I think Okugo may have the highest ceiling of all of our Central Defender prospects. I'm trying not to say, he should be fast tracked. lol
Parke was also called for last year's CC and filled in very well when Cameron got a RC at the 55 mark at Panama. The team played with 10 men for the last 35+ and Parke and Parkhurst at CB held on for the 1-0 win. Parke proved he could come on in a hostile CONCACAF away situation and handle that pressure so JK is giving him another look-see.
^^This!! I don't get how people do not see this. Morales needs a leg up right now, by calling him in Klinsi can boost his confidence and he can get a good look so he can maybe see where he might help a particular team, maybe he can get the guy a trial or a loan deal somewhere. It isn't like he is some bum we never heard of with no skillz. At one point he was identified as one the best in his age group. We are thinking hex and klinsi is thinking of where he wants to take US soccer. A little bit of the old a little new. One of the earlier posters talked about it is a nice mix with enough guys who have been around enough to lead the newbs. You have to remember klinsi missed the chance to see the guys against intl competition when we missed the olympics. I thought okugo looked a bit over his head during the playoffs. I did not watch a lot of him specifically but I do remember thinking dude is in a little too deep. Besides if you read what klinsi said, the job is mol Omar's if he is ready and has done what was asked of him. He has OG pegged to be the guy in defense, he said that he told OG last camp this is what you need to do and he said now it is time to see if OG is ready to take charge of the back line or not. That said, I think okugo just needs to get a bit stronger, keep playing hard and his day will also come.
This I think played a factor in calling AJDLG into camp. Give Gonzo his long time partner throughout camp, get him comfortable. Hopefully Klinsmann sees Omar as having the upside to fill the CB slot soon, so to use a roster spot to give him the best chance to get settled at this camp is a good reason to call AJDLG in.
I agree. I'm kind of surprised Benny is in camp to be honest, I have no problem with his inclusion, but I personally figured JK would maybe try other options.
Yes, he was a part timer in the midfield until this season. One could nearly see improvement from game to game this season as a central defender. I am glad that the switch was made. Actually, Philly didn't make it to the playoffs this season. Here's a nice article on the youngster, including where he might fit in next year (with the addition of Parke):http://www.philadelphiaunion.com/news/2012/12/where-does-amobi-okugo-fit –both he and midfielder Michael Farfan completed a two-week training stint in Germany with SC Freiburg. With the injuries and the subsequent departure of former captain Danny Califf, Okugo filled in at center fullback alongside MLS All-Star Carlos Valdes. What Okugo displayed – at the wrong position – was arguably one of the best seasons by a defender in the league.
Agree on Okugo. He is adjusting to a new position with his team. Agree on Omar as well. But why didnt klinsi call in Berry and Hedges, considering our lack of depth, and let them know as well what they have to do and show us, if they want to make the squad eventually? Get them into the pipeline, so to speak. I suppose he prefered a Parke who is not at his first rodeo instead, in case there is a sudden need for a cb in qualis. Having Berry and Hedges in now would also serve as a try out for the gold cup.
Amen, brother. Other than Fiscal, there was no "digging deep" to give exposure to the next wave of CBs. I don't count Cameron's emergence because that was an obvious choice -- where was the scrutiny and eye for developing diamonds-in-the-rough that Sunil urged us to believe the program would get from a coach steeped in soccer culture (read: European)? Way more than the Rogers Episodes, this was JK's most unsettling personnel selection trend during the pre-WCQ year. Could all still work out fine but no time -- and a dozen fewer friendlies -- to waste.
Really happy and nervous for Omar. Seriously wondering if he takes Canada by storm, do you start him in Honduras? If it were a home game I'd consider it. Away? Ummm...not sure. But we haven't seen Boca in ages so not sure what condition he's in. Goodson gives me the heebie jeebies, but he's likely beside Cameron if Boca can't go. Regardless, that means Cherundolo is starting. The idea of a newbie backline for this first game - yikes. Johnson - Boca - Cameron - Cherundolo or Johnson - Goodson - Cameron - Cherundolo or Johnson - Gonzalez - Cameron - Cherundolo Wonder if this means Chandler can be utilized at RM if he looks better than Gatt (and assuming he shows up). Forgot about that. 1 month toward "is he finally capped?". You'd think Klinsmann is going to get him on the pitch even if it's 2 minutes.
It is very, very tempting. But man that's a green backline (which basically means Dolo is a REQUIREMENT and Howard has a crap ton to do to help organization). With that said, Honduras has MLSers - and that's something Omar should be able to deal with. Playing his third cap in front of thousands of screaming passionate fans and being overwhelmed - well, not sure on that. I love Omar, but he has wanted this SO BAD that I'm a little nervous for his first start. During the Gold Cup he spoke of his disappointment of not being with the Nats, and even with his season he prioritized being in camp to being on loan/purchased elsewhere. Dude wants this. Badly. He recognizes this is a window where he can claim a spot. And that leads to sometimes some nervous play - trying to do too much instead of playing smart and simple. With that said, no time like the present, you could throw him into the deep end, and if he swims, great. The media has already started - you can practically hear USMNT fans and media praying that he will work out: http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/soccer/news/20130107/landon-donovan-usmnt-camp/ Big ol' spotlight. Hope he takes it and runs.
Then it must have been right before the playoffs, my bad . I just thought he seemed to be getting out physicalled I could have been wrong certainly. He might fit in the gold cup even I don't think this camp is about gold cup. I think this camp is about seeing if Omar is going to be the Boca replacement. Again I am not saying I am right, but I kind of have a feel about what klinsi seems to be doing. I get his reasons sometimes when they do not seem apparent and I think in this case he wants to give Omar a chance to answer a challenge and look at some last second type training injury replacement guys for the CB .
This and I think you have Boca,Chandler, and Parkhurst on the bench. Get TC cap tied while your at it.
I have confidence in Omar now. He just dominated the last half of the season and MLS Cup and he wasn't even 100%. He's going to make mistakes, and hopefully won't get crucified for them, but I think he's ready to step up.
Like it or not, no more then 2 are even on radar for CB depth for this WC, Gonzalez and or Besler are it. One of them will be a late sub in Honduras to get their feet wet. I expect both to be starting CBs at gold cup barring a complete failure by one or both.
Don't care if he gets on the pitch for 30 seconds. First chance you get, throw him out there and get it done with.
Geoff Cameron deposited on own goal during one of his first games, and we were patient with him because he had a strong camp. Here's to hoping it's not a one and done for Omar. Agree.
One thing to note - his distribution and offensive play is so much better than even a year ago. A few folks have commented on this, but he really took his time during rehab to focus on a couple of things to make his game better - and you could also see him working on it over the course of the end of the season. His passing game out of the back used to be miserable - I mean aimless punts or passes to AJ who would distribute for him. But somewhere in the last few months he gained better placement and better judgment. And it shows. He is not Geoff Cameron, and he is not calm on the ball like Besler, but his passing game is better. I owe that to the feedback that I'm sure he got from Bruce and Jurgen himself - you were not called earlier due to your lack of distribution skills - so he worked on it. Good for him (again shows that he wants to up his game). Also - he makes marauding runs from time to time (funny, Cameron started to do this at Houston when he got bored, and suddenly started to see this in Omar this year), and we all know his heading game is solid due to the influence of one Becks. Finally - he also grew in leadership potential this year. The LA backline went from a solid mess to looking calm and organized - he talks, he yells, and he directs. Frankly, he had a rookie playing with him during the playoffs, and though a few errors occurred (see MLS Cup Final goal by Houston), his leadership ability kept that back line in order (and let me give some credit to Todd Dunivant here too). I see that as a positive because he and Cameron seem to ooze a sense of calm. If he plays we really could benefit from a set piece specialist. That will be Davis/Zusi in camp - and Zusi potentially in Honduras. They should be practicing that in camp - headers to Gonzo's head time and time and time again. Is Besler good at set pieces? We need to sort out who goes forward and who remains behind.
Not the same as his first WCQ game in Honduras - that's what I meant. Also - does anyone know the state of Bocanegra? Is he even an option? I guess I should go read the Hex thread, but are we for sure going to be playing him or is this an emergency Goodson or someone from camp situation? Apologies for the zillion posts - should have multi-quoted but by the time I wrote it was too late.