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Josh Ouellette

By Josh Ouellette

Well. That didn’t go exactly well for the United States Men’s National Team. But at least it was better than a 7-0 loss to Chile.

As great as the Copa America was, and will be, for America… It still stings going out 4-0.

But considering there was no Bobby Wood pushing forward the counter attack, no Jermaine Jones helping Michael Bradley hold down the midfield, and no Alejandro Bedoya to close down all over the pitch and offer U.S. defenders an outlet… It still stings going out 4-0.

DeAndre Yedlin returned and stabilized the USMNT back line. Well, sort of. Allowing four goals isn’t the epitome of settled.

But the other changes Jürgen Klinsmann made to the roster were sort of, well, meh. It was pretty easy to assume Kyle Beckerman would fill in for Jones. And while yesterday wasn’t his day, that’s not the decision that bugs me. And neither is Graham Zusi slotting into the left side of the midfield.

Starting Chris Wondolowski wouldn’t have been my choice, but what do I know, I’m sitting on a couch screaming at a TV (or if it’s yesterday we’re talking about, a district classroom watching on my phone). And that’s not the decision that bugs me. Well, it bugs me a little bit because Wondo has a penchant for not showing up in big games (2013 Gold Cup excluded), but that’s not really my issue.

My issue is that with Klinsmann’s personnel decisions he didn’t account for formation changes. By playing Gyasi Zardes and Zusi out on the outer wings of the four-man midfield they didn’t have the ability to supply Clint Dempsey and Wondo consistently.

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Wondo isn’t Bobby Wood, even in his prime he didn’t have the speed to match the fleet-footed attacker. All the good Wood has done over the past couple of weeks in this tournament has been thanks to his incredible pace and bulldog-like approach to keeping the ball in the attacking third. Wondo is an excellent goal poacher and scorer when he is supplied the ball, but he doesn’t create chances like Wood.

Playing about 20 yards behind Wondolowski was Zardes, who like Wood, has proven he can create chances and supply them, both for the USMNT and the Los Angeles Galaxy. Why the formation wasn’t changed to make sure Zardes played further up the pitch, like a 4-3-3, or something along those lines a mystery to me.

Sure Christian Pulisic came on for Wondolowski after the half and sort of added more pace, but it was already too little too late despite half the match still to be played.

All week Klinsmann said the USMNT was going to “go for it” against the best team in the world, but when his starting XI was announced it was clear that they weren’t really going for it.

I personally think Klinsmann knew the U.S. didn’t have a real shot at beating Lionel Messi and the Argentine’s. And that doesn’t make him a bad coach… it makes him a realistic man. And a few weeks ago I basically said bravo to the U.S. coach for giving Wondolowski what I hope is a run out with the National Team. That’s exactly what I think he did in Houston on Tuesday night.

Going for it would’ve meant moving Zardes up, starting a game-changer like Darlington Nagbe, or maybe giving the talented youngster Pulisic more time to make a difference. Going for it would’ve been keeping Matt Besler in the back four and moving Fabian Johnson into the midfield so Zardes could play further up without playing Pulisic or Nagbe and their lack of national-level experience with only 13 combined caps.

I hope the third place game on Saturday, which I expect will be against Colombia, serves as a final statement for America. Taking third place in this field would be impressive and help boost the confidence of the American team when comes time to play teams like Argentina, Chile, Colombia, or one of the European powers down the line, especially a couple of summers from now in Russia.

I could say Messi’s free kick was amazing and unstoppable. And it was. It should be the goal of the tournament, and it was the second best I’ve ever seen live (on TV at least) behind Dimitri Payet’s bender for West Ham this past season against Crystal Palace.

Messi’s one-touch cross in the third minute that led to Ezequiel Lavezzi’s header over Brad Guzan was a better pass than the goal it resulted in. The U.S. was sent out in the first half by one player.

He didn’t single-handily beat the USMNT, but he sort of did at the same time.

But in true American spirit that doesn’t matter. The USMNT should always believe they can beat any team at any time because they are a group of Americans (and American service men’s sons that grew up in Germany).

So while I may not like Klinsmann’s semifinal decisions, the way he helped push the USMNT to the semifinal and his formation when it includes all of his starters is pretty good, and could be comprehensive and cohesive if it sticks together before the World Cup. He also finally has the answers to what his best back line can be going forward with John Brooks and Jordan Cameron flanked by Yedlin and Johnson.

Overall I think Klinsmann did a great job in the Copa America Centenario, both with what he got out of his squad on the field, and the confidence he oozed in front of the media.

I am proud to be an American thanks to how the USMNT did in this one-off tournament.

Next week I’ll talk a little about the 2016 European Championships, the Euros, going on in France right now. If you’ve wondered why soccer is taking over ESPN every day from 6 a.m. to about 2 p.m., that’s why.

I’ll offer these few points.

One, Payet has become the soul of France with his three performances so far, not bad for a guy who was literally told he wasn’t good enough to play for Les Bleus 12 months ago.

Two, don’t sleep on Iceland. They might not advance to the knockout rounds. But this team is on the rise and has been a pleasure to watch.

Two, don’t sleep on Iceland. They might not advance far into the knockout rounds. But this team is on the rise and has been a pleasure to watch. Taking second in its group over the likes of Portugal and Austria is impressive. Getting its first-ever win at a major competition to seal the spot and advance in the tournament is even more impressive.

That’s my take through the group stages so far, but hey, I’m just joshing around.