The reserves haven't shown they're the answer

One of the remarkable things about the USA's friendly against Canada last week (a relative comment - since it was a game where very little was remarkable) was the lack of urgency from the MLS-dominated national team B pool - most of whom would have been very clear that this was their one chance to impress, and at least earn a call up for future squads en route to a possible date in Brazil. And it wasn't that those players didn't try, or have a comparable level of aptitude to some of their more regularly picked first team peers. Chris Wondolowski got himself into decent positions in the box; the debutant full backs against Canada didn't get forward any less than the presumptive first choices Chandler or Johnson did against Honduras. Yet there was a continued sense that the individual players were executing drills and waiting for something to happen, rather than taking a chance to force the issue. Nobody seized the day, despite an extended camp where their coach could not have been more clear that this was a "Survivor"-style chance to stay in the squad.

Fans were left wondering if a few decent darts and crosses from Benny Feilhaber constituted an international revival for the player (maybe...a bit...), or whether some conspicuous hustle by Josh Gatt constituted a breakout performance (no). It wasn't just that the game was bad - it was that the next tier of international talent seemed to show too little initiative, let alone desire to make the next step. Which brings us to...

Artikel Terkait