John Anthony Brooks

Which American Defenders Are Good Enough For the World Cup?

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Chris Klute, the Best American Left Back. (Photo: Garrett Ellwood / Colorado Rapids)
Chris Klute, the Best American Left Back. (Photo: Garrett Ellwood / Colorado Rapids)

 

Using your best defenders regardless of age or international experience within reason is a customary and logical tactical game plan for competing in a World Cup.

Every national team in the world uses its best defenders either based on club performance, international performance, or skill-level regardless of their youth or lack of youth.

If the best American defenders are young players with plenty of club experience but not a wealth of international experience, then so be it. Soccer is a skill sport, and international experience doesn’t guarantee that defenders won’t make mistakes in a World Cup.

There are no guarantees in soccer; the best thing a national team can do is to play its best players.

Eight defenders is the traditional number of defenders for a national team roster, but seven defenders would suffice if some players double as center backs and as defensive midfielders.

This is precisely the case with Geoff Cameron and Shane O’Neill, the latter of whom really demonstrated throughout an entire season in Major League Soccer plus the U-20 World Cup that he was just as good if not better than Omar Gonzalez and Matt Besler.

The United States Men’s National Team likely has defenders who are good enough to hold their own and even excel at the 2014 World Cup.

While Neymar and the like are essentially unplayable, which means incapable of being marked, players below that level can be well-defended and marked by the USMNT with team defense.

Michael Bradley and Jermaine Jones or some other defensive midfielder in front of center backs like Geoff Cameron, John Anthony Brooks, or Michael Orozco should really be equipped to mostly contain much of the World Cup competition unless elite attackers really turn up the intensity and the style points, which almost no defender can contain anyway.

Whether it’s Cristiano Ronaldo, Lionel Messi, Mario Balotelli, Thomas Müller, or Neymar, players of that level are capable of victimizing and embarrassing any defender, so the best thing the United States can do is field the defenders with the defensive instincts and fundamentals, the athleticism, and the technical ability to perform well on the international level.

Matt Besler and Omar Gonzalez have done well as center backs under Jürgen Klinsmann, but Geoff Cameron, John Anthony Brooks, and Michael Orozco are likely better.

That would be five center backs on the roster unless one takes the view that Cameron and Orozco are doubling as outside backs. Furthermore, Shane O’Neill is an excellent center back, but he was listed as a defensive midfielder in World Soccer Source’s previous article on midfielders.

At this point, Brad Evans and DaMarcus Beasley have shown that they can do well enough as outside backs in a pinch, but starting them over natural outside backs or converted outside backs like Cameron is misguided.

Chris Klute, DeAndre Yedlin, and Andrew Farrell proved this season in MLS that they are likely the best outside backs available to the United States in addition to Eric Lichaj, Jonathan Spector, and Steve Cherundolo.

Fabian Johnson is also a capable outside back, but his defending and recovery defense seems outmatched by Farrell, Yedlin, and Klute. Johnson is an excellent player who attacks with speed and two-footed skill, but from a defensive standpoint, Farrell, Yedlin, and Klute are better defenders.

Farrell and Klute looked better than Yedlin from a defensive standpoint for most of the MLS season, but over the last few months of the season, Yedlin has evolved into an effective defender who has improved his ability to tackle and dispossess attackers.

Klute, Yedlin, and Farrell would be new to the United States Men’s National Team set-up, but that’s not a good enough reason to exclude them for players that are not only not as good but that are also being played out of position.

If the United States selects seven defenders with either Cameron or O’Neill listed as midfielders, then Brooks, Cameron, and Orozco add up to three defenders, and Yedlin, Farrell, and Klute make six defenders. The final spot should go to Eric Lichaj who is an experienced, young, and talented outside back that can play as a right or left back, and he has the club and international experience to be considered by and large a proven performer.

Omar Gonzalez, Matt Besler, Brad Evans, and DaMarcus Beasley didn’t make World Soccer Source’s list of preferred defenders for the World Cup, but Cameron, Brooks, and Orozco are all more complete center backs who aren’t a liability in terms of defending, speed, or technical ability.

Gonzalez isn’t quite as fast or as skilled defensively as any of those three, and Besler falls just slightly below Cameron, Brooks, and Orozco in terms of his overall package as a center back. Besler is certainly an upgrade from Carlos Bocanegra or Clarence Goodson, but anything that Besler can do, Cameron, Brooks, and Orozco can do better.

Shane O’Neill and Andrew Farrell are also better center backs than Gonzalez and Besler because there’s no weak area for O’Neill and Farrell as defenders. Both are tall, strong, fast, quick, and technically-skilled, and both are outstanding defenders who aggressively tackle without fouling.

Youth and international inexperience shouldn’t be qualities that disqualify Farrell, O’Neill, Yedlin, and Klute from the USMNT. All of these players were starters for their club teams for the entire season, and the international experience of Gonzalez, Besler, Beasley, and Evans as defenders was mostly against fairly weak competition.

The argument that many observers use for supporting Evans, Gonzalez, Besler, and Beasley as the starting Back Four is that they played for the United States during a nice winning streak, but the performance of all four of those players went down as the competition went up.

World Soccer Source would rather see USMNT defenders with the physical gifts and the tools to succeed against better competition, then just sticking with the status quo that looked shaky when the quality of the opposition went up.

With Shane O’Neill listed as a midfielder, Geoff Cameron, John Anthony Brooks, Michael Orozco, Andrew Farrell, Eric Lichaj, DeAndre Yedlin, and Chris Klute are the seven or really eight defenders that World Soccer Source believes have what it takes to perform at the 2014 World Cup.

Additionally, Gale Agbossoumonde is a center back prospect who is too promising to not be evaluated and seriously considered before the World Cup. Hypothetically, Agbossoumonde has everything one could ask for in a center back: excellent defensive instincts and fundamentals, refined technical ability with both feet, calmness, and great athleticism in a tall, strong physique.

As American soccer has continued to improve, it’s quite logical that newer American defenders are better than ones in the past. Major League Soccer has never seen a crop of defenders like O’Neill, Farrell, Yedlin, and Klute, and making them wait years for another World Cup is a waste of good talent that can help the United States to improve.

Starting a Back Four made up of DeAndre Yedlin, Shane O’Neill, Andrew Farrell, and Chris Klute with Geoff Cameron and Michael Bradley as the defensive midfielders is one of the boldest and best options for the United States in the 2014 World Cup, and another viable option would be to start Farrell, Cameron, Brooks, and Klute as the Back Four.

These are new Back Fours, but they are made up of better players than the Standard Klinsmann Back Four comprised of Evans, Gonzalez, Besler, and Beasley.

Finally, a Back Four comprised of Lichaj, Orozco, Brooks, and Klute with Cameron and Bradley as a two-man defensive midfield would be another option where basically everyone except Klute was experienced and by and large proven at the international level or at the high level of the Bundesliga in Brooks’ case.

 

Eight American Defenders Who Can Compete in the World Cup:

CENTER BACKS/DEFENSIVE MIDFIELDERS: Geoff CAMERON, Shane O’NEILL

CENTER BACKS: John Anthony BROOKS, Michael OROZCO, Andrew FARRELL.

OUTSIDE BACKS: Eric LICHAJ, DeAndre YEDLIN, Chris KLUTE, (Andrew FARRELL)

 

The USMNT Best XI: October 2013

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Coming into October of 2013, and since the United States has already qualified for the 2014 World Cup in Brazil, here is the Best Starting XI that Jürgen Klinsmann can start for the upcoming World Cup qualifiers in October.

Michael Bradley and John Anthony Brooks are currently injured with an ankle injury and elbow injury, respectively, but here is the best Starting XI that the United States could use, if both players are healthy in time.

This starting line-up combines proven-players with players who have shown a real ability to offer the United States Men’s National Team upgrades in certain areas, most notably in the defense and at the playmaker role.

The national team must keep starting its very best players like Clint Dempsey, Michael Bradley, Landon Donovan, and Jozy Altidore, but it should fill the rest of the starting line-up with new players with the tools to compete at the next level.

Here is World Soccer Source’s Best Starting XI for the upcoming World Cup qualifiers:

GOALKEEPER: Brad GUZAN

Chosing Brad Guzan over Tim Howard is a tough decision because Tim Howard excels at making game-saving stops that register high on the difficulty scale. There is some concern that Howard doesn’t always come off his line to collect balls played in the air fairly close to his own six-yard box, but goalkeepers are often judged too harshly. Nevertheless, it’s time to see if Guzan comes off his line better than Howard, and if Guzan is better at saving shots from distance than Howard is. Either way, this choice between two excellent keepers is a toss up, and until Guzan plays more, it will be hard to determine which keeper should start. Starting Guzan isn’t risky, nor is it a drop off in skill.

 

RIGHT BACK: DeAndre YEDLIN / Andrew FARRELL

The time for Jürgen Klinsmann to let DeAndre Yedlin or Andrew Farrell play right back is now. The United States has qualified for the 2014 World Cup, and both Farrell and Yedlin are better than Brad Evans. Both players are more technically-skilled than Evans, and both can stay with faster and more-skillful attackers better than Evans. Although Geoff Cameron can play right back quite well, Cameron has shown how he excels as a midfield destroyer with his tackling, passing, and running, so it’s better to let a natural and explosive outside back like Yedlin or Farrell play right back. Both Yedlin and Farrell are extremely fast and technically-skilled, but Farrell’s tackling is likely better than Yedlin’s (but Yedlin’s defense and tackling are quite good). Time will tell if Yedlin or Farrell is better or if they are just different, and time will tell if Farrell proves to be better suited to be a starting USMNT center back.

 

CENTER BACK: Shane O’NEILL

Just like DeAndre Yedlin and Andrew Farrell are legitimate options for the United States and likely upgrades at right back, Shane O’Neill is an upgrade at center back to both Omar Gonzalez and Matt Besler. O’Neill is a better defender and a better soccer player in general, and O’Neill possesses a complete skill-set that allows him to play better defense and pass and dribble out of trouble better than Gonzalez and Besler. Both Gonzalez and Besler have become familiar to American soccer fans, and the recent winning streak makes people afraid to accept the possibility that there is another level above that at which Besler and Gonzalez play.

 

CENTER BACK: John Anthony BROOKS

Assuming he’s healthy, John Anthony Brooks should start at left center back for the USMNT. Brooks is a starting center back for Hertha Berlin at 20 years old, and he was named to the Bundesliga Team of the Week twice already this season. These facts combined with his agility, size, skill on the ball, and athleticism are just too much to ignore, and Brooks showed that he was ready to play international soccer against top competition when he started against Bosnia and Herzegovina.

 

LEFT BACK: Chris KLUTE

Chris Klute is the best American left back in the American player pool. Klute offers better defending and more speed than Fabian Johnson or DaMarcus Beasley, and Klute is a constant attacking threat who creates a lot of goals. Klute’s defending and attacking skills combined with his athleticism (most notably his world-class speed) make him too good to not incorporate into the national team now. Skeptics will argue that Klute is inexperienced, but since any defender has the potential to make a mistake or be beaten in any game, the possibility that a new defender may be beaten a few times is just an irrational excuse to ignore a talented player at a position where the United States is weak.

 

DEFENSIVE MIDFIELDER: Geoff CAMERON

Geoff Cameron’s passing, tackling, skill on the ball, and tireless and smooth running make for an excellent midfield destroyer to patrol the back of the midfield, while Michael Bradley has more freedom to attack and drop back as he sees fit. Jermaine Jones also likes to participate in the attack when he plays for the United States, and starting Cameron over Jones prevents a hole from being left in front of the American defense.

 

BOX-TO-BOX MIDFIELDER: Michael BRADLEY

Michael Bradley is a defensive midfielder who was always skilled as a passer and as a defender, and his trademark was his ability to run for the full 90 minutes participating all over the field. Bradley’s passing and technical ability have progressively improved, and Bradley’s forays into the attack and his combination play with Clint Dempsey and Landon Donovan make him the ideal player to provide Cameron passing and defensive support deeper in the midfield, in addition to providing the link from Cameron to the attacking midfielders and strikers.

 

RIGHT MIDFIELDER: Landon DONOVAN

Landon Donovan’s skill-level and experience are a vital component of the USMNT, and using Clint Dempsey and Landon Donovan together as attacking midfielders gives the United States good passing and excellent attacking in the midfield. Donovan’s speed and his ability to score and set up goals are well-documented. Starting Dempsey and Donovan together should be a priority for Jürgen Klinsmann.

 

PLAYMAKER: Benny FEILHABER

Benny Feilhaber brings playmaking qualities that Clint Dempsey and Landon Donovan don’t have. Whereas Donovan and Dempsey are skilled-attackers who can score or help to create goals, Feilhaber is an actual playmaker who makes sure players like Jozy Altidore, Landon Donovan, and Clint Dempsey receive service when they make their runs in the final third. Feilhaber is a proven-performer, and he allows Dempsey and Donovan to focus on scoring goals and combining with Altidore, rather than being tasked with providing all of the playmaking responsibilities.

 

LEFT MIDFIELDER: Clint DEMPSEY

Whether Clint Dempsey is playing as an attacking midfielder out on the left or playing as a second striker, his role is a fluid role built around passing and moving throughout the attack in an effort to score or set up goals. As the best American soccer player ever and the most skilled American player now, Clint Dempsey is an obvious inclusion in any USMNT Starting XI that is looking to have the United States playing its best soccer.

 

STRIKER: Jozy ALTIDORE

Jozy Altidore has shown that he has blossomed into a more-refined striker with improved technical-skill and better movement off the ball; Altidore has also become a more aggressive striker and a more ruthless finisher who can score with both feet and his head. Altidore’s scoring drought with Sunderland is a product of no longer playing for a team like AZ Alkmaar that places a premium on quality passing and good technical play. Sunderland’s poor form doesn’t change the fact that Altidore has become a complete striker who brings skill, athleticism, and size to the front of the American attack.

 

USMNT Starting XI (4-2-3-1):

Guzan; Yedlin/Farrell, O’Neill, Brooks, Klute; Cameron, Bradley; Donovan, Feilhaber, Dempsey; Altidore.

 

Depth Chart: USMNT Center Backs

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The Center Back Depth Chart for the United States Men’s National Team:

 

1.) Geoff Cameron (Stoke City)

Geoff Cameron is a level above Jürgen Klinsmann’s current favorite American center backs: Matt Besler, Omar Gonzalez, and Clarence Goodson. Cameron’s smooth running and technical ability in a tall frame instill confidence that the United States no longer has to use center backs who are prey for international strikers.

There’s simply no way to watch Besler, Gonzalez, and Goodson in action and come to the conclusion that they have the same athleticism and defensive instincts and fundamentals as those of Geoff Cameron.

How else would Cameron be able to play as an outside back and as a defensive midfielder in the English Premier League?

Cameron is a superior soccer player in terms of his touch, technique, movement, and vision compared to Besler, Gonzalez, and Goodson, and Cameron’s tackling, defensive instincts, and agility make him a far more qualified center back to face off against better attackers. Cameron is more equipped to deal with attackers who come at him with tricks, changes of pace, speed, and movement off the ball than Klinsmann’s preferred center backs are. Cameron brings a defensive package of size, skill, and athleticism, and it’s very possible that his skills are better suited to play as a defensive midfielder.

 

2.) John Anthony Brooks (Hertha Berlin)

John Anthony Brooks starts for Hertha Berlin at 20 years old, and he’s fast, agile, technically-skilled, defensively-sound, comfortable on the ball, and 6’4.”

Looking toward the 2014 World Cup, Brooks possesses the tools needed to give the United States a center back that won’t be totally victimized by the better forwards and midfielders in the 2014 World Cup.

Jürgen Klinsmann played Brooks with Cameron against Bosnia and Herzegovina, and both players were only guilty of being beaten to headers by a few inches against two elite strikers when Cameron and Brooks had never played together before.

 

3.) Shane O’Neill (Colorado Rapids)

Shane O’Neill proved himself in the 2013 U-20 World Cup when he played against a stacked French national team that was loaded with extremely-skilled winners of the genetic lottery.

O’Neill performed well in a trial by fire, and his play in MLS this season has proven him to be a 20-year-old versatile defender who has all of the requisite tools to excel at the international level as a defender: skill, strong defensive fundamentals, agility, good instincts, smooth technical ability, size, and good athleticism.

O’Neill’s performances in MLS this season speak for themselves; all one has to do is watch his games on MLS Live. O’Neill proved he was ready for international play when he faced off against Yaya Sanogo of France and Arsenal. Any questions about O’Neill’s ability to mark a quick, fast, skilled, and tall freak of nature like Sanogo were answered in the U.S.’ tie against France in the 2013 U-20 World Cup.

 

4.) Andrew Farrell (New England Revolution)

Andrew Farrell brings skill on the ball, blazing speed, excellent tackling, a complete set of fundamentals, and impressive strength. Farrell has a ruthless streak in him where he chases down opponents and dispossesses them with hard but clean tackles where he frequently keeps possession of the ball and gets up to dribble off with it.

Farrell owes a big thank you to the Peruvians with whom he grew up who are probably the reason that rather than just being athletic and physically-imposing that he’s also technically smooth. Kick and run and boot ball are simple illegal in South America. That style of play was surely strongly discouraged in Peru.

Despite being a center back, Farrell has been playing as a right back, but Farrell can give the United States Men’s National Team a needed combination of speed and skill that has been lacking from the center of the American defense. Farrell passes and dribbles well out of the back, and he chases down opponents with no mercy.

Cameron and Brooks did well against Bosnia and Herzegovina, and it’s hard to imagine that players like Gonzalez, Goodson, and Besler would have been able to hold their own against players like Edin Dzeko. Farrell, like O’Neill and Brooks, is new, but his skill-set, speed, and controlled defensive aggressiveness are a level above those of Besler, Gonzalez, and Goodson.

 

Conclusion:

The center back rankings listed above do not mesh with the conventional wisdom of the American soccer media, but the center backs listed above have the tools necessary to give the United States more talented and athletic center backs with good defensive instincts and fundamentals. It’s better to be good than to just be experienced in recent CONCACAF games.

 

The USMNT Youth Movement

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A strong argument can be made that the best Starting XI for the United States Men’s National Team would look nothing like the ones that Jürgen Klinsmann has been using with the exception of Tim Howard, Geoff Cameron, Fabian Johnson, Michael Bradley, Clint Dempsey, Landon Donovan, and Jozy Altidore.

Those players along with Brad Guzan leave Jürgen Klinsmann and the USMNT 15 open roster spots to improve the U.S. national team.

There has been a fantastic youth movement over the last two years in the United States, and Juan Agudelo burst onto the scene a little before that time when he was only 17 years old.

The influx of new and better American players into Major League Soccer and other leagues is what the American soccer community has been waiting for. Making these new players wait to play for the national team is a poor long-term strategy and a poor strategy for the performance of the United States Men’s National Team now.

After the United States plays Mexico on Tuesday, Jürgen Klinsmann either needs to call in Jonathan Spector, Eric Lichaj, and Benny Feilhaber to play in the next World Cup qualifiers to give the United States experienced and proven players or he needs to start filling the roster with the better younger players. To be fair, Feilhaber, Spector, and Lichaj aren’t old players themselves.

The United States needs to shore up its national team all over the field, and the players to do this are currently in the American player pool. Players like Benji Joya, Chris Klute, DeAndre Yedlin, Andrew Farrell, John Anthony Brooks, and Shane O’Neill are the most pressing.

It shouldn’t be forgotten that Juan Agudelo, Joe Benny Corona, and Mix Diskerud are young players who have been included on some of the rosters, but they haven’t played as big of a role as they deserved.

There are also players like José Villarreal who are definitely national team material, but they aren’t as needed with both Clint Dempsey and Landon Donovan on the national team.

Gyasi Zardes should be ready for national team play in several months, but he too isn’t as needed with strikers like Jozy Altidore, Juan Agudelo, Aron Jóhannsson, and Eddie Johnson on the roster. Zardes’ time will come, and the more refined his attacking skills become, the harder it will be to keep him off the national team

Nevertheless, there is a growing list of players who look more than capable of playing international soccer, and some of them are more ready than others.

Of all the players discussed, several fill urgent needs.

Chris Klute, DeAndre Yedlin, and Andrew Farrell are very talented and athletic outside backs, and the United States needs outside backs with the tools to play international soccer.

Farrell is naturally a center back, and athletic and skilled center backs like Farrell who have strong tackling instincts and skills would be beneficial to the national team.

Despite the growing popularity of Omar Gonzalez and Matt Besler among the American fan base, there are two younger center backs who are better in almost every area: John Anthony Brooks and Shane O’Neill.

O’Neill can play as a defensive midfielder, as an outside back, and as a center back, and nothing about Gonzalez’s and Besler’s physical gifts or skill-sets suggests that either player is anywhere close to Shane O’Neill in terms of defensive ability, overall skill on the ball, and athleticism.

Not only is O’Neill a superior 1v1 defender and ball-winner, O’Neill does Cruyffs in his own defensive third and can dribble out of the back and play passes on the ground through crowds of people, and Gonzalez and Besler simply can’t do that.

It’s not clear where many people in the American soccer media insist that a 20-year-old Bundesliga center back is somehow less qualified than Omar Gonzalez and Matt Besler who have both never played abroad nor have they put in strong performances against elite attackers, but Gonzalez and Besler are certainly skilled defenders who are far better than defenders like Carlos Bocanegra, Clarence Goodson, or Oguchi Onyewu ever were.

Brooks is only 20 years old, but selection to the national team should be based on merit. Brooks is better than both Gonzalez and Besler who will both likely never play club soccer outside of the United States.

While MLS is producing very good players who are international-caliber players, there is no way to argue that Gonzalez’s and Besler’s experience in MLS make them anywhere close to as good as a 20-year-old center back like Brooks who starts for Hertha Berlin.

Brooks proved his abilities against Bosnia and Herzegovina where he was only guilty of losing sight of the ball on Bosnia and Herzegovina’s third goal when Geoff Cameron jumped up to try to get high enough to clear the cross, but the jump obstructed Brooks’ view of the ball.

Therefore, Brooks is a 20-year-old and skilled Bundesliga center back and Shane O’Neill is a 20 year old MLS center back who is more athletic and more skilled than both Gonzalez and Besler. Additionally, both Brooks and O’Neill are tall enough to not be liabilities on crosses or balls played in the air.

World Soccer Source has covered Chris Klute, DeAndre Yedlin, Andrew Farrell, and Benji Joya extensively, and all four of those players fulfill pressing needs for the United States Men’s National Team.

Joya is a technically-skilled central midfielder who can play out wide, and he offers outstanding technical-ability and passing vision with better defense than Clint Dempsey and Landon Donovan provide. Joya offers the complete package of technical-ability, defensive skill, athleticism, and a big-game mentality.

While not a true playmaker, Joya brings skills that are different but compatible with Michael Bradley’s, Clint Dempsey’s, and Landon Donovan’s.

Klute, Yedlin, and Farrell are quite simply modern outside backs (and also center backs in Farrell’s case), and they represent an improvement in skill, athleticism, and international-caliber play. Klute and Yedlin pose an attacking threat up the sidelines that the USMNT has never seen before, and Klute has an equally strong defensive-skill set, which is above Yedlin’s steadily improving defensive skills.

When comparing Farrell to Yedlin at right back, Farrell is definitely the better defender without a drop-off in speed or athleticism compared to Yedlin. Farrell’s technical-ability is close to Yedlin’s.

Of all three outside backs, Klute appears to be the fastest, but the important thing is that all three players give the United States more speed and skill at the outside back positions; all three players can play as right backs or as left backs, which is another reason that they should be on the national team.

With the arrival of the three outside backs discussed above, Kofi Sarkodie has been flying under the radar, but Sarkodie continues to be more of an attacking threat, and he too is a legitimate option for the national team; Sarkodie deserves to be included in the national team set-up more, and he should be evaluated closely and monitored.

There are numerous other young American players who are international-caliber players such as strikers like Mario Rodriguez and Alonso Hernandez, and there are defensive midfielders such as Perry Kitchen, Jared Jeffrey, and Will Trapp who are players to monitor closely.

The key to improving the United States Men’s National Team is continuing to use better players, as opposed to using makeshift line-ups that can’t do real damage to better national teams.

It’s time to start incorporating and seasoning Agudelo, Corona, Diskerud, Joya, Klute, O’Neill, Brooks, Yedlin, Farrell, Villarreal, Sarkodie, Rodriguez, Hernandez, Kitchen, Trapp, Jeffrey, and Zardes.

 

The O’Neill-Brooks Center Back Tandem

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World Soccer Source is more than willing to come right out and declare that both Shane O’Neill and John Anthony Brooks are better center backs than both Omar Gonzalez and Matt Besler.

Since World Soccer Source would like to see Geoff Cameron playing as the midfield destroyer, Shane O’Neill is the center back partner being proposed for John Anthony Brooks.

This declaration doesn’t mean that Gonzalez and Besler aren’t international-caliber center backs or that they shouldn’t be on the roster, but this writer is voicing the opinion that O’Neill and Brooks are better center backs and better soccer players than Gonzalez and Besler.

When Brooks played against Edin Dzeko and Vedad Ibisevic, he really wasn’t guilty of making any serious mistakes.

On Bosnia’s first goal, Eddie Johnson was stripped of the ball in front of his own penalty box as he was trying to find a way to get the ball out of the danger zone, and Bosnia stole the ball and played a pass through John Anthony Brooks and Geoff Cameron, which both players got their feet on. So, both Brooks and Cameron both blocked an expertly played through ball, but the ball managed to ricochet through a crowd.

That’s hardly a mistake, and when Brooks and Cameron were blamed for not crashing the net to stop the second attempt after Tim Howard blocked the first shot, it is very possible that both defenders were trying to keep their marks offside.

On Bosnia’s second goal scored by Vedad Ibisevic, Geoff Cameron was likely expecting John Anthony Brooks (who was ball side of Cameron) to head a ball played in both of their directions out, but Brooks was pushed in the back in the process of going for the header. This push not only prevented Brooks from jumping, but it also threw Cameron off. There is also the argument that Vedad Ibisevic was offside, and Cameron was behind him because he was trying to keep him offside.

On Bosnia’s third goal, Geoff Cameron was closer to a cross coming in Brooks direction and Cameron jumped really high to attempt to head the cross out, but he wasn’t able to get up high enough. This writer would argue that it’s likely that this jump obstructed Brooks view of the ball coming in for a split-second, but an elite striker like Dzeko was equipped to still finish the cross with his head, even with his view obstructed for a split-second.

The point of reviewing these three goals is to demonstrate that both Cameron and Brooks put in a very good defensive performance against an elite Bosnia-Herzegovina side where their only mistakes were being beaten to two headers by fractions of a second, and on both headers, there is a strong case to be made that their timing was thrown off by the situations described above.

As John Anthony Brooks is a Bundesliga starter, the question is now, “Why should Shane O’Neill start at center back for the USMNT?”

The answer to this question is simple. O’Neill is a more talented defender than both Gonzalez and Besler because he not only has a more complete set of defensive and overall fundamentals, but he also has the athleticism and understanding of the game to play as a center back, right back, left back, and defensive midfielder.

O’Neill brings a greater amount of agility in terms of his ability to keep up with quicker and craftier attackers, whereas against Germany even Matt Besler was easily rounded by André Schürrle. Besler is certainly fast and talented, but the same degree of quickness and mobility isn’t there.

This writer would argue that the actual defensive timing and positioning of O’Neill is well beyond that of Besler and Gonzalez, and even Tab Ramos is a big Shane O’Neill supporter.

It shouldn’t be forgotten than Shane O’Neill performed very well against France’s U-20 World Cup squad, which was stacked with elite European players, whereas Gonzalez and Besler have really only played fairly well against a Germany B Team, that in all honesty took it very easy until they decided to take the scoreline from 4-1 to 4-3 in a matter of minutes.

There’s a strong argument to be made that Germany wasn’t really trying very hard until the prospect of suffering an embarrassing loss to the United States became possible.

To be fair to Gonzalez, he has had the misfortune of coming up against some forwards who almost everyone has trouble defending, including Neymar, Romelu Lukaku, and Christian Benteke

While Gonzalez and Besler are definitely international-caliber center backs, the combination of technical ability, defensive timing and fundamentals, and athleticism seen from both Shane O’Neill and John Anthony Brooks looks to be superior to that of both Omar Gonzalez and Matt Besler.

Many observers view Gonzalez and Besler as locks at center back, but two realities remain: O’Neill swam with the sharks against France’s ruthless U-20 World Cup squad and Brooks is a Bundesliga starter for a major club who faced off against an elite Bosnia and Herzegovina side without showing any nerves or real weaknesses.

Gonzalez and Besler are players who are strong candidates to start at center back for the USMNT, but whether or not they are the best American center backs remains to be seen.

Jürgen Klinsmann should strongly consider the possibility that not only is John Anthony Brooks better than Gonzalez and Besler, but Shane O’Neill is as well.

 

A New USMNT Back Four

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Shane O'Neill (center) should partner with John Anthony Brooks at center back. (Photo: Bart Young / Colorado Rapids)
Shane O’Neill (center) should partner with John Anthony Brooks at center back. (Photo: Bart Young / Colorado Rapids)

 

New players like Chris Klute, DeAndre Yedlin, and Shane O’Neill have been thoroughly covered by this writer, and with the arrival of John Anthony Brooks, it would appear that the United States Men’s National Team has a new crop of young and talented defenders who can improve the quality and efficacy of the USMNT’s Back Four.

Despite being perhaps the U.S.’ most talented center back, Geoff Cameron isn’t included in this list because he can be more effective for the USMNT as a midfield destroyer to partner with Michael Bradley who plays the more box-to-box defensive midfield role.

World Soccer Source has covered in various articles how Cameron and Bradley can partner together better than Jermaine Jones and Michael Bradley, and World Soccer Source has also extensively covered how a new Front Six has emerged for the U.S. national team that has the potential to produce better and more effective soccer.

Using a Front Six made up of Geoff Cameron, Michael Bradley, Landon Donovan, Joe Benny Corona, Clint Dempsey, and Jozy Altidore should greatly improve the USMNT, but a new and improved Back Four is needed as well.

Many observers view change as risky, but Jürgen Klinsmann’s defenses and line-ups have been characterized by change.

With the skill and athleticism that John Anthony Brooks and Geoff Cameron showed as center backs against Bosnia and Herzegovina, the United States displayed for perhaps the first time ever a tandem of higher-level center backs playing technically-advanced soccer against a top national team.

Given this writer’s belief that Cameron would be better served in the midfield, Brooks will need a new center back partner, and it’s time to start incorporating or starting Shane O’Neill of the Colorado Rapids as Brooks’ center back partner.

O’Neill has shown over almost a full MLS season a much higher level of technical ability, athleticism, and defensive skills than both Omar Gonzalez and Matt Besler; O’Neill just didn’t receive the credit for it.

O’Neill surpasses both Gonzalez and Besler in a number of areas, including the ones outlined above, but more importantly, O’Neill is quite visibly a better overall soccer player who shows an excellent understanding of the game and where he needs to be.

Based on how well Brooks played against Bosnia and Herzegovina, in addition to the fact that he’s a Bundesliga starter, Brooks has to be considered a starter from now on for the USMNT, and O’Neill gives Brooks a center back partner, who like Cameron, isn’t just a good defender, but a good all-around player with a thorough understanding of the game and the ability to play well when the competition goes up.

Taking nothing away from Besler and Gonzalez, the next step for the United States would be to employ more athletic and more skilled center backs like Brooks and O’Neill who are also tall with two modern outside backs like Chris Klute and DeAndre Yedlin who present a two-way threat from their outside back positions.

The United States Men’s National Team continues to have more quality players in the American player pool, but it’s time to use these players rather than waiting for some unknown amount of time to use them.

Yedlin, O’Neill, Brooks, and Klute have all shown a glimpse of what using four defenders with excellent athleticism and technical ability could look like for the USMNT, and the key to improving the national team is to actually use these better players.

While many people do not feel comfortable using new or younger players in a World Cup qualifier, it is important to not remain complacent and just ride out a winning streak, especially when the very last game against Bosnia and Herzegovina used many different players than the players responsible for the wins before.

Therefore, the USMNT has been winning with different players during the winning streak, and the next step is to have the courage to use fast and skilled two-way outside backs with tall, athletic, and skilled center backs.

Defensively, mistakes can always happen whether a coach uses the same defenders or new defenders, so there is never a guarantee that merely using most of the same defenders will eliminate mistakes. At any time, a ball can be played over or through the defensive back four, no matter how experienced they are.

If Jürgen Klinsmann learned anything during his time as head coach of the United States Men’s National Team, it’s that many of the new players that he introduced into the line-up exceeded his expectations. Players like O’Neill, Yedlin, and Klute have an extensive body of MLS performances, and in some cases, international performances that show the types of players that they are.

While playing out of position, Brad Evans and DaMarcus Beasley have held their own at right back and left back, but Yedlin and Klute look to be a higher-caliber of natural, modern outside backs who present a threat attacking and defending.

To continue to improve and close the gap with top national teams, in addition to being better prepared for the 2014 World Cup (assuming the U.S. qualifies), it is time to use the new players who have the tools needed to compete against better competition, rather than just using defenders who hold their own.

For a country that has been producing better and better players, the path to greater soccer success at the international level is to incorporate and field the new and better players.

A close examination of Chris Klute, DeAndre Yedlin, Shane O’Neill, and John Anthony Brooks will reveal a more talented group of defenders than Brad Evans, Omar Gonzalez, Matt Besler, and DaMarcus Beasley, even if the four defenders just mentioned have done well against CONCACAF competition.

It’s important to remember that Omar Gonzalez, Matt Besler, and DaMarcus Beasley didn’t play against Bosnia and Herzegovina, and that the USMNT’s winning streak has included a revolving door of players.

Some of the new defenders are very impressive, and they have earned the right at the very least to be strongly considered for the USMNT.

 

MORE ON THE USMNT’S FRONT SIX AND BACK FOUR:

https://www.worldsoccersource.com/american-mls-defenders-to-watch/

https://www.worldsoccersource.com/the-cameron-bradley-defensive-midfield-tandem/

https://www.worldsoccersource.com/usmnt-back-four-options/

https://www.worldsoccersource.com/better-usmnt-front-6-emerges/

https://www.worldsoccersource.com/new-progress-in-usmnt-tactics/