It all seemed to be going so well for the United States men’s national team, taking a halftime lead and playing well. Then Jozy Altidore got sent off and the inevitable equalizer came, giving Switzerland a share of the glory in the 1-1 draw.
3 things we learned from the 1-1 draw between the USMNT and Switzerland
Things looked OK for the USMNT before Jozy Altidore lost his head, and that led to disappointment as the boys in blue slumped to a draw.
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The game opened fairly even, with both sides able to generate chances. The aggression of the Swiss attack left them stretched out and somewhat vulnerable at times, and the USMNT did everything they could to take advantage, but struggled mightily to find the right ball in the final third to unlock Switzerland’s defense. Gyasi Zardes especially struggled, with both his first and finishing touches letting him down several times not just in the first half, but throughout the match.
Fortunately, Switzerland had their own issues in the final third, with Xherdan Shaqiri struggling to connect with with Josip Drmic to exploit a fairly shaky U.S. defense early. Timmy Chandler in particular had a hard time when Shaqiri floated out to his side, which very nearly gifted Switzerland a goal half an hour in if not for Drmic overrunning the cross Shaqiri sent in after leaving Chandler in a heap.
Just before the half, though, it was a Swiss mistake that gave the U.S. a breakthrough. Gokhan Inler gave up a sloppy foul in the final third just before the stroke of halftime, giving Brek Shea the chance he needed to whip in a gorgeous, curling free kick that left the Swiss stunned.
The second half saw much change in terms of personnel, including the debut of a new U.S. goalkeeper in William Yarbrough, but the flow of the game stayed mostly the same. The Swiss were more dangerous with a better midfield in tow, but still struggled to break the U.S. down. Then, just before the 70th minute, everything changed.
Jozy Altidore, who had been exchanging words with the Italian referee all match long, rashly tackled a Swiss player near the touchline, and was rightfully showed a yellow card for his efforts. Then Altidore said two magical words that you should never say to a referee, and was shown a second yellow card for dissent mere moments after the first. Just like that, the U.S. were down to 10 men, and the Swiss had all the momentum.
It took time, but eventually Switzerland were able to wear the USMNT down and start forcing mistakes. A long series of set pieces finally saw the Swiss find a goal, scoring off a corner when the ball got knocked down in front of goal and Valentin Stocker was able to poke it home to level the score at 1-1.
Despite both sides’ best effort to find another goal, that’s how the match ended, with the U.S. feeling the more disappointed of the two given how things changed late in the match. Still, there’s plenty to take away from this match to the positive for the United States, having hung around with a very good Switzerland side all match long.
Switzerland: Roman Bürki; Stephan Lichtsteiner (Silvan Widmer 46'), Fabian Schär, Steve von Bergen, Francois Moubandje; Gelson Fernandes (Haris Seferovic 72'), Gökhan Inler (Granit Xhaka 46'), Fabian Frei (Pajtim Kasami 46'); Xherdan Shaqiri; Admir Mehmedi (Valentin Stocker 46'), Josip Drmic (Breel Embolo 56')
Goals: Stocker 80’
United States: Nick Rimando (William Yarbrough 46'); Timmy Chandler, Michael Orozco Fiscal (Ventura Alvarado 46'), John Brooks, Brek Shea; Alejandro Bedoya (DeAndre Yedlin 76'), Danny Williams, Michael Bradley, Alfredo Morales (Tim Ream 89'); Gyasi Zardes (Jordan Morris 89'), Jozy Altidore (red 68')
Goals: Shea (45’)
3 things
1. Michael Bradley is not an advanced playmaker - OK, maybe we didn’t learn this, per se, but apparently the point still needs to be hammered home some more. Bradley is a good passer, but he’s not an effective creative passer. He’s wonderful at supporting play, but not so great at driving it. He’s far better at using his energy and work rate to create space for the guys in front of him in the attack rather than trying to make the key pass in the final third himself. And yet, Jürgen Klinsmann keeps shoehorning Bradley into a role that he just doesn’t fit, no matter the consequences.
2. Even tinkering in a friendly, Switzerland is looking really good - Not a lot of people talk about Switzerland, because why would you when England, Germany, Spain, France, Italy and the Netherlands are all doing good things around them? But you shouldn't sleep on this Swiss team. They've got a lot of very good players hitting their stride, and even playing under-strength in both halves, you could see a lot of that talent shining through. This is a team that could make a whole lot of noise over the next four years.
3. Did we finally find the purpose of Alfredo Morales? - USMNT fans have long struggled with the idea of Alfredo Morales in the national team. There’s not a lot of things that Morales does badly, but there’s also not much he does especially well. He doesn’t play at a terribly high level in the German second division, and doesn’t do a lot that wows you. What Morales does do well, though, is run and press, and the role he filled today in the narrow diamond suited that beautifully. His pressing helped slow down the Swiss attack to a more manageable speed, and helped open up space for the U.S. in attack. Morales may not be a great passer or a scoring threat, but he definitely has a use in the right system.
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