ASN: Nagbe and Substitutes Shine in Draw with Serbia

Portland Timbers attacker Darlington Nagbe outperformed his fellow starters on Sunday, and a handful of subs stood up and made their presence felt in Bruce Area’s first 2017 match as U.S. head coach.

BY

Brian Sciaretta

Posted
January 29, 2017
1:55 PM

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The true winner of the sport, nonetheless, was Darlington Nagbe. He was concerned with nearly each harmful likelihood and an actual keeper on the workforce shifting ahead.

Most gamers ended up with mediocre rankings however just a few stood out—each good and unhealthy. This is how I noticed it.

The Starters

Nick Rimando: It’s not straightforward having just about nothing to do after which make a giant save late within the recreation to protect a scoreless draw. Rimando did that and it was to his credit score. He was a bit uneasy with just a few of his crosses however total was not requested to do a lot. Ranking: 6

Graham Zusi: The Zusi experiment at proper again was combined. He was not crushed defensively though he was not examined all that a lot. His greatest offensive second got here minutes into the second half when he took a cross from Sebastian Lletget and fed Sacha Kljestan for a harmful likelihood. Apart from that, it wasn’t unhealthy however it was not nice. Ranking: 5.5

Steve Birnbaum: The D.C. United central defender had an analogous outing to his central protection companion, Chad Marshall. Each had been stable defensively within the air though distribution was combined when the U.S. tried to go to a excessive line. Ranking: 6

Chad Marshall: The Seattle Sounders mainstay was good within the air however a bit gradual generally together with his challenges. He made a pleasant cease within the field within the twenty fifth however gave up a careless foul simply minutes later. Ranking: 5.5

Greg Garza: Tempo was a difficulty for Garza proper off the bat as he struggled to push into the assault and was crushed often. The brand new Atlanta United left again was fortunate to not hand over a penalty within the twenty second minute. His substitute, Jorge Villafana, had a greater recreation. Ranking: 4

Michael Bradley: The captain was requested to play a deep-lying midfield place and sit in entrance of the central protection. It was a distinct process than he has been accustomed to with the U.S. and total it was a good if not unspectacular outing. The U.S. managed a lot of the possession and Bradley did do a great job making an attempt to vary the purpose of assault. On the few occasions he did get superior within the assault, he didn’t add a lot. Ranking: 5.5

Jermaine Jones: The brand new Los Angeles Galaxy midfielder confirmed a pleasant engine enjoying the primary half. He lined lots of floor though apart from his excellent cross to spring Nagbe within the thirty ninth minute, he didn’t depart a lot of a mark on the sport. Ranking: 5.5

Alejandro Bedoya: The Philadelphia Union midfielder was principally invisible for very lengthy stretches. Usually a tireless employee, he ought to have been capable of take the sport to the opponent way over he did. Ranking: 4.5

Sacha Kljestan: The New York Crimson Bull captain had some good moments within the recreation though might have been higher. Early within the second half he sprung Altidore into the field with a pleasant ball wherein Altidore was too gradual. Minutes later he had a pleasant mixture with Nagbe on the best facet. Nonetheless, there was lengthy intervals of invisibility too. Ranking: 6

Darlington Nagbe: After a messy 2016 below Klinsmann, Nagbe was the very best U.S. participant on the sphere Sunday. He might have completed just a few probabilities however nonetheless he was concerned in nearly each harmful alternative. He’s a really skillful participant and one of many few American starters who noticed his inventory rise right this moment. Ranking: 7

Jozy Altidore: It was a memorable recreation for Altidore solely as a result of it was his a centesimal cap. In any other case, he did little to assist the Yanks. He was not almost as harmful as he might or ought to have been. Sure, he was not arrange for fulfillment as a lot as he ought to have been as a result of the single-striker formation has by no means been his good friend. Nonetheless, his runs and motion had been removed from the place they need to be. Ranking: 4

The Substitutes

Sebastian Lletget: Changed Jones on the half. Seemed sharp early within the No. 8 position, successful balls and serving to with the workforce’s possession. Whereas principally good, he had a foul giveaway on the finish that resulted in Serbia’s greatest counterattack of the sport. Thankfully for Lletget, Rimando saved him from being the goat. Ranking: 6

Chris Pontius: It took him some time to get into the move in his worldwide debut however he created one harmful likelihood late within the recreation for Agudelo. Pontius additionally missed a shot simply huge on the finish which might have gained the sport. Ranking: 6

Jorge Villafana: Making his worldwide debut at left again, Villafana confirmed some good indicators of life when the U.S. was weak on the fullback positions. He was capable of push ahead greater than Garza was and positively earned one other look. Ranking: 6

Jordan Morris: The Sounders rookie got here on for Altidore within the 74th minute however in all probability ought to have come on far sooner. In what was a gradual United States workforce, Morris was one of many few gamers on the roster who might be a menace within the open area. The U.S. had the higher of the possibilities the ultimate quarter-hour and Morris helped open up the sport. Ranking: 6.5

Benny Feilhaber: The Sporting Kansas Metropolis playmaker solely performed the ultimate 13 minutes however he positively regarded like a participant who had a chip on his shoulder. He was energetic and energetic. Ranking: 6

Juan Agudelo: Like lots of the substitutes, he was an enchancment to the sport. He ought to have had a winner on the finish however took one contact too many and squandered his likelihood. Ranking: 5.5 

The Coach

Bruce Area: It is powerful and generally unfair to grade coaches in friendlies provided that they need to be provided the chance to experiment. The true end result for a coach in a pleasant is what he learns, not whether or not or not he wins. Nonetheless, this was not a typical pleasant given Area’s familiarity with the participant pool and the essential qualifiers across the bend. On this recreation, there have been some puzzling choices from Area—most notably the shortage of pace within the beginning lineup and the choice to go along with Altidore in a lone-striker formation.

That being stated, lots of the substitutes within the recreation confirmed significantly better than the starters and there have been some clear classes to be realized. It definitely wasn’t an incredible recreation but when Area realized methods to greatest use his participant pool the remainder of the Hexagonal, his actual grade shall be a lot larger. Ranking: 5

That is what Brian thinks—now it is your flip. Go create your individual U.S. participant rankings and share them on Twitter.