Denmark v. USA

I cant say if Castillo is any good or not. I will say this - he played the ball quickly was not wasteful. He also tried to make a few runs off the ball, but there was no delivery to the forwards, and they couldnt hold the ball anyway so - for me - it is impossible to make an assessment.

This match was total crap and I am not sure anyone made a case for making the move out of MLS.

EJ simply needs to return home. Jozy was weak and slow. This may have been a great match for Ching... At least he could have held the ball up so we could transition into the attack.

All in all - this match depressed me.

 

It was friendly and the US were missing its three best players, however I feel the same way.

Two opportunities for players to step up and show they belong, and opportunities for El Bob to show he can adjust tactics while the big guns are missing, and in my opinion, everybody failed miserably.

 

Well, I'm gonna stretch my {currently pain-racked} neck out, here. Robbie Rogers did.

Please make note that BB had him playing on the right, again. With the Crew he isnt really that effective on the right, he works best on the left with Ekpo on the right.

I think Rogers will make the cut for the WC traveling team.

 

I finally finished watching this match. I just do not get it. How come every person that has any knowledge about the game understands that the international level is way too far above Clark's head. He is just not good enough. He is a tough MLS player, but it stops at that - he needs to develop skills and touch. Yes he covers a lot of ground, yes he can tackle hard and yes he can get a decent distance shot off every now and again. But, this is the international level, and he is exposed pretty much every time he plays. Unfortunately for Jr, he looks like a marginal player when Clark is next to him.

Jr needs a creative player next to him. He is much better passing short to the other CM or to the wings using the width (that is when he is also successful with his club). When he feels as though he has to take the offensive in the middle, it just does not work. He does not have the same skill set of a player like Benny - to involve the other players and create chances. Benny basically had to come inside to create things b/c there was no choice. This is then done at the expense of losing width on the left. Why? B/c Clark is lost and Jr is trying to do too much.

How come there was obvious success in the midfield play against Slovakia in terms of maintaining possession, but then we could not replicate it against Denmark. It wasn't like Denmark was excecuting this extraordinary CM play that would not allow it. BB has to maintain this fascination with Clark. I do not get it. It seems as though some things worked in the Slovakia game, but BB did not use it to build on for the Denmark match.

It was an awful match, and I came close to turning it off.

 

I can't stop thinking about this, so I have to get some other thoughts off my chest:

D
Frankie - you are done. Two footed challenges 40 yds out are senseless and lead to red cards. Poor touch is also unacceptable.
Spector - he is a valuable player for our D with the ability to play anywhere on the back line.
Boca - not the best game, but I know what you can do
Bornstein - I think he is a decent back up at the LB position
Mid
Holden - I am not sure what is happening here. I think that there is a potential confidence issue. He can play, but I do not want him to fall into the Sasha Syndrome of playing well against lesser competition.
Benny - it seemed like he was alone out there. Best touch on the ball by far. I actually felt bad for him - why does he have to pressure the keeper on a passback - where were our strikers?
Clark - uuuugggghhhhhh!!!!!
Jr. - I like Jr, but his play is exposed when paired with Clark. I was surprised by the substitution.
Forwards
Cunningham - way to pounce on the opportunity - nice left footed finish. Still needs more - Davies showed that speed can create a lot more opportunities, and I think he did not use it enough.
Jozy - what's wrong man? This is the time you are actually making the field (compared to Hull). Why are you not making the most of it? All this did was raise questions.

Now, I understand that our attack was anemic, and a good portion of it was the fact that we could not get any midfield play with any type of possession. But, I think these guys should have been on the same page in terms of applying pressure in the back. Whenever Jeffro applied some pressure, Jozy was not around and vice versa. EJ did not provide much of a change when he came in either. Matter of fact, it took me a while to figure out who Dax came in for b/c nothing was happening from Jozy anyway.

Subs
Rogers - keep pushing, refine the touch, develop a stronger move to use the speed on the wings.
EJ - maybe consider coming back to MLS
Castillo - played it safe - no real opportunity to show what he could do not only in terms of playing with the team, but also in the right position. I hope he is not lamenting the change.
Dax - same as the Slovakia match - safe linking
Goodsen - nice option in the back
Conrad - solid presence in the back, but...