Timothy Weah, star of the U17 World Cup, may make his international debut Tuesday night.
Neil W. Blackmon and Roberto Rojas
The US ought to be using this March international window to prepare for a World Cup, but aren’t due to an unthinkable but by now, well-litigated collective failure.
Instead, they are preparing for their future.
For the third consecutive friendly, a group of talented, young prospects have been brought in to represent the US Men’s National Team, this time against a talented and capable Paraguay side Tuesday night in Cary, N.C. (7:30 PM, FS1).
In the aftermath of last autumn’s haunting failure in Couva, Trinidad and Tobago, the US youth movement makes a great deal of sense. The Americans won’t play meaningful, competitive soccer matches again until next summer’s Gold Cup, and holdover stars like captain Michael Bradley (30), Geoff Cameron (32), Brad Guzan (33) and Clint Dempsey (35) aren’t getting any younger, meaning the time is ripe to begin integrating new faces into the fold and in some instances, replacing old mainstays.
“This match once again represents an opportunity for some new faces,” interim head coach Dave Sarachan told US Soccer last week. “The roster has an average age under 24, so for the moist part this is a group of younger players that we feel have a future with the National Team along with some familiar names. The timing is right to give these guys international exposure, and they will certainly be tested against a strong and experienced Paraguay team.”
New year. New faces. Even as sadness lingers, hope springs eternal in March.
The TYAC preview then. Usuals then particulars.
Series: 8th Meeting. The United States lead, 3-2-2.
Two of the meetings between the US and Paraguay have come at the Copa America. The two nations split those games, with Paraguay edging an experimental team led by Bob Bradley in 2007, and the US avenging that defeat at the 2016 Copa America Centenario in Nashville. That game, won 1-0 by an undermanned United States (DeAndre Yedlin was sent off), featured one of the best individual defensive plays ever by an American, when John Brooks did this (15 second mark):
The two nations have also met at a World Cup. That game came in 1930, with the US running out 3-0 winners in what remains US Soccer’s best ever finish at a World Cup.
There is recent youth history between the countries as well.
Just days after the stunning US failure to qualify for the World Cup, John Hackworth’s team gave grieving American fans plenty to cheer about when his U17 side defeated Paraguay 5-0 in the Round of 16 at the U17 World Cup in India. One of the American stars in that match? None other than PSG teenage sensation Timothy Weah, who scored a hat trick, and is with the US senior team in North Carolina for this game.
Atlanta United phenom Andrew Carleton also shined for the United States in that game, collecting a goal and two assists, but while Weah can get time with PSG, somehow Tata Martino won’t play Carleton in Atlanta. Strange days.
Weather: Upper 40’s, clear and crisp. Perfect footballing weather, if a bit chilly for early spring in the Carolinas. Editors Note: With Fabian Johnson’s time with the US Men’s National Team perhaps at or nearing an end, we promise to figure out which players are particular about certain types of weather. A new “Misery Index” is in order- it’s just a matter of which player we decide to have fun with.
DeAndre Yedlin leads a talented group of American defenders.
What to Watch for from the United States:
The wisdom of deputizing Sarachan, a holdover assistant from a coaching staff that orchestrated one of the most colossal failures in US sporting history, warrants scrutiny, especially in the wake of the decision by Jonathan Gonzalez to play for Mexico instead of the United States, where he was born.
Nevertheless, the longtime Chicago Fire manager and LA Galaxy assistant has insisted on giving young players looks during his time as US Men’s Soccer steward, and that is certainly to his credit.
Of all the rosters assembled, this one is the youngest and most ambitious, with names like Timothy Weah, Weston McKennie, Antonee Robinson, Shaq Moore, Erik Palmer-Brown, Andrija Novakovich and Cameron Carter-Vickers jumping off the page as young players who have immense talent, are already valued in European club circles, and are just waiting for opportunities to break through with the US senior side. Expect Sarachan to give those players extended looks Saturday night. What’s more, the fact this group is joining established young players like DeAndre Yedlin and Tyler Adams in the US fold is positive news for the future.
The Gonzalez failure should also weigh heavily on the coaching staff’s minds. This is a roster with several dual nationals: Carter-Vickers (England), Novakovich (Serbia), Weah (Liberia) and Robinson (England)- who could all still elect to play for their other home nation. The US staff will be keen to put those players on the field and make it known that their deciding to play for the United States is a priority, both now and in the future, when cap ties are available.
There are three areas that TYAC will watch closest come Tuesday evening.
Goalkeepers:
At TYAC, we felt like this was a position of concern before and early in the Hex, and ultimately, were proved to be correct when Tim Howard had one of his toughest evenings in a US shirt against Costa Rica in New Jersey last September. That defeat put what appeared to be a smooth fall of qualifying into doubt, and you know what happened from there.
Brad Guzan is 33, and probably still the US number one if he wants to be, at least into next summer. But as the US begin to eye a Copa America down the road and qualifying fixtures come 2020, there’s a legitimate discussion about who the number one goalkeeper ought to be, and no solid answers.
This camp gave the US a look at three more options. Bill Hamid finally left for Europe but has not yet clamped down a starting job in Denmark. With only five caps to his name, he doesn’t get extra credit for staying power, and shouldn’t be presumed to be the starter until he wins a job at his European club and performs well. Alex Bono is 23, the MLS Cup champion goalkeeper and a guy who appears to be getting better with experience and age. If he starts tonight, that’s likely instructive as to what (this staff, at least) his future may portend. Finally, Zack Steffen is maybe the best American goalkeeper in MLS, in terms of pure ability to take over a game. He’s only 22, and his return to MLS from Europe was, at first glance, an odd choice. But it appears to have been the right one, and for my money, he’s the best one in camp in terms of ceiling. Expect two to play Tuesday night.
A potential US 11 Tuesday night.
Defense:
It’s less about tactics here- although certainly with young talents like Miguel Almiron and Cecilio Dominguez (Club America) in the Paraguay team- the US will be tested by some midfield playmakers. It’s more about pecking order, and who earned the right to start after a tough week of camp.
Coaches have buzzed about Antonee Robinson, a natural left back who has played well on loan from Everton to Bolton Wanderers this season. Robinson is a fleet-footed and physical defender who is strong on set pieces and capable technically, especially as a passer, meaning he offers plenty getting forward as well. The US have probed and searched for answers at the fullback positions for years. With DeAndre Yedlin blossoming at Newcastle, the emergence of a player like Robinson is a promising sign that solutions may be on the horizon.
Another possible solution is Shaq Moore, who plays for Levante in La Liga, and is challenged week in and week out by some of the finest attacking footballers in the world. Small, super fast and compact, Moore is reminiscent of Marvell Wynne, except at 21, already a far more technically polished player. He’s unlikely to unseat Yedlin for the time being, but his presence in camps for the next few years pushing Yedlin is great news for the US, both as a depth piece and a competition piece.
The CBs are even more interesting.
Matt Miazga continues to play solid soccer in Holland, a scorer’s league where lock down defenders are a prized commodity. Miazga is sometimes rash and wears his emotions on his sleeve too often, and can lose his composure. But he’s a decisive tackler with strong range, and he’s growing into a more poised kid with Vitesse. He’ll battle Cameron Carter-Vickers, who has made the most of a loan to Ipswich Town, for a starting role over the next year-plus.
Erik Palmer-Brown may have been the best American youth player at the U20 World Cup last autumn, and the former Sporting Kansas City product is an advertisement for cross-training young players at multiple positions. Always a capable defender, Palmer-Brown’s various repetitions at midfield and in the back have created a polished, technical and comfortable on the ball center back, who was so good at the U20 World Cup and on a loan with Porto that Manchester City took a flier on him last season. Palmer-Brown is currently on loan at Kortrijk in Belgium, and every international appearance is helpful as he works toward securing a work permit to play at Manchester City. With Brexit looming, the US would do well to start Palmer-Brown Tuesday night.
Jul 1, 2017; Dallas, TX, USA; Toronto FC midfielder Marco Delgado (18) in action during the game against FC Dallas at Toyota Stadium. FC Dallas defeats Toronto FC 3-1. Mandatory Credit: Jerome Miron-USA TODAY Sports
What beyond Adams and McKennie?
In the short-term, with Michael Bradley still very much in the fold at only 30, the US mainly get depth in the uber-talented duo of Adams and McKennie when you evaluate this roster from the macro-level. But here’s the rub: how much better is that depth piece if you had added Jona Gonzalez to the mix? And with Gonzalez out of the picture- can the US add young, talented depth to a midfield that too often was devoid of distributional hubs and playmaking options last cycle?
This roster has some good- and some less interesting- midfield options.
Darlington Nagbe remains in the fold, presumably because he’s a brilliant MLS linker and connector. He’s shown little nationally and we’re less interested in what he offers moving forward.
More interesting is the case of Marky Delgado. The last player taken in a dispersal draft, Delgado plays hard and with a chip on his shoulder, and should make his first US appearance on Tuesday evening. A pure number eight who can get between the lines and ping balls to runners in the channels or work triangles with the forwards in front, Delgado is constantly improving at Toronto FC. Only 22, it is instructive that he received a second call-up after an extended look before the US friendly against Bosnia and Herzegovina.
Kenny Saief impressed enough on a wing to start a Gold Cup game, but suffered a strange injury and a variety of medical complications, issues that likely kept him out of the US roster in the autumn qualifying matches. Healthy and playing for Champions League and Europa league fixture Anderlecht in Belgium, Saief should get plenty of looks for the US moving forward as the Americans sort out their options in wide positions.
Finally, while most eyes will be on the electrifying Adams- who dominated a CONCACAF Champions League tie in leading the Red Bulls to the semifinals- and the smooth passing, steady McKennie- playing meaningful minutes for top 3 side in Germany- it will be interesting to see what, if anything, Wil Trapp offers off the bench. Trapp is a player who I value more as an international than the limited destroyer Roldan (Roldan could also play internationally as an out of position fullback, I suppose)- and Trapp can use these games to flash his wares and potential as an important depth piece in the slog and grind of CONCACAF. Think, Kyle Beckerman, plus (in terms of valuable role player more than style).
Atlanta United and MLS sensation Miguel Almiron leads a creative and talented Paraguay midfield.
Roberto Rojas on What to Watch from Paraguay:
And so for the second straight time, La Albirroja have failed to make it to the FIFA World Cup. This has become something of a disappointing paradox considering it was once a country that was amongst the best in South America and made it to four straight World Cups from 1998 to 2010. Having written that, even as close as qualifying to the World Cup actually became (lost a 1-0 decisive match to an already eliminated Venezuela at home on the last match day), it was a still team undergoing a rebuilding process.
Now, under Gustavo Morinigo (interim manager and the sixth different manager the Paraguayans have had in the last year seven years), the first match of 2018 will be against a side that they have been on par with for many years in terms of historical confrontations: the United States. Of course, the last time that these two have faced was in the narrow, dogfight of a 1-0 victory for the Yanks in Philadelphia during the Copa America Centenario that saw the hosts go through to the next round and the Paraguayans eliminated.
What’s even more interesting Tuesday night, however, is that in this so-called rebuilding process heading into the Copa America next year in Brazil, and eventually the qualification for the World Cup in Qatar four years from now, are the list of call-ups made by the former U17 national team coach.
Despite not calling up goalkeeper Antony Silva and longtime defender Paulo da Silva, Morinigo still called up 35-year-old veteran midfielder Cristian Riveros, who is expected to the captain the side Tuesday night.
However, many key names have been called in for the rebuilding process that Paraguay fans have been accustomed to of seeing during the qualifiers for Russia from the last two years. Among the names are AC Milan’s Gustavo Gómez, Lille’s Junior Alonso, twins Oscar and Angel Romero, Dynamo Kyiv’s Derlis Gonzalez, Copenhagen’s Federico Santander and the “star” player of this team, midfielder Miguel Almiron of Atlanta United.
Three players have also received their first international call-ups: Guarani’s Luis de la Cruz, Olimpia’s Richard Sanchez and Millionarios’ striker Roberto Ovelar, who has been in tremendous form recently in the Colombian league.
While many people will not yet know what Morinigo’s game plan will be heading into their friendly against the United States, you would expect a virtuous, stylistically traditional Paraguayan side relying on their defensive organization, remaining compact and then countering with blistering pace down the flanks, as well as creative influences during a slow build-up heading into the attack.
Roberto Rojas on the Player to watch for Paraguay: Miguel Almiron, Atlanta United
The Atlanta United midfielder has blossomed into a superstar after his first year in MLS, which gives no doubt as to why he was awarded the Paraguayan Player of the Year award in 2017.
A player that can work well either as a winger or an attacking midfielder, the 24-year-old brings pace, creativity and an ability to work as somewhat of a one-man counter-attack. Given the pieces around him, it will be interesting to see how he will function in the current set-up that the Paraguayans decide on. Perhaps his optimal position will be slotting in deep into that number 10 role, and not only provide chances to his teammates but also take onto goal.
It’ll be a battle of experience and youth on both ends of the pitch, but for a player that is representing a nation in Major League Soccer, Almiron has familiarity of some of the players in this current U.S side from last season and is expected to be the main player that Dave Sarachan’s players will have to stop in order to suffocate any of the chances La Albirroja can have going forward.
Andrija Novakovich has been a class player at Telstar in Netherlands, where the big forward is on loan from Reading.
US Player to Watch: Andrija Novakovich, Reading (on loan to Telstar, Netherlands)
A Serbian dual international from the Wisconsin hamlet of Muskego (population 25,000), Novakovich grew up about 45 minutes from Milwaukee and originally simply hoped to grow up and play soccer in college. The 2012-2013 Gatorade Boys Player of the Year, Novakovich acheived that goal, signing with Marquette University to play soccer.
Until England came calling.
“We always thought he was talented, of course, and hoped it would pay tuition and books,” his father Mane Novakovich said this week. “It wasn’t until later in high school we started to think, he’s got a chance to be a pro. He was just so much better on the ball than other kids.”
At 6’4, it is unusual to hear about a tall, lanky forward with tremendous skill at his feet. But Novakovich possesses a deft first touch and an ability to place the ball that has allowed him to tally 17 goals in only 28 games in the Netherlands second division this year. The returns have impressed his home club in Reading, who signed him to an extension this autumn, and earned him a US National team call-up this month.
As the US probe for options up top to join Jozy Altidore and Bobby Wood moving forward, having a big, physical and surprisingly technical poacher like Novakovich could be an immense asset, and it’s an option the US haven’t truly had in a while. That makes Novakovich’s US debut, which should come Tuesday night, worth watching.
Prediction: USA 1, Paraguay 1. One team gets a goal from a star- as Almiron will tickle the twine for Paraguay, likely in the opening half. But I think the Americans get a goal too, from a young star or up and comer- maybe Weah or Novakovich- and folks leave WakeMed Soccer Park hopeful Tuesday evening.
Neil W. Blackmon co-founded The Yanks Are Coming. Follow him on Twitter @nwblackmon.
Roberto Rojas is a soccer journalist and CONMEBOL expert who co-hosts the podcast “Low Limit Futbol.” Follow him on Twitter @robertorojas97.