Damarcus Beasley - remember him? He was actually on the roster, though his career has nosedived since the '02 World Cup. I've dropped his name numerous times on this blog, so I won't rehash the usual drivel. Suffice to say, the kid needs to stay healthy and find a club that wants him. The best things about Beasley's game are speed and work-rate. Like Donovan, he'll track back on defense. It's precisely that commitment to defense that sparked Bob Bradley's decision to try Beasley as a left defender during qualifying. The experiment failed miserably. Beasley is a left midfielder. That's it. If he can somehow regain his '02 form, he may yet offer something to the team. Until then, the dude should find a club.
Ricardo Clark proved to be the scapegoat during this World Cup. It's quite a shame since he's a decent player. In the right situation, Clark provides strong defensive bite and a wicked long-range shot. It may seem trivial now, but Clark scored the crucial goal in the US's 1-0 win over T&T in Port of Spain. That away win practically clinched a World Cup spot for the yanks. Since that glorious goal, Clark moved from MLS to the Bundesliga (Eintracht Frankfurt) and apparently is well-liked at his new club. Which makes it all the more strange that Clark would lay a big, fat egg in the World Cup. If anything, Clark was a decent, reliable player during qualifying. Whether it was just a run of bad form or simply getting overmatched, Clark was terribly exposed against England and later against Ghana. Most American fans would prefer to never see the dude earn another cap. That's a bit harsh. He's earned his place on the squad, but it's clear he's not the best option when facing top-tier competition. Clark is only 27 and may improve, especially facing Bundesliga-level talent.
The better option at defensive mid is Maurice Edu. Edu moved from MLS to Rangers a few years ago. Like Beasley, his time at Rangers was marred by injury. He did, however, recover this season to earn a starting spot and score a goal against hated rival Celtic. When Edu was in the US's lineup this World Cup, the team settled down defensively. He simply was the better option. As both a defensive and offensive weapon, Edu offers a bit more than Clark. The poor guy was denied a glorious World Cup goal against Slovenia when that Malian referee inexplicably waived it off. At 24 years of age, Edu should be around the US nats for quite a long time.
The final midfielder on the roster was 22 year old Jose Torres. I waved the Torres flag proudly after the England match, and Bob Bradley responded by giving the young kid a rare start. I figured Torres' ability to hold the ball in traffic and his strong passing acumen would rejuvenate the US' offense. Torres' 45 minutes of action did not result in any goals, and the poor kid was partially responsible for Slovenia's opening tally. With the US down 2-0 at the half, Bradley benched him for the remainder of the World Cup. It was pretty harsh, in my opinion, but there's little denying that Maurice Edu (his replacement) fared significantly better. And Benny Feilhaber offered exactly what we'd expect from Torres except in much grander, impressive fashion. Still, Torres has a bright future. He's young and plays for a great squad in Mexico's top division (Pachuca).
(2014 Roster: Donovan, Dempsey, Bradley, Feilhaber, Edu, Holden. Alternates: Clark, Torres. While the US is relatively deep at midfield, there should still be at least two spots available for newcomers in the 2014 Cup.)
Defenders
Ugh. We knew the US was defensively weak entering this cup, and they lived up to that billing. Opposing teams had little difficulty finding seams in the defense, as they strangely gave up early goals in every game, save Algeria (though Algeria did manage to hit the crossbar in the fourth minute).
Bocanegra and Cherundolo will be 35 in 2014. That's a bit long-in-the-tooth, even for a defender. I sincerely hope that neither is on the roster, and that's not out of spite. The US desperately needs some new blood on the backline. Cherundolo had a wonderful Cup this time around, but will he be as speedy at age 35? Boca had decent moments but, in general, was overmatched. He may be the team leader, but the US would be better served with somebody else as center defender.
Oguchi Onyewu was once thought to be the long-term answer at the center of the defense, but his ruptured patella tendon derailed everything. He's still recovering from that injury. With massive competition looming at his club, Onyewu will do well to see ANY game action this upcoming season. He'll be 32 for the next World Cup. My hope is that he'll still be around, but my heart tells me this injury may take a permanent toll.
Jonathan Bornstein came on halfway through the Cup and provided some stability at left defense. He did not inspire confidence throughout qualifying, and it was great to see the youngster raise his game against the big boys. I'm still not sold on him as a long-term solution, but he will no doubt play a role for the next round of qualifying.
Jay Demerit played every minute of this World Cup. I hope he enjoyed it because it will likely be his last. He was a fair replacement for Onyewu, but the poor dude was caught out of position on almost every goal. He's a good bruiser but simply not quite talented enough at the highest level.
As for the subs, neither Jon Spector nor Clarence Goodson saw any action. Goodson is 28 but still somewhat new on the International scene. He's improving with each game and may factor into qualifying. Spector had a dreadful season at West Ham. Last year in the Confed Cup, he was the first choice right defender. He's obviously got chops, and, at 24, age is still on his side. The question for him is whether his horrible season was an aberration or a sign of things to come? The US team can use his talents. Let's hope he recovers.
(2014 roster: Onyewu. Alternates: Spector.)
Goalies
Only Howard saw action. He was hot and cold. Against England, he looked to be a world-beater. I figured he'd have a run of form like Brad Friedel in '02. It was not to be. He was beaten badly on both Slovenia's goals and then let two in against Ghana - one on the near-post. All those goals were great shots, of course, so Howard wasn't completely to blame. I was just hoping he'd bail the team out with world-class, jaw-dropping, Schmeichel-esque saves. It wasn't to be. With all that said, Howard is still, by far, the US's best option in goal and one of the best in the world. For the next Cup, Howard will be 35. Unlike field players, goalies can play deep into their 30s, so Howard may still be the best option. If not Howard, it will be...
Brad Guzan. This youngster (25) plays behind Brad Friedel at Aston Villa and rarely sees the pitch. '09-'10 was a forgettable season for that very reason. My guess is that Guzan will force a loan to a smaller club this season just so he can get some games. He's talented and hungry and likely the heir apparent to Timmay.
Marcus Hahnemann was the feel-good story on this roster. At age 38, most figured his international days to be over. Yet, he made his first-ever world cup roster this time around, thanks to a stellar season at Wolverhampton. Obviously, it's also his last world cup run, though he may figure into the qualifying rounds. He's still got the talent.
(2014 roster: Howard, Guzan)
So, according to my estimates, the US 2014 roster has some gaping holes at striker and defense, though the midfield and goalie spots are relatively secure. Incidentally, the two most notable young yanks to escape the grasp of the USSF - Guisseppi Rossi and Neven Subotic - are a striker and central defender, respectively. Despite American roots, Rossi opted to play for Italy, and Subotic for Serbia. Of course, both Stuart Holden and Jose Torres chose the US over other countries, so it wasn't a total loss.
If Donovan and Dempsey continue with their current form, I'd be less concerned with the offense than the defense. There has to be young American talent that can fill the defensive void. Anybody know a young Alexi Lalas?
Any post that references Schmeichel is ok by me.
ReplyDeleteIn general, how has the US Under-20 and Under-18 teams looked? Any help coming through the ranks?
I watched the last two youth World Cups - the U-20 a few years ago with Jozy Altidore and Freddy Adu and then the U-17 WC last summer. The top players, by far, for the U-20 WC were Jozy and Freddy. Adu is that rare specimen that excels at the youth level but can't parlay that success against grown men. He's got sublime skill. But he rarely sees the field, no matter what club he plays for.
ReplyDeleteI think it's a stretch to think that Freddy would ever be a major factor in the national team.
As for the U-17s, they weren't too impressive. I should add, though, that a slew of young American players are already signed with foreign clubs. It's quite a change from years past when Donovan's signing with Leverkusen was national news. The player pool for the next Olympics has about 50 kids with international ties:
http://www.bigsoccer.com/forum/showthread.php?s=053a2510feb4a78c4c239fef4152d069&t=1371350
It's quite surreal. I can't say I know much about this group. My guess is that they're at least comparable in talent to 2nd tier soccer countries.
I read an interesting article on Howard in "The Week". He doesn't like being a goalie. And yet, he's the best goalie the USMNT has. I don't blame him...I often wonder how players fall into or find their positions. (I guess Brandon Inge shows you can change mid-career and be mediocre at 2 positions at a professional level.) I wonder if thats true of all goalies.
ReplyDeleteInterestingly, in football, it used to be if you were black, they'd put you at running back or wide receiver. If you were white, quarterback. The racial divide at those positions was significant. Nowadays, folks are a shade more willing to look past race... but not that much.
ReplyDeleteSo, yeah, it is often interesting how a player ends up at his/her position. It's not always determined by talent.