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Jermaine Jones hits out at critics, defends his spot with USMNT

Photo by Mark J. Rebilas/USA Today Sports

Jermaine Jones understands that criticism is a natural part of playing for the U.S. Men’s National Team, but the 35-year-old midfielder feels unfairly targeted and, at times, disrespected.

Speaking to ESPN FC, Jones said Monday that he “definitely” gets less respect then he deserves for his contributions to the USMNT. The statement comes in the aftermath of the USMNT’s draw with Panama, one which saw Jones play 75 minutes alongside Michael Bradley in the midfield.

“The criticism is always on me,” Jones said. “Everybody tries it, if we lose the game, they always try to find the next guy who can play for Jermaine. It is never somebody else, it is always me.

“And sometimes, I’ll be honest, it pisses me off. I say ‘Wait a minute! When we play the big tournament, I am always the best player on the field for this country,’ but then, end of the day, they try to kick me out when we lose games? That is not fair, you know? I cannot change it. I know what it is.”

Jones went on to say he understands that there will be pressure. He pointed to New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady, a player he sees as constantly a target of criticism in the face of overwhelming success.

Like Brady, Jones says he wants to continue pushing on despite his age. Currently 35, Jones says he believes he can still contribute in the run up to the 2018 World Cup.

“Bring me the guy who is better in that position,” Jones said, “and show that week to week in the league, against me, against other teams, I respect it and I will say, ‘If he is better I will step away’.”

“I am 35. I can step away and say I had a good career, but right now if we be honest, ask my teammates or the people inside, there is nobody who can take my spot. If it comes to a game, a tough game there is nobody who really wants to battle with me.”

Jones added that, at the end of the day, he doesn’t feel he commands the same respect of a Clint Dempsey or a Tim Howard. Like Dempsey and Howard, Jones forged his reputation in one of Europe’s top leagues, but the midfielder says he still hears doubters stating that he is a poor player.

He doesn’t feel like his reputation is on par with “legends” like Dempsey and Howard, even though, he says, his achievements stack up. Jones said that he believes that’s partly because he’s German-American, “maybe not a full American that you can sell like a product”.

“If I go to the national team right now, name me a player who has more Champions League games, who played in the highest levels — name me one,” he said. “I am not a legend. My name is always [highlighted] when we lose, but all other guys are legends.

“I respect that and I like it and gives me the point that I still want to go. I want to prove people wrong, but I think if you look [at] the numbers, there is nobody who can say, ‘Oh I played over 30 Champions League games in club level’ and that is important. And if you look at the numbers, you can not lie.”

Like Dempsey and Howard, Jones knows he isn’t any younger, but the doubts make him feel like he has more to prove as his career winds down.

“I missed 2010, I missed 2006, and to me 2014 was something special and I wanted to go to this one again,” Jones said. “I wanted to represent this country again one time. And trust me, after that, I will watch it on a TV, the national team, I will support them. But you will not see me in a jersey anymore.”

 

Comments

  1. I feel for the Germerican lads as it seems like they are rejected by 2 nations, but it is probably time for USA to move on from them. JJ’s commitment cannot be questioned but I think some of the other guys want to play in World Cups but don’t want the grind of Central American road games

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  2. I don’t think anyone would question that Jones is still one of our best 23 players…but at his age and with his injury history I don’t believe we can continue to rely him on to be a starter anymore. He has the club resume of one of our best field players…but that’s the club level and not international play. Most fans aren’t criticizing Jones alone….but his continued pairing with Bradley. This is not a new issue either. Prior to the 2014 WC there were the same concerns/issues. They found a way to co-exist during the actual WC, but at this stage can we afford to wait to for them to figure it out? I think most would prefer to see either Jones or Bradley start with another player who complements their style better and have the other come in at the 60 min mark to close out games.

    As the younger generation (Acosta, Hyndman, etc…) gain experience and as father time continues to erode JJ’s abilities the gap between Jones and the younger options will continue to shrink.

    As for JJ not getting the same level of respect/consideration as Dempsey and Howard as a “Legend”….that comes from the fact that Dempsey & Howard have been cornerstones of the US Program for 12+ years (100+ Caps) and have the stats to prove it (WC Games, Goals, Saves, etc), while JJ has only been involved for 6-7 years and has significantly fewer stats due to lack of appearances, the position he plays, and some of his injury layoffs.

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  3. As far as technical skill and ability, Jermaine Jones IS America’s greatest player. Above Claudio Reyna, Landon Donovan, and Clint Dempsey. None of those guys have played at the level Jermaine Jones has.

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  4. JJ is one of my favorite players. But I prefer Bradley at the 6 with CP in the 10 … especially if we are the “better” team and should impose our will on the opponent. If we are clearly the underdog and have to play 5 in the midfield to be more defensive / conservative, then play both JJ and Bradley in the midfield … while starting Wood as the lone striker. He’s shown he can do that, create chances, and score at a not so good Hamburg team.

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  5. Sounds like Jones’s​ ego talking and not objectivity. No one is questioning what Jones has done in the past for the team, but his recent performances. And the fact he has to bring up his Champions leave days instead of acknowledging his recent performances adds to it. Dempsey and Howard are rewarded because they continue to perform despite their age. He seemed like he tanked against Panama, and he had fresh legs. I think he should be a sub player, but I am hoping his legs don’t give out and he can contribute more.

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    • Howard are rewarded because they continue to perform despite their age

      I mean, if you’re going to reference club soccer too Howard has been well below his previous standards when he hasn’t been out injured. If not for Guzan regressing I don’t believe we’d see Howard between the posts.

      Clint Dempsey, on the other hand, appears to be the only one defying Father-Time.

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  6. “Everybody tries it, if we lose the game, they always try to find the next guy who can play for Jermaine. It is never somebody else, it is always me.

    You know what, he is absolutely correct and I’ll start by saying I am one of those people. We all know the Jones / Bradley midfield doesn’t work but we never point a finger at Bradley, even though we all know Jones is a better player than Michael Bradley. Maybe in the future Arena should tryout Jermaine Jones in the midfield and leave Bradley on the bench

    —————————–Pulisic—————————–

    Nagbe————————————————-Lletget

    —————————–Jones—————————–

    He has a valid point

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    • Jones isn’t disciplined enough tactically to play the bottom point of the diamond. He needs freedom to roam and win balls. I’m not opposed to a Jones sans Bradley midfield, but it can’t be him in the diamond. Second as I said above I haven’t seen enough since his return last fall that says he is a better player now than Bradley.

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    • I agree… people don’t point the finger at Bradley enough… myself included. As for who is the better player today… I think you give each of them 45 minutes in the next two qualifiers at the bottom of a diamond, and see which US team looks better. Then we can choose someone to start and someone to sit. Because, like England with Gerrard and Lampard, we seem to have 2 MF who don’t complement each other like they should… Hopefully we don’t spend another 4 years continuing to trot them out together… unless we are looking to pack it in for 90.

      As for Bradley, I just watched the Juve Napoli game… and watched Pjanic struggle mightily just like Bradley, and my lesson from that game is that both our MF are over-maligned. IF the opposition’s game plan is to shut down the DCM player and you trot out CBs like we have been… then you will perform crappily as a team. That is neither Jones or Bradley’s fault. Look at the games where Jones performed well, look at the backline in those games. Then compare to when he performed badly. Its always when we are missing defenders, or rotating guys.

      Someone said I was a fool for my Gonzo criticism when “everyone gave him an 8 and said he played great…” So I went back to re-watch Panama and see if I had been overly critical. Then I watched the Juve game. Here is my judgement… if all you expect a CB to do is clear crosses, then I can see him being graded well in the Panama performance. But if you expect leadership, ball control, relief of pressure, assistance with moving the ball up the pitch, and closing down space so the other team can’t counter, then no. He is/was shit. When Panama brought a guy to block Bradley from moving the ball up the field… not once did Gonzales bypass him and bring the ball into MF himself to break that press. It went to A. to Ream or Zusi, or B. Kickball upfield EVERY TIME (well, I fast forwarded 10 minutes so maybe he made 1-2 passes that I missed… but still). When Panama got the ball on defense, not once was Gonzo/Ream relatively close to the MF to keep the counter compact… which stretched both Bradley and Jones so that if the counter was stopped, there was no way to play the ball back into MF.

      So yes, we have been too critical of both Bradley and Jones; neither of them play a role that allows them to control a game by themselves. And when given the opportunity to play that role, neither of them took it. So, neither of them are Pjanic, or Pirlo, or Xavi. Which means they need others to help when they are being shut down. But yet we treat them like we would treat a Xavi if he didn’t carry the team…

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      • This is a great point. For all the talk of our depth at CB, we only have 2 legit players at that position: Cameron and Brooks. It’s no coincidence that we actually looked like a real team during much of Copa America, with those 2 playing together. Instead of putting more pressure on Bradley like Gonzo does, those 2 actually cover up for him.

  7. I don’t disagree with anything Jones said. However, like others have said keeping Jones out there means having to go to 5 in the midfield and frankly I don’t think Jones is good enough or young enough for us to change the way we play just to accommodate him.

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    • Please provide the link that backs up your statement. I’d be willing to bet LD has never gone this hard in an interview, and this idea that he was this prima donna has never been substantiated via audio, video or verbally, at least not that i’m aware of.

      Having said that, I don’t have a big problem with what JJ said. He’s right in the sense that for every major tournament he’s played in he has been one of the top, if not the top player in the team. Would I have said it to the degree that he did, probably not, but there has a lot of talk of him being replaced because of age or other, and best believe players read what’s behind said about them online.

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  8. 2014 NE 15 matches 3 goals 6 assists (lost MLS Cup)
    2015 NE 19 matches 0 goals 0 assists
    2016 CO 13 matches 3 goals 3 assists (2nd best record Western Finals)
    47 matches 6 goals and 9 assists

    Acosta 78 matches 5 goals 7 assists
    McCarty 101 matches 7 goals 16 assists
    Bradley 75 matches 9 goals 15 assists
    Nagbe 98 matches 7 goals 19 assists

    When healthy the last three season he’s been worthy of his spot, I think its too early to tell what his level is this season. The glaring area that is missing in his stat line compared to these four is games played, he just hasn’t stayed healthy.

    I think he does work better in a 5 man midfield, but when 3 of your 5 best players are center strikers that would make a 5 man midfield difficult to field.

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    • While we’re looking at stats, It would be interesting to compare the won/loss records of NE and Colorado in the year before and after Jones joined them. For someone who is supposedly impossible to play with, he sure has a knack for making teams better.

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  9. ” I say ‘Wait a minute! When we play the big tournament, I am always the best player on the field for this country,’”

    He seems to have a very high opinion of himself. Yeah, he doesn’t command the same respect as Howard or Dempsey because he’s primarily known for dirty play.

    This interview will surely endear him to the US teammates.

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    • Well, he’s not wrong but you certainly are. His statement that you chose to highlight is incredibly accurate, and I find it amusing you deem it to be divisive. Sure, if it were inaccurate it might be, but seeing that he has, likely, endeared himself to the staff (all three regimes) and entire pool with his availability, hard work and overall ability I think he’s earned the right to make a statement of fact. That’s the way teams work. You earn your place, and right to speak.

      I find it ironic you also made reference to Tim Howard and made the effort to talk discredit Jones ability to endear himself within a team. Yes, that Tim Howard that questioned the heart and professionalism of his dual-national teammates, and that Tim Howard who blantantly lied in a book about respected veteran Brad Friedel.

      Only people who question Jones professionalism also believe this misconception that Jones is “dirty”. Luckily thats a small demographic, but unfortunately, its comprised of the same demographic that believes Jones has been the issue with the midfield while ignoring the real liability: Michael Bradley.

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      • “I think he’s earned the right to make a statement of fact.”

        Opinions are not facts Old School. You could make an argument that perhaps he was the best (or at least one of the best) during the 2014 World Cup, but that’s it. His claim that he’s been the best at every tournament or big game is off. Just like what you believe a fact to be is way off. And I am as big of a fan of Jones as anyone.

      • Well, yea. Of course.

        Admittedly though, it was a broad statement, but for discussion sake: What players have been better than him during tournaments since he’s been capped? If he isn’t the best,

        Clint Dempsey is definitely in that discussion for a Gold Cup or two since then. Beyond that I struggle to place any notable player that has stood out as much as those two. I’d have a hard time conceeding he hasn’t been in the discussion which essentially makes his point (and mine).

      • In the Jones era, which started basically before the 2010 World Cup even though he ultimately missed that tournament due to injury, he has been one of our best players but just as inconsistent as anyone. Off the top of my head and just from memory (take it for what it is):
        2010 WC: Donovan the best,
        2011 GC: Jones scored 1 goal but Dempsey, Donovan, Altidore we’re the main contributors. Bradley also scored a goal.
        2013 GC: Donovan the man. Jones a part of WCQ.
        2014 WC: Jones one of the best if not the best.
        2015 GC: USA sucked but Dempsey the star with most goals.
        2015 Concacaf Cup playoff: Jones a non factor. Wood and Yedlin temporarily saved the day. Jones, Becks and Bradley get dominated in midfield.
        2016 Copa America: Dempsey, Wood and Brooks were the main forces for USMNT and most influential players for the team.

        I like Jones but he isn’t always the best player. Not true at all. He’s pumping out his chest way too much.

      • Interesting.

        I don’t remember Donovan being the MVP of our team much in recent memory. The 2010 WC you could argue Tim Howard was easily the best, and one of the best of the entire tournament for any squad. Beyond that I don’t have enough recollection to reference your suggestions.

        It seems like your pulling at strings on face value.

      • If you don’t remember then you don’t remember, but Donovan was the man during the 2010 World Cup, and he scored huge goals that kept us in games and allowed us to advance. The 2013 GC isn’t even up for debate, he was player of the tournament.

      • If you don’t remember then you don’t remember, but Donovan was the man during the 2010 World Cup, and he scored huge goals that kept us in games and allowed us to advance.

        Of course. I think those are etched in the memories of all USMNT fans.

        To clarify, Jones didn’t play in the 2010 World Cup so I’m not sure why that’s even being referenced. Seems I’m not the only one with a foggy memory.

      • Above i clearly acknowledged that Jones didn’t play in that World Cup, so no, not a foggy memory. “In the Jones era, which started basically before the 2010 World Cup even though he ultimately missed that tournament due to injury,…”.

        He was still part of our player pool at the time though so that’s why I started there.

  10. I think he struggles in a 4-4:2 with Bradley and would be more effective in a 4-5-1 which would give him a little more freedom to do what he does best and that is work sideline to sideline. The 3-5-2 against Mexico didn’t work but adding the extra true defender let’s him be him.

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  11. Kellyn Acosta, he does it week in and week out. Is he the 100% lock in the mid for the future, no, there’s a whole lot of guys pushing their way in and Jones needs to look at himself and ask if he’s hindering their progress for his last minute glory chances?

    Champions league games matter very little IMO, simply due to most of our players not having the proper CV to get a chance at teams who could get knocked out every year like the ones Jones played for.

    Agree with above, the Bradley-Jones combo is the real focus of criticism, not on Jones alone. The other part of that pairing has come under as much criticism in the past year, MB is always the focus of sideline stat counters. He gives up possession too easily, gets caught on the ball and gets caught pushing too far forward.

    For me it’s easy to see JJ o the bench, if he’s with the team at all in 2018. Going forward, MB won’t be around past 2020 in large capacity either.

    TLDR: it’s not all Jones, but that 35 age is a major point, even more so with some very talented kids behind him.

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    • Kellyn Acosta, he does it week in and week out. Is he the 100% lock in the mid for the future

      100% lock?

      There’s a long list of players that fans have made similiar statements about. Would we like to see it? Absolutely. However, let’s see him actually earn a place on the roster, let alone starting line-up, before we anoint him or anyone else with this type of rhetoric, please.

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  12. he’s maybe the best player the usmnt has ever had—about 3 years ago. which, it so happens, is also the most recent time he was in the champions league.

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    • “he’s maybe the best player the usmnt has ever had” – No way. Definitely not. You can maybe put him in the top 15 or 20 all-time, and argue where exactly he falls, but not even close to best ever. His lack of technical skill on the ball automatically disqualifies him, and I am a huge Jones fan.

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      • I don’t mean that he lacks technical skill on the ball altogether. I mean compared to some of the other players he’d be competing against for ‘best ever’ he lacks technical skill.

      • Honestly it’s hard to do it off the top of my head.. but the easy ones are Donovan, Dempsey, Reyna, Ramos, Friedel, Howard, Keller. Those are clearly ahead of Jones, and I’m probably forgetting a few. Then you get into McBride, Onyewu, Bradley, Beasley, Lallas, etc etc which are all players you can argue that are better or in the conversation with Jones. Once again I’m sure I an forgetting a bunch (especially from 1994 to 2002). We all suffer from recency bias when it comes to debates like these. But the bottom line is that it’s hard to even have Jones in the conversation for best ever. Let’s leave it at Top 15.

      • Along those same lines.. if you compare Jones only to players that are still active, can you even say he is the best overall only comparing him to them?

        Dempsey? No. Is Jones better than Howard, Altidore, Bradley, Beasley? There is probably a lot of “no” in there, maybe some “yes” depending on people’s taste. Jones doesn’t belong in any ‘all-time best USMNT player” conversation.

      • Big Red? Gooch? That’s hyperbolic rose-tinted glasses if I’ve ever seen them. Based on your list I think the point remains Jones isn’t far from being the top, and he certainly isn’t near the bottom Top 20, or 14-19.

      • Gooch was sought out and purchased by a major/top club, AC Milan. And AC Milan was still a top club back then, not like now. That’s something that can’t be said of many USMNT players, and can’t be said of Jones. You are forgetting how good Gooch was. Not hyperbole at all.

      • “We all suffer from recency bias when it comes to debates like these.”

        i’ve actually noticed the opposite, with people viewing the 2002 team through sepia-tinted nostalgia, as if they didn’t dramatically over-achieve. pope, reyna, o’brien, beasley, and donovan were probably the only field* players on that team who peaked close to jones’s level, but none of them were really jones-type players, so it’s hard to make a straight comparison. and of those, arguably only reyna played at a high club level for as long as jones did.

        and it’s just reality that the vast majority of our best players have come in the last two decades. we had some good players before then—hugo perez comes to mind—but they were few and far between.

        for the rest:

        mcbride was a great one-trick pony, but he’d be a stretch to see the field for us today, and ramos would probably be 4th or 5th on our current center mid depth chart.

        i think bradley at his peak was up there, but his peak didn’t last too long. (i’m an mls fan—well, actually, i couldn’t care less about the league as an entity, just my dcu—but it’s impossible to ignore how bradley’s decline has so closely coincided with his move to toronto.)

        deuce is, like jones, maybe our greatest ever player—again, he and jones don’t play the same role, so it’s hard to say definitively.

        gooch was the same story as mcbride—great at one thing, and i believe (hope?) that we’ve evolved beyond him now.

        i’m assuming you included lalas as a joke.

        *guess i should’ve clarified in my original statement that i’m not including goalkeepers—it’s kind of useless to compare them with other positions.

      • Gooch was sought out and purchased by a major/top club, AC Milan

        Yea, if I recall correctly they got him on a free transfer and were throwing everything they could against the wall to see what stuck. Prior to his injury, it was absolutely clear he wouldn’t see the pitch in the pre-season as there was a huge gulf in class between him and his competition: Thiago Silva.

        Italian clubs are historically frugal, and while I celebrated Gooch’s move to AC Milan, it’s barely a footnote in his career and a move that ended with him offering to play for free. That entire situation was embarrassing.

        I absolutely loved Onyewu but at his peak he wasn’t anywhere near the Top 10 players produced by this country.

      • You are forgetting that he (Gooch) allegedly roughed up Zlatan in an actual fight. Extra bonus points for that!

        Ah and I completely forgot to bring up Cherundolo. He’s somewhere in there also in the top 10, top 15.

        Agree to disagree, by in my opinion no way is Jones in the best ever conversation.

      • Yup, I agree. Jermaine was good for us because of his aggression and his pace/endurance. His technical skills were not better then a Donovan or a Kasey Keller. I will say this, we wouldn’t have lost in T&T with him on the team. His spirit alone would have raised the game of our entire team. Now we have to rebuild with the younger generation. It would be nice to give players like Jones, Dempsey, Bradley, etc. a proper send-off, as long as it isn’t on the pitch. Let the younger generation take us forward, and only use our best veterans in the coming friendlies (Cameron, Besler, Johnson). The vets who let us down against T&T should never be allowed to play for the USMNT again.

  13. First off, I like that he still has a fire in his belly. That’s an essential attribute for all USMNT players. But I don’t think anyone has ever questioned his desire. He still wants to play and nothing he has done on the field shows that he has lost that fire.

    Second, yes, there have been a growing movement (amont SBI posters, at least) for our team to move on past Jones and bring in the next generation of CM. But JJ is wrong that US fans blame him for bad team performances. We do, however, blame the failed Bradley-Jones tandem, but that’s as much on Bradley and even more on the coaches (JK and Bruce). The tandem has produced some great games but, on the balance, against teams that we should be beating more easily, that tandem has been a disappointment.

    I’m a little bothered by JJ throwing his record around. By my count, he hasn’t played a Champions League game in at least 3 years. And he hasn’t been mentioned as a finalist for MVP ever since he joined MLS. Is he still able to help USMNT? Of course. Should he be an automatic starter? I don’t think so, but neither should Bradley. Jones was our best player at WC 2014 and one of our best at Copa 2016. No one is taking that away from him. But he did not look again against Mexico, CR and Panama. That’s just a reality.

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    • This is the point. It is the pairing and the current system that doesn’t work to his skill set. I don’t think people give a crap about where he was born or doubt his loyalty. It is about what is best for the team and I think he still has value but it may be off the bench for the last 15 minutes to close out a game or a starter if we move to a 4-5-1 (don’t recommend now). He also isn’t the US legend like Dempsey or Howard as he puts it because he played in one World Cup for us. Dempsey has played in 3 World Cups and Howard has played in 2 with one of the most epic performances of a generation.

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      • I agree. At his age he would have made a great sub to protect a lead and see off the game. He would have also made a great mentor to the younger players, but instead Bruce chose Wondo & Beasley??? Played Zusi over Chandler when Yedlin was injured??? Jermaine’s remarks in the past day or so were spot on. Maybe he could have left Jordan Morris’ name out of the discussion but he didn’t say anything nasty or untrue and was using it as an example to show the weak mindset of some of our national team players. No one from the MLS should get an automatic spot over our guys playing first-tier football in the best European leagues. Gonzo (Liga MX) played and lost us the cup while Geoff Cameron was sitting on the bench. That is literally criminal and it resulted in us losing out on our first world cup since 1986.

  14. If he doesn’t like the criticism maybe he needs to play for his native Germany… that’s right, they wouldn’t take you in. How about you say thanks and keep your mouth shut….and grow a pair while you’re at it.

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    • He dude doesn’t need to shut up. He’s giving voice to what he perceives to be the reality.

      I’m glad that he’s playing for us. I appreciate his passion and his commitment. I happen to disagree with him about being under the microscope more than some other guys on the squad just because he’s German American. Could it be a factor–it might be. I honestly don’t know.

      I just know that people destroy Bradley after some games. People question Bedoya and don’t get me started on guys like Zuzi. I light up Orozco and Castillo and some other guys who were getting call ups from Klinsy.

      Guys catch heat when fans don’t think that they are performing up to the level that is required. Again, I go back rob bradley. Perfect example of a guy born here who a lot of US fans and media light up like a Christmas tree at times…

      Having said that, I’m still not sure that I would want JJ excluded. I’ll take his occasional hot headed behavior because I more or less agree with him on if we have anybody who is going to bring all of that sort of grit that he does along with the skills that he possesses.

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      • I think he’s referring more to what you hear from Soccer media, on message boards and the like you can find criticism for almost everyone. Just looking at the last three qualifiers he’s played in he probably did take more criticism than some others.

    • You are a horrible troll!!! Jones is a proud American! Jones has performed way better than Bradley in a USA mens shirt over the last 5 years. He does get criticized unfairly, people say he is 35 and he still has jets. Euro snobs think Schweinsteiger left Euro football early and he is 31 which I found laughable because that is not too young to leave. Jones is right he has been criticized unfairly and playing with Bradley regressed self does not help Jones stock.

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    • You’re an idiot Rob. Most players aren’t good enough for Die Mannschaft! Jones was definitely good enough for the USMNT. He brought pace, energy, and never backed down from a fight. Did you watch that game against Costa Rica at home in the hex? Pulisic was getting chopped down and hacked every time he touched the ball and we had no one on the pitch to put those Costa Ricans back in their place. If Jones had been there it would have been an entirely different game. We missed his presence down in T&T. He would have brought energy and a fighting spirit to the team. Instead we had Bradley and we played like we were drugged.

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  15. I don’t think that’s fair. If there’s any reason people would ask for his replacement it’s due to his age not his performance. Everyone knows and appreciates his contributions to the NT.

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    • If Jones had been playing against Costa Rica or T&T their players would have paid for beating up on Pulisic. Jermaine would have won his midfield battles and we’d be going to the world cup. His football was never pretty but it was damn effective. We need players who like to fight and we’re sadly lacking players like Jones.

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