USMNT

The USMNT Best XI (November 2013)

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Joe Corona. (Photo: AP Photo)
Joe Corona. (Photo: AP Photo)

 

USMNT Best XI (November 2013)

World Soccer Source’s USMNT Best XI for November of 2013 is a 4-1-3-2 formation featuring Brad Guzan, DeAndre Yedlin or Andrew Farrell, Shane O’Neill, Geoff Cameron, Chris Klute, Michael Bradley, Joe Corona, Mix Diskerud, Clint Dempsey, Jozy Altidore, and Aron Jóhannsson.

 

GOALKEEPER: Brad GUZAN

Tim Howard excels at making point blank miracle saves, but he also stands on his goal-line even when the ball is floating in the air only six yards off his goal line. One should be cautious when criticizing goalkeepers because goalkeepers don’t have the luxury of having anyone behind them to make up for their mistakes. Tim Howard and Brad Guzan are probably equals, but Guzan just might be a version of Howard who has better instincts about when he needs to come off his goal line.

 

RIGHT BACK: DeAndre YEDLIN / Andrew FARRELL

For all of the deserved praise that DeAndre Yedlin has received, Andrew Farrell is a terrifying defender for any level of soccer. Not many American soccer players can be described as terrifying, but Farrell is a monster of an athlete who possesses a great technical skill-set and the willingness to storm forward with reckless abandon. Farrell is a better defender than Yedlin who himself has evolved into a strong tackler and a good marker. Yedlin and Farrell are both known for speed and technical ability, but Farrell is the right back who tackles like a freight train without the reckless and criminal butchery of Jermaine Jones. Farrell is really a center back, and playing him at center back some is something that the United States Men’s National Team needs to do. If the USMNT has Yedlin and Farrell, then Farrell’s speed, defending, size, and technical ability are greatly needed in the center of the defense, especially when Geoff Cameron is being used as a midfield destroyer partner for Michael Bradley’s box-to-box defensive midfielder role.

 

CENTER BACK: Shane O’NEILL

Shane O’Neill is better than Matt Besler, Omar Gonzalez, and Clarence Goodson. That’s not a widely held belief among American soccer fans and the American soccer media, but it is nevertheless the truth. The other three center backs have nothing close to the defensive fundamentals and athleticism as Shane O’Neill, and O’Neill is a tall player. To top it off, O’Neill is a better soccer player than Besler, Gonzalez, and Goodson, and O’Neill is a player of Cameron’s technical ability and agility.

 

CENTER BACK: Geoff CAMERON

All center backs are heavily criticized for any mistake, but Geoff Cameron along with Shane O’Neill is the best American center back. Cameron brings the ability to mark slippery attackers with his agility and speed, and Cameron is a towering defender whose control of the ball is normally seen in much shorter players. Too good not to start as a center back or a defensive midfielder, especially for the United States. With Jürgen Klinsmann’s inexplicable decision to not cap-tie John Anthony Brooks when he had the chance, Cameron and O’Neill are the best American center backs for now.

 

LEFT BACK: Chris KLUTE

Chris Klute is the only American left back of any consequence, but he is an excellent left back despite the dearth of competitors. Fabian Johnson has never shown the same ability to track back on defense, mark, or tackle like Klute. Klute has world-class speed, and his crossing and passing ability is much more refined than merely sending crosses in the general vicinity of his teammates in the penalty box. Klute crosses with soft chips with both feet, and he also plays harder crosses directly to the head or feet of his teammates. Klute has shown a strong ability to execute clean tackles from a sprint, but he has also proven an ability to mark and defend opponents who try to take him off the dribble from a standstill either through tricks, changes of pace, or by trying to lose him by twisting and turning around him.

 

DEFENSIVE MIDFIELDER: Michael BRADLEY

One defensive midfielder in the Starting XI is probably enough for the United States to succeed because it means that the USMNT Starting XI has five defensive field players and five attacking field players. By playing deep, Bradley can break up the passing of the opposition, collect the ball from the Back Four, and help to orchestrate the passing of the United States from the back of the midfield. With players like Yedlin or Farrell and Klute making overlapping runs and participating in the attack, Bradley covers for both outside backs and plugs the gap between the two center backs. There’s no law that says a national team has to use two defensive midfielder, and Cameron, O’Neill, and Bradley defending down the middle is an acceptable and sound tactical game plan. Bradley is a defensive midfielder, but he is also a technically-skilled and complete midfielder who is a key component of the United States’ passing and attacking play. Labels are often meaningless, but Bradley is a defensive midfielder who defends when needed and attacks when needed.

 

RIGHT ATTACKING MIDFIELDER: Joe CORONA

Joe Corona is likely a more creative attacking midfielder than Landon Donovan, and he is more equipped than Landon Donovan is to combine with Michael Bradley, Clint Dempsey, and Mix Diskerud to play final balls for Jozy Altidore and Aron Jóhannsson.

In short, the USMNT doesn’t need Donovan in the Starting XI to score goals if Clint Dempsey, Jozy Altidore, and Aron Jóhannsson are all starting.

Corona’s game is more based on one-to-two touch passing than Donovan’s, whose game is based on speed. Donovan is an excellent player, but Corona is a better passer and playmaker; Corona can also score.

 

CENTRAL ATTACKING MIDFIELDER: Mix DISKERUD

Jürgen Klinsmann used to not use true playmakers until very recently, but Diskerud has shown time and time again that he brings a level of effortless passing, technical grace, vision, and a surprising level of quickness: all of which the United States needs to get the most out of Michael Bradley, Joe Corona, Clint Dempsey, Jozy Altidore, and Aron Jóhannsson. Diskerud also knows how to score. It’s yet to be determined who the best American playmaker is, but Diskerud has certainly shown recently just how much the USMNT was missing a skilled playmaker. Tall, smooth, and creative, Diskerud is a player who connects Michael Bradley to the U.S.’ other attacking midfielders and forwards.

 

LEFT ATTACKING MIDFIELDER: Clint DEMPSEY

The best soccer player ever produced by the United States has been on the receiving end of the usual baseless criticism about trying to force too much and being selfish. Dempsey is still the most technically-skilled American soccer player who matches his skill with his intensity, toughness, and his desire to win. Dempsey is an automatic starter. Deuce Dempsey is the most elite and the most effective of all American soccer players.

 

STRIKER: Jozy ALTIDORE

Jozy Altidore has recently developed into a complete striker who has earned his starting spot. Having several skilled and athletic strikers is a good problem for the USMNT, but Altidore’s tremendous development over the past two seasons makes him a starter for the USMNT. Marking someone of Altidore’s skill, size, strength, and speed will be a problem for any defense. Furthermore, starting him alongside his ex-teammate, Aron Jóhannsson of AZ Alkmaar seems like a great idea for a national team that struggled to score goals for years. Nevertheless, Juan Agudelo is coming.

 

STRIKER: Aron JÓHANNSSON

Aron Jóhannsson, Jozy Altidore, Juan Agudelo, and Terrence Boyd are all way too good for the United States to only start one center forward. Jóhannsson’s play with AZ Alkmaar in Holland along with his play for the United States Men’s National Team whenever he has been used make him simply too good to not make room for in the Starting XI. In addition to a laundry list of goal highlights for AZ Alkmaar, Jóhannsson scored a ridiculously difficult golazo to beat Panama in the last game of World Cup qualifying, and he did it like it was nothing.

 

A Balanced USMNT World Cup Roster

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Joe Benny Corona. (Photo: MexSport)
Joe Benny Corona. (Photo: MexSport)

 

The United States Men’s National Team roster discussed in this article differs from the roster proposed in the recent article, “USMNT: 23 For Brazil (November 2013),” but the new roster proposed in this article is a product of this writer’s realization that World Soccer Source criticized Jürgen Klinsmann for not selecting balanced rosters.

World Soccer Source criticized Klinsmann for not selecting enough playmakers, attacking midfielders, outside backs, and center backs, but World Soccer Source was advocating for a midfield roster with too many playmakers, which eliminated enough room for the right amount of quality players of every position.

The new roster below contains three goalkeepers, four center backs, four outside backs, three defensive midfielders, a box-to-box midfidler (Joya), four attacking midfielders (including two playmakers), and four first strikers.

The United States Men’s National Team is at a point where there are more quality American soccer players with international-caliber abilities than ever before, and there isn’t room for all of them on the roster.

This realization makes any hypothetical discussion of who deserves to represent the United States in the 2014 World Cup or who the United States needs in the 2014 World Cup controversial and full of hard decisions.

Normally, any World Cup roster would consist of three goalkeepers, four center backs, four outside backs, four defensive midfielders (two of both varieties), four attacking midfielders, and four forwards.

In addition to this pro forma distribution of types of players, the issue of players who play more than one position arises, and the question of whether certain players should be classified as forwards or midfielders.

On top of this, a coach has to decide whether the forward spots should all be occupied by first strikers or whether some of the four forward spots should go to second strikers.

For any national team with more worthy players than roster spots, players that deserve to be on the roster are often undeservedly left off, and choosing one player over another almost feels like a coin toss.

Although Jürgen Klinsmann hasn’t used many of the players that World Soccer Source believes are some of the most talented American soccer players at their various positions, there are still a lot of indicators that many of the players that Klinsmann snubs are exactly the types of players that the United States will need in the World Cup.

Normally, World Soccer Source would make space for Freddy Adu and Benny Feilhaber because this writer believes that these two players bring special playmaking, technical, and passing qualities that Michael Bradley, Clint Dempsey, Landon Donovan, and Jozy Altidore need to perform their best.

With the arrival of Joe Benny Corona and Mix Diskerud, the United States Men’s National Team has too very talented playmakers that bring similar passing qualities, that can also both score, and that have a degree of speed and quickness to allow them to keep up with fast-paced international soccer.

If Corona and Diskerud are on the roster, then one of the priorities changes from including legitimate playmakers to making sure the USMNT is deep enough at every position. If Feilhaber, Adu, Corona, Diskerud, and Feilhaber are all included, then there isn’t enough roster spots for the other types of players that are needed.

Looking at the midfield, the United States can use certain center backs like Geoff Cameron, Shane O’Neill, or Amobi Okugo as back ups for defensive midfielders like Michael Bradley or Jermaine Jones (if he’s not too much of a card liability), but a real roster shouldn’t depend on arguably the first choice center backs as back ups for Bradley.

Therefore, an eight-man midfield roster still requires three to four defensive midfielders, which makes it impossible to fit in all of the attacking midfielders that World Soccer Source rates highly.

Nevertheless, it’s more important that Corona and Diskerud take Graham Zusi’s and Brad Davis’ roster spots than it is that Corona, Diskerud, Feilhaber, and Adu are all on the roster; this takes priority.

The wise decision is to select four defensive midfielders and four attacking midfielders, and a new midfielder like Benji Joya has shown that he can play as a box-to-box midfielder, a playmaker, or an outside midfielder with the freedom to roam and cut inside.

Despite Joya’s youth and lack of significant minutes for Santos Laguna, Tab Ramos’ comments about him, in addition to how well he played against Paul Pogba, should carry a lot of weight.

If Bradley, Joya, Dempsey, Donovan, Corona, and Diskerud are on the World Cup roster, then the final two positions need to go to defensive midfielders, and the likely suspects are Amobi Okugo, Perry Kitchen, and Jared Jeffrey who are all more equipped to keep up with the pace of the international game than Kyle Beckerman.

Frankly, Kyle Beckerman should not be anywhere near the World Cup roster because he can’t track and mark fast and skilled international attackers and midfielders, and this should automatically rule him out of a World Cup roster spot.

While soccer is a game where technical ability is more important than athleticism, a baseline of athleticism is needed to even compete at the upper levels of international soccer, and Beckerman doesn’t have it.

So, who should Jürgen Klinsmann select to be the defensive midfielders besides Michael Bradley?

Jermaine Jones is a logical choice because of his playing resume, his technical ability, his defending, and his athleticism and physique, but Jones really is a card machine. Jones is a dirty tackler, and he also refuses to cooperate with Bradley in a two-man defensive midfield where one player covers for the other when the latter storms forward with the attack.

While Jones and Bradley could simply agree to not go forward at the same time, Geoff Cameron showed that he was much more willing to sit back deeper to cover for Bradley. Therefore, any system based on using Jones and Bradley at the same time is destined to leave a big hole right in from of the U.S.’ Back Four, which first and second tier national teams will exploit.

The United States can simply not tolerate leaving the center backs to have to back pedal with no defensive coverage from defensive midfielders in front of them as opponents attack them with combination play, through balls, and individual dribbling runs.

If Jones is unable to partner with Bradley, then perhaps Jones still deserves a roster spot as a substitute for Bradley, but the cards are still a major problem for Jones. The United States can’t be in the situation where Bradley is injured or suspended and Jones receives a red card or becomes suspended due to yellow card accumulation.

Klinsmann should consider other defensive midfielders such as Jared Jeffrey, Perry Kitchen, and Amobi Okugo to be on the roster with Bradley.

Which one or two of these defensive midfielders can play better with players like Bradley, Dempsey, and Donovan?

Who knows?

The friendlies and January camp before the 2014 World Cup need to answer that question.

Whichever defensive midfielders Klinsmann selects besides Bradley (if Klinsmann is even willing to accept that Beckerman is simply too slow), the roster needs three defensive midfielders, Benji Joya, and four attacking midfielders.

Selecting Diskerud, Corona, Joya, and two new defensive midfielders is something that the USMNT needs to do.

Turning to Klinsmann’s selections in the defense, there has been a tendency to not select eight defenders, and there has been a disturbing tendency to basically never select at least three to four natural outside backs.

Klinsmann has been selecting Brad Evans and DaMarcus Beasley as outside backs, and while Evans has proven that he has the technical ability and the athleticism to play at the international level as a central midfielder, using him as a right back can’t be the U.S.’ best option.

Therefore, Klinsmann needs four center backs and four outside backs who are naturally suited to play those positions and who have the requisite tools and physical gifts to play those position against strong international competition.

World Soccer Source has always contended that Klinsmann’s selections in the defense are not as good as they could be, and any real improvement to the Back Four will require using a better Back Four than Brad Evans, Omar Gonzalez, Matt Besler, and DaMarcus Beasley.

Using DeAndre Yedlin, Geoff Cameron, John Anthony Brooks, and Chris Klute would be a better defensive back four in terms of defending, technical ability, and athleticism. With those four defenders as starters, the roster still needs two more outside backs and two more center backs.

This writer contends that Shane O’Neill and Gale Agbossoumonde are better center backs than Omar Gonzalez and Matt Besler, and this writer also contends that Andrew Farrell and Kofi Sarkodie are better outside backs than Brad Evans and DaMarcus Beasley.

As far as playing World Cup competition goes, Evans, Gonzalez, Besler, and Beasley can hardly be described as experienced defenders against that level of competition. Using that Back Four is itself a gamble against top national teams, and it’s a bigger gamble than letting the inexperienced but better new defenders start.

As for the forwards, Jozy Altidore, Aron Jóhannsson, Juan Agudelo, and Terrence Boyd are the best four according to this writer, and all four of those strikers can score against even the best national teams.

The qualities that all four of those strikers possess make it a priority to include them all on the World Cup roster, and they deserve to have midfielders who can provide them with the quality service that they need to not be stranded up top without seeing many touches on the ball.

Below is a 23-man USMNT World Cup roster proposal, which has the correct amount of players of every position:

GOALKEEPERS: Tim HOWARD, Brad GUZAN, Clint IRWIN

CENTER BACKS: Geoff CAMERON, John Anthony BROOKS, Shane O’NEILL, Gale AGBOSSOUMONDE

OUTSIDE BACKS: Chris KLUTE, DeAndre YEDLIN, Andrew FARRELL, Kofi SARKODIE

DEFENSIVE MIDFIELDERS: Michael BRADLEY, Amobi OKUGO, Jared JEFFREY

ATTACKING MIDFIELDERS: Clint DEMPSEY, Landon DONOVAN, Joe Benny CORONA, Mix DISKERUD, Benji JOYA

STRIKERS: Jozy ALTIDORE, Aron JÓHANNSSON, Juan AGUDELO, Terrence BOYD

*SNUBS: Benny FEILHABER, Freddy ADU, Fabian JOHNSON, Jermaine JONES, Matt BESLER, Eddie JOHNSON, Omar GONZALEZ, Michael OROZCO, Jonathan SPECTOR, Eric LICHAJ, Timothy CHANDLER, Herculez GOMEZ, Maurice EDU.

 

World Soccer Source’s Preferred USMNT Starting XI:

Guzan; Yedlin, O’Neill, Cameron, Klute; Bradley, Joya; Donovan, Corona/Diskerud, Dempsey; Altidore.

 

Selected Highlights of Various Players on World Soccer Source’s Roster:

 

 

How to Make the USMNT Truly Competitive

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Clint Dempsey. (AP Photo/Ted S. Warren)
Clint Dempsey. (AP Photo/Ted S. Warren)

 

It’s no secret that players such as Neymar, Lionel Messi, Mario Balotelli, Andres Iniesta, Thiago Silva, Marcelo, Philipp Lahm, David Luiz, Paulinho, Thomas Müller, Ramires, and Arturo Vidal are going to be the types of players that the United States Men’s National Team will have to compete against in the 2014 World Cup.

With this in mind, Jürgen Klinsmann needs to only select players for the United States’ World Cup roster who have the tools needed to be competitive against players of that level.

For the most part, Klinsmann has been using many of the players who can play at the necessary level at the 2014 World Cup, but he hasn’t been starting them together. For example, Klinsmann has recently been using Mix Diskerud more and more as a playmaker, which was a needed shakeup to his line-ups, but due to some recent injuries, he hasn’t started Diskerud with Michael Bradley, Jermaine Jones, Landon Donovan, Clint Dempsey, and Jozy Altidore yet.

Since Klinsmann is finally beginning to trust a playmaker like Diskerud more, the following Front Six would be the first step in closing the gap with top national teams: 

Jones, Bradley; Donovan, Diskerud, Dempsey; Altidore.

While Klinsmann has plenty of time to also use Joe Corona in the central attacking midfielder role, starting the Front Six listed above offers the USMNT two defensive midfielders who have the skill, athleticism, and pedigree to break up the possession of the opposition and play a major role in facility quality passing and ball movement from the back of the midfield.

Furthermore, using Donovan and Dempsey out wide where they have the freedom to roam around where they see fit allows a playmaker like Diskerud quality attacking players with whom he can combine and to whom he can look to play final balls.

Given Jozy Altidore’s improved technical ability, scoring ability, and overall movement off the ball over time, the United States has a real weapon at the first striker position that can not only score but also draw defenders away from Donovan and Dempsey. With Diskerud deployed as a playmaker, the United States has a more potent attack that has four players who can cause problems for even elite national teams.

The United States still isn’t as good as Brazil, Germany, Spain, Italy, and the like, but a Front Six made up of Jones, Bradley, Donovan, Diskerud, Dempsey, and Altidore is a balanced and talented Front Six that no national team would dismiss lightly.

For the time being, that Front Six is at the very least a legitimate group of players who are all capable of playing one-to-two touch soccer against first and second tier national teams. The next thing to consider is the American Back Four.

While Omar Gonzalez and Matt Besler have done well in World Cup qualifying, one has to be realistic and concede that center backs like Geoff Cameron and John Anthony Brooks are more equipped to deal with better attackers. Cameron and Brooks give the USMNT a center back pairing where both center backs are not only quick, tall, and strong but both are also technical players who have the defensive instincts and fundamentals to fair better against World Cup attackers.

Brooks is a 20 year old starting Bundesliga center back who has been named to the Bundesliga Team of the Week multiple times, and Cameron is a smooth and graceful player with the technical ability of a midfielder who also brings aggressive and elegant defending.

Besler and Gonzalez are certainly talented center backs, but Cameron and Brooks are not only good defenders but they are soccer players who are quite frankly much closer to Bradley, Jones, Donovan, Diskerud, Dempsey, and Altidore in terms of skill-level.

If the goal is to field 10 field players who are all comfortable with the ball at their feet, then Cameron and Brooks bring this along with their defensive skills to the center of the USMNT’s defense.

The final step to fielding a strong Starting XI is to swap out Brad Evans and DaMarcus Beasley with DeAndre Yedlin and Chris Klute. After almost an entire Major League Soccer season, it’s quite clear that the skill, speed, and defending that Yedlin and Klute are displaying as right and left backs are the types of qualities that the United States will need in the World Cup.

Yedlin used to be thought of as more of an attacking threat than as a quality defender, but over time the quality of his defending has begun to match the quality of his passing and dribbling out of the back. Recently, his defending against the LA Galaxy showed how much he had improved his ability to tackle, dispossess, and mark fast, quick, and skilled attackers.

Klinsmann needs to accept the need for Yedlin or Farrell at right back with Klute as a left back as a change that needs to be made to field a Starting XI where all 10 field players not only excel at their natural positions but where all 10 aren’t weak links from a technical standpoint.

Beating top teams and going deep in the 2014 World Cup will require fielding a Starting XI where all of the players are capable of passing the ball well and not turning over possession too often.

Brazil and company will be better than the United States, but starting Howard, Yedlin or Farrell, Cameron, Brooks, Klute, Jones, Bradley, Donovan, Diskerud, Dempsey, and Altidore is an upgrade in skill and athletic ability to the line-ups that Klinsmann has been fielding, and none of these players are players who haven’t seen heavy minutes at the club level and proven that they have the tools and gifts needed to perform at the international level.

In addition to the starters just listed, the United States will also need 12 substitutes who are able to compete against top competition as well, and this will require selecting several skilled players who didn’t play a major role or any role in World Cup qualifying such as Benny Feilhaber, Joe Corona, Shane O’Neill, Andrew Farrell, Benji Joya, Juan Agudelo, Aron Jóhannsson, and Terrence Boyd.

The need for all of these players is just a reality that American soccer fans and the American soccer media will have to accept, but more importantly, Jürgen Klinsmann will have to accept it and learn to listen to Tab Ramos’ recommendations more.

 

8 USMNT Midfielders For the World Cup

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Clint Dempsey (right) and Freddy Adu (left). (Photo: MexSport)
Clint Dempsey (right) and Freddy Adu (left). (Photo: MexSport)

 

When the 2014 World Cup rolls around, Jürgen Klinsmann and the United States Men’s National Team will need to select more talented midfielders like Mix Diskerud, Joe Corona, Benny Feilhaber, Benji Joya, and Freddy Adu over lower-level players like Graham Zusi, Sacha Kljestan, Brad Davis, and Kyle Beckerman.

An attacking midfielder such as Alejandro Bedoya plays at a level well-above that of Zusi, Kljestan, Davis, and Beckerman, but Bedoya still falls short of Feilhaber, Diskerud, Joya, Adu, and Corona because Bedoya’s game is restricted to receiving the ball out wide and immediately looking to cut inside.

On the other hand, Corona, Diskerud, Joya, and Adu are less one-dimensional players that constantly look to pass and move wherever the game takes them instead of just always looking to cut inside with their heads down.

Combining Seasoned Veterans with Newer Talent

Assuming Klinsmann selects Clint Dempsey, Landon Donovan, Michael Bradley, and Jermaine Jones, there is room for four or five of the players listed above as more talented midfielders than other American options.

Narrowing down the list of midfielders to eight or nine will be a difficult task, especially if the United States selects four first strikers and eight defenders.

Part of the solution would be to list Geoff Cameron as a defender, which would mean that even if Cameron was listed as a defender, then the United States Men’s National Team would still have three defensive midfielders: Michael Bradley, Jermaine Jones, and Geoff Cameron.

If Shane O’Neill were to be included on the World Cup roster as a defender, then the United States would really have four defensive midfielders available on the roster.

Skill and Proven-Ability Over Club Form

The United States doesn’t enjoy the luxury of calling up a revolving door of international-caliber midfielders based on current club form, so the United States needs to place a premium on selecting its most talented midfielders at all costs, regardless of fluctuations in playing time at the club level.

Klinsmann would be wise to make sure to include gifted attacking midfielders and playmakers such as Corona, Diskerud, and Feilhaber on the roster to be available to play with Dempsey, Donovan, Bradley, and Jones. Despite their skill-level, Joya and Adu would be less likely to make the roster because Klinsmann has shown less interest in them than he has shown in Diskerud, Corona, and to a lesser extent, Feilhaber.

A Baseline of Excellent Talent

From a practical standpoint, selecting Bradley, Jones, Joya, Dempsey, Donovan, Feilhaber, Diskerud, and Corona would at the very least ensure that every midfielder on the roster had the technical ability, playing style, and physical gifts to keep up with the faster speed of play at the World Cup.

Certainly, starting a Front Six made up of Bradley, Jones, Donovan, Feilhaber, Dempsey, and Altidore would leave little doubt that the United States had players that were equipped and proven at the international level against quality national teams, and starting Feilhaber might prevent both Jones and Bradley from making attacking forays at the same time. In short, having Feilhaber as a passing outlet discourages Jones from feeling the need to constantly storm downfield with dribbling forays or runs off the ball.

These five midfielders plus Altidore as a striker guarantee that the United States is at least using players who can play one-to-two touch soccer against top national teams, and this is a superior strategy than using somewhat pedestrian players like Zusi against real competition, even if Zusi is a two-footed and fundamentally-sound player who excels at crossing the ball.

A close examination of the skill-level, playing style, and athletic ability of players like Feilhaber, Diskerud, and Corona quite clearly shows a far superior ability to play at the level and style of Bradley, Jones, Dempsey, and Donovan compared to Zusi, Bedoya, Kljestan, and Davis.

The Freddy Adu Dilemma

For all of the criticism and mockery that Freddy Adu has received from most of the American soccer media and the American fan base, no one has ever disproven the fact that Adu can compete against any level of competition and bring a level of playmaking and 1v1 abilities that exceed almost every player in the American pool.

Despite his carousel of clubs and coaches at almost all of his clubs, Adu has generally displayed a superior ability to excel against elite players compared to many of the ex-U.S. internationals who mock him. Many of the ex-U.S. internationals can laugh at Adu, but the skill-level that he has displayed against Brazil, Spain, Argentina, and Mexico in particular far exceeds what all of the ex-player critics were able to show; players with poor technical-ability don’t sign with Benfica.

Critics like to scoff at Adu, but the playmaker has always shown that that he can break down elite competition and disrupt the defensive shape of strong national teams more so than almost every American soccer player.

Making room for Adu on a 23-man World Cup roster isn’t a bad idea, even if it is an unpopular one. Even Jozy Altidore once told Jimmy Conrad in an interview for KICK TV that Adu was the most talented player with whom he had ever played.

Benji Joya’s Unique Skill-Set and Playing Style

Turning to Joya, Stuart Holden has always been highly-regarded for his ability to bring excellent technical and passing ability to the American midfield combined with defensive coverage and tackling, but with Holden suffering injury after injury, Benji Joya is the player that brings the same package of skills.

Formation Versatility

The midfielders discussed in this article give the United States Men’s National Team and Jürgen Klinsmann lots of starting line-up and formation options. All of the playmakers listed can start on either side of the field in addition to starting as central attacking midfielders, so this gives the United States the ability to use different combinations of these players with Dempsey, Donovan, Bradley, Cameron, and Jones.

Whether the United States starts one defensive midfielder or two, players like Corona, Diskerud, and Feilhaber can be deployed out wide if Dempsey or Donovan are started as second strikers, and all of these players are versatile and dynamic enough to not allow themselves to be isolated and shut out of games by being pinned to the sideline.

The Possibility of Injuries to Key Midfielders

One real possibility that needs to be taking seriously is that there could be a time when both Donovan and Dempsey were either suspended or injured, and having Feilhaber, Diskerud, and Corona on the roster gives Bradley and Jones players who can play quick passing soccer on their level.

Furthermore, Bradley, Donovan, and Dempsey could all be unable to play at some point in the World Cup, and having Cameron, Jones, Joya, Corona, Diskerud, and Feilhaber on the roster gives the United States viable replacements that won’t be overrun by World Cup competition.

Looking ahead toward the 2014 World Cup, this writer would select the following group of eight midfielders to represent the United States (and find a way to fit Freddy Adu onto the roster):

Michael BRADLEY, Jermaine JONES, Benji JOYA, Clint DEMPSEY, Landon DONOVAN, Benny FEILHABER, Joe Benny CORONA, Mix DISKERUD

*Geoff CAMERON and Shane O’NEILL, listed as defenders, also excel at the defensive midfielder position, so this list of midfielders doesn’t overlook the need for more than two defensive midfielders on a roster.

 

USMNT: 23 For Brazil (November 2013)

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Clint Dempsey (left) and Jozy Altidore (right). (Photo: AP)
Clint Dempsey (left) and Jozy Altidore (right). (Photo: AP)

 

As with other United States Men’s National Team roster proposals for the World Cup that this writer has made, this month’s addition of “USMNT: 23 For Brazil” is based on using newer and more talented American players as opposed to many of Jürgen Klinsmann’s preferences.

The United States qualified for the 2014 World Cup in first place in CONCACAF under Klinsmann’s watch, but many of the American players used to qualify out of CONCACAF have shown difficulty in keeping up with the speed of play against better national teams from outside of CONCACAF, whereas players like Benji Joya and Shane O’Neill have faced off against Paul Pogba in the U-20 World Cup and done very well.

This writer considers the play of those two players against France and others as proof of an ability to excel against higher-caliber international competition. The USMNT and Klinsmann received a lot of praise for the performance of the United States in World Cup qualifying, but the quality of play on display still falls well below the general quality of play that will be present during the World Cup, which will showcase teams who play quick-passing soccer characterized by advanced technical-ability and excellent athleticism.

Therefore, World Soccer Source disagrees with the general consensus of the American soccer media that Klinsmann is using his best players and fielding the players who can play high-quality soccer that’s good enough to defeat first and second tier national teams in the 2014 World Cup.

Many of the players on World Soccer Source’s list are considered inexperienced and unproven by many American soccer writers, pundits, and fans, but the United States will need the players with the tools to compete against World Cup competition, even if many of these players are inexperienced.

Below is World Soccer Source’s USMNT World Cup roster proposal as of November 2013:

GOALKEEPERS (3): Tim HOWARD (Everton), Brad GUZAN (Aston Villa), Nick RIMANDO (Real Salt Lake)

DEFENDERS (7): John Anthony BROOKS (Hertha Berlin), Shane O’NEILL (Colorado Rapids), Gale AGBOSSOUMONDE (Toronto FC), Andrew FARRELL (New England Revolution), Chris KLUTE (Colorado Rapids), DeAndre YEDLIN (Seattle Sounders), Kellyn ACOSTA (FC Dallas)

MIDFIELDERS (9): Michael BRADLEY (Roma), Geoff CAMERON (Stoke City)*, Jermaine JONES (Schalke), Benji JOYA (Santos Laguna), Clint DEMPSEY (Seattle Sounders), Benny FEILHABER (Sporting Kansas City), Joe CORONA (Tijuana), Mix DISKERUD (Rosenborg), Freddy ADU (E.C. Bahia)

STRIKERS (4): Jozy ALTIDORE (Sunderland), Aron JÓHANNSSON (AZ Alkmaar), Juan AGUDELO (New England Revolution/Stoke City), Terrence BOYD (Rapid Wien)

Roster Rationale and Notes:

-Despite the abundance of young and internationally-inexperienced players that give the impression of an experimental and unproven roster, this roster contains the core group of American players who are the backbone of the United States Men’s National Team plus new proven players: Tim Howard, Geoff Cameron, John Anthony Brooks, Michael Bradley, Jermaine Jones, Clint Dempsey, Jozy Altidore, and Aron Jóhannsson.

-This roster also contains Benny Feilhaber, an under 30 and proven World Cup and Confederations Cup playmaker.

-With this group of players, Jürgen Klinsmann could start Howard, Cameron, Brooks, Bradley, Jones, Dempsey, Feilhaber, Altidore, and Jóhannsson, which leaves only the outside back spots as positions with internationally inexperienced starters.

-Given Klinsmann’s reliance on Brad Evans and DaMarcus Beasley as his outside backs, using two new, talented, and athletic outside backs is a necessary risk, if one wishes to call it that. Evans and Beasley have done well in World Cup qualifying, but this writer questions the prudence of banking on Evans and Beasley to either have the speed in Evans’ case or the defensive tools to mark the types of attackers who will be playing in the World Cup.

-Shane O’Neill, Geoff Cameron, and Andrew Farrell can all play as center backs, outside backs, or as defensive midfielders, so while this roster only has seven players listed as defenders, Geoff Cameron is a center back or defensive midfielder who is listed as a midfielder on this roster.

-Chris Klute, DeAndre Yedlin, Kellyn Acosta, and Andrew Farrell can play both right back and left back, which gives the United States Men’s National Team four outside backs who can play on either side of the defense.

-Benji Joya gives the United States a complete midfielder who offers excellent creativity, passing ability, and technical play with better defense than Clint Dempsey, Benny Feilhaber, Mix Diskerud, Joe Corona, and Freddy Adu can provide. Michael Bradley is often called a box-to-box midfielder, but Joya brings a stronger attacking element than Bradley provides, which allows Bradley to play his natural position deeper in the midfield.

-Benny Feilhaber, Joe Corona, Mix Diskerud, and Freddy Adu give the roster attacking midfielders who are also true playmakers, and all four players can play in the center, out right, or out left as attacking midfielders.

-Gale Agbossoumonde has seen less playing time in MLS this season than Shane O’Neill, but Agbossoumonde is another center back who brings quality tackling and 1v1 marking, size, strength, speed, agility, good positional sense, calmness on the ball, and smooth technical ability to the center of the defense. Agbossoumonde is inexperienced at the international level, but the United States needs him on the roster for the World Cup. Is it risky? Maybe, but so is using Omar Gonzalez, Clarence Goodson, and Matt Besler against elite attackers.

-This writer made including Freddy Adu on the roster a priority due to Adu’s ability to break down opposing defenses and put opposing players on their heels. Adu is a very skilled playmaker that the United States would be wise to include on its roster if only for the sole purpose of having a game-changer if a must-win game was looking like defeat was inevitable. One pass or one play could be the difference between being knocked out of the World Cup or living to fight another day.

-The roster contains an appropriate balance of all of the types of players needed on a World Cup roster, and several of them play more than one position. A close examination of the roster will show that every position is several players deep.

–With this group of players, Klinsmann could start the following Starting XI in the first game of the 2014 World Cup:

Howard; Yedlin/Farrell, Cameron/O’Neill, Brooks, Klute; Jones/O’Neill/Cameron, Bradley; Corona, Feilhaber, Dempsey; Altidore/Jóhannsson.

 

The Best American Soccer Players (November 2013)

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Landon Donovan (10) and Clint Dempsey (8). (Photo: MexSport)
Landon Donovan (10) and Clint Dempsey (8). (Photo: MexSport)

 

The following American soccer players are ranked subjectively. If a player is ranked higher than another player, then the higher ranked player isn’t necessary a better player skill-wise.

Given the difficulty of ranking players who play different positions and given the difficulty of ranking younger players who don’t have as much experience as older or more experienced players, ranking the best American soccer players with any sort of scientific system is impossible to do.

Soccer is a sport where a single play can showcase the superiority of one player over another, and soccer is also a sport where just one excellent touch on the ball can separate one player from another.

Some players like Freddy Adu get no minutes on the club level, but any time they have put on the United States jersey they have shown how their skill-level and ability to perform well and compete against quality international competition is well-above most of the players in the American player pool.

Currently, there has been an influx of better American soccer players who are younger and less-experienced than many of the players who are highly-regarded Major League Soccer players or regulars on Jürgen Klinsmann’s United States Men’s National Team.

Nevertheless, new players like Shane O’Neill, Benji Joya, Chris Klute, DeAndre Yedlin, and Andrew Farrell have displayed superior skill to many of the players that the American soccer media rates higher due to Jürgen Klinsmann’s use of them in World Cup qualifiers.

In short, the new crop of younger internationally-inexperienced American soccer players are better than most of the players in the American player pool with the exception of players such as Clint Dempsey, Giuseppe Rossi, Michael Bradley, Landon Donovan, Geoff Cameron, Tim Howard, Brad Guzan, and Benny Feilhaber.

 

The Best American Soccer Players (November 2013)

1. Clint DEMPSEY* (Seattle Sounders)

2. Giuseppe ROSSI (Fiorentina)

3. Michael BRADLEY* (Roma)

4. Jozy ALTIDORE* (Sunderland) 

5. Landon DONOVAN (LA Galaxy)

 

6. Aron JÓHANNSSON* (AZ Alkmaar)

7. Benny FEILHABER* (Sporting Kansas City)

8. Mix DISKERUD* (Rosenborg)

9. Joe Benny CORONA* (Tijuana)

10. Freddy ADU* (E.C. Bahia)

 

11. Benji JOYA* (Santos Laguna)

12. Geoff CAMERON* (Stoke City)

13. Jermaine JONES (Schalke)

14. Fabian JOHNSON (Hoffenheim)

15. Brad GUZAN* (Aston Villa)

 

16. Tim HOWARD* (Everton)

17. Juan AGUDELO* (New England Revolution/Stoke City)

18. Terrence BOYD* (Rapid Wien)

19. Julian GREEN (Bayern Munich II)

20. Paul ARRIOLA (Tijuana)

 

21. Mario RODRIGUEZ (Borussia Mönchengladbach U-23)

22. Alonso HERNANDEZ (Monterrey)

23. José VILLARREAL (LA Galaxy)

24. Shane O’NEILL* (Colorado Rapids)

25. John Anthony BROOKS* (Hertha Berlin)

 

26. Herculez GOMEZ (Tijuana)

27. Eddie JOHNSON (Seattle Sounders)

28. DeAndre YEDLIN* (Seattle Sounders)

28. Chris KLUTE* (Colorado Rapids)

28. Andrew FARRELL* (New England Revolution)

 

31. Junior FLORES (Borussia Dortmund)

32. Gyasi ZARDES (LA Galaxy)

33. Jared JEFFREY* (DC United)

34. Dax McCARTY (New York Red Bulls)

35. Jonathan SPECTOR (Birmingham City)

 

36. Gale AGBOSSOUMONDE (Toronto FC)

37. Michael OROZCO (Puebla)

38. Kellyn ACOSTA* (FC Dallas)

39. Kofi SARKODIE* (Houston Dynamo)

40. Perry KITCHEN* (DC United)

* An asterisk indicates players that the United States should try its best to fit onto the 2014 World Cup roster.

 

Four USMNT Strikers For the World Cup

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Terrence Boyd. (Photo: MexSport)
Terrence Boyd. (Photo: MexSport)

Jürgen Klinsmann and the United States Men’s National Team have four complete first strikers going into the 2014 World Cup.

Jozy Altidore is the number one striker option right now, but Aron Jóhannsson is equally as skilled from a technical standpoint, if not more so. Additionally, Juan Agudelo and Terrence Boyd are very technically-gifted, fast, tall, and aggressive first strikers who are ready to face high-caliber international competition at the World Cup.

While Eddie Johnson and Herculez Gomez are quality options who are also international-quality strikers, Altidore, Jóhannsson, Agudelo, and Boyd are the best four American first strikers according to World Soccer Source.

The competition at the World Cup is daunting. Teams like Brazil, Spain, Italy, Germany, Colombia, Chile, Argentina, France (if they qualify), and others are stocked full of world-class players, but the United States can take comfort in the fact that Altidore, Jóhannsson, Agudelo, and Boyd are capable first strikers who can score on elite national teams. Every one of those American strikers is technically-advanced and fast, and every one stands above 6 feet.

The Best USMNT XI has yet to be determined, but taking the four strikers listed above to the World Cup gives the United States the firepower to score, if those strikers receive quality service and final balls.

Four USMNT Strikers for the 2o14 World Cup in Brazil:

Jozy ALTIDORE (Sunderland)

Jozy Altidore is a beast of a first striker who has cultivated a more polished set of technical skills inside of a strong, tall, and athletic physique. Altidore brings two-footed skill, size, speed, and a growing ability to do real damage against better opponents.

Aron JÓHANNSSON (AZ Alkmaar)

Aron Jóhannsson is a textbook for footwork, touch, ball striking techniques, finishing, and movement off the ball. Quick, fast, and aggressive in his pursuit of the back of the net, Jóhannsson is a clinical striker who plays with elegance and imagination.

Juan AGUDELO (New England Revolution/Stoke City)

Of all the American strikers, Juan Agudelo is the most inventive risk taker who doesn’t hesitate to attempt to outfox and best defenders and goalkeepers. The United States cannot leave a striker with his invention and technical ability off the World Cup roster, especially given the fact that he also brings excellent speed and strength inside of a 6’2” frame. Agudelo is known for his creativity and refined technical-ability, but Agudelo is a big and athletic striker who will make World Cup defenders expend a ton of energy containing and marking him. Agudelo is a gifted goal-scorer who doesn’t need any extra motivation to aggressively attack the goal with skill, and Agudelo looks to create space for himself to score, which helps to open up games that have stalemated.

Terrence BOYD (Rapid Wien)

Of all the American strikers, Terrence Boyd is the most aggressive of the bunch, and he plays with no respect for his opponents. Agudelo and Jóhannsson may or may not be more technically-skilled than Boyd, but Boyd is a very technically-skilled striker who is the tallest and fastest of the bunch. Boyd plays with real fire, and the United States will need a complete striker like Boyd if it wants to have strikers who can really compete against top national teams and score on them. Boyd has everything: skill with both feet and his head, good finishing, speed, quickness, a tall frame, and excellent movement off the ball.

Outlook:

When the 2014 World Cup rolls around, Jürgen Klinsmann and the USMNT would be wise to put Altidore, Jóhannsson, Agudelo, and Boyd on the roster as the four strikers. Other names have been tossed around in the American media as the best American strikers, but all four of the strikers listed above are complete strikers who can score against even the best national teams. While none of these strikers is an unstoppable goal machine, each of them is unfazed by elite defenders for the most part.

Other American Strikers to Watch:

Mario RODRIGUEZ

Herculez GOMEZ

Eddie JOHNSON

Gyasi ZARDES

José VILLARREAL (second striker)

Alonso HERNANDEZ (second striker or attacking midfielder)

 

The USMNT Has Outside Back Options

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Chris Klute (right) might be the best American left back. (Photo: Eamon Queeny / The Columbus Dispatch)
Chris Klute (right) might be the best American left back. (Photo: Eamon Queeny / The Columbus Dispatch)

 

The United States Men’s National Team and Jürgen Klinsmann have plenty of outside back options available to them with the 2014 World Cup coming up next summer.

Due to the fact that Jonathan Spector and Eric Lichaj are proven-performers at the international level and the club level in England, it remains a mystery why Klinsmann has insisted on stubbornly declaring that Brad Evans and DaMarcus Beasley are his best right back and left back options respectively, especially since both players are less-proven and playing out of position.

There’s a widespread belief that both players have done well against CONCACAF competition and deserve recognition for holding their own at positions that neither player are naturally suited to play, but there is also widespread concern that Klinsmann is leaving the United States’ defense vulnerable out wide.

Any realistic examination of the types of attackers that the United States will face in the 2014 World Cup reveals the real danger of starting two players at outside back who are not really outside backs.

Klinsmann has a wealth of options at outside back, and many of his best options are players who are experienced outside backs with international experience. Additionally, there is the issue of the group of new MLS players who have demonstrated that they have the tools to be international-caliber outside backs.

The real mystery is why Klinsmann feels that using Evans and Beasley out of position is a better option than starting professional outside backs.

The coach of the United States Men’s National Team has been refusing to use outside backs that are paid to play the position at the club level for a living.

Even excluding new MLS outside backs like Chris Klute, DeAndre Yedlin, and Andrew Farrell, who are actually professional outside backs, Klinsmann has decided that both Jonathan Spector and Eric Lichaj don’t deserve any call ups to the national team, despite the fact that both players have a documented history of performing well for the United States and a wealth of experience in the English Premier League.

Klinsmann’s outside back selections have been a topic of discussion and debate for a long time now, and even if Klinsmann wants to start Evans and Beasley, there is no explanation for not putting Spector and Lichaj on the roster to fill the other two outside back roster spots.

Anyway that one chooses to look at this coaching situation, there is no way to counter the argument that Klinsmann has not put four natural outside backs on his rosters.

While Klinsmann can support the argument that Chris Klute, DeAndre Yedlin, Andrew Farrell, and Kofi Sarkodie are inexperienced at the international level, he can’t support his stance that Spector and Lichaj are somehow less qualified to start as the outside backs than Evans and Beasley.

Spector in particular has performed well against Spain, Brazil, and a whole list of other top national teams, and Spector is under 30 years old. Lichaj too has performed well for the United States, even if he doesn’t have the same experience against elite national teams.

If Klinsmann views Fabian Johnson as more of a winger now as opposed to an outside back, Timothy Chandler, Fabian Johnson, Eric Lichaj, and Jonathan Spector are still all professional outside backs who have proven that they have the speed and skill along with the defensive skills to be the United States’ outside backs.

The track record of Spector, Johnson, Chandler, and Lichaj along with Klinsmann’s insistence on not making them his four outside backs really calls into question Klinsmann’s decision-making.

Consistently calling up the outside backs listed above was really only the first step that Klinsmann had to make in selecting his outside backs because he also needed to use some of the friendlies over the last few months to get a good look at the new outside backs like Klute, Yedlin, and Farrell.

At this point, there is no real evidence that Brad Evans and DaMarcus Beasley are more equipped to deal with better attackers than Spector, Lichaj, Chandler, Johnson, Klute, Yedlin, and Farrell because Evans and Beasley have only held their own against fairly weak competition.

Klute, Yedlin, and Farrell may be inexperienced but each of them has the technical and defensive skills along with the athleticism to stand a better chance of performing against the better competition in the World Cup. All three outside backs are skilled on the ball with both feet and extremely fast, and Klute and Farrell in particular have demonstrated very good defensive fundamentals and instincts.

Given the amount of playing time that Klute, Yedlin, and Farrell have seen as well as the quality of their performances for an entire season, all three of these outside backs have earned the chance to prove that they can outplay Evans and Beasley as outside backs.

Despite the fact that Chandler has cast doubts on how interested he is in really playing for the United States, certainly Spector, Lichaj, and Johnson should have all been a fixture on the U.S. rosters over the last two years.

Without a lot of games before next summer’s World Cup, there is a real possibility that Klinsmann will simply insist on freezing Spector, Lichaj, Klute, Yedlin, Farrell, and Sarkodie out of the United States Men’s National Team.

If this is the case, then the United States may very well not even put proven-players like Spector and Lichaj on the World Cup roster as outside back options, which essentially means that Klinsmann will be banking on using make-shift substitutes should his already make-shift outside backs be injured or suspended.

Klinsmann’s roster selections at outside back have been a problem, and from an American perspective, player selection at outside back is a major cause for concern going into the 2014 World Cup.

 

Who Will the USMNT Start vs. Panama?

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Geoff Cameron (20. (Photo: USA Today Sports)
Geoff Cameron (20) will likely start at center back. (Photo: USA Today Sports)

 

In the United States’ final World Cup qualifier for the 2014 World Cup, for which it has already qualified, coach Jürgen Klinsmann has sent four players back to their club teams either due to injury or simply because he is going to rotate some of his other players into the starting line-up.

Against Panama, Klinsmann’s primary intention appears to evaluate or give playing time to some of the players who he already considers part of his best group of players but who aren’t starters. Klinsmann could either go with the 4-1-3-2 formation again, or he could revert back to the 4-2-3-1 formation.

Either way, one of the biggest questions is whether both Jozy Altidore and Aron Jóhannsson will start for the USMNT.

Both Jermaine Jones and Landon Donovan were released back to their club teams due to injury, but Matt Besler was sent back to his club team because Klinsmann is going to start Clarence Goodson in his place at center back instead.

Likewise, Tim Howard was sent back to Everton to allow Brad Guzan to receive some well-deserved minutes, and Guzan has already demonstrated on the club and international level that he has what it takes to be the starting keeper for the United States. While Howard is still the first-choice goalkeeper, Klinsmann needs to give Guzan some more playing time with the United States because he is roughly at the same level or higher than Howard, and the United States will need Guzan in the World Cup.

With these roster changes in mind, it would appear that the United States will likely start Brad Guzan in goal, Brad Evans at right back, Geoff Cameron and Clarence Goodson at center back, and DaMarcus Beasley or Edgar Castillo at left back.

Michael Orozco could possibly start at right back or possibly at center back, if Klinsmann wants to use Cameron as a defensive midfielder, but with Jermaine Jones and Matt Besler gone, Goodson and Cameron will probably start at center back with Kyle Beckerman at the defensive midfielder position.

There is also a possibility that Orozco could start at right back, but Klinsmann will likely start Evans, Cameron, Goodson, and Beasley as the defensive back four with Beckerman right in front of them as a midfield destroyer.

Panama’s speed and technical play could be a problem for players like Beckerman and Goodson, so Cameron might be without enough defensive support around him down the center of the field.

Given the lack of quality possession from the United States against Jamaica, Klinsmann could start Kljestan and Beckerman as a two-man defensive midfield, but the coach of the United States could just as easily simply instruct one of the other midfielders to provide Beckerman with some defensive support deeper in the midfield. There is also the possibility that Diskerud could line up next to Beckerman as the player who links Beckerman to the more attack-minded players.

In the United States Men’s National Team’s last game against Jamaica, the United States played without much conviction or intensity, and this, and not the 4-1-3-2 formation change was the likely culprit for the U.S.’ poor passing and general play.

The absence of Michael Bradley and Clint Dempsey from the midfield resulted in a lack of quality possession and good passing, and even with Landon Donvon playing, Jozy Altidore, Aron Jóhannasson, and Mix Diskerud were constantly dropping deep to show for the ball, which diminished the ability of the United States to have Diskerud playing final balls for Altidore and Jóhannsson.

There was a disconnect in the American midfield against Jamaica, but with Beckerman presumably sitting back deeper against Panama than Jones did against Jamaica, Diskerud should be able to collect the ball from Beckerman and combine with Alejandro Bedoya and Graham Zusi or Sacha Kljestan in order to attempt to feed Altidore and Jóhannsson a steady stream of passes in the final third.

All in all, Klinsmann could use a 4-2-3-1 where Jóhannsson lines up out wide merely on paper, or Klinsmann could use the 4-1-3-2 formation again given the fact that Beckerman hangs back much deeper when playing for the United States than Jones tends to do.

The United States will likely start both Altidore and Jóhannsson again, which would mean that the likely Starting XI will be as follows:

GUZAN; EVANS, CAMERON, GOODSON, BEASLEY/CASTILLO; BECKERMAN; ZUSI, DISKERUD, BEDOYA; ALTIDORE, JÓHANNSSON.

Despite the line-up prediction above, the United States could decide to give Terrence Boyd a start up top, but it’s important that Diskerud, Altidore, and Jóhannsson build some chemistry.

World Soccer Source doesn’t feel that Beckerman or Goodson have the athleticism to keep up with the quick and skilled attackers that the United States will see at the World Cup, so this game against Panama should be used to see how Orozcco does at center back and how Cameron can do playing as the lone defensive midfielder.

For this writer, there’s no real point in giving Goodson or Beckerman minutes against Panama, even though they will both likely start. Goodson and Beckerman are fundamentally-sound players, but they lack the combination of skill and athleticism that the United States will need in the 2014 World Cup.

But, working within the constraints of the roster, this writer would like to see a  4-1-2-1-2 Starting XI as follows:

GUZAN; EVANS, OROZCO, GOODSON, CASTILLO; CAMERON; BEDOYA, KLJESTAN; DISKERUD; ALTIDORE, JÓHANNSSON.

 

Michael Bradley, Elite Defensive Midfielder

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Michael Bradley (Photo: Garrett Ellwood / Colorado Rapids)
Michael Bradley (Photo: Garrett Ellwood / Colorado Rapids)

 

Michael Bradley may not be an elite box-to-box midfielder, but he is an elite defensive midfielder because of his combination of excellent defending, refined passing, and athleticism.

One of the keys to the United States Men’s National Team’s success in the 2014 World Cup in Brazil will be Michael Bradley’s technical skill, defending, and athleticism as a defensive midfielder, but the USMNT also needs a viable substitute with his skill, athleticism, and defending because, should he ever be injured or suspended, the United States will be in trouble.

Michael Bradley’s smooth one-to-two touch passing and his excellent technical ability with both feet cause many Americans to view him as an elite box-to-box midfielder like Arturo Vidal, Paulinho, Ramires, or Kevin-Prince Boateng, but Bradley is really a prototypical defensive midfielder only because he lacks the higher-level of technical-artistry and scoring-ability that the other midfielders listed bring.

Bradley is a fantastic midfielder, even by international standards, but using him as the same type of box-to-box midfielder as those listed above weakens the ability of the United States to defend the attacks of top national teams.

The United States Men’s National Team isn’t at the point yet where it has a player who can play the role of the defensive midfielder like Bradley can, and using another player there leaves the American center backs vulnerable.

To beat the best national teams, the USMNT needs Bradley playing as a defensive midfielder because this is an important position that maximizes his talents and gifts.

Delivering final balls and scoring goals needs to be primarily left to midfielders like Clint Dempsey, Landon Donovan, Mix Diskerud, Joe Corona, and Benny Feilhaber because Bradley cannot attack like they can and they can’t defend like he can. This sort of division of labor and combination of players of different skill-sets allows the United States to compete when it faces top national teams.

Players like Neymar, Lionel Messi, Cristiano Ronaldo, and Mario Balotelli need to not only be defended by a strong defensive back four but they also need to be defended by someone like Bradley because no other defensive midfielder in the American player pool, when used alone, stands a chance at somewhat containing their path from the midfield through the center of the American defense.

That is the real reason that Bradley needs to be utilized as a true defensive midfielder.

Calmness on the ball and elegant passing create the illusion that Bradley should be used in a more advanced role or given more freedom to make many attacking forays, but he should be started in a deeper role where he can maximize his tireless running, his defending, and his passing.

As a defensive midfielder right in front of the defensive back four, Bradley has more touches on the ball and plays a bigger role in games, and playing deep allows Bradley to pick and chose when to go forward and when to stay back to provide defensive coverage.

Skilled passing isn’t just needed in the final third, but it’s also needed deep in the midfield where Bradley can help to control the passing in the United States’ defensive third and where he can serve as a passing outlet for the defense.

Without Bradley roaming in front of the American Back Four, the United States cannot establish quality possession and develop a good passing rhythm because the top national teams will merely hound the American defenders and force them into giving away possession.

Winning back possession, supporting the defense, and orchestrating the passing of the USMNT from the back of the midfield is one of the most important roles in the starting line-up, and these skills complement the attacking skills of Clint Dempsey and Landon Donovan.

Starting Bradley as a midfield destroyer isn’t a misuse of Bradley’s skills, but rather it maximizes his combination of technical skill, defending, and tireless running.

A technically-skilled defensive midfielder is a true weapon for any national team, and Bradley is a technically-skilled defensive midfielder who also brings an imposing combination of size, athleticism, endurance, and intensity.

The United States Men’s National Team needs Michael Bradley starting right in front of the American Back Four, even if he has a defensive midfield partner like Geoff Cameron, but Bradley shouldn’t be used as the player who connects the defensive midfielders to Clint Dempsey, Landon Donovan, and Jozy Altidore; a playmaker is needed to connect Bradley to those three attackers.

Jürgen Klinsmann seems to think that Bradley, Dempsey, and Donovan negate the need for a playmaker, but the United States needs to start a playmaker, so that Bradley, Dempsey, and Donovan can play their natural positions, as none of these players are true playmakers.

A true playmaker is one of the keys to beating the top national teams, and no team ever wins the World Cup or the Champions League without a playmaker.

Providing excellent defending and quality passing as a defensive midfielder is an art form, and being classified as a defensive midfielder doesn’t mean that Bradley isn’t a smooth passer who is skilled on the ball.

For the United States Men’s National Team to close the gap with top national teams, it will need technically-skilled players at every position instead of thinking that any skilled player like Dempsey, Donovan, or Bradley is some sort of playmaker.

Michael Bradley is a defensive midfielder, and many Americans need to stop considering that position as one that is beneath a player with excellent technical ability because, in fact, the defensive midfielder touches the ball the most.