Best midweek window yet this season for the USMNT.
Our top two choices in the CF battle both did well this window. Balogun won a vital PK that allowed Monaco to tie their match 2-2. He came on at half and honestly Monaco was under pressure most of the half so he was very quiet otherwise. Sargent converted a PK – though he was arguably lucky it wasn’t saved. Still he was the best Norwich player according to match event data and the fans.
Haji Wright can play that #9 spot as well, and he had a major bounce back game. We said in our last update his form was slipping (and it was) but he was excellent against Blackburn, scoring a goal, creating opportunities, and pitching in on defense. He was the best player in his match, both according to the data and the fans.
We’re also going to spotlight Tillman again this window. He’s been crushing it in Eredivisie, but the quality of the league leaves something to be desired once you get past the top few teams. This window, he was fantastic against another high-quality side in Sporting CP, and this follows a strong match against Juve in the last UCL window. For us, he’s now a must start with the USMNT. He’s everything we all want Gio Reyna to be 12 months from now. He moved from Bayern to a still good club where he could get PT, and has really improved.
In our preview, we also highlighted that we would learn a lot about the Celtic boys (CCV + Trusty) this window. Similar to PSV in Eredivisie, Celtic tend to dominate their SPL opposition. CCV and Trusty earn high ratings, but it’s against weaker competition. We were excited to see how they’d do against top-tier talent.
CCV might have been lucky to be out injured, as Celtic’s defense was ripped to SHREDS by Dortmund in a 1-7 loss. Trusty wasn’t truly AT FAULT for any of the goals but he was clearly overmatched. For now at least, USMNT fans will have to keep looking for a CB to replace Ream in the Starting XI.
Finally, it was feast or famine for our GKs. Schulte was victimized by Messi (no shame in that…) and Slonina wasn’t great against Wycombe. Callender played well and Stuver was particularly good – earning MOTM honors according to the data and the fans. Well done.
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10.4 – Weekend Recap
The last match window before the USMNT all gather in Austin for Pochettino’s first camp was action packed.
Pulisic scored, and was Milan’s best player, again! It’s almost every game this year he’s been either the best player by the data or as voted by fans. …But we get some bad vibes from his teammates twice stripping him of the PK responsibility against the coach’s orders. Theo Hernandez and Tammy Abraham both had their PKs saved by David de Gea – so they probably should have let Pulisic, who is 10/10 in his career, take them.
September 2024 “team of the month”
This is basically how the USMNT would line up in our first matches under Pochettino – if he made his decisions based ONLY on current club form. He obviously won’t do that – but it’s a cool way to look at who is playing well, and who isn’t, for the USMNT.
10.4 – Weekend preview
Best matches of the weekend, brought to you by #DosACero. This is the final match window before the guys head to #Austin for the FIRST CAMP WITH POCHETTINO. Here’s hoping for a strong set of performances, with everyone coming in hot. LFG!