Indiana Vassilev comes on for Blaine Ferri.
I've only seen the Ghana game and this one, but Ferri hasn't been too impressive in CM.
I've only seen the Ghana game and this one, but Ferri hasn't been too impressive in CM.
USMNT: Watching From Outside The Arena
- Thread starter Titans Bastard
- Start date
Penalty call deep in stoppage time for England. The US was pushing forward and were punished on the counter-attack. Dest is issued the DOGSO red. Brewster converts it for the hat trick, which was the last kick of the game. 4-1 FT.
Overall a decent tournament for the U17s, who made it to the quarterfinals for the first time since 2005. There are some good players in this squad who look like solid prospects for the senior NT.
They didn't have the horses to compete with an elite U17 squad, which the current version of England looks to be. If they finished chances better and weren't missing a few key players they might have had a better shot, but England's team is just a cut above.
We need to follow up with a continuous flow of talent. Keep that pipeline full.
Overall a decent tournament for the U17s, who made it to the quarterfinals for the first time since 2005. There are some good players in this squad who look like solid prospects for the senior NT.
They didn't have the horses to compete with an elite U17 squad, which the current version of England looks to be. If they finished chances better and weren't missing a few key players they might have had a better shot, but England's team is just a cut above.
We need to follow up with a continuous flow of talent. Keep that pipeline full.
BTW, I wasn't impressed by Hackworth's choices today. He was hampered by a suspension and two unavailabilities, but the midfield was too weak with Durkin back at CB. He could have started Dest at RB, Watts or Shaver at CB, and moved Durkin up to DM, where he excelled against Ghana.
I've become a fan of Durkin, but his biggest weakness that I can see is that he's a bit slow. The soft midfield prone to giveaways left him chasing speedy English attackers too often, which doesn't place the defense or the team in position to succeed.
Hackworth isn't as bad as his U17 predecessor Richie Williams, but he's one of those guys who keeps getting one USSF job after another mostly because he's a known quantity. He didn't exactly impress when he was in charge of Philadelphia.
Since all of our past U17 cycles have included Bradenton residency, it's particularly egregious that the USSF hasn't worked harder to find the best coaches for what is ostensibly a group of our best young talent. Two years from age 15-17 is lot of important development time.
Now that Bradenton is closed, the impact of the U17 manager on youth development won't be as significant, but I think it's important to chase the best managerial talent possible. There needs to be a top-down culture of accountability and ambition emanating from the federation.
I've become a fan of Durkin, but his biggest weakness that I can see is that he's a bit slow. The soft midfield prone to giveaways left him chasing speedy English attackers too often, which doesn't place the defense or the team in position to succeed.
Hackworth isn't as bad as his U17 predecessor Richie Williams, but he's one of those guys who keeps getting one USSF job after another mostly because he's a known quantity. He didn't exactly impress when he was in charge of Philadelphia.
Since all of our past U17 cycles have included Bradenton residency, it's particularly egregious that the USSF hasn't worked harder to find the best coaches for what is ostensibly a group of our best young talent. Two years from age 15-17 is lot of important development time.
Now that Bradenton is closed, the impact of the U17 manager on youth development won't be as significant, but I think it's important to chase the best managerial talent possible. There needs to be a top-down culture of accountability and ambition emanating from the federation.
Couldn't watch the game but really appreciate the recap posts, thanks a lot. Will be following this class very carefully and I hope they continue to grow. Some real bright spots.
I don't know. Maybe the J. League, but I'm hazy on the details of their ownership system.
There are a lot of legal issues to grapple with when it comes to the MLS ownership structure. MLS ownership groups own 1/X of the league (where X = number of teams) as well as having a stake in SUM. They also have the operating license for their individual club.
I do not think there will ever be pro/rel between MLS and another league. Any chance, however slim, of such a system would have to exist entirely under an MLS umbrella, with an MLS-run D2 league.
Are you saying bad idea, or more just irrelevant/unimportant? I thought the point about MLS Cup counter-scheduling against other American sports in May vs. December made sense. What, if any, is the downside (other than having to play January games in Boston, Seattle, etc) of switching?
I'm saying it's a bad idea.
1) MLS Cup going up against football isn't great. Having most of the season going up against the NFL, college football, NBA, NHL is worse. This is a net negative for TV ratings.
2) It's not just January games in Boston and Seattle. It's also December and February games and it's a problem in far more than just those two cities. Toronto, Montreal, Vancouver, Chicago, Minneapolis, Columbus, New York (x2), Philadelphia, KC, Boston, DC, Denver, and SLC all have lower average January highs than Seattle. If Seattle is where the weather starts to become a problem, it's a problem for 2/3 of the league.
If the Seattle/DC/Vancouver types were the extreme end of the spectrum, you can live with that. But everywhere else on the list gets damn cold. And the "European schedule" for cities with that climate is, in fact, a spring-fall schedule or a schedule with a lengthy mid-season break.
Remember, they do it in England but London also has the sort of climate where they shit their pants when it snows more than an inch.
MLS still generates a much higher percentage of revenue from tickets compared to other US leagues. This would definitely hurt ticket sales both because of the weather and because of the increased competition from other leagues/sports.
3) Soccer played at 30 F is almost always soccer that is lower quality and less entertaining than it would otherwise be.
On the winter calendar - maybe the retractable roof could come into play here. Most euro-style stadiums are all canopy and feel like big rooms - a fully covered roof isn’t all that different. Advances in groundskeeping make grass or hybrid fields feasible in these situations. Obviously many newer MLS stadia wouldn’t work with this model. But if it was a 15-year plan, spurred in part by the 2026 World Cup... you’d think capacity increases for key markets would dictate new stadia anyhow. Atlanta, not Philly, should be the ideal going forward.
I am for closed pro/rel a la J-League. Pro, for all intents and purposes, is already happening. Seattle, Portland, Minnesota, soon Cincy, etc. - good markets and clubs force themselves into the league. It’s the threat of Rel, currently nonexistent, that we’re missing. I do think some kind of reasonable closed system that included pro/rel would be better for fans and player development.
I am for closed pro/rel a la J-League. Pro, for all intents and purposes, is already happening. Seattle, Portland, Minnesota, soon Cincy, etc. - good markets and clubs force themselves into the league. It’s the threat of Rel, currently nonexistent, that we’re missing. I do think some kind of reasonable closed system that included pro/rel would be better for fans and player development.
Atlanta is a bit of a one-off: NFL owner built a new NFL stadium and started an MLS club to have more dates in the stadium. I don't think that's very replicable. Retractable roofs would double the prices of soccer-specific stadiums. One way they could do a fall/spring schedule is to have more teams in the south.
I don't think fall/spring is necessary for a number of reasons (one not mentioned is the fan base has a lot of kids.) I think the season just needs to be lengthened and the playoffs shortened. Start the season on Presidents Day; it's a day off for lots of people, and the only other sport that day is hockey. NFL is done, MLB hasn't started, and it's the day off after the NBA All-star game. They could have wall-to-wall games from noon to midnight. Then end the regular season in mid November.
I don't think fall/spring is necessary for a number of reasons (one not mentioned is the fan base has a lot of kids.) I think the season just needs to be lengthened and the playoffs shortened. Start the season on Presidents Day; it's a day off for lots of people, and the only other sport that day is hockey. NFL is done, MLB hasn't started, and it's the day off after the NBA All-star game. They could have wall-to-wall games from noon to midnight. Then end the regular season in mid November.
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I agree with TB about the calendar. It chafes me, because I think it disadvantages the US in international play, in global transfers and particularly in the CONCACAF Champions League. But the weight of such considerations pale in comparison to the advantage gained in not going up against 3 of the 4 major sports' regular seasons. The additional exposure MLS gets here because it plays in the summer is not to be understated.
On Pro/Rel, the question is whether USSF has any power at all to make MLS owners do something they don't want to do. My bet is, Gulati / Wynalda / whoever need MLS owners far more than they need him.
On Pro/Rel, the question is whether USSF has any power at all to make MLS owners do something they don't want to do. My bet is, Gulati / Wynalda / whoever need MLS owners far more than they need him.
http://www.ussoccer.com/stories/2017/10/24/13/15/20171024-news-mnt-dave-sarachan-to-coach-usa-vs-portugal-november-14-friendly
He coached the Chicago Fire from 2002-07, but has spent most of his career as an Arena deputy with DC (97-99), USMNT (99-02), LA (08-17), and USMNT (17).
What's more interesting is that this shows that Tab has cold feet about the interim job.
Sarachan is a particularly uninspired choice, but it sounds like it might just be for one game and he happens to already be on the payroll.
He coached the Chicago Fire from 2002-07, but has spent most of his career as an Arena deputy with DC (97-99), USMNT (99-02), LA (08-17), and USMNT (17).
What's more interesting is that this shows that Tab has cold feet about the interim job.
Makes sense, make an assistant not being considered for the position the interim. That lets the search committee have a clean slate. Honestly they can wait until the Presidential election is over to appoint someone permanently.
Geography is a problem. The countries we're comparing ourselves to are physically about the size of Pennysylvania or Alabama. MLS works because it's on the scale of other US leagues, but the travel is difficult and expensive. It would be hard to justify the travel for second-tier or lower leagues. Even England divides its lower tiers into geography.
the one I always think of with amusement is the Puerto Rico to Edmonton trip in the NASL. I doubt that the entire gate comes close to covering the cost of the trip, not to mention the wear and tear on the team.
Brewster scored another hat trick in England's 3-1 win over Brazil.
England won the U20 World Cup earlier this year and is now in the final of the U17s. In UEFA play, they were semifinalists in the U21s, won the U19s, and were finalists at the U17s.
I guess England is good at player development now?
This has not been a good year for people who might theoretically have a large wager with their English brother-in-law regarding whether the U.S. will win a major international tournament before England.
Uh... There's only 3 things we can even possibly win (4 if you count guest participation at Copa America), and we won one of them this year. And one of the others seems likely to go away (Confed Cup). When's the last time England won its confederation championship? Or even made the Final?
So like Portland and Seattle?
I'd also seen some people (in other places) talk about taking a winter break for a few months to avoid the worst of the winter, but that won't work either because the off season is already so short. MLS Cup is in early December, and most teams are in full training by the middle of February. If they took December and January off then the preseason would begin basically when MLS Cup was going on.
The different calendar stinks, but it's better than any alternative.
Moving more to match the European schedule feels a bit cargo culty to me, where we'd be trying to build superficial similarities to top-level soccer countries rather than fixing the underlying issues of money and development that actually separate things.
Honestly, pro/rel feels a bit like that to me as well. It's a pretty compelling carrot & stick for forcing the spending of money and the investment in player development, but the money and development are the key things there, not pro/rel itself.
Honestly, pro/rel feels a bit like that to me as well. It's a pretty compelling carrot & stick for forcing the spending of money and the investment in player development, but the money and development are the key things there, not pro/rel itself.
I agree on the schedule point, but not on pro/rel. To casual sports fans, pro/rel is one of the most shocking (and awesome) things they discover when asking about football in the rest of the world. It would immediately be a reason to watch, or tell your friends about why it's worth watching. I think it would dramatically improve visibility of the sport within the US and thereby the money that runs through that sport and attracts athletic talent.
It would not do as much to fix player development, certainly not immediately, but in the long run that becomes a virtuous cycle: more money equals more accessibility, more kids finding and focusing on it, and more motivation to stick with it and chase a pro career.
The incidental impact on teams' spending is, by comparison, a smaller factor. MLS teams aren't sitting around just taking profits and colluding to keep salaries down, are they? (maybe they are, but my impression is that not many of them are that profitable)
It would not do as much to fix player development, certainly not immediately, but in the long run that becomes a virtuous cycle: more money equals more accessibility, more kids finding and focusing on it, and more motivation to stick with it and chase a pro career.
The incidental impact on teams' spending is, by comparison, a smaller factor. MLS teams aren't sitting around just taking profits and colluding to keep salaries down, are they? (maybe they are, but my impression is that not many of them are that profitable)
SIAP, but I was talking to a teammate after our men's league game last night and he mentioned something about Belgium's youth development philosophy that caught my ear. Basically he said, Belgium moved all training of youth players (16 and under) to small-sided games. Here are some money quotes IMO:
https://www.theguardian.com/football/blog/2014/jun/06/belgium-blueprint-gave-birth-golden-generation-world-cup-
Even though I remember itching to move to 11v11 ASAP as a kid, I understand now that getting as much time on the ball as possible is best for development. It seems the Belgians took that to its logical extreme. The other thing that stands out is that these kids just get a ton of practice time. More than what I guess kids in the US get.
https://www.theguardian.com/football/blog/2014/jun/06/belgium-blueprint-gave-birth-golden-generation-world-cup-
I caved on the definition of "major". Covers WC, Euro, Copa America, Confed (this was 5 years ago when that was still a going concern). Tough to argue with a straight face that the U.S.-Mexico Invitational is a major international tournament.
I heard a rumor that Andre Villas-Boas put out feelers to the USSF. Hardly imminent or close even if true. Thoughts?
Skeptical. He reportedly makes £11m a season at Shanghai. What kind of salary is he looking for here? Or does he see the US job as a plausible stepping stone back to Europe?
Ideally, USSF gets a new president and a new technical director that brings vision and deep knowledge to the role. The next manager can’t be a Klinsman-type that wants to be manager and technical director; the USSF needs to mature past being so dependent on big names. The new manager has to be a philosophical fit on the technical side and work hard to build the infrastructure the entire program needs to be successful into the future. Is that AVB right now?
USSF VP Carlos Cordeiro is running. I don't know anything about him, but it seems interesting that Gulati's deputy would throw his hat in the ring while Gulati is still in contention.
EDIT: Cordeiro's announcement means there's a strong likelihood that either (a) Gulati is not going to run or (b) Cordeiro has consolidated enough insider support that he's trying to force Gulati out of the race.
At first glance, Cordeiro feels like much more of a heavyweight candidate than Gans + Lapointe (nobodies) and Wynalda (viewed as a crackpot/loose cannon by many).
Creating a TD position should be a must. Moving the budget from $100m to $500m in 10 years? Not sure where all that money is coming from or going to.
EDIT: Cordeiro's announcement means there's a strong likelihood that either (a) Gulati is not going to run or (b) Cordeiro has consolidated enough insider support that he's trying to force Gulati out of the race.
At first glance, Cordeiro feels like much more of a heavyweight candidate than Gans + Lapointe (nobodies) and Wynalda (viewed as a crackpot/loose cannon by many).
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There have been an increasing number of media reports south of the border discussing Mexico's interest in Jonathan Gonzalez and a rising level of Chicken Little-ism among US soccer fans, especially after the WCQ failure.
However, Gonzalez has played for US youth teams down to at least the U15 level and this article says he won't even speak to Dennis te Kloese, who is in charge of the FMF's youth teams. Gonzalez also turned down a contract offer at Chivas because of their NT policy.
However, Gonzalez has played for US youth teams down to at least the U15 level and this article says he won't even speak to Dennis te Kloese, who is in charge of the FMF's youth teams. Gonzalez also turned down a contract offer at Chivas because of their NT policy.
There have been a couple of additions to the USSF president race in the last week beyond just Cordeiro: Michael Winograd and Paul Caligiuri
The list of definite candidates for the USSF now stands at six:
No official word from Gulati yet. Nor from Landon Donovan, who is known to be considering a run.
The list of definite candidates for the USSF now stands at six:
- Carlos Cordeiro (USSF VP)
- Eric Wynalda (ex-USMNT)
- Steve Gans (lawyer)
- Paul Caligiuri (ex-USMNT)
- Paul Lapointe (amateur league administrator)
- Michael Winograd (lawyer, former college player and assistant college coach)
No official word from Gulati yet. Nor from Landon Donovan, who is known to be considering a run.
Martino has the best hair in American soccer, immediately makes him more qualified than Wynalda and Donovan in the ex-player segment
Here's Sarachan's 21 for Portugal:
https://www.ussoccer.com/stories/2017/11/07/14/39/20171107-news-mnt-sarachan-calls-21-players-for-friendly-against-third-ranked-portugal
I would have liked to see Jonathan Gonzalez, but otherwise I'm pretty happy with this group. I can understand not wanting to bring over any North American players whose seasons are still ongoing, but Villafaña was selected. Pulisic has earned the time off.
https://www.ussoccer.com/stories/2017/11/07/14/39/20171107-news-mnt-sarachan-calls-21-players-for-friendly-against-third-ranked-portugal
U.S. ROSTER BY POSITION (Club; Caps/Goals):
GOALKEEPERS (3): Jesse Gonzalez (FC Dallas; 0/0), Bill Hamid (Midtjylland/DEN; 3/0), Ethan Horvath (Club Brugge/BEL; 1/0)
DEFENDERS (7): John Brooks (Wolfsburg/GER; 32/3), Cameron Carter-Vickers (Sheffield United/ENG; 0/0), Eric Lichaj (Nottingham Forest/ENG; 13/1), Matt Miazga (Vitesse/NED; 3/1), Tim Ream (Fulham/ENG; 26/1), Jorge Villafaña (Santos Laguna/MEX; 14/0), DeAndre Yedlin (Newcastle United/ENG; 48/0)
MIDFIELDERS (7): Kellyn Acosta (FC Dallas; 16/1), Tyler Adams (New York Red Bulls; 0/0), Alejandro Bedoya (Philadelphia Union; 65/2), Lynden Gooch (Sunderland/ENG; 2/0), Weston McKennie (Schalke/GER; 0/0), Kelyn Rowe (New England Revolution; 3/1), Danny Williams (Huddersfield Town/ENG; 22/2)
FORWARDS (4): Juan Agudelo (New England Revolution; 26/3), Dom Dwyer (Orlando City SC; 3/2), C.J. Sapong (Philadelphia Union; 2/0), Josh Sargent (St. Louis Scott Gallagher; 0/0)
GOALKEEPERS (3): Jesse Gonzalez (FC Dallas; 0/0), Bill Hamid (Midtjylland/DEN; 3/0), Ethan Horvath (Club Brugge/BEL; 1/0)
DEFENDERS (7): John Brooks (Wolfsburg/GER; 32/3), Cameron Carter-Vickers (Sheffield United/ENG; 0/0), Eric Lichaj (Nottingham Forest/ENG; 13/1), Matt Miazga (Vitesse/NED; 3/1), Tim Ream (Fulham/ENG; 26/1), Jorge Villafaña (Santos Laguna/MEX; 14/0), DeAndre Yedlin (Newcastle United/ENG; 48/0)
MIDFIELDERS (7): Kellyn Acosta (FC Dallas; 16/1), Tyler Adams (New York Red Bulls; 0/0), Alejandro Bedoya (Philadelphia Union; 65/2), Lynden Gooch (Sunderland/ENG; 2/0), Weston McKennie (Schalke/GER; 0/0), Kelyn Rowe (New England Revolution; 3/1), Danny Williams (Huddersfield Town/ENG; 22/2)
FORWARDS (4): Juan Agudelo (New England Revolution; 26/3), Dom Dwyer (Orlando City SC; 3/2), C.J. Sapong (Philadelphia Union; 2/0), Josh Sargent (St. Louis Scott Gallagher; 0/0)
I would have liked to see Jonathan Gonzalez, but otherwise I'm pretty happy with this group. I can understand not wanting to bring over any North American players whose seasons are still ongoing, but Villafaña was selected. Pulisic has earned the time off.
Some of those names should've been worked in even earlier - I would've taken an inexperienced Miazga or even CCV over Omar Fucking Gonzalez. Very excited to see McKennie and Sargent.
Villafaña is at a club eliminated from making the Liguilla so his season is basically done. Gonzalez is an important part of a contender so he has a lot left. Since this wouldn't tie him anyway no reason to bring him.
I also just found out Santos Laguna and Monterrey play each other during the FIFA window on Thursday in a makeup game originally postponed due to weather, so Gonzalez and Villafaña would both have to miss a match if selected. As your mentioned, the makeup game is far more important to Monterrey.
It probably helps, in getting all those Europe-based players, that the match is being held in Europe next Tuesday rather than the US. Bill Hamid from Denmark, John Brooks healthy again, CCV...
It's a bit strange to me that they took some no-doubt first-teamers who aren't being evaluated for fit (Yedlin in particular, but also Brooks if healthy), but not Pulisic. Maybe they can't bear the thought of seeing him take the field again for the US and be reminded that he won't be at the WCF.
Also slightly surprised they left Cameron off. Sure, he's 32, but for my money he's still our second-best player, and worst case is a great tutor / backstop for the next cycle. I mean, Ream and Bedoya are 30 - this isn't a purely try-out-the-youth roster - and neither have ever been the player that Cameron still is.
Pulisic has had a heavier workload than those guys, and you need some vets especially when looking for the future back line. Cameron missed the weekend game with a concussion so unavailable.
Fun squad. They will probably get smoked by Portugal even though Portugal has left out a number of key players, but there are a lot of legitimate pieces for the future.
I'm enthusiastic about our new group of CBs (Miazga, EPB, CCV) to go along with Brooks.
I also like Tyler Adams and particularly Weston McKennie. Those two, along with Jonathan Gonzalez, stand a strong chance of emerging as the midfield core within a few years.
Josh Sargent is a big prospect at FW, but I think he is still a few years away from being an NT contributor.
The USSF release notes that Arriola (minor procedure), Morris (hamstring surgery), and Wood ("lingering knee issue") are injured.
Plus, Yedlin and Brooks will be two of the veteran leaders on the team in 2022. Might as well get started in that role helping the newcomers.
I'm enthusiastic about our new group of CBs (Miazga, EPB, CCV) to go along with Brooks.
I also like Tyler Adams and particularly Weston McKennie. Those two, along with Jonathan Gonzalez, stand a strong chance of emerging as the midfield core within a few years.
Josh Sargent is a big prospect at FW, but I think he is still a few years away from being an NT contributor.
The USSF release notes that Arriola (minor procedure), Morris (hamstring surgery), and Wood ("lingering knee issue") are injured.
Monterrey also has a very important top-of-the-table derby game against Tigres four days after the US-Portugal game.
It's helpful to have a few veterans around when you are bringing in so many young and inexperienced players, even though the 2018 Failure USMNT is not the best role model for showing the kids how it's done. You also don't want the kids to embarrass themselves, which can happen if you run too many experiments with too many unproven players all at once. Give young players a taste of what the pace of the game at this level is like without throwing them immediately to the wolves.
Plus, Yedlin and Brooks will be two of the veteran leaders on the team in 2022. Might as well get started in that role helping the newcomers.
This is a really enjoyable read about Weston McKennie.
It's kind of weird that this is happening about a teenage American who is playing for one the better clubs in the Bundesliga, but McKennie is underhyped.
It's kind of weird that this is happening about a teenage American who is playing for one the better clubs in the Bundesliga, but McKennie is underhyped.
The story was a nice read, especially after it mentioned that he lived in the football mekka. But when I checked his wiki entry, I realized he started his career with my amateur clubs archrival. Hm...can´t like that very much.
There's nothing like rivalries in the A-Klasse Kaiserslautern-Donnersberg!
https://www.fupa.net/club/fc-phoenix-otterbach
https://www.fupa.net/liga/ak_kais_donnersberg
https://www.fupa.net/club/fc-phoenix-otterbach
https://www.fupa.net/liga/ak_kais_donnersberg
Here's another good piece, this time about Tyler Adams.
I think McKennie's technique and passing vision is a little better than Adams, but they'd probably fit into different roles long-term. McKennie has a strong motor, but Adams covers an insane amount of ground and I think could be very good destroyer playing as a 6 if he continues to develop.
Along with what Jonathan Gonzalez has shown so far with Monterrey, the level of ball-winning ability that our future midfield should have is really appealing.
This isn't the first time NYRB have sounded resigned to losing him soon:
I think McKennie's technique and passing vision is a little better than Adams, but they'd probably fit into different roles long-term. McKennie has a strong motor, but Adams covers an insane amount of ground and I think could be very good destroyer playing as a 6 if he continues to develop.
Along with what Jonathan Gonzalez has shown so far with Monterrey, the level of ball-winning ability that our future midfield should have is really appealing.
This isn't the first time NYRB have sounded resigned to losing him soon:
Christian Pulisic on the USMNT, player development, and Christian Pulisic.
https://www.theplayerstribune.com/christian-pulisic-usmnt-world-cup/
EDIT: To add to this post, CP makes a lot of good points
https://www.theplayerstribune.com/christian-pulisic-usmnt-world-cup/
EDIT: To add to this post, CP makes a lot of good points
- MLS coaches are too timid in giving youth players a chance
- CP has hugely benefited from having a second passport, allowing him to go abroad earlier
- US U17 stars have historically not been challenged enough. I think this might get better with Bradenton shutting down. Instead of being in their insular U17 world, they will stay with their clubs and can be pushed up into older age brackets or just be training and playing with pros all the time.
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The USSF has released the lineup. Carlisle is saying it's a 4-1-4-1.
Only Lichaj, Sapong, and Williams are older than 24.
It's a reasonably stout defense under the circumstances, but the midfield is a mess. Four CMs starting including Adams at RM (he's played some RWB) and Agudelo playing wide left instead of up top.
Ah, well. It doesn't mean anything and it's with an extra-interim manager.
Sapong
Agudelo -- McKennie -- Acosta -- Adams
Williams
Lichaj -- Brooks -- Miazga -- Yedlin
Horvath
Agudelo -- McKennie -- Acosta -- Adams
Williams
Lichaj -- Brooks -- Miazga -- Yedlin
Horvath
Only Lichaj, Sapong, and Williams are older than 24.
It's a reasonably stout defense under the circumstances, but the midfield is a mess. Four CMs starting including Adams at RM (he's played some RWB) and Agudelo playing wide left instead of up top.
Ah, well. It doesn't mean anything and it's with an extra-interim manager.