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Originally Posted by SuchFriendsAreDangerous
US has always had the talent to compete with any team in the world. ... Our domestic talent is world-class
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It'll be interesting to see how they do in the WC. They're definitely playing in a more attractive, attacking style than they did under Bradley, but this is against very ordinary opposition, and I can see stronger teams getting at their defence without too much trouble at all. And would you seriously consider even your best players (Dempsey, Bradley, Howard, Jones, Altidore) as 'world class' (which I tend to think of as a player among the very best in the world in their position and who would stand out as exceptional in any team they play for)? I know I wouldn't. Messi's world class, along with the likes of CRonaldo, Lahm, Pirlo, Cavani, Falcao, etc. Even someone like Dempsey is obviously miles behind any of those and, if anything, seems to be going backwards as a player, at least compared with where he was a couple of seasons ago (and I say that as a big Dempsey fan).
To me, when it comes to something like the WC, the US still looks like a quarter finals team at best. Obviously they could get lucky and progress further but so could any team. In terms of overall quality, though, I'd still say the quarter finals are about where the US is at internationally - and that's assuming they don't end up in a particularly difficult group.