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Pulisic, Reyna, Musah headline Concacaf Nations League Finals Best XI

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The U.S. men’s national team was heavily represented in Monday’s Best XI for the Concacaf Nations League Finals.

Christian Pulisic, Gio Reyna, and Yunus Musah headlined the six USMNT players named to the all-tournament team, Concacaf announced Monday. Matt Turner, Chris Richards, and Folarin Balogun were also chosen to the XI after the USMNT defeated Canada 2-0 in Sunday’s Nations League Final.

Canada had three players named to the Best XI, while Mexico and Panama each had one apiece.

Pulisic scored twice in last week’s 3-0 semifinal victory over Mexico and started in both matches overall. The USMNT captain was also named Player of the Tournament, being awarded the Golden Ball award.

Reyna also started in both matches during the Final Four, registering two assists in Sunday’s final victory. The 20-year-old only played 45 minutes due to a calf injury, but earned Man of the Match honors for his playmaking abilities and distribution.

Musah excelled in midfield for the USMNT, totaling 180 minutes against Mexico and Canada. He drew four fouls, made four clearances, and won 10 of his 11 duels against the Canadians.

Balogun and Richards both scored their first senior goals in Sunday’s triumph against Canada. Balogun delivered a promising debut against El Tri while Richards helped the USMNT register back-to-back shutouts on the defensive end.

Turner earned the Nations League Golden Glove award after registering clean sheets against Mexico and Canada. He made four saves against Canada and one against Mexico as he continues to hold the No. 1 job.

Here’s a closer look at the full Best XI:


Concacaf Nations League Finals Best XI


Goalkeeper: Matt Turner (USMNT)

Defenders: Chris Richards (USMNT), Jesus Gallardo (Mexico), Steven Vitoria (Canada)

Midfielders: Yunus Musah (USMNT), Adalberto Carrasquilla (Panama), Gio Reyna (USMNT), Alphonso Davies (Canada)

Forwards: Christian Pulisic (USMNT), Folarin Balogun (USMNT), Jonathan David (Canada)

Comments

  1. How can i cancel my subscription?

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    Reply
  2. Dual national panic. English FA is going after Noel Buck. This kid has high potential as an attacking 8. Really believe he will be on our Olympic team.

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  3. Gary,

    There’s a real good chance that every EPL team ( except Leeds) has 2-3 centerbacks who could start for the USMNT.

    EPL teams have demanding schedules and are set up for some form of rotation, and some teams rotate more than others.

    Richards has the talent but every situation is different. Had he been at Leeds instead of Palace, for example, he probably would have been playing more.

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    • If he was at Leeds they probably don’t get relegated. They’re CBs we’re abysmal certainly could have saved them 5 pts, that’s only 3 goals.

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    • Richards showed his mettle at Hoffenheim. It’s not like he just came from MLS into the Prem. I have other interests than soccer, so I don ‘t devote all my time to it like some do. But, I have been watching EPL games for about 20 years, focusing on teams that use Americans. My all-time favorite club team is Arsenal when they went undefeated. So, I am well aware of the quality in that league.

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      • Short cup run kept their schedule pretty manageable too. Not a lot of rotation needed for your CBs when you aren’t playing midweek matches. I think he was always brought in to replace Guehi when he’s sold. He should be fine.

      • “Richards showed his mettle at Hoffenheim. It’s not like he just came from MLS into the Prem………… So, I am well aware of the quality in that league.”

        Yes, but it’s not just about quality.

        In American sport we call it a numbers game. “You can play center back for us but the other two guys cost us more and are just as good as you so they play ahead of you. But we play a lot of games , they could get hurt or just plain lose form, so stay ready.

        And showing well in the BL doesn’t always translate to the EPL. See Havertz, K,, Pulisic, C. Werner , T., Sancho, J. etc., a few examples of BL stars who have proven to be underwhelming in the EPL.

        What I’m getting at is most of the guys in the top 5 leagues have the quality and the talent to play in the EPL but they have to be lucky enough to find the right club.

        CP10 can play in the EPL but Chelsea is not the right “fit” for him. If Richards could get himself to the right EPL club, of course he has the talent to play more often than he does now. But it would seem that Palace is not that club at this time.

        Being a regular at ANY EPL club is real difficult to do for any player from any country.

        That’s why I can’t take Mr IV seriously when he regularly pisses all over Ream and Antonee.

  4. All of the potential is finally becoming a testament to results. The player pool is building in quality, depth, and results. Somewhat bold but the starting lineup vs Mexico the US have the better players at each position in all of CONCACAF. With the exception of Alphonse Davies and when the US starts either Miles Robinson or Zimmerman. However, that lineup is fragile in depth and style of players being subbed in. De la Torre is not up to the speed of the game physically and ball retention. He does not hold onto the ball and gets taken off the ball against quality teams. Aaronson is a high energy chase and press player but falls off with link up play and holding the ball. Scally got beat like a drum 1 vs 1 defending Davies and required team defending on his side. Although Davies is a top shelf global player. The US got compressed and defended the final 20 minutes versus Canada when Reyna went out. The staff changed the entire formation and style of play because they could not link up to play out of the back!
    Pulisic, Musah, Reyna, Turner, Richards, and Robinson are at an another level for CONCACAF. Yet with the exception of Robinson not top players on their club teams? Hope over the next few years they all establish themselves at club level and other players in the pool do the same

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    • I’ll say this about Luca, I watched him play Barcelona a couple weeks ago and he was totally up for and didn’t look out of place at all. I think he just had a poor game. He seems to be like the 6th CM, so he’s not beating out Yunus, Tyler, Wes, Gio, or Brendan. If you compare him to Sonora, Busio, AMorris, Acosta, he rates above those guys.

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    • In Scally’s defense, Davies is probably the fastest player in CONCACAF and is capable of torching players in just about any competition. I really doubt that Dest can keep up with him in a footrace either.

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  5. I was glad that Chris Richards started both games. Crystal Palace must have some great DB’s if Richards rarely plays. He looks awfully good to me. While Zimmerman and Miles Robinson looked good with Richards in the middle, I would still like to see another European CB like CCV or EPB given a chance to play with Richards.

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    • Guehi is thought to be the next England CB and Anderson started every match for Denmark in 2022. The odd ones are when one of those was injured or suspended and they’d start Tomkins. You don’t know maybe Chris had a slight injury or something so he dressed but wasn’t good for 90.

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    • Gary,

      There’s a real good chance that every EPL team ( except Leeds) has 2-3 centerbacks who could start for the USMNT.

      EPL teams have demanding schedules and are set up for some form of rotation, and some teams rotate more than others.

      Richards has the talent but every situation is different. Had he been at Leeds instead of Palace, for example, he probably would have been playing more.

      Reply
  6. I find it a lil interesting that they chose a 3-4-3 for the Best XI. We all know the best player & best GK award went to the US. Did you know LDT was 2nd in assist for this competition? Tops for the countries in league A. A Haitian player had 1 more and Haiti is a league B country. Did you know we had 3 players in the top 8 in scoring? Pepi & Jesus (tied @ 4g) had the most for league A countries. CP had 2g. Did you know that we had 3 players in the top 4 in assists? LDT (4), CP & Gio (tied-2). BA & LDT competed in 6 matches, which is more than any US player. Pretty durable!!

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    • Almost always use some sort of light defensive model for best XIs because offense puts up the numbers and are usually the big stars. 12 of our 19 total goals did come against Grenada. Fun way to finish after struggling offensively against El Salvador both home and away in the monsoon.

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  7. Jamaica bringing Bailey, Antonio, Pinnock, and Decordova-Reid to Gold Cup. Also some Championship regulars like Bell who played with Horvath at Luton. Also, up and comer Dujuan Richards who is headed to Chelsea (academy) in November when he turns 18.

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    • Jamaica always has some good individual players, but almost always is lacking in defense and team play. It’s like the whole is less than the sum of the individual parts.

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      • I’m not so sure this time. Only one domestic player and that’s the teenage “superstar” Richards. Their manager is the guy that took Iceland to the World Cup in 2018 so he’ll give keeping them organized a good shot. Of course, he’s 0-2-4 so far but he hasn’t had the EPL guys yet.

      • I thought Whitmore was a pretty good coach. You could tell he was trying hard to organize them and get them to play better defense. Yet, he was not ultimately successful. Maybe individuality is part of the Jamaica DNA. Because of their speed and athleticism, they are always capable of pulling an upset, especially if a better team overlooks them or lets down their defensive guard. We’ll see.

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