Why USMNTs uber-talented midfield could ultimately be what costs them in World Cup
IRVINE, Calif.— Every World Cup contender has a pressure point.
For some, it’s goalkeeping.For others, it’s a shaky back line or an inability to finish chances.For the United States, it’s the midfield.Not because the Americans lack talent.
Quite the opposite.Tyler Adams, Weston McKennie and Malik Tillman form one of the strongest midfield trios the U.S.
has ever taken into a World Cup.The problem is what happens if one of them disappears.That’s where the foundation begins to crack.Mauricio Pochettino entered the tournament by taking a gamble — Tanner Tessmann, who started most of the qualifying cycle alongside Adams in the midfield as a double pivot, was left off the roster.
Middlesbrough midfielder Aidan Morris and Atlético Madrid’s Johnny Cardoso were both told to stay home as well.That left Adams as the lone true elite defensive midfielder on the roster.Suddenly, one yellow card, one awkward tackle or one pulled hamstring threatens to become a tactical nightmare for the Americans.That scenario was on display in Team USA’s 3-2 loss to Turkey.Yes, Pochettino rotated almost his entire starting lineup, but in doing so, he revealed something that was impossible to ignore.
Strip away Adams, Tillman and Cristian Roldan and suddenly the U.S.looked vulnerable in the center of the pitch.
Turkey’s speed exposed huge gaps.Possessions felt rushed and haphazard.
Defensive transitions were chaotic. Was it one bad night or a preview of what awaits the U.S.if injuries or suspensions strike during the knockout rounds?Pochettino didn’t seem to have any regrets after leaving Tessman, Morris and Cardoso off the roster, but do Roldan’s injury and Gio Reyna’s inconsistency provide pause now?Pochettino openly discussed asking McKennie or Tillman to drop deeper to help Adams dictate possession, believing that technical quality can outweigh defensive conservatism.
It’s risky.It asks players to sacrifice the very qualities that make them so dangerous an...