William Yarbrough is reportedly considering a move to MLS in an effort to further his national team career.
According to AS, the Leon goalkeeper is considering a potential move to the San Jose Earthquakes. Yarbrough is reportedly considering a move as a way to jump back into the U.S. Men’s National Team picture, and moving to MLS would put him in a closer spotlight when it comes to making a push for World Cup 2022.
The report adds that Yarbrough’s role as Leon’s No. 1 is also in danger as the club has eyes on signing Rodolfo Cota, who recently helped lead Chivas de Guadalajara to the CONCACF Champions League crown.
Yarbrough, 29, joined Leon from Pachuca in 2013 and has since made 109 league appearances for the Liga MX club. The goalkeeper has made 29 appearances for the club through the 2017-18 season and has appeared for the USMNT three times since making his debut in 2015.
If Yarbrough’s ultimate goal is the national team, he’ll face some tough competition from the likes of Bill Hamid, Zack Steffen, Ethan Horvath, Alex Bono and Jesse Gonzalez, who have been called in for recent camps.
I wouldn’t have guessed he was already 29. I know that’s still young for a keeper, but we just started hearing about him during the latter days of JK’s tenure. Can’t see a move to SJ helping his position in the USMNT pecking order…
In the summer we’ll have a new coach who may or may not know anything about the player pool. We will basically start over. If you are starting in MLS or one of the Euro players like Hamid or Horvath you will be on the radar and get scouted and maybe a callup and a tryout/game or two for the coach. If you are a second stringer in Mexico the new coach will delete your phone number and if that coach stays in charge for any length of time, it will stay forgotten. The move keeps him on the “long list” and his number in the coach’s phone with everyone else being considered. That’s it.
I disagree about SJ hurts him in the way you suggest, like MLS holds him back. Yes, he’s not at Everton and named Tim Howard, like a few years ago. That would be a head start. But I don’t know if anyone in the pool can name check with that kind of head start anymore. No one is an absolute stud playing at a big club. I don’t think Belgium or Denmark will be viewed like wow that guy is head and shoulders above.
Now, I think SJ may matter in the sense they and their current keeper are shipping 2+ goals a game, and that a poor defense may not be his best showcase. But that is more about how good SJ is this year and not whether SJ is sufficient platform. It was enough to get Bingham plenty of looks as recently as last year…….
SJ hasn’t had a top level keeper since Bingham was traded. Tarbell’s GAA is over 2. It’s kind of like they regret their decision.
He would have no NT relevance as a backup in Mexico, which is where his team is headed. It feels to me more like a staying relevant move that tangentially gives him any NT chance. There will be 5-10 keepers in for that job. All moving to a mediocre team to stay a starter ensures is that you won’t be in the first cull of pool players picking up splinters. The real question is how he plays on the field given a chance in this league. Judging by Tarbell’s stats his work will be cut out for him.
i have to chuckle at how you wrote “…since bingham was traded…”…he was traded after last season….not exactly an eternity and not like they’ve had a carousel of attempts either…
reality is that tarbell is a perfectly suitable mls keeper who makes no money – not gonna win you a game, but won’t lose it either. that’s all you need in this league.
Whether it was two years ago or last week, my impression looking at their roster is that they lack a top level keeper, and that’s true along the timeline I suggested, which is subtlely punchy. Bingham has a 1/2 goal less allowed per game in the same conference for LA. They need a serious keeper and it is an implicit admission the Bingham trade was dumb. And yes it was a third of a season ago so it’s a pretty quick reversal.
I think a solid team can win with a great keeper. I think a great team can win with a solid keeper, sometimes. But I don’t think mediocre keeper plus mediocre team is a recipe for anything meaningful.
IMO if your starting keeper is not <1.5 GAA you are going to struggle in the MLS playoffs. Some team is going to dump 3 or more on you, the odds and stats favor it just to get that average. If you really want to win trophies you need your keeper down near 1.0 goals/game. Now, some of that may be defense and some keeping, but I think title winner teams usually need the sort of keeper who can stand on his head when the team has a bad day. If you don't have that keeper, you may make the playoffs, but like Houston last year, first good team you play will end your run quickly, and your keeper won't stop it.