United States World Cup roster prediction; all the cool kids are doing it
by Steve Davis on May 7, 2010 4:41 PM EDT
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I will wager anyone an icy cold Pacifico that Bob Bradley has not been waiting for me to post this. But that’s not us from having some fun here.
I wrote a piece for SI.com on who is most likely to pop up on the list late this weekend or early next week when the U.S. manager reveals his list of camp invitees, the “preliminary roster,” from which the final 23 will be plucked. Check it out for own self.
Now I’ll go the final mile along
Goalkeepers (3): Tim Howard, Marcus Hahnemann, Brad Guzan.
Explainer: Is there really an explanation necessary at this position? Howard is The Man. Hahnemann is a capable backup and Guzan won’t cause waves as the distant No. 3. (That’s always the key for a No. 3; you need a good and loyal team-oriented soldier.)
Defenders (7): Oguchi Onyewu, Carlos Bocanegra, Steve Cherundolo, Jay DeMerit, Jonathan Spector, Jonathan Bornstein, Clarence Goodson.
Explainer: Onyewu’s tenuous status makes it tempting to take eight instead of just seven. But Spector’s versatility (comfortable on the right or left) means seven should work out. If there’s an eighth, it will probably Heath Pearce. His speed is a cause for concern, but he’s the best choice beyond the seven listed. Plus, Bradley did invest a lot of time in the guy during the past three-plus years.
Midfielders and strikers after the jump ...
Midfielders (9): Landon Donovan, Clint Dempsey, Michael Bradley, Benny Feilhaber, Ricardo Clark, Maurice Edu, Jose Francisco Torres, Stuart Holden, Sacha Kljestan.
Explainer: Kljestan’s versatility and recent form puts him on my list. I know a lot of you don’t watch Chivas
Forwards (4): Jozy Altidore, Edson Buddle, Eddie Johnson, Brian McBride.
Explainer: Notice the surprise there? McBride would not be a candidate to start. Rather, he would be a late option for desperate times; he was impressive earlier this year for
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Some good calls
I like bringing Sacha in, even if he doesn’t play he does have a future with the USMNT and this would be a great World Cup to get him into the swing of it. I am not sure if I like the McBride pick or not, he knows the game and could be a great target forward for the US, but he has gotten slow and with the style the US is going to try to play I just don’t know if I could use a slot for him. Going to shock people, I give that slot to H. Gomez, he isn’t the biggest guy but you have to count his recent form and say if the US is going to play up tempo and look to force defensed to adjust to them, well you know the saying speed kills.
I like the list.
McBride!
Well that would be exciting, for old time’s sake. If Davies is a no, I can see the logic behind it. Certainly he’s no worse a choice than Ching or Casey. In any case, if the second best options at striker are one of Edson Buddle or Eddie Johnson, I predict Bradley would switch to a 4-5-1, since there’s a lot more depth in midfield than there is up top.
Question for you Steve: Assuming Onyewu is healthy, would you say the top two options at right and left back are Cherundolo and Spector? Or does Bocanegra start on the left?
Not mediocre. Right about average
personally ...
i’d go with Boca on the left. that’s where he played this year for Rennes, and he’s a better defender than Bornstein or Spector. that DOES put a lot of pressure on DeMerit in the middle (as Onyewu’s partner). but no lineup from this imperfect roster is going to be 100 without risk.
Brian McBride is the reason I gave MLS a chance
And my fave US MNT guy for quite some time.
Billikens!
I am not a Supporter | I am not a Fan | I am a Sounder
Sounder At Heart
If we are looking at people in form
Then I think Herculez Gomez is way more deserving than McBride.
by PeterJH on May 8, 2010 10:56 AM EDT via mobile reply actions
Kind of inexplicable, really, that BB hasn’t even given him a look-see.
United | Nats | Wizards | Caps | The Other Nats
At least you gave us something different
-too bad its wrong.
Kljestan? I know his is playing well but we have a million midlfielders and we dont need an above average MLS player. We wouldnt even consider this guy if he didnt have that hat trick vs Sweden.
Speaking of which, remember who set up those goals? Brian Ching and he isnt even mentioned on your list. Nobody can hold up the ball like Ching and thats why he is a must for South Africa.
I would take Gomez over Buddle. Buddle is just benefiting from the best team in MLS in a long time in the Galaxy. All he has been is the lucky man to score the goals created by Donovan, but i guess he will be playing with Donovan in South Africa, so maybe you are on to something.
I don’t like the idea of bringing Kljestan. I don’t think he has proved that he can compete at the right level for the World Cup. I would prefer Beasley over Kljestan even though he hasn’t been seeing a whole lot of playing time. I am not crazy about the idea of bringing McBride, but I do prefer him over Ching and can’t think of many other options other than bringing Gomez and Buddle… which I really do not see happening.
by Columbus Til I Die on May 9, 2010 1:59 PM EDT reply actions
I hate to disagree with you, Steve, but
If Brian McBride were offered (and accepted) a spot on the World Cup
team, fans would — rightly or wrongly — complain that he was taking the
spot from a younger, and more deserving player, such as Buddle,
Gomez, Ching or Casey.
If I am Brian McBride, I wouldn’t even accept that offer (and I don’t think
Bradley is going to make it.) Of course, McBride has had a great career
for the national team. But he is not as fast as he was. He is still a
serviceable player for a good MLS team. But he is not playing at the
level of the national team now. How many goals has he scored this
year in MLS?
Dave
www.DaveBrett.com
Brian Mcbride was the first soccer player I ever liked the way other kids liked Michael Jordan or Stockton/Malone. I still have the poster of him I bought in ’96, which survived the sticker crazy phase of my early teen years.
I’d take him over Ching, Casey, or an unhealthy Davies.
I don’t know the USMNT well enough to say what combination of strikers I’d like to see that could include McBride.
I just can’t wait for the camp roster to be announced.
Gomez
I think the most difficult thing to replace about Davies will be his tenacity and strength on the ball. I think he is very difficult to play against, and non of the strikers proposed either on the roster already or in the pool simulate that attribute very well. Davies style of play transformed the US team style of play in Confederations Cup, and we are going to need that style back if hope to succeed in SA. While Gomez didn’t have that style of play in MLS, he was close.
I think Gomez has the physical and technical tools to replace Charlie Davies in this fashion, and with his time in Mexico, maybe he now has the mentality as well.
