Prevent Defense Prevents Wins
The American football adage certainly applies to the way Bob Bradley has been losing games this summer. While most Americans are lauding how great the United States National Team has been doing over the past few months (I’m guilty as well), it has become apparently more clear that Bob Bradley simply can not coach in big games. Aside from the Spain win, which we had absolutely no pressure and nothing to lose, the USA has simply been out-coached in all major games.
The most recent display of Bradley’s coaching quality was today in Mexico City when after 10 minutes the United States decided to pack it up and pray for Mexico to be unable to put the ball in the net. Surprisingly, Charlie Davies had provided the Red White & Blue with an early one goal lead, but Bob Bradley did everything in his power to render his star players useless for the rest of the game.
Using Donovan as a defender just simply is a waste of talent. He’s our most explosive player and needs the ball at half field or higher, not in our own box. Needless to say, Donovan was basically non-existent with his handful of worthless touches. Don’t blame Donovan for his disappearing act, blame Bradley for bunkering down for 80 minutes and not allowing Donovan be in a position to explode at the Mexican defenders.
When our players were time wasting at about the 30 minute mark, I couldn’t help but be reminded of our collapse against Brazil in the Confederations Cup 2nd half where we stopped making runs forward and relied on U-10 boot ball to the other team. We were bound to lose and we did in classic USA fashion, with a whimper.
Stranding Ching up on top seems to be the preferred strategy in games that our coach clearly doesn’t think our team can go toe to toe against which must be a wonderful sight for our opposition. There’s no need to hold 4 defenders back against one striker and Mexico enjoyed pushing the ball forward slowly with 10s of yards of space. I feel bad for Ching because he just cannot succeed in that role with absolutely no support.
All in all a worthless game with one moment of excitement for USA fans and we basically learned nothing about our team. If this is the way we have to play against superior teams then I am going to find it harder and harder to get excited about the World Cup.
Fire Bob Bradley Now, he can’t win big games and will take us nowhere in South Africa.
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I’ve come to the realization that the USSF will not release this current mistake of a head coach, so my question is, what does the US Federation see in Bob Bradley to keep him in position?
And this is not angry venting, or bitter ills, i’m just genuinely curious as to how a man with that much talent, can’t field together a winning side.
Is this blue eyed, blond hair politics? Is that what it is?? Because as far as the football is concerned, there’s no legitimate reason one can give, so I guess someone out there can humor me with a guess.
The talent is there, but they’re never in position to maximize what they can do. How can you play bunker ball against a team that’s coming from blood??
In all of sports, from football, to American Football, to the NBA, the only way to control an attack is to create one of your own. When you throw 11 in the box, and make your key players, like Donovan, and Dempsey, defensive robots, there is no attack.
How does one generate an attack?
The 3 waves that the U.S. pushed into the second half, Holden crossed the ball with perfection, and Davies almost capitalized.
That push should’ve came the whole game, but no…
Bunker ball it was.
This man is destroying US Soccer.
Worst coach in a long time. Gansler could do more with this team.
Hey, I found you looking to see if anyone had this site address already.
If he cannot win in Azteca with this talent ladden squad, then he cannot win in South Africa. What we need is an American Football coach who understands soccer tactically/ player mngmt and who can instill the mentality that it takes to win!
American Soccer coaches have proven to not have the killer instinct and or leadership ability on the big stage.
C Jason Cole
The team started great until we scored. Then, they just moved and give 75% of the field to Mexico, so they could score even from far, far away. In the 2nd half, the team did not even try to keep the ball. They just clear the ball without any intentions to start a play, even when nobody was around. B.Bradley is a good coach, but he needs to go. This is his level and even though we qualify to the WC, that I am sure we will; our participation in the world cup is going to be average to mediocre. We already know what BB can do. I am trying to find some time to write a letter to Gulati to seriously consider replacing Bradley.
One thing that I want to clarify is that BB needs to go not for losing this game against Mexico in the Azteca, he needs to go for the way how the team plays, how he manages the 2nd halfs and specially his picks during substitutions.
I think people are mistaking the inability to maintain possession as the “prevent defense”. It’s not a gameplan, it’s a sad inadequacy.
Mike, the reason we couldn’t maintain possession was because everyone was packed in, playing the prevent defense. It’s just a never-ending circle of suckitude. You can’t maintain possession playing the prevent, and you can’t play prevent defense while maintaining possession (you can, however, prevent goals by maintaining possession, as has been proved to the world on countless occasions. Bob Bradley, however, apparently does not see this fact as relevant, and just tosses his side to the dogs playing the prevent style).
I agree, it’s not inadequacy. When your entire team never leaves your own half of the field, you’re in a prevent defense. No matter where a US player was when he got the ball, a Mexican was pressuring him. THAT’s how we play when we win, not this moronic prevent defense. To be honest, I knew we’d lost the game after the 15th minute. We were in run out the clock mode, and that’s just stupid.
Against a team like Mexico , a decent coach would start a lineup with more players who could maintain possession. Ricardo Clark is one of Bradley’s pets and of course, Michael plays the full 90 no matter what. Feilhaber and Torres in the starting line up would have given the US 2 players who can keep possession under pressure . Why not start Altidore? Ching is totally useless against any decent opponent. Why didn’t he call in Spector? Spector or Cherundolo at Left back would have been more effective than Bocanegra ,probably. At least have Spector come in as a sub. Even Adu, who if he can anything it’s dribble well. This game was an ideal game to have Adu come off the bench. This would have negated the Mexican pressure to some extent and given the US more time of possession. Also starting Spector would have made our counterattacks more effective than having Boca at left back. With the threat of our outside backs both able to counter well, the Mexicans would have been forced to back off somewhat on their pressuring the ball.
I agree with the comments about Spector. He proved that he can push up and makes crosses and scoring opportunities. Why leave him out. Why leave his son in all game when he usually doesn’t keep his composure and wasn’t doing anything anyway. I hate nepotism. One of the two should not be allowed to be on the team. Conflict of interest?
Now onto yesterday’s game vs.El Salvador. They looked so sloppy especially in the second half. The remarkably got the lead back but their passing sucked, the decision making sucked, and the first touches sucked, as displayed by Beckerman coming in and being absolutely worthless. Torres should have scored on that power header, but he goes near post. That is heading 101. Far post!!!!! The keeper is already moving toward near post because of the cross, if you go far post he has to dive opposite the direction his body is already moving making it harder to save. Why don’t our players know this? Think Messi scoring in the Champions League final over Van Der Sar, who is a full foot taller than Messi.
Our players when in this Prevent Defense all crowd together and look like my rec. league team when I was 8. We do not have the first touch skills or the vision on the field to play bunch ball keep away passing that other more talented teams do. (Sorry, not saying we are not talented but other teams, say Brazil or England are better at possession keep-away ball because there players have better trapping and field vision than us.) Push the ball out to the side. When Holden came in, he camped out by the sideline and when someone had the field vision to pass to him, he took it to the corner a few times once for the cross in that Torres should have headed far post. But it also takes up time on the clock and gives our players the time to push forward for an attack. Even if we miss the shot or don’t even get one off, we are still on their half of the field and can apply pressure away from our goal which (tah duh) takes more time off the clock. Bradley just sucks so bad. We need a big league/international coach who can instill more discipline, possession and all game long aggressiveness or our team in South Africa will not make it out of group play. Fire Bob Bradley now. The Confed Cup was a fluke and the worst possible outcome for American Soccer because it kept Bob Bradley as our coach.
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