To paraphrase Alexi Lalas on the FS1 postgame show: The first order of business in any tournament is to get out of the group. Job No. 1 is done for the USMNT on the heels of an ugly and grimy, and frankly pretty CONCACAF-y 1-0 win over Paraguay in Philadelphia on Saturday night.
To paraphrase Bruce Arena after the 2014 MLS Cup, when asked about what the secret to winning big games is: Your best players have to play like they're your best players. John Brooks, who was the Man of the Match, certainly fit that bill. So did Michael Bradley, in another steady shift in central midfield, and Clint Dempsey with his 51st USMNT goal.
Give Jurgen Klinsmann credit for putting his players into spots where they could succeed, and the players for mostly going out and doing it against an under-talented but desperate Paraguay.
Here's what happened:
Childhood's End
There comes a tipping point in any truly talented player's career. Either they find that extra gear – that extra bit of drive, or on-field wisdom, or the ability to get their bodies into even better shape, or just a fraction more comfort with the ball – and become an elite player, or they stay where they are and make a career of being "very good."
That inflection point for Brooks came this year with Hertha Berlin. He came into the year as a starter with potential, suffered an early-season muscle strain, then returned and locked down the starting role with a vice-like grip. During the winter break Bayern Munich were reportedly interested in his services, and a half-dozen other big-name clubs were all linked with a possible move at one point or another (personally I hope he stays with Hertha – they finished 7th, and have the same type of potential to grow into a great club that Chelsea did 15 years ago).
That version of Brooks, however, wasn't often seen with the US. Until this tournament:
Brooks has now officially elevated his game for both club and country, and in this game he was the rock that this shut-out was built upon. His emergency defense was especially impressive, as his map of interventions (clearances, interceptions, blocks, tackles & recoveries) in the final third shows:
That type of scrambling and goal-line defense was necessary in the wake of DeAndre Yedlin's red card early in the second half. It was clear that the US were going to need to absorb pressure, and it's clear that Brooks was the linchpin in doing so effectively.
There was more to his game, of course. His passing was once again excellent and his defensive reads were all on point.
But sometimes you just need the old, Gandalf-style "None Shall Pass!" performance in central defense, and that's what Brooks provided. He was the best player on the field today, and has arguably been the best defender in the tournament so far.
Have A Cigar
Let's give it up for Klinsmann, who got it right with both the formation and the gameplan. I still would have adjusted the personnel a little bit around the edges, but after back-to-back shutout victories in what were, more or less, knock-out games, I think it's fair to give the manager his due.
Here's what I wrote a few days ago about what the US should do moving forward:
It's clear that Brooks and Geoff Cameron are now the No. 1 pairing in central defense, and Bradley's main role is to shield them. He's no longer asked to go box-to-box, and the fact that he's limited has allowed Jermaine Jones to pursue the play both on and off the ball. Over the past three weeks Klinsmann has finally seen the light and allowed his players to start building partnerships through repetition, and it's paid off with a trip to the quarterfinals.
Was it pretty? No, but that's the thing about Paraguay: Nobody ever plays pretty against them (except Argentina last summer). They're like Costa Rica or Honduras in that way, and your best chance at exposing them comes from patience and synchronization both with and without the ball.
The US flashed a fair share of that until Yedlin's red card. This was probably the best passing sequence for the Yanks:
Bradley spreads the field. Everyone gets a touch. Runs are made in concert and with purpose.
This is good soccer, and it's born of continuity in crucial spots. The players had been begging for Klinsmann to stick with one lineup and let them play together, and good on him for listening.
Interstellar Overdrive
The other thing that Klinsmann got right was the gameplan – understanding that the way to beat Paraguay was to roast them with speed on the wings. It was worth giving up what, say, Darlington Nagbe would have brought in possession in order to keep the Galaxy's Gyasi Zardes in the XI simply because Zardes is much more of a North-South player.
While Nagbe has more raw speed, he only rarely uses it to stretch the defense; Zardes does that habitually. His default programming is to play a one-touch pass backwards, then sprint into space for the return.
This video unfortunately cuts off the outlet from Bradley to Zardes, but A) it's the goal, and B) it's a direct result of the US gameplan:
Gyasi Zardes --> Clint Dempsey --> GOAL, #USMNT. #USAvPAR#MyCopaColorshttps://t.co/aumNF2kGgS
— FOX Soccer (@FOXSoccer) June 11, 2016
The US still need to generate more in the final third – they were outshot 19-7 in this one, which is usually a canary in a coalmine.
This time, however, it's not. They played on even footing until they got the lead, then packed up shop and waited Paraguay out. It was the smart move, and it worked.
A few more things to ponder...
5. The much-maligned Brad Guzan had an excellent day. He had a huge stop right at the end of the first half, and then a quality double-save late. Whatever yips he had with Aston Villa haven't carried on into the Copa America.
4. Yedlin's two-yellow-cards-in-two-minutes performance was wild. I thought both calls were correct.
I've seen folks suggest that, with him suspended for the QFs, the smart play would be to move Cameron to right back and bring Matt Besler or Steve Birnbaum into central defense.
No. The stability of this team right now comes from the central defensive pairing and the D-mid shielding them. We'll have to live with Michael Orozco at RB, or perhaps Edgar Castillo coming in at left back and Fabian Johnson swapping to the right. Of the two options, I'd prefer just bringing on Orozco.
3. Going to a 4-4-2 (that was actually kind of a 4-1-3-2 because of Bradley's limited role) was the right call, but the danger in that formation is in this clip right here:
Dempsey and Bobby Wood, the starting forwards, are stranded 25 yards from their teammates, which gave Paraguay plenty of space to win second balls and exert some control over central midfield. If you want to know why the 4-4-2 has kind of gone out of style on the world stage (and yeah, I know about Leicester City & Atletico Madrid), this is it – a well-drilled 4-2-3-1 or 4-3-3 team can swamp the midfield and just work their way into a rhythm.
Whoever the US face in the next round will set up shop there if the US lines aren't connected.
2. Jones had a postgame quote that's too good not to share: "Other teams, especially South American teams, they play nasty too. But then if you play nasty they cry around, fake and roll."
1. Fabian Johnson has mostly been good defensively through 270 minutes, but it was his whiffed tackle that led to this bit of heroism from Brooks:
.@j_brooks25 with a tackle-and-a-half to thwart a Paraguay counterattack. #USAvPAR#MyCopaColorshttps://t.co/9NjwlecZNA
— FOX Soccer (@FOXSoccer) June 11, 2016
If he doesn't make that play, I'm probably writing a very different column right now.
But he did. The US's best players were their best players, and the first order of business is now complete. They've survived, they've advanced, and a chance at history awaits.
