Jermaine Jones is too talented, too athletic, and too valuable to drop from the United States Men’s National Team roster, but Jürgen Klinsmann needs to use the time before the 2014 World Cup to build up some strong chemistry between Geoff Cameron and Michael Bradley as a two-man defensive midfield partnership.
Jones’ talent is undeniably, and he displays a level of size and athleticism that is impressive even by world football standards. Despite these realities, Cameron and Bradley seem to perform remarkable better as a two-man defensive midfield, even if they only started together in one game in this capacity.
Despite some criticism of the two defensive midfielders from the media, for this writer, Cameron performed quite well with Jones when the two started together in a World Cup qualifying lose to Costa Rica in September of 2013.
Many observers feel that Jones needs to always be the more stay at home defensive midfielder so that Bradley can be more involved in the attack, but Jones doesn’t necessarily need to just hang back deeper when he plays, as he should also be allowed to pick and choose his opportunities to advance forward in the attack.
The problem with the Bradley and Jones partnership is that Jones often doesn’t drop back to cover for Bradley when Bradley makes marauding runs, but Jones should still be able to make his own runs with the confidence that Bradley will cover for him defensively.
While the American defense has been a problem for the United States Men’s National Team, the midfield has also been an enormous problem because the U.S. hasn’t showcased quality passing and combination play at a level that’s good enough for a deep World Cup run.
Setting the defense to the side for the moment, the American midfield is something that can be examined with some basic math.
Normally, a World Cup roster would have eight or perhaps nine midfielders, with three or four of those players being defensive midfielders. If one accepts that Bradley, Jones, Donovan, Diskerud, and Dempsey should all be on the USMNT roster, then three midfield spots are open.
Any honest evaluation of the United States Men’s National Team’s player pool in the midfield reveals Michael Bradley, Jermaine Jones, Landon Donovan, and Clint Dempsey to be players that are probably just too talented and way too capable of playing well against strong competition to leave off the roster.
Therefore, if one looks to add another defensive midfielder to that list, a player like Kyle Beckerman is too big of a liability from an athletic standpoint to put on a World Cup roster.
Beckerman isn’t just a player who isn’t quite quick enough or fast enough to put on a World Cup roster, but he is a player that is totally overmatched in terms of speed, quickness, and agility to really compete outside of MLS and CONCACAF.
Given this reality, the United States needs an additional defensive midfielder on the roster, and the only options are Maurice Edu, Amobi Okugo, Ricardo Clark, Perry Kitchen, Jared Jeffrey, Will Trapp, or Jeremy Hall.
Of course, Geoff Cameron, who has been listed as a defender, can play the midfield destroyer probably better than any American except Bradley, and Cameron has the defensive skills, the technical ability, and the athleticism to perform at the World Cup.
Additionally, another option would be to list Shane O’Neill as a midfielder, in which case he could play as a defensive midfielder, as a center back, or as an outside back.
O’Neill is probably a better defensive midfielder than all of the options listed above with the exception of Cameron, but selecting Beckerman to represent the United States in a World Cup would be a very unrealistic expectation of his ability to really keep up with the speed of international play.
With this information in mind, selecting Shane O’Neill to be the third defensive midfielder along with Bradley and Jones would likely be the wisest course of action, even if many people view it as a risky or crazy selection. O’Neill proved his worth not only in MLS but also for Tab Ramos’s U-20 side.
Turning to the attacking midfielders, by selecting Dempsey and Donovan, the United States is left with two to three roster spots for attacking midfielders, and Mix Diskerud, Joe Corona, and Benny Feilhaber stand out as players who have clearly shown that they have the tools to play at the international level with players like Bradley, Dempsey, and Donovan.
Whether one looks at Brad Davis, Graham Zusi, or Alejandro Bedoya, any realistic examination of the touch, vision, passing ability, and general playing style and technical ability reveals them to be quite a few levels below Diskerud, Corona, and Feilhaber in terms of their ability to receive and release the ball quickly enough to not be overrun by better national teams.
Based on the number of roster spots in the midfield, by selecting Bradley, Jones, O’Neill, Dempsey, Donovan, Feilhaber, Corona, and Diskerud, the USMNT has eight players who fulfill needed roles.
Players like Bradley, Jones, and O’Neill provide defensive coverage in the midfield and serve as passing outlets for the defenders, and they also are key elements to the midfielders’ ability to pass well and keep possession.
With these players providing quality defending and excellent technical ability directly in front of the defense, the need is then to have attacking midfielders who can foster quality passing that leads to possession and the creation of goal-scoring opportunities.
Dempsey, Donovan, and Corona are all attacking midfielders who can play centrally, out right, or out left, but Donovan and Dempsey are really better suited to line up out wide with lots of freedom to roam or as second strikers with the same freedom.
On the other hand, Corona is also a true playmaker like Diskerud and Feilhaber, and the inclusion of Dempsey, Donovan, Corona, Diskerud, and Feilhaber on the roster gives the USMNT many line-up options in the midfield in front of the defensive midfielders.
Even Feilhaber and Diskerud are capable of playing on the right or on the left because their style of play is predicated on showing for the ball and moving into space wherever they are needed.
Any brand of soccer based on confining attacking midfielders to a specific side of the attacking half or the attacking third eliminates any fluidity or quality to the passing play of the team.
Diskerud, Corona, and Feilhaber are players who allow the United States to field a Front Six where players with excellent technical ability, creativity, and agility can play in front of defensive midfielders like Jones and Bradley who provide a combination of defensive ability, running endurance, and passing ability that the attacking midfielders don’t have.
When it comes time to select midfielders for the USMNT’s World Cup roster, players like O’Neill, Diskerud, Corona, and Feilhaber are needed both as support and as substitutes for players like Bradley, Jones, Dempsey, and Donovan.
Diskerud’s international play in recent months seems to have convinced the American soccer media and the American fan base of his importance as a playmaker, and the play of Feilhaber and Corona for club and country greatly overshadows anything Brad Davis, Graham Zusi, or Alejandro Bedoya have ever done.
Stuart Holden showed just how important a complete midfielder can be for the United States, and young or not, Benji Joya is the only other midfielder in the American player pool who brings Holden’s combination of attacking and defending to the midfield.
While Michael Bradley is often described as a box-to-box midfielder, his attacking ability and creativity aren’t on par with Holden’s or Joya’s, and this is why Joya would be an inspired and needed selection for the 2014 World Cup.
Like it or not, there’s no room for Zusi, Davis, Bedoya, or Kljestan on the USMNT’s World Cup roster because they can’t outplay Diskerud, Corona, Feilhaber, Joya, and O’Neill.
Jozy Altidore, Aron Jóhannsson, and Juan Agudelo will need attacking midfielders and playmakers who can provide them with the service they need to score in the World Cup, and the likes of Davis, Zusi, and Bedoya just don’t match up to the U.S.’ better attacking midfielders that have proven that they can perform at a higher level.
To explain this gap in skill more clearly for the purpose of avoiding any misunderstanding, consider the following:
If Bradley, Dempsey, or Donovan are injured or suspended, the United States will need players like Shane O’Neill, Joe Corona, Mix Diskerud, Benny Feilhaber, and Benji Joya to compete against quality opposition.
On the off chance that Bradley, Dempsey, and Donovan couldn’t play, the U.S. could field a Front Six made up of O’Neill, Joya, Corona, Diskerud, Feilhaber, and Altidore and still be competitive, but the same thing couldn’t be said of fielding Jones, Kljestan, Bedoya, Zusi, Davis, and Altidore.
The collective thinking of the American soccer media and the American fan base is largely a parroting of Jürgen Klinsmann’s own opinions, and the reason that this is so is because many people feel that Klinsmann’s playing resume makes his coaching decisions infallible.
This refusal to question Klinsmann’s selections or to evaluate players based on their physical gifts and skills is probably the root of the problem of the United States’ tendency to underperform as far as the quality of the soccer goes.
Many people use Klinsmann’s win/loss record as evidence of the success of his methods and of his player selections, but consistent winning against better national teams requires improving the United States’ quality of play, and the steady improvement of Bradley, Dempsey, and Altidore has nothing to do with Klinsmann.
The collective skill-level of the players on the national team is directly related to the ability of the United States to begin to consistently challenge and beat better national teams.
If you were to ask a cross section of American soccer journalists who they thought should be the midfielders on the roster, you would likely find that the responses were consistent with whichever players Klinsmann had most recently called up to the national team.
Therefore, the collective thinking is probably that Michael Bradley, Jermaine Jones, Kyle Beckerman, Landon Donovan, Clint Dempsey, Graham Zusi, Mix Diskerud, and Fabian Johnson should be the USMNT’s midfielders, but Beckerman and Zusi can be immediately removed from the roster in favor of Corona and O’Neill, Okugo, Kitchen, or Edu.
The problem with the collective thinking is that if Bradley, Donovan, or Dempsey is unavailable for a game, then the national team is without viable substitutes.
By putting Feilhaber, Corona, and Diskerud on the roster, you ensure that those three players are available to allow the United States to pass well and create scoring chances.
While the collective thinking is that Bradley, Jones, Beckerman, Dempsey, Donovan, Zusi, Diskerud, and F. Johnson should be the USMNT’s midfielders, World Soccer Source believes that Bradley, Jones, O’Neill, Joya, Dempsey, Donovan, Corona, Feilhaber, and Diskerud represent a group of players who have the tools necessary to compete in the World Cup.
The decision is yours, but there isn’t any real evidence that Zusi and Beckerman can outperform talented and proven players like Corona, Feilhaber, Joya, or O’Neill against higher-level competition.
Then, there’s always Freddy Adu who has shown the ability to open up games and create scoring chances against top competition. Not a bad option to put on the roster given the lack of technical ability and creativity on the United States Men’s National Team.
Can Graham Zusi and Alejandro Bedoya really outplay Freddy Adu? The evidence says they can’t.
The good thing about Adu is that he can be listed as a forward in place of Terrence Boyd, which gives the USMNT four forwards: Jozy Altidore, Juan Agudelo, Aron Jóhannsson, and Freddy Adu.
This group of players leaves 10 rosters spots open for seven defenders and three goalkeepers, and O’Neill and Cameron triple as center backs, as defensive midfielders, and as outside backs.
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.
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
Geoff Cameron (20) allows Michael Bradley to be more involved in the attack. (Photo: USA Today Sports)
Geoff Cameron and Michael Bradley should be the starting USMNT defensive midfield tandem with Cameron playing the midfield destroyer role and Bradley playing the box-to-box role.
Brazil uses this exact system of starting a midfield destroyer with a box-to-box midfielder, as do many other top national teams and club teams, and it works quite well.
While seeing U.S. center backs with the skill, size, and athleticism of John Anthony Brooks and Geoff Cameron against Bosnia and Herzegovina was a promising sign of improvement for the United States, Cameron can likely help the United States more by playing the midfield destroyer role, which allows Bradley more license to attack than the Jermaine Jones and Michael Bradley tandem.
Cameron as the midfield destroyer helps protect the USMNT’s defensive back four, in addition to giving the U.S. a skilled passer who can help the U.S. to maintain possession and pass better against better teams. Bradley would still play a lot of defense as a box-to-box midfielder, but using Cameron allows Bradley to venture far enough up field to play final balls closer to goal, as opposed to having to play most of his final balls from a deeper position.
While Bradley wouldn’t be playing as a playmaker and Cameron wouldn’t just be playing defense, the Cameron and Bradley tandem allows for Bradley to receive more defensive coverage from an athletic player who is a good passer and calm on the ball.
Starting Geoff Cameron over Jermaine Jones is important because both Bradley and Jones like to play more box-to-box roles when they are playing for the United States, and both players are constantly looking to advance into the final third, which leaves a hole in front of the defensive back four. This hole allows the opposition to play balls behind the American defense either by playing balls over the top of the defense or by playing incisive through balls.
Since Cameron is more willing to play deeper, he is a better choice to partner with Bradley because Cameron provides more defense without a drop in technical ability and passing quality. Cameron is a complete midfielder who brings skill on the ball, strong tackling, lots of running, one-to-two touch play, and good positional sense.
With Cameron being the gatekeeper that guards the space between the two center backs, he is able to also direct passing from the back, which in turn allows Bradley more freedom to attack.
This set-up allows for four more attack-minded players in front of Cameron and Bradley, and this gives the United States a balanced midfield that passes and defends well in addition to generating scoring chances and goals.
Jermaine Jones is a highly-skilled two-way Champions League and Bundesliga midfielder who brings a lot of qualities, but the chemistry between Cameron and Bradley is better because each player has a clear understanding of his role.
If Jürgen Klinsmann wants Jones and Bradley starting, then perhaps he should start both of them as box-to-box midfielders in front of Cameron in a midfield diamond with a playmaker at the tip of the diamond.
Both Jermaine Jones and Michael Bradley are capable of setting up goals and helping the United States to maintain possession, so using Cameron, Bradley, and Jones together is possible because it gives the United States technically-skilled central midfielders who all defend very well.
If all three of these players are started, then their skills need to be balanced by using a playmaker and two strikers or by using two attacking midfielders plus a first striker. This would allow the USMNT’s Front Six to not be somewhat overly-defensive. Adding Joe Benny Corona, Clint Dempsey, and Jozy Altidore to the Front Six to balance out the use of Geoff Cameron, Jermaine Jones, and Michael Bradley would be one way to balance the line-up.
Cameron, Bradley, Jones, Corona, Dempsey, and Altidore would be a strong combination of players in front of the defense with the tools necessary to compete against top national teams and beat them.
Geoff Cameron (20) allows Michael Bradley to attack more. Can Jermaine Jones, Michael Bradley, and Geoff Cameron start at the same time? (Photo: AP/Rick Bowmer)
Jürgen Klinsmann announced the United States Men’s National Team roster to face Bosnia-Herzegovina on Wednesday that is made up of proven international players, new international players, and less experienced but stand out performers from the Gold Cup.
While the group of players that Klinsmann has selected contains a good balance of defensive and attacking midfielders in addition to a talented group of strikers, the defensive selections make it harder to predict who will start.
It’s unclear which goalkeeper will start for the United States, but Klinsmann has elected to go with the best two American goalkeepers in Tim Howard and Brad Guzan, in addition to Cody Cropper, the starting goalkeeper from the U-20 ranks.
The selections at right back would appear to be Michael Parkhurst, Brad Evans, Michael Orozco, and Geoff Cameron, but Parkhurst, Orozco, and Cameron are also center backs. Additionally, Cameron is a defensive midfielder who put in a commanding performance at midfield destroyer against Panama in World Cup qualifying, which allowed Michael Bradley more freedom to go forward more with the attack.
Right back is anyone’s guess. Will Klinsmann use Cameron at right back because he plays there for Stoke, or will Klinsmann elect to use Cameron at center back or at the midfield destroyer role?
Klinsmann used Evans at right back in recent World Cup qualifying games and friendlies, but Klinsmann used Parkhurst as the right back in the Gold Cup. This writer thinks that Parkhurst will receive the start at right back.
Center back is more guesswork as well. Michael Orozco showed excellent technical ability along with good athleticism and defending in the Gold Cup, so perhaps Orozco starts at center back along with Cameron. Despite Cameron’s excellent showing as the midfield destroyer where he showed that he was more willing to stay back than Jermaine Jones, the Bradley and Jones tandem as defensive midfielders of the more box-to-box variety seems to be Klinsmann’s duo of choice.
It will be interesting to see if John Anthony Brooks sees any playing time at center back against Bosnia, or perhaps Klinsmann will start him and toss him into the deep end to get him some experience with the USMNT. Playing for the United States cannot be any more pressure than playing in the Bundesliga, but Brooks is young and new to the team.
Fabian Johnson is listed as a midfielder, so perhaps Klinsmann plans to start Edgar Castillo at left back with Fabian Johnson playing as a left winger. When Castillo makes overlapping runs, then Johnson and the defensive midfielders will be there to cover for the space left by Castillo.
Turning to the Front Six, Klinsmann has a variety of choices. He can start Bradley and Jones as the two defensive midfielders, or he could possibly use Cameron as a midfield destroyer with both Jones and Bradley in front of him as box-to-box midfielders. Choosing this second option would alter the defensive back four, and it would likely mean that Fabian Johnson would be moved to left back, as there wouldn’t be space for a left wing with a diamond midfield formation containing Cameron, Bradley, Jones, and a playmaker.
On the other hand, if Bradley and Jones start as the defensive midfielders, then Klinsmann will likely use a line of three attacking midfielders in front of them. If Klinsmann does this, then perhaps the line of three attacking midfielders would be Joe Benny Corona out right, Mix Diskerud in the center, and Fabian Johnson out left.
Jozy Altidore is Klinsmann’s first-choice striker, so Altidore will likely start against Bosnia. Perhaps, another striker will start, but it seems likely that Klinsmann will use the other strikers as substitutes.
Another scenario to consider is one in which either Corona or Diskerud would start in the midfield but not both, and Eddie Johnson and Fabian Johnson would start as the two wingers, even though Eddie Johnson isn’t a winger.
Looking at all of players and positions discussed above, there are a number of possible line-ups that Klinsmann might use. Below are several options:
**NOTE: After the publication of this article, U.S. Soccer announced that Michael Orozco Fiscal withdrew from the USMNT camp due to a hamstring injury.
Chris Klute (arms raised). (Photo: USA Today SPORTS)
Making an improved 23-man USMNT roster is much easier than choosing the best Starting XI.
The primary difficulty now is not finding quality American players but rather cutting the pool down to 23 players and deciding how many new players should receive roster spots.
Any national team roster normally contains three goalkeepers, four outside backs, four center backs, 4 defensive midfielders, four attacking midfielders, and four forwards, but frequently players can play more than one position so the amount of players at each position can vary.
At goalkeeper, Tim Howard and Brad Guzan are clearly the best two American goalkeepers (excluding Brad Friedel), and the only decision for Jürgen Klinsmann to make is who the the third goalkeeper should be. Maybe it should be Nick Rimando or some other goalkeeper like Clint Irwin, Dan Kennedy, Tally Hall, Sean Johnson, or Luis Robles, but perhaps Cody Cropper or some other young goalkeeper should receive the third goalkeeper spot.
When selecting center backs, a wise decision would be to have four center backs. The primary center backs to choose from for the USMNT are Geoff Cameron, George John, Omar Gonzalez, Michael Orozco, Michael Parkhurst, Tim Ream, and Matt Besler. These center backs are some of the more experienced center backs that aren’t too slow for or not skilled-enough for international play.
Additionally, there are younger center backs like Shane O’Neill, Andrew Farrell, Amobi Okugo, Gale Agbossoumonde, and Caleb Stanko who are worthy of a look. Assuming John Anthony Brooks plays for the United States, which isn’t definite, he also has to be strongly considered as a front-runner for one of the four spots.
Therefore, at center back, the coaching staff of the USMNT has at least 12 players to look at without doing more extensive scouting of all of the other options.
When choosing four center backs, the final decision comes down to deciding which center backs have the defensive instincts and fundamentals combined with the technical ability and athleticism to realistically be able to compete at the international level.
Outside back is an area of some concern for the United States. Without any exploration of new players, the obvious starting point is to choose from Eric Lichaj, Jonathan Spector, Timothy Chandler, and Fabian Johnson, but then one has to strongly consider new players like Chris Klute, DeAndre Yedlin, and Andrew Farrell. Furthermore, Steve Cherundolo when healthy is still likely the best American outside back.
The United States has several quality defensive midfielders, and Michael Bradley, Jermaine Jones, Geoff Cameron, and Maurice Edu are the first names that come to mind. There are additionally some MLS defensive midfielders like Perry Kitchen, Jared Jeffrey, and Jeremy Hall who need to be looked at.
Without even including Shane O’Neill and Caleb Stanko, who were listed above in the center back section, Jürgen Klinsmann has seven defensive midfielders to choose from for four spots.
Just looking at this list of defensive midfielders, Bradley, Jones, Cameron, and one other player are the obvious choices.
At the very least, Bradley, Jones, Cameron, and Edu are a good starting point unless Klinsmann is willing to pick one of the newer defensive midfielders instead of Edu.
Benji Joya falls in between the realm of the defensive midfielders and the attacking midfielders. Joya is somewhat more of an attacking midfielder than he is a defensive midfielder, even though he has stated that he is a holding midfielder. Joya has also stated that he can play a variety of positions. A young, complete midfielder like Joya is another name that deserves serious consideration for the USMNT because he can bring defensive coverage and excellent passing and attacking skills to the American midfield.
The decisions now are attacking decisions.
For a country that has a reputation for not having very technically-skilled players, the United States has more quality attacking midfielders than it has roster spots. Clint Dempsey and Landon Donovan should be obvious choices, and then the team realistically needs to select two playmakers. The obvious group of playmakers to choose from includes Benny Feilhaber, Joe Benny Corona, Mix Diskerud, and Freddy Adu.
While contending that Corona and Diskerud should be the playmakers on the roster is a logical and good decision, both Feilhaber and Adu have demonstrated their ability to perform well against strong opponents in international play.
Choosing Feilhaber should be a much easier choice than it appears to be for Klinsmann because Feilhaber has an excellent track record at the international level, and his comfort on the ball, passing ability, set piece taking, and his excellent shooting skills are quite evident.
Nevertheless, Corona and Diskerud have recently shown their ability to bring strong playmaking qualities to the United States, but of all of the playmakers, Feilhaber has the most international experience and the most proven-ability on the international level.
Additionally, the USMNT has wingers like Brek Shea and Joe Gyau in the player pool who can bring speed and skill as well attacking strength out wide.
At striker, the United States actually has more than four capable and effective strikers. The player pool includes Jozy Altidore, Juan Agudelo, Terrence Boyd, Eddie Johnson, Herculez Gomez (injured), and the pool has newer strikers like Mario Rodriguez, José Villarreal, Alonso Hernandez, Gyasi Zardes, Teal Bunbury, Aron Jóhannsson, and Tony Taylor. With the exception of Villarreal, those are all first strikers including Tony Taylor, but a roster normally has four forwards who are not always just first strikers.
The goal is to close the gap with the world’s best national teams, and Jürgen Klinsmann’s roster selections always contain way too many players that are solid at the club level but lacking that next level of skill and athleticism needed to do battle with elites and magicians.
The next step for Jürgen Klinsmann should be to at least call up all of his players with the most proven-ability at the international level, and he also needs to play them together. The starting line-up of proven-players would be something like this formation below:
Tim Howard; Jonathan Spector, Michael Orozco, Maurice Edu, Fabian Johnson; Geoff Cameron, Michael Bradley; Landon Donovan, Benny Feilhaber, Clint Dempsey; Jozy Altidore.
On the other hand, if the USMNT was willing to use more inexperienced players in the defense to try and improve the level of play of the United States, then perhaps this line-up below would be a good place to start:
Landon Donovan and Clint Dempsey (8) should start together. (Photo: MexSport)
Jürgen Klinsmann should start Clint Dempsey and Landon Donovan together as outside attacking midfielders as opposed to starting one or the other as a second striker because both would be free to roam in support of Jozy Altidore.
Players like Dempsey and Donovan are hard to categorize as players who play just one position, and starting both together is the best thing that Klinsmann can do to immediately improve the USMNT’s attack.
Donovan’s and Dempsey’s positions on paper are irrelevant as long as they have more defensive midfielders like Geoff Cameron and Michael Bradley behind them along with a natural playmaker like Joe Benny Corona starting in an advanced position.
There are new players like Benji Joya who could contribute to the USMNT as a box-to-box midfielder, but starting Geoff Cameron and Michael Bradley behind a line of three attacking midfielders (Landon Donovan, Joe Benny Corona, and Clint Dempsey) is a good first step for Klinsmann to revert back to taking advantage of two talents like Dempsey and Donovan, as opposed to having Graham Zusi play out of position as an outside midfielder and/or winger.
Bob Bradley enjoyed his best success when he started a playmaker along with Clint Dempsey and Landon Donovan together as the left and right midfielders. The playmaker, who was Benny Feilhaber, allowed Dempsey and Donovan to have a player with whom they could not only combine but also who could play them final balls and quality passes in the final third.
One of the best qualities about Dempsey and Donovan is that they are players who adapt to the game they’re in and they go wherever the game dictates that they go, so their actual position on paper is largely irrelevant with Bradley and Cameron or Bradley and Jones behind them, not to mention the defensive back four.
As mentioned above, there are a lot of new players in the American player pool that deserve to play some sort of role for the United States or even start, but Klinsmann should make sure that he starts both Donovan and Dempsey together in the next game and games, in order to establish some better attacking play for the United States Men’s National Team.
Klinsmann learned a lot in the Gold Cup, but the most important thing that he learned was that players like Joe Benny Corona and Mix Diskerud bring better playmaking qualities to the team than Bradley, Cameron, Jones, Dempsey, and Donovan bring.
Whoever Klinsmann decides to start in the USMNT back four, starting Donovan and Dempsey at the same time with a playmaker in between them is the first step in establishing the exact style of soccer than Klinsmann is looking for.
In the coming weeks and months, Klinsmann and the United States will need to determine which players deserve roster spots and which new players possibly deserve starting line-up spots, but certainly using some sort of playmaker from the Gold Cup along with Cameron, Bradley, Donovan, Dempsey, and Altidore is the best way to continue to improve the team.
The coaching staff of the United States should work hard to incorporate new talent into the roster and decide who else should be on the roster besides Cameron, Bradley, Jones, Donovan, Corona, Diskerud, Dempsey and Altidore, but starting a Front Six of Cameron, Bradley, Donovan, Corona, Donovan, and Altidore should be the first step toward improving the balance, skill-level, and effectiveness of the United States.
Jürgen Klinsmann should at least start with this USMNT Front Six in the following 4-2-3-1 formation:CAMERON, BRADLEY; DONOVAN, CORONA, DEMPSEY; ALTIDORE.
Guessing who Jürgen Klinsmann will select for the USMNT roster to face Bosnia-Herzegovina is impossible because there are too many factors that come into play, including his personal opinion of players and what his goals are. World Soccer Source’s guess at a possible Klinsmann USMNT roster can be found at the bottom of the page.
On the other hand, World Soccer Source would like to see a combination of the players from the Gold Cup and World Cup qualifying, in addition to some new players to strengthen the United States Men’s National Team at various positions.
Below is the roster that World Soccer Source would like to see called up to face Bosnia-Herzegovina, and it contains more than 23 players:
WSS USMNT ROSTER PROPOSAL VS. BOSNIA
GOALKEEPERS (3): Tim HOWARD, Brad GUZAN, Luis ROBLES.
DEFENDERS (8): Shane O’NEILL, Michael OROZCO, Gale AGBOSSOUMONDE, Andrew FARRELL; DeAndre YEDLIN, Chris KLUTE, Kofi SARKODIE, Eric LICHAJ.
FORWARDS (5): Jozy ALTIDORE, Terrence BOYD, Mario RODRIGUEZ, José VILLARREAL, Gyasi ZARDES.
*Injured- Juan AGUDELO
Based on World Cup qualifying and the 2013 Gold Cup, World Soccer Source believes this 23-man roster below is close to Jürgen Klinsmann’s first-choice team, with the exception of DeAndre Yedlin and Chris Klute who World Soccer Source believes Jürgen Klinsmann is close to calling up due to a need for outside backs:
Jürgen Klinsmann’s Likely USMNT Roster vs. Bosnia
GOALKEEPERS (3): Tim HOWARD, Brad GUZAN, Nick RIMANDO.
DEFENDERS (8): Matt BESLER, Omar GONZALEZ, Michael OROZCO, Clarence GOODSON, Timothy CHANDLER, DeAndre YEDLIN, Fabian JOHNSON, Chris KLUTE.
*It’s unclear whether John Anthony Brooks will be representing the United States.
MIDFIELDERS (8): Michael BRADLEY, Jermaine JONES, Geoff CAMERON, Clint DEMPSEY, Landon DONOVAN, Mix DISKERUD, Joe Benny CORONA, Graham ZUSI.
FORWARDS (4): Jozy ALTIDORE, Terrence BOYD, Eddie JOHNSON, Aron JÓHANNSSON.
In a new series, World Soccer Source will propose a hypothetical United States Men’s National Team Starting XI that could possible improve the play of the United States.
Additionally, World Soccer Source will propose a Starting XI that is likely the first-choice of the U.S. national team coach.
For August 2013, World Soccer Source proposes the following Starting XI in a 4-1-2-1-2 Formation:
GOALKEEPER: Tim HOWARD
RIGHT BACK: DeAndre YEDLIN
CENTER BACK: Andrew FARRELL
CENTER BACK: Shane O’NEILL
LEFT BACK: Chris KLUTE
MIDFIELD DESTROYER: Geoff CAMERON
BOX-TO-BOX MIDFIELDER: Michael BRADLEY
BOX-TO-BOX MIDFIELDER: Benji JOYA
CENTRAL ATTACKING MIDFIELDER: Joe Benny CORONA
SECOND STRIKER: Clint DEMPSEY
FIRST STRIKER: Jozy ALTIDORE
The Starting USMNT Starting XI Formation above would line up as follows:
Jürgen Klinsmann has repeatedly expressed his desire to play proactive, one-to-two touch soccer where the attack starts from the back. This Starting XI aims to do just that.
DeAndre Yedlin and Chris Klute as the right back and left back bring electrifying speed and excellent technical ability on the ball. Both players look to get forward and both players have the defensive skills in addition to the speed to strengthen the USMNT’s ability to defend out wide.
Andrew Farrell is naturally a center back who has been playing as a right back. His comfort on the ball and his willingness to pass and go forward have been seen by everyone watching MLS closely, and this combination of athleticism and the ability to pass and dribble out of the final third, not to mention his keen defensive instincts and defensive fundamentals, make him a legitimate option at center back.
Farrell’s center back partner should be Shane O’Neill. O’Neill has received widespread praise for his overall skill-set and his defensive positioning and abilities. Like Farrell, O’Neill can play more than one defensive position, and Tab Ramos has praised O’Neill as the type of center back that the USMNT needs to be using.
The Front Six requires less explaining.
Geoff Cameron’s athleticism, passing, tackling, and overall technical ability are well-known, and there was a general consensus that he was more willing to hang back deeper to play the midfield destroyer role than Jermaine Jones.
Michael Bradley has developed into more of a box-to-box midfielder than in years past, and pairing Bradley with another box-to-box midfielder like Benji Joya could bring a nice balance of better attacking and playmaker abilities (Joya) and tireless running combined with strong defensive abilities and excellent passing skills (Bradley).
To be clear, while both Joya and Bradley attack and defend, Joya is better at playing final balls and setting up goals than Bradley, and Bradley is better at covering more territory to maintain ball possession than Joya.
The combination of two box-to-box midfielders who excel at different things and who both have a midfield destroyer behind them will help the United States to win the battle of the midfield.
Joe Benny Corona has proven to Klinsmann that he is a viable goal-scoring playmaker that can bring playmaking abilities that Dempsey and Donovan don’t have. Corona is a necessary and vital link between players like Bradley and players like Dempsey and Altidore.
Klinsmann’s Possible USMNT XI:
Tim HOWARD; Timothy CHANDLER, Michael OROZCO, Matt BESLER, Fabian JOHNSON; Geoff CAMERON; Michael BRADLEY, Jermaine JONES; Clint DEMPSEY; Jozy ALTIDORE, Landon DONOVAN.
