USMNT: Americans Head into Final Round of Qualifying with Several Question Marks

By
at Internationaled.org

Published: November 15, 2012

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One day after the United States' 2-2 draw in Russia, the diagnosis has not changed for Jurgen Klinsmann's Yanks. The Americans were outplayed, and as any and all observers would argue, the draw was a fortunate result.

The team's struggles, especially in defense and midfield, suggest Klinsmann has a difficult task ahead as the U.S. prepares for the final round of World Cup qualifying. The U.S. currently has no matches scheduled between now and the Feb. 6 trip to Honduras, the first match in the final round of qualifying.

The purpose of playing friendlies, as we know, is not necessarily to produce a positive result. More important is evaluating players, tactics and formations. Fortunately, Wednesday's match taught Klinsmann plenty about all three, even in the absence of big names like Landon Donovan and Clint Dempsey.

Now we wait to see whether Klinsmann learns the right lessons.



Klinsmann opted for a 4-3-3 starting formation with a number of interesting personnel decisions. Josh Gatt made his first appearance for the senior national team and started on the right side of a three-pronged attack.

Gatt switched sides often with Herculez Gomez and, although he did not score, performed well enough to warrant more call-ups to the senior squad. Gatt has developed almost a cult-like popularity online with U.S. fans, and now he has taken his chance to prove himself.



In the midfield, Klinsmann opted for three defensive-minded holding players in Michael Bradley, Jermaine Jones and Danny Williams. The combination did not work.

Williams' poor decision-making led to Russia's opening goal. He played a quick free kick directly to a Russian attacker in the U.S. half. The mistake seemed to rattle Williams, who gave away possession and found himself in poor positions frequently for the rest of his time on the pitch.

Jones was not nearly as poor, but he did not excel either. Br...
Article Source: Bleacher Report - International Football

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