From Last Word on Soccer, by Daniel Sperry

San Jose (March 23rd, 2017)- For many supporters of the US Men’s National Team, tomorrow’s match is attached with a sense of urgency. Everything from the #Get3 campaign on Twitter, to a lot of the media as a whole. For Bruce Arena? He’s unfazed.

US Men’s National Team vs. Honduras Match Preview: Tactics and Predictions

“I don’t know if ‘sense of urgency’ is the right word,” Arena said. ” I think they are just looking forward to the game. They’re a very enthusiastic group, and we can’t wait to take off tomorrow.”

Tim Howard echoed Arena’s sentiment, and even welcomed the pressure as a good thing. “We know the pressure that’s there. The pressure is good. I think the anxiety that we fill in our stomachs tonight is good, it’s a good thing.”

For the large part, that’s been Bruce’s message to the players. Howard said, “He’s not panicking, he’s been here before. He’s had his back against the wall as a coach with his team in qualifying. Again, he’s unfazed.”

Frankly, they aren’t too worried. They just know that they need to come out, and put on a good performance at home, and get three points. How are they going to do that? Well, frankly, nobody really knows.

Tactical Preview

The big thing here is that it’s very difficult to say, or tell what Bruce Arena is going to try and roll out tomorrow. This is his first match with all of these players at his disposal. Some say they might switch to a 3-4-2-1, others say 4-4-2, and another group shouts 4-2-3-1. I like to sit in the 4-2-3-1 camp. They’ll need some more creative, advanced players to help break down what Honduras will throw at them. So here is my best shot at putting that together:

At first glance, it doesn’t look that defensive in the wings. However, Honduras isn’t necessarily stocked full of pace on the wing. In their 3-1 win against Trinidad, they played with Roger Espinoza and Boniek Garcia out wide. Both are veteran players, who are much more technical than they are lightning quick. I doubt that Honduras stray from what worked. Because of Espinoza’s defensive prowess, the US likely need some stronger attacking power out wide. That would call for the likes of Nagbe and Pulisic. They come with pace, the ability to break a player down 1v1, and goalscoring threats.

Dax would be fantastic as a deep lying midfield. He stays home, and is good at distributing the ball as the link between the back line. Having a guy like him who will stay home, next to Bradley is going to be helpful in their defense, and the attack. That allows for Bradley to push up just a little higher as a traditional number 8.

The backline is also a big question. I think Cameron and Villafaña are both going to be there. But Cameron’s ability to play right back just might allow him to slip out there. If they choose to do that, then Zusi’s attacking prowess get’s sacrificed as that second overlapping fullback. However, they might feel it’s necessary given the attacking mentality of the wingers.

Predictions

The US Players know they need to come out and put on a good performance, and get all three points. Having that, along with all the experience, and a manager like Bruce who isn’t fazed by this, leads them to three points. They have to get off on the right foot though. If they do, a 3-1 win for the US is on the cards.