If that's the case, to whom does USSF turn to manage? Klinsmann may not be perfect, but he seems to have a better handle on bringing the US closer to the top than the bottom. Please don't say Roy Hodgson.
USMNT: To Rüssia With Love
- Thread starter Titans Bastard
- Start date
I suspect this is just JK getting his name out there through his buddy Bierhoff. Being frequently connected with high-profile jobs is good for his reputation.
Well, if there's a guy who can come in and fix a team with questionable lineup decisions and guys playing out of position, it's Klinsmann.
Kansas City breaks ground on the National Training and Coaching Development Center
Quotes from Dan Flynn instead of Sunil Gulati, which is kind of weird. Flynn is probably equally as influential as Sunil, but stays in the background.
Sam Brownback talking about how "we aspire to be the standard of soccer in the US" tickles me.
Quotes from Dan Flynn instead of Sunil Gulati, which is kind of weird. Flynn is probably equally as influential as Sunil, but stays in the background.
Sam Brownback talking about how "we aspire to be the standard of soccer in the US" tickles me.
Since we've talked a lot about development in this thread:
U16 Development Academy Championship, FC Dallas vs. LA Galaxy:
U18 Development Academy Championship, FC Dallas vs. Vancouver Whitecaps:
- The MLS vs. non-MLS dynamic in the Development Academy. I'm opposed to MLS breaking away from the non-MLS clubs. The travel would be simply stupid, but in addition to that, I think there's value making development as little of a closed shop as possible. MLS academies are starting to dominate, but non-MLS clubs are helpful in keeping them honest and providing reality checks. In the Bay Area, for example, the Earthquakes have only just started moving ahead of local powerhouse De Anza Force.
- A bunch of coaches and front office types weigh in on US player development.
U16 Development Academy Championship, FC Dallas vs. LA Galaxy:
U18 Development Academy Championship, FC Dallas vs. Vancouver Whitecaps:
FC Dallas won both games, which is a big achievement. Nobody has ever won both leagues in the same year before, but Dallas is always stacked so it's no surprise that if anybody did it, it would be them. Their U18 team did so without arguably their best player, CM Weston McKennie, who is rumored to be leaving the club to sign with a Bundesliga club. Plenty of other pro prospects on the team, though. Oscar Pareja has said he likes Paxton Pomykol in particular, a '99 midfielder who was playing up with the U18s.
- The MLS vs. non-MLS dynamic in the Development Academy. I'm opposed to MLS breaking away from the non-MLS clubs. The travel would be simply stupid, but in addition to that, I think there's value making development as little of a closed shop as possible. MLS academies are starting to dominate, but non-MLS clubs are helpful in keeping them honest and providing reality checks. In the Bay Area, for example, the Earthquakes have only just started moving ahead of local powerhouse De Anza Force.
- A bunch of coaches and front office types weigh in on US player development.
Q&A with FCD academy director Luchi Gonzalez, after FCD won both the U18 and U16 championships. Gonzalez and Oscar Pareja often mention the emphasis that they place on having U18s always training with the pro team. This also stood out, on parental influence in pay-to-play clubs:
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The next USMNT game is on September 2 in Kingstown, St. Vincent. Some injury concerns:
- Michael Bradley is dealing with a knee sprain which was described as a six-week injury when it was announced on July 1. He should be back by mid-August, but we'll see.
- Matt Besler is out with a strained MCL, but should be back in a couple of weeks
- Jozy Altidore made his return on Saturday, coming off the bench
- John Brooks left the Copa with a knee sprain, but he's training again
Feature on Chris Durkin, a 16 year old DM/CB who just signed with DC United. Relevant because it talks through how he and his camp view his developmental pathway. I think that Durkin, Andrew Carleton, and Tyler Adams are representative of an emerging career path. They were all MLS academy kids who signed homegrown deals at a very young age. Now that more MLS teams can offer a better developmental environment for young players via the USL connection, this makes a lot of sense. Without the Euro passport, you can't even go to Europe until age 18. Waiting until then is wasteful for an elite talent that's too good for U18 academy soccer or Bradenton. So at 16, so you sign a pro deal and get paid, play a bunch of pro games in the USL, make it to MLS, then if things go well by age 18/19 you may be sold or at age 20 you can walk on a free.
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The next USMNT game is on September 2 in Kingstown, St. Vincent. Some injury concerns:
- Michael Bradley is dealing with a knee sprain which was described as a six-week injury when it was announced on July 1. He should be back by mid-August, but we'll see.
- Matt Besler is out with a strained MCL, but should be back in a couple of weeks
- Jozy Altidore made his return on Saturday, coming off the bench
- John Brooks left the Copa with a knee sprain, but he's training again
U-20 camp in Basking Ridge, NJ with games against the NY Cosmos and NYRB II:
GK
Jonathan Klinsmann (California)
J.T. Marcinkowski (Georgetown)
DF
Marcello Borges (Michigan)
Robert Castellanos (Nomads SC)
Jeremiah Gutjahr (Indiana)
Aaron Herrera (New Mexico)
Andrew Lombard (Northeastern)
Chad Poarch (Continental FC Delco)
Miles Robinson (Syracuse)
MF
Danny Acosta (Real Salt Lake)
Coy Craft (FC Dallas)
Cameron Lindley (North Carolina)
Jonathan Suarez (Querétaro)
Eryk Williamson (Maryland)
Jackson Yueill (UCLA)
FW
Sebastian Elney (Maryland)
Jeremy Kelly (North Carolina)
Jonathan Lewis (Kendall SC)
Emmanuel Sabbi (Chicago Magic)
Yosef Samuel (Philadelphia Union U18)
Tab Ramos is looking at depth with a mostly domestic camp that lacks many of our better players at this age group. Castellanos, Poarch, Suarez, Lewis, and Kelly are the first-timers here; I don't know much about them but would hope at least two of Castellanos, Poarch, and Gutjahr are fullbacks and that Suarez is a DM because that's where this team needs help. There are pro CBs come out of our ears in this age group, tons of attacking mids of all types, and a few decent center forwards too.
GK
Jonathan Klinsmann (California)
J.T. Marcinkowski (Georgetown)
DF
Marcello Borges (Michigan)
Robert Castellanos (Nomads SC)
Jeremiah Gutjahr (Indiana)
Aaron Herrera (New Mexico)
Andrew Lombard (Northeastern)
Chad Poarch (Continental FC Delco)
Miles Robinson (Syracuse)
MF
Danny Acosta (Real Salt Lake)
Coy Craft (FC Dallas)
Cameron Lindley (North Carolina)
Jonathan Suarez (Querétaro)
Eryk Williamson (Maryland)
Jackson Yueill (UCLA)
FW
Sebastian Elney (Maryland)
Jeremy Kelly (North Carolina)
Jonathan Lewis (Kendall SC)
Emmanuel Sabbi (Chicago Magic)
Yosef Samuel (Philadelphia Union U18)
Tab Ramos is looking at depth with a mostly domestic camp that lacks many of our better players at this age group. Castellanos, Poarch, Suarez, Lewis, and Kelly are the first-timers here; I don't know much about them but would hope at least two of Castellanos, Poarch, and Gutjahr are fullbacks and that Suarez is a DM because that's where this team needs help. There are pro CBs come out of our ears in this age group, tons of attacking mids of all types, and a few decent center forwards too.
U-19 team crashes out of COTIF with a 3-1 loss to Bahrain that ended in a brawl. So... yeah the Brad Friedel era is not off to a great start.
I'm not too perturbed by either event. The brawl began when one of the Bahraini players slammed a ball into the head of a US player on the ground from close range. I don't have a problem with how the US team reacted, protecting one of their teammates.
As far as the results go, whatever. They lost to Bahrain, but they also beat Spain in Spain. The U-19 team isn't serious business. In Europe, the U-19 nomenclature is relatively more important, but in the US the U-19 team is just a feeder team for the U-20s. In this case, we sent a team of mostly 98s to a tournament for which 97s were eligible.
The U-19s are newly created and play only in friendly tournaments. The current U-20s are players born in 1997 and 1998 -- but mostly 1997 because those guys are bit older and more developed. The U-19s allow more of the 1998s to stay involved with the program (esp. dual nationals) and it gives them a platform to show that they have improved enough to merit inclusion with the U-20s. There are always a handful of younger players who make strides late in the U-20 cycle that go unrecognized until after the U20 WC. This should help us improve in that department.
I'm not arguing that Friedel is a great coach or not, just that this isn't a top group of US youth players and we shouldn't read too much into results either way. More kids are getting exposure to international tournaments, we can do some depth evaluation U-20s, and we can keep more dual nationals close to the program.
U20s beat the NY Cosmos 2-0 and NYRB II 4-3. There wasn't a lot of press coverage for these games -- especially the second, as NYRB II dictated that it be a closed-door friendly -- so it's hard to say who made a name for themselves.
http://www.ussoccer.com/stories/2016/08/05/19/43/160805-u20mnt-blanks-new-york-cosmos-2-0-in-training-camp-friendly
Scoring Summary: 1 2 F
USA 0 2 2
NYC 0 0 0
USA – Jeremiah Gutjahr (Jonathan Suarez) 46th minute
USA – Jonathan Suarez 67
Lineups:
USA: 1-JT Marcinkowski; 2-Aaron Herrera (4-Chad Poarch, 69), 5-Miles Robinson (capt.), 16-Jeremiah Gutjahr, 3-Marcello Borges; 8-Eryk Williamson (24-Robert Castellanos, 64), 18-Cameron Lindley (6-Danny Acosta, 44), 10-Jackson Yueill (15-Jonathan Suarez, 45); 11-Coy Craft (14-Yosef Samuel, 69), 19-Sebastian Elney (17-Jeremy Kelly, 72), 7-Jonthan Lewis (9-Emmanuel Sabbi, 64)
Substitutions Not Used: 22-Leo Lopez
Head coach: Tab Ramos
http://www.ussoccer.com/stories/2016/08/08/18/36/160808-u20mnt-defeats-new-york-red-bulls-ii-in-second-training-camp-match
Scoring Summary: 1 2 F
USA 2 2 4
NYRB 2 1 3
NYRB – Anatole Abang (Justin Bilyeu) 10th minute
NYRB – Dan Metzger 14
USA – Emmanuel Sabbi 36
USA – Jonathan Lewis (JT Marcinkowski) 37
NYRB – Stefano Bonomo 46
USA – Sebastian Elney (Jonathan Lewis) 67
USA – Jeremy Kelly (Yosef Samuel) 90+1
Lineups:
USA: 1-JT Marcinkowski; 2-Aaron Herrera (4-Chad Poarch, 78), 5-Miles Robinson, 24-Robert Castellanos, 3-Marcello Borges; 8-Eryk Williamson (18-Cameron Lindley, 70), 6-Danny Acosta (16-Jeremiah Gutjahr, 55), 15-Jonathan Suarez (10-Jackson Yueill, 83); 11-Coy Craft (19-Sebastian Elney, 45), 9-Emmanuel Sabbi (14-Yosef Samuel, 66), 7-Jonthan Lewis (17-Jeremy Kelly, 78)
Substitutions not used: 22-Leo Lopez
Head coach: Tab Ramos
The U-18 national team announced a roster for the Vaclav Jezek tournament in the Czech Republic. They'll play Slovakia, Hungary, and Russia.
Roster by Position:
GOALKEEPERS (2): Cameron Douglas (Sacramento Republic; Granite Bay, Calif.), Brady Scott (De Anza Force; Petaluma, Calif.)
DEFENDERS (6): Kyle Gruno (Leicester City; Saddle River, N.J.), Daniel Jones (New England Revolution; West Hartford, Conn.), Jack Maher (St. Louis Scott Gallagher; Caseyville, Ill.), Matthew Real (Philadelphia Union; Drexel Hill, Pa.), Aedan Stanley (Saint Louis FC; Columbia, Ill.), Carson Vom Steeg (Real So Cal; Santa Barbara, Calif.)
MIDFIELDERS (6): Jose Carranza (DC United; Manassas, Va.), Jonathan Gonzalez (C.F. Monterrey; Santa Rosa, Calif.), Andrew Paoli (San Jose Earthquakes; San Jose, Calif.), Paxton Pomykal (FC Dallas; Highland Village, Texas), Brandon Servania (FC Dallas; Birmingham, Ala.), Nick Taitague (Unattached; Midlothian, Va.)
FORWARDS (6): Shaft Brewer (Sacramento Republic; Sacramento, Calif.), Griffin Dorsey (Colorado Rush; Evergreen, Colo.), Ernesto Espinoza (Club Tijuana; San Diego, Calif.), Nebiyou Perry (AIK Fotboll; New York, N.Y.), Justin Rennicks (New England Revolution; Hamilton, Mass.), Aristotle Zarris (Unattached; Sarasota, Fla.)
The U-18s are all born in 1999; they are a year too old for the current U-17s and generally a year too young for the last U-17s (all but one player on the WC squad were 98s). Sometimes the best U-18s are able to play up with the U-20s (like CCV, Zelalem, and Erik Palmer-Brown last cycle) but Ramos hasn't called any of them this year. So mostly, the U-18s are a holding pen for the next U-20 cycle and a way to keep players involved in the program and to identify potential future U-20s.
I don't know many of these players, but a few things jump out at me:
- FC Dallas has tons of prospects, but they seem to REALLY like Paxton Pomykal, who is an attack-minded midfielder who I understand is more of a skill/vision guy than a burner.
- Nick Taitague has been playing in summer friendly tournaments with Schalke's U-19 team. He does not turn 18 until February and can't sign abroad until then.
- Nebiyou Perry played in the UEFA U17 Championship for Sweden in May, so it is surprising to see him in a US camp. He cannot play in any official games for the US until and unless he filed a one-time switch. There aren't any official games at the U-18 level, so this is just dipping his toes in the water.
- I'm used to seeing lots of players from FC Dallas, LA, NYRB, etc in these camps, but this time there are a couple of Revs. Rennicks has been a consistent U-18 call up and traveled with the Revs pro team for preseason this year. He seems like a guy they view as a potential pro, though I'm not sure if he's polished enough to sign out of HS or not. Some guys like that benefit from playing 1-2 years of college soccer, especially because the Revs have no USL team in which to stash him. The purpose of their affiliation with Rochester seems to be mostly to satisfy the league's requirement that they establish a USL team or affiliate with an independent team.
- For the sake of awesome names, everyone should be rooting for the development of Shaft Brewer and Aristotle Zarris. Zarris has been a U-18 regular, but this is the first time he has been listed as unattached instead of with RSL. That makes me wonder if he has plans to go abroad. He doesn't turn 18 until October 2017, but given his name he may have a Greek passport, which would allow him to sign in the common Euro labor market right now.
Roster by Position:
GOALKEEPERS (2): Cameron Douglas (Sacramento Republic; Granite Bay, Calif.), Brady Scott (De Anza Force; Petaluma, Calif.)
DEFENDERS (6): Kyle Gruno (Leicester City; Saddle River, N.J.), Daniel Jones (New England Revolution; West Hartford, Conn.), Jack Maher (St. Louis Scott Gallagher; Caseyville, Ill.), Matthew Real (Philadelphia Union; Drexel Hill, Pa.), Aedan Stanley (Saint Louis FC; Columbia, Ill.), Carson Vom Steeg (Real So Cal; Santa Barbara, Calif.)
MIDFIELDERS (6): Jose Carranza (DC United; Manassas, Va.), Jonathan Gonzalez (C.F. Monterrey; Santa Rosa, Calif.), Andrew Paoli (San Jose Earthquakes; San Jose, Calif.), Paxton Pomykal (FC Dallas; Highland Village, Texas), Brandon Servania (FC Dallas; Birmingham, Ala.), Nick Taitague (Unattached; Midlothian, Va.)
FORWARDS (6): Shaft Brewer (Sacramento Republic; Sacramento, Calif.), Griffin Dorsey (Colorado Rush; Evergreen, Colo.), Ernesto Espinoza (Club Tijuana; San Diego, Calif.), Nebiyou Perry (AIK Fotboll; New York, N.Y.), Justin Rennicks (New England Revolution; Hamilton, Mass.), Aristotle Zarris (Unattached; Sarasota, Fla.)
The U-18s are all born in 1999; they are a year too old for the current U-17s and generally a year too young for the last U-17s (all but one player on the WC squad were 98s). Sometimes the best U-18s are able to play up with the U-20s (like CCV, Zelalem, and Erik Palmer-Brown last cycle) but Ramos hasn't called any of them this year. So mostly, the U-18s are a holding pen for the next U-20 cycle and a way to keep players involved in the program and to identify potential future U-20s.
I don't know many of these players, but a few things jump out at me:
- FC Dallas has tons of prospects, but they seem to REALLY like Paxton Pomykal, who is an attack-minded midfielder who I understand is more of a skill/vision guy than a burner.
- Nick Taitague has been playing in summer friendly tournaments with Schalke's U-19 team. He does not turn 18 until February and can't sign abroad until then.
- Nebiyou Perry played in the UEFA U17 Championship for Sweden in May, so it is surprising to see him in a US camp. He cannot play in any official games for the US until and unless he filed a one-time switch. There aren't any official games at the U-18 level, so this is just dipping his toes in the water.
- I'm used to seeing lots of players from FC Dallas, LA, NYRB, etc in these camps, but this time there are a couple of Revs. Rennicks has been a consistent U-18 call up and traveled with the Revs pro team for preseason this year. He seems like a guy they view as a potential pro, though I'm not sure if he's polished enough to sign out of HS or not. Some guys like that benefit from playing 1-2 years of college soccer, especially because the Revs have no USL team in which to stash him. The purpose of their affiliation with Rochester seems to be mostly to satisfy the league's requirement that they establish a USL team or affiliate with an independent team.
- For the sake of awesome names, everyone should be rooting for the development of Shaft Brewer and Aristotle Zarris. Zarris has been a U-18 regular, but this is the first time he has been listed as unattached instead of with RSL. That makes me wonder if he has plans to go abroad. He doesn't turn 18 until October 2017, but given his name he may have a Greek passport, which would allow him to sign in the common Euro labor market right now.
The USSF announced a friendly on October 11 vs. New Zealand at RFK Stadium. Jeff Carlisle is reporting that Ghana was originally scheduled, but it was nixed by FIFA because of heavy travel. NZ is playing Mexico in Nashville a few days prior, but Ghana have a WCQ for the first game that cycle. Ghana's game against Uganda is on October 3 which would give them plenty of time to get to DC, though. I've never heard of FIFA rules against "heavy travel" in one international window before, so I don't know how it works.
EDIT: apparently you need a waiver if you want to play two games in one window that are more than a five hour flight and more than two time zones away. I'm assuming WCQs don't apply (esp. in Asia).
Upcoming schedule:
9/2 @ St. Vincent & the Grenadines (WCQ)
9/6 vs. Trinidad & Tobago (WCQ) - Jacksonville, FL
10/7 @ Cuba (friendly)
10/11 vs. New Zealand (friendly) - Washington, DC
11/11 - Hex round 1
11/15 - Hex round 2
EDIT: apparently you need a waiver if you want to play two games in one window that are more than a five hour flight and more than two time zones away. I'm assuming WCQs don't apply (esp. in Asia).
Upcoming schedule:
9/2 @ St. Vincent & the Grenadines (WCQ)
9/6 vs. Trinidad & Tobago (WCQ) - Jacksonville, FL
10/7 @ Cuba (friendly)
10/11 vs. New Zealand (friendly) - Washington, DC
11/11 - Hex round 1
11/15 - Hex round 2
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3-1 win over Slovakia
Scoring Summary: 1 2 F
SVK 0 1 1
USA 2 1 3
USA – Nick Taitague 25th minute
USA – Justin Rennicks 38
SVK – Richard Bedats 80
USA – Shaft Brewer 90
Lineups:
USA:1-Brady Scott; 2-Aristotle Zarris, 15-Carson Vom Steeg (capt.), 16-Aedan Stanley (5-Kyle Gruno, 76), 3-Daniel Jones; 6-Jonathan Gonzalez (21-Andrew Paoli, 76), 13-Paxton Pomykal, 14-Ernesto Espinoza; 9-Nick Taitague (20-Shaft Brewer, 65), 10-Justin Rennicks (11-Jose Carranza, 82), 7-Griffin Dorsey
Subs not used: 4-Jack Maher, 8-Brandon Servania, 17-Nebiyou Perry, 22-Cameron Douglas, 23-Matt RealHead Coach: Omid Namazi
Another 3-1 win over Hungary
Scoring Summary: 1 2 F
HUN 1 0 1
USA 1 2 3
USA – Jose Carranza 8th minute
HUN – Bendeguz Bolla 37
USA – Nick Taitague 72
USA – Nick Taitague 80
Lineups:
USA:1-Brady Scott; 2-Aristotle Zarris, 15-Carson Vom Steeg (capt.), 16-Aedan Stanley, 23-Matt Real; 6-Jonathan Gonzalez (21-Andrew Paoli, 46), 11-Jose Carranza, 8-Brandon Servania; 14-Ernesto Espinoza (13-Paxton Pomykal, 64), 10-Justin Rennicks (9-Nick Taitague, 57), 20-Shaft Brewer (17-Nebiyou Perry, 77)
Subs not used: 3-Daniel Jones, 4-Jack Maher, 5-Kyle Gruno, 7-Griffin Dorsey, 22-Cameron Douglas
Head Coach: Omid Namazi
Word is they beat Russia 5-3 today with goals from Dorsey, Pomykal, Perry, Carranza, and an own goal. They've qualified for the final, so there will be one more game. The starting lineup was:
Some great names on that squad. Carson Vom Steeg and Aristotle Zarris sound like villains in a Jason Statham film in which he stars as porn-star-turned-vigilante hero Shaft Brewer.
Aided by comedic stoner sidekick Matt "Keeping It" Real.
Anyway, the full report from the Russia game:
Scoring Summary: 1 2 F
USA 2 3 5
RUS 0 3 3
USA – Griffin Dorsey 10th minute
USA – Paxton Pomykal 31
USA – Jose Carranza 52
RUS – Ivan Ignatev 58
USA – Aleksandr Zakharov (own goal) 61
RUS – Danill Utkin 78
RUS – Ilya Mazurov 81
USA – Nebiyou Perry 88
Lineups:
USA:1-Cameron Douglas; 23-Matt Real, 5-Kyle Gruno, 4-Jack Maher, 3-Daniel Jones (15-Carson Vom Steeg, 82); 21-Andrew Paoli, 13-Paxton Pomykal (11-Jose Carranza, 46), 8-Brandon Servania; 17-Nebiyou Perry (9-Nick Taitague, 89), 7-Griffin Dorsey (14-Ernesto Espinoza, 65), 20-Shaft Brewer
Subs not used: 1-Brady Scott, 2-Aristotle Zarris, 6-Jonathan Gonzalez, 10-Justin Rennicks, 16-Aedan Stanley
Head Coach: Omid Namazi
Then they beat the hosts in the final:
Scoring Summary: 1 2 F
CZE 1 1 2
USA 1 3 4
CZE – Marco Lauricella 7th minute
USA – Paxton Pomykal 39
USA – Nick Taitague 62
CZE – Marco Lauricella 75
USA – Nebiyou Perry 79
USA – Nebiyou Perry 90
Lineups:
USA:1-Brady Scott; 2-Aristotle Zarris, 15-Carson Vom Steeg (capt), 16-Aedan Stanley, 3-Daniel Jones; 6-Jonathan Gonzalez, 13-Paxton Pomykal, 11-Jose Carranza, 7-Griffin Dorsey (17-Nebiyou Perry, 70), 10-Justin Rennicks (20-Shaft Brewer, 70), 9-Nick Taitague
Subs not used: 4-Jack Maher, 5-Kyle Gruno, 8-Brandon Servania, 14-Ernesto Espinoza, 21-Andrew Paoli, 22-Cameron Douglas, 23-Matt Real
Head Coach: Omid Namazi
I found a few clips from this one:
Nice.
Nick Taitague won tournament MVP. Brady Scott won best GK. A solid outing from this group of 1999s, though these friendly tournaments don't mean much.
The U17s are playing Portugal, Qatar, and Mexico in Mexico City this week:
Carleton and Durkin are already pros. Carleton in particular is highly regarded. I've also heard good things about Goslin, Acosta, and Weah (yes....that Weah). Ayo Akinola has been playing regularly for TFC II in the USL on an amateur basis and has scored a few goals, which is a decent progression for this age. All these guys are 2000s with maybe a handful of 2001s (I won't bother to check) who are preparing for the CONCACAF U17 championship next spring in Panama.
The squad for our next two WCQs is expected to be announced on Sunday. Per Steven Goff, Bradley and Orozco are suspended for the SVG game -- Bradley because of yellow card accumulation and Orozco (I assume) because of his red card against Colombia in the Copa America 3rd place game. Orozco should be done with the NT anyway.
Looking back at the CA roster, Edgar Castillo and Jermaine Jones are injured. I'm not sure what Jones' recovery timeline looks like, but he hasn't played since early July. I think Castillo is done at the NT level regardless.
With the Copa America behind us, this feels like it should be a moment when we see an increased level of roster turnover. There are some old 2014 cycle players who should be retired immediately (Beckerman, Zusi, Orozco, Wondolowski). These roster spots should be given to younger players. We also need to look at another fullback or two; our current options are limited to Yedlin, Chandler, and playing FJ in the back. In any case, it seems that neither Bradley nor Jones will be available for St. Vincent, so JK will have to go outside his "comfort zone" whether he likes it or not.
There are a lot of directions JK could go with this, so I don't even want to nitpick the choices. I just want to see new players systematically tested. (Not all at once or across 17 different formations, please!)
Perhaps Keegan Rosenberry can get a look? He's played every minute of every game for the Philadelphia Union this season. He's also been arguably their best player this season. Great instincts, good speed, loves to get forward into the attack but seems to pick his spots well so as not to get burned. Had a great goal last night to answer the tying goal by Columbus.
http://www.csnphilly.com/video/highlights-philadelphia-union-rely-rookies-2-1-win-over-columbus?guid=GyPrztgBM3L57_g8C1FZM3LsnRY0Sa69
http://www.csnphilly.com/video/highlights-philadelphia-union-rely-rookies-2-1-win-over-columbus?guid=GyPrztgBM3L57_g8C1FZM3LsnRY0Sa69
I'd be all for it, he's been good this year. I wouldn't start him, but giving him a taste of camp would be a good thing. I heard through the grapevine that Rosenberry trained with the USMNT for a few days when they were in Philly for the Paraguay game. Klinsmann definitely knows who he is.
Others I'd consider are Jorge Villafaña and Eric Lichaj. Lichaj isn't super exciting, but there's something to be said for a guy who could potentially cover RB and LB.
Dumb low-information-fanboy question here, but what are the odds they call Pulisic back from BVB to shore up the lineup? Obviously forward is not the place where they're the thinnest, but I really hope he seizes every chance to convince JK he should start.
We aren't thinnest at forward, but we are pretty thin among attacking midfielders of all types, especially with Fabian Johnson pinned back at LB. I'd call Pulisic in for sure. He's good enough for at least a bench role already.
Dempsey is out of WCQ. He is undergoing evaluations for an irregular heartbeat. That's always worrisome.
Liverpool is rumored to have bid 11M pounds for Pulisic.
It's probably bullshit but I guess it's encouraging that the British media might even make up shit like that about him.
It's probably bullshit but I guess it's encouraging that the British media might even make up shit like that about him.
There's some smoke around a Pulisic move, but it's unclear if there's any real fire. If he does go to England, Liverpool may be the ideal club. Klopp seemed very fond of him when they were together at Dortmund.
With his tiny wage bill? The Liverpool squad is deeper at attacking midfield than Dortmund is, meaning he would likely get more appearances if he stayed in germany (especially with them having a euro competition).
I understand that Klopp is a huge fan, but I hope the kid stays at Dortmund, where he has a better chance of playing and against elite competition than in the crowded Liverpool midfield.
Liverpool is also not in Europe and thus less needy for rotation players.
The part of me that is pissed off about the Yedlin sale is hoping Spurs hop in here after they rid themselves of Ryan Mason. But that is a pipe dream, and doesn't really get him a ton more playing time. I want him to go someplace he would get at least half the minutes available.
The part of me that is pissed off about the Yedlin sale is hoping Spurs hop in here after they rid themselves of Ryan Mason. But that is a pipe dream, and doesn't really get him a ton more playing time. I want him to go someplace he would get at least half the minutes available.
Liverpool is also not in Europe and thus less needy for rotation players.
The part of me that is pissed off about the Yedlin sale is hoping Spurs hop in here after they rid themselves of Ryan Mason. But that is a pipe dream, and doesn't really get him a ton more playing time. I want him to go someplace he would get at least half the minutes available.
The part of me that is pissed off about the Yedlin sale is hoping Spurs hop in here after they rid themselves of Ryan Mason. But that is a pipe dream, and doesn't really get him a ton more playing time. I want him to go someplace he would get at least half the minutes available.
To clarify I didn't mean a loan to Liverpool. I was just pointing out that Dortmund doesn't have any real incentive to transfer him. If he won't get playing time with them they should loan him out somewhere to get regular first team appearances. That wouldn't be Liverpool obviously.
Wood continues his scoring run into the new season. First league match, first goal for his new club HSV and it´s 1-0 so far.
Edit: Long goal kick from keeper Adler, ball goes once over two players without a touch, then Wood and defender Matip (brother of Liverpool´s new Matip) go into a long running duel, Wood takes the ball with him on one touch and shoots it from about the box. Nice goal!
Edit: Long goal kick from keeper Adler, ball goes once over two players without a touch, then Wood and defender Matip (brother of Liverpool´s new Matip) go into a long running duel, Wood takes the ball with him on one touch and shoots it from about the box. Nice goal!
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Roster is out.
GK
Brad Guzan (Middlesbrough)
Ethan Horvath (Molde)
Tim Howard (Colorado Rapids)
DF
Kellyn Acosta (FC Dallas)
Matt Besler (Sporting Kansas City)
Steve Birnbaum (D.C. United)
John Brooks (Hertha Berlin)
Geoff Cameron (Stoke City)
Omar Gonzalez (Pachuca)
Fabian Johnson (Borussia Mönchengladbach)
Michael Orozco (Tijuana)
DeAndre Yedlin (Newcastle United)
MF
Paul Arriola (Tijuana)
Kyle Beckerman (Real Salt Lake)
Alejandro Bedoya (Philadelphia Union)
Michael Bradley (Toronto FC)
Jermaine Jones (Colorado Rapids)
Darlington Nagbe (Portland Timbers)
Christian Pulisic (Borussia Dortmund)
Caleb Stanko (Vaduz)
Graham Zusi (Sporting Kansas City)
FW
Jozy Altidore (Toronto FC)
Jordan Morris (Seattle Sounders)
Rubio Rubin (Utrecht)
Chris Wondolowski (San Jose Earthquakes)
Bobby Wood (Hamburg)
A very conservative roster from a very conservative manager. The entire Copa America roster is here except for Perry Kitchen and three injured players (Dempsey, Zardes, Castillo). This is a relatively large squad for two games, with 26 players, so I can only hope that guys like Wondo & Orozco don't actually play a role at this point.
Jermaine Jones hasn't played since July 4. It is hard to see him playing much over these two games and I'm surprised he's even on the roster
Klinsmann is having a really hard time moving on from his old core. We're more than halfway through the 2018 cycle and it's not going to get any easier to replace old players with new blood as the WCQs get tougher in the Hex.
GK
Brad Guzan (Middlesbrough)
Ethan Horvath (Molde)
Tim Howard (Colorado Rapids)
DF
Kellyn Acosta (FC Dallas)
Matt Besler (Sporting Kansas City)
Steve Birnbaum (D.C. United)
John Brooks (Hertha Berlin)
Geoff Cameron (Stoke City)
Omar Gonzalez (Pachuca)
Fabian Johnson (Borussia Mönchengladbach)
Michael Orozco (Tijuana)
DeAndre Yedlin (Newcastle United)
MF
Paul Arriola (Tijuana)
Kyle Beckerman (Real Salt Lake)
Alejandro Bedoya (Philadelphia Union)
Michael Bradley (Toronto FC)
Jermaine Jones (Colorado Rapids)
Darlington Nagbe (Portland Timbers)
Christian Pulisic (Borussia Dortmund)
Caleb Stanko (Vaduz)
Graham Zusi (Sporting Kansas City)
FW
Jozy Altidore (Toronto FC)
Jordan Morris (Seattle Sounders)
Rubio Rubin (Utrecht)
Chris Wondolowski (San Jose Earthquakes)
Bobby Wood (Hamburg)
A very conservative roster from a very conservative manager. The entire Copa America roster is here except for Perry Kitchen and three injured players (Dempsey, Zardes, Castillo). This is a relatively large squad for two games, with 26 players, so I can only hope that guys like Wondo & Orozco don't actually play a role at this point.
Jermaine Jones hasn't played since July 4. It is hard to see him playing much over these two games and I'm surprised he's even on the roster
Klinsmann is having a really hard time moving on from his old core. We're more than halfway through the 2018 cycle and it's not going to get any easier to replace old players with new blood as the WCQs get tougher in the Hex.
John Brooks is out of the squad with "back issues", which is vague and hopefully not serious. I do know that Brooks has returned to Hertha from NT camps with injuries, so they are probably going to be very conservative if he has a minor injury.
Also, Sacha Kljestan(!) was a late addition to the roster. With Bradley and likely Jones out for the first game, I guess he has a chance to play in central midfield - the other options are Beckerman, Nagbe, Bedoya, Acosta, and Stanko.
Jozy has been named captain in Bradley's absence.
Also, Sacha Kljestan(!) was a late addition to the roster. With Bradley and likely Jones out for the first game, I guess he has a chance to play in central midfield - the other options are Beckerman, Nagbe, Bedoya, Acosta, and Stanko.
Jozy has been named captain in Bradley's absence.
I'm sort of done with Bradley, and I'm surprised his return to MLS hasn't caused JK to deemphasize him. His play has fallen off.
I watched a Toronto game where Bradley harangued the ref for a full uncomfortable 30s after a call that didn't go his way. Bradley then walked away, then turned around and got in the ref's face AGAIN. No card. 20 min later another player got a card for 3 sec of dissent.
I know one moment means little but he seemed pretty confident he wasn't going to face consequences. (Also in my view he was wrong: game started with lots of Toronto fouls that were uncalled and the foul he asked for was minor in comparison).
The U-19s are heading to Serbia to play Serbia, France, and a playoff match.
GOALKEEPERS (2): Brady Scott (De Anza Force; Petaluma, Calif.), Colin Shutler (Loudoun Soccer Club; Broadlands, Va.)
DEFENDERS (6): Danny Barbir (West Bromwich Albion; Allentown, Pa.), Tanner Dieterich (Clemson; Nashville, Tenn.), Sam Golan (Loudoun Soccer Club; Great Falls, Va.), Jake Morris (Seattle Sounders FC; Fort Lauderdale, Fla.), Eddie Munjoma (SMU; McKinney, Texas), John Nelson (Internationals SC; Medina, Ohio)
MIDFIELDERS (6): Habib Barry (Seattle Sounders FC; Seattle, Wash.), Eric Calvillo (New York Cosmos; Palmdale, Calif.), Pierre Da Silva (Orlando City SC; Port Chester, N.Y.), Felipe Hernandez (Sporting KC; Murfreesboro, Tenn.), Djordje Mihailovic (Chicago Fire; Bridgeview, Ill.), Adam Ozeri (Club Atletico Banfield; New York, N.Y.)
FORWARDS (6): Joe Gallardo (Unattached; San Diego, Calif.), Josh Perez (ACF Fiorentina; La Habra, Calif.), Elijah Rice (Washington; Las Vegas, Nev.), Brandon Vazquez (Club Tijuana; Chula Vista, Calif.), Haji Wright (Schalke '04; Los Angeles, Calif.), Ethan Zubak (LA Galaxy; Los Angeles, Calif.)
Shutler, Golan, Morris, Barry, Hernandez, Ozeri, Rice, and Wright haven't been called up to this level before. Morris isn't related to Jordan; he was just recruited to Seattle's academy from a club in the Miami area.
I believe these players are all 1998s except for Scott and Morris who are 1999s. Players like Perez, Vazquez, and Wright are contenders for the U-20 as well. Most of the rest seems like depth for now, but it's a platform for players to step up.
GOALKEEPERS (2): Brady Scott (De Anza Force; Petaluma, Calif.), Colin Shutler (Loudoun Soccer Club; Broadlands, Va.)
DEFENDERS (6): Danny Barbir (West Bromwich Albion; Allentown, Pa.), Tanner Dieterich (Clemson; Nashville, Tenn.), Sam Golan (Loudoun Soccer Club; Great Falls, Va.), Jake Morris (Seattle Sounders FC; Fort Lauderdale, Fla.), Eddie Munjoma (SMU; McKinney, Texas), John Nelson (Internationals SC; Medina, Ohio)
MIDFIELDERS (6): Habib Barry (Seattle Sounders FC; Seattle, Wash.), Eric Calvillo (New York Cosmos; Palmdale, Calif.), Pierre Da Silva (Orlando City SC; Port Chester, N.Y.), Felipe Hernandez (Sporting KC; Murfreesboro, Tenn.), Djordje Mihailovic (Chicago Fire; Bridgeview, Ill.), Adam Ozeri (Club Atletico Banfield; New York, N.Y.)
FORWARDS (6): Joe Gallardo (Unattached; San Diego, Calif.), Josh Perez (ACF Fiorentina; La Habra, Calif.), Elijah Rice (Washington; Las Vegas, Nev.), Brandon Vazquez (Club Tijuana; Chula Vista, Calif.), Haji Wright (Schalke '04; Los Angeles, Calif.), Ethan Zubak (LA Galaxy; Los Angeles, Calif.)
Shutler, Golan, Morris, Barry, Hernandez, Ozeri, Rice, and Wright haven't been called up to this level before. Morris isn't related to Jordan; he was just recruited to Seattle's academy from a club in the Miami area.
I believe these players are all 1998s except for Scott and Morris who are 1999s. Players like Perez, Vazquez, and Wright are contenders for the U-20 as well. Most of the rest seems like depth for now, but it's a platform for players to step up.
Jurgen likes to have a chat in German with another native speaker to start every camp? I dunno.
Per Klinsmann, Guzan will start against SVG and Howard will start against T&T. JK also said that Jozy, Cameron, and Beckerman will start against SVG.
I think he's fine, especially against teams that aren't even cream of the crop in CONCACAF. Also because it's been a while since Guzan has been confident and in good form.
He's 37, though, so his decline will only accelerate over the next 12 months.
So does someone on the coaching staff need to get Ethan Hovarth a HeadBlade, or is the idea that we need to wait for baldness to happen naturally for him and that's how we know he's ripe?
@GrantWahlPSA: For USA fans, if you don't get BeIN Sports you can watch a free legal livestream of St. Vincent-USA on the go90 app (3:30 pm ET today).
Stressed about this game. Guatemala had little trouble playing away to this team, but Trinidad and Tobago had a rough go down there. Afternoon game, cricket pitch, no Bradley or Jones in the middle to be physical if they try to turn it into a rock fight. Not to mention we haven't yet scored a road goal in this round of qualification. We should handle them easily, but a bad challenge or a weird bounce and you never know.
No style points today. We need to find a way to get three points and get out.
Incidentally, I keep seeing that the USA need two wins to clinch, but I'm pretty sure there is no scenario in which a win today and a draw on Tuesday won't get the USA through.
No style points today. We need to find a way to get three points and get out.
Incidentally, I keep seeing that the USA need two wins to clinch, but I'm pretty sure there is no scenario in which a win today and a draw on Tuesday won't get the USA through.
I'm bored at work so I've been trying to figure out a pathway but yeah, I don't think the goal differential math works for any USA 4 point non-qualifying scenario. T&T has to lose today to open the possibility of a tiebreak at 11 points, but a T&T loss + USA win flips their current GD advantage in our favor, after which any draw advances the US. Easiest scenario is obviously USA + T&T wins advance both teams today and then on the 6th JK can give Wondo the sendoff his loins have been aching for in a game that means nothing.
This would appear to be:
Altidore -- Wood
Johnson -- Bedoya -- Beckerman -- Zusi
Acosta -- Besler -- Cameron -- Yedlin
Guzan
Johnson -- Bedoya -- Beckerman -- Zusi
Acosta -- Besler -- Cameron -- Yedlin
Guzan
Glad to see Johnson back in the midfield, especially in a game like this. I'm not a huge fan of Acosta at LB, but it's worth it to get FJ upfield against a weak opponent. I'd like to try him as a box-to-box at some point, though, and someone else at LB.
Ha -- terrible attempt to go one on one by Jozy but he recovers and it pays off for a nice layoff and a beautiful strike by Wood.