A review of the Klinsmann debut

Was it me, or was there something about that match that felt eerily similar to how it might’ve unfolded if Bob Bradley were still in charge? The U.S. started slowly, looked tactically overwhelmed, struggled defending on the left wing, not surprisingly went behind only to bounce back with fight, emotion and determination in the second half. Isn’t that the 2010 World Cup all over again? Yes, but here’s where it turned out different. The changes that Klinsmann made – inserting Brek Shea, taking out Michael Bradley and shifting Landon Donovan into a central playmaking function right alongside Jose Torres – were definitely his own, moves that explored what was possible from an offensive standpoint and shed the usual defensive tendencies. I’m not convinced Bob Bradley would’ve been daring enough to essentially stick with one defensive midfielder.

Klinsmann’s changes left everyone buzzing at the final whistle – not concerned by his starting setup –and his enthusiasm afterword spoke volumes, too. Instead of complaining about a missed red card, all he did was convey is absolute passion for the game and the moment itself in his on-field interview with ESPN’s Rob Stone immediately after the match. ESPN analyst Taylor Twellman put it best, simply saying, “He said ‘fun’!”

But we’re not supposed to read much into that match. For those closest to the U.S. team, players and coaches, the first 60 minutes were more difficult to forget than the final 30 were easy to remember. And of course, there are plenty of reasons to not read too much into what went down in Philadelphia at all: it was the first camp under Klinsmann, it was bad timing of a FIFA fixture date that resulted in a disjointed lineup, the aforementioned ugly first hour with new players in a new(ish) formation, an unmotivated Mexican team that took its foot off the gas in the final half hour, on and on. But somehow, if all those factors cancel each other out, it’s reasonable to believe there were things to learn and assess.   

Players up: Shea, Donovan, Torres, Robbie Rogers, Michael Orozco Fiscal, Ricardo Clark. Shea is the future of the program. I said it here in the paper on Wednesday. (I also said Freddy Adu needed to play well, and he didn’t even dress. So there’s that, too.) Donovan, well, he’s the best player in a U.S. jersey. Period. Torres finally got a chance and got better as the game progressed. Rogers and Clark looked nothing like the liabilities they’d developed a reputation for being, and who would’ve known the U.S. had another center back in Fiscal? Sure, he might never play there again. But he can. That’s something.

Players holding steady: Carlos Bocanegra, Steve Cherundolo. There’s a reason they’re fixtures in the team. They’ve got to stay there as long as they can, and shouldn’t be judged solely on their age. Given what Kyle Beckerman was asked to do in defensive midfield, I don’t think he’s hurt his stock either. It’s never going to be spectacular with him.

Players down: Edgar Castillo had the worst night of any U.S. player, and Bradley wasn’t put in the best position – his less than stellar night was hardly because of his role in Mexico’s goal. There was little he could do on that play. But Klinsmann’s biggest error of the night was to make Bradley the focal point of the U.S. offense in a 4-2-3-1. It’s simply not his role, which paved the way for how much the outlook changed once he and Jermaine Jones left the field. One of Klinsmann’s greatest challenges will be to field a team that doesn’t have an overabundance of holding midfielders. When he does that, he’ll be on the road to transitioning the U.S. into a more attacking team, the kind that observers and fans saw over the final 30 minutes, the part of the game most would rather remember as the next era for the U.S. Soccer gets underway.