Eric Drost-Flickr
Will the USA continue its dream run? The US Men’s National Team (USMNT) has the daunting task of facing Belgium’s Red Devils today at 4 p.m. Who would have thought losing your best natural striker in Jozy Altidore within minutes of the first game, the USMNT would still be playing. This scenario of the US playing in the “Group of Death” was never supposed to happen. Now with Altidore back with the team, this allows the US Coach Jurgen Klinsmann to go back to the 4-4-2, with Clint Dempsey having more freedom off the front line. How will this affect UMNT’s chances of winning today?
Most experts have the USMNT sitting deep in their own backfield and defending. This in my opinion is not the way to go. The reason the US got this far is because they have used their magnificent can-do attitude and aggression. This is not the time to play passive and hope for a counter attack to get goals.
Jozy Altidore’s brings power and a faster pace for the Americans. This also has a domino effect, allowing Clint Dempsey to drop into a much bigger space; it now opens him up to receive passes, with less pressure to be the main scoring option. The burning question will be how many minutes can Jozy play? The simple answer is, for as long as his hamstring will hold up. Jozy is what a great #2 WR in the NFL brings to a team. The ability to take the pressure off a #1 WR and limit the double teams on them is what a great threat like Jozy does.
One thing is for certain reality can be better than dreams. The US is flying high right now, with a confidence that has no ceiling. It seems as if Jurgen is pulling all the psychological punches as well. From publicly stating the US has no chances to win the World cup, to telling his players and their families not to book their return flights home until after the tournament is over. Jurgen is now stating the US will be here for a while. What is the full impact of having Jozy back? Only time will tell. What we do know is that USMNT has not backed down from any team thus far; catapulting them out of the group of death. All I we can all say is “I believe that we will win”.
Luis Valdes is a Writer for Couch Rider Report. Follow us on Facebook.
