By Juan Carlos Maygua
The USMNT traveled to Europe to finalize details ahead of the Nations League tournament. Switzerland was the rival to put the National Team to the test with a task of their own as well. The Euros are also set to begin soon, and Switzerland is looking to continue its positive participation in the different international tournaments. The USMNT arrived with a squad with players that had outstanding performances in their respective leagues. The most significant absence was Christian Pulisic, who won the Champions League trophy with Chelsea F.C and will join the team for the game against Honduras.
Satisfactory performance
It was going to be interesting to see what the National Team was going to generate with players like Sergino Dest, Weston McKennie, and Giovanni Reyna all on the field. The three have played key roles in their clubs and will look to carry the National Team for the foreseeable future. In terms of how the game developed in the first 45 minutes, it was all for the USMNT. The team displayed a level of passing that signals the blueprint on how this squad will play. Every play started off building from the back, combined with a high-pressing game that troubled Switzerland from the start. That’s how the opening goal came to fruition, the pressing that the National Team was enforcing caused Switzerland to give up the ball inside their box, an opportunity capitalized by Sebastian Lletget.
The home team was able to bounce back right away as they settled on the field after the opening goal. Switzerland used the same methodology and also used a high pressing style. The difference is that they were not as consistent and lethal with their transitions. However, the counterattack proved to be enough to generate the equalizing goal. Ricardo Rodriguez found space in the left-wing and his shot leveled the score. From that moment on, the USMNT controlled the game and pushed Switzerland into their half. The constant high pressure made the home team play with long balls across the field. Unfortunately, in a similar play, Switzerland found a way to cross the ball inside the box but found a handball by Dest. Ricardo Rodriguez stepped up to take the penalty in the final minute of the first half but failed to score, giving both teams a chance to rethink strategies for the second half.
Understanding that this was friendly, the national team introduced new players in the second half. This, however, would have a counter effect on the dominance and possession of the USMNT. Switching Jackson Yueill was the game-defining movement in terms of tactics. His absence on the field was noticed as the team lost control of the midfield and Switzerland settled more comfortably as a result. Once Reyna was also substituted the team lost a sense of reference on the attack. Once again we must understand that these are friendly matches that are used to assess these types of issues in time for the key games. Switzerland would go on to find the winning goal with a player that came from the bench. Steven Zuber found the net in the 63rd minute after another unfortunate clearance attempt from the USMNT. I can say that in context both teams had 45 minutes each to display their ideologies.
What I saw from the USMNT in the first half suggests that the team will be a difficult opponent for years to come if the project has continuity. The choices that the team has to choose from are extensive. As I said in previous articles, the USMNT has a bright future ahead.