Curious the difference Adams, Balogun, Richards, and Robinson would have made had they played.
***** Official United States of America vs Turkey World Cup 2026 Thread *****
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Last: 2 days ago by PatAg
Silvertaps said:
Curious the difference Adams, Balogun, Richards, and Robinson would have made had they played.
Balogun definitely gets a goal in my opinion. Pepi was okay, but wasteful in key moments.
I know it didn't matter, but still woke up just sick to my stomach this morning. what a brutal last minute defeat....especially given the fact we could have put 6 goals in
deadbq03 said:
And if anything… I'd argue it helps grow interest in the sport. It's good for average Joe to see that famous people like soccer and want to be there. It puts it on the same pedestal as major playoff games in other sports.
LOL. This is the equivalent of Taylor Swift showing up to the Knicks game with her make a wish friends in those tshirts. They don't give a rip about the sport. It's just something to show up to and be seen. Oh, I'm sure they're rooting for the team to win but ascribing anything beyond that to "they like soccer" is a pretty good stretch.
the constant celeb shots were so ghey
Silvertaps said:
Curious the difference Adams, Balogun, Richards, and Robinson would have made had they played.
Had we started our normal defenders I think we win easily. That was where the biggest difference was to me. All of the Turkish goals came from really bad defending.
bagger05 said:Silvertaps said:
Curious the difference Adams, Balogun, Richards, and Robinson would have made had they played.
Had we started our normal defenders I think we win easily. That was where the biggest difference was to me. All of the Turkish goals came from really bad defending.
We also saw a huge difference in the attack when Pulisic came in, if he was combining with Jedi on the left they would've caused havoc.
fig96 said:bagger05 said:Silvertaps said:
Curious the difference Adams, Balogun, Richards, and Robinson would have made had they played.
Had we started our normal defenders I think we win easily. That was where the biggest difference was to me. All of the Turkish goals came from really bad defending.
We also saw a huge difference in the attack when Pulisic came in, if he was combining with Jedi on the left they would've caused havoc.
CP is playing out of his mind. every run has been creative. when he takes that inside path, it opens up so much for us. really hoping we can keep him on the pitch. Dude is a true star, just always battling injury for club and country
Hard not to be bummed out by the way we lost. But the main thing this game told me is that our second string players are a huge step down. In almost every elite sport this is usually the difference between the top tier and second tier teams.
Like 2012 Aggie football. Our best 22 players got to the point that they could literally beat anyone. Sit a few starters on defense and suddenly we can't stop Louisiana Tech.
We're going to need to stay healthy and avoid suspensions if we're going to make a deep run. I think what we saw reinforces how valuable it was to be able to sit and rest pretty much the entire starting 11.
Still shouldn't have lost. I think we have a manager that can keep their minds right, though. I'm still bummed we lost but not really discouraged about it anymore.
Like 2012 Aggie football. Our best 22 players got to the point that they could literally beat anyone. Sit a few starters on defense and suddenly we can't stop Louisiana Tech.
We're going to need to stay healthy and avoid suspensions if we're going to make a deep run. I think what we saw reinforces how valuable it was to be able to sit and rest pretty much the entire starting 11.
Still shouldn't have lost. I think we have a manager that can keep their minds right, though. I'm still bummed we lost but not really discouraged about it anymore.
Hank the Grifter said:deadbq03 said:
And if anything… I'd argue it helps grow interest in the sport. It's good for average Joe to see that famous people like soccer and want to be there. It puts it on the same pedestal as major playoff games in other sports.
LOL. This is the equivalent of Taylor Swift showing up to the Knicks game with her make a wish friends in those tshirts. They don't give a rip about the sport. It's just something to show up to and be seen. Oh, I'm sure they're rooting for the team to win but ascribing anything beyond that to "they like soccer" is a pretty good stretch.
Which ones? Will Ferrell is a partial owner of LAFC. I saw several USWNT legends
Brad Pitt and Ashton Kutcher have been seen at lots of USMNT matches over the years
I'm wondering if that was the FIFA feed? Like were people in
fig96 said:bagger05 said:Silvertaps said:
Curious the difference Adams, Balogun, Richards, and Robinson would have made had they played.
Had we started our normal defenders I think we win easily. That was where the biggest difference was to me. All of the Turkish goals came from really bad defending.
We also saw a huge difference in the attack when Pulisic came in, if he was combining with Jedi on the left they would've caused havoc.
The gap between Weah and CP was concerning.
The gap between Dest and Scally was concerning
The gap between McKenzie and Richards/Ream was concerning
For such a fluid game I was more impressed by Berharter's cohesion and surprised Gio disspeared
Yeah, while this opinion has to be tempered because of the time he's missed + someone like Messi already bagging 5 goals, but if you asked me who looks like the most explosive and dynamic player so far when it comes to finding a gear to create opportunities and pressure, I'd honestly have to say Pulisic is up there with anyone. Again, that has to be tempered given what he's missed, but man he's been hard to handle
tysker said:fig96 said:bagger05 said:Silvertaps said:
Curious the difference Adams, Balogun, Richards, and Robinson would have made had they played.
Had we started our normal defenders I think we win easily. That was where the biggest difference was to me. All of the Turkish goals came from really bad defending.
We also saw a huge difference in the attack when Pulisic came in, if he was combining with Jedi on the left they would've caused havoc.
The gap between Weah and CP was concerning.
The gap between Dest and Scally was concerning
The gap between McKenzie and Richards/Ream was concerning
For such a fluid game I was more impressed by Berharter's cohesion and surprised Gio disspeared
Yes and no, I don't expect backups to 3 of our best players to be up to the same level. I also think McKenzie would look a lot better paired with one of Ream/Richards, and Weah is generally better than he showed last night.
tysker said:fig96 said:bagger05 said:Silvertaps said:
Curious the difference Adams, Balogun, Richards, and Robinson would have made had they played.
Had we started our normal defenders I think we win easily. That was where the biggest difference was to me. All of the Turkish goals came from really bad defending.
We also saw a huge difference in the attack when Pulisic came in, if he was combining with Jedi on the left they would've caused havoc.
The gap between Weah and CP was concerning.
The gap between Dest and Scally was concerning
The gap between McKenzie and Richards/Ream was concerning
For such a fluid game I was more impressed by Berharter's cohesion and surprised Gio disspeared
I was pretty disappointed by Aaronson and Gio's form. I thought they'd be lighting it up out there. They got pretty handily abused and outmuscled.
Everyone complaining about LA... remember, FIFA said that they would "put LA on the map" globally for hosting
joe scally is absolute ass my dude
tysker said:Hank the Grifter said:deadbq03 said:
And if anything… I'd argue it helps grow interest in the sport. It's good for average Joe to see that famous people like soccer and want to be there. It puts it on the same pedestal as major playoff games in other sports.
LOL. This is the equivalent of Taylor Swift showing up to the Knicks game with her make a wish friends in those tshirts. They don't give a rip about the sport. It's just something to show up to and be seen. Oh, I'm sure they're rooting for the team to win but ascribing anything beyond that to "they like soccer" is a pretty good stretch.
Which ones? Will Ferrell is a partial owner of LAFC. I saw several USWNT legends
Brad Pitt and Ashton Kutcher have been seen at lots of USMNT matches over the years
I'm wondering if that was the FIFA feed? Like were people inTurkey(edit sorry) Turkiye wondering WTF is that guy?
Ferrell, Kutcher, and Pitt might as well be Bogart, Brando, and Gable to anyone young enough to be influenced by their attendance at a soccer game.
Sorry man, I've been hearing for 50 years that soccer was just *this* close to blowing up in the US.
It ain't gonna happen. And showing celebs at marches DEFINITELY ain't gonna make it happen.
Just show me international hotties like they used to in the good ol days when doing crowd shots.
Vox Clamantis said:tysker said:fig96 said:bagger05 said:Silvertaps said:
Curious the difference Adams, Balogun, Richards, and Robinson would have made had they played.
Had we started our normal defenders I think we win easily. That was where the biggest difference was to me. All of the Turkish goals came from really bad defending.
We also saw a huge difference in the attack when Pulisic came in, if he was combining with Jedi on the left they would've caused havoc.
The gap between Weah and CP was concerning.
The gap between Dest and Scally was concerning
The gap between McKenzie and Richards/Ream was concerning
For such a fluid game I was more impressed by Berharter's cohesion and surprised Gio disspeared
I was pretty disappointed by Aaronson and Gio's form. I thought they'd be lighting it up out there. They got pretty handily abused and outmuscled.
This was my take. The defense was bad but on offense Weah was non-existant, Aaronson had lots of bad touches & passes and Gio held the ball too long constantly. Berhalter was the one player that I developed a better opinion of from this game.
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AG
My biggest disappointments were Weah, Reyna and Pepi. Just bc I expected more out of them…Reyna I think needs to play as a "super sub" type. Clearly he's talented, but he needs some of our other starters out there with him to see the full potential. He gets muscled off the ball too much to be a focal point for 65+ min…it was said in the broadcast, but Weah was on the wrong side most of the match. If he had to play with CP10, he's playing on the right and I think it's a more natural fit. Or if he stays in the left, w/ Jedi making those overlapping runs more than trusty did, which would allow Weah to cut inside to get on his right foot…Pepi straight up needs to go to finishing school. He can hold up play fine and gets back in support, but he's not the target man we need him to be. Wasted too many chances that should have been goals. That and he just doesn't make smart runs like Flo does. There's a lack of fluidity to his game our squad needs. So when he plays that many minutes, it bogs the middle up and gets stagnant.
I think most of the casual fans need to come to the realization that the margin of these teams at the WC really aren't that huge (unless you're maybe France and have UCL level dudes 3-deep). Turkey is a solid squad that really dominated the Aussie and Paraguay matches and just got incredibly unlucky they didn't score. I think the xG one game was almost 4…we went toe to toe and needed a goal at the death against a backup GK to lose….****, Germany lost to Ecuador last night and they are ranked below Turkey. And Germany played most of their squad, not all their subs like we did.
I think most of the casual fans need to come to the realization that the margin of these teams at the WC really aren't that huge (unless you're maybe France and have UCL level dudes 3-deep). Turkey is a solid squad that really dominated the Aussie and Paraguay matches and just got incredibly unlucky they didn't score. I think the xG one game was almost 4…we went toe to toe and needed a goal at the death against a backup GK to lose….****, Germany lost to Ecuador last night and they are ranked below Turkey. And Germany played most of their squad, not all their subs like we did.
Hank the Grifter said:tysker said:Hank the Grifter said:deadbq03 said:
And if anything… I'd argue it helps grow interest in the sport. It's good for average Joe to see that famous people like soccer and want to be there. It puts it on the same pedestal as major playoff games in other sports.
LOL. This is the equivalent of Taylor Swift showing up to the Knicks game with her make a wish friends in those tshirts. They don't give a rip about the sport. It's just something to show up to and be seen. Oh, I'm sure they're rooting for the team to win but ascribing anything beyond that to "they like soccer" is a pretty good stretch.
Which ones? Will Ferrell is a partial owner of LAFC. I saw several USWNT legends
Brad Pitt and Ashton Kutcher have been seen at lots of USMNT matches over the years
I'm wondering if that was the FIFA feed? Like were people inTurkey(edit sorry) Turkiye wondering WTF is that guy?
Ferrell, Kutcher, and Pitt might as well be Bogart, Brando, and Gable to anyone young enough to be influenced by their attendance at a soccer game.
Sorry man, I've been hearing for 50 years that soccer was just *this* close to blowing up in the US.
It ain't gonna happen. And showing celebs at marches DEFINITELY ain't gonna make it happen.
Just show me international hotties like they used to in the good ol days when doing crowd shots.
if you can't see the insane rise in soccer popularity since 94, you're a ****ing smooth brain. It was never going to be an overnight thing. You think NBC/Peacock just wants to lose hundreds of millions voluntarily because soccer isn't popular here? No, it's become a very profitable entity. They do roadshows around the country for Premier League Saturdays with tens of thousands in attendance. It's getting there, just takes time. Like 94, this WC will create waves for decades in American soccer. We'll continue narrowing the gap. For now, just enjoy being the rare underdog, while we can just automatically pencil ourselves into the final in most other sports.
Weah was playing on the wrong side because Aaronson was on the right. I've never seen him so slow.
Reyna is a 30 minute guy not 60. And the way the game was called last night didn't favor him at all. I think Gio is an incredibly talented enigma. Game 1 you got the talented part. Game 3 you got the enigma.
Reyna is a 30 minute guy not 60. And the way the game was called last night didn't favor him at all. I think Gio is an incredibly talented enigma. Game 1 you got the talented part. Game 3 you got the enigma.
Sid Farkas said:
I'm gagging every time I hear the mandatory new pronunciation of turkey-yay.
Very cringe indeed.
https://stylemeter.usatoday.com/story/sports/2026/06/12/sofi-stadium-los-angeles-california-america-host-city-fifa-world-cup-replacing-playing-field-turf/90454913007/AustinAg2K said:greg.w.h said:FIFA turf…boogieman said:
Sofi turf having a bad 4th quarter.
Mack Brown was put in charge of the grounds crew.
Way too much being read into that game. Its a combination of trolls, people who were just waiting to be disingenuous, and people said misled by the above.
We have our best 11, and then 4-5 subs we can bring in, and they can play with anyone.
And those guys have now only played 2 games instead of 3 going into knockout rounds
We have our best 11, and then 4-5 subs we can bring in, and they can play with anyone.
And those guys have now only played 2 games instead of 3 going into knockout rounds
still breaks my heart to see a game like last night where we're already through and diego luna not getting to live out his WC dream
PatAg said:
Way too much being read into that game. Its a combination of trolls, people who were just waiting to be disingenuous, and people said misled by the above.
We have our best 11, and then 4-5 subs we can bring in, and they can play with anyone.
And those guys have now only played 2 games instead of 3 going into knockout rounds
Yeah, that's what I was telling everyone. The dudes we started last night, you're likely going to have a maximum of 2-3 of them on the field at the same time, and for a fraction of a game, not 9 of them for 75 minutes.
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Big time event in LA and no Snoop Dogg. I really wanted to see the D O double G dapping up Dempsey. Maybe next game.
The other massively corrupt global sports organization, the Olympic Committee, has exclusive rights on Snoop
Vox Clamantis said:PatAg said:
Way too much being read into that game. Its a combination of trolls, people who were just waiting to be disingenuous, and people said misled by the above.
We have our best 11, and then 4-5 subs we can bring in, and they can play with anyone.
And those guys have now only played 2 games instead of 3 going into knockout rounds
Yeah, that's what I was telling everyone. The dudes we started last night, you're likely going to have a maximum of 2-3 of them on the field at the same time, and for a fraction of a game, not 9 of them for 75 minutes.
I think that's fair. But that is also what is so frustrating about the performance.
Before yesterday, I had Weah, Gio, and Pepi in that 4-5 guys coming off the bench to provide an offensive boost, and the connection just wasn't there. I wanted each of them to really establish themselves, and it just didn't materialize with that combo of players.
PatAg said:
Way too much being read into that game. Its a combination of trolls
Can I comment that it's kinda cool that the soccer board has trolls?
We'll know we've made it when we all have to ignore game threads because of the ****ing stupid takes and cliff jumping
tysker said:PatAg said:
Way too much being read into that game. Its a combination of trolls
Can I comment that it's kinda cool that the soccer board has trolls?
We'll know we've made it when we all have to ignore game threads because of the ****ing stupid takes and cliff jumping
The footballification of soccer board lol
tysker said:Vox Clamantis said:PatAg said:
Way too much being read into that game. Its a combination of trolls, people who were just waiting to be disingenuous, and people said misled by the above.
We have our best 11, and then 4-5 subs we can bring in, and they can play with anyone.
And those guys have now only played 2 games instead of 3 going into knockout rounds
Yeah, that's what I was telling everyone. The dudes we started last night, you're likely going to have a maximum of 2-3 of them on the field at the same time, and for a fraction of a game, not 9 of them for 75 minutes.
I think that's fair. But that is also what is so frustrating about the performance.
Before yesterday, I had Weah, Gio, and Pepi in that 4-5 guys coming off the bench to provide an offensive boost, and the connection just wasn't there. I wanted each of them to really establish themselves, and it just didn't materialize with that combo of players.
I think the whole is greater than the sum of the parts. I think guys like Gio and Pepi play better with veterans making sure they're in good position and keeping them calm.
Take the defense for example; Tim Ream isn't out there because of his blistering speed, he's out there because he's a field general. I think our positioning and reaction on defense would have been much better with him out there.
Yep Ream and Richards both read the game at a higher level. Makes it to where we could sub in someone like McKenzie to play next to.them and it's ok
I hate how these USA broadcasts spend time zooming in on celebs during the game. The people who would care about that are not watching and the ones who are watching do not care.
Weah wasn't nonexistent. He seemed to be the focal point of our attack and f'd up nearly every opportunity he had. I lost count of the offsides calls, poor first touches, constantly playing negative balls, and looked slow.
Given the promise he showed a few years ago, he had by far the most disappointing performance imo.
Given the promise he showed a few years ago, he had by far the most disappointing performance imo.
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