Mexico vs. USA March 27 on ESPN2 [R]

[Jose Luis Luviano]

It's better to take 3 points in Birmingham than 1 in Birmingham and 1 in Mexico City.

So, Rover, what's the Over/Under and looted storefronts and overturned police cars in Huntington Park?

[SoccerPrime]

Three words for USA's loss in Mexico:
Pope Pope Pope
Nuff said

[Rover]

Originally Posted by Jose Luis Luviano

It's better to take 3 points in Birmingham than 1 in Birmingham and 1 in Mexico City.

So, Rover, what's the Over/Under and looted storefronts and overturned police cars in Huntington Park?

Oh, I'll leave that to someone who cares . . . 😉

[dysko]

Originally Posted by SoccerPrime

Three words for USA's loss in Mexico:
Pope Pope Pope
Nuff said

I was talking to Steve Pastorino and he said he watched the game with Pope. He said it was hard to do and all he could think is "Why am I sitting here watching this game with Eddie Pope... he should be playing in the game." And from what I gather Eddie felt the same way... it killed him to watch others when he knew he was capable of playing in the game.

[AreliusII]

Originally Posted by Rover

So go ahead, be disappointed, and please question why Arena still plays Berhalter and Cherundolo in the back. Question if Donovan has his head in the game with all the distractions surrounding him right now. Question why Josh Wolff and Cory Gibbs rode the pine and why Eddie Johnson looked so ordinary. Good questions that need answers from the coaching staff.

My biggest question is how Arena was playing Beasley. I think Beasley is much more effective playing on the wing, with his speed, etc. I thought that Beasely was quite ineffective playing in the center midfield. I hope Arena goes back to playing him on the wing…

[clarette]

That game was positively infuriating to watch...

I agree with Arelius about Beasley being more effective on the wing with his speed. The midfield as a whole was WAY too slow getting forward and there was way too much squirrel ball being played in the center.

This might be somewhat controversial, but I think Reyna's done. Let Donovan be the playmaker, and find someone (anyone) who is willing to play off of him and harass the other team's #10.

As for the defense... it was so haphazard that I almost wanted Frankie Hejduk back -- 😲 ! Onyewu did okay for his first big qualifier, but when Pat Noonan is making better defensive plays than your center-backs, you've got a big problem. And WHY did Mexico continually keep getting free down the right flank?

ARRRRGH. It was just so frustrating, especially since the *one* time we actually went forward with some sense of urgency, we actually scored. It was kind of like nobody really wanted to step up and take charge in the attack.

[Aero]

I have to agree that the US did look bad in that game. They didn't seem to be playing with any urgency at all. They weren't very sharp either. Their passes seemed to be off target much of the night and the defense looked like they were playing in a pick-up game where they had never even met each other before. That is the worst I have seen them look in a long, long time.

At least they don't have long to dwell on it and can get things going in the right direction soon.

[bordelais7]

That 4-5-1 was a bust. Especially the 2 d-mid part of that lineup. Made it easy for the Mexicans to go straight up the middle and right at Berhalter and Onyewu. Yuck.

Let's stick with the 4-4-2 and yes, put Beasley on the flank.

[jasoncox]

Johnson seems to excel at finishing but doesn't do well at setting up his own shots. IMO, he looked ordinary against Mexico because the midfield was doing a poor job of setting him up.

[AreliusII]

Reyna is great at controlling the ball but sometimes you don’t want someone to slow down the attack. Reyna can, at times, be counterproductive to a counterattack.

I wonder how much of US’s performance was due to Arena tinkering with the formation…