By: COLIN REESE
This isn’t Jürgen Klinsmann’s likely 23-man Gold Cup roster. This is World Soccer Source’s opinion of the 23 U.S. internationals that deserve to represent the United States Men’s National Team at the 2015 Gold Cup.
It goes without saying, but many deserving players were left off this list due to a need to have a balanced roster with the right amount of center backs, outside backs, defensive midfielders, attacking midfielders, wingers, and forwards.
Many of the players with the talent and mentality to do well this summer have been seeing limited club playing time, so it is premature to back them until things change. This applies to many of the players in the U.S.’s youth national teams playing outside of MLS.
Jermaine Jones was omitted because the United States has other capable center backs, and it’s time to let the younger center backs play because the United States needs this for its long-term success.
Alejandro Bedoya is a fast and technical player excelling in Europe with Nantes in Ligue 1. This is a commendable achievement, but, Bedoya was dropped from World Soccer Source’s USA roster to allow room for both Kelyn Rowe and José Villarreal because World Soccer Source considers them to be better at creating and scoring goals. They also play under more control. Both players can also play centrally and in wide positions better than Bedoya in World Soccer Source’s opinion.
Joe Corona is a more important player for the United States in this writer’s opinion because Corona is a better playmaker than Bedoya. Corona can play as a Number 10, on either wing, or as a second striker. Bedoya’s value is attacking at pace, but the United States really needs more possession with purpose and assists. This is what Corona brings to the squad, and Corona also scores goals.
Klinsmann’s refusal to use Benny Feilhaber is inexcusable, especially given the problems the U.S. has had with possession, with creating scoring opportunities, and displaying a degree of technical skill in the midfield against elite competition. Feilhaber deserves to represent the United States. Klinsmann clearly has some personal problem with Feilhaber, and Klinsmann needs to let it go.
Some other selections warrant some deeper explanation. Both Geoff Cameron and Maurice Edu are versatile players that excel as defensive midfielders and center backs, and Edu can also play as a central midfielder, while Cameron also plays both outside back positions.
These two players give the National Team depth at the defensive midfielder spot, so Bradley can either play as a center defensive midfielder directly in front of the Back Four or as a center midfielder of the box-to-box variety, depending on how attack-minded the United States wishes to play.
Andrew Farrell played as a right back last season for the New England Revolution, but this season he’s playing his natural position of center back. Farrell is a quality center back, but he’s also an outside back that provides more of the combination of defending, speed, and technical ability that the USA needs from its outside backs. Farrell can also play as a midfield destroyer in a pinch.
Robbie Rogers has been playing as a left back, but the right-footed player can play as a right back or in the midfield on either side as a midfielder, which is where he used to always play.
Looking at the bigger problems with Klinsmann’s player selection, the USSF cannot afford to keep snubbing the majority of the quality American players in the 20-25 year old range that aren’t dual-nationals from Europe, as Klinsmann has largely been doing.
So, below is World Soccer Source’s 23-man list of the players that deserve to represent the Stars and Stripes this summer at the 2015 Gold Cup:
Goalkeepers: Brad Guzan, William Yarbrough, Clint Irwin
Defenders: Ventura Alvarado, John Brooks, Maurice Edu, Shane O’Neill, DeAndre Yedlin, Greg Garza, Andrew Farrell, Robbie Rogers
Midfielders: Michael Bradley, Geoff Cameron, Dillon Powers, Benny Feilhaber, Mix Diskerud, Joe Corona
Forwards: Clint Dempsey, Jozy Altidore, Juan Agudelo, Gyasi Zardes, José Villarreal, Kelyn Rowe
World Soccer Source’s USA XI (4-3-3): Guzan; Yedlin, Alvarado, Brooks, Garza; Bradley, Cameron, Feilhaber; Corona, Altidore, Dempsey.