Rockstar Matt

9 hours ago, Digby said:

 

I worry about Pepi here... hopefully by the time the World Cup rolls around he won't have gone a full year without scoring for club or country. This current US squad doesn't have any 9s that have made a great case for themselves, so short of one of the (many!) options playing their way into form in the coming months, I feel like it's just as likely we'll see Reyna as forward and Musah as the first-choice 10, lacking any better ways to fit the puzzle together. But hopefully I'm wrong and Pepi/Sargent/Dike/Hoppe/really anyone get hot in the summer and the start of next season.

 

Also feel like Miles Robinson has really taken that other CB position over from Brooks at this point.

I feel that too. Nobody has really taken the 9. It’s still up for grabs. Pepi is only there for me because he’s scored the most for the US. Hopefully somebody steps up and clearly wins that spot. I feel like it’s the weakest for the US right now. 
 

I’d hate to see Reyna at anything other than the 10. He’s legitimately one of the most talented teenagers in the world, and a consensus top 20 young talent in the world. That dude is going to be a Ballon d'Or candidate one day while playing the 10. A gross misuse of talent if we play him as a false 9.

Miles certainly isn’t bad at all and I wouldn’t be opposed to seeing him start for us in the World Cup but it would be a mistake to leave the best CB in the pool at home. Something has to be going on between Berhalter and Brooks to explain this weird distance Brooks has from the team. 
 

I just have to hope they’ll get past whatever personal issues they have with each other for the betterment of the team. Brooks is way too good to not even include on the roster. 

2 hours ago, DG_ThenNowForever said:

 

That's some bull :censored:. I just watched those highlights and the laser pointers are obvious and abundant. 

Also, CAF's qualifying is bull :censored: too. How are you going to have Ghana and Nigeria face each other, eliminating one of the African powerhouses, but you have Morocco and DR Congo facing each other guaranteeing a spot for one those nations? I know it was a random draw, but that qualifying method is abysmal 

Kinda weird that the World Cup draw will be held this Friday considering there will still be open qualifying spots (only 3), but it'll be nice to see what the groups will be.

I was thinking on the USMNT, and who should our starting XI be come November. I think Greg was fielding a ton of different line-up's this qualifying cycle to see what worked and what didn't. I'll give him credit with this last slate of games. I think he's gotten the line-up's absolutely correct in this international break. Unlucky to not get the full 6 points from these last two games, but I think he fielded the line-up's to get that (aside from his disastrous subs). 

I do believe that even Berhalter would have to acknowledge that this is our best XI and probably the group that should be starting in our opening match in Qatar:

           Pulisic -- Pepi  -- Weah

                 Reyna -- McKinnie

                              Adams 

Jedi -- Brooks -- Zimmerman -- Dest

                             Steffan

That's, IMO, the best combination of talent we possess and the best way to get everyone in their best positions. Obviously, we'll have Aaronson, LDLT, Musah, Myles, Arriola, Sargent, Acosta and others on the roster too. I think all of those guys have played their way onto a World Cup roster, (yes even Sargent who I still think is the most talented 9 we have, though he needs to show it and thus far hasn't). 

Overall, I'm just happy this is something we can discuss again and I'll definitely be cheering for Canada too. Last time the US was in the World Cup, I was 22 years old. I'll be 31 by the start of this next tournament. 

Gotta say, I think it’s awesome to see that the 3 teams who are leading the group and will qualify for the World Cup (Canada already has obviously) are the same 3 teams that will host the next World Cup. No one can say that Canada, US or México are undeserving of guaranteed spots for the next World Cup. 
 

Also this will probably be the last qualifying cycle where we see the US, México and now Canada facing each other. End of an era for sure

Just now, DG_ThenNowForever said:

I think Morris was open to make it 6-0 but Busio made a poor decision.

 

Either way, 5-1 and with a 5-goal cushion is a nice place to be in advance of Wednesday. We're so close we can taste it.

The US hasn’t lost by 5 goals or more in a competitive match in decades. This is all but guaranteed now. Frustrating that it’s come to the last game again, but at least this time we don’t even need a result lmao. 

Seeing Gio and Pulisic play off each other a little is exactly why I want Gio to play as the 10. 
 

It’ll unlock both players for USMNT.

EDIT: Pulisic with the casual hat-trick. That’s why he’s the best American footballer of all-time (until Reyna takes that moniker from him).

As of now, so long as the US doesn’t lose 6-0 or an equivalent goal difference come Wednesday, the US will go to the WC.

EDIT: Look at the Panamanian national team acting like poor sports at the end of the half. Utter trash. 

If we just put away one of those sitters against México, this is a clinching night for us.

Either way, keep it up USMNT. Make that GD so big so Wednesday’s match doesn’t matter. 
 

EDIT: and this ref has been AWFUL so far. Can’t believe I’m saying this but thank god for VAR.

18 hours ago, Digby said:

Sorry but this is way too harsh. The soccer wise guys of Twitter and Reddit wanted a JV team to save legs for the rest of the window. Turns out it was a good call to put out the best team (injuries withstanding) against this diminished Mexico team; Berhalter went for it, and the only reason the draw felt disappointing, compared to the expectations widely held hours earlier, is that the USMNT put itself in so many positions to do better.

But what do we want here? Simply just to qualify and make a little noise at the World Cup?
 

I know the 2018 failure has changed expectations somewhat because we never expected to fail to qualify for a World Cup but the overall goal for the program should still be the same that it was after the 2014 World Cup (after we had just made the R16 for the 3rd time in 4 tournaments; and did it in back to back tournaments for the first time ever). The goal is to see the program become a world power.
 

Simply making the World Cup isn’t good enough anymore. Not with the amount of money we’re putting into the sport, nor with the talent we’re developing and that’s emerging from our country. We need to consistently advance out of the group and start challenging the best nations in the world in a few cycles. 

I will give Berhalter credit in our defensive shape. Once he went away from the moronic 3 CB with 2 WB lineup, the US has generally been stout defensively this cycle (aside from Canada away).

It might be harsh, yes, but given the talent the US now possesses, subpar performances, not putting our best players in positions to get the most out of them, just aren’t acceptable anymore. Hell, we can’t even match the dominance USMNT had in CONCACAF in the mid-to-late 2000’s/early 2010’s and our current USMNT is better on paper (and I know CONCACAF as whole has gotten much better).
 

I just see a young, talented team, who individually is having more European club level success than any generation of Americans before, and we have a manager who cannot get the most out of them. A lot of that is on the players too, no doubt, if they’re so talented, they need to show that when playing for country and not just their clubs. 
 

FIFA rankings (which don’t mean anything, I know) have the US ranked 13th (behind México which will no doubt change). I would argue that the if you look at the rankings in terms of talent level, I’d agree that there are only about 10-11 countries in the world that have more talent than the US possesses and is developing. 
 

Do you think Berhalter would manage any of the national teams ranked above us or in the top 20? Absolutely not. So why are we okay with a subpar coach managing a top 15 national team?
 

Quote

The fluffed chances were not Berhalter’s fault, maybe Pulisic should have put his chance literally anywhere else besides Ochoa’s shoulder from 5 feet away.

Agreed. I literally stated that in my last post. Should have been a 2-0 victory if our players score on the easy sitters they had. 

9 hours ago, Digby said:

People love to bag on Kellyn Acosta but he was the best midfielder on the night and was making those chances happen. Too bad Pulisic and Pefok both came in on form but couldn't do anything with that. That lovely Reyna run was a less clear chance, but what an effort by him to make it happen. Also worried about some of those defensive lapses; the US were lucky that this Mexico squad is so pedestrian. 

The US was very lucky that México couldn’t put a good shot on goal all game. Every time you thought they might have a good opportunity, they fumbled it. Either with a heavy touch or a terrible shot. Chucky in particular was awful for México last night. Can’t remember a game that he looked that bad to be honest. 

6 hours ago, MJWalker45 said:

Both forwards should have buried their chances. If Pulisic  picked anything other than straight ahead with his shot it would have been 1-0. That game felt like it was played in an empty stadium last night. I think that affected both teams last night. When you can hear the PA guy yelling, "Mexico" after every goal kick, you know that the atmosphere is just not what it should be.

Pulisic buries that if he gets that chance again. Can’t believe he put it in the one place that Ochoa could save it.
 

Obviously, getting the point was a very good result, and that was probably the best road performance the US had in this qualifying cycle, but the US has to feel disappointed to not walk away with a win there. 

And again, I have issues with Berhalter’s scheme and how it doesn’t put our best players in the best position to succeed. Our midfield doesn’t really impact the game offensively, or at least in the build up of attacks (meaning we either always play from the back with ping balls in or with our fullbacks and wingers bring up the ball. We have the best, or at least most talented midfield in the region and yet our midfield never dominates? 
 

Pulisic in particular still seems lost in this scheme, and he’s in form at the club level too so it isn’t that. It’s concerning that ever since Berhalter took over, our best ever player is nonexistent on the pitch (for the most part).

I still just hate that we have a manager, who instead of seeing the talent we have on the field and instituting a scheme/gameplan that best utilizes that talent, tries to force our players to fit his scheme regardless if the fit is there or not. We were trying to play off of Zimmerman and Myles last night, (who are fine defensive center backs but they are not good with the ball at their feet), instead of using our talented midfielders to bring up the ball. That almost cost us a goal last night because we were asking those two to do something they are not comfortable nor good at. 
 

On paper, and objectively, the US has the best collection of talent in CONCACAF by far and it isn’t all that close. The US should be unbeaten and dominating this Octagonal, but we aren’t. That isn’t all on Berhalter because ultimately the players still need to put away the chances they create. 
 

We’re gonna qualify which was the main objective coming in, but will we even advance out of the group in the World Cup? With Berhalter, I doubt it. 

The US should have won. They had the two best chances, with Pulisic and Pefok (the latters miss was inexcusable though) both in front of goal, but didn’t score. 
 

We’ll take the point, plus with the Honduras draw in Panama, all the US has to do is basically beat Panama, don’t lose to Costa Rica by ten goals, and they’ll go to the World Cup.

Gotta say too, one day I’d love to see a full strength USMNT with Reyna at the 10. Pulisic is our best ever player, no doubt about that, and the US was missing Weston who is arguably the best current American footballer, but Reyna has the potential to surpass every American player ever.
 

That dude is special, special. 

No way. No freaking way. Italy lost to North Macedonia in the semi-final playoff. The goal came in stoppage time no less.

They’re going to miss the World Cup for the second straight tournament. 

Massive upset to say the least. 

LAFC off to its best start since the magical 2019 season. Great to see Vela back in full force plus the loads of depth LAFC enjoys now. Still miss Rossi, but the LAFC offense clearly hasn't.

Also, it's always a great weekend when LAFC wins and the Galaxy lose. 

31 minutes ago, Rockstar Matt said:

A quick two goals from Vela in this first half. Good to see it after the past two years of nagging injuries.
 

A healthy Vela makes LAFC dangerous. 

And Vela makes it a hat-trick with a classic, vintage left-footed curler from Vela. 
 

Dale, Vela, dale. 

A quick two goals from Vela in this first half. Good to see it after the past two years of nagging injuries.
 

A healthy Vela makes LAFC dangerous. 

Here’s LAFC official press release:

I wish the gold in these images reflected what the kit actually looked like in person, but overall I’m starting to like the kit a lot more. 
 

The centered crest is what’s ruining it for me, but I believe I’m in the minority with that. Otherwise this is easily the best kit since their inaugural home kit. It’ll look good on the field. 

LAFC set to reveal their home kit tomorrow (which has already been leaked). They've also pointed out how this will be their 5th season. Can't believe it's been 5 years already. 

52 minutes ago, DoctorWhom said:

Can't disagree with Sherman here. 

Sherman echoes my thoughts exactly. I know the HOF bar has been lowered, but for me Stafford needs to win more chips to get into this conversation. He’s playing in an era with hyper inflated QB stats (and volume stats are the WORST way to evaluate a QB). I don’t care if he’s top 10 in this era. That’s not good enough for me.
 

The Hall of Fame is suppose to be the best of even the great, elite players in our league. He has never been considered one of the top 3 or 4 QB’s in his era. At any point. Not even this season, his championship season. 
 

If Matt Stafford is a Hall of Fame QB, then so is Phillip Rivers, Tony Romo, Derek Carr, Matt Ryan and Kirk Cousins. 
 

IMO, this season put Stafford ahead of the guys I just listed, but not on the level of the all-time great Hall of Fame QB’s he played against.

5 hours ago, dont care said:

I don’t know how you can say he was “clearly the best player on the field” when I didn’t even notice him until the last 2 plays. Kupp made plays all game, and was the only option that last drive. He willed them to win.

Just because you didn’t notice doesn’t mean others didn’t. 
 

He was dominant throughout, more so in the second half after the Rams made some halftime adjustments to free him up. 

1 hour ago, Lookuppage7 said:

I'm fairly certain this is a fake authentic. The Adidas logo just looks like a felt application, which hasn't really been used.  Looking at the authentic jersey Charlotte just released, adidas is still sticking to the raised plastic applications

You’d be incorrect. This is the legit for sale authentic. Leaks from LAFC photo shoots confirm this particular leak too. 
 

That Adidas logo is a heat pressed graphic, by the way, not felt. And the crest is definitely the raised plastic they use for their authentics. I have LAFC authentics from the inaugural season that have the same applications as this new home kit. 

Still think Donald was robbed of the MVP. He was clearly the best player on the field, on either team. Had the two most absurd back-to-back plays I’ve ever seen from a defensive player, to seal the title no less. Unreal 
 

Kupp certainly wasn’t undeserving of it, he played brilliantly too, but he shares a field with the best defensive player since LT.

We always award brilliant offensive players over once in a generation defensive players as well. AD should have won DPOY again this season, and he should have had a regular season MVP too. 

1 minute ago, DoctorWhom said:

Probably because most LA people there weren't really Rams fans &  most Bengals fans couldn't afford to go.

And because the cheapest tickets were the price of a decent used car. The die-hards of either team get priced out at events like this. 

1 minute ago, ManillaToad said:

Congratulations to the Los Angeles Refs

Bengals should have never had the lead to begin with.. Higgins got away with a blatant OPI on his TD.

Still though, I cannot believe that the Rams brought a Super Bowl to Los Angeles. Imagine saying that phrase ten years ago. 

Aaron Donald and Cooper Kupp. All I have to say. Unbelievable. Both of them. Kupp was amazing on that last drive. Incredible. 

Aaron Donald is the best player in the league, top 5 defensive player of all time. What a moment for him. Sealing the title on back to back plays. 

13 minutes ago, Red Comet said:

In addition, if you have to say it’s “Your House”, then it isn’t your house. If it was really your house, it would be reflected in the opposing quarterback going deaf.

 FTR, the NFL and the US as a whole, has some truly awful, cringey chants, but the Rams “whose house, Rams house” chant might top it all. It’s so cringey. I hated it from the start and have refused to chant at the games I’ve been too.