USMNT: Hold My Beer
- Thread starter Titans Bastard
- Start date
That was a great play on so many fronts
driven corner by acosta
pepi with an amazing flick on
cp of course the finish
driven corner by acosta
pepi with an amazing flick on
cp of course the finish
I'll take it, just hoping this doesn't encourage them to play a game in Northern Alaska anytime soon.
Still did well with it. Would have been easy to miss on the half volley but he drove it down and away from the defender.
glad I am not crazy, there are numerous times I am yelling 'switch' at the TV as you see a US guy wide in space on the other side, but they play a short ball back or nearside where the D is bunched
Just had the same thought. Will they adjust based on it being 5 degrees, or will every winter game against non-Canada teams be played on a tundra?
It's been so long since they showed Matt Turner that I'm expecting something along Jack Torrance lines.
Okay, now nobody get hurt in the next 25 minutes and we might get away with this silly, silly decision.
Barrow is lovely this time of year
edit - a quick google reveals the name was changed in 2016 and I was unaware, it is now Ukpiaġvik - one of the original Inuit names
I will always love guys grabbing the only part of their body that has a protective guard over it.
Probably time to get Weah out of there.
Probably time to get Weah out of there.
Big switches were an Original Berhalter Thing, the supposed raison d'etre for guys like Wil Trapp and Jackson Yueill.
This is what I was expecting/hoping to see from LDLT. He has to be a part of this team going forward, and Busio needs to work his way back in. Or drop Roldan. Or Lletget.
Didn’t like that foul call on Robinson. Keeper makes the contact. That’s a play on situation, for me.
Caveat it is a bad Honduras team - but I am loving LDLT attacking speed. Just takes that space and moves the ball forward
HAHA- congrats the those predicting the no stoppage time from Jamaican refs
HAHA- congrats the those predicting the no stoppage time from Jamaican refs
I think Busio is already ahead of Roldan and Lletget. GGG spoke of him last window as a borderline starter. Lletget didn’t dress the first two games this window and I’d guess only dressed today because of injuries. Roldan is just brought in to kill of games. Either could have started in this must win game (in the sense that they were available). LDLT did start and for me seized the opportunity as much as he could against this opposition.
Well, it was against a shit opponent but the three points still count.
Fantastic job by Acosta and Zimmerman, as well as McKennie.
Fantastic job by Acosta and Zimmerman, as well as McKennie.
I still think Musah’s our guy for a team that wants to play against us and press, but I really like LDLT against a dogged low block.
LDLT was a nice highlight for me tonight. Granted it's against Honduras, but seeing him going box-to-box was really refreshing.
Shit opponent, but one they struggled to beat on home soil in June (scoreless until 89'). Obviously things have gone south for Honduras since the Gold Cup and qualification has been a disaster for them. Getting all three points against the dregs of your confederation is how you punch your ticket to Qatar.
Question I have never asked and I guarantee will be met with derision from the soccer enthusiasts in this thread. Now my caveat comes with the disclaimer that I have never played soccer, so with that in mind, my question is as follows:
I always laugh when I hear about the need to protect the energy for lack of a better word of the players. When there is a 10 day cycle like this I see a ton of statements about the near impossibility about some players being able to go all 90 3X in a 10 day window. Again I have never played so I am sure I am way off, but the soccer games are played on grass, they run for 45 minutes, with that comprising of running and standing and a few brief not overwhelmingly physical occurrences. You have a 20 minute break in the middle and then do another 45 minutes.
Yet I see a ton of talk about getting out of games to make sure they are rested for the next game 4 days later. I always kind of silently snickered, but would never mention it to a soccer lover because I think it is a touch insulting and anyone who loves soccer would be very defensive about my point of view.
Now I am not going to compare it to football and hockey which are obviously much more physical, but tennis is often derided as a “county club” sport, with the insinuation that it is a “soft” sport.
I just watched parts of the Australian Open and the players were playing on hardcourts, essentially cement, and it is 90 plus degrees out, brutal humidity, and the temperature on court is 120 degrees. The legs seem to take a pounding. The players stay out there for 3 hours plus in some situations, one day off, bang, do it again, bang, one day off, over and over for two weeks.
I find this to be much more physically demanding than soccer but have never seen any comments about stretching out the tennis tournament to give these guys some extra rest.
Fair assessment or am I way off?
I always laugh when I hear about the need to protect the energy for lack of a better word of the players. When there is a 10 day cycle like this I see a ton of statements about the near impossibility about some players being able to go all 90 3X in a 10 day window. Again I have never played so I am sure I am way off, but the soccer games are played on grass, they run for 45 minutes, with that comprising of running and standing and a few brief not overwhelmingly physical occurrences. You have a 20 minute break in the middle and then do another 45 minutes.
Yet I see a ton of talk about getting out of games to make sure they are rested for the next game 4 days later. I always kind of silently snickered, but would never mention it to a soccer lover because I think it is a touch insulting and anyone who loves soccer would be very defensive about my point of view.
Now I am not going to compare it to football and hockey which are obviously much more physical, but tennis is often derided as a “county club” sport, with the insinuation that it is a “soft” sport.
I just watched parts of the Australian Open and the players were playing on hardcourts, essentially cement, and it is 90 plus degrees out, brutal humidity, and the temperature on court is 120 degrees. The legs seem to take a pounding. The players stay out there for 3 hours plus in some situations, one day off, bang, do it again, bang, one day off, over and over for two weeks.
I find this to be much more physically demanding than soccer but have never seen any comments about stretching out the tennis tournament to give these guys some extra rest.
Fair assessment or am I way off?
Just got back from the game. Crowd was fantastic. I thought LDLT was fantastic. He really stood out along with Zimmerman and Weston. And holy shit. Poor Turner. He spent the entire second half sprinting back and forth in the 18. He looked miserable.
Three matches in 10 days isn’t really a problem physically. Players do three in 7-8 days all the time for their clubs, with a weekend league match, an important midweek match (often European play), then another match the following weekend.
In international soccer there is a tacit expectation (not always met) that you’re going to try to rotate some so you don’t work any one player too hard or increase their risk of injury. At the end of the day the clubs are the players’ employers, not the international associations. The clubs are allowing their very valuable employees to be effectively used for free by these other organizations. So there is some incentive not to damage the assets while you’re borrowing them if you want this arrangement to keep up. Although when national teams are desperate, they’ll overplay key players anyway.
6-7 miles maybe for a soccer match? Just a guess, and I hate to comp the two sports again but my guess is that tennis players in a long match are probably doing 20-30% more. I guess my question is to to the physicality of soccer, stuff I don’t see, because if my guess of 6-7 miles is correct, then that is super easy to train for.
I love soccer but I am not defensive about your view. Because I am very secure that it is wrong.
It is the most popular and most contested game in the world. The amount of money at stake is unfathomable. Some countries stop everything when their teams play. The level of analysis and scrutiny on the game worldwide is immense. The television dollars are massive. Yet everywhere it is largely a once a week game, with teams having to plan their depth weeks in advance to account for midweek club competitions.
If soccer could be played every other night the audience is there. The money is there. If a coach could get an edge by forcing his players to play more often without consequence, it would happen. The fact that it doesn’t answers your question. Players can play every three or four days in a pinch for a short period but there is severe deterioration in the product after two or three weeks.
Which strikes you as more likely? That there is a worldwide agreement to be soft even though every market inefficiency is exploited in footie and the money behind it would gladly extract every last dollar possible? Or that something that seems to be the case based on your casual viewing of a sport you don’t play must be true?
Can they do it? Sure. Humans can run 30 miles a week. Is it a product you would want to see if it happened on a consistent basis? No. But you will see it in short bursts like the World Cup.
Canada finishes off El Salvador 2-0, on a late goal by David, after a freaky first goal by Atiba Hutchinson. What a window for these guys!
I'm happy the US got it done as well. See you in Qatar, though I won't be there for obvious reasons.
Now, what of Mexico, scoreless at HT with Panama.
Make that 1-0, 47', Jimenez.
Wait no! Chalked off!
I'm happy the US got it done as well. See you in Qatar, though I won't be there for obvious reasons.
Now, what of Mexico, scoreless at HT with Panama.
Make that 1-0, 47', Jimenez.
Wait no! Chalked off!
The issue is not just the total distance, but the intensity. It's not jogging 6-7 miles, a lot of it is sprinting with stopping and starting and jumping and changes of direction, and it's combined with physical contact and fine motor control at speed, i.e. controlling the ball, which is more taxing.
Tennis has long breaks. Even apart from the changeovers, there are substantial stretches in tennis matches with very little aerobic exertion. Soccer players hardly stop moving for 45 minutes at a time.
What Canada have done is amazing. No defeats. Everyone else has at least two and Canada have already completed their games away to the other three teams in the advance spots in the table. It is as dominant as you can be it in the final round of qualification. Has any other team had nine points in of these three game sets? And with a clean sheet.
Meanwhile there is still time for craziness in the table. Mexico winning tonight would clarify things but there is still much work to be done by both Mexico and the United States.
It seems like a four horse race but Costa Rica is actually still lurking. If they can beat Canada at home in their next game, they could actually pass the US on the last match day unless the US gets a result at Mexico and beats Panama.
Mexico is still tied 0-0 with Panama. Héctor Herrera will be suspended for the USA match in Azteca due to yellow card accumulation.
The only thing more annoying than watching Mexico when you need them to lose is watching Mexico when you need them to win.
At least that flop benefited the US.
At least that flop benefited the US.
Tough break for Panama there. Defender had the inside track and stepped on the ball leading to another defender forced to track back out of position. Soft penalty with a lot of theatrics.
Ridiculous penalty, but I guess we'll take it. Part of me wanted to watch Mexico peer over the cliff.
Costa Rica has gotten themselves back into the thick of the race. Suddenly Panama is in danger of not even making the intercontinental playoff if this result holds.
It would ensure we finish ahead of Panama, but to clinch top 3 I think Costa Rica would need to drop points, too.