Americans Back On Track After Honduras Mauling
I was hoping for a win -- even an emphatic win -- last night, but I never suspected the United States Men's national team to tie the records for most goals in a game and the largest margin of victory in a Hexagonal match. Honduras may not be Mexico or Costa Rica, but Los Catrachos aren't pushovers and 6-0 is the impressive statement victory that American fans have been craving.
A six-goal win in Bruce Arena's first competitive match since his return as manager would normally be the biggest storyline coming out of such a result, as might Clint Dempsey's somewhat surprise return to the lineup and subsequent hat trick. But after last night there was really only one topic anyone wanted to talk about: Christian Pulisic.
The USA has produced promising young players before (Hello, Freddy Adu). There have been Americans in the academies of top European clubs for years (Jovan Kirovski joined the Manchester United academy in 1993). Americans have had good careers in Europe and even some successful spells at big clubs (Tim Howard won an FA Cup with Man U!). But there has never, ever been a player like Christian Pulisic. At just 18, he's progressed swiftly past the "promising" stage. He's not just playing well for youth national teams, or showing flashes of talent for the senior side, or flirting with minutes for his club, Borussia Dortmund. Pulisic was the heartbeat of the U.S. win last night, dribbling past players, picking out dangerous passes, and punishing any weaknesses on his way to a goal and two assists, including the dish on Seabstian Lletget's opener. He's is already the real deal. As I said to my colleagues in the Howler group chat last night, Christian Pulisic is everything we tried to force Landon Donovan to be.
So let's look at some positives and negatives from last night's 6-0 victory over Honduras:
POSITIVE: Christian Pulisic is the 10. For years, the United States has craved a number 10: a playmaker, a central attacking midfielder who could withstand pressure, create chances for teammates, and score goals for himself. Last night, an 18-year-old made that role his own. The future is bright.
NEGATIVE: Injury to Lletget. Somewhat lost among the Pulisic hype was how the scorer of the game's first goal, Sebastian Lletget, left the game early with injury. Lletget is an Arena favorite, with Il Bruce signing him for the LA Galaxy before handing him his first caps and national team start. He's set to undergo an MRI on his ankle/foot and will probably miss the qualifier against Panama.
POSITIVE: Clint still has it. Last fall, an irregular heartbeat ended Clint Dempsey's Major League Soccer season. Deuce was approaching his 34th birthday, and with youngsters like Bobby Wood of Hamburg and Dempsey's own Seattle Sounders teammate Jordan Morris pushing for starting roles in the national team, it seemed his USMNT career might be over. Fast-forward to spring, and Dempsey just recorded a hat trick in qualifying to land within two goals of Landon Donovan's all-time national team record of 57.
NEGATIVE: Despite the goal, Michael Bradley still sloppy. This may seem picky, and if you've followed my twitter, it may seem like I'm focusing unfairly on MB90. He's actually one of my favorite players, and if I'm harsh, it's because I've seen him have some amazing, imperious performances in central midfield. His goal last night was reminiscent of his barnstorming best, an absolute rocket to the far post from outside the penalty area. Despite that, there were still too many times when he got caught in possession in his own half, or was found flat-footed during a Honduras attack. The U.S. still has an uphill road to qualifying, and it will need Bradley at his sharpest.
POSITIVE: Welcome back, Bruce Arena! How's that for a competitive return? Arena probably didn't have to do much to impress the importance of last night on his players, but he did have the very vital role of not being Jurgen Klinsmann. Klinsi was undoubtedly a great player, but he lost the confidence of his team with head-scratching tactical choices and widely-panned public criticism of players to cover his own mistakes. Arena's second stint as national team manager has brought with it a large measure of the group cohesion and confidence that went missing in the latter part of the German's tenure.
A six-goal win in Bruce Arena's first competitive match since his return as manager would normally be the biggest storyline coming out of such a result, as might Clint Dempsey's somewhat surprise return to the lineup and subsequent hat trick. But after last night there was really only one topic anyone wanted to talk about: Christian Pulisic.
The USA has produced promising young players before (Hello, Freddy Adu). There have been Americans in the academies of top European clubs for years (Jovan Kirovski joined the Manchester United academy in 1993). Americans have had good careers in Europe and even some successful spells at big clubs (Tim Howard won an FA Cup with Man U!). But there has never, ever been a player like Christian Pulisic. At just 18, he's progressed swiftly past the "promising" stage. He's not just playing well for youth national teams, or showing flashes of talent for the senior side, or flirting with minutes for his club, Borussia Dortmund. Pulisic was the heartbeat of the U.S. win last night, dribbling past players, picking out dangerous passes, and punishing any weaknesses on his way to a goal and two assists, including the dish on Seabstian Lletget's opener. He's is already the real deal. As I said to my colleagues in the Howler group chat last night, Christian Pulisic is everything we tried to force Landon Donovan to be.
So let's look at some positives and negatives from last night's 6-0 victory over Honduras:
POSITIVE: Christian Pulisic is the 10. For years, the United States has craved a number 10: a playmaker, a central attacking midfielder who could withstand pressure, create chances for teammates, and score goals for himself. Last night, an 18-year-old made that role his own. The future is bright.
NEGATIVE: Injury to Lletget. Somewhat lost among the Pulisic hype was how the scorer of the game's first goal, Sebastian Lletget, left the game early with injury. Lletget is an Arena favorite, with Il Bruce signing him for the LA Galaxy before handing him his first caps and national team start. He's set to undergo an MRI on his ankle/foot and will probably miss the qualifier against Panama.
POSITIVE: Clint still has it. Last fall, an irregular heartbeat ended Clint Dempsey's Major League Soccer season. Deuce was approaching his 34th birthday, and with youngsters like Bobby Wood of Hamburg and Dempsey's own Seattle Sounders teammate Jordan Morris pushing for starting roles in the national team, it seemed his USMNT career might be over. Fast-forward to spring, and Dempsey just recorded a hat trick in qualifying to land within two goals of Landon Donovan's all-time national team record of 57.
NEGATIVE: Despite the goal, Michael Bradley still sloppy. This may seem picky, and if you've followed my twitter, it may seem like I'm focusing unfairly on MB90. He's actually one of my favorite players, and if I'm harsh, it's because I've seen him have some amazing, imperious performances in central midfield. His goal last night was reminiscent of his barnstorming best, an absolute rocket to the far post from outside the penalty area. Despite that, there were still too many times when he got caught in possession in his own half, or was found flat-footed during a Honduras attack. The U.S. still has an uphill road to qualifying, and it will need Bradley at his sharpest.
POSITIVE: Welcome back, Bruce Arena! How's that for a competitive return? Arena probably didn't have to do much to impress the importance of last night on his players, but he did have the very vital role of not being Jurgen Klinsmann. Klinsi was undoubtedly a great player, but he lost the confidence of his team with head-scratching tactical choices and widely-panned public criticism of players to cover his own mistakes. Arena's second stint as national team manager has brought with it a large measure of the group cohesion and confidence that went missing in the latter part of the German's tenure.
Bradley definitely wasn't at his best, but that was far better than any of his performances under Klinsmann. It's amazing what being he can accomplish being played in his natural position.
ReplyDeleteIt was definitely an improvement, but he was up against a Honduras team getting its butt thoroughly kicked. Hardly a real test, and he still had some really questionable moments.
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