Alonso Hernandez

U-20 World Cup: U.S. improves, ties France

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Daniel Cuevas (20) scored the equalizer and celebrates with Benji Joya (8). (Photo: Jamie McDonald/FIFA/FIFA/Getty Images)
Daniel Cuevas (20) scored the equalizer and celebrates with Benji Joya (8). (Photo: Jamie McDonald/FIFA/FIFA/Getty Images)

 

In the United States’ second U-20 World Cup game, Javan Torre started again at center back and the more highly-rated center back, Caleb Stanko, was benched despite outplaying Torre in the first game, and the United States tied France 1-1.

 

Torre may or not be one of the two best center back options at Ramos’ disposal, but he did fairly well against France.

 

Perhaps if M’Baye Niang were playing as a first striker for France, the combination of Niang and midfield extraordinaire Paul Pogba would have spelled a horror show for the United States’ defense.

 

As it was, Pogba displayed his usual effortless play even with Will Trapp and Benji Joya putting pressure on him.

 

Pogba wasn’t fazed or neutralized, but Joya showed his ability to play against elite players. This was a good barometer to prove to any of Joya’s doubters that he has the ability to play with the United States Men’s National Team.

 

In addition to Pogba, French striker, Yaya Sanogo (amongst others) was a handful for U.S. center back, Shane O’Neill, who was luckily available for this game, unlike the first World Cup match.

 

The U.S. had an equal share of possession against Spain, but against France, the U.S. saw far less possession. Unlike in the game against Spain, Will Trapp did a better job of tackling and playing deeper which is his job playing as somewhat of a midfield destroyer with the number 6 jersey.

 

On the other hand, Joya who was again used as a box-to-box midfielder played as well or better than he played against Spain.

 

Joya and Trapp did a good job of putting pressure on France’s midfield even though all of France’s players were tall, elite athletes who passed effortlessly and seemed to easily enjoy the lion’s share of possession.

 

But, the United States did pass well and combine well with each other, and the U.S. didn’t look outmatched, as the U.S. was able to advance forward with good team passing.

 

One of the most striking aspects of the game was how physically imposing and graceful almost all of the French players were, and despite this, the United States still was able to play with France and attack and defend them.

 

With one loss and one tie so far in the U-20 World Cup, the U.S.’ U-20 team has displayed a good level of soccer that technically looks better than the United States Men’s National Team as a whole, and the quality of play occurred against a fast and technically-skilled Spanish team and a French squad that was equally skilled but athletically far superior to Spain.

 

The size, skill, and athleticism of France was remarkable, but the U.S.’ players like O’Neill and Joya seemed unfazed by it.

 

Frankly, France’s U-20 squad looked unbeatable when the game started.

 

Based on how many goals Spain scored on the U.S., this French squad right after kickoff looked like they were going to dominate the United States, and they did dominate possession.

 

Despite the 59% to 41% possession difference, the U.S.’ front six were able to string passes together playing one-to-two touch soccer and get into the final third, and the defense was able to somewhat contain France.

 

This signals an improvement for American soccer.

 

Looking at the state of American soccer in general, it would appear that many of the U.S.’ U-20 players are ready to play alongside players like Clint Dempsey, Michael Bradley, Tim Howard, Jermaine Jones, Geoff Cameron, Fabian Johnson, Benny Feilhaber, Juan Agudelo, Freddy Adu, Joe Corona, and Jozy Altidore.

 

Some combination of the best players from the U-20 team combined with the USMNT players listed above indicates an improvement in the overall technical ability of the United States.

 

One important thing to remember about the U-20 World Cup is that Brazil and Argentina didn’t qualify for it, which seems to indicate that their players of this age group are already being incorporated into their main national teams.

 

The United States and Jürgen Klinsmann would be wise to incorporate some of these players like DeAndre Yedlin, Benji Joya, Luis Gil, Shane O’Neill, Mario Rodriguez, Alonso Hernandez, and José Villarreal into the USMNT for the Gold Cup or for upcoming World Cup qualifiers.

 

FIFA MATCH REPORT AND RECAP:

http://www.fifa.com/u20worldcup/matches/round=259235/match=300232815/report.html

 

U-20 World Cup: Tab Ramos Improves U.S. XI

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Tab Ramos made several line-up changes. (Photo: ISIphotos.com)
Tab Ramos made several line-up changes. (Photo: ISIphotos.com)

 

Unlike Jürgen Klinsmann, the United States’ U-20 coach Tab Ramos’ roster and line-up selections make sense. The criticism from the American soccer media before and after the first U-20 World Cup game for the United States was the exclusion of some Major League Soccer players and the inclusion of Javan Torre in the starting line-up.

 

Ramos’ line-ups have been balanced, and, by and large, strong at every position. Against France, Ramos used four capable defenders playing their natural positions, three different kinds of midfielders, and three strikers up top who brought different qualities.

 

Ramos used two modern outside backs in DeAndre Yedlin and Juan Pablo Ocegueda, which is an improvement over Klinsmann’s use of players out of position at outside back. Ramos also used two center backs who combined speed, skill, and sufficient size to compete against France.

 

Will Trapp was used as a defensive midfielder, but he doesn’t seem to possess anything remotely close to the speed, size, skill, or physicality of Michael Bradley. Trapp did make several key tackles against France, which was an improvement over his performance against Spain, but the line-up was basically without a midfield destroyer.

 

Trapp’s parter along with Luis Gil was Benji Joya, and Joya is the real deal. Joya is underrated by many in the American soccer media who seem to feel that Joya was responsible for covering the same amount of defensive duties as Trapp despite the fact that Joya wears the number 8 jersey for a reason instead of Trapp’s number 6 jersey.

 

Tab Ramos deploys Luis Gil as a playmaker, and this is a position that Klinsmann simply refuses to use on his United States Men’s National Team. Gil is good at playing final balls, helping the U.S. to maintain possession, and scoring goals, and he was used behind a trident of strikers.

 

This trident of strikers was a change in tactics from the formation used against Spain, and using Mario Rodriguez, José Villarreal, and Alonso Hernandez as strikers allowed the U.S. to try to stretch the French backline in addition to pressuring them when France had possession.

 

U-20 World Cup: Without a midfield destroyer, the U.S. loses to Spain

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Spain's attackers were too much for the United States. (Photo: Jamie McDonald/Getty Images)
Spain’s attackers were too much for the United States. (Photo: Jamie McDonald/Getty Images)

 

Despite being on the receiving end of a 4-1 goleada by Spain’s Under -20 national team in its opening game of the U-20 World Cup, in many ways, the United States’ Under-20 national team displayed better passing and overall skill on the ball than the so-called “senior” United States Men’s National Team.

 

The main problem for Tab Ramos’ U-20 American side was the lack of a real defensive midfielder to cut down on the space Spain had in front of the American defense to run at them and break them down with passes and dribbling.

 

Some of Ramos’s roster selections raised eyebrows (Javan Torre, Daniel Garcia, and maybe Alonso Hernandez), and the main scapegoat for the U.S.’ loss was Javan Torre. Nevertheless, Spain’s strikers Gerard Deulofeu and Jesé Rodriguez are extremely talented strikers who attack with speed, technique, and trickery.

 

There were several examples of both of Spain’s strikers being given too much space to score, but Spain’s second goal scored by Deulofeu was probably unstoppable.

 

Javan Torre stayed close to Deulofeu to almost entirely block any clear angle to score, but Deulofeu put so much inside of the foot bend on the ball that he was able to strike the ball wide of Torre and American goalkeeper, Cody Cropper, and still find the back of the net despite Cropper doing a full lay out dive, which had the angle to the far post blocked.

 

American soccer fans might have to accept that particular goal as a moment of individual skill, unlike the first Spanish goal which was a combination of individual skill on the pass and DeAndre Yedlin leaving Jesé Rodríguez with too much space to volley a goal from close range with the inside of his foot.

 

Likely, the real root of the problem lies with the two American center backs being in the position where Spain had space in front of them to either sprint at them or play passes through or over them.

 

However one looks at it, the American defense was too easily beaten on four occasions, but the United States did play an open game with Spain, in which the U.S. showed good team passing and a good display of comfort on the ball.

 

American midfielders Benji Joya and Luis Gil displayed the ability to play on Spain’s level, but Will Trapp had a quiet game, in which he appeared to not provide enough defensive coverage deep in the American midfield. Joya was often dropping deep to receive the ball and then advancing up field, which allowed Spain to have a big hole to exploit in front of the American defense.

 

In the upcoming game against France, the U.S. has the displeasure of having to face off against perhaps the best defensive and box-to-box midfielder in the world: Paul Pogba.

 

Given the fact that Pogba is not only the best player in the entire tournament but one of the best midfielders in the world for any age group, it’s particularly unfortunate that the United States is weak at the defensive midfielder position.

 

Against Pogba, Tab Ramos will have to make an adjustment to his line-up to try to attempt to somewhat neutralize Pogba (which won’t be possible), and this adjustment will likely be starting Shane O’Neill and someone else at center back with Caleb Stanko at the midfield destroyer role.

 

While the passing and skill level of the United States was encouraging and genuinely high quality, the defense delivered by Will Trapp and the American back four was poor. Either the American back four was left helpless by Trapp, or they were guilty of being two easily beaten.

 

Perhaps starting Stanko with a center back besides Torre would have put the United States in the position to better handle Spain’s attacking forays even with the hole deep in the American midfield, or maybe Spain’s strikers were just too good.

 

In the wake of a three-goal loss to Spain, the United States has plenty of strong attacking and midfield options, but these skilled midfielders and forwards need to not be made irrelevant due to a hole deep in the American midfield or a weak center back tandem.

 

The silver lining to the game was an excellent left-footed upper 90 golazo scored by American playmaker Luis Gil after he freed himself to shoot with a Cruyff. Gil’s overall play, near assist for Alonso Hernandez, as well as Gil’s goal provided more evidence that Jürgen Klinsmann has playmaker options for his USMNT.

 

In a way, the area where the USMNT is very strong, defensive midfield, and the area where they are weak, the attacking portion of the midfield, is the opposite of the U-20 U.S. national team.

 

Against France, Tab Ramos needs to play Stanko as a midfield destroyer, so that the U-20’s technical ability and attacking skill aren’t wasted.