The United States are… Brighton & Hove Albion
They pass. They press. They never score quite as much as they probably should.
They’re not one of the best teams, but they play enough like an elite team for stretches that it’s kind of cool to talk about how you admire their football.
Yup, the United States are Brighton.
Gregg Berhalter’s mission to “change the way the world views American soccer” has transformed a traditional counter-attacking underdog into a team on the rise thanks to a tactically flexible positional game. Sound familiar? The process has looked a lot like Brighton’s evolution under Graham Potter and now Roberto De Zerbi.
The US definitely aren’t afraid to dip into Jesse Marsch’s transition playbook (they’ve got Tyler Adams and Brenden Aaronson, after all), but their ideal form is as a well-coached passing side that makes up for its relative lack of talent with an adjustable possession structure that helps them win the ball back when they lose it.
Bald eagles are really just overgrown seagulls anyway, right?