ASN: Delicate, Subtle Play Proves that Nagbe Belongs

The 26-year-old midfielder is something however flashy, each on the sector and off, however his ability on the ball and sense of positioning make him one of the vital intriguing gamers within the U.S. nationwide group participant pool.

BY

Noah Davis

Posted
March 26, 2017
8:00 AM

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SAN JOSE, Calif.—On an evening when the Untied States males’s nationwide group scored six objectives, when Clint Dempsey posted a hat trick and Christian Pulisic registered a aim and two assists, Darlington Nagbe didn’t earn any factors. He did not even take a shot. His solely contribution to the fundamental field rating was a single foul suffered.

Regardless of the shortage of stats, Friday evening’s 6-0 pasting of Honduras was his finest recreation in an American uniform, and his most essential.

Ever because the Portland Timbers midfielder appeared on the nationwide group stage in late 2015, his teammates have praised his skill to be a difference-maker.

“I hate to overhype him but I just think that America doesn’t produce a lot of those really shifty players who can get their foot on the ball and make people miss,” Tim Howard stated on the time. “It’s not always spectacular. It’s just a little shift here there to unbalance the defense. I like him. I like him a lot.”

Alejandro Bedoya noticed it, too. “When he gets the ball on his feet, he’s a great player,” he stated after the victory. “He turns well. And he’s deceptively fast.”

That ability, nevertheless, hasn’t all the time translated to recreation conditions.

Towards the Catrachos, there have been flashes of what he can do and what’s to come back. The very best second got here within the third minute, when Nagbe acquired the ball, exploded by a pair defenders, and launched a move. Whereas nothing got here of the second, the assured burst of tempo and creativity put the Honduras backline on its heels. That couple of seconds served discover, a flash that unbalanced the protection. All week Bruce Area preached an attacking mindset to his expenses. Nagbe’s dribble helped flip these phrases into observe. Two minutes later, Sebastian Lletget scored the opening aim.

He spaced the sector nicely, drifting into the center to offer a switching choice when the ball was on the proper aspect and staying broad when wanted. Nagbe’s motion was the rationale Michael Bradley discovered time and house on his aim:

#FlashbackFriday to this Michael Bradley aim from lengthy distance!

Oh by no means thoughts, that occurred tonight. Take pleasure in anyway! ???????? pic.twitter.com/Kzy5jBQm2M

— U.S. Soccer (@ussoccer) March 25, 2017

If Nagbe is not there to float broad, the protection collapses on the American captain. As an alternative, he’s, it would not, and the U.S. is up 2-0.

Defensively, the slight 26-year-old midfielder held his personal with six tackles, 5 recoveries, and a clearance. He went in onerous, went in good, and often gained the ball.

Nagbe wasn’t the very best participant on the sector Friday evening however he did present that he belongs. On the ball, he is essentially the most thrilling American participant, non-Pulisic division. They each explode in the identical method, the potential for greatness a split-second away. When the extent of competitors improves or Area opts to play a extra conservative lineup, the midfielder may lose his place as a starter.

Or perhaps not. Nagbe, soft-spoken and reserved off the sector, is not going quietly into the evening.