The USMNT is back at a World Cup, and this new generation of players has a lot of people excited. Leading up to the tournament the team’s head coach Gregg Berhalter, and its star player Christian Pulisic have appeared in different US media outlets with a message of hope. Essentially saying that this could be the tournament that could help reshape US soccer. In short, a lot of wishful thinking is going on within the USMNT. Is that something that’s translating positively to the field?
Gregg Berhalter’s Idea Is To Put His Best Players On The Field
It’s not debatable that Gergg Berhalter is trying his best to ensure that his best players are all on the field together. Who are his best players? Obviously it’s Pulisic, and Tim Weah upfront, and Weston McKinnie in the midfield. Gio Reyna on a good day should certainly be considered one of the best players for USMNT the same can be said for Tyler Adams.
The problem with this approach of making sure that all of your best players are on the field at once is that you end up putting certain players out of position to ensure that another key piece makes the starting 11. We’ve seen this with Gio Reyna, and Tim Weah. To fit these two in with Pulisic what Berhalter has done is drop his traditional number 9. Perhaps that’s one of the reasons why Pepi didn’t make the roster. Berhalter is thinking of playing with the aforementioned 3 players up front, so you don’t really need another striker.
However, how effective can Pulisic really be doubling as a false number 9, and potentially the offensive midfielder charged with carrying the US offense? Adams has a similar issue in the midfield he has to be a defensive midfielder that can convert into a number 10. It’s sometimes too much to ask out of one player.
The Game Against Wales Is The Make or Break Game For The USMNT
There’s no reason for the US to be looking past the Wales game at this point. Wales is considered to be the US’s main competitor for that second spot in the group to advance to the next round. This of course considering that England is a better team than the US. Our concern is that Wales’ way of playing fits perfectly with the US’. What we mean is, Wales is going to let the US keep possession, and they’ll counter with speedy players on the wings and Gareth Bale.
We just saw this happen to Mexico against Sweden today, and the US should’ve been taking note. In a 4-3-3 you force your left and right backs to play 1v1 on the edge a lot. That’s exactly the spot that’s strongest on that Wales team. The US better hope they can find the back of the net early in the match and maybe then sit back a bit to avoid those dangerous Wales counters. It’s a toss up at this point we are reluctant to pick a winner.
A Round Of 16 Exit Would Be A Good World Cup For The USMNT
What’s realistic for the USA? Getting a round of 16 berth and getting bounced by the Netherlands would be an ok World Cup. The problem is there’s a lot of wishful thinking and false hope in the US media. If you go look at the roster man for man, the difference between the US and Wales isn’t gigantic. The US should find a way to pull that game out, but if they lost or it ended in a draw it shouldn’t be a massive surprise. England is by far a better squad even though they haven’t shown that recently. The Netherlands are also a better team. That’s why a round of 16 exit is the realistic outcome that can be put out there. Could they get a run, and be the dark horse team? Sure, we hope that happens, but again that would be as unrealistic as saying the US is going to lose all of its games!
