Can the USMNT make an IMPACT at the Copa America? Futbol Americas review Nations League | ESPN FC

So what does it mean? Well, the Meda Cup groups are complete. 10 Kol six teams from Conaf Herk as a region. How do you think Cona is going to be fair this summer? Oh man, that's cool, okay, optimistic, well, let me explain. Right now the best Conaf team is the US men's nation, we would say by a significant amount, by a significant amount, okay, they don't necessarily have the best record against top 20 opponents, um, let's go to the 20 best opponents in this tournament. you are going to have Argentina you are going to have Brazil you are going to have Colombia Urugai and Mexico is fine, you can beat Mexico, you have shown that what happens with the other four, are you going to beat Uruguay in your group to get out of that ? and then pick your poison, Colombia who are on a 20 match unbeaten streak right now, or Brazil who by the way just beat England and are in their transition phase and could be a completely different team come summer , and what about Mexico, on the other hand, which is a very complicated group Venezuela who has a lot of talent Ecuador who are very young in a very good team very complicated in Jamaica who are Jackel and Hy I don't know what to do with They could be lights out or a big disappointment then who else?

A team from Costa Rica that is on the rise looks different but how the group from Canada and Argentina will compete we could be looking at a semi-final allcable Issue if KF doesn't bring his aame yes I would just say It's not going to go well for us, so I'll put the United States aside in a separate category. Look at the other five teams that are far from the best version of Mexico, far from the best version of Canada, far from the best version of Costa Rica, and even if they are getting a little younger than they have been Jamaica could be their best, but you saw that interview with Leon Bailey that sounds like a team headed for a crisis rather than some kind of peak later this summer.

Panama, you could say about everyone. The teams are kind of on an upward trend and then they laid a couple of eggs this weekend. Mexico worked them and we just beat Mexico, so I don't see either team really being a lock to even get out. The only team I see that is sure to leave the group is the United States, even Mexico in that group. I don't know what they are blocked from leaving. The only team that, for me, is a legitimate threat in the semifinals is the United States and it doesn't bother me. It would be surprising if there were six or seven teams in the quarterfinals.

I'm worried about Mexico because if you go in first place you're going to play against Brazil or Colombia either way in first or second place, that crossing worries me a lot for the United States men's national team. Mexico if you can finish in first place, I mean, you're talking about Canada, Chile or Peru and you beat them. one of them you are in a semi-final that is very very I think it is feasible say it it is feasible say it you trust this Mexican team in a round of 16 match against someone who has already passed a group stage we're talking about quality opposition , that's what I'm telling you.

She Mexico can leave her group. They could put. I'm just saying that her cross is easier. I'm saying that her cross is easier and I think that's what we really want. I need to focus here, you know who your opponent is in that matchup and I think the US Men's National Team is going to have a very difficult matchup, it doesn't mean they're not a better team, it doesn't mean Panama isn't a better team. Being a better team doesn't mean that Jamaica isn't a bigger threat, but I think if you can get out of that group, which I think is very complicated and people don't realize how complicated it is for Mexico, but if you can get out from that group first, you have a chance to get to a semi-final, yes, and I think G is going to dominate this and I know it sounds obvious to everyone, but if you really go back to the beginning of us and When Mexico was invited to the Cup America, there was a good stretch in the '90s and early 2000s where there was always at least one of them in the semi-final.

Mexico played in a couple of finals. I mean, that seems like outside the US again to me. Who could I think of? Make a final. Make a semi-final in this tournament. It seems like a totally long shot to be one of those top 20 teams they're beating. What top 20 teams are they beating? How are you going to beat Argentina, are you going to beat Brazil? urug artina Brazil category seat Colombia Colombia is the one because you are going to play in the group stage, so you will not play them in a knockout round. I think the United States has a very good opportunity. shot against undefeated Col. did you see what they did to Spain?

Yeah, okay, friendly, okay, friendly, well, there have been three conera nation

league

s all time and the United States has won all three. There you see, Mexico is having some success when it comes to the Nations League Gold Cup is a very important property of the Usmnt benefit. There are probably a lot of places we could start, but where do you want to start in terms of the keys to why the United States was so dominant in this performance over Mexico? Listen, we could talk tactics and Greg. Balter has a lot in this we have to give him the flowers he is dominant over Mexico we will talk about Greg ber halter but can we start with the talent?

I think that's the biggest issue here is the level of talent on a show and the lack of talent. In the other program and the post-match of the Mexican team, they talked about that lack of talent. The United States Men's National Team in the game took advantage of that lack of talent. Look at these two programs and the 11th starter of the United States Men's National Team seven of those players play in England six of them in the Premier League one in the championship there is one in the deisy area there is one in sah you know big teams like Milan there are players in good moments and you look at the opponent and it is probably scarce The most informed players They are doing the best in Europe right now.

Offensive player. I have to say that Sant Jiménez can't even get on the field and when you look at two programs and where they are going, one has over 100 players spread across Europe. any type of

league

they want, the rest, they are screaming to be let go, they are screaming to be sold cheap so they can start their European adventures and there is a marked difference in the quality and the quantity of that quality abroad and I think This is the most obvious thing here. I don't remember a time when the talent difference between the two was so one-sided in favor of the USA.

Yeah, when I saw that this was your answer, I looked at the 211 and you know, this is something we always do at ESPN, always we do it on

espn

fc the combined 11 and I'm looking at the Mexican 11 versus the US 11, there's not a single Mexican player that you say, oh yeah, he gets into a combined 11, maybe there's two guys that I you can watch and you have to defend them. Maybe you could

make

a case for Edson, not based on last night against Tyler Adams, but I think you could

make

a case and then you could make a case for Santiago Jimenez. but the problem with that is that he can't even enter Mexico's 11.

He may be the best nine in both groups, but he's not going to make Mexico's 11, so you don't really have anyone on this Mexican team, or that would certainly guarantee a combined 11. At what other time in the history of this rivalry have we been able to say that? And the other thing that's very clear is that both sides know the talent gap that you're talking about. We heard Greg Berhalter right there, they're talking about Legacy. and three before this game, Mexico is talking about where their guys are playing and where we're not playing well, that's the excuse attitude Mexico had coming into this game, look what Greg Berhalter and those guys were talking about, they're talking . about winning and you see it, you see it in how these teams play.

I think that Mexico has its worst performances against the United States and I think that the United States has its best performances against Mexico and that is considering that in this case the United States had played 30 extra. minutes in the semi-final that the Mexican Dean didn't have that, so you know all the things where Mexico could have found a slight advantage in this game, right down to the form going into the Jamaica game. um, even those things didn't develop and to me that's why they didn't. I'm going to be a little different with my choice. I'm going to follow the lineup that Greg Berhalter chose and specifically some of the big decisions he made. made like kind of why the United States were able to dominate so easily here, now the first thing that's obvious is the number of changes to make five changes to your lineup to the team that you eliminated in the semifinals to make five changes to a lineup. before a final that is a lot, but it was very necessary based on what we saw against Jamaica and if you think about the changes that were made and some of them were obvious, obviously you are going to put Serginho D if you have him he was available um but everyone had an

impact

Tim ree I would say unexpectedly solid in defense serginho D I mean we saw it in Highlight there were probably three or so four more clips that didn't do that, that's how good Tyler Adams was Benefit a huge risk for a guy you know you can only playing for 45 minutes, you start him, so you create a problem for yourself at half-time and he rewards you with a simply incredible goal in the 44th minute.

Wright maybe didn't have his best game, but it's clearly the right decision to play him afterwards that he scored two and the most important decision of all, which again is quite obvious, is Gio Raina in that starting lineup, he is the one who makes the difference, he gets the goal that secures and I think the other thing that is important Raina, here, it was better for me in the second half than the first and I don't know if that sounded like Geo was figuring something out or if it was something they changed in the locker room in the half because he was in a much more dangerous situation. points in the second half than in the first, I think that's what he was in more dangerous places, he was eating very, very deep in the first half and maybe that was by design, maybe coming and taking that away from the central defender is by design for Gio Rena and trying to choose where to operate and maybe throw some of those Services, that's what they were looking for, but this goal by Tyler Adams, which was a huge gamble, really opened things up for the US Men's National Team Listen, it's not crazy to start Tyler Adams.

I don't think anyone in their right mind is going to say why you would start one of the most important players you know to start Tyler Adams. I think it's crazy to start him off and go into it just saying he's just going to play 45 minutes is a huge gamble, but this gamble paid off for Greg, but Halter, you said Tyler Adams absolutely repaid that trust and he was reportedly angry at half-time and they had an argument because he had taken it off, but that's where he is today. in their minutes they count and the agreement that Greg Verter, I hate these agreements that the US men's national team makes with the Nation, with other club teams, we have seen it before with Dortmund, we have seen it before with the Chelsea, etc., where they reach an agreement. about the amount of time his players can play in the national team, that's your field, you make the decision, but it worked for him.

Tim, you don't play him against Jamaica, and if you think he's your best center back, you have to play him against Jamaica. rest because he is a team agent and worth it, although I thought Tim was good with his passing and the passes that worked a little sloppily in possession. I think he lost like 21 times, but I think Chris Richards wasn't too far off, so there was a little bit of design there, but everything that Greg wanted to do was bar halter like he did against Mexico and he pressed all the right buttons against Mexico, did he?

What about Gioa named the best player of the tournament? It's hard to argue with that and probably getting harder. At this point I want to argue against him being in any 11 for the US Men's National Championship, yes, I use the example of Christian Ptic, you know, last time, it really reminds me of Christian Ptic when He didn't play for Chelsea. These guys, these. two have used the US men's national team as a refresher, a way to escape that dark side of their game, a way to get to a place where they can be fresh when they could be uh lively, where they can have fun and enjoy the game again, and that's what he did here, that's exactly what he did for the US Men's National Team in another final.

There are some crazy stats we saw on social media about his play or his involvement in goals. Excuse the number of times he's been involved. in goals in finals he is already the all-time leader in that category for the US men's national team. He is 21 Seb is 21 yes, he is a wild man, he is going from talent to player, at least on the international level yes I think of a guy who has talent. I think of a guy who can do the things that Gio Rena does and he certainly did in this semi-final and final, but maybe he can't do it consistently.

He is now doing it consistently with the national team. He is yet to be. I'm determined if he can go from being some kind of talent to a player at the club level, but at the international level with this team he's clearly hurt at that.guy and I think that's the biggest takeaway for me from Gio Rena: he did this. with 80 minutes of play at club level in 2024, the last time he played more than 10 minutes in a match was on February 10, that is, a month and a half before the start of these two matches, once he gets his club, sword man, forget what.he's going to do for the US he's just going to kill cona, he's going to completely destroy it, yeah that's what he does at the club level.

Listen Christian Pisk went from a very, very bad situation at Chelsea, where he was out, to a very, very bad situation. Good situation in which he is now doing very well and he is an important piece for AC Milan. I have no doubt that Gio Rena can do the same. He uses the US men's national team to regain your confidence. He gets to where you want to be and comes back. to the situation of your club and find out, get to a place where you fit in, where you play and this kid plays, the statistics will come with that, that's right, and don't forget that people are watching during an international break.

Greg Balter said it before one of the reasons he brought in Gio, he used the word showcase. Anyone who watched the US, who is the club's personnel director at the moment, saw a showcase of exactly what Gioa can do a little further up the field. We have number nine. Where are we now? These two games on the US No. n list continuing question. Can I be honest? Does it matter? Just bear with me for a second because let's go back to when Greg Halter started with the US Men's National Team starting nine Josie alador let's go back to when the World Cup qualifiers started who was your starting nine Josh Sergeant let's go back to who he saved his job who is his nine Ricardo Pepe and then at some point Jesús Fara comes in and then it's Wright in the most important game against England, possibly the most important game of your World Cup against England, that's right and then again we're throwing in Brandon Vasquez into the mix and there seems to be a revolving door when it comes to the nine and I don't really think it matters and now we have Bagan and I don't think it matters and the reason is that in this system and I have said this many times before, The Nine are not going to score goals for you, that is not their job. is not what he does, they have to facilitate the dangerous gold wingers, so for Greg see halter I don't think it matters who the nine are, I think Greg see halter is going to ride whoever he thinks has the hot hand or is going to be. the most suitable against this opposition to make guys like Gio Rena better to make guys like Christian better pic to make guys like Timothy better WEA this nine in this system is a player of the system and that worries me, yes, yes, it is sort of Number Nine by committee to borrow as a football term right when they make him running back by committee, whoever the hot hand is, the one thing I think is the best evidence of that is how quickly things can change , TRUE?

Wright was pretty clear, according to Greg Berhalter, the fourth best forward right when this list was named, that's why he left them out and then calls him up when he has Josh Sergeant's injury, if that guy can go from fourth place to starting the Ultimately, that means there's plenty of room up there. and movement down on that number nine and I think right now you have to say Wright is all over that position, especially considering there are no more games at the moment, all you're really going to have to continue with these guys, he's fit of the Club.

I'm not going to bet against Wright and think that all of a sudden he's going to start, you know, he's going to go cold in Coventry if he stays hot in Coventry based on what we saw in this window, how are we going to get to those games in June? You don't start them, listen, you have, there's nothing for me to do, I'm not the guy who said that Bagan is clearly the best striker or nine in this team or in this group of players and there is no doubt about it, so what? because I would do?

You don't play your best if the gap is so obvious I don't think it's that obvious. I think there is a competition. I just don't think Greg Ber Halter has a pole position leader in that competition. I really think it's a system and within that system the opposition, the Striker profile and I know if you've heard this before it really comes into play, okay, the odd man out is coming in June, if you only pick three, who's your man? strange of the four, it's difficult, yes, yes. It's difficult, I want to keep Ricardo Pepe there because of what he has done in the last 10 games in which he came off the bench for the US men's national team.

He scored goals, scored seven goals in 10 games, five from them. Off the bench but he's not playing club football balagan not playing well right now he's playing club football just not well Josh Sergeant, you can't stop the kid from scoring when he's healthy, but he's not healthy right now, That's hard, I don't do it. I don't think you can make that call now. I really think it will be a good hand when I get there and go with all three.