Friendly match: USA vs Canada - Saturday, September 7th - 4pm Eastern / 1pm Pacific - Kansas City, Kansas

[GasPed]

5 hours ago, Unnamed Trialist said:

I think the press is working for us, because we have the fitness, but vs a really top side it usually does not work. Because a good team can play through it. Then you are running like hell for nothing.

I've seen rival sides play Barça with a high press, can even get something out of it, but then by m. 30 even they have to sit back because it cannot be sustained vs a team that can pass. It's real sense was like vs the US where it put you a goal up and you can work with that, as then they have to take initiative and you get to counter.

I agree - a standard approach nowadays is to break out the intense all-out press in minute one and try to parlay that into some early goals, then be more selective/countering after that.  (E.g. Bayern 8 - Barca 2, sorry had to say that 😉)

But make no mistake - an intense press by an athletic, coordinated team is no laughing matter.  Even the best one-touch passing teams will struggle unless they have a plan (e.g. work on some novel break-out methods in practice).  Most national teams don't have a lot of time to work on things like that.     

[costarg]

5 hours ago, Unnamed Trialist said:

Of course a coordinated press is better, and you have to coach it. 

And then a selective press, which is in fact what we are doing; we often will let the keeper play out, and often will let a certain player from the back have more time (if he's less artful in the pass). We don't cover everyone. We even did it selectively vs. Argentina in the first match, pressing them enough to force them into long balls, which they did quite well and should have punished us more on that first half. 

 

We were clearly targeting Ream with a selective press.  The rest of the backline had time on the ball, we'd close down the second the ball went to Ream.  

Must feel like shit to be the targeted player!

[Joe MacCarthy]

 

[Bison44]

Man the fallout from the americans is sad.  So many of them cant seem to acknowledge that Canada had some role in the defeat.  They dont want to  look at it objectively and admit, we were #1 in qualifying (maybe a fluke) and more recently we out performed them at the COPA.  They cant just expect their pre-ordained home field advantage will give them the win no matter what.  They actually need to have their shit together and cant just pencil in a win everytime CAN comes to town.  

[rkomar]

I don't hear any of them saying that they are embarrassed that they lost to Canada, rather they are embarrassed by the effort the US team gave.  They are a panel talking to American fans, I don't expect them to be talking enthusiastically about us, so I don't take it as disrespect if they don't do that.

I also don't really buy this whole "the game means nothing" statement.  Being the first team to lose to us on home soil in 67 years has to be disappointing.  There were plenty of other meaningless games over that long stretch of time where they got the job done.  They have to be wondering if this is a kind of bad that affects the coming World Cup.

[PopePouri]

David Gass was on point that this is the lowest point for their program in 5 years.  How they can brush this off after getting grouped at COPA and showing no desire to bounce back. Getting dominated at home in front of a garbage crowd. It's just straight up denial.

[Obinna]

I have watched many American reactions at this point and yes time and again the theme is how bad they were and not how good we were. 

To be fair though, our reaction was pretty much the same when we lost the 2023 NL finals. All the talk was about how we didn't show up for the match. I was in the minority (on here) saying it was more a case of the USMNT being outstanding on the day.

Every fan base tends to look inward. It's natural.

[Unnamed Trialist]

16 hours ago, costarg said:

We were clearly targeting Ream with a selective press.  The rest of the backline had time on the ball, we'd close down the second the ball went to Ream.  

Must feel like shit to be the targeted player!

It could go the other way though, like if you don't pressure one of the CBs or the keeper because his distribution is poor. So you pressure the outlets and make him go longer, reducing his accuracy % drastically.

Do you think we pressured Reams because he's good or poor? For example when Busquets played beside Xavi and Iniesta there was no point, but at Inter Miami by all means. 

[ahmedou]

17 shots

7 shots on target

7 corners

[Joe MacCarthy]

 

 

[gigi riva]

On 9/10/2024 at 1:15 PM, Bison44 said:

Man the fallout from the americans is sad.  So many of them cant seem to acknowledge that Canada had some role in the defeat.  They dont want to  look at it objectively and admit, we were #1 in qualifying (maybe a fluke) and more recently we out performed them at the COPA.  They cant just expect their pre-ordained home field advantage will give them the win no matter what.  They actually need to have their shit together and cant just pencil in a win everytime CAN comes to town.  

In all honesty Bison44. I just want to see us improve on the field, and at the top of the CSA. I want to see more Canadians taliking about Canadian Footy, I could care less what  ESPN, CBS Golazo, etc say.  Or even Canadian Mainstream media and there infatuation with Drone Gate  say.  btw I will add Mexican media to that list

[ahmedou]

"The sixth episode of the #CANMNT series ‘On Guard’ follows the team’s September Friendly window, including a history away victory against the U.S"