By IVES GALARCEP
MIAMI— As players begin to make their way here ahead of the U.S. Men’s National team stopover on their way to Honduras for Wednesday’s crucial World Cup qualifier, we are slowly getting a sense of just what this team will look like when Jurgen Klinsmann unveils the roster for the upcoming USMNT camp.
Klinsmann’s decision to wait on revealing the roster has led to some consternation among fans and even some media, but the mystery surrounding the 23-24 players who will convene here for a brief time before heading to San Pedro Sula has led to plenty of speculation on just who will be on the team (And before you even start, no, the above picture wasn’t from this weekend).
Thanks to some Twitter clues, and reports revealing the location and travels of players in the pool, we have a sense of some players who were making there way to South Florida, while some others were returning to their club teams, either in the United States or Europe.
We will find out on Monday morning just who Klinsmann has called in, but for the time being here is a look at how the the roster is shaping up:
PROJECTED USMNT CALL-UPS
LOCKS– Tim Howard, Brad Guzan, Geoff Cameron, Carlos Bocanegra, Fabian Johnson, Michael Bradley, Jermaine Jones, Clint Dempsey, Jozy Altidore, Herculez Gomez
SIGNS POINT TO A CALL-UP– Matt Besler, Brad Davis, Brad Evans
SAFE BETS– Timmy Chandler, Graham Zusi, Danny Williams, Maurice Edu, Eddie Johnson,
POSSIBILITIES– Sean Johnson, Omar Gonzalez, Michael Parkhurst, Edgar Castillo, Juan Agudelo
——————————————————————————————————
LONG SHOTS– Bill Hamid, Alejandro Bedoya, Sacha Kljestan, Jose Torres, Joe Corona, Terrence Boyd, Will Bruin, Chris Wondolowski
SIGNS POINT TO NOT BEING CALLED UP– Josh Gatt, Benny Feilhaber, Alfredo Morales, Kyle Beckerman, Mix Diskerud
Some thoughts:
Twitter hints and the words of Seattle Sounders head coach Sigi Schmid lead me to believe that Besler, Davis and Evans are going to make the cut, while the news that Kyle Beckerman had rejoined Real Salt Lake on Sunday seems to indicate he won’t be joining the USMNT in Florida. Gatt, Feilhaber, Morales and Diskerud have all tweeted from locations far from Miami, which would seem to suggest they aren’t making their way here.
If you add up the number of players in the first four groups, you come up with a 23-player roster, which sounds about right for the traveling group heading to Honduras.
Initially I would have figured on Klinsmann bringing along either Evans or Parkhurst to serve as the back-up right back to Timmy Chandler, with Evans figuring as a potential option because of Parkhurst’s lack of playing time over the past month, but with Beckerman being left behind you could picture both being called in, with Evans being seen as a versatile option at right back or in central mdfield.
Yes, I forgot to include Sacha Kljestan in the original list. He’s a player who is definitely on the radar.
UPDATE– The rule on game day rosters during World Cup Qualifying has changed so now teams dress 23 players for qualifiers rather than 18, which was the old roster size for qualifiers.
—————
What do you think of the above lists? Who are you hoping makes it to the camp that isn’t on our latest projected 23?
Share your thoughts below.