Has he Made the US National Team Great Again yet?

Better question, why did they play this game?

The annual US National Team winter camp is set up because MLS is about to start preseason, and they can put together a squad of domestic based players to take a look at.

It used to be primarily a B-team playing other international B-teams, but now the overwhelming chunk of our international roster plays in MLS. They use the time to take a look at fringe players to see who may need a call up in the future.

Because these are official FIFA international dates, teams don't have to release their players. That generally means that they end up playing countries that are still out for winter break, or that have domestic leagues still in offseason.

Oh, it was a relatively strong lineup for the USA. Jozy, Sasha, MB, Nagbe, Garza, J. Jones, Bedoya all started. Nagbe got his first start ever. Nick Romando was in goal. Zusi started at right back too. Looks like he is getting ready to be converted to defense by Arena.

Damn. I guess fire him, then.

(2) I'm genuinely curious, despite not being a fan of the US team, as to how the squad does, what changes he makes, etc.

we're gonna fuck around and end up in that playoff with Asia for a WC slot, aren't we?

that was a terrible L vs costa rica just now

if they don't make two howlers of mistakes (ye ol' Timmy kinda included in this group) Costa Rica is still lucky to draw. d

unno about the attack, though, pushing the wingers up to the top of the line instead of playing possession and actually breaking down Costa Rica to enter the final third was a little weird, too. Pulisic just didn't have it for some reason and Bobby Wood was spraying hospital balls every chance he got. So yeah, shit performance, but without two huge mistakes in the back Costa Rica generated extremely little.

I am just a casual observer but the U.S. team seems like athletes and not soccer players. The culture is still pretty weak here, people deny that up and down but the proof is in the pudding.

In every other country in the world, soccer is the people's game
the streets, the hood, the barrios, the struggle
Here we got soccer moms packing lunches, summer camps that cost an arm and a leg, and quiet as a mouse MLS matches

I'm not saying go full South American or Euro hooligan
but I see USMNT not playing with any passion, any fire, just going through the motions
they almost look like men without a country (c)
then I watch Chile and Colombia and they play like their lives depend on it (well in Colombia's case...)

I mean, even Brazil got touched when they started going through the motions and/or not showing up thinking they had already won

The world: "Some people think football is a matter of life and death.
I can assure them it is much more serious than that" (c)

America: good game, good effort (c)

One is the obvious that soccer is a second-banana sport in the U.S. and even Canada. They lose kids who excel in other sports.

They also lose considerable participation after age 12. A lot of kids play to hide (not as obvious as striking out or shooting an airball) just to satisfy whatever "I play a sport" thing. Then they drop sports and that includes soccer.

There isn't a priority among our top athletes, there isn't a passionate culture surrounding the sport and, as you said, the culture we do have around it is not the same sort of serious one we have around even niche sports, let alone mainstream ones.

*soccer peanut gallery here*

the recent narrative is weird, as if there is a much better team lurking behind these performances. doesn't seem like it.

If we haven't developed better players than this, he's got no small part of the blame.

That said, if arenas is the answer you're asking the wrong questions

Morris is such a try hard bamma that he'll score some ugly ass goals, but those are the goals that get you draws and 2-1 wins in the dying moments.

I don't trust Jordan in the center channels right now. I watched him hose his chances in that game against Portland last weekend same as you. But I have no problem with using his physicality and work rate on the wing. I was perfectly happy to see him starting. Imagine if Jordan was challenging for the header that led to the first Costa Rica goal instead of Fabian Johnson...

seems like a completely rudimentary 4-4-2 that just wants to get overlaps on the wing, which isn't that different from the mess Bruce trotted out against Costa Rica.

In reply, Honduras just puts two burners on the wing (Quioto + Elis) to run at our trash FBs (Zusi + Beas, really?) and 1-0 for Honduras at half is completely fair.

Look, over half of MLS is running a 4-2-3-1 at this point and there's even a few that have assembled the personnel for the in vogue 3-5-2. The few relics that were still trotting out straight line 4-4-2s are sitting in the basement and used the summer to replace their coach. I have faith in Bruce on the man management side, but this is really rudimentary shit for talent that is ready to play a bit more sophisticated than this.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_asNhzXq72w

He hasn't resigned? FOH now. Today.

the Trinidad + Tobago one was sooo egregious. they're playing on a swampy high school field and he trouts out a wide diamond with possession oriented players across the field? if ever there was a game screaming out for a more conservative 4-2-3-1 (Bradley was on a lonely, swampy island just leaving oceans of space in front of two slow central CBs) where the plan was to get forward, knock it down, then pump it into the box this was it. why the fuck couldn't we use an aerial advantage on set pieces? that was always one of our strengths.

same story against Costa Rica -- waaaaay over-stretched with no effective midfield links against a team you knew was going to bunker and run. so, so dumb.

talking with friends last night I have no clue who the next guy is -- if you look domestically, the least tarnished resume is probably Greg Vanney right now, but I am in no way, shape, or form ready for a coach that green. and if I hear anyone link Caleb Porter to that job, I swear I might hit them.

>
>talking with friends last night I have no clue who the next
>guy is

That's our C team + two starters. Team morale demolished. Seven game losing streak. Stadium empty. Federation a shambles. Everyone from Trinidad's perspective had already accepted the loss. WANTED the loss so y'all could put us out of our fucking misery with this regime. Like...

WTF, y'all.

www.engadgethd.com - the other stuff i'm looking at

https://twitter.com/ShemikaCharles/status/911623351147175936

www.engadgethd.com - the other stuff i'm looking at

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P7lGGhHZSZs

http://www.ussoccer.com/stories/2017/10/12/19/19/20171013-news-mnt-bruce-arena-resigns-as-us-mens-national-team-head-coach

coaches come and go, but the rot in US Soccer starts at the top
if Sunil is on some president for life shit then fuck him and fuck US Soccer

Not how most people thought it would play out, I guess.

He just aint gotta go to Russia now

http://www.goal.com/en/news/how-many-howards-or-dempseys-are-the-us-losing-due-to-pay-to/4c10dtk0u17c16q7nsa1g3x4y

And then subsidized, so even low-income kids have a chance to develop to their fullest potentials?

Fuck that. Youth sports is about making adults rich.

Capitalism, goddammit.