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USMNT rides strong second half to beat Germany

 

By FRANCO PANIZO

Five days after rallying to a thrilling victory over the Netherlands, the U.S. Men’s National Team came from behind again to grab another win.

This time, against World Cup champions Germany.

The U.S. pulled off a second consecutive upset on Wednesday, riding an 88th-minute goal from Bobby Wood on the way to a 2-1 victory against Germany. Mix Diskerud canceled out Mario Gotze’s opener just before halftime, and a strong second half showing from the Americans was punctuated with Wood’s second consecutive game-winner.

Germany nearly managed to grab a point at RheinEnergieStadion in Cologne, but substitute midfielder Sami Khedira’s header was denied by the crossbar in the fourth minute of stoppage time.

While the Germans may have come inches close to equalizing, it was Jurgen Klinsmann’s side that enjoyed the better of the chances in the second half. Substitute Jordan Morris nearly made an immediate impact, uncorking a shot with the outside part of his right that agonizingly curled wide of the far post.

U.S. captain Michael Bradley, who set up Diskerud’s 41st-minute equalizer, also nearly made it 2-1 for the U.S. in the 82nd minute when he capped a quick counterattack with a low shot that Germany goalkeeper Ron-Robert Zieler kicked away.

Ziegler could do nothing about Wood’s low effort two minutes before the end of regulation. Similar to his 89th-minute tally in last Friday’s 4-3 road win against the Netherlands, Wood made the most of his substitute cameo by pulling off a splendid turn-and-finish from 23 yards out.

Fellow U.S. substitute Brad Evans initiated the play with a low pass from the right flank that Morris dummied before it got to Wood.

The Americans had initially fallen behind in the game, as a wide open Mario Gotze received a pass from Patrick Hermann before slotting a ball into the back of the net in the 12th minute.

It was almost all Germany in the first half, and the hosts nearly took a two-goal lead in the 31st minute. Gotze found himself in on goal on the left side of the penalty area, but U.S. goalkeeper Brad Guzan used his foot to stop the low shot.

Bradley and Diskerud combined 10 minutes later to give the U.S. a lifeline, as Bradley hit a great diagonal ball to a streaking and open Diskerud. The New York City FC midfielder brought the ball down perfectly with his chest, and then used a karate kick to beat Zieler.

The Americans made adjustments at halftime, and came out of the intermission much improved. They not only took the game to a Germany side that grew sloppier over the course of the 90 minutes, but knocked the ball around well en route to creating its quality chances and eventual winner.

The U.S. will now focus on its CONCACAF Gold Cup title defense. The Americans will play their final friendly days before the tournament begins, hosting Guatemala at LP Field in Nashville, Tennessee, on July 3.

What did you think of the match? Starting to believe in Klinsmann’s plan? See the U.S. repeating as Gold Cup champions?

Share your thoughts below.

Comments

  1. JK has done an incredible job developing some of the youth players coming up. There are going to be plenty of open spots in the upcoming 2018 World Cup JK is aware of the youth that we will need to be competitive. Although these two wins did not come against either teams 1st teams, our young players really stepped up to another level and competed with two of the best teams in the world. This most certainly something to be celebrated, and more than that this is something to be incredibly excited about it; the future is looking bright for the USMNT.

    Reply
    • masdBader,

      JK did not develop these young players.

      Wood went over to Germany from California when he was 14 and has been beating around the lower leagues over there. Green and Brooks were developed by their respective BL teams. Morris was sent by the Soccer Gods to 3d printer and he stepped out onto Stanford’s fields. Yedlin was developed by Sigi and the Sounders.

      Where JK deserves credit is he saw something in them and others and gave them a chance to play their way onto the team. Others accuse him of playing favorites by which they really mean they are really mad because JK did not give Benny or Lichaj or Edgar the shots THEY wanted them to get.

      I don’t see a lot of reason to question JK’s talent evaluation.

      I think what most of the discontented SBI illuminati forget is that not making the USMNT is not necessarily a commentary on the level of skill that a player possesses, rather it is a commentary on just how well that player‘s abilities fit into whatever it is the USMNT wants to do and whether that player is better than what the USMNT already has.

      Benny for example, over the course of his USMNT career has shown himself to be capable of the odd moment of brilliance and has always worked hard but, in the end, was mostly below average. Yes he is great for SKC . But do you think he should take over Mikey or Mix’s role on the USMNT? I don’t.

      I don’t know the exact numbers but it seems to me that so far, the guys JK has played “ favorites” with have for the most part worked out very well.

      And the main reason he could do that is because he has unprecedented clout. After all this is the man who slew the sacred Landon Cow and if that little bit of sacrilege and blasphemy didn’t get him fired, nothing was going to.

      There are some who suggest all these bright young players would have been successful for the USMNT regardless of the manager and that the USMNT would be just as good as they looked these last two games even without JK around. That Olsen , Marsch, Arena, Porter, Heaps, Kreis , Petke or any manager , as long as they were American, could have done as well or better.

      Maybe yes, maybe no but that is not provable by any credible, sane method I know off. Many on SBI wanted most of these now celebrated young players banned from the USMNT forever after one or two bad games. JK’s clout which no other manager would have gotten, is what allowed them the time to win a place in the USMNT plans going forward.

      In any event it is a moot point.

      The USSF decided many years ago that the Arena, Bradley model, as good as it was, was not the future and made a decision to change the culture, the model, going forward for the USMNT .

      They, the entire board of governors of the USSF not just Sunil, selected JK to lead and implement that change. And they will almost certainly, barring some unexpected disaster stick with him through till at least the end of the 2018 WC.

      ,

      Reply
  2. Did anyone else notice the ref give an advantage call in the second half when one of our attackers (I want to say it was Zardes but I don’t remember for sure; I’ll re-watch it later today) was sandwiched in the box and taken down by a defender and their keeper? Presumably we had ‘advantage’ because we maintained possession, as our attacker got up and saved the ball from going over the end line by passing to a teammate on the left flank.

    I didn’t think there was such thing as an advantage call in the box that doesn’t lead to a goal. If he acknowledged the contact from the Germans it should have been a PK, no?

    Reply
  3. What are the Confederation Cup qualification rules at this point? Thought the winner of the ’15 GC had to play the winner of the ’17 GC for the right to go. However, saw an article that suggested US qualifies for Confed with a win in this GC…

    Reply
    • The winner of the ’13 GC has to play the winner of the ’15 GC for the right to go. Since we won the ’13 Cup we are in with a win in ’15.
      Boom.

      Reply
    • Close, but you’re out of sync. The winner of the 2013 GC (USA) plays the winner of the 2015 GC (TBD) if the winner of the latter is not the USA. If it is, then USA qualifies for 2017 CC automatically. You couldn’t have the winner of the 2015 GC play the winner of the 2017 GC to qualify for 2017 CC. There’s no space in the calendar there for the play-in matches.

      Reply
  4. Wonderful result for the team, plus it lets me double down on my settled opinion about Klinsmann, wherever it is along the spectrum, I can point to his tactical and player-development genius, or discount that a little bit and give credit to the players, or discount the whole game and note it was just a friendly, or even discount all friendlies and point to “real” games like the upcoming Gold Cup, or even discount those results because it’s just CONCACAF and demand a top-four finish at WC 2018.

    Reply
  5. Speed, technical skill and aggressiveness. JK wanted a team that would attack and play like he did. He now has it. Great first touches, movement and kids who aren’t awed by playing Germany. I think our speed wore down the Germans.
    In the past we sat back and countered because we didn’t have the skilled players. USA is getting there. It is only going to get better.
    .

    Reply
  6. Yes you can’t read too much into these wins, but you can’t discount it either. We have never beaten two powerhouse teams like that before, back to back and not in Europe.

    Reply
  7. lets not start sucking jk’s socks. its just a couple of friendlies. well see when it counts. but things did look promising especially up front. we look like we can put some real pressure in the final 1/3. thats good to see.

    Reply
    • Defense though is still a major problem too. People are excited about the offense, but I think they expect that the offense is going to play like this every game when realistically it probably won’t.

      Reply
      • I feel like the issues with the defense is a result of experimenting with new defenders and constant rotation of guys. The hasn’t been a game since the World Cup where I think we have seen the 2 first team centerbacks play together. Before the provisional roster I would have though those two were bessler and Cameron maybe Klinsmann likes bessler and gonzo. From all the friendlies think the 4 cb on the team should be bessler, brooks, gonzo, and Cameron. Not sure who takes Cameron’s spot. Think we see big improvement with the top guys after a camp and group stage warm ups.

  8. Gold Cup. Copa de Oro. Some people think our opponents will bunker and rely on the counter attack. More than likely this is true. If the USMNT continues to play compact we have the chance to pick them apart. However, let the early warning buzzer sound right now: Concacaf teams like Mexico, Jamaica, Costa Rica, Honduras, and even El Salvador have all taken on a much more proactive compact style of play…especially Costa Rica…By the standards of compact play we are a little behind most Concacaf teams, but the USMNT have been the fastest learners so far. It’s up to them to keep it going and keep it simple…keep compact on both halves and every third of the field and we have more say for results in games.

    Reply
  9. Wow. That was a good example of compact soccer against Germany. Congratulations to the USMNT and all there sweat, blood, and pain for making the efforts in practice and in the games. Coaching staff…compact soccer works. Keep with it coaches. It showed today. Work your system and roster selections around compact play and everything will fall into place for the team. I think the players had a blast against Holland and Germany playing compact. In compact play even Beckerman looked world class and not out of place. Such a good short passing game, change of direction while dribbling, and pressure on defense when losing the ball….I saw less panic with the ball and more confidence to find the open player…and players were moving well off the ball to provide an outlet…that is the essence of compact play..create 2 on 1 situations all around the field.

    Germany played a good compact game, but they have one glaring issue with regards to it…they rotate the ball from side to side just outside the penalty area way too much and results in a turn over many times instead of shots on goal. Germany lacks killer instinct. Not all the time, but more often than not.

    Reply
    • Really a team that scored the most goals at the last World Cup lacks killer instinct? Germany doesn’t have an issue, they didn’t finish that well and weren’t that in were not that interested in the game. Also they were missing some key players like mueller and probably had some fitness a issues compaired to mid season MLS guys (like our best player). Germany is fine, they will probsbly win or at least be in the euro finals.

      Reply
  10. It will be interesting to see how the US plays against the CONCACAF opponents who will mostly sit back, defend and do little to attack other than counters. I think that means the speed of the US forwards will not have many chances to be rewarded. I think the combo play of Bradley, AJ, Zardes, Dempsey and Altidore will be more important in the effort to squeeze through the packed defense that the speed of Yedlin and Morris.

    The need for speed in the back to deal with counter-attacks will be important as will the ability of the backs to stay focused despite long stretches with not so much to do. Winning the air battles defensively may not be a big issue in the Gold Cup. I think it will be important to have centerbacks who will stay home and keep the play in front of them. Beasley and Yedlin have the speed on the outside and Beasley has shown he can stay home enough, Yedlin, I’m not so sure he won’t get caught staying forward too much, Chandler seems better in that regard, but I worry about his occasional spell of ball-watching.

    Reply
    • The other thing is JK won’t have 6 subs to use.

      So JK is going to be a lot more limited in how he can use his beep-beep road runner subs to blitz the opposition near the end of games.

      Reply
  11. OK, as always, we see many posts that either say oh this is just a friendly, doesnt mean much. Or this is amazing, we are world beaters!

    Here is what I take from these two friendlies. Great results, yes. But it was more than the results.

    Even if we lost, what makes me feel real good about this team is the fact that in both games against top competition, our offense really clicked like I have not seen in a long time and quite frankly have not seen before. We looked comfortable on the ball, played out of the back (the most I have seen from our USMNT), and really looked dangerous. I think we surpised both the Netherlands and Germany. Our first goal’s passing sequence was unreal.

    There was one play that really resonated with me. Germany had a really dangerous chance in the second half. Almost scored. We calmly worked the ball in our own box and expaned possession into the midfield. In the past, there would have been a long ball down the field and we would have been defending again.

    At the start of both games, you thought our opponents were going to have an easy game. So did they. But then we never backed down and attacked. We did not bunker down. In fact, for a good chunk of the game, arguably most of the game, we looked the better team IN germany.

    These two games make me believe there is an evolution taking place in front of us.
    Is that an exaggeration? Maybe. One way to find out…….up next, Gold Cup. Let’s see if we can take this form into CONCACAF.

    Reply
    • I think the problem is that some people don’t take into account the mindset of the opponent. It was pretty clear that both the Netherlands and Germany were in friendly-mode, the US was not and to be honest never really is. While I’m sure the Dutch and German players wanted a win, I don’t see them or their fans losing much sleep over these results. This why is why taking too much stock friendlies is usually pretty foolish. They can give you a slight idea of where the team is, but it’s never really the complete or honest picture until they’re playing the real thing.

      Reply
      • “Friendly mode” doesn’t exist in elite athletes playing in front of their nation. These guys have too much pride and ego to have a “friendly mode.” These guys want to win ALL THE TIME. That’s how they got to the elite level.

      • Nope. This is the biggest misconception I think that Americans have about world soccer. I’m sure these players had pride, and whatever else, but they also know this is just a friendly. The fact of the matter is, both the Netherlands and Germany were able to go up on the US rather easily playing at half-speed, while the US really had to play at full speed the while 90 minutes to get a result. That’s where the difference in quality is. That’s what separates the elites from the rest. The only two teams I know that take every single game seriously are the US and Mexico, everyone else knows when to turn it on and when to take it easy.

      • I can’t read german… but I don’t think that is what the Germans said when they said that they were in their off-season and could only go full steam for 60 minutes… and that we were in better shape.

        That sounds to me like they went full speed.

      • I actually read some of Low’s comments on Kicker too, (Google Translate) and from the sound of it he seemed more interested in how Hermann performed in that game, and was basically all he seemed to focus on for the most part. The goalkeeper seemed to be the only one that was upset about the result. Everyone else was “yeah we were tired, they were in better shape” sort of comments. That doesn’t strike me as a team that were taking the game all that seriously.

      • JCC, ja the Kicker.de is a good web site for Deutscher Fussball insights. They also mentioned this GREAT US victory had a 40K attendance (NOT sold out!), provided player evaluations (from top 1 to 5) for both teams, and chose Bradley as the best player for the MATCH!!

      • JCC,

        What you say is true.

        But what you are not considering is that even with that complacent attitude, the USMNT has had a nearly impossible task trying to beat or even tie the Germans and the Dutch especially in their place. Just look up the records.

        So these last two wins represent real progress and are worth celebrating.

  12. US should have gone down 3-0, but then could have scored 3 in second half, with the young guns. The future’s so bright, I have to wear shades.

    Reply
    • I don’t know what to make out of that. My English comprehension is below your Harvard level, but still above slowleftarm’s.

      Reply
      • o.k., let me slow it down for you.

        1. Germany had three really good goal scoring chances to start the game.
        2. The U.S. had 1 awesome chance (no goal), a half chance (goal!), and a couple other half chances that could have been goals.
        3. The U.S. got it’s chances with young subs versus some veteran German subs. Young > Veteran.

    • Yo, you knows Dempsey is our new Landon Donavon, right? He has to play. Why? Because along with Bradley and Mix he is our only world class players. Now, I understand that lately he’s developed a motivation problem.

      Reply
  13. this team was amazing. i really did not believe that this roster had it in them to get results vs #6 and #1. Wood, Morris, Johannsson, Yedlin, Beckerman, even Evans all impressed in these two games. Jurgen is a crazy mad scientist, and is on his game right now!

    only thing missing was a Ibarra goal!

    Reply
      • Why?

        He’s hit on durn near everybody else he’s picked. If he keeps picking Ibarra, I’m inclined to think there’s probably a reason there.

        Still think Klinsi may yet win that argument.

  14. This is certainly the best “pool” of players we’ve ever had. It’s nice to have options and a little depth for a change.

    Reply
    • indeed. in every position.. and the obvious choices in many positions are being lapped by guys completely out of the blue.. picking 23 and then 11 for the Gold Cup will truly be interesting.

      Reply
      • no Dempsey, Altidor, Jones, Bedoya, Green, Zusi, Cameron, Gonzalez, Howard…

        add to that a couple players from the U-23 and 5-6 from the U-21 and we finally got something… not just quantity but the pool is getting quality….

  15. I am very pleased with these two results and the play in today’s game against the World Champions. These results and the play in today’s game in which we took it to the Germans has made us the undisputed favorites to win the Gold Cup. I can almost assure you the Mexicans are really intimidated by this team. Congratulations to Klinsmann and the USMNT.

    Reply
    • I can remember when Mexico team used to beat the USA by 4 goals and their fans would like it… how things have changed, they rejoice if they can tie or beat the US at ALL!!!!

      Reply
  16. Great results but the most important games of the summer are still to come. These games won’t mean a thing if we can’t beat Mexico, Costa Rica etc. this summer. I like our chances though.

    Almost have to wonder whether these JK fanboys out in force are US fans or JK fans. All they talk about is the genius JK instead of the players. JK and his team got outstanding results on this trip but surely the players deserve some credit too. Even Bobby Wood. Hopefully 1860 were watching him today.

    Reply
    • You know MY opinion, anyhow. I always thought I saw what JK was doing, and I’ve been pretty steadfast in my opinion he’s an amazing motivator and an even better judge of talent…and he develops confidence in these guys in all the right ways. You watch guy after guy blossom who was mediocre or nervy before, and watch him stick with guys even when they can’t buy a goal…and then, lo and behold, there they are getting it done. He just…sees it, has a vision where he wants to go, and seems to know how to connect the dots even when nobody really knows what exactly it is he’s doing.

      Another thing I’ve noticed is that he tends to “ramp up” his teams before big events. You can see the moment when he switches from “I’m experimentin’ here” mode to “I’m bringing the pain”. He did it right before the Gold Cup last time around and the US went on something like a 14-game winning streak…that began with our last win over Germany. He did it again ramping the US up for the World Cup…we started with some ‘Stan (can’t even remember which one), then beat Turkey and then finally Nigeria in send-off games before we ever set foot in Brazil…and the US team was brimming with confidence when they finally began the last WC.

      Now, right before a must-win Gold Cup if we want to secure the Confederations Cup, here’s JK ramping them up again…and going to “bring the pain” mode after obviously having used the prior friendlies – where we often did not look consistently good – to get the team red-hot before the tournament. Everybody is going to be really nervous to play the US now…and while our group is unusually tough by CONCACAF standards, if everybody – the US, Mexico, and Costa Rica – all do what we’re supposed to and win our respective groups, it’ll be the finals before we see Costa Rica OR Mexico…and we will not see both.

      Nothing’s ever certain in soccer, but you sure like our odds and the form of the team, going into the Gold Cup. Strange how that always seems to happen with Klinsmann.

      Reply
      • One thing I think Klinsmann does very well is he looks at a player and doesn’t see how they are, he sees what they can become. Then he nurtures them, prods them, encourages them until they become that player he envisions.

      • by the way… did you see how williams jumped into JK’s arms after scoring? These guys seem to really love the man.

    • Don’t worry, all of Germany were watching Bobby Wood today.

      I am also sure they all know he also scored the winning goal against Oranj too.

      Reply
  17. It’s kind of amazing how impactiful Klinsy’s substitutions are. He really doesn’t get enough credit for game management I don’t think.

    Reply
    • Having six subs in a friendly is very different from the three subs he will have in the Gold Cup .

      For that reason the Gold Cups games are unlikely to be as wild ,crazy and entertaining as these last two games. Expect a more business-like approach.

      Reply
      • The point about subs is a good one, the US are unlikely to maintain that 2nd half performance level with only three subs, but it also does speak to the impressive development of the player pool. I don’t think anyone can question that the US can now change the tempo and dynamic of any game with substitutions.

        One big difference on this whole trip was the touch and combination linked play of the team was markedly better than last year’s world cup. So many good solutions to tight possession problems today. An ability to play from the back and be dangerous almost at will. Many different players having the confidence to play good balls forward and the attacking players able to continue the play and create chances.

      • MFLA,

        Again, these were two great games with great results but they were friendlies.

        World Cup games are about three times as intense if not more so.

        The Gold Cup games especially if and when the US get into the knockout rounds will give you a clearer idea of how this latest edition will look under pressure.

      • Gold Cup games aren’t entertaining because very few opponents will do anything but bunker, hack, and dive. At least the Mexican team doesn’t bunker.

    • WAM, your very funny joke really cracked me up!! I am also hoping that the US justice system follows-up their “arrest of FIFA” with a fair and just post-settlement about the next 2 WC’s. This would include taking the 2018 WC from that Schweinehund Putin and putting the 2022 WC in a decent playable place in the world!!

      Reply
  18. People are going to debate whether or not this was Germany’s “A” team or “B-” team – that’s completely irrelevant.

    What matters is that Klinsmann has his guys coached up thinking that they can compete with any team in the world. Under Bob Bradley we ground out some decent results – but when we faced top teams we typically parked the bus or relied heavily on strong play of veteran centerbacks and Donovan/Dempsey on the counter. This team does their best to hold possession and attacks with flowing movement on the flanks. I know these games are meaningless, but I am still impressed by the showing. Unfortunately, as a US fan I still dread that we are going to finish third in the GC 🙂

    Reply
  19. Will Lalas ever admit he was wrong about Bradley not being very good on the point? Don’t hold your breath.

    Give Chandler a rest please. In the first 5 minutes the Germans got behind him 3 times.

    Reply
    • Bradley has been amazing these last 2 games but doesn’t change the fct that his absolute best position is as a 6.

      Reply
    • Marco, if Lalas has anything to admit, it would be that Bradley has improved at playing in that position and it now works. He is now capable of playing at the point for the U.S. and playing well.

      But Lalas was not wrong in saying that about Bradley in the past. As I have said elsewhere, doing something good today doesn’t change or erase the fact that you weren’t good at doing it in the past.

      Reply
      • And as I have pointed out before, while MB in the past was better suited as a defensive mid, we had no one better as a playmaker. Now we definitely don’t. Like Rumsfeld once said about the Iraq War, you go to war with the army you have. JK went into games with the players he had and he identified Mikey as our best option for #9 and Mikey has rewarded that faith. Lalas and Twellman conveniently never mentioned who should have played that role instead of MB. That’s why they have little credibility.

      • Gary, but the whole point is that we disagree that Bradley was the best option at the time for that role. You might be able to make the argument that Bradley was the best choice after Klinsmann had already selected the 23-man World Cup squad, but not with the whole pool. Just off the top of my head, Donovan would have been a better choice. Also Dempsey at that time would have been better if he wasn’t needed as a forward due to the Altidore injury.

        If you remove Beckerman from the starting line-up and replace him with Bradley, then put someone like Donovan or Gringo Torres or Dempsey in the spot Bradley vacated, we would have been much better attacking team. I would have loved to see this in the first World Cup game:

        ——Altidore——Dempsey/Johannsson–
        —————-Donovan/Dempsey————-
        Jones————————————-Bedoya
        ——————–Bradley————————-

      • wait… really? still with the LD bullshit? c’mon man. let it go. Bradley learned to playmake in Italy. the awareness was there at the world cup. he was the only guy who had that awareness… it was like he went to pirlo school. You saw it in the pre-cup friendlies (pass to Fabian that foreshadowed pass to julian)… and you saw it in the cup itself.

        At that point, while he lacked experience, he was a number 10. Once you learn to see the passing lane, and you get that creative spark… you never go back. Maybe you play more withdrawn (see…E.G. Pirlo) but the game goes through you.

        at the W.C. after Altidore went down, and AJ got hurt…. we had no one else who could step in high up the field… so Bradley got put there.

        He would still have been our playmaker if he was withdrawn and we put dempsey there. Point is, while he may have made some mistakes during the world cup… his role was (and is and will be) as our playmaker until he retires… and his role will shift over time eventually he will get old and we will have to limit his runnign by playing him in more of a pirlo way. But I see Bradley being at the heart of this team until the dude is 36/37.

      • UBG,

        So LD should have been the box to box midfielder, offensive orchestrator for the USMNT in the WC?

        A role he has never played for the USMNT?

        After not doing well in the Gold Cup, in the sort of lineup you proposed above until he was moved outside?

        That sounds like a set up for failure.

    • That idiotic ginger should go back to shilling tequila. He’s no longer relevant.
      He’s as bad as Twellman.

      Reply
  20. Anyone know where I can watch a replay of this game? I was following it through SBI and the Guardian’s live blogging. Great result for the Nats!

    Reply
    • if you want to shill out a couple clams you can watch sign up for FoxSoccer2Go and watch a replay. Not sure if it will be available outside of the states however.

      Reply
      • Actually, if you get Fox Sports at home, you can get “FoxSportsGo” app on your phone or FoxSportsgo.com and watch it. FoxSports2Go costs money had has more content than FoxSportsGo, but if something is on Fox/Fox Sports 1/Fox Sports 2, you should be abel to get it and replays on on FoxSportsGo. You will have to sign into your cable service provider and if it’s one of the ok’d providers, you are ready to go.

      • I have FSG for my android and can only get live programming content. I’ve never figured out how to get replays. Am I missing something? Suggestions welcome.

      • I could not get replays either. I broke down and payed the $20 a month for june and july so i can watch the replays of u-20 games(not at 3:30 am) and all the gold cup games i want. Probably will cancel after that.

  21. I know, I know…don’t make too much out of a couple friendlies….BUT…this is huge. This is critical mass. We are going to look back that these two matches and realize they were a very important step forward in the development of American soccer. Our expectations are higher now and we won’t go back to underdog thinking.

    Reply
  22. Hungary, Ireland, San Marino, Finland, and Albania beat the Dutch and Germans C team on a regular basis in friendlies too. It has really propelled them to the forefront of world football domination too. Nothing to see here. .

    Reply
      • Since the World Cup, Germany has drawn 2-2 with Australia, and 1-1 with Ireland, loss 2-4 to Argentina in Germany, The Dutch have loss to Iceland, Czech Republic and Mexico, 1-1 draw to Turkey.

      • …but we’re the USA. According to every naysayer on SBI, we’re beneath those nations (because of JK, of course).

      • We are underneath Germany, Argentina and The Netherlands, and only recently catching up with Mexico, make no mistake about it.

      • I can agree with that, except for the humongous blemishes of 2009 and 2011 GC on American soil.

      • It’s hard to tell where we are relative to Mexico because we’re such utterly different soccer cultures. America is inclusive, draws from ten different pools – a lot of whom are second-gen or dual-nationals, and more than a few of whom we’ve gotten from South of the border – and our league is still fledgling compared to Liga MX. There’s a standardization and a technicality among Mexican teams that the USMNT still lacks…we still have a lot of odd-shaped pieces out there and fitting them together is often…interesting. And sometimes clunky.

        With Mexico, you know what you’re going to get. They’re small. They’re quick. They’re savvy. They’re extremely technical. They’re going to try to tiki-taka you to death. They definitely tend to play better in meaningful games, and tend to wake up for the World Cup and not much else. Whereas the USMNT, until recently, leaned on its speed, athleticism, work rate, and size. Still are, to a significant degree…and our technicality is still not the equal of Mexico, or, indeed, Germany, or Spain, or the Dutch. But we’ve gotten ENOUGH better that if they sleep on us and fail to play for 90 minutes we now beat even the heavyweights.

        I’d call us even-money to win the Gold Cup. Mexico is probably 3-1, Costa Rica probably about 6-1…after that, I doubt anybody else has more than a miniscule chance at it. If we were playing in Mexico, I’d flip the US-Mexico odds…or worse. Mexico is used to playing in the US and draws huge fan support here. The opposite is not true.

        Be interesting to see how much “want to” there is with the Mexican squad this Gold Cup. It definitely wasn’t there the last time around. If they show up, it could be interesting…if they don’t, we’re probably playing Costa Rica in the final.

      • “only recently catching up with Mexico” in geological time. In human terms, we passed them a few years back.

    • Sorry, how is the German team with Götze, özil, Schweine, Podolski, etc. the “C team”?
      Germany had more first team players in the game than the US did.

      Reply
    • Sorry bro, you blew any cred you had when you claimed San Marino has wins at any level against the Dutch or Germans.

      Reply
    • Hans,

      I am assuming you don’t know too much about the US team, but we were also missing a lot of starters as well. Booby Wood only just scored his first US goal a few days ago. The forward who did the dummy for him is a university student!

      Reply
    • yes his team was relegated from 2nd division to the 3rd but he was only loaned there from 1860.

      If erzgebirge had stayed in 2. bundes, his loan would have continued. I guess he is 1860’s property again but no chance he stays there.

      these 2 games were a nice audition for him

      Reply
  23. Bobby Wood. What can you say? Not so impressive for club or country but game winners against two top 5 european teams on their home field. Good for you. That is how you get playing time.

    Reply
    • With Klinsmann is, “You score two goals against two powerhouses to win those games, you are out of the Gold Cup”

      Reply
      • Or will give him the chance to settle into a new team by not missing the pre-season if Wood found a new club.

  24. Wow, good job USMNT. See you at the Gold Cup in a few weeks! Hopefully we can manhandle most of CONCACAF at home. No need for “come from behind” drama when the games count.

    Reply
  25. This recent run of better attacking football coincides with Klinsmann finally deciding to use two strikers/forwards consistently and Altidore being injured. Don’t get me wrong, I am not saying that we are playing better because Altidore is not there, what I am saying is that Klinsmann seems to fall in love with this whole “Altidore is my target forward, I will play him up top alone with midfielders around him” and then the U.S. plays a slightly different system when he is there. Now with no Altidore its been, “lets throw out two mobile forwards up there” and it has looked better (I saw the whole Holland game, saw bits and pieces of this game). I hope Klinsmann keeps this same philosophy even when Altidore is back.

    Reply
    • I’ll say it for you – we are better without Altidore AND Dempsey. Time to move on with more athletic, faster guys. Altidore reminds me of Mario Balotelli. I’m a Liverpool fan and I was praying that somehow MB would turn into an awesome striker – but I finally gave up hope. Same for Jozy. Neither have movement off the ball and neither have good soccer IQ. They have only gotten as far as they have by brute force. With all the options we have – Agudelo, Wood, Johannsen, Morris, Diskerud, Zardes – forwards and mids who can play up front, we don’t need them anymore.

      Reply
      • Balo is world class, only stupid Liverpool fans have accepted him as the scapegoat for Rogers terrible job as a manager. Liverpool doesn’t cross the ball and doesn’t let him take free kicks or penalties (which italy does) so of course he doesn’t produce like he has everywhere else he has been (including in the EPL).

        I’ve come to the conclusion that a lot of managers are just passively racist. They see large athletic black men and think oh target forward, when the players consistently demonstrate play them with another striker and they will produce.

      • We have a very different definition of world class then. Don’t get me wrong, he’s a good player and much better than he’s shown at Liverpool but he’s not a truly elite player.

      • “he’s not a truly elite player”

        You Sir, ain’t got a clue what you are talking about. Go get that GED.

      • You’ve used that line before. It also isn’t any good. If you’re going to be my personal troll on this site, you’ll have to do better.

      • Altidore needs to play on the wing, where he can run into space and at defenders with the ball and draw fouls. Play him there, and he’ll produce. He’s not a hold up player or back to goal player. Years I’ve been saying this…

      • LF or just add a second person up front. Altidore always looked better with a second forward (time with charlie davies… times where dempsey got pushed up at the end of games… and times with AJ.

        I disagree with the folks on here that Altidore should not be starting. Dude is really good, but not good enough to do it alone… very few are, and usually, they have great wing play to help. Like, literally, name anyone who you think could have done much better at Sunderland? would Balotelli have scored at Sunderland? methinksnot. Altidore shows what he has whenever we play in a way that showcases what he can do…

        which leads me to my next thought… I think part of the reason our players get fucked in Europe is that MLS releases them to the highest bidder… not necessarily the place that suits them best… I think European agents and teams do a better job for their players.

      • You do not know what you are saying…and you should honestly stop typing. Jozy is not a hold-up forward, but some managers keep trying to turn him into one because they see a 6’2″ 200lb forward. I have watched Altidore play since he was a kid. HE PLAYS BETTER with ANOTHER forward! He plays better with inter-linking passes. He does well going into space. He scores better in that formation for club and country. He does better in 4-4-2 or 4-3-3 or 5-3-2.

    • I think these are tactical mistakes theJK has learned from. I give him credit for trying new things out, but JA sucess in the Dutch League was not due to him playing as a lone center forward and plucking down route one balls
      .As JK gets to know US players and their strengths and weaknesses he can be a better judge, adjust the playing style and win big games. trying to force US players into formations they are not educated or skilled in is looking at a long learning curb.

      Reply
  26. So many US fans are gonna be upset when Morris goes to Seattle instead of abroad.

    Bobby Wood made a huge statement this call up. After all the doubting (rightfully so at the time). Great job Bobby

    Bradley was the player on the pitch both games out of all 22 players. I have a feeling, even if MLS puts too high a fee, that euro clubs will call for Bradley

    Reply
    • Bradley has the skill to be a starter on a champions league level team (which has been obvious for 4 years), and going into his last 4 years of prime should be worth about 20-30 million in transfer fee. But because of the bias against american players the only offers he will get will be from teams like stoke and they will be in the 5-10 million range. So ridiculous.

      Reply
      • Perception is reality. Until we have more American’s plying their trade and performing at a high level in the bigger leagues around Europe, this stigma will remain.

        Disclaimer: I’m not a fan that believes we have an absolute need to have American’s playing in Champions League or European leagues. I like seeing our notable Nats playing at home in our domestic league.

      • Can’t change perception if not given then oppertunity. Americans ar never given first teams inured and are always the firsts of bedropped when a team has any type of issues. Despite consistantly being one of their best players RS Dempsey was constantly on then rink of benching at Fulham. Howard was in then east eleven of the year in the EPL and was then immediately dropped by MU. Jozy scored 30+ goals for a Europa team (and help them win silver wear) and only a regulation battling club was interested, and hen ask till the firsts cape goat on a terrible team. The bias is real and obvious.

      • You’re absolutely right and what you’ve highlighted also annoyed the hell out of me, too.

        Unfortunately, we need a higher volume of the very few exceptions to make a statement for the country. Old stigmas are hard to break.

      • I think its a couple of things… If I am a coach 1) it looks better on my resume if I gave a 20 yr. old columbian a chance, than some American (of any age)… 2) the media will rip me to shreds less if we lose with an argentinian, brit, or Italian… than with an American… 3) my club will be pushing me to play my homegrown developmental players (i.e. Julian green will get minutes in meaningless champions league matches with Bayern long before Bradley would)… 4) yeah, there is probably some bias… 5) Its like the west coast bias in US college sports polls… the scouts are all running around in Europe. They don’t come check out US games, they (the good ones) are plying their trade with 14 yr. old brazilians and argentinians and 2/3 level EC league teams.

      • Bradley is on a big money deal already at TFC. No way MLS lets him go unless he is going to a GOOD CL club. Same with Seba. They would ask 30-40 million for both of them. Bradley is worth at least +1 goals in every match with his work rate, decisions, vision, and soccer intelligence. He is our engine room at USMNT.

      • He’s making $6-$7m at Toronto so teams would have to really open up their checkbooks. Doesn’t look like moving to MLS has hurt Bradley’s play and who knows if he would even want to move abroad at this point.

      • Exactly. Perhaps that’s changed, or he could be swayed by big $$$, but I too thought a lot of the reason he came to MLS was because he wanted to be in the MLS.

      • Well, that and the $6 million-a-year salary. Roma wanted to keep him. For about $1 million…and no guarantee of playing time. They were busy buying other CM’s for much the same money Toronto finally splashed at him. He said “#$&@it” and did what any sane person would do…took the guaranteed PT, and the money. Among other things, he was also cheesed off that Arsenal – who had been shopping him – passed and went with some German whose name I can’t remember at the moment, and who is no longer with the team.

        The bias against Americans is very real in Europe. Even Klinsmann has tacitly acknowledged it.

        Do you think, for instance, that another striker like Jordan Morris – who has shown speed, savvy, and fearlessness against big-time Euro players – would be available in Europe, despite the fact that it would probably take as little as $200K or $300K to get him away from Seattle, who owns his pro rights? Do you think nobody would have come in for Gyasi Zardes…who is not even a DP for LA Galaxy? Guys who show WAY less than these guys are offered WAY more…and get way more genuine opportunity, in Europe.

        Read the Guardian’s article on the match…and then scroll to the comments section. It’s informative. The English are so green-eyed with jealousy about the relative state of our national programs it’s almost hateful. I saw similar comments every time I surfed the Sunderland boards about Altidore. (The way they treated him was deplorable.) And you wonder why Americans tend to not do well in Europe…well.

      • It seems to me if you go to Europe and play for a big team with star players, and big matches, you yourself will improve, and you might even improve your national team. OR …you can bring great players over here, and have them play and work with your own club players and bring out their talent, and you create several new stars instead of just yourself.

        Zardes, learned from Donovan and especially Keane Imagine how much Zardes will improve training with Steven Gerrard day after day. And Jameison too

        Klinsmann is still thinking in European terms. He need to think American and foster the emergence of players here by encouraging MLS teams to attract more star players here instead of sending US players abroad where most sit on a bench.

      • There is definitely something to that. I mentioned my theories above. But JK is also showing off Jurgen’s Kinder to all the scouts he knows. I bet you he called a bunch and maybe even drove them to the stadium himself. Make no mistake, these were statement games for lots of these players

      • Huh, teams like Stoke? I seem to remember Bradley not too long ago getting fairly regular playing time at a team much better than Stoke. If he goes back to Europe, he needs to go to Europe proper and avoid the EPL. He’s good enough he doesn’t have to settle for English crap ball. But that’s if he wants to go back to Europe.

      • oh god, here comes the dilution. He wasn’t good enough for Roma and has never been consistent or anything special at the club level

      • He was more than good enough for Roma they never gave him a fair shake. The yearn efile he was really good form cheivo. See his consistency for the USMNT consistantly one of our best players for the last 6 years.

      • trust me (and my Italian Heritage)… Roma fans really liked Bradley. They actually said he was a great little midfielder (which for an Italian Ultra to say that about an American takes really alot). They basically (and I agree) were like, “look, dude’s not Pirlo… and Roma needs that caliber player. So he won’t play above someone we think is as good as Pirlo, and we will keep buying guys to start ahead of him that we think are better. But we think he is better than some of the other MF and we ask ourselves why he doesn’t get more minutes.

      • Turkemnbashy,

        Not that it has anything to do with football but one reason why the Italians liked MIkey so much is he quickly took to the culture learning to speak Italian in what seems like record time.

      • Well, he’s showing to US fans and his opponents that he is world class, leading the US to new heights and getting paid very handsomely (a lot more than he got from Roma) while playing closer to home. It’s not a bad gig.

      • Bradley is very good and my favorite player. But he couldn’t keep his starting spot at Roma and that and 6.5 million other reasons are why he came back. No club in the world would pay 30MM for him nor pay him 6.5MM/year. No one. And definitely not a CL team from a Top 4 league.

  27. I felt a great disturbance in the Haters, as if millions of voices suddenly cried out in terror and were suddenly silenced.”

    Just another reminder why SBI posters that refuse to give JK credit know less about the game than JK has forgotten. Please proceed with discounting more results, accomplishments and reality.

    kaw kaw kaw, says the crow.

    Reply
      • I’ll never understand a response like this. JK is a good coach. He also makes mistakes. Leaving LD off the WC roster was one of them. We would have played better and won more WC games with him. Facts.

      • And you know, that’s right. I believe that Klinsmann understood later, that it WAS a mistake, but we live and learn and move on. That Klinsmann made mistakes has been clear to many on this board who have played, coached or enjoyed soccer. But I give him credit that he has LEARNED from those mistakes, addressed them and made the USMT better. I do think he is sometimes not as tactically or strategically astute as a head coach should be, but I believe he has and will continue to address these problems with the USMNT.

        I think JK has figured out that the US has some very athletic and FAST players. Some are even technically gifted. The way he used them to get around the Dutch defense was inspirational but not un-looked upon.Ditto for Germany. to win these games you need the players, the plan and the timing. It looks like JK is beginning to get all three.

      • Would he?

        I’m a coach. I’ve coached a boatload of state-level kids. I know what big egos can be like. (My son had one, which is why he’s not playing soccer this year.)

        The calculus that a lot of people neglect is this the amount of control the coach has. You get this by being ruthless – in other words: do it my way, or you’re gone. This can be two-edged. If you overcontrol, and just cut guys just to show the size of your unit, or if you really don’t have a vision in your head, your kids start to fear you and they turn into robots. I see this in a lot of “elite” clubs where the kids’ parents pay a lot of money because the club has convinced them this is best for their careers. I see this in a much more advanced state with National teams like Japan and Russia. They all do EXACTLY what they’re supposed to…and not a single thing more. They both went out of Group. By the numbers. Without really doing anything wrong…or with a single moment of inspiration.

        You aren’t seeing that dynamic with the USMNT. For such an authoritarian coach, Klinsi’s guys play with a remarkable degree of…fearlessness. They just go for it. Make a mistake…as long as you make it at 110mph. Agudelo played like he was asleep today – I personally think he was just tight and scared – and was gone by halftime. Zardes couldn’t hit the broad side of a barn…but he kept getting himself chances, and going for them…and what do you know, he stayed on, even got moved to center forward. That’s Klinsmann for you. Mess-ups are fine. Just don’t be a wuss.

        LD did something very basic any coach would respond to: he tried to set conditions for his participation. In a very pointed TV interview, just before the pool was picked, he said: “I can’t train the way I used to…and BRUCE ARENA understands that.” In other words, strongly hinting that Klinsmann did not.

        Bad move, Landon. Bad move.

        Klinsmann smiled coldly…and took him right up on that. There had obviously been some pre-amble to this from The Sabbatical and that stint at Bayern, but whatever. LD threw down the gauntlet that got him cut. Even Arena himself admitted that LD did what LD liked to do…and here Klinsmann was, about to send his guys into train-for-tournament mode…and LD was basically standing up, waving his arms, chirping arrogantly…volunteering to be the example. Klinsmann made him one.

        Argue all you want. But the message got sent: Klinsmann was not afraid to cut ANYONE. You did it his way…or you were gone.

        A lot of bosses see their teams explode, or turn to stone, when they do things like that. Overcontrol can be as bad as none at all. But Klinsmann got away with it…and the message was sent. Klinsmann was in charge. Not the players. Not the sponsors. Not the Federation. Not posters on the Internetz. Klinsmann.

        Bold move, and if the USMNT hadn’t gotten out of the Group of Death, it probably would have cost Klinsmann his job. But the USMNT did…and now JK has carte blanche to rebuild the team, with his guys, with his players…his way. Which is why they just beat the Dutch and the Germans.

        95% of coaches don’t have power like that. Of the 5% that do, a significant portion…shouldn’t.

        Occasionally you get a coach who does…and should. And that’s when everything tends to change. I think Klinsmann is one of those rare coaches. I do know the USA has no business strolling into Holland and Germany and walking away with wins…on paper. Which means something different is happening.

        Landon took Klinsmann on. Landon lost. Everybody on the team saw it.

        If you don’t understand how that worked, or how important that was…you’ve never coached.

      • This is a very well thought out argument, and explanation of what happened. I absolutely respect what you think and wrote. Except, flexible thinking is also a part of being a coach/leader/owner/manager whatever. Not all players/employees/whatever fit into your general rules of conduct as a manager. Do you kick off Michael Jordan because he’s a gambler? Only if the NBA makes you. Do you exclude a player that can plug every hole except for defense and keeper even as a backup, and is an insanely skilled finisher. The manager lets the ordinary people know they are ordinary, and makes exceptions for the exceptional. With that said, Klinsi is also exceptional, which is why we forgive him for an unforgivable gaffe. I salute his results.

      • First, Landon Donovan isn’t Michael Jordan. He’s not even Scotty Pippen.

        Second, he wasn’t fit and a WC in Brazil required unprecedented fitness. Donovan was fat during the Mexico game and it negatively impacted his game.

        Third, his sense of entitlement undermined the entire US team and coaching staff. You can’t have payers thinking they are bigger than the coach.

        Fourth, contrast Donovan’s attitude with Wondo’s. Wondo did EVERYTHING that was asked of him and more. He would have run through a brick wall if he was asked to.

        Fifth, had Wondo scored to complete the Smash-and-Grab against Belgium, he would have rendered all of these comments moot.

        Sixth, but for the injuries to Altidore, and to a lesser extent, AJ, as well as having Deuce out of position, we might have done more in Brazil.

      • Im with you SN Chalmers

        A healthy Jozy gets us passed Belgium and possible Argentina as well

      • Eating 12 jelly donuts for lunch everyday for a month wasn’t LDs best choice prior to the World Cup selection. Nom nom nom…

      • Gary, the double irony here is the original post had {Sarcasm} and {/Sarcasm} tags around the statement — but they didn’t come through because the processer took them seriously….

        Can’t make it up.

      • Its amazing how you can stoke the fire with a couple words. +1 to you sir for the excellent sarcastic wit. And +1 to the JK psychoanalyst and his rendition of what happened last year.

      • Because context matters.

        These weren’t friendlies against Turks and Caicos Islands or British Virgin Islands. Fans (and the players) have ever right to appreciate and be proud the results against the competition – even if they are friendlies.

        Heaven forbid we have lost both and have to suffer through the usual diatribe of having the worst manager in the world.

  28. It’s nice to play a top team and not have our keeper be MOTM. Really enjoyable game to watch. Can’t wait for the Gold Cup now.

    Reply
  29. Evans, Yedlin and Beckermann changed the game….totally
    Beckermann and Bradely are good in the midfield together
    Morris’s run off the ball opened the lane for wood
    Bobby Wood……Damn
    We good to Europe…spank Netherlands…..call on the big boss and spank them too…..all insults towards Klinsmann should crease (me included!!!!)
    ——–Johannson—————Zardes———-
    ——————-Bradley—————————
    —Diskerud——————————Yedlin—
    ——————Beckermann———————
    F. Johnson———————————Evans-
    ————–Brooks——-Alvarado————–
    ——————–GUZAN————————–
    …Can hold off and defeat Germany

    Reply
    • It has been hard for me to believe it has taken this long for the JK haters to back off. At this point, anybody who insults the man has lost every ounce of credibility. The guy has made and will continue to make mistakes, but we are in a place we have never been before and he needs to get the respect he has earned.

      Reply
      • …and shaggie96 I would say I am one of those people. The man has proven himself……I totally agree with your statement

      • Yo, Adrien, these were just friendlies.

        I definitely think some of JK criticism was over the top, but just like I was saying getting killed in these two games wouldn’t mean much, pulling two back to back upset also don’t mean much.

        I mean, it’s great; don’t get me wrong. I’d rather win than lose any game. And anytime you can get a result against these teams, it’s big. But in the grande scheme of things, I’d trade both wins for another Gold Cup.

      • Yes. This was great. Absolutely fantastic and I enjoyed the heck out of both matches but they’re friendlies and Shaggie is just doing the same thing the haters did when the US had 6 months of terrible friendlies, namely taking too much from friendlies. This is worse in a sense because you’re judging from 2 matches instead of 10. These performances are encouraging but not definitive statements on the state of the program. We have to wait until next year’s Copa America to play meaningful matches against world class competition.

      • Well, for me, there are these factors. Under JK the US has had more monumental firsts than ever before–Mexico in Mexico, Italy in Italy, Holland in Holland and now Germany in Germany. Friendlies or not, when you start getting those kind of results, it’s not luck. Secondly, for most of the game the US was the more dangerous side, creating the best chances and really outplaying
        Germany on their home soil. How many other teams can say that, even with friendlies?
        Finally, JK has been talking about playing a certain style and we have seen the team finally doing it these last two games. And he has done it with a lot of players that might have never gotten a look under previous coaches. He has gotten basically a lot of second tier US players to buy into and execute his system and get historic results. Friendly or not, we have never seen this kind of outcome in US soccer history before.

      • + 1 I don’t think I could put it better myself. These results are no fluke. US pre Klinsy the only thing we would be asking was by how much we lost and then call them the requisite “learning experiences” and hope for improvement someday.

      • JK deserves some credit, but the U.S. pool of players began improving and deepening long before he became head coach.

        It was only a little more than 20 years ago we qualified for our first World Cup finals in like forever. I remember those days before, when we used to get beat by the teams that also lost to the confederation qualifiers, and how surreal it was when Caliguri scored that goal.

        We began improving in the 80s via a resurgence at the high school level, took off in the 90s with youth soccer, and stoked the burners in the 2000s with youth soccer coaches who actually knew what they were doing when developing players. If JK didn’t produce new news, he’d be a failure. And he clearly isn’t a failure. But it’s not like he’s doing this all by himself.

      • TomG, you would be right, but that’s not what I’m doing. I’ve never been a JK fanboy, but I’ve continually been impressed and intrigued by his approach with this program ever since he took over.

        He hasn’t been afraid to take chances and the level of play over the last four years has been on a continual upward trend. I believed him last year when he said the results weren’t important and they were in a process. I could see what he was trying to accomplish. I stand by my previous statement that the program is the best it’s ever been. You can say they’re just friendlies, but regardless, no previous coach was able to accomplish it and I’m sure it wasn’t because they didn’t want to.

        I’m not trying to say that these two games mean the program has reached the summit. All I’m trying to say is that there should be no doubt now that he has done enough that he should at least not be the subject of inane insults anymore.

        It has always been hard for me to understand the mentality of wanting the coach to fail in order to be proven right and piling insults on top of it is downright idiotic. Any coach should be open to fair criticism, I simply hope the man can finally get the respect he has earned at this point.

      • Have to disagree with you completely, about not meaning anything. The games themselves would mean nothing if we were still playing bunker ball. What we saw this week was the US playing toe to toe with two of Europe’s powerhouses and coming out on top. We played an attacking style that JK has been leading us to these last few years.
        I have been following the team for over 25 years now, and , this week was unlike any I have seen before.

      • So the result in the friendly is meaningless… but the style of play in the friendly (and that we didn’t get blown out of the water playing that style)… That is meaningful.

        I think we can all agree here. I think that is what Bizzy and Michael are trying to elucidate.

        Because in a real tournament… we still don’t beat the Dutch or Germans. But that day is coming, and 2018 might be just far enough off to be that day.

      • +1

        He’s done a great job of identifying talented players, giving them reps, and instilling a winning mentality.

        He will continue to make mistakes.

        But to play this well without key players,…

        Hut ab, Herr Klinsmann!

      • For me this is the fact that jumps out at me. We played BETTER without key players. We scored 6 goals in 2 games without Dempsey or Jozy. When is the last time that happened? This fact CANT escape JK and if he is the brilliant coach he’s now being touted as, he will stay with what is working and not resort to his usual toothless attack. Lets see what he does next time out. Anybody want to bet this all goes out the window?

        It’s still far from perfect however. Bacon did little to impress these last two outings. Juan A saw little of the ball in his 45 minutes. Wood, who up to now has done little, scores two critical goals. Things always seemed better after he started subbing some of the starters off which says to me he still doesnt start the right people at times

        So JK can ride these two big wins for a while. This has to move us up higher in FIFA ratings, though who knows. We may be in FIFAs crap list for leading the charge that has brought it to its knees. We’ll see where the great one takes us next.

      • Good observations, and clearly Jozy and Clint should be hoping to show that they are as hungry as the guys we had out there this past week. We weren’t perfect, but we definitely looked to be moving forward.

        Before we all unload on Jozy and Deuce, however, it is important to remember what we have known to be true since we were playing poorly over the winter friendlies– seasonality and fitness matters matters. During the winter games (when MLS was out of season and may of our Euro players were warming benches, we were flat, disorganized, and faded badly in the last 20 minutes.

        Look at these past two performances (with MLS in mid-season, while our opponents have been largely out-of-season) and it is a total reversal. Far sharper play, with near-dominance over the last 20 minutes.

        I have no idea whether Dempsey and Altidore will be able to slot in as effectively as the personnel we have used here, but I think we need to afford them the same patience and opportunity as we have the others. Both have had credible starts to the MLS campaign (though Jozy is coming off injury), and we know what they are capable of when they are on top form.

        Nothing wrong with competition, though. This has been a cornerstone for JK from the jump, and we are seeing the dividend more and more.

      • Look at hockey scoring stats during the regular season and then in the Stanley Cup playoffs. Playoff games tend to be much lower scoring, and the forwards who found all sorts of ice during the regular season suddenly don’t see as much space when games really matter.

        That’s part of the difference between friendlies and tournament games. Players still have a reason to play defense – no one likes to lose, and no one wants blame for any losses and no one wants to slide down depth charts. But it’s a different level of intensity.

      • Such is the existence of any national team coach.

        But it’s arguably worse here than a lot of other places, because there are more a greater proportion of fans here who don’t know what they are looking at. Not saying that’s true of anyone on this website – we’re the ones into this game enough to find SBI and comment on these articles.

        When I was a kid, I loved pro football (the American variety). I loved it enough to even watch pre-season games and thought they were actually games as opposed to opportunities for individual players to prepare for the coming season, opportunities for coaches to get a look at new players, etc. As I got older, I noticed a couple things. Serious fans actually got nervous when the local team was running through pre-season with all wins. That was a bad sign, they thought.

        A lot has been made of Germany’s post World Cup friendly record. They arguably just don’t feel they have anything to prove, and they’ll wait for Euros before focusing again. Same for us, because we exceeded expectations in Brazil a little, and JK and players might have felt they had some breathing room.

        One thing I know is a team like Germany, even their B team (which probably would also do well in a World Cup finals) doesn’t control 67 percent of possession in one half and then get dominated the next, unless they changed something to allow that to happen. It comes down to individual assignments – what the coach tells each player to work on. The youth equivalent would be a scrimmage in which one team dominates a half, and then has to shoot left footed or move the ball a predetermined number of passes before shooting in the second half. Or even playing short-handed for the second half, and working on red card scenarios. Obviously at the national side level, they weren’t doing that. But they changed something other than players on the field – took on some restriction or some individual assignment focus that allowed them to work on something other than maintaining possession.

      • In addition, I really liked how AJ dropped back and played a more midfield role. Getting him more involved helped. I’d like to see more of that set up with Altidore up top and Yedlin running the flank.

        Re Klinsman – you gotta break the glass ceiling before you can climb higher and winning in Amsterdam and in Germany are certainly steps and on his watch. There is a belief there now that started with the 09 Confed, but is now maturing.

    • Gold Roster should look similar to this:

      ————-Jozy——–AJ—————–
      ————————————————-
      Mix————-MB90—————-FabJo
      ——————–KB————————-
      TimChan———————————-DY
      ————-Brooks——????————-
      ——————–Guzan——————–

      Reply
      • So can you explain why Timmy Chandler? I think (and I didn’t see the second half of Germany) that Chandler has basically played himself out of contention. I have not seen anything particularly wonderful about him.

      • Chandler looked solid and stable on the Left. And he got forward and looked good doing so.

        Before seeing the 2nd half, I also felt that he’d played himself into a 3rd string RB and nothing more. I think he was 50% responsible for the opening goal, for being so far away from his mark.

      • Yes.. mostly..

        Bedoya for Mix.
        Switch Fab Jo and DY.

        I’m leaning toward Ace Ventura next to Brooks at this point. Gonzo is too close to the same as Brooks.

        Super Subs – Morris and Wood! ha

      • totally agree here, except that chandler must be out (referencing original post). i’m sorry, but anyone who thinks chandler is still a starter for this team is completely lost or blind. let’s all hope JK is not…

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