With Christmas around the corner it isn't just Santa Claus making a list of those who have been good this year.
Bob Bradley is making a list as well and in a few weeks we will find out which players he has selected for the annual January U.S. national team training camp. There are plenty of MLS candidates to choose from after a season that saw many new faces emerge, and some familiar faces play really well.
Last year, Bradley brought in a camp of 30 players, made up mainly of MLS players, with some Scandinavian-based players mixed in. We aren't likely to see a list for next month's camp until closer to Christmas, but based on the recent MLS season, and the performances of some European-based players in recent months, there is a group of players you can see getting the nod when Bradley unveils his list.
With that in mind, here is the projected 30-man roster I see Bradley calling in for the January U.S. national team camp:
PROJECTED USMNT TRAINING CAMP ROSTER
GOALKEEPERS– Kevin Hartman, Nick Rimando, Matt Pickens, Sean Johnson
DEFENDERS– Clarence Goodson, Omar Gonzalez, Tim Ream, Nat Borchers, George John, Heath Pearce, Marvell Wynne, Kevin Alston, Sean Franklin
MIDFIELDERS– Alejandro Bedoya, Benny Feilhaber, Mikkel Diskerud, Brek Shea, Eddie Gaven, Bobby Convey, Jeff Larentowicz, Geoff Cameron, Robbie Rogers, Kyle Beckerman, Dax McCarty
FORWARDS- Edson Buddle, Juan Agudelo, Teal Bunbury, Chris Wondolowski, Justin Braun, Conor Casey
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Some quick thoughts:
Call it the John Kerry double flip flop. I originally listed Goodson, but took him off considering his impending move to Danish club Brondby, but with Brondby also off until March, Clarence Goodson should get a call. No, he's got nothing to prove, but he's a veteran and the camp needs veterans. If he passes on this camp, Chad Marshall would make sense as a replacement.
One player who nearly made this list is Ike Opara. The San Jose rookie had a great start to his first MLS season before a broken foot sidelined him. He's a future national team player, but given the fact he just returned to training in November makes me wonder if he would get the call ahead of any of the above centerbacks. If Bradley is intrigued enough by his potential, Opara could be making a trip to training camp.
It wouldn't surprise me if Gale Agbossoumounde got called in so he could get some quality training in, much as was the case in South Africa last month.
Kevin Hartman was in camp a year ago, but will he be looking to rest his the knee injury that hobbled him late in the year? There aren't a ton of goalkeeping options to choose from.
Landon Donovan is absent from this list, as he should be. Let's face it, he is either going on loan to Everton again or he's taking a long and deserved break.
Neither Logan Pause or Brian Carroll are on this list despite starting against South Africa. Why? It's fair to say Beckerman, Larentowicz and McCarty probably all have higher places on the USMNT depth chart than Pause and Carroll.
I'm open to some suggestions, and could swap in a name here or there. There were a handful of players who I could see getting a look. Any one of three San Jose defenders in Brandon McDonald, Jason Hernandez and Opara, to Rapids defender Drew Moor. Attacking wise, someone like Justin Mapp enjoyed a bit of a renaissance in Philadelphia, and young goalkeeper Brad Knighton might be someone to give a camp look at if players like Hartman and Rimando can't make it. Chris Pontius is someone who would be a good player to invite but he's still recovering from surgery.
There are plenty of players who people always bring up, but who aren't eligible to play for the USA. Players like Sebastien LeToux, Danny Mwanga, Tony Tchani and Rodney Wallace. Oh, and Andy Najar. If you're not eligible to play for the USA yet, you're not getting a call-up, so people should probably stop considering those type of players as options. At least until they secure American citizenship.
Those hoping to see some European-based benchwarmers making the trip for this camp shouldn't hold their breath. Last year's camp only included four non-MLS players (based in Sweden, Norway and Denmark).
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What do you think of the group? Who is missing from the list that should have made it? Who's name are you happy to see included?
Share your thoughts below.
Casey???!!!!! CASEY???!!!!! How should he even be considered.
It’s not like the guy could go on the road in CONCACAF and singlehandedly carry the US to a victory that kept us out of a VERY bad spot in qualifying or anything.
You know who could, though? That guy in the Swedish reserve league. HE could.
A good list Ives, but I’d make a couple changes: In Defense I’d drop Marvell Wynne & Nat Borchers and replace them with DeMerit, Parkhurst or Ryan Smith & Ike Opara. In Midfield I’d drop Beckerman or Larentowicz and add Brad Evans. At forward the only issue I have with your list is Conor Casey. Unless he’s there to show the young players what Not to do (lazy, slow, etc…) he adds nothing to this camp. If the entent is to show young players how to be a target forward use Ching instead.
A couple of players come to mind that i’d like to see in camp.
1)Santino Quaranta – the guy has all the makings for the international game and is a versatile player, can play in the midfield or up top. He’s done well to get back on track and i’d like to see him included.
2)Andy Najar – is it too far fetched to invite this kid to the January camp? Get some camaraderie going with the players and coaching staff…I say it’s worth a shot. We need to lock him in US MNT cap ASAP!
Rogers can cross good though, that is a strength not a lot of US players have.
Put Findley on the wings and lets see how he does.
Why would we call up a college D team for a friendly honestly why??? -___-
That is messed up man. -____-
K, good that is a sign of relief, lol. 😀
Actually, I’m not kidding you. I’m disagreeing with you — which is kinda the point of these boards. I have indeed seen Ream play several times. I think he is a nice prospect who’ll be a solid professional centerback. But I certainly don’t think he’s the best CB prospect out there right now, nor do I think he’ll ever become a first-rate star player.
You stay classy though, nick.
I’m from Sacramento and go to school at Cal Poly in SLO. My girlfriend goes to school at UCLA, so I figured this would be a good weekend to drive down to LA and see a USMNT game. This will be my first USMNT game. I’ve been to 2 Galaxy games before at the HDC.
Do you have to be an official member to sit with the Outlaws? I just have general admission tickets
Haha definitely. I think you gotta start Feilhaber and put him with a defensive midfielder like Beckerman. Diskerud could start out wide though or come in as a sub for Benny.
Benny might not even be there though if he transfers to a new club this winter.
Not funny at all.
Thanks for the info!
For real man?
Grella is on loan to League One team (English 3rd division). So not only is he not that deserving he’ll be in the middle of a season.
Frankie Simek is also playing for a League One team (same team as Grella), and he’s got a fair amount of call ups in the past (Gold Cup 2007, Netherlands friendy in March 2010. Plus with Cherundolo, Lichaj and Spector were not exactly in super need of Right Backs. Frankie’s just got to stay healthy, keep getting playing time, and move up to at least the Championship if he wants call ups.
Not gonna even waste my time on Adu.
Davis? Who’s Davis? Do you mean Charlie Davies? Let’s what until he starts getting for first team action.
Jemal Johnson is also League One striker. ‘Nuff said.
Lee Nguyen is in effing Vietnam!
Torres probably won’t be available. Mexican Clasura starts January 7th, so unless he transfers or goes on loan to an MLS club before then, he’ll still be with Pachuca and he’ll be unavailable.
Yevgeni Starikov is a possibility. Very intriguing, but largely unknown at this point. 9 appearances and 1 goal for a midtable Russian Premier League isn’t something that I’m gonna get all worked up about if he doesn’t get called in. Someone to watch though. I’ll be surprised if he gets called in.
Lol yeah and also being a waaaay better player.
I can dig it. Although Goodson won’t be there (Bronby opens camp on January 10th), so I’ll put DeMerit or Ream there, and my guess is you’re probably gonna see Bob put Pearce at left back.
Why you replying to me?
100% correct. Suggesting that Holden is a DM is crazy
Huh?
Im a union season ticket holder, i just don’t see the williams thing. kid is fast, strong, and loves to get forward, but is reckless with his tackles and finds himself out of poistion ALOT…. I know everyone at ppl loves him so i guess i’m in the minority
agreed, i still think we shea at lb as well…
why
I’m sorry but Bobby Convey is only slightly above average when it comes to speed. I can see your case for Beasely, but geuss what – he’s not available, therefore your argument is nullified. The only caps that Rogers got in the past year that Beasley didn’t were the El Salvador, South Africa, and Honduras caps and those were all because Beasley was still in season while Rogers was not.
Rogers definitely has skill and speed to take players on. His problem is that his head is all messed up. He thinks that he should come into the center to get involved in build-up play, when in reality, he’s much better when he simply uses his pace and skill to get down the line and put in crosses. He did amazing in the Costa Rica game because he painted his cleats white and put in crosses. It led to two chances that game and one of them was a goal.
As far as who is better, at the moment, it’s Beasley. Rogers has better 1v1, better touch, a better shot and probably is better from set pieces, but his head isn’t straight. Beasley knows he’s out there to take players on, stretch play, put in crosses, threaten to get in behind and bring energy to the side rather than trying to be the creator.
You have got to be kidding me. How much of Tim Ream have you actually seen. He is NOTHING like Jay Demerit as a player.
Ream is not only on of the best US Center back to come along in a while but he has great potential.
Rogers adds dept certain however, I have a couple names that are automatic upgrades..Convey and Beasley. At one point they had the position on lock…and are young and experienced enough to take it back. Rogers went to my school and I like rooting for him, but lets be honest and call a spade a spade… doesnt have the skill, speed or experience that the afore mentioned have. Everytime I see Rogers play, it seems as if it takes him too long to figure it out before he starts making smart decisions. Every time I watch him play, there are too many bad decisions, turnovers and piss poor defensive markings. He definitely has the ability as I have watched him at the club level. Unfortunately, he just does not have “IT” on the National stage.
You can also insert Clark, Wynne, Sasha, Casey, Benny, Findley into that conversation.
I think we’ll see Jay DeMerit playing the role of Jimmy Conrad in this camp.
Minus the two mindless yellows in the first half of the game.
stu holden is anything but a defensive minded midfielder. He’s deadly on the ball and for bolton is distributing. A midfild tandem of holden and dax would be a nightmare for the US. Holden’s tackles are a by product of his tireless running and the system bolton plays, not because those are his tendencies.
I’d go with the 4-2-2-2/4-4-2. Buddle and Agudelo as the forward pairing, Diskerud and Bedoya as the attacking midfielders, Beckerman and Feilhaber as the central/defensive midfielders, and Convey, Gonzalez, Goodson, and Franklin from left to right in that order.
Agudelo will basically do what Davies did – play just off of Buddle, make runs into wide areas to allow Diskerud and Bedoya to come inside, and drop into the hole to receive the ball. Benny and Beckerman will sit deep to allow the full backs forward, while also linking the defense to the attack with good distribution(ala, Bradley’s pass to Davies on the first goal against Spain).
Robbie Rogers, Kyle Beckerman, Dax McCarty, conor casey and Marvell Wynne are not international caliber players….McCarty has potential but not for the international stage. If they are not even in the All-American MLS Best XI, why should they get call ups to the NATIONAL TEAM representing the RED, WHITE AND BLUE? what have they done? Rogers?…..been there done that…no good on the int’l stage? Beckerman….no good on the int’l stage? Casey?!!!!!..put Mikkel Diskerud up front instead.
How about bringing to camp:
Grella
Simek
Adu
Davis
Jemal Johnson
Lee Nguyen
Torres
Starikov
and see how they do in training and assess their abilities, skill and current form.
That’s why I said “involved in.”
Dude is just bad luck. He gets in a car, bad things happen. When he dies (may be live till 90), the hearse will crash on the way to the cemetary.
Mario Rodriguez..!
He was an Arsenal youth product who once asked what his odds were of getting called up if he got into good form and found himself playing for a winning team. Someone in the FA told him that no matter how good his form was, he could never play for England because he didn’t grow up as a part of the national England set up. So Smith packed his bags and came to America, where we’ll judge him on how well he plays rather than what one scout thought of him when he was 15.
I think Ives covered it somewhere on here right after he signed with MLS.
Bobby Convey at left back has to happen. Aside from his history with injuries, he’s perfect for the spot.
I agree with what you’re saying but if you’re going to talk about him have your facts straight. Findley most definitely did find Robbie Rogers on the flank before Rogers went past two men and crossed for Bedoya – it’s in the highlights on YouTube. Therefore, a pass completed. Sorry, didn’t mean to be a jerk there 🙂
Good list but Marvel Wynne – enough….
The problem is who would want him? He is a risk, and in his last friendly, he failed to link one pass the entire first half, as he gave the ball away on every possession. He will need a great year, I think, in MLS to be looked at again… But hey who knows, maybe someone would take him.
then again he has the speed to get behind defenders….and strength isn’t everything
Damn this was played yesterday!! Sorry
you must not be watching MLS if you think wondolowski is not a quality goal scorer. First of all he scores with both feet….one time shots (volleys)…..accurate placement…accurate timing. Say he lacks speed and strength for the international stage but overrated should be more like underrated. San Jose Earthquakes wont be where they are today without wondo…..and if he had the kind of service Buddle is having in LA no one will see the golden boot for a long time in this league….
Speaking of MLS players… Cummings just scored in the, LOL, Caribbean cup final. This game is like watching two high school teams go at it. I seriously think any of those u-17 teams from the Nike friendly could beat either of these teams…
Parkhurst? I would be interested to see what he can do at right back.
Ives – Any thought about college guys getting a call? Maybe a GK like Zac MacMath or even NASL GK of the Year, Steve Cronin. MacMath gets plenty of time with the youth MNT sides, but maybe heading into MLS he would get a look? I like the idea of having 2 veterans and 2 young guys in camp. It’s important to bring in the young players for the experience. With that said, Hamid should be the 2nd young keeper to get a call…but he’s got the shoulder injury. Therefore, I’d say Hartman/Rimando with Johnson/Cronin or MacMath would be a good decision. Maybe you go with a guy like Cronin since MacMath just went through his college season and U20 play. Good opportunity for Cronin heading into MLS pre-season.
I’m pretty sure we’ve seen the end of Robbie Findley until he gets better. I feel bad because he’s a great guy that certainly has potential, but his problem is that he doesn’t offer enough. Good pace, and fairly good on the 1v1, but past that, he’s lacking. He shows very little sophistication or tactical acumen in his off the ball movement, which left the USA very rigid in attack, particularly against Slovenia and Ghana. His touch is very questionable and we’ve seen too many attacks fizzle out at his feet. His finishing is off and that could certainly change because every forward goes through a slump, but he hasn’t shown sharpness in his shooting in a while.
The kid definitely has potential though. He was involved in the first and third goals against Australia and the first goal against Turkey and at times offered exactly what we need – a hard-working, pacy forward that can threaten to get in behind, stretch defenses, push back the backline and make space for Donovan and Dempsey to operate in. A perfect example being his missed chance against Australia. He made a great diagonal run in behind, rounded the keeper, and nearly scored.
The simple fact is that the kid is lacking in technical and tactical quality. He should really consider going overseas because he’ll be surrounded by soccer-savvy coaches, players, and people that can teach him the finer nuances of the game and improve his skills. Davies got the same experience and so did Donovan, even without success. Both turned out to be great players.
No chance Goodson is called in for this C-D Camp. BB will want him to get off to a great start with his new club Brondby who opens camp January 10th. Brondby sits 3rd on the table with 14 matches to play. Top 2 play Champions league and 3&4 play Europa so it critical they finish strong. No Goodson for this one.
pretty funny comment right here. i wouldnt call liverpool “high end”, let alone Villa.
I have really high hopes for George John.
Beckerman and Larentowicz did a hell of a lot more than Husidic did this year.
….He wasn’t even the one driving, dude…
Agreed. The equation goes a little something like this…
Marvell Wynne = stupidity
I agree that Spector has been found guilty of zoning out in the back and failing to cover when he should. Those occasional lapses are more forgivable at midfield and allow him to show off his strengths: winning balls, good control under pressure, more than passable aerial ability and a wicked left foot. Lately he has even shown some ability to take on players 1v1, he might move even further up the field if West Ham need it.