Thoughts on the United States Friendly vs. Colombia
By Ty Duffy
The Formation: No criticisms for Bradley, here. Friendlies are the time for experimentation. The U.S. began in a 4-3-3. They looked marginally more comfortable with their 4-4-2 blanket during the second half. This seems like an argument for ol’ reliable, but the issue was personnel not formation. The 4-3-3 requires dynamic attacking play from the auxiliary forwards. Brek Shea and Holden weren’t providing it.
The 4-3-3 also needs a Xavi, point-guard type midfielder to distribute the ball. The U.S. played three marauding holding midfielders: Jones, Edu and Bradley. That can work against teams that attack, but is disastrous when a team needs to dictate the game. That formation with Donovan and Dempsey as the auxiliary forwards and Torres put on for one of the three defensive midfielders might be workable.
Jermaine Jones: He’s not a revolution, but he’s a solid improvement. He’s seasoned, intelligent and skillful. He’s the exact type of midfielder the U.S. already has, just a better version. He has a controlled edge to his game the American team lacks, but, unfortunately, he’s no possession holder. I’m not sure this is a real nickname, but anyone who calls him “Germany Jones” should be hurled into the same acid bath as the guy who invented the term “trickeration.”
Scoring Drought: A U.S. striker has not scored a World Cup goal since 2002. You’ll hear that stat often. It’s irrelevant. The issue is not the strikers. It is the midfield. Strikers are impotent if they can’t get the ball in advantageous positions. The U.S. midfield has no coherent philosophy. They give the ball away. They don’t build attacks effectively in open play. There are legit questions about Jozy Altidore’s dedication and development, but he needs opportunities to capitalize on them.