While lashing Tim Ream, let's examine the real U.S. problem
by Steve Davis on Oct 12, 2011 9:56 AM EDT
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We shouldn’t be too surprised that the U.S. attack currently has all the potency of a spaghetti dinner.
First, there’s no Landon Donovan. Over the last few years, the U.S. attack is cut pretty much in half when Donovan hasn’t been around. His contributions to the U.S. effort have long been, in my opinion, routinely underrated. When he’s not around, the U.S. attack typically goes as stagnant as pond water.
Second, take a good look at the current pool of strikers. Four were listed for this pair of matches. Jozy Altidore was the bell cow, and that says a lot. (No disrespect intended; it is what it is.) He’s doing well in the Dutch Eredivisie, but his recent success represents only a small sample so far. Then there’s Juan Agudelo, a great prospect, but not much more at this point. There’s Teal Bunbury, who lives next door to Agudelo on Prospect Street, but in a lesser unit. Finally, there’s Edson Buddle, who plays in the German second tier for a team that most U.S. fans have never heard of.
A fearsome foursome, it isn’t.
(By the way, this isn’t analysis in hindsight. I said the same thing on two podcasts last week, the weekly SI.com podcast and one produced locally where I live along with veteran NBA scribe and longtime soccer supporter Marc Stein, Soccer Today.)
Oh, and let’s not forget that Tuesday’s U.S. attacking midfielder was Maurice Edu, a solid tackler and adequate passer, but a holding midfielder by trade and not someone who will ever be mistaken for a creative influence at the international level. (Remember, he was recently a U.S. experiment at center back.)
So, two goals in five games under Jurgen Klinsmann. That’s certainly not good enough. But looking at the current player pool, it shouldn’t be much of a shocker.
While you ponder the pool, g’head and have a gander at my U.S. player ratings last night, posted at SI.com. (Yes, Tim Ream got one of the lowest grades, a “3.” But he wasn’t the only one with such a low number. …)
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Way off base.
I think your analysis of Jozy is way off reality. And this isn’t in hindsight, I disagree from what you said on the SI Soccer Podcast, your SI player ratings and this blog. Jozy is not the problem. Last night he held the ball very well and provided nice one touch passing off the chest and head to oncoming players (when there were actually some of them), he had 16 passes compared to Juan with 9 and 1 give away compared to Juan with 5. He did well to act as an outlet for Shea to pass to and then penetrate down the wing, however, when the 2nd forward wants to play attacking midfield and the center midfield has no business playing in the final 3rd and when the opposite winger doesn’t know how to make back post runs (bc he is playing out of position) then the offense will sputter.
However, yes I agree they need Donovan back. Dempsey might be the superplus fuel that gets this team to 100 mph but Donovan is the actual engine to allow the team to run at all. I think this offense will be very potent with Shea-Demps-Donovan and Altidore up top. Who plays behind Dempsey I am not sure.
Couldn't agree more with jmcurto
Totally off base with the harsh criticisms of Altidore in light of his performances against Honduras and Ecuador. I am really not sure what game you watched last night, but Altidore was strong in hold-up play and his touches have showed a lot of improvement. He is not world class, but 16 completed passes to 3 uncompleted passes, the pressing he did on the defense, and his rapport with Duece and Shea obviously at a higher level than it has been in the past. I do agree with Steve in that I think that Donovan being out does hamstring the offense. Once he is back and we can play him on the right wing I would love to see Deuce in the role he played in the last two games with Shea on the left, Donovan on the right and Torres and Williams as the other center mids. Torres can play in his preferred position as a deep-lying playmaker and Williams (or Bradley or Edu or Beckermann or Clark or whoever the holding mid de jour is (hopefully not Clark imo)) can be our 6 and shield the backline. I have pretty much given up trying to rely on a healthy Stu Holden at this point. Every version of the USMNT since I have been old enough to follow it (I’m 27) has had a player like this. He is simply this USMNT’s version of John O’Brien and Claudio Reyna. Shows great quality but he’s perpetually injured (even if in Holden’s case it seems to be bad luck more than a natural inclination to injury).
You make some good points ...
So I’ll go back and watch again. I paid particular attention last night to the back line and to Danny Williams, so it’s certainly possible I missed something along the way. It has happened before. All that said … Look, hold-up play is nice and all. But as I’ve said before: At some point, I like to my strikers to, ya know, strike. Altidore had the one early chance and … how many more? Going back over four matches as a starter under Klinsmann, how many chances did he really latch onto? I’m struggling to see how a few hold-up connections (but many more opportunities missed) makes him any more of a threat right now than, say, Brian Ching or Chris Wondolowski could be? Look, I’m not that down on the guy. He’s still a developing forward, and his age alone makes him a better option than the guys I just mentioned. But I’m not giving him a pass, either. It’s big boy soccer. Strikers have to make chances and (in my opinion) combine with others around him better than he did last night. But that’s just my little ol’ opinion.
when everyone's healthy and on-form:
I’d love to see the following forward-midfield:
-———————Altidore—-Dempsey————-
Shea————————————————-Donovan
-———————-Holden————————————
-———————-Bradley———————————
Altidore would be the weakest of this group, but everyone else would be capable of playing multiple positions in this structure. A lot of interchanging can be a great way to spark offense. If everyone else is capable of scoring, maybe Josy can play a Emile-Heskey-like holding striker roll setting up the other guys.
by fennsk1 on Oct 12, 2011 6:47 PM EDT via mobile up reply actions
He has been playing a Heskey-like role. And like Heskey, he’s not scoring. Davis is right. We need a striker who strikes. I think Williams was better than Davis rated him. Give him time in this position. And how about trying a Dempsey-Donovan tandem up top?
by Runningcloud on Oct 13, 2011 10:18 AM EDT up reply actions
goals per game isnt the end-all-be-all
It’s easy to look at goals as the ultimate statistic for evaluating players especially forwards. But that approach looks past all of the good and bad in that player’s non-scoring actions on the pitch (and way over values the fluke goals). If a forward gets into good positions, but doesn’t get good service, are they doing a bad job? If they hold the ball and distribute when action and/or strategy dictate they do so, is that a bad reflection on them?
by fennsk1 on Oct 13, 2011 1:37 PM EDT via mobile up reply actions
Ream should be done for now
He hasnt shown much and is overrated. Give him some time. He needs to be out of the picture for a while. Let him earn his way back on. We dont want him to become another US whipping boy.
His confidence is in the crapper right now
Marquez threw him under the bus just a few weeks ago to cover up his own failings. Now he’s had a couple of poor outings for the national team. The kid needs a break to regain his confidence and overcome this sophomore slump. He has the skills though so I don’t want to see him removed from the player pool permanently.
The SAH Links Guy
his play was in the crapper even before marquez threw him under the bus
the sophomore slump has been noticeable for a long time now this season. Marquez’s behavior certainly doesn’t help the situation.
Win or lose, we'll always be there for you.
by johnjahafanclub on Oct 12, 2011 2:59 PM EDT up reply actions
To be fair....
…he’s not a very good defender. He is tall. He is an above average passer. He is not so good at the primary objective of the position he plays – keeping the other team from scoring. Maybe he will get better in a few years…could be one to look for in 2018.
Tim Ream deserves a PERFECT TEN rating
the guy is clearly a Mexican sleeper agent trained by Cuatemoc Blanco in Azteca. He executed his mission with surgical precision.
Win or lose, we'll always be there for you.
by johnjahafanclub on Oct 12, 2011 3:09 PM EDT reply actions
all i'm saying is let's take an objective look at the evidence
Win or lose, we'll always be there for you.
by johnjahafanclub on Oct 12, 2011 5:56 PM EDT up reply actions
Bob Bradley didn't have any different strikers than Klinsmann does
Yet, the fact remains that his teams scored goals. Plenty of goals, actually. People assume because of his demeanor that he’s a stodgy, defense-first coach. Nothing could be further from the truth.
Going into the 2010 World Cup, Nate Silver ranked the US team 9th in the world on offense and 29th on defense. The team could score— a lot— despite having a striker pool so shallow that Edson Buddle looked like a plausible option, as long as you had him lie in it face down. The defense wasn’t so hot (conceding a goal in every Hexagonal match played against teams not ending in “and Tobago” will do that), but the scoring was there.
I’d say the problem is system, not personnel. (Though, in fairness, the team was sucking pond water earlier in the year under Bradley, too, so it may just be a general down patch.) Klinsmann wants to play possession soccer, but he’s got a player pool that is set up to be at its best when the ball is ping-ponging around the pitch randomly. I think it’s a mismatch of personnel and coach.
Perhaps one day it won’t be, but I have my doubts— I think players basically are who they are, coaching does very little to change them, and you’re far better off playing to your strengths than trying to turn guys into something they’re not.
"We don't want our people to be preoccupied with seminude, crazy men jumping up and down who are chasing an inflated object," said Sheik Mohamed Osman Arus, head of operations for the Hizbul Islam insurgent group.
Forgot that 2-0 Mexico qualifier
Still, three clean sheets in ten games against a fairly mediocre set of teams is unimpressive.
"We don't want our people to be preoccupied with seminude, crazy men jumping up and down who are chasing an inflated object," said Sheik Mohamed Osman Arus, head of operations for the Hizbul Islam insurgent group.
