The U.S. males’s nationwide group completed first in its group however has struggled to impress thus far within the Gold Cup. ASN spoke to a couple gamers who absolutely intend to placed on a greater show tonight in opposition to Cuba.
BY
Brooke Tunstall
Posted
July 18, 2015
10:25 AM
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BALTIMORE—Expectations are a bitch, and then you definitely play one other CONCACAF minnow.
It ought to be thought-about an indication of progress that the U.S. emerged undefeated from the hardest group on this 12 months’s CONCACAF Gold Cup and but the gamers, media critics, and followers all know the group hasn’t performed something resembling good soccer.
One purpose why expectations are so excessive for this group is due to what it did within the lead-up to this event. First the U.S. dominated Mexico 2-0 in April, then it went to Europe and secured stunning upsets over the Dutch and world champion Germans. Simply forward of the event the Individuals beat Guatemala 4-1.
After which the Gold Cup began and all of the sudden an offense that had scored 12 objectives in 4 video games began sputtering and grinding and solely managed 4 tallies in three group stage video games.
Extra alarming is that the U.S. didn’t create many probabilities in opposition to Honduras, Haiti, and Panama—all groups that whereas plucky and athletic, shouldn’t be inflicting the Individuals the struggles they did. Typically the Yanks gave the impression to be their very own worst enemy, getting stretched out of place and inflicting the protection to lose its form, lacking too many merely passes, and being too static on offense.
So what do the gamers assume they should do to in opposition to Cuba (5pm ET; Fox, Univision) tonight?
“Just be a little sharper in possession,” ahead Clint Dempsey mentioned after the Panama draw. “We have to create extra probabilities, extra good scoring alternatives. We’re not doing that sufficient. We’ve proven via the probabilities that we’ve completed that once we get probabilities we’re fairly good in entrance of aim.
“We simply must create extra of them.”
That, in fact, is simpler mentioned than achieved. How does a group all of the sudden begin creating extra probabilities?
“I think just movement off the ball is something we need to improve on, making better runs into space so we can connect on more passes,” Chris Wondolowski mentioned. “I think if we move more we can play simple more—play more 1-2 passes. I think those are things if we improve on will it help us along the way and get us playing better.”
Veteran midfielder Kyle Beckerman thinks it’s psychological.
“We need to relax and not force things,” he mentioned. “Make a smarter pass instead of forcing one that becomes a turnover and then we’re chasing and we’ve lost our shape.”
Dempsey, who has three of the 4 U.S. objectives thus far within the event, added the U.S. wants to enter the video games extra ready for the grueling bodily nature of play.
“Teams play hard against us,” he said. “They’re kicking us, fouling us, always trying to disrupt our movement, our timing. We just all need to get on the same page and know how to handle it. It’s a bit of a process in a tournament like this, getting everyone together, especially when we’ve been using so many players. We want to be playing our best toward the end of the tournament so hopefully we can do that.”
In all three group section contests U.S. opponents burst out of the gates and put the Individuals on their heels. Midfielder Alejandro Bedoya, who assisted on the U.S. aim in opposition to Panama, mentioned that should change.
“We have to dictate the game more, be more physical, be more aggressive because everyone is going to come out flying against us,” he mentioned. “As a result of it hasn’t been ok. Everyone knows that. All of us must look ourselves within the mirror as a result of all of us want to offer extra.
“We know it has to be better.”
