Photo by ISIphotos.com
Benny Feilhaber has been called in by U.S. national team head coach Bob Bradley for the United States' Gold Cup match vs. Honduras on Wednesday.
Feilhaber is one of seven players added to the U.S. roster after CONCACAF awarded the United States seven extra roster slots for the Gold Cup, citing the U.S. team's participation in the Confederations Cup as a reason for the extra slots.
Feilhaber had an impressive Confederations Cup after playing poorly in the tournament's first match. His arrival should mean a start for the AGF Aarhus midfielder.
So what does his arrival mean for Freddy Adu?
The easy answer is Feilhaber's arrival means that Bradley saw enough of Adu vs. Grenada and decided he wanted another creative force in midfield when he goes with a standard 4-4-2 vs. Honduras. Adu looked rusty on Saturday and not as sharp as he has been in previous appearances. Having Feilhaber in central midfielder would allow Bradley to start two forwards up top, such as a Charlie Davies-Kenny Cooper tandem (if Brian Ching can't play), and not worry about the defensive strength in central midfield.
What Feilhaber's arrival could also mean is that Bradley wasn't happy with the lack of creativity from central midfielders Kyle Beckerman and Logan Pause (Pause's great pass on Robbie Rogers' goal notwithstanding) and Bradley has decided that having a more creative central midfielder would only help Adu and the U.S. attack in a 4-4-1-1 formation.
What do you think of Feilhaber being called in? Are you hoping Adu still starts? Did you see enough of Adu and want Bradley to look elsewhere vs. Honduras? Do you see either Beckerman or Pause getting the start vs. Honduras?
Share your thoughts below.
Monkeyc,
Brilliant.
“And for entirely selfish reasons I sure hope he figures this out in the next 12 months, because I firmly believe a mature, focused Freddy Adu would be a dangerous weapon to have on the National team roster.”
Posted by: monkeyc | July 06, 2009 at 01:57 PM
____________________________________–
Mr. eye,
An Adu who has tapped into his great potential would indeed be more useful and exciting than the cast of attacking characters we have seen so far.
However, contrary to what Adu’s rabid supporters would have you believe, Bradley is acting in the USMNT and also Freddy’s best interests. As they say, players with potential get coaches fired.
He puts Adu on both the Confed and Gold Cup rosters. Why? Presumably to give him the time with the team that he needs. Adu should kiss the ground Bradley walks on for giving him a chance. He certainly hasn’t done anything at the club level lately to earn this chance.
Adu does not see any PT in the Confed cup. Why? Presumably because (1) he is rusty and (2) the games were much more competitive than anyone would have hoped. We all saw how Adu looked against Grenada, so it’s reasonable to assume he would have looked worse against the likes of what the US faced in the Confed Cup. Adu’s fans point out that he does better in big games but if he isn’t motivated (even against Grenada ) to come out like his hair is on fire and blow everyone away, then he doesn’t realize his career is in trouble and he has a serious attitude problem. And I would also point out that the friendly against Spain last year was just that, a friendly.
If Bradley puts a rusty Adu in against Spain or Brazil and he does poorly, not only does the USMNT suffer but now the pro scouts get turned off. And the best interests of the USMNT and Adu are that Adu get playing time either at Benfica or, more likely, at a new club. Adu still has time. If he does well at the remaining Gold Cup games and then gets regular playing time at a club, it is possible he gets on the 2010 squad. An Adu who is tapping his potential would be a very useful asset.
If not he still has time to shoot for 2014 when he will be the ripe old age of 24 and the USMNT will still have a chance to do well in 2010. You might remember that the 1994 World Cup winning Brazil team had the Original Ronaldo on the roster and he did not play a minute.
One more thing, unless you are Ronaldo, Romario, or Gerd Muller, and Freddy is not, forwards for the USMNT have to play some semblance of defense. Every one of the US forwards in the Confed Cup play far better defense than Adu does.
It’s ironic people compare Freddy to Pele because I saw Pele play some and, if it was required, he was a great defender who took no prisoners. He was a pretty tough guy and maybe Freddy could grow up and develop some of that.
What was the question again? oh right, Has Bradley seen enough of Adu? Wow! I sure hope not. The fact that he keeps trotting out the likes of Bornstein, Kljestan, Beckerman(although he did show well against “Grenada”), etc. means he’s willing to give anyone a look, a looong look before benching them. How long did it take for him to realize what a mess Eddie Johnson is when the game is actually played at pace?
Adu is a perplexing player. He seems to have skill, and shows flashes of having the ability to develop into a high quality professional. But does he have the work ethic and desire to make that happen?
The diving, the complaining, the lack of concentration(it was ridiculous the way he took himself out of the flow after he missed his clever drop shot? If he would have stayed in the play he would have had an easy goal on the back side.) His body language on the pitch is all over the place.
This all seems to point to an individual that has a lot of growing up to do. Adu at this point in his career has earned nothing, yet he seems to play with a sense of entitlement. He’s allowed his natural ability to get him this far, but until he decides to actually work and apply himself his career will be one of “could have been’s”. Why exactly is it that he can’t break into a atarting line up? Is it lack of ability? or attitude? or something else? I have yet to see an explanation.
And for entirely selfish reasons I sure hope he figures this out in the next 12 months, because I firmly believe a mature, focused Freddy Adu would be a dangerous weapon to have on the National team roster.
From the land of Freddy’s tweets, I think Adu is leaving for pre-season training after the Group Stage.
So I say he’ll start while he’s there, maybe Holden sits (we’ll need him later), but I’d bet on Bekcermann/Pause sitting.
———-Robles——–
Dolo–Conrad–Parkhurst–Pearce
———-Beckermann—–
Holden—-Feilhaber—Rogers
——Adu——–Ching——
One thing Freddy has that is better than anyone else in our program is the quick shot – he can unload faster than anyone because he does not think about it, it is instinct. Most of his shots are on frame and he is wicked dangerous on free kicks from 25 yards in.
He is rusty and hasn’t played but we have a chicken/egg scenario here. If he doesn’t play he will stay rusty and therefore not get game time in wherever (Europe) and if he is not playing in Europe then he won’t get time in the National Team. This is the “B” tournament and he is at the top of the “B” squad so there is no rational reason to not give him a full 90 in every game we play. None whatsoever.
James
————–Perkins———————–
Dolo—Parkhurst/Goodson—Marshall—Pearce
———-Pause/Beckerman——————-
————————Feilhaber———–
————————————–Rogers
—————Holden———————-
——-Adu———————————-
———————–Davies—————
Brazilian 4-2-3-1 switched around to accomodate Rogers’s left-footedness: Feilhaber as Melo, Rogers as Ramires, Holden as Kaka, Adu as Robinho, and Davies as Fabiano.
Anton Peterlin to Everton. Kind of an odd first signing for Everton.
Please, Bob, put Feilhaber in the middle and let us see Adu with Davies (or even Ching or Cooper) up top. This is a perfect chance to give Freddy a test drive in a slightly different position.
“The call up has more to do with Benny than anyone else. In Benny you have a player that is still working his way back from an extended period of injury and lack of playing time and has a realistic chance to contribute on August 12 and through next summer. If you have a chance to get him some more minutes without negatively impacting his club situation, you do it.”
I agree with this. This is the toughest competition we’ll see between now and 8/12.
freddy may have a wuick first step, but he is not fast in the sense that he will win a 20 yard foot race. BB will not play him on the outside because he is a real defensive liability. there is a difference between being a nuisance up top (which freddy did on saturday) and actually being able to defend out wide.
EA – I actullay noticed him making a concious decision to play defense. It just doesn’t come naturally to him. It was a good sign that he was making an effort. He’s good, he just needs to get to work and stop beilieving all the hype. I think we are close to that point.
One part of me wants to say Adu should start. This is his hometown (DC) and he will get TONS of love from La Barra and SE. But the other side of me wants to see him build confidence. Coming in as the first sub with a half hour to go in the game might suit him better.
I don’t want Bob to drop the 4-4-2 for a 4-4-1-1, or a 4-5-1. 4-4-2 is the most effective formation.
Benny will start behind the forwards for sure, but I’m not convinced Adu gets the start.
I’m a little tired of the “Freddy can’t defend” argument. 1. He’s an attacking player. I never heard people talk about Rui Costa’s or Wayne Rooney’s defensive abilities. 2. This has been repeated for about 4 years now. Maybe I’m wrong, but I’d think he’s changed as a player since then. I don’t remember the last time I watched a game and said, “wow, freddy adu should have stopped about 10 attacking moves this game and failed.”
I’ve even heard Davies criticized for his inability to defend. Really? That’s where we’re at? I find it all a little depressing.
I’d also like to say that I’m tired of the “Freddy needs playing time, like now!” argument. It’s true. The kid needs some clock. But he’s 20 years old. What was Edu doing at 20? What was Dempsey doing? I’m not knocking the college game, but I’d take a year training with Monaco or Benfica over a year of college ball. Are people serious when they say it’s time for him to come back to MLS? So many of our players hadn’t even entered the league until 21 or 22!
Obviously not the next Pele, but he’s a decent prospect. People need to chill out. He’ll be a good player, but he’s still a kid.
Ives,
This morning on my way to work, I was listening to La maquina deportiva on ESPN Radio where the analysts were singing Kyle Beckerman’s praises. They were not the only ones. On Saturday, even the commentators on Galavision or Telefutura were doing the same thing.
What do you think?
The call up has more to do with Benny than anyone else. In Benny you have a player that is still working his way back from an extended period of injury and lack of playing time and has a realistic chance to contribute on August 12 and through next summer. If you have a chance to get him some more minutes without negatively impacting his club situation, you do it.
im really pulling for Holden and Rodgers to lock down winger roles with the A team. THeir success with the A squad will mean that Donovan and/or Dempsey can play up to where the US is in desperate need of talent.
Adu should be kept as a withdrawn forward.
Benny with Beckerman (I too would like to see Holden here) and Adu with Cooper/Davies/Ching. Rogers and Holden (Quaranta) on the wings. I still would be happy to see Robles play at some point.
“To not put our most technically gifted player on the field would be dumb and not in the long-term interests of US soccer”
Dempsey wasn’t called in for this tournament.
I agree with those above who see Benny coming in to shore up the central midfield against a stronger opponent.
I see no reason for Bradly to take out Adu. He needs the match fitness and we need the creativity up front. He isn’t the 2nd coming but with playing time could be a factor.
I’d personally like to see what we can get out of a 4-4-2 with the likes of Feilhaber, Adu, Holden, and Rogers. I know it would never happen because Bradley NEEDS a midfielder whose sole purpose is to stay back and defend. I think that at least with Holden and Feilhaber you have two players who are more than willing to track back and can provide a lot more to the offense than the usual defensive mids Bradley uses. Holden’s ability to play both wings and in the middle and Rogers’ ambidextrousness (nailed it!) allows one to play with the lineup across the midfield
I’m of the opinion Bob decided to bring Benny in before the Granada game. Why? Because of the logistics of calling Benny in in the first place. Bob can’t expect the 7 extra players to keep conditioning on their own and wait by the phone for any last second phone call to come join the team. These things need a bit of scheduling and coordinating. My guess is Bob looked at the list of 7 players, looked at his schedule and decided Benny could use a few days rest and meet up with the team for Honduras. Plain and simple. Nothing to do with Adu.
Freddy needs to be on the field no matter what. To not put our most technically gifted player on the field would be dumb and not in the long-term interests of US soccer…
I think bradley shouldve left feilhaber back home like he was already planning for this tourney. It’s time to give Holden the cm spot and see what he can do. We already saw feilhaber against better competition. These games should be for the guys trying to earn a spot that don’t already have one.
I don’t think this particular callup means much for Freddy. Bob probably wants a more experienced midfielder that can also contribute to the atatck more than Pause/Beckerman. He is experimenting with lineups and seeing how guys fit in together.
That said, I wouldn’t be suprised if Bob wants to try some of the other guys at forward, simply because this is an experimental tournament for us.
“Plus If Bob Bradley don’t play him there is a problem because Adu need the playing time so he can be ready for the Qualifying especially against Mexico.”
I don’t think Adu will see the field on August 12 @ Mexico, even in a reserve role. That game has been circled on the calendar for quite a while and I’d argue it’s the most meaningful game left on the schedule this year. Expect to see a lineup similar to what we saw against Spain.
“his defensive tracking back was severely lacking as well”
“he’s one of the only people who can replicate what we get with Donovan…speed”
I wonder how many of the Freddy internet fan club have watched him play.
I’ve never seen Freddy display anything more than average speed. We saw that on Saturday vs. Grenada, when he got out run on a breakaway.
I’ve NEVER seen Freddy come close to playing defense. I actually saw him tracking back more and being a nuisance more often on Saturday than any time I’d seen him in a US jersey.
I think a lot of people have been taking too much of the hype kool-aid for years.
He is talented, but he is not the American version of a cross between Jesus and Cristiano Ronaldo.
He just isn’t.
He can be a productive attacking player without being fast or a particularly good defender. Names like Pirlo or Nedved come to mind.
It seems like a lot of people expect to much out of him, without actually watching him and his development.
Maybe that’s part of the problem.
And tangent to the story, I think we’ll see Adu and a target forward for Honduras with Holden and Rogers providing speed and width. Feilhaber should only help him.
Ah, Freddy. How polarizing you are!
Yes he’s rusty and it showed, but when has Freddy every rated at the senior level? Someone please tell me, because I can’t remember when he has. Sure, he’s a match changer when playing at the youth level, but look how many individuals are that level and never maintain that dominance for either club or country. For those that would counter by saying we’ll never know his potential if he’s on the bench: Look at his club record from DC, RSL, Benfica, Monaco….do you think his performance was so stellar in MLS or that all the managers he has had were wrong not to make him a starter for life? If it looks like a duck and walks like a duck, it is a duck my friends.
Beckerman played?
Ives,
you just showed your feelings about Adu again in your third Pgraph. Adu was wide open? There were no defenders in front of him blocking the goal?
I’m not even American and have could care less about the US team and the GC since my team are trying to qualify from Europe for the WC but “I call it like I see it”, you aren’t a Freddy fan and hey, you’re not the only one. Just don’t try to act all partial when you make little remarks that show what you think about the player. Adu had a very well taken and placed goal and so did Charlie Davies. Both were excellently placed and lesser talented players would have fluffed either of the two chances.
Back to the blog post, WTF does Benny’s call up have to do with Adu? Nothing so why f&ckin mention it.
Take care Ives buddy.
I’ll be at the game Wednesday at RFK, and I’ll be super pissed if Freddy doesn’t play. There isn’t one player on our Gold Cup roster that is more skilled than Freddy Adu.
Since when did being critical of a player become the same thing as taking “subtle digs” at a player?
Oh wait, I forgot. This is the Internet. Saying Adu was rusty means you hate the guy.
Feilhaber will play along with Adu, Adu can play middle, Left or right and also can go a a striker. So I don’t see any problem with Adu not getting playing time. Plus If Bob Bradley don’t play him there is a problem because Adu need the playing time so he can be ready for the Qualifying especially against Mexico.
a lot of hating on Adu’s preformance, yea he could have been better but truefully he dictated play in the middle of the field much more than any of his teammates did and other than a few bad decisions on when to turn didnt turn the ball over more than 3 or 4 time. He was playing withdrawn striker and getting back to do the center mids job (Pause and Beckerman are worth a dime going forward or creating)… Having Adu in helped create ball control and the space for the outside mids to work. This is something that no other “forward” we have can bring to the table. None of our forwards can check back and distribute worth a darn, our 2 “best” (Jozy and Davies) have questionable touch and sub par passing to boot.
I don’t see it as “either-or”. If Feilhaber gets deployed as a central mid in a 4-4-2, chances are Adu will get deployed out wide like Donovan was to see what he can do in that role. Maybe he also gets paired with Davies, Ching or Cooper up front. He needs the minutes more than Feilhaber does at this point, so I hope Bob lets him play 90 in all the games, We particularly need to see him against the likes of Honduras, Costa Rica, El Salvador and Mexico (our hexagonal buddies).
On a side note, what are the chances that Quaranta gets to play since the Honduras game will be in DC and Bob did trot out Brad Evans for the Seattle fans?
Adu himself has admitted he’s a bit rusty and not match sharp. However, benching him for that just doesn’t make any sense at all. This is the tournament where we’re giving our young guys a run out and seeing what’s what — we should be easing Freddy into more playing time and more responsibility so he can gain that sharpness he’s been lacking. This tournament should be about player development more than team building chemistry — and necessarily so, because the first team isn’t even there. Now is when we bring some of our kids up to speed. Do you think Mexico are going to bench Dos Santos because he didn’t score four goals against Nicaragua? We’re never going to see what Freddy can do if we keep him on the bench for the rest of his career.
I want:
————–Perkins——————-
—Dolo—-Parkhurst—-Marshall—-Pearce—-
——-Beckerman——-Feilhaber———-
—————Holden—————-
—-Quaranta—————–Rogers
—————Davies/Cooper———–
I guess that’s pretty much a 4-5-1, which I normally don’t like, but I think we can pull it off against a B Honduras team (which is probably on the same page as our U-20 team, if even that). I don’t care who our forward is, as long as it’s Coop or Davies. I’m not a Ching hater, but the point of this tournament is to see who ELSE can provide. We already know Chingy can be successful in CONCACAF, so why not give someone else a shot? Maybe this person will be able to shine on the international stage (and by interntaional I mean outside of CONCACAF).
So I had to leave Adu out, but I’d rather see Quaranta in front of his home fans, to be honest. Adu can play the rest of the tournament, but let Tino shine in front of the Screaming Eagles and Barra Brava. Brad Evans got a great reception in Seattle (though he didn’t deserve to see the field), and I assume Tino would get a similar reception at RFK (but, unlike Evans, he should actually be on the field at all times).
John Fish, why am I “not crazy” about Adu? Did you read my post on the match earlier this morning? I gave him as much credit as he deserves and said he still has a promising future and clearly is a skillful player. Perhaps I don’t gush over him like his fan club members do, but I appreciate what he brings and where he is right now in terms of development.
And I don’t take subtle digs at Adu, I call it like I see it and some folks, usually those who think Adu is the second-coming, take issue with anything remotely close to criticism.
And are you guys really comparing Adu’s goal to Davies’ goal in terms of degree of difficulty? Adu’s was well-taken but he was wide-open on an open goal (keeper was to the right of center) with no defenders around him near the penalty spot.
In the end, I want to see Adu get a lot of minutes in this tournament. He needs the playing time and experience. I said that before the tournament and I’m saying it now. Not sure how that falls in line with the conspiracy theorists who think I’ve got a vendetta against the kid.
I like this. I want to Adu to shine, but he didn’t exactly wow me in the Grenada game. Still, i expect they would both see minutes against Honduras.
I think Felhaber’s inclusion probably says more about Honduras than anything else. They are a fairly dangerous team and BB doesn’t want to drop a game if he can help it. I’d expect Feilhaber to take the place of rastaman in the midfield and provide that midfield push that ensures the U.S. gets the win.
I think Adu will still play…and he needs to. He should be rusty!
“he’s one of the only people who can replicate what we get with Donovan…speed, creativity, and finishing.”
uhmmm, Freddie doesn’t have anything close to Donovan speed.
I don’t see it impacting Adu…I think either Beckerman or Pause will sit this one out…
John Fish – I have to agree with you. After watching the highlights, I was surprised at the way Ives was so dismissive of Adu’s goal in the live blog.
It was not a guarantee from 10 yards out and several defenders in the box. He went for placement, and was also in the correct spot to receive that pass.
This call-in could mean we’re going for a more attacking formation vs. Honduras, since we laid back and got torched by them in the opening minutes of the qualifier.
We have to give Adu minutes – he’s one of the only people who can replicate what we get with Donovan…speed, creativity, and finishing. Several players have one of those, Adu has all 3. He needs to play more than one game in a row…and against better competition than Grenada.
I hope we stick with Davies and Adu up top, and maybe replace Beckerman with Feilhaber, and stick with Pause.
Freddy looked very rusty and made numerous blunders vs. a very weak Grenada team. He needs to learn not to go down like a stone when someone taps him and he has to play more one touch ball. It really shows that he hasn’t kept in shape as his defensive tracking back was severely lacking as well. I hope he gets better over the course of the next few games…we need the creativity he has shown in the past but I am not sure he can regain that creativity in short order.
We get it, Ives. You aren’t crazy about Adu.
What does Feilhaber’s call in mean for Adu? I would say given that BB has yet to deploy Freddy as a center mid, nothing. It would seem to me a better question is what it means for Pause and or Beckerman.
Adu was no less Sharp than anyone not named Holden or Rogers, so why you single him out is anyone’s guess. Or not, given your tendency to subtly take digs at Adu whenever possible. As in your noting that Freddy’s goal was a sitter he could not miss and then later characterizing Davies’ far easier opportunity, as a cool finish. pfft
I certainly hope your latter argument is the correct one. I agree Adu looked rusty, but the only way to cure that is to let him play. It is premature to judge him. And maybe having Feilhaber moving the ball forward from midfield would help. I think using Freddy in a withdrawn forward role is the best use of his talents.
Freddy played as a striker last game, if he keeps his spot up top, this means nothing for him.
I disagree completely, I don’t know how much you wanted Freddy to show in his first significant minutes anywhere, but it’s hard to judge anyone good or bad against such inferior talent. I def like that Adu worked hard throughout the game and took his chances.
What’s always been lacking in American soccer is the creativity and he has that.
It means rotation, a policy Bradley loved in 2007 for the Gold Cup.