Michael Bradley and the Americans begin World Cup qualifying next week.
Neil W. Blackmon
The US Men’s National team begins its quest to qualify for the 2018 World Cup in Russia next Friday night in St. Louis when they take on Saint Vincent and the Grenadines in Round 4, Group C play of the CONCACAF qualifying tournament. There are three groups of four in this round, with the top two nations from each group advancing to the final qualifying round, affectionately referred to as “The Hex.”
Qualifying comes earlier than ever for the US, but after a trying 2015 that saw the Yanks finish 4th at the CONCACAF Gold Cup and fall to Mexico 3-2 in the Confederations Cup playoff match last month, it is difficult to view the chance to play competitive matches again as anything but a positive. It’s a chance to start again, and for manager Jurgen Klinsmann, who kept his job despite colossal failure on all fronts this summer, it is a chance to move the program forward.
The US group at this stage is by no means simple, and given the performance of the Americans this summer, qualification to the Hex isn’t something the Americans should take for granted.
Following the match against group minnow Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, the US will travel to Port of Spain to play Trinidad and Tobago. The Soca Warriors were quarterfinalists at the Gold Cup this summer but before bowing out to Panama on penalties they won a group that included eventual tournament champion Mexico. They have one of the better attacking players in CONCACAF in Kenwyne Jones and a strong midfield core featuring MLS regulars Joevin Jones of the Chicago Fire and Kevan George of the Columbus Crew. The US won’t have to deal with Orlando City’s dynamic winger Kevin Molino in Port of Spain, as he is still recovering from torn knee ligaments, but he’ll be back for the return match in the United States if his rehab keeps progressing well. This is a bevy of attacking talent that will press an American defense that has been poor to middling for over a year.
Rounding out the group is Guatemala. The Americans don’t play Guatemala until March, but that match will be in Guatemala City and the Americans were held to a draw the last time they played at the Estadio Mateo Flores.
The US didn’t secure passage to the Hex in 2014 qualifying until defeating Guatemala in Kansas City on the final day, so they are familiar with how tricky both Los Chapines and early round qualifying can be in general. This makes getting roster selection right even more crucial for Jurgen Klinsmann, who was roundly criticized for some choices he made on that front over the summer.
On the one hand, there is the urge to revamp the roster almost entirely, bringing in newer and younger players and utilizing the early stage of World Cup qualifying, where the US will be favored in nearly every game, as a staging ground to usher in a new era.Both the poor results from an American summer of soccer discontent and Klinsmann’s public statements that the CONCACAF Cup game against Mexico would be the last hurrah for an aging core of American mainstays suggest this will be Klinsmann’s play. And perhaps the promise to usher in a new era was Klinsmann’s final card to play, the chance to show that as technical director, the players he’s zeroed in on as being integral to the future are ready to deliver.
On the other hand, there’s the reality that this group is tricky and last cycle, a better side in a comparable group couldn’t secure qualification to the Hex until the final day. Those are heady stakes and when the games have meant the most, Klinsmann the pragmatic tinkerer from the US friendlies has quickly transformed into Klinsmann the predictable, calling on the same core over and over again, even as returns from that exercise diminish. Whatever confidence Klinsmann publicly projects in expanding the player pool and using young players, he’s been absolutely Sisyphus like in rolling the same boulder up the hill when the stakes are largest.
A result in Port of Spain will be difficult anyway. May as well bring a younger side.
The truth is there is likely a pragmatic balance somewhere. Klinsmann would do well to call in a nice blend of savvy veterans who will understand how tricky it is to navigate CONCACAF road qualifiers, irrespective of venue, and young players who are hungry and infuse needed emotion and (perhaps?) attacking life into a side that has had trouble generating attacking chances and goals with the old guard. This first pairing of qualifiers is optimal for such a roster, with a young side fully capable of capturing three points at home against Saint Vincent and the Grenadines and Trinidad and Tobago just free-flowing enough stylistically to play an open game against a young American team. Plus, there’s the added benefit that the Soca Warriors are plenty good enough to beat the Yanks traditional guard in Port of Spain anyway, so why not give a younger group a chance?
A younger team traveling to Trinidad and Tobago also opens the door for Klinsmann the master spinner to return. If Klinsmann plays a veteran guard team and they lose in Port of Spain, there will be stateside panic that makes the post-CONCACAF Cup criticism look paltry. This is how far the team has fallen at this point under Klinsmann’s leadership will be the unavoidable narrative. Play a younger side, however, and the story chances. Klinsmann can praise an improving Trinidad and Tobago for holding serve in Port of Spain, while calmly suggesting that the young team he chose to play factored into the result, citing some nebulous long-term benefit to the experience.
The thinking here at TYAC then is that Klinsmann makes good on his promise to begin ushering out the veteran core that failed this summer and in Pasadena last month. It won’t be sea change, but it will be noticeable, with a handful of longtime Klinsmann call-ups out of the picture, at least for the time being.
Here’s a breakdown position by position.
Might be time for Arsenal product Gedion Zelalem to join the US for games that matter.
Goalkeepers: Brad Guzan (Aston Villa), Tim Howard (Everton), Bill Hamid (DC United).
What’s interesting here is the Rimando phase-out. Hard to imagine Hamid getting the starter’s call- though a road qualifier would be a terrific baptism by fire. Guzan is the best American goalkeeper for me, and I think he’ll start qualifying in that position.
Defenders: DaMarcus Beasley, John Brooks, Geoff Cameron, Timothy Chandler, Matt Miazga, Tim Ream, Brek Shea
Of this group, two names will stand out.
The first is Beasley, who played well in the CONCACAF Cup but is of an age where certainly Klinsmann would like to phase him out. The problem, of course, is who plays left back, and that’s a problem compounded by the CONCACAF Cup spat between Fabian Johnson, the only American playing for a Champions League side, and Jurgen Klinsmann. Klinsmann’s ego suggests Johnson remains in Germany for these qualifiers, making Beasley a near necessity. (Caveat: Jon Bornstein should be the call here, as he’s had about the best year abroad of any American soccer player. But he won’t be called. Nor will Eric Lichaj. So just stop.)
The second name is Miazga. If you have a talent that is good enough, play the talent in big matches. That’s a philosophy US Soccer held for a long time and Klinsmann would do well to implement it here. Miazga has positional things he needs to clear up, and anyone who saw him commit a pair of silly fouls in New York’s playoff win in DC this weekend knows he is still a work in progress, but a qualifying camp would be a great experience and a just reward for the year he’s had for club and (youth) country.
Ventura Alvarado, Matt Besler and others miss out. The former for lack of playing time and the latter because Klinsmann loves to use veteran role players to prove his points.
Midfielders: Alejandro Bedoya, Michael Bradley, Jermaine Jones, Alfredo Morales, Danny Williams, DeAndre Yedlin, Gyasi Zardes, Gedion Zelalem
Jones survives, Beckerman does not. Bedoya hasn’t played in over a month due to an illness but he’s going to be vital this cycle and Klinsmann trusts him, so we’ll say he’s going to be in. Morales hasn’t performed well for his country but he plays constantly in a good league and Klinsmann has called him repeatedly. Danny Williams shined in the summer friendlies and is playing well for Reading. Whatever you think of his competitive performances in a US shirt against elite competition, he’s going to play a role in qualification. And that’s true no matter how righteous a Dax McCarty call would be instead.
Zelalem is the flier here. He’s been up and down at Rangers, but the main thing that’s happened is there have been moments where his technical ability is overwhelming for that league and other moments where the physicality of that league has been a burden for the Arsenal youngster. In other words- it has been a loan that has served the young man well and the international break would be a good time to integrate him to the senior side. Further, neither team the US play this pairing is particularly physical, which means if Zelalem played he’ll have space and a chance to impact winning. That’s still the point of playing 90 minutes, last I checked.
Is it time for Juan Agudelo to get a fourth cap under Klinsmann? Mandatory Credit: Mike DiNovo-USA TODAY Sports
Forwards: Juan Agudelo, Jozy Altidore, Clint Dempsey, Jordan Morris, Bobby Wood
Juan Agudelo has earned only three caps in the Klinsmann era. In those games, he has a goal and an assist. He only started once.
Clint Dempsey scored most the American goals this summer and Jozy Altidore hasn’t yet climbed out of the rut he fell into when he moved to Sunderland. It is time for the US to find other options. Agudelo is highly technical and capable of magic, as anyone who watched New England-DC United would have to admit. He deserves another look.
Bobby Wood continues to produce. We figure out if he can start for the US over the next year.
Jordan Morris edges out Andrew Wooten because Klinsmann loves pure, raw and unadulterated speed, and the US may need that on the counter in Port of Spain.
Thoughts? As always, the comments are yours.
Neil W. Blackmon is co-founder of The Yanks Are Coming. Reach him at nwblackmon@gmail.com and follow him on Twitter @nwblackmon.