By IVES GALARCEP
SAN FRANCISCO — The U.S. Men’s National Team is ready to play the first game of the pre-World Cup send-off series on Tuesday night and there is still some question as to just what starting lineup Jurgen Klinsmann will deploy at the World Cup.
Plenty can change between now and the opening match against Ghana on June 16, but the team’s open training session on Monday evening seemed to shed some light on the starting lineup would could see on Tuesday.
There weren’t any real surprises, with Fabian Johnson looking the option at right back, with DaMarcus Beasley currently edging out Tim Chandler at left back. The competition at centerback continues to be between Geoff Cameron and Omar Gonzalez, with Cameron looking like a good bet to start on Tuesday.
So what does the full U.S. starting lineup look like for Tuesday? Here is what the projected squad looks like heading into the match:
PROJECTED USMNT STARTING LINEUP vs. AZERBAIJAN
———————-ALTIDORE————————-
BEDOYA————DEMPSEY——————-ZUSI
————–JONES————–BRADLEY————
BEASLEY—BESLER——-CAMERON—-JOHNSON
————————HOWARD————————–
Some thoughts:
Beasley gets the nod over Chandler, but chances are we will see some of Chandler on Tuesday, and potentially a start at some point during the send-off series.
Aron Johannsson and Chris Wondolowski will be battling for that “first forward off the bench” role.
Cameron is ahead of Omar Gonzalez at the moment by all accounts.
Jurgen Klinsmann stated that he plans on using his subs liberally, which means we could see all six subs used. That should hopefully mean some minutes for Julian Green to start showing what he can do.
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What do you think of the projected starting lineup? What lineup would you like to see against Azerbaijan? Which player are you most interested in watching play?
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