R16: Belgium vs USA - 1st July

USA should be given credit. Regardless of the injuries Portuguese suffered and the trouble Ghana had in this wc regarding their player rifts. They have done incredibly well to get out of that group. Even mighty Germany struggled against them and could score only a solitary goal. What more proof do people want to know that they are quality this time around. Well at least it seems as if they know what they are doing and that they are doing to good effect and that is the most important thing i believe.

But when compared with Costa Rica I have to say the latter slightly . Costa rica is all about fearlessness. They are in fact looking like a very very good and positive team on the field and not at all like some also rans.

Where as Belgium, at the start of the wc were one of the teams whom excited me the most and whom I wished to do well. But that was soon gone when I started to watch their games. Sure they have a GOAT team on paper. and they are comparable with Arg and Brazil in terms of performance so far. But there are clear distinctions.
1st is coach and approach. while argentina and brazil have good or even decent coaches in Sabella and Schoari respectively, Belgium has who ? wilmotts the man is so defensive and clueless that he reminds me a great deal of our ex clown Moyesie. His attitude is small team evident from the celebrations after scoring goals against shite teams (another uncanny similarity to dithering Dave) and that makes me believe he simply cant take this team long. His only strategy is hoofball onto Fellaini's chest. He relies on individual brilliance. even though Belgium have plenty of that. But their defensive approach is inhibiting these awesome players from expressing fully.

2nd distinction from Bra and Arg is experience of playing and qualifying so many times to K.O stage. These guys know when to step up their game and how to step up their game. and especially Brazil wont be the same brazil we have seen until now. quote me on that. where as Belgium I am not so sure. May be they can. But lack of experience will come to haunt them even if they manage to progress further.

and 3rd btw are the obvious ones crowd support and favorable surrounding.

These 3 should be enough I guess.

So what I am trying to say is it will be advantage US and A going into this match. They will be the favorites. But that doesnt mean Belgium cant win. They once again will have to rely on individual brilliance to bail them out.

Not sure if this is GL or Ann Coulter's article on soccer.

Oh well, if this is the level of "analysis" we have succumbed to it probably isn't even worth posting any further with all the nonsense in here.

The mods should do everyone a favor and just delete this thread. Good luck to everyone's teams from here on out.

Good fixture! I don't think it is an easy game for either side however , and i believe it will be a narrow victory for whoever triumphs.

Despite the fact that Belgium hasn't played well in its matches , it is still capable of emerging victorious. Their deeper midfielders have not created anything noteworthy and as a result they have not created tons of chances , the attack builds up too slowly and their coach is clueless.
They are primarily a counter attacking side but so far have played meaningless and tedious possession football. ( part of this was probably due to their opponents) They just are not playing cohesive and fluid football.

This belgium team can be problematic for the USA because they have fully rested most of their starters and have not played any high intensity games so they hypothetically could be fresher.
Additionally, despite the fact that Belgium's attack hasn't exactly clicked, these players can still make things happen and trouble any defence . I can not ignore the fact that the usa is aerially vulnerable and i believe that belgium can benefit from set pieces and crosses and although their manager is poor he has some sort of common sense ; he will introduce more width and aerial ability as the game goes on if he realizes the team is not creating enough and the opposition is weak to this sort of play. That is exactly how they got the 3 points versus Algeria i think.Also Belgium has a knack for scoring late in games , usa will have to be wary of that and be fully concentrated throughout the game.

I really believe that their lack of creativity is due to the use of non fullbacks . They barely have any width and due to the fullbacks not being adventurous with the ball and comfortable on it, they are not deemed as great passing options and this means the passage of passing play will be one dimensional and sideways passing will be overwhelmingly present thus a lack of penetration or verticality.

The USA has a chance because of their character. Bradley needs to step up since he is the only one who can be a creative outlet for this team. I would like to see USA attack the flanks more and be more direct and aggressive there since this is where they are quite vulnerable. I am hoping for the return of Jozy because i fear Dempsey will be isolated and an additional aerial threat will do no harm and especially one up front who can hold up the ball and provide knockdowns for team mates. However, I do feel that if kompany plays and Jozy does as well , Kompany will favour this match up as he struggles more with the more agile and intelligent attackers .

This game has the potential to be an end to end game but it also risks being as cagey and dire as the russia/ belgium game .

Lumiere, noone who saw the game could say we 'struggled' against the US. At no point except maybe the last 2 minutes did they get anything noteworthy done, while we were coasting and saving energy.
In fact, given that for much of the 2nd half a single goal for Ghana would've kicked them out, they were dangerously passive.

Now, it's wrong to say they progressed through 'luck', because they earned their points fair and square and not undeservedly, but that doesn't change the fact that Portugal were surprisingly and dissapointingly bad in this tournament.
I know it's void to insist on 'potential' or 'real quality' etc when everything that matters is what happens on the pitch, but still the only reason US have a real shot at the quarters is because they don't face a top team but one that was underwhelming so far even for its 'prospect' status.
Upsets can always happen, obviously, but there's a reason they are called upsets.

yea true man.

what I was trying to put forth was that during the first 20 or so minutes when Germans where relentlessly attacking US they stayed strong. Any other team there would have been buckled down. But the confidence and self belief I suppose which exist in that team is a treat to watch. They withstood that heavy torrent and even got to a point after that 20 or so minutes where they themselves started countering. That clearly shows character. They were able to mentally tire the Germans up to some extent by a sturdy display.
yea saying they 'struggled' was far fetched I admit.

actually I was in a hurry there so yea pardon for putting the incorrect word.

Belgium have been very underwhelming. If USA play the way they did against Portugal they will surely sneak a win.

Although Belgium do have the quality to go far- they don't have the solidarity and team unity it takes to progress- which I think is USA's best quality due to Klinsmann.

I have seen him get a little flack and I don't really understand it. His selection and motivation of the players has been spot on.

vanDEEZ wrote:
I have seen him get a little flack and I don't really understand it. His selection and motivation of the players has been spot on.

THIS

vanDEEZ wrote:Belgium have been very underwhelming.  If USA play the way they did against Portugal they will surely sneak a win.

Although Belgium do have the quality to go far- they don't have the solidarity and team unity it takes to progress- which I think is USA's best quality due to Klinsmann.

I have seen him get a little flack and I don't really understand it.  His selection and motivation of the players has been spot on.

Spot on regarding Klinsmann. In fact, I would say that he's shown his tactical nous in his scouting of opposition. In each match, he has correctly identified the opposition's strengths and weakness and setup his squad to limit the opposition's advantages and exploit their weaknesses.

The USA's squad was very limited going into the tournament, and that was only highlighted by Altidore's injury. For us to get out of that group, arguably one of the most competitive in the tournament (note: not highest quality, but most competitive), is nothing short of impressive. All credit to Klinsmann and his squad selection/tactical setup. He made some tough calls going into the tournament, and they all appear to have paid off to some degree.

As for Belgium, they have severely underwhelmed. Yes, they won all three of their matches. However, that was a product of quality-of-depth more than tactical setup, coherent approach, patiently breaking down inferior opponents, etc. Make no mistake; this Belgium is far from the dangerous squad that raised everyone's hopes after the 2012-13 season following incredible seasons for the majority of the squad. This side limped into the tournament and has benefited from a rather weak group.

That said, if Belgium plays to its potential, they will will easily. However, if Klinsmann is able to devise and execute a strategy as he has so far in this tournament, the USA is perfectly capable of edging this underwhelming Belgium side. Given the under-achievement by Belgium and the perceived over-achievement by the US, this tie has the potential to be the most interesting tie left in the Round of 16.

http://vimeo.com/99445144

Surprised Wenger isn't sniffing around.

https://scontent-b-cdg.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-xpf1/t31.0-8/p600x600/10467077_787666971265569_7133612530948866309_o.jpg

I've a bet running that makes me support Belgium, but won't be too gutted if USA beat this underwhelming golden generation of Belgium.

Belgium XI: Courtois, Alderweireld, Kompany (c), Vertonghen, Witsel, De Bruyne, Fellaini, Hazard, Mertens, Van Buyten, Origi

USA USA USA XI: Howard; Johnson, González, Besler, Beasley; Cameron, Jones; Bedoya, Bradley, Zusi; Dempsey.

Origi starts finally. He has been pretty good when came on in the group stages. He brought some dynamism to the game.. With lukaku the system looked very static.

This has to be Hazard's game imo.

so the GL verdict is 2 to 1 that USA will progress.

You are all way off the mark.

Come on USA

No Dozzy Altidore  

Dempsey   

Adit wrote:Origi starts finally. He has been pretty good when came on in the group stages. He brought some dynamism to the game.. With lukaku the system looked very static.

Exactly, with Lukaku there is no move, everyone is stuck to his position.
Contrariwise when Origi is playing, everyone moves and that creates move and dynamism then it brings goal-scoring opportunities.

De Bruyne

Origi has changed so much in Belgium's attack  

#surelyitsnotthemanagerscluelesstactics 

Hazard is a true leader in this Belgium

I don't rate an offensive player only for goals and assists, and I am appreciating much his contribute to the team

Wondolovski   

What the hell was that?

I aint throwing salt, but if De Bench knocked my team out of the world cup I'd probably kill myself tonight.

Lukaku

Awful decision by Bradley to shoot from there.

USA Don't deserve to lose this ffs

Respect for USA

Green