??? - you can add your favorite u-23 flavor of the month if you like
While I can see what you are driving towards I find it very unlikely that Sacha (32.8), Benny (33.5), or Lee (31.8) will be in contention come 2018 (especially as starters).
If you're belief is that we'll be deploying a 3-5-3 or a 5-3-2 formation than the team wouldn't carry that many forwards.
On the Defensive front: I don't see Hedges making the cut....IMO the 4th CB will likely be Maizga. Also feel that Shea is likely to be in the mix.
In Midfield there are 2 names that should be included....Nagbe & Diskerud. While you may not rate them highly, IMO both are likely to be there.
At Forward I have no issue with the 4 names you've listed, but there are 2 others that most would consider to be better than fair bets....Morris and based on performances w/ the U-23's Kiesewetter is showing very well.
IMHO our best formation by 2018 would be a 4-3-3. Something like the following:
-----Zardes--------Johannson-------Wood---
--------Nagbe----------------Bradley-----
-----------------Williams---------------
--Fabian---Brooks---------Cameron---Yedlin---
-----------------Guzan-----------------
playing for a club's youth set-up will not qualify guys for full MNT duty and unfortunately having a teenager break through to first-team squad at one of these big euro clubs is just not going to happen any time soon
It will if you are a talented dual national that has not decided his allegiance.
hamsamwich
Post #35
Tuesday October 13, 2015 7:03pm
Joined Oct 2013
Total Posts: 3,641
In terms of talent and hype, yes. But Pulisic and LD are opposite ends of the spectrum in the way they play.
I'm with you on the kid though, he is talented. Next week I'm hoping he dominates and shows everyone what a player he is.
chris_thebassplayer San Jose
Post #36
Tuesday October 13, 2015 8:45pm
Joined May 2013
Total Posts: 1,552
Ham- how do you think they're different.
rainORshine
Post #37
Wednesday December 2, 2015 6:37am
Joined Dec 2012
Total Posts: 2,097
3-5-2
why:
CBs - we have not found a truly inspiring CB tandem since boca/gooch. certainly since JK axed boca its essentially been a revolving door of candidates with no final solution. we are no closer now than the beginning of last hex. i would argue the 2 best CB options (for me) - ream and brooks, would not really be a great option together in a back 4.
OBs - we are short on really good OB options. ream is not a LB. yedlin is pretty far from being a good RB. brek shea is not one of the top 30 or so US players and he is far from proving himself as a good itnl LB option.
Nagbe - he is not going to work centrally - where he needs to be - in a 4-4-2. neither do the other most talented playmaking options - benny, sacha, lee
OMs - can we stop trying to shoehorn guys into outside mid roles - fabian is probably the only guy we have that can really look good there at the highest level. bedoya? yedlin? just not great options. finlay? probably a little limited at that level. ZARDES??? PLEASE STOP
why not a 4-3-3:
first, see most of the points above
also, who is going to lead the line? altidore? please. johannsson? wood? i dont think so. MLS final tells you the kind of player that excels in the that role in a US-based type of team - a physical beast who relishes playing with back to goal... kamara, adi... we dont have one of those guys
CM - BRADLEY, kitchen, mccarty, MORALES, tchani, trapp, williams
AM - feilhaber, kljestan, NAGBE, nyugen
F - agudelo, altidore, DEMPSEY, johannsson, WOOD, zardes
said it a thousand times, but heres one more... absolutely ZERO point in continuing to call jones or beckerman in. past time to turn the page on those guys. how does it help us come russia?
and ill take berhalter, porter or good foreiner to coach if gulati comes to his senses
Know Nothing
Post #38
Wednesday December 2, 2015 3:38pm
Joined Jan 2013
Total Posts: 1,894
Rain...interesting argument, but you lost me when you argue to drop Jones but yet you want to start Dempsey.
Also, your 3-5-2, by the way you have divided the positions would actually end up being 3-4-1-2 with Nagbe given a "free" role in between the midfield and attack. That may well be the best appraoch for our talent pool, but Dempsey's inclusion would inevitably change the formation into a 3-4-2-1 as he is not a player that will selflessly make runs to help the team and would drop off to get more of the ball.
TheTruth
Post #39
Wednesday December 2, 2015 4:50pm
Joined Dec 2013
Total Posts: 954
Jones doesn't help us in Russia. Neither does Dempsey. They do in Copa America though.
If you don't give a crap about Copa America, fine. I do. Mainly because it's in the US. I think we oughtta to field our best team for it. Would be embarrassing if we don't get outta the group.
I couldn't imagine Jones not being one of our best 23 in 7 months. I actually could imagine Dempsey not being one of our best 23 in 7 months, but I think it is likely that he still is.
cleancutimage
Post #40
Wednesday December 2, 2015 7:21pm
Joined Oct 2013
Total Posts: 1,344
Original post from dunlopp9987
I mean, besides the lineup, here's your biggest mistake: This is your 2018 WC lineup. Which means we qualified for the World Cup. Which means Jurgen would still have his job. So as soon as I saw Arena as your coach, I stopped caring.
lololol I thought he meant coach: arena was going to be our venue for the first group match. He can't be serious about Arena being our coach again. Talk about nostalgia.
Anyway, it is interesting to see how many people left Alvarado off their roster and with him being on the chopping block at America, I understand. I haven't been too impressed with his time in a national team shirt but when some of the older guys I am seeing like Parkhurst as cb options for the World Cup, you have to think VA has a better shot at making it.
rainORshine
Post #41
Wednesday December 2, 2015 8:20pm
Joined Dec 2012
Total Posts: 2,097
Original post from Know Nothing
Rain...interesting argument, but you lost me when you argue to drop Jones but yet you want to start Dempsey.
Also, your 3-5-2, by the way you have divided the positions would actually end up being 3-4-1-2 with Nagbe given a "free" role in between the midfield and attack. That may well be the best appraoch for our talent pool, but Dempsey's inclusion would inevitably change the formation into a 3-4-2-1 as he is not a player that will selflessly make runs to help the team and would drop off to get more of the ball.
i think 2016 will be transition year for dempsey - who is 32 to jones' 34. dempsey was EASILY the best US forward (looking at both club and country) in 2015. i expect a changing of the guard by the end of the year but somebody needs to take that spot from him and i look forward to see who steps up. as of now i think a healthy AJ is the best we've got to take his spot
not sure i totally agree that playing both nagbe and dempsey is a catastrophic problem - nagbe is actually at his best when he drops a bit into CM areas, which would make space for CD to drop underneath with wood staying high and stretching the defense...
rainORshine
Post #42
Wednesday December 2, 2015 9:22pm
Joined Dec 2012
Total Posts: 2,097
Original post from TheTruth
Jones doesn't help us in Russia. Neither does Dempsey. They do in Copa America though.
If you don't give a crap about Copa America, fine. I do. Mainly because it's in the US. I think we oughtta to field our best team for it. Would be embarrassing if we don't get outta the group.
I couldn't imagine Jones not being one of our best 23 in 7 months. I actually could imagine Dempsey not being one of our best 23 in 7 months, but I think it is likely that he still is.
how do we know jones is better than morales at this point in their careers? you dont
morales starts for a mid-table bundesliga squad 2 points out of a europa spot. jones plays in MLS.
we dont know jones is better and we dont know that morales is not a better fit with rest of squad until he gets a legit opportunity with first team.
thats why its so ridiculous not to use games against teams like st. vincents and T&T to explore these ideas. it does not make any sense to close our eyes and say jones is for sure the best option until summer 2016... at which point he suddenly will not be?
why not fully vet other options?
dfw_fan DfW
Post #43
Wednesday December 2, 2015 10:08pm
Joined Apr 2013
Total Posts: 999
Original post from rainORshine
how do we know jones is better than morales at this point in their careers? you dont
morales starts for a mid-table bundesliga squad 2 points out of a europa spot. jones plays in MLS.
we dont know jones is better and we dont know that morales is not a better fit with rest of squad until he gets a legit opportunity with first team.
thats why its so ridiculous not to use games against teams like st. vincents and T&T to explore these ideas. it does not make any sense to close our eyes and say jones is for sure the best option until summer 2016... at which point he suddenly will not be?
why not fully vet other options?
The two matches against Guat would probably be the time JK would use Morales.
El_Chorizo Inglewood !
Post #44
Wednesday December 2, 2015 10:10pm
Joined Aug 2015
Total Posts: 70
can we try legit and can we get Chris Tierney a run at lb
no more altidore please worst first touch in all of sports
Dave
Post #45
Wednesday December 2, 2015 11:06pm
Joined Jul 2014
Total Posts: 1,185
The upcoming January Camp is going to go a long way towards determining what JK's intentions are going to be for 2016 and beyond. If JK continues to call in his standard aging MLSers (Dempsey, Jones, Beckerman, Rimando, Wondolowski, Beasley, etc...) than it will clear that he and his coaches have stalled and have no clear plans for the future. There are enough players within MLS who are worthy of being labeled as "Fringe" USMNT players that none of these elder statesmen should be seen this January. Instead I would Like to see something along the following called up:
There are enough players with experience (Besler, Bradley, Diskerud, Jozy, Shea, & Zardes) to provide the leadership in camp....while getting these fringe players plenty of chances to get playing time to see how they could preform at the Sr. international level.
Ten-Towns
Total Posts: 10,652