Identifying new players who can contribute on the international level is one of the primary reasons the U.S. Men’s National Team holds an annual camp in the winter.
This one is no exception.
U.S. head coach Jurgen Klinsmann named his initial roster for 2016 on Monday, summoning in a combination of regulars, youngsters and veterans who are hoping to break into the squad. Klinsmann is planning to use this camp not only as a way to further assess the deeper parts of his player pool, but also to get most of the 23-man squad ready for the upcoming MLS season.
While captain Michael Bradley and Jermaine Jones were among the staples included in this squad, there were some notable absences with the likes of Clint Dempsey and Kyle Beckerman left off the team. Klinsmann, however, had long seen this camp as one he would use to try out younger and more unproven players. Klinsmann not only wants to try and give fringe players a chance to state their cases ahead of the next pair of World Cup qualifiers in March, but also is looking to help his U.S. Under-23 Men’s National Team crop prepare for its do-or-die Olympic qualifying series vs. Colombia.
“It will be more an identification camp. It will be more a developmental camp,” said Klinsmann. “We want to give those players a head start into their very busy year 2016, but we also want to make it clear to them that it’s a huge opportunity that you have here to understand what it takes to step it up and to become an international-level player.”
For several members on the roster, this month-long camp will serve as a crash course. Columbus Crew duo Ethan Finlay and Tony Tchani and many others have never been with the senior U.S. side before, and are largely unfamiliar with the speed of play required there, Klinsmann’s way of doing things and how exactly their new teammates move and operate on the field.
The experience will be an invaluable one for them, but conversely will allow Klinsmann and his staff the opportunity to get more familiar with players that could contribute to the U.S. cause this year and further down the round. Klinsmann has witnessed firsthand how important that can be during a World Cup cycle, and knows there is more value in that than usual in 2016 because of the looming World Cup qualifiers, Olympic playoff and this summer’s Copa America Centenario.
“It gives us coaches a chance to work with them on a daily basis to see their strengths and obviously to see their weaknesses, to explain to them what they need to improve,” said Klinsmann. “Hopefully when they leave that camp after three or four weeks, they go into their club season with a lot more knowledge about themselves and also about the international game because it’s a completely different level.”
The U.S. will play two games at the tail-end of this camp. The Americans will battle Iceland in a friendly on Jan. 31 at StubHub Center in Carson, California, before returning to the venue to lock horns with Canada six days later.
Those two tune-ups will give Klinsmann a better sense of where players stand in the bigger picture ahead of some crucial matches in March, both for his U.S. team and also the U-23s.
“Two good games, two good opponents, and a great month for players to kind of prove themselves and to get a good rhythm,” said Klinsmann.
Besides Bedoya and Spector, can anyone think of an American player that grew up in US that went straight to Europe and saw regular playing time in top league? I guess you could say Rossi, but does he really count? Gooch and Davies, but both got hurt just as they where about to make it in a top league. Not saying Morris couldn’t do it, just an observation I had.
Lazy Jozy Altidore again? Klinsmann is complete moron!!!
What other American striker could he of called that is available? MLS and Scandinavian leagues are the only leagues out of season right now. I’m surprised Keisewetter is available and able to come. Does not bode well for his immediate playing time at his club…
He’s yet to play for the first team this season, after just two sub ins last season. I believe he plays more on the wing for Stuttgart II, but still has just 1 goal in 13 matches. And since its training for the Olympic playoff perhaps JK called in a favor from his old club.
No Lleget?
The List of players? Why not included in the article?
Franco posted in a seperate article: http://sbisoccer.com/2016/01/morris-finlay-robles-among-players-called-into-young-usmnt-roster
This is not uncommon on SBI to see 3 or 4 articles of the exact same topic within hours of each other. Essentially, padding their article posts.
Fire KLINSMAN!!!!!
I don’t see Jones being staying in MLS, and wouldn’t be shocked if he signs and has to leave midway through the camp.
He appears to be keeping with the tradition Bradley also employed but I’m sure our resident xenophobes will find something wrong with this approach.
Scenario A: “He called in too many senior players.”
Scenario B: “He didn’t call in enough young players.”
Scenario C: “He called in too many young players.”
The armchair quaterbacking is laughable.
And your Klinsmann praising no matter what he does is also laughable. But that’s not why I responded to your comment. I am just curious why you brought up the also laughable “xenophobe” card in the context of this article and in the context of your own post?? Seems completely out of place.
I appreciate you taking special note of my posts. Because I call out the absurd and those who’ve gone off the deep end makes me pro-JK? Incorrect. It makes me one of the few posters on this board who avoid the echo-chamber of senseless posts that proclaim to know more than a professional manager/retired professional player.
Your confusion of my assessment (or accusation) indicates you don’t pay attention to the board in the past few years, months of days. It may also reveal your participation within the echo-chamber but I can not confirm since I don’t remember any of your posts or they haven’t been worth remembering.
To deal with your confusion you may want to distinguish the difference between praise for JK with absolute disdain for the echo-chamber that exists on SBI. Beyond that you’re on your own.
Hah, you wrote all that about my supposed “confusion” but didn’t answer what I actually asked. I asked “just curious why you brought up the also laughable “xenophobe” card in the context of this article and in the context of your own post??” Notice how your reply doesn’t address that or even mention the word “xenophobe”.
I love it when someone tries to be smart in their reply but fails to respond in a smart way. Don’t worry about answering the question anymore, I will go ahead and guess that you simply dislike the people that disagree with you (as you call them “those in the echo-chamber) and like to throw-out baseless accusations of xenophobia at them.
“To deal with your confusion you may want to distinguish the difference between praise for JK with absolute disdain for the echo-chamber that exists on SBI.” —–> Cute, but we all know what you mean. The “echo-chamber” are people that criticize Klinsmann. And you disdain the “echo-chamber” because they criticize Klinsmann.
“Notice how your reply doesn’t address that or even mention the word “xenophobe”.”
Are you really that obstinate to reality that you have no idea where the xenophone attribute comes into play with this conversation? Spend two minutes on this board today, next week or next month (which you do).
Don’t feign ignorance for the sake of being ignorant. That label definitely applies the echo-chamber I referenced and provided with the three scenarios I provided. In fact, just weeks ago when SBI “projected” line-ups (i.e. they were providing their own personal opinions) people ACTUALLY started railing on JK for not calling up more young players.
…to recap: rosters weren’t even announced and it was pure opinion by SBI, yet, people found a way to critize JK. Again, I’m not pro-JK, but I am anti-xenophobes. You’re confused by the two for your own personal reasons.
Xenophobia has a very specific definition. So are you saying people criticize Klinsmann as a manager solely because he is foreign? If so, I completely disagree. Sure some people on here criticize Klinsmann over trivial things, but xenophobia is not the reason.
“Are you really that obstinate to reality that you have no idea where the xenophone attribute comes into play with this conversation? Spend two minutes on this board today, next week or next month (which you do).”
I do spend time on this board, and I don’t know where you are getting your “reality” from. Some people on here love pulling out the “xenophope card” when the topic is the recruitment of dual-nationals for the USMNT, and how some people don’t like it. I guess that is what you are talking about? But I never read people on here criticize or dislike Klinsmann himself simply because he is foreign. They dislike him and/or criticize him because of how he has performed as manager of the USMNT.
If you don’t agree that is ok. Agree to disagree.
Yes, neither side will ever agree as each see their own version of reality.
UCLA checkout the article on Herzog today definitely two people attacking Herzog based on him being foreign. Of course who knows who anyone really is could be raging right wing or left wing nutjobs or six 12 year olds thinking they are hilarious getting a rise out of people on a message board. I do agree for the most part people are not xenophobic on here and a few of the worst seem to have toned down, moved on, or changed their screen names.
Man he annoys me. Listening to him is like reading trolls on a soccer blog.
What phrases specifically are you referring to? Everything he says here seems banal, and if anything it sounds like he is speaking at a clinic.
Btw your tone is rather whiny.
I wonder if some soccer fans have ever followed any other sports. There is a thing called coach speak. The opponent is always tough, your players are promising, but untested, the future looks difficult, but hopeful, etc., etc. Klinsmann talks like so many coaches in so many other sports, if you have trouble with what he says, you probably can’t stand what half of all team coaches say.
thing to remember about Klinnsman is that his words mean nothing and do not reflect what he will do or perhaps even what he is thinking. After 5 years of this, we should know that what he says does not matter, at all.