So little news and we can only guess at the jk situation so many times before its boring. Let's try an exercise for fun- as one possible coach replacement, what would a Kreis line up and tactics look like ? http://www.si.com/soccer/planet-futbol/2013/10/01/real-salt-lake-jason-kreis-interview-part-two-mls I would guess this Wood- Morris (One holding and one speedster) Bedoya, Bradley, Nagbe, Pulisic (Bradley as the Beckerman anchor with lots of interchange with emphasis on fluidity, movement, and possession$ Copa starting backline (They just played very well together at copa) Players in the mix that fans might dislike - mix and beckerman, Zelalem Thoughts?
This is as good a guess as any. None of these XI player choices would exactly be shocking, and only Pulisic might qualify on some level as "daring." I'm a lot less sure about the subs than the starters. Then again, it's not merely the XI he chooses, but how he asks them to play, and how he trains them in camp.
I agree. I think how he asks them to play and how he trains them would be key differences. I would think he would put more value in technical over athleticism than Klinnsman and character over where they play. I honestly would LOVE to see what he can do. Him as a interm coach could be perfect. I am not positive he is "ready" for international duties but you never know until they try. I would love to see a coach commit to highly technical and possession oriented play. I think if the right players are in there, the coach commits to it and takes the time to develop the necessary chemisty- That the USA can minimally equal their current production in that style. Despite Klinsman's rhetoric, his player selections and tactics have been much more cynical. Kreis committed to it in a league where they said it didn't work and won with players that completely lacked star power. It would be exciting to see what he could do.
I'd love to see what Kreis, or Pareja could do, but despite any schadenfreude I'd enjoy if Klinsmann left for England, the CONCACAF schedule this year has us jumping into the Hex early this cycle, and it looks like our first two games could be absolutely brutal. Any new manager is going to be conservative out of the gate in that hypothetical scenario. In 2019, we have more wiggle room.
That lineup would have some serious growing pains. We've finally got Zardes playing where he doesn't trot around like a newborn foal so you can't leave him out. Bradley has shown that he might need to sit some. Morris isn't near enough ready to throw out there as a regular starter.
In what way is he not a holding forward? He's pretty physical, has a good first touch, and did well holding the ball up in the Copa. Him and Morris are honestly pretty similar in their play style and ability. I think Wood is a bit further along, but they have very similar skill sets, traits, and even weaknesses.
I should make plain, however, that I don't think that Kreis's RSL-style 442 diamond will work for us without a lot of tweaking, if at all. The two primary keys of his system there were Beckerman at the bottom of the diamond (and while I consider Bradley, even in his current lesser form, to be a superior all-around player to Beckerman, I do not consider him exactly rock solid in that role), and most of all Javier Morales at the tip of the pyramid. We have no Jorales facsimile in our player pool at all, and without one we can't play the same game the same way.
I think its hard to know what our current pool can do in a system like that without the training and coaching that Kreis would provide. The US used the diamond some and going into the World Cup that seemed our best set up. Going forward I think I like the US in a 433.... Good points.
Your third sentence is exactly my point. I'm not saying they won't work well together, but Wood, to me, has not shown that he is a "traditional" Hold-up forward. The fact he gets relatively few assists supports this assessment I think. I wasn't criticizing the line-up either - although I think Jozy/Wood, if Jozy returns to health and form, might mesh as well or better in some cases. My only question was which one Pr saw as the hold-up forward. I assumed it was Wood and wondered if anyone else saw him in that role. I think he's more of a power/poacher forward who has the acceleration to do also do things a "small forward/second striker" can do. He's kind of a CF with speed - which is a nice thing.