World Cup Group G Update

Group G provided two extremely enjoyable games, with Germany pounding 10-men Portugal by a score of 4-0 and the United States beating Ghana 2-1 on a very late goal. The outlook of this group looks much better for the US and Germany, while Ghana and Portugal will be devastated by their results.

What We Learned About Germany - Germany put in an absolutely dominant performance against Portugal, which pretty much assures them the top spot in Group G. The 4-0 win was never in doubt, as Germany looked extremely dangerous from the starting whistle and managed to bag three goals before halftime. A big question mark coming into the World Cup for Germany was the striker position, as Miroslav Klose is the only true striker on the roster and he is 36 years old. Against Portugal, Thomas Muller was stuck up in the striker position and preformed remarkably, scoring a hat trick. Another problem position for Germany coming into the tournament was at the fullback slots. Traditionally, Lahm has played right back for Germany, but he was moved to the midfield, while Erik Durm is the only left back on the roster but is extremely inexperienced. Germany ended up playing Howedes at left back and Boateng at right back, two players who are natural center backs, and it worked surprisingly well. If Boateng and Howedes were able to keep up with Ronaldo and Nani than they should theoretically be able to keep up with anybody in the world but we will have to wait and see.
Germany's Best Player - Thomas Muller, Striker - First hat trick of the World Cup and an all-around fantastic performance.
Germany's Worst Player - Philipp Lahm, Center Midfielder - Didn't play that badly but did look a step off the pace - maybe this is just his adjustment period to playing in the midfield.

What We Learned About Portugal - Everybody knows that Portugal is a fairly talented team, and to be completely honest, their talent was on display for much of the game against Germany. Before being reduced to 10 men, Portugal looked potent with the ball and actually controlled much of the possession, however, it is the mental mistakes that eventually tore Portugal apart. Bad passes in the final third, an incredible amount of selfishness from Ronaldo, and a remarkably stupid red card for Pepe were all psychologic mistakes from Portugal on the day. You hate to see such a talented team unwind like Portugal did against Germany but if they don't make quick changes to their mentality we could have a fiasco reminiscent of France's in South Africa on our hands.
Portugal's Best Player - Cristiano Ronaldo, Winger - Hate to give this to him because he was outrageously selfish throughout the game but he did look the most likely to score for Portugal.
Portugal's Worst Player - Hugo Almeida, Striker, and Pepe, Center Back - Impossible for me to choose between Almeida and Pepe for worst player against Germany. Almeida honestly looked like he didn't want to be at the game and was completely disinterested in preforming while Pepe was beaten for the second Germany goal on Mats Hummels' header and was awarded a red card for a stupid decision.

What We Learned About The United States - Overall, the United States did not play well against Ghana so they will be very pleased that they managed to escape with a win. While the defense was extremely stout, the midfield really struggled to string together passes, and that was in a large part due to the weak performance of Michael Bradley. Bradley is usually the key piece in the US midfield, but against Ghana, Jermaine Jones and Kyle Beckerman easily outplayed him. Up front, Dempsey had an incredible game until a kick to the face broke his nose and slowed him down a bit. Meanwhile, Jozy Altidore's injured hamstring seems even more problematic as Aaron Johansson really struggled to get into the game at the striker position. If the US could get a win while playing as poorly as we did, people should be optimistic about what sort of results we can get when we play to our full potential. In the end, though, it all comes back to Michael Bradley; Jones and Beckerman can hold the ball in the defensive midfield but we desperately need Bradley to link the defensive midfield to the attackers, and he simply couldn't do that against Ghana.
The United States' Best Player - Jermaine Jones, Center Midfielder - While this could have gone to Tim Howard, Clint Dempsey, or even John Brooks, none of them had as constant an effect on the game as Jones did. While he doesn't provide as much going forward as a player like Graham Zusi, Jones was absolutely superb when tracking back and providing cover for DaMarcus Beasley and Matt Besler.
The United States' Worst Player - Michael Bradley, Attacking Midfielder - I think you all saw this coming. Bradley really struggled to connect passes in the midfield, but the US is going to need him to return to form if they want to get anything from Portugal and Germany.

What We Learned About Ghana - To be fair, Ghana didn't play poorly in the least and will be extremely disappointed with the final result. After allowing Clint Dempsey to score just 34 seconds into the game, Ghana maintained nearly all of the possession, but were just lacking that final ball. When they finally got it in the 82nd minute, it seemed as if they certainly wouldn't loose the game and might even go on to win it from that point. However, the rest of the game saw very few chances fall their way while the US managed to leap back in front by means of a brilliant set piece. Because of the result, it would seem nearly impossible for them to make it out of the group, but they proved against the US that they might just have the quality to hang in with Portugal and Germany.
Ghana's Best Player - Asamoah Gyan, Striker - Struggled a bit to put away chances himself but honestly looked the most likely to score for Ghana. Even though he never did score, his beautiful back-heel pass was what set up Ayew for Ghana's lone goal.
Ghana's Worst Player - John Boye, Center Back - Distributed the ball fairly well out of the back but was pretty much responsible for letting both Dempsey and Brooks score.

World Cup Group Predictions: Group G

First Team To Advance: Germany

Second Team To Advance: United States

Teams Heading Home: Portugal, Ghana

Call me a homer, call me biased, but I honestly think the two teams to exit the “group of death” will be Germany and the United States. Let’s start with Germany... In terms of talent, Germany easily exceeds all other teams. Their midfield depth is remarkable, and their back five (including goalkeeper Manuel Neuer) is up there with Italy for the best in the tournament. My one concern for Germany is that they only have one true striker on the roster, and that is 36-year-old Miroslav Klose. The reality is, goals are going to have to come from the midfield, and I think Germany’s midfield is capable, with Ozil, Muller, Gotze, Kroos, Schurrle, and Podolski all being bonafide goal scoring threats. In my eyes, the battle for second is then between Portugal and the United States, as Ghana are certainly a good team, but a first game loss to the United States would pretty much mean the end for them. Portugal fans will disagree, but they do heavily rely on Cristiano Ronaldo, and if he is not in full form, they may be in trouble. They do have other solid player like Joao Moutinho, Nani, and Pepe, but none of those players can make up for a half-fit Ronaldo. Meanwhile, the US is in fantastic form right now, winning each of their three friendlies in impressive fashion. Jozy Altidore seems to have found his touch at the pivotal moment, and Michael Bradley, Clint Dempsey, Graham Zusi, and Fabian Johnson all look formidable right now. The biggest problem for the United States right now will be the center back situation, but I believe that Besler and Cameroon will perform admirable at the position. In the pivotal Portgual vs. USA game, Portugal will likely hold more of the ball and have more chances, but I just don’t believe they will be able to finish them without a fully fit Cristiano Ronaldo, while the United States seems to be in great form in terms of finishing. My prediction for the leading goal scorer of Group F is Germany’s Lukas Podolski, while I expect Germany’s Mesut Ozil to lead the group in assists.

USA's Guide To Getting Out Of Group G

The USA are underdogs in Group G. There's no denying that. Germany are full of world class players (even without Marco Reus), Portugal have Vogue cover boy Cristiano Ronaldo (I hear he's decent at soccer too), and Ghana tend to kick the United States' asses (plus, they've got a witch doctor working for them). However, soccer in the US has improved in leaps and bounds over the past decade to a point where the likelihood of us surviving the "group of death" is not so improbable. In fact, we have several world class player of our own, including midfield maestro Michael Bradley, star forward Clint Dempsey, prolific scorer (every once and a while) Jozy Altidore, and of course, the one and only Landon Donovan (what's that? he didn't make the team?). However, with the quality of the other teams in our group, the most important player may turn out to be coach Jurgen Klinsmann, who will need to be in top form when it comes to tactics, formations, and player choices. Now, Klinsmann may not be openly asking for advice, but I'm going to give him some anyways... here goes:

Lets start off with formations. The United States historically has utilized a 4-2-3-1 formation, with two holding and three attacking midfielders, but in the recent friendly against Nigeria, Klinsmann opted for a less traditional 4-3-2-1 Christmas tree formation, with three holding midfielders and two wingers. At times in the contest against Nigeria, the formation even morphed into a 4-4-2 with a diamond midfield configuration, where the midfielders create a diamond behind the two strikers. Each of these formations lends itself to a different style of play and it makes sense that Klinsmann would change up the formation based on the opposition. Against Ghana, the formation that makes sense is a 4-4-2, because the United States will likely dominate possession and the midfield diamond allows for triangle 1-2 passes  that can slowly break open a stiff defense. Meanwhile, against Portugal and Germany, the more traditional 4-2-3-1 makes sense, because it lends itself to a counter-attacking style of play, where Jozy Altidore can hold up the ball and then distribute to lead to quick, wide attacks. Another added benefit of the 4-2-3-1 is that it uses two wider attacking midfielders, who can double down on the dangerous wing players of Germany and Portugal (see: Cristiano Ronaldo).

As for players, here's my best starting XI to play against Ghana in the 4-4-2 diamond formation:

Goalkeeper - Tim Howard - No real consternation here. Howard was always going to be the starting keeper and has performed admirable in the international friendlies.

Left Back - DaMarcus Beasley - Lightning fast defender who has only gotten better with age. However, he will always be remembered as the guy who peed on the pitch during the 2002 world cup (search at your own risk).

Center Back - Matt Besler - Conceded a penalty in the recent friendly against Nigeria, but he is still the only actual center back on the roster who is capable of managing the position.

Center Back - Geoff Cameron - Not actually a center back. He has formerly played as a defensive midfielder and a right back for his club, but he certainly has the physical attributes to play at center back and Klinsmann seems to agree with me, as he has started every friendly at the position. Honestly I would be fine with a can of corn at center back as long as it means that we don't have to start Omar Gonzalez, who has struggled mightily during the friendlies.

Right Back - Fabian Johnson - Maybe the best player for the United States right now. He is going to need to make the same sorts of forward runs that he has been making as of late if the US is going to break past Ghana's stiff defense.

Holding Midfielder - Kyle Beckerman - Great passer who seems to have some sort of calming effect while on the field. I think he is more suited for the holding role than Jermaine Jones (exciting but at times erratic), especially in a game where we will probably have most of the possession.

Left Midfielder - Jermaine Jones - Usually plays in a central role, but seeing as the 4-4-2 diamond is not a very wide formation, Jones would fit in well here. Alejandro Bedoya also could have been considered for this spot, but he would likely end up too wide and too far forward, whereas Jones will likely stay compact and is not afraid to check back to the defense to pick up the ball.

Right Midfielder - Graham Zusi - Traditionally plays a wider role, so his skills as a crosser might be a bit lost here, but there's always set pieces. Plus, if Jones stays compact on the opposite side, Zusi would likely be allowed to drift outwards and engage in some wider combination play with Fabian Johnson.

Attacking Midfielder - Michael Bradley - Usually plays in a less advanced position, but Klinsmann tried him out in a more attacking role against Nigeria and he was dominant, so I don't see why Klinsmann shouldn't try it again against Ghana.

Forward - Clint Dempsey - Would likely play just off the shoulder of Jozy Altidore making darting runs in behind. His creativity will be key to breaking past Ghana's defensive line.

Forward - Jozy Altidore - Had been in a very long scoring slump before putting two in against Nigeria. When in form, Altidore is brilliant at holding up play, playing neat through passes, and finishing off scoring chances from any position.

On the other hand, here is the 4-2-3-1 that Klinsmann should employ against Germany and Portugal:

Goalkeeper - Tim Howard - Same as above.

Left Back - DaMarcus Beasley - Same as above.

Center Back - Matt Besler - Same as above.

Center Back - Geoff Cameron - Same as above.

Right Back - Timothy Chandler - Hasn't been incredibly impressive in friendlies, but he is a proven player in Europe, and will be given a bit of
cover due to the tracking back of the wings in the 4-2-3-1. This could also be DeAndre Yedlin, who many think Klinsmann brought on the team for the sole reason of defending Cristiano Ronaldo.

Holding Midfielder - Jermaine Jones - Simply moves from left midfield to defensive midfield.

Holding Midfielder - Michael Bradley - Makes the move from attacking midfield to holding in an effort to start off counterattacks quickly from the back.

Left Midfielder - Fabian Johnson - This move provides the US back line with a lot more cover, which they are certainly going to need against Germany and Portugal. Though he would start off on the left, he could end up on the right to help Chandler out with Ronaldo or Podolski.

Right Midfielder - Graham Zusi - Same as above.

Attacking Midfielder - Clint Dempsey - Though the position name changes, Dempsey will be doing pretty much the same thing in both formations, playing off of and behind Jozy Altidore.

Forward - Jozy Altidore - Same as above.

Well... Let's hope Jurgen Klinsmann has been checking in on this blog. If the US makes it out of the group stages you can expect another one of these, so that's something to root for. Go USA!