US 3 Iceland 1Originally Posted by dawg80
Iceland is a pretty good side, this was only their second loss in their last 23 matches. Big, physical team. Play them again Sunday.
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US 3 Iceland 1
Iceland is a pretty good side, this was only their second loss in their last 23 matches. Big, physical team. Play them again Sunday.
US 3 Iceland 1 (again!) Trailed 1-0 in the 31st minute and did not equalize until the 72nd minute, then Bam! an explosion of goals.
One more friendly in this window, Wednesday vs. Argentina.
Now we again see the inspiration for the title of this thread. After yet another "Tech up!" last night, now we get to watch a real winner play.
US 3 Argentina 0
Naomi Girma scored twice, her first goal, and then another, ever in her professional career, club and country. Hayes started newbies, 3 players earned their first caps last night, bringing the number to 7 for the three-game window. And several got only their second cap last night.
Next up for the USWNT is a trip to Europe vs. England and The Netherlands, so a huge bump up in competition.
I think she is building some depth with the young ones, while also looking to potentially replace a few elders before the next cup if father time catches up to them like he does everyone at some point.
Hayes is building a program, designed to be successful across years and major tournaments.
Crystal Dunn, Emily Sonnett, Rose Lavelle, Lindsey Horan, of course Alyssa Naeher, who is already 36, are all within one more WC cycle of being finished. And a few others too. Not to mention any player, especially older ones, are one twist of the knee away from a career-ending injury.
USWNT U17 beat England to take third place at the U17 World Cup this weekend. They had a strong showing, losing to North Korea in the semis. Bodes well for the future. More depth coming along.
US Men vs. Jamaica tonight.
US 1 Jamaica 0
Good road win, Kingston has always been a tough place to get a result. Matt Turner made a great save on a PK to preserve the win. This was Leg 1 of 2 in the series, quarterfinals of the tournament, The CONCACAF Nations League, play again Monday in St. Louis.
Otherwise, other than a couple of tactical changes, this team is not much different than when Berhalter was coaching. Long way to go to become significant in international soccer.
One thing is the hot hands will be called into camp going forward based off their club play, not because Berhalter likes them so I see the squad changing a bit over the next year. Without the normal games to prep for a world cup Ponch will have to go with who is playing well in the best leagues we have guys in. Berhalter played his guys no matter what.
Pulisic scores a goal and breaks out the Trump dance. You gotta love it!
It's catching on. Rumors are the NFL is thinking of banning it, since it might "trigger some of their fans." Stooooopid.
US 4 Jamaica 2
Advance to the semi-finals of the CONCACAF Nations League, next window for those matches in March, 2025.
Game had the vibes of a friendly. Very little, practically no tight marking. Can't speak for why Jamaica played like that, and I don't care. But, I don't like the US playing like that. Won't get it done against elite competition in matches that matter, ya know, like in the World Cup. SIX frickin' goals in a match that is supposed to matter! R U kidding me!?
On the plus side, Pepi has cemented himself as the go-to #1 striker. He gets it.
I agree about Pepi, I would like to see him move up a notch or two in his level of club competition. Not knocking the Eredivisie, the Dutch play creative ball, but I would love to see him a regular starter in Germany or Italy. Honestly, all the Euro leagues have got to the point where 2-3 teams will rotate winning the title.
There are articles about Liverpool having an eye on him during the January transfer window. I don't think that's a good fit. I think he gets lost in the shuffle and less playing time there than even being the super-sub for PSV he currently is. If he moves it needs to be to a club that he is going to get PT leading into the 26 Cup.
Atletico Madrid, Ajax, Bayern Munich, and Borussia Dortmund. I think Ajax is a lateral move in the same league unless they plan to make him #1 up top. The other three aren't bad options at all, Bayern has Kane and a good stable of guys that all have 3 or more goals so far this season so PT might be less there. Dortmund are 7th in the table currently and could use his scoring. Athletico is towards the top of the table so that might be a great spot as well.
The Pulisic goal from Weston was a high-quality combo and finish. You won't have time to settle that ball against good teams and we have lacked that one touch finishing for a long time.
Alyssa Naeher announces retirement from international soccer. Knew this was coming soon. She says she wants to remove the cloud of doubt on whether she would retire allowing Hayes to move forward developing younger keepers. Naeher has been, IMO, the best US keeper of all time, surpassing Hope Solo for that distinction.
Naeher will travel with the team for their two-game road trip to England and The Netherlands, this will be her swan song, her farewell to the USWNT. Plans to play one more year with her club team.
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