Baffling Tactical Decision by Jurgen Klinsmann Puts USMNT into Early Hole in Hex

Jurgen Klinsmann did it again. 

On Friday night, the manager of the United States men's national team set his team up for failure at the start of their 2-1 defeat to Mexico, which was the first loss on home soil in World Cup qualifying in 15 years. 

Instead of aligning his starting XI in a formation that best suits the talent in his squad, Klinsmann opted for what he called a 3-4-3 formation with John Brooks, Matt Besler and Omar Gonzalez in the middle as well as Timothy Chandler and Fabian Johnson as wing-backs. 

Mexico exposed the poor formation from the start as the Yanks tried to adapt to playing in a system they've rarely used during the Klinsmann era, except for a quick experiment during camp in January 2015, when Jermaine Jones made a cameo in the middle of the defense. 

Before all the fans at Mapfre Stadium in Columbus, Ohio, were in their seats, Mexico boss Juan Carlos Osorio made a tactical adjustment to counteract the 3-4-3 formation the Yanks used. 

The 4-3-3 formation easily exploited Chandler and Gonzalez on the right side of the American defense. Jesus "Tecatito" Corona was the driving force for El Tri's attack during the opening phase of a match in which the Americans were scrambling for cover. 

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Chandler, who has had countless opportunities to prove his worth, was left chasing Tecatito and the rest of the Mexico attack for the majority of the first 30 minutes. The Americans' lack of speed caused by DeAndre Yedlin's absence on the pitch allowed Mexico to gain a dominant hold. 

In the buildup to Miguel Layun's 20th-minute opener, Chandler was a few yards behind the spot where Michael Bradley tussled for a 50-50 ball. With Bradley occupied in a challenge and the trio of centre-backs marking in and around the box, Layun took advantage of the space Chandler left open and blasted a shot past goalkeeper Tim Howard. 

It took until the 26th minute for the Yanks to shift out of the atrocious formation, and it only occurred after Bradley and Jones jogged over to Klinsmann on the touchline to voice their concerns. 

After the match, Klinsmann laid blame on his pair of experienced central midfielders, per Goal.com's Ives Galarcep: 

There's little doubt Klinsmann's tactical stubbornness would've allowed the 3-4-3 to remain intact until at least half-time if Bradley and Jones hadn't come over during an injury break to talk to their manager. 

This isn't the first time Klinsmann has been flat-out wrong with his alignments in big matches. All you have to do is look back to the Copa America Centenario semi-final against Argentina for the most recent example. 

For that match, Klinsmann started one of the most conservative starting lineups in his history as manager, and he was burned for it as the Yanks failed to create any semblance of attacking pressure for 90 minutes, while Lionel Messi and the rest of the Albiceleste attackers ran rampant in the final third. 

Using three at the back in the opening match of the Hexagonal round of CONCACAF World Cup qualifying is more criminal than starting Alejandro Bedoya in defensive midfield against Brazil. 

The Yanks were lucky to go into the locker room down a goal after two Mexico attempts rattled off the post during the first 45 minutes. 

Luckily, the USMNT came out on fire in their regular 4-4-2 in the second half and produced a tally out of it in the 49th minute by way of Bobby Wood. 

Jozy Altidore's hard work near midfield allowed Wood to cut inside with a tremendous run to level the contentious match at one goal apiece. 

Klinsmann's men threatened out of the 4-4-2 for most of the second half, with even the normally incompetent Chandler playing in a few dangerous crosses. But an extra jolt of energy in the form of a positive substitution didn't come from the USMNT boss until late in the second half. 

Klinsmann has thrived at making changes that have an immediate impact in his time as USMNT boss. However, his addition of Yedlin in the 74th minute and straight swap at left-back that brought on Michael Orozco for Matt Besler weren't enough to earn the Yanks a result. 

Yedlin entered the match too late. Had the Newcastle United man had 25-30 minutes on the pitch, he would've found a few holes in the Mexico defense, which to its credit, took 18-year-old Christian Pulisic out of the game with multiple defenders whenever he touched the ball. 

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Replacing Besler with Orozco in the 81st minute was maddening. With a difficult road match ahead against Costa Rica on Tuesday, the Americans couldn't afford to walk away with anything less than three points. 

Klinsmann's substitution kept Sacha Kljestan, Julian Green and bombarding forward Alan Gordon on the bench. Osorio's strategy was the opposite of Klinsmann's; he brought on Hirving Lozano in the 73rd minute in order to give his attack more of a pulse. 

As if Klinsmann's frustrating management wasn't enough to deal with, Mexico scored a late goal off Rafael Marquez's head. Marquez has played a role as the villain in the rivalry for more than a decade. 

The 89th-minute winner sent the entire stadium into shock, and it spelled trouble for the Yanks. Everyone knew the first two matches against Mexico and Costa Rica were going to be tough, but if the Americans lose at Estadio Nacional de Costa Rica, there's a real possibility they'll close out 2016 at the bottom of the Hex.

Tuesday's game in San Jose, Costa Rica, could be another defining one of the Klinsmann era. The USMNT boss needs to get a positive response out of his side in order to challenge for a result in Central America. Hopefully, he leaves the 3-4-3 behind on the way to the airport. 

There were some good things to come out of Friday. Wood and Altidore continued to build their chemistry, but Klinsmann has to find a way to get the forward pairing the ball on a consistent basis. 

That change will have to come from the wings, where Pulisic and Fabian Johnson played when the U.S. initially switched to the 4-4-2. Bradley and Jones will probably start on Tuesday, but Jones' recent comeback from injury may force Klinsmann into another important adjustment. Using Sacha Kljestan in order to create more opportunities on the ground through the middle of the pitch is the easy answer.

Fans and pundits alike will discuss the lineup decisions Klinsmann should make for Tuesday ad nauseam in the coming days, but after Friday, one thing is certain: Klinsmann failed his players and the national team program once again against a top-notch opponent.     

Joe Tansey covers U.S. Soccer for Bleacher Report. You can follow him on Twitter, @JTansey90.