In last night’s 2-0 defeat to Mexico, the U.S. Men’s National Team struggled in nearly every aspect of the game. While no one will blame them for the opening goal that came from a near-perfect free kick, the U.S. failed to maintain defensive cohesion, often leaving large gaps for Mexico to exploit during counterattacks. The back line was caught out of position, exposing vulnerabilities that Mexico took advantage of throughout the match.
A bigger concern was the U.S.’s struggle to maintain possession under Mexico’s high press, with much of what went wrong tracing back to frequent losses of the ball in midfield. Some apologists were quick to point out that this wasn’t the strongest USMNT roster, but I’m not one of those voices.
Former US defender – Alexi Lalas came out strongly against the selection against Mexico and “load management” starting, “it should hurt you as a player, you should have wanted to be on this field… if you don’t, there is something wrong with you!”
While one can agree with his frustration and point it is equally important to point out that there were quality players on the pitch who should be able to get the job done. If we learned anything over the last few coaches is that no matter who you give the clipboard to in the end, it will always be the players who have to take the field. Luckily, with players like Brooklyn Raines, Diego Luna, Nimfa, Keyrol Figueroa and Cavan Sullivan there is a plethora of homegrown domestic talent to challenge the status quote and reshape the dynamics on the US men’s national team.
FBD | Editor T.T. DesRois
