Ferreira, LDLT, & Arriola help USMNT rout Grenada 5-0 in Austin

June 12, 2022 c_admin Concacaf Gold Cup, Football News, International Comments Off on Ferreira, LDLT, & Arriola help USMNT rout Grenada 5-0 in Austin

The United States national team opened its Nations Leauge defense with a 5-0 rout over Grenada. It was an expected result and it’s not wise to read too much into the game. Still, there was some lessons to be learned and ASN’s Brian Sciaretta walks you through it. 


BY

Brian Sciaretta



Posted

June 11, 2022

7:05 AM

THE UNITED STATES national team easily defeated Grenada 5-0 on Friday night in Austin to open the defense of its Nations League crown. The win was highlighted by four goals from Jesus Ferreira and an otherwise solid performance by a number of players.

it is always misleading to read too much into a win over a small minnow, but these are the types of teams every team hash to face at some point. Whether it be England facing Andorra or France facing Liechtenstein, this comes with the turf in the international side of the game.

Despite the disparity in talent, there are some lessons you can learn from these games.

The first is how some players respond to pressure. The United States national team roster is very competitive at the moment as players are looking to book a ticket to Qatar for the World Cup. There are limited opportunities for players to make case and players who are slumping or are on the margins need to play well against a minnow, an average performance doesn’t cut it.

The second lesson is which players can raise their game and play with intensity despite the expected outcome. Certain situations will naturally raise the intensity of games. But Ken players do it by themselves even when the situation doesn’t necessarily make it easy? Before the game, U.S. head coach Gregg Berhalter said the intensity was one of the things he was looking for.

finally, there are ways you can use these games to measure chemistry and seek which players are playing well with each other in terms of formations, combinations, styles of play, etc.

This game was as you would expect. The United States controlled the game from start to finish, but was a little sloppy for most of the early part of the first half. Granada kept the US off the board until the 40th minute when Jesus Ferreira got the ball after a deflected Paul Arriola cross an slammed it home for his first goal of the game.

The second half was when the U.S. team saw more production. Ferreira scored his second goal of the game in the 54th minute when he got on the end of a 19-pass sequence. The end featured a lovely through-ball from Paul Arriola to Ferreira for a close finish. Two minutes later, Ferreira completed his hat trick when he hammered home a low corner kick by Kellyn Acosta.

In the 62nd minute, the U.S. team put up its four-spot when Luca de la Torre made a weaving run through the defense and found Paul Arriola making a run. Arriola made a very nice to set up his finish. Finally, in the 78th minute the U.S. team forced a turnover deep inside Grenada’s half. Brenden Aaronson got into the box and found Ferreira for his easiest goal of the night and a 5-0 lead.

The U.S. team easily coasted from there out.

It was a game that will soon be forgotten but there was some useful takeaways.

 

Ferreira’s confidence

 

Jesus Ferreira has been playing well this year but needed some confidence with his finishing. Berhalter said he wanted to see his forwards hit the back of the net, and in this case Ferreira delivered. Not all of the goals were easy. Some required well-timed runs, good touches, and clean strikes. If this keeps Ferreira believing that he can be the answer, then he is in a good spot. He will needs confidence against better opponents. Had he not scored in this game, it could have been put him into a dangerous spot mentally.

Regardless of the opponent, Ferreira played a nice game and he was aggressive and intense all game.

 

LDLT & Arriola raised intensity

 

Aside from Ferreira, there were other players who helped their case.

Luca de la Torre is an obvious winner from the game. He used his dribble several times to break apart Grenada’s defense. Even when he didn’t shoot, he disorganized the defenders and helped create space for his teammates to exploit. The best example was the play that led to Paul Arriola’s goal where de la Torre picked up the assist.

Paul Arriola was another player who had a big game. He was always on the front foot and getting behind the Grenada’s defenders. He was at the heart of most of the U.S. team’s chances and scored a nice goal. His assist on Ferreira’s second was a nice pass.

Ahead of the game, Berhalter said he wanted to see which players were able to play with intensity and de la Torre and Arriola did that. Both players are solid bets to make the roster for Qatar but this game helped. While neither are starters when everyone is healthy, both have real chances to play minutes.

 

Looking ahead to El Salvador

 

The U.S. team will conclude its four-game June run on Tuesday (June 14th) when it visits El Salvador. It’s likely that Berhalter will continue to rotate his squad to look at more players but while also playing to win.

Players such as Haji Wright, Ethan Horvath, Erik Palmer-Brown (who had a sore hamstring and wasn’t eligible vs. Grenada) have not played much this window and could get the nod. But there will be a mix of regulars, just as there was vs. Grenada with McKennie starting.

El Salvador is top eight team in the region and playing them on the road is tricky. The last time the two teams played in El Salvador, it was the qualifying opening game and the teams ended with a 0-0 draw.

 

Player Ratings

 

The Starting Lineup
 

Matt Turner: There was very little for Turner to do. Whenever he had something to do, he did it well. Rating: 5.5

Antonee Robinson: Got forward effectively but his crosses weren’t great. Rating: 5.5

Cameron Carter-Vickers: Cruised for 90 minutes with ease. Rating: 6.0

Aaron Long: Played 45 minutes and had little problems. Rating: 5.5

Reggie Cannon: Didn’t contribute much offensively. He handled what he had to defensively. Rating: 5.5

Kellyn Acosta: Passed well to constantly change up the point of attack. His corner kick assisted on Ferreira’s third goal. Rating: 6.5

Weston Mckennie: Helped to create multiple chances in his 45 minutes on the field. Rating: 6.5

Luca de la Torre: Very solid outing for the San Diego native. His dribbling was very effective opening up the game. Rating: 7.5

Jordan Morris: Did not offer as much as the other attacking players. Rating: 5.0

Paul Arriola: A very good game from the FC Dallas player who scored one goal and was at the heart of most the key build-ups, including an excellent assist on Ferreira’s second goal. Rating: 7.5

Jesus Ferreira: Four goals from the FC Dallas man, and some of them showcased a higher degree of difficulty. He had pressure to perform well in this game, and he did. Rating: 8.5

 

The Substitutes
 

Walker Zimmerman: Passed well out of the back and didn’t have to defend much. Rating: 5.5

Malik Tillman: He looked very nervous and turned the ball over too much. It definitely hurt his case for a ticket to Qatar. Rating: 4.5

George Bello: Like Robinson, also didn’t deliver much in the attack – which should be his strength. Rating: 5.0

Cristian Roldan: The versatile Seattle attacking mid was active but didn’t deliver that much. Rating: 5.5

Brenden Aaronson: Solid outing off the bench and had a nice assist on Ferreira’s final goal. Rating: 6.0

 

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