For whatever the reason, the term "friendly" can be lumped together with diving (i.e. David Ngog) and the quantum physics intricacies of the offside rule as primary reasons why mainstream media types prefer to mock soccer, as opposed to caring about it.
What exactly is a "friendly" anyway? Why not call it an exhibition? Does it matter? Are we just splitting hairs?
By the same token, can we put any stock in Saturday's U.S. national team game against fellow 2010 World Cup participants Slovakia? Can we learn anything from the match (10 a.m., FSC) in Bratislava? Can a one-off match with a strange roster, missing four key starters (Landon Donovan, Tim Howard, Oguchi Onyewu and Charlie Davies) against a fairly competent team on European soil provide Bob Bradley any addition clues toward June 2010?
In the grand scheme of things, Saturday match, coupled with Wednesday's match in Denmark won't provide too many answers, instead likely raise more questions. Simply because "Player A" has a strong game in the grand scheme of things that's mean all that much.
However, this match isn't a total throwaway.
Taking into consideration who isn't there, this provides a major opportunity for a couple key players to "step up." Not the most scientific term, but you get the point.
Specifically, with Donovan left back in the states for the MLS Playoffs, can the enigmatic Clint Dempsey assume an "alpha dog" status within the frame of the U.S. team. And if the Fulham-man can't, how about Michael Bradley, as the match against the hard-charging Slovaks seems tailor-made to his unique skill set.
We've all seen this team take its cues from Donovan, so at the very least it would be nice to see somebody assume the leadership reigns, or be a guy the fringe players can lean.
There's no need to rehash the ups-and-downs of Dempsey in a U.S. shirt. We've seen him lope through matches, only to spring up with a key goal. We've seen him performance as a key cog week-in, week-out at Fulham, yet we've seen him drift into the periphery with the U.S.
So with Stuart Holden on MLS duty, too, the right midfield position will once again Dempsey's to either make his own, or put into question. In that spot, Dempsey remains a contradiction. On the one hand, the preferred 4-4-2 adopted by Bob Bradley needs to remain fairly rigid, yet for the team to succeed, Bradley needs his players to be at the tops of their games. Dempsey, at his best, is a one-on-one soloist, which gets the team in trouble when he drifts away from his spot on the right. Yet, again, we've seen Dempsey thrive in the role at Fulham.
It doesn't make sense.
Ideally, the best we've seen from Dempsey is as a forward, or dropping right behind one.
As fate would have it, with Davies' status for 2010 unlikely, for this particular match Bob Bradley has brought in guys like Eddie Johnson and Jeff Cunningham, who need to see the field to figure out if they're worth considering for the next seven months, meaning Dempsey likely can't play in that position vs. Slovakia.
Is it a Catch-22? Or better yet, a Catch-Double Deuce?
Other stuff:
* From a strategy standpoint, does Bradley the Elder stick with his usual 4-4-2 formation and plug in replacements for the guys who aren't there, or does he tailor the lineup to the players?
Since the game doesn't mean too much
* Not too long ago it seemed like the U.S. had plenty of defensive depth. Then Onyewu and Jay DeMerit got hurt, meaning Carlos Bocanegra has to shift back into the middle.
Against Slovakia, it serves the best interests of the team that Chad Marshall, Clarence Goodson and maybe even Jimmy Conrad get at least a half of action. At least one of these guys needs to distinguish himself as a viable option should either Onyewu, or less likely, DeMerit can't play in South Africa, or isn't up to match speed.
* Kind of confused why Bradley called in Steve Cherundolo, Frankie Hejduk, Jonathan Spector, Heath Pearce and Jonathan Bornstein. Even if you split the halves like an AYSO game, there's an odd-man out. It would be good to see if Spector could be effective on the left, but Bradley seems adverse to trying it.
* Can Jozy Altidore once again step into a U.S. shirt after sporadic European playing time and provide a solid effort? We'll at least see if Jozy has gotten any stronger while at Hull City if he has to clash against Martin Skrtel.
* Bradley didn't give himself too many options in the midfield. You The Younger starts in one of the slot, but then who? 90 minutes from Benny Feilhaber? If not, are Sacha Kljestan and or Dax McCarthy capable of standing in and not embarrassing themselves?
* Let's hope Brad Guzan doesn't yell at the defense like Tim Howard. There's a chance he could see plenty of shots.
* I'm curious to see Slovakia in action. Obviously they don't have too many "name" players. How much stock do we place in finishing atop a group featuring Slovenia (second place), the Czech Republic, Poland, Northern Ireland and San Marino? Basically, if Slovakia good, or did the Czechs and Poles both backslide following each nation qualifying for the 2006 World Cup and 2008 Euro.
Is the job done by coach Vladimír Weiss something that the U.S. should try to emulate? Obviously he instilled a sense of identity in the Slovaks and made the best out of a team that's not over-flowing withe elite talent.
* By the same token, Slovakia qualifying for the World Cup dispels the notion that you need players collecting checks from the top clubs in Europe. Aside from Skrtel at Liverpool, none of the clubs the Slovak players play on leap off the page. Current leading scorer Robert Vittek, for example, is now at middling Ligue 1 club Lille after a spell at Nuremberg.
Slovakia, it would seem, proves that a disciplined team can rise above individual talent. And Saturday, from a straight talent standpoint, the U.S. and Slovakia are on fairly equal terms.
Lineup guess:
Nearly impossible to guess, either way expect Bradley to make the most of his subs. I'll think he goes conventional in the first half, at least.
GK -- Guzan
DEF -- Cherundolo -- Marshall -- Bocenegra -- Bornstein
MID -- Dempsey -- Feilhaber -- Bradley -- Rogers
FOR -- Alitore -- Cunningham
Closing thoughts:
Whatever happens, this isn't a game to make bold declarations after. If anything, it'll be worth observing the individual players and see if anyone jumps out and demands to be accounted for.
Win, lose or draw, it should be fun to watch a U.S. game without any pressure on it.
Who knows, maybe we'll be pleasantly surprised.
What exactly is a "friendly" anyway? Why not call it an exhibition? Does it matter? Are we just splitting hairs?
By the same token, can we put any stock in Saturday's U.S. national team game against fellow 2010 World Cup participants Slovakia? Can we learn anything from the match (10 a.m., FSC) in Bratislava? Can a one-off match with a strange roster, missing four key starters (Landon Donovan, Tim Howard, Oguchi Onyewu and Charlie Davies) against a fairly competent team on European soil provide Bob Bradley any addition clues toward June 2010?
In the grand scheme of things, Saturday match, coupled with Wednesday's match in Denmark won't provide too many answers, instead likely raise more questions. Simply because "Player A" has a strong game in the grand scheme of things that's mean all that much.
However, this match isn't a total throwaway.
Taking into consideration who isn't there, this provides a major opportunity for a couple key players to "step up." Not the most scientific term, but you get the point.
Specifically, with Donovan left back in the states for the MLS Playoffs, can the enigmatic Clint Dempsey assume an "alpha dog" status within the frame of the U.S. team. And if the Fulham-man can't, how about Michael Bradley, as the match against the hard-charging Slovaks seems tailor-made to his unique skill set.
We've all seen this team take its cues from Donovan, so at the very least it would be nice to see somebody assume the leadership reigns, or be a guy the fringe players can lean.
There's no need to rehash the ups-and-downs of Dempsey in a U.S. shirt. We've seen him lope through matches, only to spring up with a key goal. We've seen him performance as a key cog week-in, week-out at Fulham, yet we've seen him drift into the periphery with the U.S.
So with Stuart Holden on MLS duty, too, the right midfield position will once again Dempsey's to either make his own, or put into question. In that spot, Dempsey remains a contradiction. On the one hand, the preferred 4-4-2 adopted by Bob Bradley needs to remain fairly rigid, yet for the team to succeed, Bradley needs his players to be at the tops of their games. Dempsey, at his best, is a one-on-one soloist, which gets the team in trouble when he drifts away from his spot on the right. Yet, again, we've seen Dempsey thrive in the role at Fulham.
It doesn't make sense.
Ideally, the best we've seen from Dempsey is as a forward, or dropping right behind one.
As fate would have it, with Davies' status for 2010 unlikely, for this particular match Bob Bradley has brought in guys like Eddie Johnson and Jeff Cunningham, who need to see the field to figure out if they're worth considering for the next seven months, meaning Dempsey likely can't play in that position vs. Slovakia.
Is it a Catch-22? Or better yet, a Catch-Double Deuce?
Other stuff:
* From a strategy standpoint, does Bradley the Elder stick with his usual 4-4-2 formation and plug in replacements for the guys who aren't there, or does he tailor the lineup to the players?
Since the game doesn't mean too much
* Not too long ago it seemed like the U.S. had plenty of defensive depth. Then Onyewu and Jay DeMerit got hurt, meaning Carlos Bocanegra has to shift back into the middle.
Against Slovakia, it serves the best interests of the team that Chad Marshall, Clarence Goodson and maybe even Jimmy Conrad get at least a half of action. At least one of these guys needs to distinguish himself as a viable option should either Onyewu, or less likely, DeMerit can't play in South Africa, or isn't up to match speed.
* Kind of confused why Bradley called in Steve Cherundolo, Frankie Hejduk, Jonathan Spector, Heath Pearce and Jonathan Bornstein. Even if you split the halves like an AYSO game, there's an odd-man out. It would be good to see if Spector could be effective on the left, but Bradley seems adverse to trying it.
* Can Jozy Altidore once again step into a U.S. shirt after sporadic European playing time and provide a solid effort? We'll at least see if Jozy has gotten any stronger while at Hull City if he has to clash against Martin Skrtel.
* Bradley didn't give himself too many options in the midfield. You The Younger starts in one of the slot, but then who? 90 minutes from Benny Feilhaber? If not, are Sacha Kljestan and or Dax McCarthy capable of standing in and not embarrassing themselves?
* Let's hope Brad Guzan doesn't yell at the defense like Tim Howard. There's a chance he could see plenty of shots.
* I'm curious to see Slovakia in action. Obviously they don't have too many "name" players. How much stock do we place in finishing atop a group featuring Slovenia (second place), the Czech Republic, Poland, Northern Ireland and San Marino? Basically, if Slovakia good, or did the Czechs and Poles both backslide following each nation qualifying for the 2006 World Cup and 2008 Euro.
Is the job done by coach Vladimír Weiss something that the U.S. should try to emulate? Obviously he instilled a sense of identity in the Slovaks and made the best out of a team that's not over-flowing withe elite talent.
* By the same token, Slovakia qualifying for the World Cup dispels the notion that you need players collecting checks from the top clubs in Europe. Aside from Skrtel at Liverpool, none of the clubs the Slovak players play on leap off the page. Current leading scorer Robert Vittek, for example, is now at middling Ligue 1 club Lille after a spell at Nuremberg.
Slovakia, it would seem, proves that a disciplined team can rise above individual talent. And Saturday, from a straight talent standpoint, the U.S. and Slovakia are on fairly equal terms.
Lineup guess:
Nearly impossible to guess, either way expect Bradley to make the most of his subs. I'll think he goes conventional in the first half, at least.
GK -- Guzan
DEF -- Cherundolo -- Marshall -- Bocenegra -- Bornstein
MID -- Dempsey -- Feilhaber -- Bradley -- Rogers
FOR -- Alitore -- Cunningham
Closing thoughts:
Whatever happens, this isn't a game to make bold declarations after. If anything, it'll be worth observing the individual players and see if anyone jumps out and demands to be accounted for.
Win, lose or draw, it should be fun to watch a U.S. game without any pressure on it.
Who knows, maybe we'll be pleasantly surprised.
Labels: bob bradley, clint dempsey, Friendlies, Soccer, USMNT
Slovakia has made it this far with, as you wrote "a disciplined team can rise above individual talent." That has been the US strategy for years in getting out of CONCACAF. The fact that our players were physically very fit (at least compared to the local competition) and played the coach's strategy even if things got tough was enough to push us through. Hell, it still is. That "disciplined" approach is not, however, enough to move the USMNT much higher up the world soccer ladder. It is likely to not be enough to get us out of the group in South Africa - unless we get a massively luck draw.
The next 'leap' the US has to make (if it ever makes it at all) is a lot tougher than the last one. Slovakia and the USMNT are in similar boats - but we will qualify every four years since CONCACAF is so weak and FIFA gives the region a generous allotment of spots in the WC Finals.
I am going to disagree with you on this point:
missing four key starters (Landon Donovan, Tim Howard, Oguchi Onyewu and Charlie Davies)
Lando and Timmay are 'missing' - Gooch and Davies are GONE. As far as the 2010 World Cup in South Africa is concerned, Charlie Davies and Onyewu simply don't exist. Period. There is no way those guys are playing next summer and while that is terrible for the players and unfortunate for the USMNT - it is reality.
Counting those two guys amongst the barely missed possibilities for South Africa is like calculating how good England might be if only George Best wasn't out missing.
Hey 30, not to be a dick, but Best was from Nothern Ireland...
Goog points otherwise.
This is likely to be the first and only time that Gooch and Davies are mentioned in the same breath with George Best. The fact that the analogy is apt probably says all you need to know about the USMNT's place in international soccer.
That's what I get for commenting drunk.