sport news Where it's gone wrong for the USMNT ahead of the World Cup - and how they can ... trends now
It's not enough that the US men's national team drew with Saudi Arabia. It's not enough they did it in an environment with less pressure than a flat can of Coke. It's not enough that they suffered that draw to what was basically the Green Falcons' B-team.
It's that they did it while looking offensively bankrupt, tactically disorganized, and as lost as a child distracted by a shiny object at a county fair.
The United States seemed woefully unprepared on this stage - a mostly empty stadium in Murcia that serves as home for a Spanish third division team - in its final tune up match ahead of a World Cup appearance fans have been waiting eight years for.
If last night showed any indication of how the team is going to perform in Qatar, we may as well have been better off waiting a little while longer.
The USMNT looked poor in their 0-0 draw with Saudi Arabia - their final tune up before Qatar
As a whole, this United States team has problems at seemingly every level of the squad outside goalkeeping.
The defense and midfield have seen injuries leaving out key players - both for these last two games and in the future in Qatar. The attack is inefficient and inconsistent. The coaching and tactics have been suspect at times.
Some of these problems are easier fixes than others. But, no matter how easy they are to fix, they still must be addressed if the US hopes to make it out of the group stages.
If the USMNT hopes to advance, Christian Pulisic and the attack need to step up their game
Defense
A torn Achilles suffered by Miles Robinson (center, on ground) has set back the US defense
The Problem:
Ever since Atlanta United's Miles Robinson burst onto the scene at the CONCACAF Gold Cup Final, he's locked down a starting spot at center back with the USMNT.
Ever since the Syracuse University product went down with an Achilles tear in May, the USMNT has known they've needed to find his replacement.
New York Red Bulls captain Aaron Long has been the preferred choice at center back to replace him alongside Nashville SC star Walker Zimmerman. For the most part, he's done well. Fans will be quick to point out mistakes he made in the game against Japan while ignoring he logged six recoveries. Mark McKenzie, Cameron Carter-Vickers, Erik Palmer-Brown, and Chris Richards have shown they can work in this system as well.
On the wings, Reggie Cannon of Boavista and Sergino Dest of AC Milan have been the main choices at right back. But once again, injuries have deprived us from Fulham left back Antonee 'Jedi' Robinson.
Dest was used in his place against Saudi Arabia and he didn't seem to make many errors, but it's not his preferred position. Sam Vines of Antwerp didn't perform to his best ability against Japan, making his spot in Qatar shaky. On the other hand, Joe Scally of Mönchengladbach made a good defensive impact when he was subbed on in the game against the Saudis. That might be enough for him to make use of his passport this November.
In Robinson's place, Aaron Long (L) has been starting alongside Walker Zimmerman (R)
The Solution: Keep Calm and Carry On, but return to normal for Qatar
Injuries can't be helped, and Jedi should be back in time for Qatar. But the experimentation needs to end.
The defense is probably the group that needs the least work with all the positions pretty much locked down after this camp.
It could always be better, but with few players putting up significant challenges to those starting spots, Berhalter will just need to go with his starters.
Midfield
Weston McKennie (8) is crucial in a midfield three that represents the US's best options
The Problem:
If there's one thing the Saudi Arabia game exposed, possibly more than anything else, it showed how much the US needs the midfield three of McKennie-Musah-Adams.
Weston McKennie of Juventus is the team's best box-to-box option and has generated great chances in the past for the Stars and Stripes. He hit 93% of his passes against Saudi Arabia, but failed to truly be dynamic in attack like he has before.
Tyler Adams of Leeds United is the true captain of this team. He was by far the man of the match for the USA against Saudi Arabia, completing 85% of his passes, grabbing two interceptions, making eleven recoveries, and winning 50% of his tackles. He's not expected to generate offense, but he's the spark plug for any attack the US has.
The absence of Yunus Musah (8) has been sorely missed in the USMNT since his injury
Yunus Musah of Valencia was absent due to injury, leaving the USMNT to experiment with the third spot in their midfield. Luca de la Torre of Celta Vigo didn't do the best he possibly could and it may have cost him a roster spot. Johnny Cardozo of Independiente was the player who replaced Musah at this camp and he made no impact in the Japan game.
Kellyn Acosta of Los Angeles FC started the Saudi Arabia game, and while it's hard to say he's the reason the midfield wasn't productive, what can be said is that the midfield seems different with him there. Sure, the United States completed 85% of their passes, but they created only one big chance in the Saudi Arabia game.
The Solution: Keep it simple and start Musah
In the 12 matches the USMNT played in 2022, Berhalter fielded eight different starting midfield combos featuring various lineups of McKennie, Adams, Musah, Acosta, de la Torre, and Brenden Aaronson. He's also subbed on players such as Cardozo, Malik Tillman, Cristian Roldan, Gianluca Busio, and Paul Arriola. The last time he put the same starters on the pitch in consecutive matches was in January.
Berhalter mentioned after the Saudi draw that his team lacked confidence, but it's hard to build that confidence when the lineup in the midfield constantly changes.
Musah (6) and Adams (4) form an important double pivot in the American midfield corps
It goes without saying that the M-M-A midfield group is the best the USMNT has to offer. Musah's injury isn't serious and he should be good to go to Qatar. Acosta is a perfectly viable option off the bench, but Berhalter needs to dance with the ones that brought him.
When fielded, M-M-A won 1-0 over El Salvador, lost 2-0 to Canada (with Gyasi Zardes playing striker for 69'), and drew 0-0 with Uruguay. In those games, they held 63% possession, 64% possession, and 54% possession respectively. The team as a whole generated at least nine shots in those matches with at least three on target and completed at least 80% of their passes.
They're the most consistent three midfielders the US has to offer. If we don't see them walking out of the tunnel together onto the field against Wales, the USMNT could be in for a rough go at it.
Attack
The problem:
Eric Wynalda. Brian McBride. Landon Donovan. Clint Dempsey. When the United States made each World Cup between 1990 and 2014, these were the strikers they used. Going into Qatar, they'd wish they had that level of striking efficiency.
In this section, we're going to analyze the statistics of six players: Jesus Ferreira of FC Dallas, Jordan Morris of the Seattle Sounders, Jordan Pefok of Union Berlin, Josh Sargent of Norwich City, Ricardo Pepi of Groningen, and Christian Pulisic of Chelsea.
In the 12 games the United States has played this
