1-1 late in the game in Nations League action, PSG star Doue beats Courtois

🚨🇫🇷 DESIRE DOUE HAS EQUALIZED FOR FRANCE! GOOD FINISH!

France 1-1 Belgium. pic.twitter.com/yWsZYgeTCv

— Bright Talk Sport (@BrightTalkSport) October 5, 2026

Nice header puts Italy ahead over Turkey


edit - shame those links don't stay long

Calafiori reviving the Italian football🔥! What a Brilliant Header! Italy leads again against Turkey 🇹🇷 ! pic.twitter.com/0zRMOMtppq

— The Final Whistle (@Rufus_45) October 5, 2026

Down 1-0 at home France scores 4 goals in the final 15min!... Olise with a brilliant assist, followed by 2 more Olise goals, the guy is something else.

Watch the assist on the 4th goal:

MICHAEL OLISE DOBLETE!!! ⚽️⚽️🅰️ pic.twitter.com/R1X9lMhINW

— FC Bayern Brasileiro (@FCBayernXtra) October 5, 2026

Zidane doing Zidane thing on the sideline.

54yr old Zinedine Zidane’s control is 10x better than Vinicius Jr pic.twitter.com/noDFqeBl8H

— Nana (@NanaRMCF) October 5, 2026

This is so funny the "debate" as to whether Sullivan will be called in November. He is not a prospect, he is the best right winger and in the top 6 of all players (Sullivan, Tillman, Freeman, McKennie, Pulisic, Balogun in some order). The only debate is whether his age will be held against him, and I don't think it will be.

https://www.espn.com/video/clip/_/id/50115630

sluggo said:

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This is so funny the "debate" as to whether Sullivan will be called in November. He is not a prospect, he is the best right winger and in the top 6 of all players (Sullivan, Tillman, Freeman, McKennie, Pulisic, Balogun in some order). The only debate is whether his age will be held against him, and I don't think it will be.

https://www.espn.com/video/clip/_/id/50115630

---

Yeah it's ridiculous. I'm fairly sure Pochettino has got to be smarter than these guys. Hell, I'll say that the November competitive camp should probably also include a couple other youngsters too - definitely GK Kochen, but at least one or two others between Pierre, Albert, Ellis, Hall and maybe Miller and Raines. Would love to say Mehmeti too, but he needs to show something against Canada, or maybe stay at the Olympic/U-23 level for a bit.

By the way, I'm surprised you didn't word it as Sullivan being in the "top 7" of all US players and include Reyna. For me, I would say "top 8" and include both Reyna and Richards, thiugh Richards may be borderline. These 8 are no-brainers and should all start as often as possible and get tons of minutes in the US November camp for CONCACAF Nations League. They are the top US players *right now*, regardless of how much they may improve in the future.

OneKeg said:

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sluggo said:

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This is so funny the "debate" as to whether Sullivan will be called in November. He is not a prospect, he is the best right winger and in the top 6 of all players (Sullivan, Tillman, Freeman, McKennie, Pulisic, Balogun in some order). The only debate is whether his age will be held against him, and I don't think it will be.

https://www.espn.com/video/clip/_/id/50115630

---

Yeah it's ridiculous. I'm fairly sure Pochettino has got to be smarter than these guys. Hell, I'll say that the November competitive camp should probably also include a couple other youngsters too - definitely GK Kochen, but at least one or two others between Pierre, Albert, Ellis, Hall and maybe Miller and Raines. Would love to say Mehmeti too, but he needs to show something against Canada, or maybe stay at the Olympic/U-23 level for a bit.

By the way, I'm surprised you didn't word it as Sullivan being in the "top 7" of all US players and include Reyna. For me, I would say "top 8" and include both Reyna and Richards, thiugh Richards may be borderline. These 8 are no-brainers and should all start as often as possible and get tons of minutes in the US November camp for CONCACAF Nations League. They are the top US players *right now*, regardless of how much they may improve in the future.

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I always mess up in some way. Top 7 with Reyna. These are all excellent players. I think Richards is a starter who will (should) be replaced by Pierre by 2030.

I think Kochen and Ellis also belong on the team right now. The others should be on the U23s or U20s, I think.

Gabriel Wesseh is starting to get some buzz. I think this is a rabona dribble, something new to me. He is on the U19s right now but a few U19s will be brought up to the U20s for the U20 WC next year.

This assist from Gabriel Wesseh for the USA U19s against Norway 😮‍💨

🎥: @gabriwesseh on Instagram pic.twitter.com/TORFOb79qD

— American Ultras Talk (@usmntaut) October 5, 2026

Lineup is okay but mostly backups. Except Reyna who now starts every game. I can't believe the hapless Schwake is starting. Would have loved to see Pierre. Canada mostly with backups, too.

North Stars & Stripes ⭐️#USMNT x The @HomeDepot pic.twitter.com/44ctl2kczc

— U.S. Soccer Men's National Team (@USMNT) October 6, 2026

At halftime:
1. Score is better than the play.
2. US struggling to break the press. Problems are Raines, Trusty, Mathis, and to some extent Musah. Poch got it wrong again.
3. US flipped its normal formation. It is the 4-2-3-1 like usual, the the right back (Freeman) is roaming when usually the left back (Robinson) roams.
4. The refereeing is atrocious. I hope Reyna does not get hurt.
5. Schwake has not been challenged.
6. If I had to bet my life on it, I would say Ellis was offside, but it was very close.
7. Playing all big athletic backs has its advantages.

Nice save there!

Vince of the Scuffed podcast has it right. The US is not creating chances against good teams. Tonight was rough. We have to stop putting players on the field who cannot break the press. We have 3.75 years, so I will not worry for now. To the players:
Schwake: Does this mean he has passed Freese? He had one difficult save to make and he did not make it. We can debate whether he touched the ball before it the hit the cross bar, but he did not hit it hard enough to be sure to keep it out. I can't believe he gets minutes.
Trusty: Good defense, abysmal at breaking the press. Cannot play him at left back against a real team.
Richards: Solid.
Campbell: Solid. I think he makes the Nations League team and is part of our center back rotation.
Freeman: Stud. A Premier League starting back.
Reyna; Yes. Was the only midfielder who could break the press. Glad he did not get hurt.
Raines: Could not break the press at all. Was better in the offensive half. Speed is really helpful. Might have a future with the team but right now is not there.
Albert: Nope. I know he is young but I am not sure about him, he is certainly not ready now.
Musah: Had an off game. This is the bad version of Musah, I think he is better than he showed tonight.
Tillman: Seemed tired, not up to his usual standard.
Ellis: The sole striker cannot do much when the team cannot break the press. Did a good job being in position on the goal. Got hacked, which further slowed him down. He is a keeper.
Berhalter: Awful.
Dest: I do not know if it is the injury or being overshadowed by Sullivan but he is not right.
Hall: Made a nice run then one-on-one hit the side netting. He will drive me crazy. Ellis is much better.
Adams: Did Tyler Adams things.
C. Campbell: Has nothing, showed nothing. Would have like to see Gozo again.
Mehmeti: Not very involved.
Pierre: Again showed he belonged. I hope he is in Nations League in November, he deserves it.
Robinson: Got dusted once that could have led to a goal. Otherwise had little impact.

For next game I would give $500 to Doctors Without Borders to turn off Melissa Ortiz's mic.

Overall, it was a good two week showing. I think we found a goalie. And if we count generously we are at eight players who can play at the top level. We need seven more. There is time. I think Ellis will be the ninth. Maybe Johnny Cardoso as tenth.

Last 5 halves against World cup comp
Belgium 1H: 3 shots
Belgium 2H: 4 shots (none before BEL went 3-0 up)
Mexico 1H: 2 shots
Mexico 2H: 6 (1 before red card)
Canada 1H: 3 shots

— scuffed (@scuffedpod) October 7, 2026

Yeah, that was brutal. Other than the win. Good job by Canada for realizing that their aggressive, borderline dirty (or maybe a little beyond the border) play and press at the 30m level was going to stifle the US the way Mexico did in the first half of Saturday's match. The book is out on how to play the US. Belgium did it, Mexico did it for a while, Canada did it. Belgium just had the quality to finish their chances and punish the US.

So - a bad job by Canada for not knowing how to turn that stifling press into enough opportunities or finish the opportunities they did get. Granted, they were missing some of their better players, but then so were the US. Balogun probably finishes the chance that Hall put into the side netting. Funny that Canada dominated the whole match except the scoreboard AND the expected goals stat.

Man of the match: Alex Freeman. Shut down that Schaffle-whatever winger with the mustache when they were matched up and took the ball away from him. Beautiful run and assist on the lone goal of the match.

Good: Gio Reyna and Justin Ellis. Ellis I could have put in the average category, but he scored, and he gutted it out past an injury. The 11 Yanks and Tactical Manager guys brought up a question: does Pulisic play through that injury? I think we already know the answer. (Not that we don't need Pulisic, but I'm bringing this up as praise for Ellis). As for Gio - I see it now. He was the main person on the field that could break the press.

Average (or up and down): Schwake, Richards, Tillman, Adams, Pierre, George Campbell and maybe Mehmeti (small sample size). For me, average was encouraging for Pierre - after one bad pass right after he came in, he was quite good, including on the ball, which is what we need him to get better at. He of course won aerial duels. By contrast, average for Tillman really means below average by his standards. As for my guy Campbell, I would say he was decent on D but struggled on the ball and made some bad passes, but so did everyone, and I bump Campbell up to average because he made the long pass that could have led to a Hall goal.

Below Average: A. Robinson, Trusty. Yes Trusty was good on D but poor on the ball. I do think his play dropped off after he suffered a head injury but kept playing (like Ellis).

Bad: Musah (why was he at right wing?), Raines (zero press break as you said), Albert, Berhalter, Dest, Hall, Cole Campbell. Dest really disappointed me. I think Albert has the potential to eventually be good on the senior team, but he needs to get a loan from Dortmund to a lesser team so he can play. He was trying too hard, having gotten his first start with the USMNT and never getting playing time for Dortmund. Forcing it and not letting the game come to him.

It's really hard to say what this all means for 2030, but I would say for the November competitive camp with two matches against Haiti for the CONCACAF Nations League, we need to call up the following youngsters in my opinion, all of whom would be cap tied if they play:
- Cavan Sullivan (should start)
- Justin Ellis
- Diego Kochen (should start)
- Neil Pierre - would be ironic to cap tie him against his other potential country. Maybe start him 1 game.
- And yes Julian Hall... we can beat Haiti without while letting Pepi recover from his injury. We need to understand what we have in Hall and cap tie him while we're at it. He can be Balogun's backup if and when we play Ellis as a 10.
- And maybe Mehmeti... cap tie him with some minutes, hopefully with a multi-goal lead at the end of a match. Holding middies would be Adams, Tillman (since we play him there when it matters), Cardoso (if fully recovered by then), Mehmeti and... dunno... maybe Musah, though I am not high on him after this camp. Stop playing Musah at right wing.

The other youngsters should go to the Olympic U-23 camp with others like Tsakiris, Che and so on. I hope Miller can get moved to a mid-tier team in Europe, perhaps in the EFL Championship league or Dutch Eredivisie or something which will actually play him as a left fullback instead of wing where he plays now. And Gozo needs a loan like nothing else - in his brief time against Peru, it looked like he has lost his confidence. I mean at this stage, can Crystal Palace loan him back to RSL?

sluggo said:

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Vince of the Scuffed podcast has it right. The US is not creating chances against good teams. Tonight was rough. We have to stop putting players on the field who cannot break the press. We have 3.75 years, so I will not worry for now. To the players:
Schwake: Does this mean he has passed Freese? He had one difficult save to make and he did not make it. We can debate whether he touched the ball before it the hit the cross bar, but he did not hit it hard enough to be sure to keep it out. I can't believe he gets minutes.
Trusty: Good defense, abysmal at breaking the press. Cannot play him at left back against a real team.
Richards: Solid.
Campbell: Solid. I think he makes the Nations League team and is part of our center back rotation.
Freeman: Stud. A Premier League starting back.
Reyna; Yes. Was the only midfielder who could break the press. Glad he did not get hurt.
Raines: Could not break the press at all. Was better in the offensive half. Speed is really helpful. Might have a future with the team but right now is not there.
Albert: Nope. I know he is young but I am not sure about him, he is certainly not ready now.
Musah: Had an off game. This is the bad version of Musah, I think he is better than he showed tonight.
Tillman: Seemed tired, not up to his usual standard.
Ellis: The sole striker cannot do much when the team cannot break the press. Did a good job being in position on the goal. Got hacked, which further slowed him down. He is a keeper.
Berhalter: Awful.
Dest: I do not know if it is the injury or being overshadowed by Sullivan but he is not right.
Hall: Made a nice run then one-on-one hit the side netting. He will drive me crazy. Ellis is much better.
Adams: Did Tyler Adams things.
C. Campbell: Has nothing, showed nothing. Would have like to see Gozo again.
Mehmeti: Not very involved.
Pierre: Again showed he belonged. I hope he is in Nations League in November, he deserves it.
Robinson: Got dusted once that could have led to a goal. Otherwise had little impact.

For next game I would give $500 to Doctors Without Borders to turn off Melissa Ortiz's mic.

Overall, it was a good two week showing. I think we found a goalie. And if we count generously we are at eight players who can play at the top level. We need seven more. There is time. I think Ellis will be the ninth. Maybe Johnny Cardoso as tenth.

Last 5 halves against World cup comp
Belgium 1H: 3 shots
Belgium 2H: 4 shots (none before BEL went 3-0 up)
Mexico 1H: 2 shots
Mexico 2H: 6 (1 before red card)
Canada 1H: 3 shots

— scuffed (@scuffedpod) October 7, 2026

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Schwake did make that save, it was a great reflex save on a perfectly placed volley by the Canadian defender.

How did Brian Schwake get a hand to that 😮 pic.twitter.com/va3iL4CIeG

— B/R Football (@brfootball) October 7, 2026

Neither live nor or reply nor in your clip can I tell if he actually touched the ball. But even if he did, it hit the crossbar. He did not really get it solidly and push it away.

We basically agree on everything. Gozo can't go back because the season is almost over, but it is funny. I would call "solid" the players you called "average." They did their job. Musah was playing in the Reyna 8/10 role in the first half as Mathis and Tillman were wings. His passing was off and Berhalter came in so he got moved to wing, I think. The center backs allowed very few opportunities even if they did not provide much offensively. That is their first job. I am just speculating but Dest's injury may have messed him up mentally. He is no longer dangerous.

sluggo said:

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Vince of the Scuffed podcast has it right. The US is not creating chances against good teams. Tonight was rough. We have to stop putting players on the field who cannot break the press. We have 3.75 years, so I will not worry for now.

...

Last 5 halves against World cup comp
Belgium 1H: 3 shots
Belgium 2H: 4 shots (none before BEL went 3-0 up)
Mexico 1H: 2 shots
Mexico 2H: 6 (1 before red card)
Canada 1H: 3 shots

— scuffed (@scuffedpod) October 7, 2026

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I agree this is a real problem. All of these teams have pressed the US in their own way and the US has not reacted well to it. Belgium was just the team with the quality to capitalize.

I will note that there is an error in the tweet from Scuffed (which does not negate the main point): Belgium was never up 3-0 on the US in the World Cup. It was 1-0 Belgium, then 1-1, then quickly 2-1 which was the halftime score. Belgium scored twice in the second half.

On Schwake, to join the conversation with sluggo and Cal88, the barely tipped save against the crossbar was a good one (better than Kochen's one save against Mexico since it was closer range), but not a great save. A great save is to get more on it and tip it up over the crossbar and end the immediate danger. But overall, I thought Schwake played ok (I rated him as average), given his capabilities.

But I do want to note something. The US struggled mightily against Canada's press, and Schwake is part of the reason, not because of any big mistakes he made, but just because he, like all the US goalies not named Kochen, is not good with his feet. The US defenders and holding midfielders knew it, Canada's pressing offensive players knew it, and Schwake himself knew it.

He did not make any big mistakes, like I said, but it is at least a little harder to press the same US team if Kochen is playing, since the press is essentially 11-on-11 instead of 11-on-10.5. Very roughly analogous to how it is harder in American Football to defend a QB who can do all the same things but also gain yards with his feet. Schwake did not connect on basically any of his longer passes as Kochen has shown he can.

OneKeg said:

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sluggo said:

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Vince of the Scuffed podcast has it right. The US is not creating chances against good teams. Tonight was rough. We have to stop putting players on the field who cannot break the press. We have 3.75 years, so I will not worry for now.

...

Last 5 halves against World cup comp
Belgium 1H: 3 shots
Belgium 2H: 4 shots (none before BEL went 3-0 up)
Mexico 1H: 2 shots
Mexico 2H: 6 (1 before red card)
Canada 1H: 3 shots

— scuffed (@scuffedpod) October 7, 2026

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I agree this is a real problem. All of these teams have pressed the US in their own way and the US has not reacted well to it. Belgium was just the team with the quality to capitalize.

I will note that there is an error in the tweet from Scuffed (which does not negate the main point): Belgium was never up 3-0 on the US in the World Cup. It was 1-0 Belgium, then 1-1, then quickly 2-1 which was the halftime score. Belgium scored twice in the second half.

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In the bad old days the US used to be pressed to death and have no chance against good teams. I hate to see that coming back. I like to think Poch was experimenting rather than that he does not know who has the skills to break the press and who does not, since I know. Maybe it was a combination of both.

OneKeg said:

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On Schwake, to join the conversation with sluggo and Cal88, the barely tipped save against the crossbar was a good one (better than Kochen's one save against Mexico since it was closer range), but not a great save. A great save is to get more on it and tip it up over the crossbar and end the immediate danger. But overall, I thought Schwake played ok (I rated him as average), given his capabilities.

But I do want to note something. The US struggled mightily against Canada's press, and Schwake is part of the reason, not because of any big mistakes he made, but just because he, like all the US goalies not named Kochen, is not good with his feet. The US defenders and holding midfielders knew it, Canada's pressing offensive players knew it, and Schwake himself knew it.

He did not make any big mistakes, like I said, but it is at least a little harder to press the same US team if Kochen is playing, since the press is essentially 11-on-11 instead of 11-on-10.5. Very roughly analogous to how it is harder in American Football to defend a QB who can do all the same things but also gain yards with his feet. Schwake did not connect on basically any of his longer passes as Kochen has shown he can.

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On the Total Soccer Show I think they said Schwake was 2 for 18 on long passes over some range of games. I think your point is important. If he was some amazing shot stopper, I would understand being okay with his mediocre footwork, but he does not have the juice.

I was so pleased that Kochen was better than I thought. I knew he would have the foot skills, but I did not know his athleticism is top notch.

sluggo said:

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We basically agree on everything. Gozo can't go back because the season is almost over, but it is funny. I would call "solid" the players you called "average." They did their job. Musah was playing in the Reyna 8/10 role in the first half as Mathis and Tillman were wings. His passing was off and Berhalter came in so he got moved to wing, I think. The center backs allowed very few opportunities even if they did not provide much offensively. That is their first job. I am just speculating but Dest's injury may have messed him up mentally. He is no longer dangerous.

---

Yeah, for the Gozo transfer, I guess I meant in the January transfer window, could he transfer back to RSL for the one-time sprint season as MLS realigns their schedule? In the meantime, Gozo should just play for Crystal Palace's U-23s. Since I have been watching him for RSL, my immediate first impression was just "above average MLS player" and unfortunately, nothing has swayed my opinion in the positive direction. I think Palace made a mistake, and so did Gozo for grossly overestimating his own talent and going there. I think he's likely better than he has shown and may improve quite a bit, but the Premier League (or even say, Ligue 1 or La Liga) is not the place for him right now and may never be. By contrast, I think Albert, who is younger, has a higher probability of getting to that level eventually. Of course, Albert too needs a transfer or loan from Dortmund in January so he can get consistent playing time, maybe to the Dutch Eredivisie?

On Musah/Reyna - yes the formation and lineup was weird. Reyna was basically dropping back to play the "8" in the first half to Raines' (very ineffectual) "6" against the press. Reyna was the only one who could do anything in the pivot, which is why Canada kept fouling him. I think that last yellow card Reyna got before coming off was kind of him knowing that since this was his fourth start, he was on a minute count and coming off at half, so if you're going to kick and shove me all half (and the ref is basically not going to do anything about it, yellow card-wise), then here's a little something back. The player, who I've seen nicknamed Pistachio, so that's what I'll call him, was the same one who fractured his leg a dirty challenge in a different US-Canada match a few years back. So I actually did not mind Gio's yellow at all.

So yeah, maybe Musah was playing the middle "10", but it looked more like Tillman was, with Albert on the left and Musah on the right which... right attacking middie is not where Musah belongs, IMO. As it was, some of his passes made him look like he was playing for Canada. And of course, Berhalter coming in for Reyna at halftime just poured gasoline on the fire of how the US "dealt" with Canada's press.

And speaking of formations, Trusty playing left back and not left center back was kind of a disaster. Canada seemed to key their press off when Trusty got the ball, hemming him in on that side. They couldn't do that with Freeman on the other side. And to add to that, I think Trusty got concussed by Jonathan David's dirty blindside hit. That would have been a penalty for a safety hitting a wide receiver. Edited to add: Ha! I just listened to the part in the Total Soccer podcast where they said almost all the same things! LOL. =)

To circle back to something good, like I said, Freeman was man of the match, with Reyna being runner up and Ellis honorable mention, especially for gutting it out while injured and scoring. But it is looking to me like Pochettino, while realizing that Freeman's can play center back, is committing to play him as an aggressive and sometimes attacking right fullback, and Freeman is doing well in the role. Better than Jedi Robinson, really. I just don't know who the hell his backup any more (or ARob's unless Peyton Miller grows into that role). Who are the backup fullbacks? Dest? Weah? Scally? Arfsten? Bleh. (And until today, I would not have said "Bleh" for Dest, just that his defense isn't great, but now apparently, neither is his offense). Anyway, this was supposed to be positive - yay Alex Freeman!

OneKeg said:

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On Schwake, to join the conversation with sluggo and Cal88, the barely tipped save against the crossbar was a good one (better than Kochen's one save against Mexico since it was closer range), but not a great save. A great save is to get more on it and tip it up over the crossbar and end the immediate danger. But overall, I thought Schwake played ok (I rated him as average), given his capabilities.

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The shot was from point blank range, very well taken by their British Canadian right fullback (who had a very solid game) at the edge of the 6 yard box, and Schwanke showed great anticipation and reaction to divert the ball to the top of the crossbar..

There are no style points here, a fingertip save is as good as any save, either it's a goal or it isn't, it's the result that matters. He preserved the win. Furthermore, a "better'" save here would have resulted in a rebound and a possible shot on goal with the keeper still out of position, so diverting the ball out of play for a corner kick is a better outcome.

Cal88 said:

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OneKeg said:

---

On Schwake, to join the conversation with sluggo and Cal88, the barely tipped save against the crossbar was a good one (better than Kochen's one save against Mexico since it was closer range), but not a great save. A great save is to get more on it and tip it up over the crossbar and end the immediate danger. But overall, I thought Schwake played ok (I rated him as average), given his capabilities.

---

The shot was from point blank range, very well taken by their British Canadian right fullback (who had a very solid game) at the edge of the 6 yard box, and Schwanke showed great anticipation and reaction to divert the ball to the top of the crossbar..

There are no style points here, a fingertip save is as good as any save, either it's a goal or it isn't, it's the result that matters. He preserved the win. Furthermore, a "better'" save here would have resulted in a rebound and a possible shot on goal with the keeper still out of position, so diverting the ball out of play for a corner kick is a better outcome.

---

On whether it was a good save or a great save is not exactly something I'm going to spend much time arguing with you about. I'll give you this - it was probably the best save made by a US goalie during these four friendly matches, but that's not a super high bar.

However, your last bolded sentence above makes no sense to me given what actually happened. Schwake did NOT divert the ball out of play safely for a corner kick.

What ACTUALLY HAPPENED (see timestamped youtube below): Schwake's save off the crossbar DID result in a rebound that went roughly in the direction of Canadian midfielder Saliba who had a contested chance for a point blank tap in before US right back Alex Freeman (correction, center back Auston Trusty) got a head to it and it pinballed to US center back Richards who hooked it away for a corner. So Schwake DID save it into danger, leaving himself out of position for a potential follow from Saliba. But still, I don't blame him for that - it is what I am calling a good save. If you call it a great one, that's fine, minor difference of opinion.

What I am saying WOULD HAVE BEEN a great save (but didn't happen): Schwake gets more of a hand to it and tips it up over the crossbar for a corner without a rebound and possible follow shot on goal by Saliba. (I'd also say the goal Schwake gave up against Chile where his footwork was suspect, as pointed out by former goalies, would have been a great save if he had made it, but he didn't make that one... not a huge issue either to be clear).



Anyway, based on his performance in these friendlies, I have no problem with Schwake being on the USMNT roster. I still think Diego Kochen, who is 20yo to Schwake's 25, should get a major and sustained opportunity as a starter, for all the reasons sluggo and I have stated above.

OneKeg said:

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sluggo said:

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We basically agree on everything. Gozo can't go back because the season is almost over, but it is funny. I would call "solid" the players you called "average." They did their job. Musah was playing in the Reyna 8/10 role in the first half as Mathis and Tillman were wings. His passing was off and Berhalter came in so he got moved to wing, I think. The center backs allowed very few opportunities even if they did not provide much offensively. That is their first job. I am just speculating but Dest's injury may have messed him up mentally. He is no longer dangerous.

---

Yeah, for the Gozo transfer, I guess I meant in the January transfer window, could he transfer back to RSL for the one-time sprint season as MLS realigns their schedule? In the meantime, Gozo should just play for Crystal Palace's U-23s. Since I have been watching him for RSL, my immediate first impression was just "above average MLS player" and unfortunately, nothing has swayed my opinion in the positive direction. I think Palace made a mistake, and so did Gozo for grossly overestimating his own talent and going there. I think he's likely better than he has shown and may improve quite a bit, but the Premier League (or even say, Ligue 1 or La Liga) is not the place for him right now and may never be. By contrast, I think Albert, who is younger, has a higher probability of getting to that level eventually. Of course, Albert too needs a transfer or loan from Dortmund in January so he can get consistent playing time, maybe to the Dutch Eredivisie?

On Musah/Reyna - yes the formation and lineup was weird. Reyna was basically dropping back to play the "8" in the first half to Raines' (very ineffectual) "6" against the press. Reyna was the only one who could do anything in the pivot, which is why Canada kept fouling him. I think that last yellow card Reyna got before coming off was kind of him knowing that since this was his fourth start, he was on a minute count and coming off at half, so if you're going to kick and shove me all half (and the ref is basically not going to do anything about it, yellow card-wise), then here's a little something back. The player, who I've seen nicknamed Pistachio, so that's what I'll call him, was the same one who fractured his leg a dirty challenge in a different US-Canada match a few years back. So I actually did not mind Gio's yellow at all.

So yeah, maybe Musah was playing the middle "10", but it looked more like Tillman was, with Albert on the left and Musah on the right which... right attacking middie is not where Musah belongs, IMO. As it was, some of his passes made him look like he was playing for Canada. And of course, Berhalter coming in for Reyna at halftime just poured gasoline on the fire of how the US "dealt" with Canada's press.

And speaking of formations, Trusty playing left back and not left center back was kind of a disaster. Canada seemed to key their press off when Trusty got the ball, hemming him in on that side. They couldn't do that with Freeman on the other side. And to add to that, I think Trusty got concussed by Jonathan David's dirty blindside hit. That would have been a penalty for a safety hitting a wide receiver. Edited to add: Ha! I just listened to the part in the Total Soccer podcast where they said almost all the same things! LOL. =)

To circle back to something good, like I said, Freeman was man of the match, with Reyna being runner up and Ellis honorable mention, especially for gutting it out while injured and scoring. But it is looking to me like Pochettino, while realizing that Freeman's can play center back, is committing to play him as an aggressive and sometimes attacking right fullback, and Freeman is doing well in the role. Better than Jedi Robinson, really. I just don't know who the hell his backup any more (or ARob's unless Peyton Miller grows into that role). Who are the backup fullbacks? Dest? Weah? Scally? Arfsten? Bleh. (And until today, I would not have said "Bleh" for Dest, just that his defense isn't great, but now apparently, neither is his offense). Anyway, this was supposed to be positive - yay Alex Freeman!

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They were playing a double pivot as these typically do, which means two 6/8s right next to each other in the middle. Reyna was on the left and Raines on the right. Canada was pressing man-to-man, according to the announcers, which is high-risk, high-reward strategy. Reyna was always able to hold the ball, and at times beat his man off the dribble (he was fouled five times in the first half), and at least he could circulate it. Raines was constantly losing the ball, he does not have the on ball skill of Reyna (no one does, Mehmeti is getting there). What was weird was when the press break was not working, Musah came back for the ball. So they had three guys in the middle, but that just brought another defender. It is better to be more spread out and beat people with cuts or dribbles.

Part of what makes Freeman special is that he can beat the press off the dribble. It is not so much footwork he uses but rather he uses the pressers momentum against him and shields the ball with his huge body. This is a rare skill and it makes him Premier League ready. If he improves his footwork a little, he just turned 22, the sky is the limit.

After him, and he may eventually be a center back, there is A. Robinson (29 with injuries and overuse), Miller, and a whole lot of nothing. I think outside back is in worse shape than center back.

We have not seen much shot stopping between Kochen and Schwake with the defense not giving up much. In addition to his footwork, it seems clear to me that Kochen is cat quick and has very good range on his dives. I don't think Schwake has either. If Kochen is decent at all with his shot stopping, he is our guy.

Quote:

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After him [Freeman], and he may eventually be a center back, there is A. Robinson (29 with injuries and overuse), Miller, and a whole lot of nothing. I think outside back is in worse shape than center back.

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Yes, it's interesting to look at the positions where the US has a lack of decent depth and quality... there is at least a ray of hope at most of those positions.

Goalkeeper: not good, but there's hope if Kochen can develop (and Schwake/Freese etc. can be a backups).

Center Back: bad, but even with Freeman at right back, if Pierre can develop, we can play him at RCB and Richards at LCB with Trusty, my guy George Campbell or Mark Mckenzie as backups... i.e. not good unless Pierre develops, so there's hope.

Holding Mid: Adams is what he is, and there is hope if Johnnhy Cardoso can get in form with Atletico Madrid (played the full game in the derby against Real Madrid just before the break) and stay healthy. Hope here comes from the youngster Mehmeti. Position is still think enough that Pochettino will still likely be forced to play one of the attacking midfielders back at the "8" (Tillman, Reyna or potentially Mckennie), but that may be ok since we're deep at attacking midfield.

Striker: Balogun and... well, Ellis shows a ton of promise, though more as a false 9 or attacking mid, whereas Hall may be at least a Pepi replacement. So not great, strictly in terms of a 9, but there's hope.

So with all these trouble positions there's hope. But outside back?

Freeman's a stud, there's an aging Jedi Robinson and then what? We have to hope that Miller transfers to some club in Europe, does not even have to be a top 5 league, in fact maybe better if not, but where he will play at left back instead of left wing. And that he develops so he can be a viable alternative to Jedi at left back. But then... we have a below average guy like Scally and some wing backs who don't defend (Dest, Weah and even Arfsten). It's pretty grim at outside back.

Maybe we could audition Santiago Castaneda who plays holding mid for Paderborn in the Bundesliga - does not seem to have the quality to play holding mid, but maybe has the athleticism to develop into Freeman's back up, given that he's still pretty young (younger than Freeman, though just above 2028 Olympic U-23 age by 2 months).

Short (< 3min) 11 Yanks youtube again, illustrating from game footage how the US needs more players like Gio Reyna, Alex Freeman and Justin Ellis to win against aggressive, pressing teams.

OneKeg said:

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Short (< 3min) 11 Yanks youtube again, illustrating from game footage how the US needs more players like Gio Reyna, Alex Freeman and Justin Ellis to win against aggressive, pressing teams.

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The professionals say what I say, I just say it first.

Anyway, we need 11 players (including a goalie) with first rate on ball skills to get to the next level. Then five guys off the bench with those skills. Guys without those skills should not be called except, with the possible exception of center backs. The obvious guy not to call for this reason is Berhalter. Musah sometimes shows the skill and sometimes does not, I would stick with him.

You don't even have to bet your life.
You could bet $10, because Ellis WAS offside.
Disappointed that the announcers didn't bother to add "and there is no VAR in this friendly".

OneKeg said:

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Yeah, that was brutal. Other than the win. Good job by Canada for realizing that their aggressive, borderline dirty (or maybe a little beyond the border) play and press at the 30m level was going to stifle the US the way Mexico did in the first half of Saturday's match. The book is out on how to play the US. Belgium did it, Mexico did it for a while, Canada did it. Belgium just had the quality to finish their chances and punish the US.

So - a bad job by Canada for not knowing how to turn that stifling press into enough opportunities or finish the opportunities they did get. Granted, they were missing some of their better players, but then so were the US. Balogun probably finishes the chance that Hall put into the side netting. Funny that Canada dominated the whole match except the scoreboard AND the expected goals stat.

Man of the match: Alex Freeman. Shut down that Schaffle-whatever winger with the mustache when they were matched up and took the ball away from him. Beautiful run and assist on the lone goal of the match.

Good: Gio Reyna and Justin Ellis. Ellis I could have put in the average category, but he scored, and he gutted it out past an injury. The 11 Yanks and Tactical Manager guys brought up a question: does Pulisic play through that injury? I think we already know the answer. (Not that we don't need Pulisic, but I'm bringing this up as praise for Ellis). As for Gio - I see it now. He was the main person on the field that could break the press.

Average (or up and down): Schwake, Richards, Tillman, Adams, Pierre, George Campbell and maybe Mehmeti (small sample size). For me, average was encouraging for Pierre - after one bad pass right after he came in, he was quite good, including on the ball, which is what we need him to get better at. He of course won aerial duels. By contrast, average for Tillman really means below average by his standards. As for my guy Campbell, I would say he was decent on D but struggled on the ball and made some bad passes, but so did everyone, and I bump Campbell up to average because he made the long pass that could have led to a Hall goal.

Below Average: A. Robinson, Trusty. Yes Trusty was good on D but poor on the ball. I do think his play dropped off after he suffered a head injury but kept playing (like Ellis).

Bad: Musah (why was he at right wing?), Raines (zero press break as you said), Albert, Berhalter, Dest, Hall, Cole Campbell. Dest really disappointed me. I think Albert has the potential to eventually be good on the senior team, but he needs to get a loan from Dortmund to a lesser team so he can play. He was trying too hard, having gotten his first start with the USMNT and never getting playing time for Dortmund. Forcing it and not letting the game come to him.

It's really hard to say what this all means for 2030, but I would say for the November competitive camp with two matches against Haiti for the CONCACAF Nations League, we need to call up the following youngsters in my opinion, all of whom would be cap tied if they play:
- Cavan Sullivan (should start)
- Justin Ellis
- Diego Kochen (should start)
- Neil Pierre - would be ironic to cap tie him against his other potential country. Maybe start him 1 game.
- And yes Julian Hall... we can beat Haiti without while letting Pepi recover from his injury. We need to understand what we have in Hall and cap tie him while we're at it. He can be Balogun's backup if and when we play Ellis as a 10.
- And maybe Mehmeti... cap tie him with some minutes, hopefully with a multi-goal lead at the end of a match. Holding middies would be Adams, Tillman (since we play him there when it matters), Cardoso (if fully recovered by then), Mehmeti and... dunno... maybe Musah, though I am not high on him after this camp. Stop playing Musah at right wing.

The other youngsters should go to the Olympic U-23 camp with others like Tsakiris, Che and so on. I hope Miller can get moved to a mid-tier team in Europe, perhaps in the EFL Championship league or Dutch Eredivisie or something which will actually play him as a left fullback instead of wing where he plays now. And Gozo needs a loan like nothing else - in his brief time against Peru, it looked like he has lost his confidence. I mean at this stage, can Crystal Palace loan him back to RSL?

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Cap tie considerations?

What are the other countries the guys you mentioned could be eligible for?

Okay guys, since you're spending so much time going player by player, and since you've seen new players…
Here's your chance to give me you dream starting 11 for a WC final right now, with the permitted 5 subs in the wings.

Then you get to list a dream 2028 WC final (I won't go 4 years out because any of us can imagine that someone turns into Pele). Be realistic - and I'm curious to see who gets dropped.

concordtom said:

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Okay guys, since you're spending so much time going player by player, and since you've seen new players…
Here's your chance to give me you dream starting 11 for a WC final right now, with the permitted 5 subs in the wings.

Then you get to list a dream 2028 WC final (I won't go 4 years out because any of us can imagine that someone turns into Pele). Be realistic - and I'm curious to see who gets dropped.

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I can't resist.

GK: Kochen (Freese or Celentano backup)
LB: McKennie
LCB: Richards
RCB Pierre
RB: Freeman
HM1: Tillman
HM2: Cardoso
CM: Reyna
LW:Pulisic
RW: Sullivan
Str: Balogun

bench players who play:
1. Ellis (jack of all trades, may beat out a starter, eventually Balogun)
2. Miller (left back when we dominate)
3. Adams (protects leads)
4. Gozo (late game speed)
5. Mehmeti (HM backup, maybe takes Cardoso's place by then)

key players dropped:
1. A. Robinson (might play when we are overmatched)
2. Berhlater (!!!)
3. Weah
4. Schwake
5. Hall (but maybe he takes a spot above)
6. Musah (too inconsistent, but he takes Mehmeti's spot if lack of development)
7. Trusty (third center back, but center backs do not need to be subbed)

I always forget one person, not sure who it is this time.

concordtom said:

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Cap tie considerations?

What are the other countries the guys you mentioned could be eligible for?

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I don't think any of our major guys are likely to join another side. We lost Banks, that was too bad, but he was the only one on the edge.

Quote:

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Cap tie considerations?

What are the other countries the guys you mentioned could be eligible for?

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As sluggo said, these guys probably are sticking with the US, though you never know. Not sure anyone thought Balogun would be playing for the US until he decided - could have been England or Nigeria, though he probably would not make the England team. But anyway:

Goalkeeper Diego Kochen (20yo): Peru, and I think Venezuela and Spain, though he's nowhere near good enough to play for Spain. Ironic that Kochen got his first cap against Peru in the first friendly when he came in at halftime.

Center Back Neil Pierre (18yo, about to turn 19 in a few days): Haiti - hence my comment about being ironic to cap tie him against Haiti the upcoming CONCACAF Nations League quarter final home and away in November.

Holding Midfielder Adri Mehmeti (17yo): Albania

Cavan Sullivan (17yo - just turned 17): Germany, Bangladesh - he's got a couple older brothers who are twins who start for Bangladesh, but Cavan is all US, I think. His oldest brother Quinn is his teammate at the Philadelphia Union.

Mathis Albert: (17yo): France, Germany - not good enough to play for France (ever) or Germany (at least for now), but in my opinion, has very good potential.

Justin Ellis (19yo): Uruguay - recently was recruited by Uruguayan star Diego Forlan.

Julian Hall (18yo): Poland - probably the biggest risk to flip, as he has on multiple occasions spoken of his openness to play for Poland, and he wears his mother's Polish last name on the back of his jersey. The Polish soccer federation literally flew in for an in-home visit a little while ago.

concordtom said:

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Okay guys, since you're spending so much time going player by player, and since you've seen new players…
Here's your chance to give me you dream starting 11 for a WC final right now, with the permitted 5 subs in the wings.

Then you get to list a dream 2028 WC final (I won't go 4 years out because any of us can imagine that someone turns into Pele). Be realistic - and I'm curious to see who gets dropped.

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I looked at sluggo's answers and they are intriguing. He has at least one out-of-the-box idea with Weston Mckennie at left back, since we have an overabundance of offensive midfielders and are thinner (to varying degrees) at other positions. I don't know if I'd force Mckennie to make a sudden position switch if there was a WC final tomorrow, but maybe given a longer runway.

I got my own slightly out-of-the-box idea below with re-positioning Justin Ellis, but it's not an original idea.

Here's my slightly differently formatted list for a WC final RIGHT NOW, meaning for example that Ricardo Pepi is injured. I'm assuming a 25-man roster. Listing their current clubs. Some backups are starters at other positions. Assuming a 4-2-3-1 offensive formation (Poch often has them shift the formation on the fly when we defend to a 4-4-2 or something like that).

Goalkeeper:
1. Diego Kochen (20yo), Lyngby - Danish League
2. Brian Schwake (25yo), Nashville - MLS
3. Matt Freese (28yo), NYCFC - MLS

Left Back:
1. Antonee"Jedi" Robinson (29yo), Fulham - English Premier League
2. Peyton Miller (18yo), New England Revolution, MLS, can also provide depth at left attacking midfield.
3. Sergino Dest (25yo) (also backup right back and attacking mid/wing), PSV - Dutch Eredivisie

Left Center Back:
1. Auston Trusty (28yo), Celtic, Scottish Premier League
2. Chris Richards (26yo) (starting RCB), Crystal Palace - English Premier League
3. George Campbell (25yo) (also backup RCB), West Brom - English Championship (2nd) League

Right Center Back:
1. Chris Richards (26yo), Crystal Palace - English Premier League
2. Neil Pierre (18yo) - starts at RCB if Trusty is out at LCB, with Richards sliding to LCB. Philadelphia Union, MLS
3. Alex Freeman (22yo) - (starting RB), Villareal - Spanish La Liga
4. George Campbell (25yo) (also backup LCB), West Brom - English Championship (2nd) League

Right Back:
1. Alex Freeman (22yo), Villareal - Spanish La Liga
2. Tim Weah (26yo) - can also provide depth at right attacking midfield, Marseille - French Ligue 1
3. Sergino Dest (25yo) (also backup left back and right attacking mid/wing), PSV - Dutch Eredivisie

Holding Midfielder Defensive "6" Position:
1. Tyler Adams (27yo), Bournemouth - English Premier League
2. Johnny Cardoso (25yo) (also backup "8" Holding Midfielder), Atletico Madrid - Spanish La Liga
3. Adri Mehmeti (17yo), Red Bull New York, MLS

Holding Midfielder Box-to-Box "8":
1. Malik Tillman (24yo) (abundance of attacking midfielders made Poch play Tillman here in the '26 WC), Bayer Leverkusen - German Bundesliga
2. Johnny Cardoso (25yo) (also backup "6" Holding Midfielder), Atletico Madrid - Spanish La Liga
3. Yunus Musah (23yo), AC Milan - Italian Serie A

Left Attacking Midfielder/Wing:
1. Christian Pulisic (28yo), AC Milan - Italian Serie A
2. Malik Tillman (24yo) (also starting Holding Mid "8"), Bayer Leverkusen - German Bundesliga
3. Brendan Aaronson (25yo), Leeds United - English Premier League

Center Attacking Midfielder "10":
1. Gio Reyna (23yo), Strasbough - French Ligue 1
2. Weston Mckennie (28yo) (also backup right mid), Juventus - Italian Serie A
3. Justin Ellis (19yo) (also backup right mid), Orlando City - MLS

Right Attacking Midfielder/Wing:
1. Cavan Sullivan (17yo), Philadelphia Union - MLS
2. Weston Mckennie (28yo) (also backup center mid), Juventus - Italian Serie A
3. Justin Ellis (19yo) (also backup center mid), Orlando City - MLS
4. Sergino Dest (25yo) (also backup left or right back), PSV - Dutch Eredivisie

Center Forward/Striker "9":
1. Folarin Balogun (25yo), Monaco - French Ligue 1
2A. Justin Ellis (19yo) (also backup midfielder, only striker if we play a "false 9"), Orlando City - MLS
2B. Julian Hall (18yo) (closer to a like-for-like true "9"), Red Bull New York - MLS

Starting 11 are all the #1s above. 5 subs, assuming no injuries to rarely-subbed positions like Goalie and Center Back:
A. Weston Mckennie for Gio Reyna (crazy to think of Mckennie as a sub, but great to bring someone like that for the last third of the match if the other subs are young)
B. Johnny Cardoso at the "8" (moving Tillman to left attacking mid and subbing out Pulisic)
C. Justin Ellis at Striker for Balogun (or Hall if we really need a proper "9"), but then Ellis for Sullivan at right wing.
D. Peyton Miller for Antonee "Jedi" Robinson at LB
E. Maybe Sergino Dest for Cavan Sullivan at right wing if we've subbed Ellis at striker and not here.

By 2028, I hope there are several changes to the above lineup, such as:

Goalkeeper: Kochen still the starter, but we find better backups than Schwake and Freese. Or maybe someone better than Kochen. Come on down Brandon Taishi Nozawa (23yo) Japanese/US dual nat who has so far given no indication he wants to play for the US but is still not cap-tied to Japan, and is behind elite 24yo Japanese starting goalie Suzuki. Nozawa probably starts for us if he does sign a 1-time transfer to the US.

Center Back: Then 20yo Neil Pierre assumes the starting RCB spot, sliding Richards to LCB and Auston Trusty to the bench.

Left Back: We find a viable replacement for the aging Antonee "Jedi" Robinson... maybe it's Peyton Miller, but that is iffy. Miller has great speed and quickness, but probably not the skills to be a left wing as he plays for New England, and may or may not be a good enough defender to be left back, though it seems his natural position. Maybe sluggo's Mckennie at LB gambit is the way to go, but I won't steal his idea.

Right Back: somebody emerges to back up Freeman (who is awesome). Big gap sluggo and I were talking about at both left and right back, with Antonee Robinson fading with age. Weah and Dest are not great defenders (and lately, not great on offense either).

Holding Mid: Then 19yo Adri Mehmeti assumes the starting "6" spot, and perhaps Johnny Cardoso assumes the starting "8" spot, allowing Tillman to move back to attacking Mid to provide us great depth there. I know sluggo desperately wants Adams out of the starting lineup, so this would help that happen. And it is in deference to him that I put Musah as the #3 "8" instead of Berhalter, though I was not impressed with Musah this camp. 25yo Tanner Tessmann of Lyon in Ligue 1 might be another consideration at holding mid.

Attacking mids: main change I predict/hope for the above lineup would be then 19yo Mathis Albert taking the place of Brendan Aaronson as a sub at left attacking mid. I guess maybe then 21yo Zavier Gozo might become an option at right wing as sluggo suggests, or even backup right back behind Freeman, but Gozo just has not impressed me as anything more than a fast, above average MLS-level player since I've been watching him, and he seems to have regressed since transferring to Crystal Palace recently, where they don't even play him in their lowly Europa League matches, let alone in Premier League or EFL Cup matches.

Keep in mid though that the resulting 2028 lineup would be for a WC final. It would NOT be the Olympic lineup, since the Olympics are a U-23 tournament with only 18 roster spots (may go up by a few for 2028, or not, but won't be 25 roster spots anyway) and max 3 over-age players.

Also in the summer of 2028, the Olympics will likely coincide/overlap with the third best soccer tournament in the world behind the WC and the Euro Cup - Copa America for South America, which routinely invites the US, Mexico, Canada and other countries around the world to fill out 24 spots. Clubs are obligated to release players to go to the Copa America, but not the Olympics, and it may be tough to ask players to play in both anyway, depending on schedule. So we might or might not see the best U-23 players, or the best 3 over-age players (often those 3 are borderline senior team players). So in the Olympics, we might see young U-23 players who are just below USMNT senior team level, like some of the ones we saw in this camp: Brooklyn Raines, Zavier Gozo, Cole Campbell, even Frankie Westfield.

Excellent report!

In the Dream scenario, all injuries are healed, but you can't change a player's form. That is what it is, though I'm still longing for that otherworldly #9 forever craved for! Darryl Dike may have the body, but not the form.

Gameday 6 in the EPL, and Tottenham is in last place, lol, 2 points out of 5 games, playing against a weak Man U team, currently in a 3-way tie at 12th place, on NBC right now, scoreless after an hour of play.

Looks like Tottenham will stay in last place, down 1 goal and 1 man with 10min to go, ouch.