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Graham Zusi's move to right back could superpower the Sporting KC and USMNT attacks
Graham Zusi is a four-time MLS All-Star and one of Sporting Kansas City's stars. He's also a United States international with a World Cup appearance under his belt. But none of that is new for the American soccer fixture. What is new is his position.
After spending the bulk of his career as a midfielder, whipping in crosses and establishing himself as one of the best crossers in MLS, Zusi is now a right back. The 30-year-old, who had only played a handful of matches at the position to this point, spent all of January playing right back for the United States and now enters the 2017 MLS season ready to man the position for Sporting.
But while a move backwards can be seen as a negative or even indication of caution, the U.S. and Sporting made the move for one reason: to aid the attack.
"The reason I’m back there at this point with both teams is to provide some attack coming out of the back," Zusi told FOX Sports. "I think the defending aspect I can do as well, but both [Sporting manager] Peter Vermes and [U.S. manager] Bruce [Arena] are expecting me to get forward when I can and provide some additional support in that final third."
Adding Zusi a fully stocked attack is going to present real problems for opponents. Not only do they have to deal with strikers and wingers, now they have to keep tabs on Zusi too. And Zusi will be able to see the entire field in front of him, pick his spots and get a full head of steam, then add his spectacular vision and passing ability. That's a terrifying prospect for defenses, and he's adjusting to the position really well, thanks to the month he spent playing there for the national team.
"I went into January camp as a right back so I’ve had a solid 2 months of it under my belt now," said Zusi.
Zusi already showed what he can bring to the attack from right back with the U.S., and that was with half the adjustment time he'll have when Sporting open up the MLS season. If he can get the job done now, just imagine where he'll be in a month, or by the summer, or by the playoffs.
The change has been aided by the way Sporting play. Vermes has always preached a system where every player defends, from front to back, so putting in defensive work is hardly new to him.
"The way we play with Sporting, we call every person on the field to really defense so in that aspect it wasn’t a huge transition for me."
But while an active team committed to defending all over the pitch isn't new to Sporting, there is plenty that is and it's not just Zusi's position. The entire club is in the midst of an evolution. They no longer look like the team that won MLS Cup, dependent on athletes and size. They're a more technical team that will dominate possession and kill you with constant pressure.
As Zusi evolves, so do Sporting.
"Just look at the size of our team alone, were probably one of the smaller teams in the league," Zusi said of Kansas City. "But our tactical ability and technique on the ball is very good. I think when you have as much possession as we have throughout a game, not having that size doesn’t really hurt us too much and we can play around on teams."
This has been a multi-year change for Sporting. After all, they were playing a 4-3-3 years ago, a formation more teams have gone to. They've been adding technical players. They've been focusing on being a team that can dictate the match to their opponents. That's a popular evolution in MLS, but most teams are years behind Kansas City in changing. Sporting were, as Zusi called them "forerunners."
They're attacking, they're pushing forward, and they're doing it with technical ability.
"Bringing me back into the right back position is something I think Peter likes having attacking guys on the field and guys who are very comfortable on the ball. I think that plays very well into our style of play and what we want to accomplish."
That also fits into what the U.S. want to accomplish because, whether it's for club or country, the thought of Zusi's technical ability, passing and crossing coming from the back and supplementing the attack is just too tantalizing. Now we'll get to see it full-time.
