The money paragraphs: Klinsmann contended that the only time the U.S. feels comfortable pressing the attack is when the team is losing. When the U.S. is even or ahead, the tendency is to sit back and play more conservatively. When you concede a goal you have to chase the game, and suddenly we are able to do it, he said, pointing specifically to Tuesdays loss. We could have turned that game around the last 15 minutes of extra time, absolutely, Klinsmann said. We had enough chances to win it 3-2. Why not [attack] earlier? This is a constant discussion we have -- I believe it is a mental thing we have to work on more than its about talent. While I mostly agree, I do think there are a couple of issues with this statement. First, I do think hes right that the US needs to shake their 1990s mindset that they are going to have to park the bus in front of the goal to have a chance to beat a Brazil, or Germany, or Belgium. The main problem the US faced in 2014 was the lack of confidence in their center backs. While Besler, Gonzalez, and Cameron mostly played well, each of them had critical breakdowns (particularly Besler and Cameron) at times. I think there was a real sense amongst the midfielders that they had to make sure they came back to help. To top it off, outside of Beasley (who was the best of the back four all tournament, in my opinion) and occasionally Fabian Johnson, there were way, way too many turnovers in the midfield as the US tried to transition to counter attack. This did more to cause the USs bunker mentality in the tournament than anything. Effectively, there were long periods of the game where the US simply couldnt hang on to the ball to start any kind of counter, with the exception of the last 70 minutes or so of the Portugal match.
Posted on: Wed, 02 Jul 2014 23:31:31 +0000
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