Play to Win: It Has Been the Theme of the Qualifying Window for the USMNT, and I Expect It Will Be Again on Wednesday on the Brink of a World Cup Berth
What did Jermaine say!? Was he mad at what you wrote? Way back when I was a city gov reporter a city council member would read the web version of my stories and then e-mail her objections to me, some of which resulted in revisions to the print version.
You have been great on this long haul, and we who are not able go on the road really appreciate your dispatches from abroad. Keep up your good work. I'm not going to Qatar for a number of reasons, but I'll be listening to your posts back home.
I finished watching Chelsea at Burnley last night (replays are a great way to fall asleep :-).
Grant something I would personally love to ask Berhalter...
I wonder whether when Greg looks at Ferreira he sees Havertz. IMO that would not be a bad call... Tuchel has put on his bench the very type striker that USMNT fans (me) have been begging for (Lukkau). Tuchel seems to have concluded that he would prefer to have a (false) nine that will better involve his hyper talented wingers (such as Pulisic) in the final touch over a world class target nine.
If it's preferred for Chelsea, why not for the US?
I am suddenly dang excited about this. The USMNT had at least *three* undroppable attacking wingers - Pulisic, Reyna and Weah. Trying to pick two from that group is getting really tricky... it is, IMO, the team's overwhelming strength. (McKennie and Adams are hyper important however at their positions we do not have the same depth quality.).
I think I am all in with a plan to somewhat compromises on a true target striker in order to gain more involement from these three in the final touch. I genuinely wonder whether it would be reasonable for Berhalter to play Ferreira over Lukkau if the later happen to find a lost US Passport in his long forgotten winter coat. I know that sounds positively insane, and it probably is... but it helps make the point...
Of course it would be great to have BOTH a true nine and more involved wingers... but I kind of think those two things are eventually zero sum.
(P.S. You are correct to be so grateful for the opportunity to attend all of these WCQs - I am definitely jealous! ;-).
in regards to the starting line up, part of what you reported from Gregg Berhalter is that they want to stick with the process. In the previous 3 game windows, players started the final game who were not featured in the first two games. As Nick Saban says, "Focus on the process".
Costa Rica is a wonderful place — I spent the summer of 2004 backpacking around the country and most vividly remember the natural beauty, friendly people, constant ceviche, and everyone avidly watching the Euros on every TV.
What did Jermaine say!? Was he mad at what you wrote? Way back when I was a city gov reporter a city council member would read the web version of my stories and then e-mail her objections to me, some of which resulted in revisions to the print version.
You have been great on this long haul, and we who are not able go on the road really appreciate your dispatches from abroad. Keep up your good work. I'm not going to Qatar for a number of reasons, but I'll be listening to your posts back home.
I finished watching Chelsea at Burnley last night (replays are a great way to fall asleep :-).
Grant something I would personally love to ask Berhalter...
I wonder whether when Greg looks at Ferreira he sees Havertz. IMO that would not be a bad call... Tuchel has put on his bench the very type striker that USMNT fans (me) have been begging for (Lukkau). Tuchel seems to have concluded that he would prefer to have a (false) nine that will better involve his hyper talented wingers (such as Pulisic) in the final touch over a world class target nine.
If it's preferred for Chelsea, why not for the US?
I am suddenly dang excited about this. The USMNT had at least *three* undroppable attacking wingers - Pulisic, Reyna and Weah. Trying to pick two from that group is getting really tricky... it is, IMO, the team's overwhelming strength. (McKennie and Adams are hyper important however at their positions we do not have the same depth quality.).
I think I am all in with a plan to somewhat compromises on a true target striker in order to gain more involement from these three in the final touch. I genuinely wonder whether it would be reasonable for Berhalter to play Ferreira over Lukkau if the later happen to find a lost US Passport in his long forgotten winter coat. I know that sounds positively insane, and it probably is... but it helps make the point...
Of course it would be great to have BOTH a true nine and more involved wingers... but I kind of think those two things are eventually zero sum.
(P.S. You are correct to be so grateful for the opportunity to attend all of these WCQs - I am definitely jealous! ;-).
in regards to the starting line up, part of what you reported from Gregg Berhalter is that they want to stick with the process. In the previous 3 game windows, players started the final game who were not featured in the first two games. As Nick Saban says, "Focus on the process".
Costa Rica is a wonderful place — I spent the summer of 2004 backpacking around the country and most vividly remember the natural beauty, friendly people, constant ceviche, and everyone avidly watching the Euros on every TV.