USMNT

USMNT: 23 For Brazil (October 2013)

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Chris Klute (arms raised). (Photo: USA Today SPORTS)
Chris Klute (arms raised). (Photo: USA Today SPORTS)

 

Below is a proposal for a 23-man United States Men’s National Team World Cup roster that can be competitive in time for the 2014 World Cup. This is the October 2013 edition of World Soccer Source’s “USMNT: 23 For Brazil.”

Several players like Geoff Cameron, Shane O’Neill, and Andrew Farrell can play multiple positions, and when their names are repeated, they are inside parentheses. Geoff Cameron, Shane O’Neill, and Andrew Farrell can play as center backs, midfield destroyers, and as right or left backs.

In addition to playing his normal position of left back, Chris Klute can also play as a right back or center back.

Benji Joya is on the roster because he is a complete midfielder who brings great technical ability and attacking play along with more defensive grit than the other attacking midfielders.

Freddy Adu is a necessity for the World Cup roster due to his special skill-set and his ability to play in the place of Clint Dempsey or Landon Donovan should they be suspended or injured.

The United States Men’s National Team is going to have to use a young roster along with some of the more established or older players like Clint Dempsey, Michael Bradley, Jozy Altidore, Landon Donovan, Geoff Cameron, and Tim Howard, if the United States is serious about really competing with better national teams in the 2014 World Cup. Merely using players who held their own in qualifying won’t be enough in the World Cup, so the United States will have to roll the dice and call up many of the younger players with the tools to compete against better players from better national teams.

USMNT: 23 For Brazil (October 2013)

GOALKEEPERS: Tim HOWARD, Brad GUZAN, Nick RIMANDO.

CENTER BACKS: Geoff CAMERON, John Anthony BROOKS, Shane O’NEILL, Andrew FARRELL.

OUTSIDE BACKS: Chris KLUTE, DeAndre YEDLIN, Kellyn ACOSTA, *(Andrew FARRELL),  *(Geoff CAMERON), *(Shane O’NEILL).

DEFENSIVE MIDFIELDERS: Michael BRADLEY, Jermaine JONES, Benji JOYA (Box-to-Box Midfielder), *(Geoff CAMERON), *(Shane O’NEILL), *(Andrew FARRELL).

ATTACKING MIDFIELDERS: Clint DEMPSEY, Landon DONOVAN, Benny FEILHABER, Joe Benny CORONA, Mix DISKERUD.

FORWARDS: Jozy ALTIDORE, Juan AGUDELO, Aron JÓHANNSSON, Terrence BOYD, Freddy ADU.

* Already Listed

ALTERNATES: Fabian JOHNSON, Eddie JOHNSON, Jonathan SPECTOR, Mario RODRIGUEZ, Alonso HERNANDEZ, José VILLARREAL, Michael OROZCO, Joe GYAU, Brek SHEA, Will TRAPP, Luis GIL, Dax MCCARTY, Jeremy HALL, Maurice, EDU, Eric LICHAJ, Clint IRWIN, Dan KENNEDY, Sean JOHNSON, Gyasi ZARDES.

 

USMNT World Cup Starting XI:

HOWARD; YEDLIN/FARRELL, O’NEILL, BROOKS, KLUTE; CAMERON, BRADLEY; DONOVAN, FEILHABER, DEMPSEY; ALTIDORE.

 

Notes on the Starting XI:

-7 of the 11 starters are proven international performers (Howard, Cameron, Bradley, Donovan, Feilhaber, Dempsey, Altidore), and John Anthony Brooks (who was recently named to the Bundesliga Team of the Week) is a starting Bundesliga center back for Hertha Berlin.

– The Starting XI is based on a Front Six made up of two defensive midfielders, three attacking midfielders (including a playmaker), and a first striker, and the Back Four includes modern two-way outside backs with athletic and technically-skilled center backs that represent an improvement in the skill-level of the usual USMNT Starting XI.

-It’s still unknown whether DeAndre Yedlin or Andrew Farrell is the better right back. Each player has different strengths and weaknesses, and it’s unclear, at this time, which player is the better right back. Farrell’s speed and technical ability might better serve the USMNT at center back since Yedlin is an excellent outside back that can’t play as a center back.

-Chris Klute is actually right-footed, despite playing left back, but the USMNT desperately needs him at left back. Farrell has been used as a right back this season, so he hasn’t been able to work on being a center back.

– The line-up above is a balanced XI with a more talented and a more athletic group of players than the United States used in the 2006 and 2010 World Cups, and possibly the 2002 World Cup as well.

– The Starting XI above has defenders with good defensive instincts and skills combined with technical ability and athleticism, and the Front Six is a balance of various types of defensive midfielders and attacking midfielders plus a striker, which creates a Front Six that can recover possession, keep possession, and score goals.

 

American Soccer Must Embrace Change

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Kevin-Prince Boateng celebrates after scoring on the United States in the 2010 World Cup. (Photo: AP Photo)
Kevin-Prince Boateng celebrates after scoring on the United States in the 2010 World Cup. (Photo: AP Photo)

 

Some American soccer fans need to embrace the concept of change for the sake of improvement because this collective mentality puts pressure on The United States Soccer Federation, The United States Men’s National Team, Jürgen Klinsmann, and Major League Soccer to have higher standards.

There’s no denying the growth of soccer in the United States or the increase in talented American players, but The United States Soccer Federation is going overboard with its level of celebration and almost propaganda during World Cup qualifying.

One thing in particular that was disconcerting was the shirt that Jürgen Klinsmann was wearing that had “Qualified” written across the front of it after the U.S. qualified for the World Cup.

While the players, fans, and coaches celebration after the United States had qualified for the World Cup was understandable and definitely appropriate, that t-shirt was Jürgen Klinsmann essentially going overboard with his bragging about the United States qualifying for the World Cup in the weakest soccer region in the world.

Celebration and congratulations were in order, but Klinsmann’s publicity stunts like the “Qualified” t-shirt, the fist pumps after beating weak teams, and walking down to the field before the 2013 Gold Cup Final was over look slightly ridiculous when he has so much work to do in order to strengthen the United States Men’s National Team at several positions to close the gap with better national teams.

The coach of the United States has continued to refuse to address or correct the issues with the weaknesses at the outside back positions and the failure to incorporate a playmaker to balance out his two-man defensive midfield.

He has also not evaluated enough center backs to really know who the best American center backs are. There are some real concerns with the ability of Omar Gonzalez, Matt Besler, and Clarence Goodson to handle better attackers.

When the United States beat Bosnia and Herzegovina, John Anthony Brooks and Geoff Cameron were starting at center back, so there’s no way to know how Gonzalez and Besler would have done.

The counter-argument to this is of course that the U.S. beat Germany’s B Team when Matt Besler and Omar Gonzalez were starting, but anyone watching that game could see that Germany was clearly not trying very hard until the U.S. went up 4-1, at which time Germany quickly scored two goals in a matter of minutes without any difficulty.

The problems with the United States Men’s National Team are not with the player pool, but U.S. Soccer and American soccer fans need to acknowledge that the sort of line-ups that Klinsmann uses and the lack of balance and/or talent in his rosters in certain areas will be a major problem in the 2014 World Cup.

It is a time to celebrate the growth of American soccer and the influx of young and talented players, but the rosters and line-ups that Klinsmann has been using will not get the job done in Brazil against top national teams.

Klinsmann himself has said that the 23-man roster that he uses in the World Cup will look different than the 23-man roster than he is currently using, but he has also shown a tendency to not really mean what he says.

Now is the time for Klinsmann to incorporate the new players that are needed to bolster the roster, and even if he doesn’t start them in the final two World Cup qualifiers, then he still needs to have them among the 12 non-starters on the roster.

The recent snubbing of Chris Klute and Shane O’Neill from MLS’ 24 Under 24 rankings, the ranking of Juan Agudelo way down at the sixth position on the list, or the ranking of José Villarreal at 11th show that even many of the employees of MLS are not adept at judging talent, and this recent list demonstrates a larger problem with the inability of some Americans to recognize talent and to recognize the need to support players with a level of skill that is closer to the skill-level of other national teams, in order to beat the better national teams.

On the bright side, the United States is really close to closing the gap with better national teams with the exception of teams like Brazil, Germany, Spain, Italy, etc, but changes will have to be made to get closer to those teams.

With roughly one year until the 2014 World Cup in Brazil, there is plenty of time to season better players and strengthen weaknesses.

 

Depth Chart: USMNT Second Strikers

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Freddy Adu (Source: Esporte Clube Bahia)
Freddy Adu (Source: Esporte Clube Bahia)

 

World Soccer Source considers Juan Agudelo and Aron Jóhannsson to be first strikers also known as number 9s, and for this reason, neither one is listed on the depth chart below.

Depth Chart: USMNT Second Strikers

1.) Clint Dempsey (Seattle Sounders)

Clint Dempsey plays a similar position to Robinho, Thomas Müller, Jérémy Ménez, or Neymar in that they are attacking midfielders or forwards without being out-and-out strikers like Mario Balotelli or Jozy Altidore. As long as Clint Dempsey isn’t deployed as a lone striker like Spain has done with Cesc Fàbregas, Dempsey’s positional name isn’t as important as him being included in the USMNT Starting XI as an attacking midfielder or a second striker. Jozy Altidore and Clint Dempsey have developed a nice partnership up top, and seeing both players starting together highlights the difference between a first striker and a second striker. Of all the American players, Dempsey is the player who can best play off a first striker in a supporting role, which not only helps the first striker be less closely marked but also draws defenders away from Clint Dempsey. Given the fact that the Texan is the best American player and given his penchant for scoring goals and disrupting defenses, Clint Dempsey is the best second striker in the American player pool.

 

2.) Freddy Adu (E.C. Bahia)

Freddy Adu is ranked above Landon Donovan as a second striker because Donovan is best used out wide where he can use his speed to run at defenders and cut inside from out wide, but Adu is more adept at playing final balls and setting up goals than Donovan. Obviously, Donovan has a much higher amount of assists for the United States, but he’s played in a lot more games. Donovan excels at using speed to beat defenders and attacking from wide positions, but Adu has a more refined ability to play passes of a higher degree of difficulty that unlock defenses. As far as 1v1 abilities, Adu possesses probably the best ability of any American to beat quality defenders off the dribble, and Adu knows how to put the ball in the back of the net. Adu’s aggressive playing style and skills combined with his ability to take risks forces defenders to leave a first striker like Altidore unmarked as they turn their attention to the penetrating dribbling and quick passing of Adu. Donovan has better stats and accolades to his name, but using Adu as a second striker doesn’t exclude starting Landon Donovan at the same time.

 

3.) Landon Donovan (LA Galaxy)

Landon Donovan is more suited to start out wide as a winger or just as an attacking midfielder starting out wide than he is as a second striker because starting out wide allows Donovan to receive the ball and beat defenders with pace down the sideline, quickly combine with his teammates from a deeper position, and use his speed to cut inside towards the penalty box, which causes Dempsey and Altidore to be open when the defenders run over to mark Donovan. Along with Dempsey, Donovan is the best American soccer player, but using Donovan as a second striker doesn’t maximize his speed in the same way that starting him in the midfield does because up top Donovan would be waiting to receive service rather than sprinting at defenders from a deeper and wider position.

 

4.) José Villarreal (LA Galaxy)

José Villarreal is ideally suited to play as a second striker because it allows him to use his technical ability and trickery to support a first striker and draw defenders away from a first striker. Villarreal will continue to improve, but the 20-year-old is a member of a group of young American players who are demonstrating that the United States is producing more technically-skilled players than it used to. Villarreal’s general play for the Los Angeles Galaxy and his goal against Real Madrid make him too talented to not be part of the discussion for inclusion on the United States Men’s National Team. When Clint Dempsey and Landon Donovan stop playing in four or five years or more, the USMNT will be in good hands, as long as Villarreal is playing.

 

 

Depth Chart: USMNT First Strikers

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Jozy Altidore scored the game's only goal. (Photo: Kirby Lee, USA TODAY Sports)
Jozy Altidore. (Photo: Kirby Lee, USA TODAY Sports)

Over the past two years, Jozy Altidore has dramatically improved his movement off the ball, and he has refined his technical ability and finishing skills.

Now, Jozy Altidore has blossomed into a first striker whose athleticism and physique are matched by his technical skill and movement off the ball. Altidore has two years playing club soccer in Holland to thank for these improvements, and now Jozy Altidore tops the list of World Soccer Source’s best American strikers.

After Jozy Altidore, Juan Agudelo and Aron Jóhannsson are tied for second due to the difficulty in trying to scientifically rank all of the various criteria like finishing, club form, the league played in, technical ability, scoring-rate, and athleticism.

 

1.) Jozy Altidore (Sunderland)

Easily the best American striker, Altidore showed just how far he’d come in polishing his technical ability, finishing, and movement off the ball when he scored an outstanding hat trick against Bosnia and Herzegovina after two years with a prolific scoring-rate with AZ Alkmaar in the Eredivisie. Two months shy of his 24th birthday, Altidore is a complete first striker, and he will continue to improve in all areas of his game as the years go by.

 

2.) Juan Agudelo (New England Revolution / Stoke City)

Juan Agudelo is one of the crown jewels of American soccer, and it will be interesting to see how he compares to Jozy Altidore in a few years or sooner.

It took Altidore several years and the right club situation to become a more finished product who had harnessed his physical gifts and honed his skills, so Agudelo should be allowed the same amount of time to become more polished and deadly.

Whereas Altidore was accused of needing to refine his technical ability several years ago, Agudelo was never criticized for his technical ability. Agudelo has been criticized for trying to do too many tricks, for overcomplicating things, and for taking too many touches, but Agudelo has become more efficient without eliminating the trickery and creativity from his game.

The young American striker has had multiple opportunities to showcase his talent against top national teams playing at full strength, and he has never looked overmatched or fazed by the opposition.

There are too many excellent goals with both feet and his head to not consistently have Juan Agudelo on the United States Men’s National Team, and despite a few injuries, there have been plenty of occasions when Agudelo has been unjustly snubbed by Jürgen Klinsmann and the national team.

 

2.) Aron Jóhannsson (AZ Alkmaar)

Aron Jóhannsson is as good as or better than Juan Agudelo, and Jóhannsson plays for Jozy Altidore’s former club, AZ Alkmaar.

Altidore has backed Jóhannsson due to his time playing with Jóhannsson and seeing him in action, but Jóhannsson’s play last season and this season combined with his excellent play against Bosnia and Herzegovina prove Jóhannsson’s skill and ability to excel against top-level competition.

The AZ Alkmaar striker is fast and clinical with a nose for goal, and he never hesitates to go straight to goal or hit shots the instant the opportunity presents itself.

If started right now for the United States, there’s no reason to think that Jóhannsson couldn’t do as well or better than any other American striker who has played for the USMNT in the past.

He will continue to grow and get stronger, but Jóhannsson is already a tall striker with excellent speed and textbook technical ability.

Jóhannsson’s biggest strength is the combination of his technical ability with his instinct to attack the goal.

 

4.) Terrence Boyd (Rapid Wien)

A year ago, the young Terrence Boyd looked poised to make a run at Jozy Altidore’s starting spot, but with Altidore’s improved international form came less playing time for Boyd.

Nevertheless, Boyd is a direct-to-goal first striker who attacks the goal constantly with his skill and athleticism. Unlike Altidore who took some time to develop more of a ruthless streak, Boyd has always been very aggressive and his ability to score with both feet should serve the United States well.

Boyd has all of the tools to be a starting striker with the USMNT, and it’s time for Klinsmann to start seasoning more of his strikers besides Altidore.

Boyd is a faster and more athletic player than Altidore, Agudelo, and Jóhannsson, and his technical ability is equally good.

A striker with Boyd’s gifts and skills should prove to be a very valuable weapon for the United States. Once Boyd plays more with the United States, it will be easier to compare and contrast him with Jozy Altidore.

Of all the American strikers, Boyd is the most ruthless, and he attacks opponents with pure rage and no respect.

 

Conclusion:

Jozy Altidore leads the pack as the best American striker, but Juan Agudelo, Aron Jóhannsson, and Terrence Boyd deserve more opportunities to gain international experience. Until the other three play more for the United States, it’s unclear how they compare to one another or if one of them partners particularly well with Altidore. There is also the real need to make sure that the United States has four first strikers who are ready to play well in the World Cup.

 

Depth Chart: USMNT Attacking Midfielders

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Clint Dempsey (8). (Photo: ISIPhotos.com)
Clint Dempsey (8). (Photo: ISIPhotos.com)

 

All playmakers are attacking midfielders, but not all attacking midfielders are playmakers.

For this reason, Clint Dempsey and Landon Donovan were not listed in World Soccer Source’s article entitled “Depth Chart: USMNT Playmakers.”

Playmakers are rare, and the best two American soccer players, Clint Dempsey and Landon Donovan, are not playmakers. Attacking midfielders can be playmakers, wingers, or players like Neymar who has no clear positional name. Frequently the very best players in the world are hard to classify with a single positional name.

 

USMNT Depth Chart: Attacking Midfielders

 

1.) Clint Dempsey (Seattle Sounders)

Many journalists and fans consider Landon Donovan to be better than Clint Dempsey and the best American soccer player ever, but World Soccer Source disputes this. Clint Dempsey has shown a level of technical-ability, trickery, killer instinct, physical and mental toughness, and a competitive spirit above those of Landon Donovan.

Some people think Clint Dempsey is better, and some people think Landon Donovan is better. The most important thing is that both players can start together on either side of a playmaker and work together to win.

Clint Dempsey scored goals on a consistent basis in the English Premier League for seven years, and Landon Donovan has played basically his entire career in MLS. Dempsey outplayed Donovan in the 2006 World Cup and in the 2010 World Cup where Donovan scored one goal thanks to a tap in off a rebound, which Dempsey forced, and Donovan scored a penalty kick and one ruthless point blank head shot, which was his one notable goal from the 2006 and the 2010 World Cups.

The Texan is a more technically-skilled player than Donovan, and Dempsey shows a greater ability to disrupt the defensive cohesion of top national teams.

If you were to compile the individual highlights and goals of both players, Dempsey’s would be much more impressive. But more important than the highlights or the trickery, is the combination of fire, skill, toughness, and irreverence that Dempsey brings to all of his games.

Whereas Donovan sometimes puts on a disappearing act in games, Dempsey shows absolutely no respect for his adversaries, and this makes him more of a threat and more of a cold-blooded assassin against elite national teams.

The USMNT needs both Donovan and Dempsey playing together and combining with one another, but this writer views Clint Dempsey as the better player with a better track record against higher-level competition on the club and international level.

Dempsey’s left-footed upper 90 wonder strike scored against Germany in a friendly after losing Lukas Podolski with a Cruyff turn, his chipped golazo against Juventus (without Gigi Buffon playing), and his goal scored against Gigi Buffon in a friendly against Italy in 2012 are just a view examples of the Clint Dempsey Supremacy over Landon Donovan.

 

 

2.) Landon Donovan (LA Galaxy)

Landon Donovan is without question the very first American soccer player who was born and raised in the United States who demonstrated an enormous boost in the skill-level of American soccer players.

Donovan excels at using his speed and both feet to beat defenders off the dribble and play one-to-two touch passing. Donovan is the all-time goal-scoring leader and assist leader for the USMNT, but he enjoyed a four year head start on Clint Dempsey who was playing in obscurity, despite being just one year younger.

For this writer, Donovan has never shown the same technical-ability and big-game mentality as Clint Dempsey, but no one can deny Donovan’s achievements or abilities.

It’s a shame that Donovan didn’t elect to make more of an attempt to play his club soccer in Europe, as opposed to playing in MLS. People can say that he helped developed the league, but that wasn’t his responsibility. Playing in Europe for 10 years would have made Donovan an even better player than he is today.

Despite all of this, Donovan and Dempsey aren’t mutually exclusive, and they shouldn’t be competitors on the national team, as the Unites States needs both of them starting.

As the poster child for American soccer, there can be no doubting that Landon Donovan’s four year head start caused Clint Dempsey to be unjustly underrated and underappreciated by American soccer fans who worshipped Landon Donovan for being the first world-class American soccer player.

 

3.) Benny Feilhaber (Sporting Kansas City)

Benny Feilhaber was heavily discussed in the article entitled “Depth Chart: USMNT Playmakers,” but nevertheless Feilhaber has been the attacking midfielder other than Dempsey and Donovan who demonstrated the greatest ability to play one-to-two touch soccer against top national teams, and he still is one of the most technically-skilled American soccer players.

Whenever you see highlights of the United States performing its best against the best national teams since 2007, you will see Benny Feilhaber who proved to be a needed midfield piece to Bob Bradley’s midfields which almost always started two defensive midfielders in the middle with Landon Donovan and Clint Dempsey out wide.

There’s nothing to suggest that Benny Feilhaber’s abilities and athleticism have dropped over the last few years under Klinsmann’s tenure as head coach of the national team.

 

4.) Freddy Adu (E.C. Bahia)

Freddy Adu remains one of the only American attacking midfielders who can truly put even top players on their heels, and Adu possesses a combination of 1v1 abilities and quickness that Donovan and Dempsey do not have. Additionally, Adu’s passing and vision are well above those of Dempsey and Donovan.

There’s a reason that teams continue to sign Freddy Adu. Say what you want about Freddy Adu and his club playing time, but he was signed by Benfica, where he actually played and scored goals, and he was signed by the famous Brazilian club, Bahia, where he has done his best to continue to fight for a spot in the game-day rosters and in the starting line-ups.

No one gets to even sit on the bench for Bahia or Benfica, if they aren’t good, and claiming that American soccer and the USMNT doesn’t need a player like that is perhaps rating the United States Men’s National Team too highly.

 

Conclusion:

Selecting four attacking midfielders among Clint Dempsey, Landon Donovan, Benny Feilhaber, Freddy Adu, Joe Benny Corona, Mix Diskerud, and several others is a tough decision, and Jürgen Klinsmann doesn’t seem to particularly rate several of these players (most notably Benny Feilhaber and Freddy Adu).

Selecting a 23-man roster for the World Cup will require factoring in which players can play more than one position, but for this writer, Alejandro Bedoya, José Torres, Brad Davis, and Graham Zusi have never demonstrated the same still-level as players like Benny Feilhaber, Freddy Adu, Mix Diskerud, and Joe Benny Corona.

There aren’t any real wingers among the four players highlighted in this article, except for Landon Donovan, and the reason for this is because the width in the attack can come from the outside backs.

 

Depth Chart: USMNT Playmakers

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Benny Feilhaber. (Photo: Reuters)
Benny Feilhaber. (Photo: Reuters)

 

Jürgen Klinsmann hasn’t been using playmakers in his United States Men’s National Team starting line-ups for the most part, but he did start Mix Diskerud as a playmaker against Bosnia and Herzegovina.

Rather than using true playmakers who have the unique skill-set and abilities to see openings in the defense and play killer final balls, Klinsmann has preferred to use Clint Dempsey or Landon Donovan as second strikers who are tasked with the responsibility of setting up goals for strikers like Jozy Altidore.

The United States has the option of starting a playmaker in between Clint Dempsey and Landon Donovan who should be allowed the freedom to roam around in the attack where they see fit, and starting a playmaker would force the opposition to contend with marking Dempsey, Donovan, and Altidore who would all be making final runs.

Recently, Mix Diskerud and Joe Benny Corona have shown how the way that they play the game and the way that they see the game is more along the lines of a playmaker than Dempsey and Donovan, who are really attacking midfielders or second strikers.

American soccer fans and the American soccer media should be mindful that despite the good winning streak under Jürgen Klinsmann, only Benny Feilhaber and to a less extent Freddy Adu have ever really proven that they can excel as playmakers against quality international competition.

Until there is a real contest between Corona, Diskerud, Feilhaber, and Adu, no one will know which American playmaker truly performs the best against international competition.

 

1.) Benny Feilhaber (Sporting Kansas City)

Of all the playmakers, Benny Feilhaber has been the one who has a track record of success on the international level.

There are many journalists and fans who want Feilhaber to play more like a box-to-box midfielder, but this over-emphasis on playing more defense makes little sense especially in a system with one or two defensive midfielders playing in front of four defenders.

Feilhaber should certainly apply defensive pressure on the opposition to make mistakes when they have the ball, but expecting Feilhaber to bring the same amount of defense and tackling that defensive midfielders bring is unnecessary and unreasonable.

Feilhaber’s role is to constantly make himself available as a passing option for his teammates and to facilitate the quick movement of the ball around the field, and he should be focused on doing this and looking to unlock the defense with incisive passes or final balls whenever the opportunity presents itself.

Being a playmaker requires hitting effective and quality passes as soon as the playmaker sees the opening to play the pass, and Feilhaber has been the American playmaker who has the best track record of being able to do that in World Cup games and in other big games.

 

2.) Freddy Adu (E.C. Bahia)

No one ever questions Freddy Adu’s talent, but he has been on the receiving end of lots of criticism for the amount of club teams that he’s played for and the lack of consistent playing time at the club level.

From the United States Men’s National Team’s perpective, Adu has always shown the ability to not only play up to the level of top competition but also to distinguish himself.

Regardless of Adu’s club history, he remains a special talent blessed with excellent vision, trickery, 1v1 abilities, passing skill, goal-scoring abilities, and great quickness.

The United States is not at the level yet where players of Adu’s individual ability who can win games with one pass, one trick, or one shot can be left off the roster.

Like it or not, the United States will have a hard time beating top national teams in the World Cup without Adu or one of the other playmakers in this article on the national team.

Freddy Adu is a controversial enigma, but if he’s physically fit to play, then his skills are needed by the USMNT.

 

3.) Joe Benny Corona (Tijuana)

While Benny Feilhaber and Freddy Adu were given the opportunities to show what they could do for the USMNT under Bob Bradley, Joe Benny Corona hasn’t been given the same amount of chances to show Jürgen Klinsmann how he can improve the play of Michael Bradley, Clint Dempsey, Landon Donovan, and Jozy Altidore.

Corona has proven himself in the Copa Liberatores against teams like Corinthians, but Corona has only been given limited opportunities to play as a playmaker under Klinsmann.

Based on Corona’s playing-style, his ability to use both feet, his touch, and his ability to score and set up goals when deployed as a number 10, the United States would benefit from seeing what Corona can really do.

With the World Cup one year away, Klinsmann will need players like Corona if he hopes to unlock elite defenses in the World Cup, and if Klinsmann is going to totally freeze out Benny Feilhaber and Freddy Adu.

 

3.) Mix Diskerud (tied with Joe Benny Corona) (Rosenborg)

Mix Diskerud may be equal to, better than, or worse than Joe Benny Corona, but until Klinsmann really lets both players play more, it’s hard to decide which playmaker is better.

Certainly, Diskerud has shown that his passing, vision, and playmaking abilities are rare in the American player pool, but the way to evaluate playmakers is to play them with the best attacking players on the team and see what happens.

Both Corona and Diskerud haven’t really been started with or seen significant minutes with Bradley, Dempsey, Donovan, and Altidore, and giving them these minutes will help to answer questions about who the best American playmakers are and which ones the USMNT needs.

 

Conclusion:

Benny Feilhaber is the most proven playmaker of all American playmakers, and his play in MLS this season has demonstrated that there is nothing to suggest that he’s experienced any drop in skill or fitness that would somehow make him not play as well now with Bradley, Dempsey, Donovan, and Altidore as he did in the past.

The most bizarre aspect of Klinsmann’s line-ups and formations is why he has refused to use a true playmaker when he is using two defensive midfielders, four defenders, and a goalkeeper. The use of a playmaker to link the defensive midfielders with the attackers and to set up goals is internationally-recognized as a key aspect of soccer tactics.

It’s unclear why a former striker of Klinsmann’s level would not place more of a premium on using true playmakers to set up the U.S.’ strikers and attacking midfielders.

If Jürgen Klinsmann doesn’t want to use Feilhaber and Adu, then he would be wise to put Corona and Diskerud on the roster and actually start one or the other on a consistent basis.

 

Depth Chart: USMNT Box-to-Box Midfielders

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Benji Joya (8). (Photo: MexSport)
Benji Joya (8). (Photo: MexSport)

 

Several of the players discussed in this article such as Michael Bradley and Jermaine Jones were also discussed in World Soccer Source’s article entitled “Depth Chart: USMNT Defensive Midfielders.”

Both players can play either role, but Benji Joya is the one player in the American player pool, to the best of this writer’s knowledge, who is truly a box-to-box midfielder in the traditional understanding of the role.

While Bradley participates in the attack and goes forward quite a bit,  his game is heavily characterized by collecting the ball from the defenders deep in the midfield and starting the attack. Joya appears to be more of a true box-to-box midfielder than Bradley is.

Depth Chart: USMNT Box-to-Box Midfielders

1.) Michael Bradley (AS Roma)

Michael Bradley was discussed in World Soccer Source’s article about the depth chart of the United States Men’s National Team at the defensive midfielder position, but Michael Bradley is also a box-to-box midfielder who advances forward with the attack and drops back to play defense when the United States loses the ball.

Due to his club play with Heerenveen in the Eredivisie, Borussia Mönchengladbach in the Bundesliga, and his play with AS Roma in Serie A, Bradley’s technical ability and passing has progressively improved over time from what was already a solid foundation when he turned pro at 16.

The combination of playing lots of soccer as a child combined with a steady improvement in his technical ability with non-EPL clubs has made Bradley a player whose attacking and technical skills are equaled by his defensive skills and his workrate.

It’s worth mentioning that Michael Bradley is still not at the same level technically as Clint Dempsey and Landon Donovan, but he is a highly-skilled midfielder with excellent, touch, vision, passing, shooting, and dribbling skills.

Bradley is by far the best box-to-box midfielder and defensive midfielder in the entire American player pool.

 

2.) Jermaine Jones (Schalke)

Jermaine Jones was also included in World Soccer Source’s recent depth chart of American defensive midfielders, but Jones is also capable of playing a box-to-box role due to his skill on the ball, his running endurance, and his athleticism.

Jones is a formidable defender, and he has refined technical ability with both feet.

While Jones may not be as smooth of a passer as Michael Bradley, Jermaine Jones is a Bundesliga and Champions League veteran who is a complete midfielder with proven technical ability, defensive skills, and athleticism against the highest competition in the world.

 

3.) Benji Joya (Santos Laguna)

Benji Joya is a 19-year-old Santos Laguna player who skipped college soccer and MLS to go play professionally in La Liga MX. Joya was used by Tab Ramos as a holding midfielder with the U-20 United States national team, but Joya is a very creative player with great vision, excellent ball control, and a big-game mentality.

While Joya’s natural position is hard to classify, Joya is a complete midfielder who brings excellent passing and movement off the ball with good defending. The young American can best be described as an attacking midfielder with far better defensive qualities than players like Clint Dempsey, Landon Donovan, Benny Feilhaber, Joe Corona, Mix Diskerud, and Freddy Adu.

Joya brings an array of skills in one player that almost no one else in the pool has. Using Joya would give the United States Men’s National Team a player who plays one-to-two touch soccer, but who also provides a lot of defensive coverage in the midfield. Joya doesn’t see a lot of playing time for Santos Laguna, but that doesn’t mean that his skill-set isn’t needed by the United States.

 

4.) Mix Diskerud (Rosenborg)

Mix Diskerud has recently been used by Jürgen Klinsmann has either a playmaker to play right behind a striker like Jozy Altidore or as a box-to-box midfielder to bring more of an attacking threat and linking ability to a two-man defensive midfield set-up.

Mix Diskerud is not really a box-to-box midfielder as Diskerud doesn’t quite have the level of defensive qualities needed in a true box-to-box midfielder but he is an excellent passer and shooter who is one of the only playmakers in the entire American player pool.

Diskerud can play as the box-to-box midfielder in a two-man defensive midfield, but playing the number 8 role is not really his natural position, as Diskerud excels at passing, orchestrating play, setting up goals, and scoring goals.

 

Conclusion:

There is some overlap between defensive midfielders of the midfield destroyer variety and those of the box-to-box midfielder variety. When selecting a roster, Jürgen Klinsmann might consider calling up Michael Bradley, Jermaine Jones, Geoff Cameron, and Benji Joya as the more-defensive midfielders, even if the term is a misnomer for players like Joya.

Choosing these four players leaves Klinsmann four more midfield roster spots for players like Clint Dempsey, Landon Donovan, Joe Corona, Mix Diskerud, Benny Feilhaber, and Freddy Adu.

 

Depth Chart: USMNT Defensive Midfielders

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Depth Chart: USMNT Defensive Midfielders

 

1.) Michael Bradley (Roma)

Michael Bradley has been the best American defensive midfielder and one of the very best American players since he started playing for the national team in 2007. Even a few years ago, Michael Bradley had already totally eclipsed Claudio Reyna in terms of skill, athleticism, club form, and international performances, despite Reyna’s inclusion in the 2002 FIFA World Cup Best XI list.

Even with the United States’ total lack of a defensive midfielder of his level at the time that he started playing for the national team, Bradley still had critics who claimed that he was only a starter because his father, Bob Bradley, was the coach of the national team.

Bradley’s play beginning in 2007 with the U-20 World Cup and before really disproved these criticisms. The American has seen consistent success in the Eredivisie, the Bundesliga, and Serie A, and playing for such a famous club side like AS Roma, which is noted for its attacking and technical play, is a true testament to the player’s abilities.

Recently, there has been a growing belief in the American soccer media and in the American fan base that Bradley is some sort of attacking midfielder, but this belief is inaccurate. Bradley is a defensive midfielder whose technical ability and capacity to cover so much territory make people think that the term, “defensive midfielder,” some how implies that Bradley merely provides defensive coverage in front of the defense back four.

Bradley is a defensive midfielder who can play as a midfield destroyer or as a box-to-box midfielder, but Bradley is needed to marshall and control the American midfield from the back where he can go forward and involve himself wherever he sees fit.

If the United States Men’s National Team were to use one defensive midfielder, Michael Bradley could play that role or he could play either type of defensive midfield role if the United States were to play two defensive midfielders, as it usually does.

 

2.) Geoff Cameron (Stoke City)

Geoff Cameron doesn’t venture as far up field as Jermaine Jones when he is playing as a midfield destroyer for the United States, and Cameron seems to be better at maintaining possession and completing more of his passes compared to Jermaine Jones at the international level. Cameron is also a cleaner tackler than Jones, and Cameron’s tackles and defense result in fewer cards than Jones.

It’s possible that Jones plays less disciplined for the United States than he does for Schalke because he feels the need to contribute more to the attack than he does for Schalke, and this desire to attack and storm downfield frequently leaves the American defense exposed.

Cameron partners better with Michael Bradley than Jones does, but Cameron, unlike Bradley and Jones, is more suited to just play as a destroyer, as opposed to playing as a box-to-box midfielder as well.

Nevertheless, Cameron has shown a real ability to break up the passing off the opposition, protect the defensive back four, serve as a passing outlet for the defenders, and start the attack from the back. The technical ability, size, athleticism, and versatile skill-set of Cameron should continue to serve the United States well.

 

3.) Jermaine Jones (Schalke)

Jermaine Jones is a proven Champions League and Bundesliga defensive midfielder who plays less disciplined for the United States Men’s National Team when he isn’t playing with players like Clint Dempsey, Landon Donovan, Michael Bradley, and Geoff Cameron who he respects as talented footballers.

Jones’ technical ability, physique, and athleticism are there for all to see, but he likely doesn’t show the same high-level of form for the national team as he shows for Schalke due to a desire to involve himself more in the attack when he plays for the United States.

There can be no denying Jones’ technical ability and endurance, and any misplaced passes or losses of possession are probably due to being overly eager to force things and stamp his attacking imprint on the game.

Unlike Cameron and Bradley, Jones is a more ruthless tackler who often is reckless and dangerous in the ferocity with which he tackles opposing players. For this reason and his tendency to force his way into the attack with the national team, Jones is ranked below Cameron, but Jones’ technical ability is equal to or higher than Cameron’s.

 

4.) Perry Kitchen (DC United)

Perry Kitchen is rather inexperienced at the international level for the United States, but he has played for the United States Men’s National Team and done well. Kitchen is a young, talented defensive midfielder with good size and strength, and he is a more athletic and smoother version of Kyle Beckerman whose speed and athleticism hold him back against better opponents.

Surveying the player pool, Kitchen is an obvious name to be on the short list for defensive midfielders on the national team, and it is still yet to be seen how Kitchen compares to Maurice Edu and Ricardo Clark on the international level.

Edu and Clark are certainly more athletic than Kitchen (who is much faster and more athletic than Beckerman), but more international games are needed to evaluate whether or not Kitchen is better skill-wise than both Edu and Clark.

 

Other Defensive Midfielders to Watch: Jared Jeffrey and Will Trapp

 

Depth Chart: USMNT Left Backs

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USMNT Depth Chart: Left Backs

Left Back was an enormous problem for the United States Men’s National Team before Jürgen Klinsmann took over as head coach because normally a right-footed right back had been used as a left back, and under Klinsmann, Fabian Johnson was the preferred left back until recently.

Now, DaMarcus Beasley has been the preferred left back even though he is a left winger, and Fabian Johnson has been deployed as a left winger recently, which seems to suit his playing style better.

Despite starting as a left back for Hoffenheim, Fabian Johnson seems to lack the natural tendency to aggressively mark and tackle as a left back. Johnson’s excellent overall technical ability and athleticism mask the fact that his tackling and overall defensive fundamentals not might be not as good as the United States needs to get to the next level.

Certainly, Fabian Johnson knows how to force attackers out wide, chase attackers down, and dribble and pass out of the back, but it always seems like a more aggressive defender is needed to play left back.

Fabian Johnson would be an excellent choice to use as a left wing back if the United States were to use three center backs, but Chris Klute is looking like the only known player in the entire pool who can bring the needed combination of strong and clean defending, excellent athleticism, and attacking ability from the left back position.

With all of that being said, here is World Soccer Source’s depth chart of American left backs:

 

1.) Chris Klute (Colorado Rapids)

Chris Klute is a two-way left back and an excellent tackler and 1v1 marker with exceptional athleticism in a tall lean frame.

Klute is remarkably fast (even by international soccer standards), and Klute runs a 4.3 40-yard dash time. Just for comparison, Bo Jackson ran a 4.12, and Deion Sanders ran a 4.2.

While Klute is known for his speed, he excels at tracking down attackers and tackling them without fouling them. He uses his great vertical leap to clear out crosses and passes played over the top of the defense, and he is good at clearing balls out of the danger zone, if there isn’t the time or space to dribble or pass the ball out of the back.

Klute uses his dribbling and speed as a weapon to disrupt defenses when he makes his frequent marauding runs down the left sideline, and he can cross with either foot or cut inside toward the middle of the field to play passes or shoot with either foot.

In short, Klute is the most complete American left back on the radar screen, but he is inexperienced at the international level. The best thing Jürgen Klinsmann can do is to let him start games to start gaining experience and go through the process of learning from mistakes before the 2014 World Cup.

 

2.) Fabian Johnson (Hoffenheim)

Fabian Johnson was discussed above in the introductory section. Johnson is a Bundesliga left back who is a more gifted soccer player and attacker than he is a gifted defender. Johnson has likely been made a left back because of his left foot.

For a national team that lacks left backs, Johnson is a fairly safe choice to be entrusted with the left back position because he possesses the skill-level and athleticism to not be victimized or easily dispossessed by top national teams. Nevertheless, Johnson is not a particular aggressive or noteworthy tackler or 1v1 defender.

 

3.) Jonathan Spector (Birmingham City) & Eric Lichaj (Nottingham Forest)

These two players are essentially a tie, and so together they are ranked as third, due to the lack of left backs in the American player pool.

Jonathan Spector and Eric Lichaj are lumped together because they are two right backs who can play as left backs, and both players are more experienced international and club defenders that DeAndre Yedlin and Andrew Farrell listed below.

Yedlin and Farrell might be better, but Spector and Lichaj are outside backs who are experienced in the English Premier League and at the international level; Spector is the more experienced and proven of the two.

When selecting four outside backs, the United States will likely have to pick two or three outside backs who are right backs but who can play as left backs.

 

4.) DeAndre Yedlin (Seattle Sounders) & Andrew Farrell (New England Revolution)

Like Lichaj and Spector, both Yedlin and Farrell are listed together, but they are given the unscientific collective ranking of fourth.

World Soccer Source ranked two players at third and two players at fourth, in order to form two groups of more-experienced and less-experienced players.When using right backs as left backs, it’s difficult to distinguish two similar players who have a somewhat equal level of skill and experience.

Yedlin and Farrell were discussed in detail in World Soccer Source’s article about the depth chart at right back.  Both players are young, modern, two-way outside backs who can attack and defend equally-well. Both players are exceptionally fast, and both players are very technically-skilled.

Along with Klute, they are a new crop of American outside backs who seem to have more of the tools to be legitimate international-caliber outside backs who can perform against top national teams. All three players lack international experience, and it will be interesting to see how they compare to one another on the international-level.

It’s hard to imagine that all three wouldn’t be incorporated into the United States Men’s National Team now that the U.S. has qualified for the 2014 World Cup in Brazil.

On a side note, it would be interesting to see who the fastest of the three young outside backs is, but Klute looks to be the fastest.

 

*Another Outside Back to Watch: Kellyn Acosta 

 

Conclusion:

The United States Men’s National Team has the option of calling up Chris Klute and Fabian Johnson to play as left backs, and the likely best option for four outside backs in total on a roster is to call up Klute, Johnson, Yedlin, and Spector, with Farrell being listed as a center back.

 

Depth Chart: USMNT Right Backs

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USMNT Depth Chart: Right Backs

 

1.) Jonathan Spector (Birmingham City; 34 international appearances)

Considering the injury to Steve Cherundolo, Jonathan Spector is the American right back with the most proven-ability against high-level competition.

While still under 30 years old, Spector has played in England for years, and he’s shown his ability to defend and attack from the right back position at the international level.

Unlike DeAndre Yedlin or Andrew Farrell, Spector is the American right back with the most experience and proven ability, excluding Cherundolo. Spector is tall, mobile, skilled on the ball, sound defensively, and experienced against international-caliber players.

If Jürgen Klinsmann wants to use a right back who has the experience and skill to be ready to play right now, then Spector is the obvious choice until Cherundolo has returned from injury.

 

2.) DeAndre Yedlin (Seattle Sounders)

In many ways, DeAndre Yedlin represents the first American right back who has the tools and playing style of a modern outside back. Yedlin is just 20 years old, but he’s already distinguished himself from other MLS right backs (with the exception of Andrew Farrell) by his marauding runs down the sideline and his ability to dribble and pass his way out of the back with both feet.

Yedlin’s defense is better than he gets credit for, and his tackling and tracking down of opponents show good defensive fundamentals. Technically, Yedlin has demonstrated that his touch and ball control will translate to the international level.

Yedlin will soon be the best American right back unless Andrew Farrell has something to say about it.

 

2.) Andrew Farrell (New England Revolution)

Andrew Farrell was discussed in World Soccer Source’s previous article coving the depth of the center backs in the American player pool, but Farrell has been playing as a right back this season in MLS.

Strong, fast, and a good tackler, Farrell’s technical ability is good, and he can defend as well as he attacks. Right now, one would have to say that Farrell’s defending is better than that of Yedlin, so Farrell and Yedlin are somewhat equal as right backs.

Only time will tell if Yedlin or Farrell is a better right back, or if Farrell is better suited to play as a center back. Either way, World Soccer Source would be surprised to see Brad Evans outperform Andrew Farrell or DeAndre Yedlin on the international level.

 

4.) Eric Lichaj (Nottingham Forest; 8 international appearances)

Eric Lichaj has played in enough games for the United States Men’s National Team that it’s understandable for many people to consider him a better right back than Yedlin and Farrell, but the two younger American right backs look faster, better, and more promising.

Nevertheless, Lichaj has demonstrated that he should have been playing as a right back for the United States whenever he was available, and Jürgen Klinsmann’s insistence on freezing Lichaj out of the American roster is inexcusable.

Without a doubt, Lichaj is an international-caliber right back who has all of the tools to play for the United States. Klinsmann’s refusal to call up Eric Lichaj is a total mystery considering Lichaj’s international and club resume combined with his youth.

 

Conclusion:

While it’s unclear how interested Timothy Chandler really is in playing for the United States, Klinsmann’s exclusion of Jonathan Spector and Eric Lichaj from the roster is baffling, especially since Steve Cherundolo is injured.

Klinsmann can justify not having incorporated Yedlin and Farrell yet because the U.S. hadn’t qualified for the World Cup until this week, but the choice to use Brad Evans over both Jonathan Spector and Eric Lichaj looked like just poor coaching and roster selection on Klinsmann’s part. Klinsmann will claim that his coaching decisions worked since the U.S. qualified for the World Cup, but the competition was poor.