The U.S. Under-23 men’s national team continued its preparations for next summer’s Olympics, but struggled to end up on the winning end in a pair of November friendlies this past week.
Marko Mitrovic’s squad tied Iraq 1-1 on Nov. 18 before falling 1-0 on Tuesday to Morocco. Ben Cremaschi scored the lone goal for the Americans in their past of friendly matches while several players featured during the international break.
Cremaschi was among six USMNT U-23 players to go the distance against Iraq last week. Sporting KC’s John Pulskamp, Westerlo’s Bryan Reynolds, Philadelphia Union’s Nate Harriel, Bradford City’s Jonathan Tomkinson, and Venezia’s Tanner Tessmann were also among the players to play a full 90 minutes against Iraq.
Maximilian Dietz and Agustin Anello were among the players to feature off the bench.
https://x.com/USYNT/status/1725918600869957704?s=20
Only four players went the distance in Tuesday’s 1-0 defeat to Morocco. Chicago Fire goalkeeper Chris Brady got the nod between the posts while Dietz, Tomkinson, and New York Red Bulls fullback John Tolkin also logged 90 minutes apiece.
George Campbell and Esmir Bajraktarevic were among those to feature off the bench.
https://x.com/USYNT/status/1726993162995126660?s=20
The USMNT U-23’s will continue their Olympic preparations in 2024 ahead of a trip to Paris.
Not surprised when you don’t have any strikers in the players selected. Program has a real issue right now not producing goal scorers. Why I like Duncan Mcguire. Who I think will be the starting striker for this u23 team at the Olympics.
Passing the ball around only gets you so far. You have to have goal scorers and individual players who are going to make something happen.
the second part of your post gets at the issue better than the first. we may eventually get acosta (17G). we have jesus (12G), morris (11G), ebobisse (10G), nico (10G), balogun (3G), mighten (3G), ikoba (13G last season), AJ (9G), pepi (4G), pefok (4G), pukstas (4G), pulisic (4G), wright (4G), reyna, weah, and vazquez at our disposal. we also could try green, jedi, mckennie, dest, and musah as forwards. there are koleosho rumors. sargent will eventually be healthy. i don’t think we have either a striker or forward problem. we have a narrow-minded coach problem. we have a system issue where we pass the ball around the periphery and wayward cross rather than play the ball to striker feet or behind the defense. the striker is almost deliberately disconnected from buildup play and is hard to find when we “run the offense.” what team does that on purpose?
side point but part of the problem is also coaches (and associated fanboys running interference for them) who are over-obsessed with form of the moment as opposed to lasting talent.
I’m sure Orlando asked he not be included with the playoff fixture this weekend. Striker might also be a spot for an overage player. Should Sargent or Dike return to fitness, they might be good candidates as their clubs may try to showcase them for sale if they are not promoted. I thought maybe Matthew Hoppe would be included but maybe Middlesbrough said no.
my point is we have 2 excellent strikers being misused, as well as plenty of other 3rd/4th striker options, and good wings. personnel is not the problem. the tactics are the problem. the worst possible outcome is coming out of this weekend getting the silly idea the offense should be dest whacking crosses until jedi hits a diving header in. we tried that cross all weekend — scored it once.
to me it’s a big picture problem. what is it we are trying To Do? cause that was a third-rate opponent, admittedly perhaps on the rebound, but who we should have run off the field. i do not get what we are trying to do other than play periphery passing on the edges then hit low % crosses. and the defense remains leaky. you have to pick at least one of those, think through what exactly we are trying to accomplish, and get good at it, if you want to advance meaningfully. a team that can put up 4 goals a night. or a team that can pitch shutouts most nights. one, or the other.
related point, i felt good for jedi producing like he did, but What Offense was that within? like what reproduceable way of playing other than we’re whacking crosses in? the irony of jedi’s apt comment is it should cast shadows on his own performance. he played well, we looked clunky and advanced on aggregate. he has his finger on it. this needs to look and perform more turbocharged and then it needs to be what is everyone’s role in that concept.
personally i think it’s crazed when the offense is more about showcasing the wings than getting it to the 9.
IV: I think 2tone and I are just talking about the U23s.
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As for the NT two things need to happen, 1) the other players need to actually play the ball to the 9 early. 2) if you are going to make the 9 make the run to the line then you need to have someone take the space they are clearing. Until those things happen it doesn’t matter which of the 10 or so adequate to above average guys we are using.