Life on the U.S. World Cup Bubble

Wow great read. Thanks OP!

 

That was a good article from Jeff Carlisle. Great interviews/quotes with US players who have lived through the experience of being on the bubble - guys like Taylor Twellman, Brian Ching and Jonathan Bornstein.

I loved Twellman's honest quote about how much the thought of the World Cup weighs on the minds of the players:

As US fans, many of us grow to truly like and respect all of the players within our national team pool. I remember feeling gutted for Twellman in 2006 when he didn't make the final squad. I remember feeling similarly sick for Brian Ching, who was a mainstay contributor for the team throughout 2007-2009, a bit of a dark period for the US up top in the immediate post-Brian McBride era. Ching really helped carry the mantle until we were ready to place Jozy Altidore in the driver's seat.

 

I think the biggest thing that killed Ching's chances of making the 23-man roster in 2010 was the hot form of Herculez Gomez and Edson Buddle. While Altidore had effectively pushed Ching out of the starting line-up by the start of 2010, Brian was still looking like his likely backup as the target forward.

You knew Bradley was going to pick a speed forward to play the Charlie Davies role. He auditioned Jeff Cunningham late in 2009 (who, incidentally, popped up with a goal against Denmark and looked good in his limited minutes, despite his advanced age). But by May 2010, the speed forward spot was down to Eddie Johnson or Robbie Findley. Most fans, myself included, thought Johnson was the shoe-in. But it went to Findley.

For the final two spots, Bob Bradley made another surprise gamble and went with form over pedigree, selecting Gomez and Buddle, both of whom were red hot for their clubs. Brian Ching was the odd man out in a three man race for two spots, just as Taylor Twellman was in 2006 (Ching, Josh Wolff and Twellman battled for two spots).