By: Colin Reese
Many American footballers have been called 2014 World Cup roster locks by various people, but really only 10 or possibly eleven are true locks.
Jürgen Klinsmann referred to Tim Howard, Jermaine Jones, Michael Bradley, Clint Dempsey, and Jozy Altidore as the “spine” of the United States Men’s National Team, but players such as Landon Donovan, Geoff Cameron, Brad Guzan, Fabian Johnson, and Aron Jóhannsson also have to be considered locks.
A few other players might end up being just too good to leave off the roster when the final decision comes around, but below are the USMNT roster locks for the 2014 World Cup:
GOALKEEPERS:
1. Tim HOWARD (Everton)
2. Brad GUZAN (Aston Villa)
MULTI-POSITIONAL PLAYERS:
3. Geoff CAMERON (Stoke City)
-Center Back, Defensive Midfielder, Right Back, Left Back
4. Fabian JOHNSON (Hoffenheim)
– Left Winger, Right Winger, Right Back, Left Back, Defensive Midfielder
CENTRAL MIDFIELDERS/DEFENSIVE MIDFIELDERS:
5. Michael BRADLEY (Toronto FC)
6. Jermaine JONES (Besiktas)
ATTACKING MIDFIELDERS:
7. Clint DEMPSEY (Seattle Sounders)
-Wide Attacking Midfielder, Second Striker
8. Landon DONOVAN (LA Galaxy)
-Wide Attacking Midfielder, Right Winger, Left Winger, Second Striker
STRIKERS:
9. Jozy ALTIDORE (Sunderland)
10. Aron JÓHANNSSON (AZ Alkmaar)
LIKELY SELECTIONS:
Juan AGUDELO (Utrecht)
-Striker
Terrence BOYD (Rapid Wien)
-Striker
Additional Note:
* In a recent FIFA article, FIFA implied that Jürgen Klinsmann, the United States Soccer Federation, and the American public and media didn’t value the skill-set of true Number 10s like Benny Feilhaber because of a perceived lack of work-rate, consistency, and two-way play, and FIFA even included both Benny Feilhaber and U.S. Soccer as official mentions in their tweet of the article.
http://www.fifa.com/worldcup/news/newsid=2278333/index.html