Five Points: USMNT searches for information during Denmark test
ÅRHUS, Denmark --
U.S. men’s national team coach Jurgen Klinsmann spends considerable time discussing his standards. He makes his intentions clear: The next few months are designed to present a series of challenges to allow him to assess the players in his pool and evaluate where his team stands ahead of the CONCACAF Gold Cup this summer.
Klinsmann brought his team to the east coast of Jutland in pursuit of those overarching objectives. The friendly against Denmark here at NRGi Park gives the Americans a chance to continue their work against a competent opponent in the midst of its own quest to secure a place at Euro 2016.
Denmark is certainly capable of fulfilling those objectives. Morten Olsen’s side boasts one of the continent’s emerging playmakers in Christian Eriksen and a seasoned group around him capable of producing the desired result on home soil.
“They have very good individual players,” U.S. forward Aron Jóhannsson said. “As a team, they are a very good team. There have been some injured players, but the Danish team has a very good team. And they’re going to give us a good fight. We’re going to have to be 100 percent if we want to get something from the game.”
It is exactly the sort of examination Klinsmann sought to run the rule over a squad in the midst of evolution. Five Points examines the key components of the challenge ahead:
Finding the right structure
Klinsmann spent the two January fixtures sifting through potential tactical options. He based his experiments on the personnel available and culled some useful information from the results against Chile and Panama.
Those performances indicate this group functions more reliably with four at the back. Expect Klinsmann to stick with a more traditional setup -- perhaps some variation of 4-4-2 to establish a reliable foundation at the back and supply Jozy Altidore with some support up front, though 4-2-3-1 is also a potential option -- to extract the most out of his side.
Locating the proper defensive shape
The desire for familiarity within the team structure stems from the personnel changes at the back and the short buildup to this affair. Klinsmann must compensate for the absences of Matt Besler (left with Sporting Kansas City during the international window), Geoff Cameron (omitted to allow for experimentation, Klinsmann said in a Q&A with ussoccer.com over the weekend) and Jermaine Jones (recovering from sports hernia surgery) as he cobbles together his back four.
Klinsmannn must start his work by figuring out his central defensive options. John Brooks looks likely to start on the left side of that duo after his performances with Hertha Berlin, but the right side of that pairing is wide open with first-time callup Ventura Alvarado and Michael Orozco both in contention.
The options at fullback are perhaps more familiar. Fabian Johnson is the usual choice on the right, but Timothy Chandler and DeAndre Yedlin can both feature there if Johnson is pushed into midfield instead. Greg Garza and Brek Shea offer contrasting choices on the left with Chandler another potential alternative.
The range of options provides Klinsmann with plenty of latitude as he prepares for these next two games. The focus in this first outing: figuring out a way to establish a firm base of operations to allow the team to push forward effectively.
Striking the right balance in midfield
The uncertainty in defense places considerable pressure on the midfield to make life difficult for the Danes in possession.
Most of the responsibility falls on regular fixtures Alejandro Bedoya and Michael Bradley. The two stalwarts need to establish the proper level of pressure and set the stage for an effective display. Both players have exerted that sort of influence for the side recently -- Bedoya during the friendlies last fall, Bradley in a virtuoso performance against Panama in January -- and must hit those same heights to ensure the home side does not establish its rhythm.
There is also a considerable burden placed on the wide players to ensure they pick and choose their spots carefully. If gaps started to appear as the Americans venture forward, then the Danes will break quickly and try to exploit them once they win the ball.
Eriksen remains the key man for Denmark
Once Denmark obtains possession and pushes numbers into the attacking half, then influential playmaker Christian Eriksen starts to present problems. Tottenham schemer Eriksen is a player of considerable class, the sort of operator with the ingenuity and the technical ability required to carve apart the opposition.
“He’s tremendously talented,” Klinsmann said. “Watching him and seeing some of his goals already this season and seeing him be the difference in some of the games, it shows that he can turn it on. You always have to be very attentive and sharp on him.”
Providing support to Altidore up front
Klinsmann lost his primary conduit in the attacking third when Clint Dempsey returned to Seattle with a right hamstring strain on Tuesday. Dempsey’s departure leaves Jozy Altidore without his usual partner in the final third and poses a quandary for Klinsmann to sort through as he names his starting XI.
Dempsey excels when he locates space in midfield, obtains possession and uses it to bring Altidore into the game. There is no like-for-like replacement in the pool at the moment, but Klinsmann must compensate nevertheless.
Jóhannsson stands out as the most likely replacement as he returns to his former home in Århus, though Rubio Rubin also warrants consideration if Klinsmann plays two up front. Jóhannsson will need to drop off from time to time to aid the cause and free Altidore to remain higher up the field if he starts, while Bradley and Bedoya must continue to push forward at the proper times and the wide players must supply plenty of crosses into the penalty area to provide further options.
Dempsey’s absence creates a collective burden to share. If the Americans can distribute those responsibilities accordingly and construct several routes toward goal, then Altidore will receive the necessary service to trouble the Danish defense.
