At the end of a summer that’s been full of disappointment for fans of the U.S. men’s national team, the success of the men’s Olympic squad here has been a welcome change. At first, the notion that the U.S. had even qualified a men’s team was something to celebrate — the Americans last made an Olympics in 2008 — but now the goal is bigger.
With the U.S. in the City of Lights for a quarterfinal on Friday against Morocco, here are some questions (and answers!) to get you up to speed on how the U.S. is doing in this under-23 tournament, as well what it’s up against at the Parc des Princes.
1. What’s been the biggest takeaway from the U.S.’ group stage?
Olympic tournaments on the men’s side are always a bit of a guessing game, as the rosters — which can include three overage players per team — aren’t as well-defined as each country’s senior team. That said, U.S. coach Marko Mitrovic was clear from the start that he expected the Americans to be able to play against anyone — and so far, they have.
Tactically, they’ve shown different approaches depending on the situation and, for the most part, been able to follow through on what they’ve promised. In the tournament opener against France, they were compressed and composed, largely stalemating the hosts in front of a packed crowd for an hour before eventually wilting late. (Afterward, French coach Thierry Henry specifically praised Mitrovic for crafting a strong game plan.)
In the last two games, Mitrovic opened up the scheme far more and the players responded, creating a slew of high-quality chances and scoring seven goals to seal a place in the knockouts for the first time since 2000. That ability to adapt to the moment speaks to the quality of the players and the savvy of their manager.
