Canada - Mexico game thread

[tmcmurph]

quote:Originally posted by Ed

And some teenage twat in green hurled a beer towards us in the 2nd half so I went over and told them to cool it.

Last night i saw Stalteri of old and was easily the best match that i have seen from him in a long time.

I was up a few rows and saw that. You were the second. As soon as he threw it a few people behind him tapped him on the shoulder and gave him the finger wagging "don't be a stupid ass" type of speal. That was good to see. If each group kept their own in line and everyone just hurled insults it would be much better.

Yea Paul looked good and if only that shot had gone in .... darn crossbar! He was receiving passes extremely well and looked very natural in the position he was playing.

[BearcatSA]

quote:Originally posted by Free kick

Very good point. Last night i saw Stalteri of old and was easily the best match that i have seen from him in a long time. prior to last night, I had not seen anything memorable from Stalteri since the moment he first appeared as a RB way back in 2004. Slight correction, in the last four years there have been memorable plays from him, but for the wrong reasons. Until he was moved to RB, he was easily one of our best players. It was Yallop who moved him back there and it was evidently not his wisest decision. This makes us question the theory that we should always be playing players at the postions that they play with their clubs

Not coincidently, the things that I have noted from his play over past four years remind me very much of what Spurs fans have been critical of. Namely, his marking and positional play.

I'm glad Stalteri finally had a strong match, the first one in a long while since he has been in limbo at club level. Unlike you, I actually felt when he started out as an RB for us after playing RB/wingback for Werder Bremen that he really found his niche as a player. I never felt he was ever particularly convincing as a central midfielder but I had noted previously on this forum that as a flank midfield type it would be different. Also, as an RB I felt his defensive positional play was a strength, as he could read and intercept a lot of through balls and work well in conjunction with his CBs: my defensive issues with him centre around his diving in to 1 v 1 challenges and getting beaten, of which too many recent examples stand out. I still feel that if you want the best out of many players, on limited international training time prior to the too few number of matches that we have, play them in positions where they usually play week in week out. Therefore, I don't have an issue with Miller, Yallop, Hart (who tried Stalteri again as a midfielder in two different matches), or Mitchell for their choices.

The momentum of the second half helped build on-the-ball confidence with a number of our players, including Stalteri and my usual whipping boy, Harmse. They, along with Bernier and Pozniak, all had moments of questionable pass selection during the match, but the work rate they showed helped provide a better defensive shield for our back four (I thought Bernier in particular did a really under-rated job out there, as he took over the DeGuzman role, even though he was one of the culprits on that poor wall for the first goal)

I haven't re-watched the match yet but I'm sure I'll be able to put some things and performances in a little better perspective after my viewing. Though I applaud the great effort, there are a lot of other factors to consider when viewing the total performance.

[villus]

I too thought Bernier had a good game, he played with more confidence and with a little more assertiveness. He worked hard defensively and his passing was better than I have seen it. I think he plays well in the destroyer roll.

[sinhaya]

Why didn't Kevin McKenna get any time?

[Gian-Luca]

McKenna apparently twisted an ankle in practice so he didn't play. On the Sportsnet broadcast they also mentioned that Friend had an injury (can't recall what it was) and so they sent him back to Germany.

[BearcatSA]

quote:Originally posted by villus

I too thought Bernier had a good game, he played with more confidence and with a little more assertiveness. He worked hard defensively and his passing was better than I have seen it. I think he plays well in the destroyer roll.

His biggest problem is inconsistency.

[Gian-Luca]

Just to add a minor chuckle to the proceedings:

http://www.thestar.com/Sports/article/518337

"Gerba lofted the bouncing ball 30 yards over the outstretched hands of Mexican goalie Oswaldo Sanchez and into the net."

I have to wonder what the Mexican keeper was doing so far out of his net that Ali could kick the ball 30 yards over his outstretched hands and still get it into the net!

Especially when Ali was just outside the 18 yard box when he struck the ball.

Also notice the article mentions Belarus played two different teams yesterday. Soccer journalism is alive and well in this country!

[BearcatSA]

quote:Originally posted by Gian-Luca

McKenna apparently twisted an ankle in practice so he didn't play. On the Sportsnet broadcast they also mentioned that Friend had an injury (can't recall what it was) and so they sent him back to Germany.

I heard the word "abscess" in the proceedings

[nafnikufesin]

quote:Originally posted by gator

I hope we never perfect that rolling around on the ground thing! You knew DeJong was hurt last night when he went off on a stretcher, unlike our diving, cheating Concacaf opponents who make a habit of play acting! The more I watch the replay of that FK against DeJong, the worse it looks, the ref really got that wrong!

It's no wonder some of those countries are poor. They spend all of their money on diving lessons and paying off referees while we waste our money on things like health care.

Oops, did I say that out loud?