put his communication. Crowd noise is no excuse. And i say all of this as a keeper, and Howard fan.

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  21. TK – isn’t one good play not nearly enough to start for the US National Team? I gotta think Steve Ralston could still find one good play for a game . . . and play better d . . . It just seems like he shouldn’t be starting . . . not that he isn’t living up to potential . . . but that he isn’t even good.

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  22. mexico will be harder and harder to beat in the future with vela, gio, and nery…

    I applaud most of Bob Bradley’s decisions such as brining in new players, but I really really hope that he will come to his senses and slot Landon Donovan back in his withdrawn forward role. Despite having the Cristiano Ronaldo-eque pace, he simply is not a winger and is not likely to apply his trademark finishes from out wide.

    He needs to play striker. Dempsey can slot back in right midfield.

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  23. Our chances when comparing Mexico’s future attack of Vela, Castillo, Gio and Guardado with the U.S.’s future attack of Altidore, Adu, Bradley and Dempsey looks slim, at best. Dos Santos is being groomed by Barca as Ronaldinho’s replacement, and he’s already made his way onto the first team. Vela was bought by Arsenal and La Coruna paid $10 MILLION for a DEFENDER in Guardado. The US does not have a player like Dos Santos…Adu is the closest thing.

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  24. Bradley giving the ball away too cheaply is nothing new. I haven’t seen any of his club games, but he frequently did the same thing during the gold cup. He doesn’t have the poise on the ball that Falihaber has to get away from pressure. Instead (and contrary to PKTakers’ comment about it being the fault of the intended receipient of the pass), Bradley relieves pressure by putting someone else under pressure with a ill informed pass. In often seems as though he gets rid of the ball just to get rid of it. Give me Falihaber any day.

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  25. moor was able to get that ball to altidore so easily b/c the mexican player was playing ten yards off him. you give any player at the international level that much space to throw a ball into the box, they’re going to connect. no redeeming qualities for moor’s performance whatsoever.

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  26. Garrett: I agree that people are way overreacting on Convey, but he started for Reading in their last game before he left to join the MNT.

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  27. My future correspondence with Coach Bradley:

    Dear Coach Bradley,

    I admire your coaching style (direct, passionate) and I love that you take risks. But Drew Moor on the right and Ramiro Corrales on the left against MEXICO? It looked like the U.S. was playing a 2-4-2. I preferred the old “Eddie Lewis at left back” experiment myself…

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  28. “Hey man,” he said to Marquez. “I watch you every week. Barcelona is my favorite team in Europe.”

    “Thanks,” said Marquez, slightly bemused at the display of mild hero worship from a striker whose first international goal had threatened to condemn Mexico to another defeat on North American soil before it fought back in the second half. “Keep on watching.”

    Ives gets a shout out here too: http://sports.yahoo.com/sow/news?slug=ro-altidore020608&prov=yhoo&type=lgns

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  29. It’s harsh to criticize some of the players from MLS and scandinavian countries who are in preseason form while the mexican players are in season. Moor’s defense was awful, but his time with the nats he has shown the best passing/crossing I’ve seen from any of our defenders. He had some good ones in Copa America too. If he could learn some better defensive positioning, he could be a really good RB.

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