5 Definite Starters in 2006 ?

[kinstlinger]

Seems to me there are only 5 definite starters come June, 2006.
Barring injury, of course.

Donovan, Beasley, Cherundolo, Bocanegra, McBride

If Pope, Reyna, and O'Brien are healthy, they're in, I guess, but that's always a question mark.

[Ringo]

i have a feeling people are going to disagree with dolo and mcbride. forget the fact that you might be right ....

[onefineesq]

i have a feeling people are going to disagree with dolo and mcbride. forget the fact that you might be right .... Of course people are going to disagree with him on dolo and mcbride. why? because dolo wasn't even been getting called in for qualifying in the last round, and mcbride only started half of the games in the last round of qualifying despite being fully fit. that doesn't seem to be someone who is a "definite" starter 18 months from now.

[DCFAN96]

The only players I would name as definite starters would be Donovan, Beasley, and Boca. If I had to someone else I'd say Dolo', just because there is absolutely no one that we have that can play that RB spot well. Every other spot is up for grabs for whoever steps up, there is no way we can say BMB will have a starting spot since we don't know what the next year and a half will have in store for EJ, CC, Buddle, etc. In the midfield you got Gaven, Dempsey just coming up who knows how much they'll improve and if they'll be able to displace the other midfielders. Same goes for the defense, Pope has been slipping in form a bit, who knows if he'll even be our best defender in 2006. We'll just have to wait and see what happens.

[galperin]

Beas and LD are the only 2 surefire starters.

[appoo]

Eddie Johnson will be a lock by then.

assuming healthy players, Reyna and O'Brien also

[Chester FC]

"Sure fire" :) starting 11 assuming everyone is healthy

------Keller
Dolo--Pope-Boca--Gibbs
----Reyna---JOB
----LD--------DMB
----EJ-----McBride

[JoeSoccerFan]

De ja vu?

Actually no - been there, done that - (http://www.bigsoccer.com/forum/showthread.php?t=152190)

[Adam Zebrowski]

I agree beasley, donovan, bocanegra are virtual locks....

let's say Mexico at azteca is the match where arena would prefer to call up his A team....the cherundolo matter has arena explaining to cherundolo WHY arena didn't need him....speculation can run from the negative to the positive...

but I'd place myself in the group who says arena LIKES cherundolo and has a role for him...

the BIG difference this HEX, aside from the labor issue, is the GREAT flexibility in the pool, the variety of combos arena can select, and still field a quality team...

add Mcbride to the list of close to virtual, along with Reyna and Pope, at least at the beginning of the hex...

arena will give them shots to prove or disprove his faith and will reluctantly move off given they do NOT play up to the standard arena wishes...

I see Eddie Johnson being the offensive sub getting 20-30 minutes off the bench, the 1st 5 hex matches....then from 6-10, given EJ succeeds, move into the starters role...

now, the labor matter could easily change the dynamics of the hex, but I can't see ussf going beyond the t&t match with replacements, and my instincts say, the usa will field it's KEY players in port of spain

[FC Tallavana]

"Sure fire" :) starting 11 assuming everyone is healthy

------Keller
Dolo--Pope-Boca--Gibbs
----Reyna---JOB
----LD--------DMB
----EJ-----McBride

I actually don't have too much of a problem with that line-up except for the fact that Spector is already a better choice at LB than Gibbs.

How about these "sure fire" starters in a 4-3-3:

---Beasley - McBride - Johnson
-----Lewis - Donovan - Adu
O'Brien - Spector - Pope - Cherundolo
-------------Friedel

Now that is a line-up that could score some goals.

[IASocFan]

...How about these "sure fire" starters in a 4-3-3:

---Beasley - McBride - Johnson
-----Lewis - Donovan - Adu
O'Brien - Spector - Pope - Cherundolo
-------------Friedel

Now that is a line-up that could score some goals.

Yes, but could it prevent goals! I'm not sure Freddy or Spector will be ready in 18 months. Lewis has great crosses, but I don't think he has enough else to offer to justify a place on the squad.

[I. Tristeza]

O'Brien, Reyna, Donovan, Beasley, Bocanegra.

[jammeing]

I actually don't have too much of a problem with that line-up except for the fact that Spector is already a better choice at LB than Gibbs.

How about these "sure fire" starters in a 4-3-3:

---Beasley - McBride - Johnson
-----Lewis - Donovan - Adu
O'Brien - Spector - Pope - Cherundolo
-------------Friedel

Now that is a line-up that could score some goals.
I personally think that Adu will not be ready by the 2005 campaigne for him I would put Bobby Convey and for Lewis which i think is not so good and effective a player I would put Captain America(how could you forget him) but the rest of the team you damn right.

[FC Tallavana]

I personally think that Adu will not be ready by the 2005 campaigne for him I would put Bobby Convey and for Lewis which i think is not so good and effective a player I would put Captain America(how could you forget him) but the rest of the team you damn right.

I have a feeling that Adu will be ready. To be on the 2006 team is really his only goal right now and I saw a lot of improvement out of him this past year.

Convey is a wild card for me as we don't really know if he has what it takes or not. IOW, has he peaked already?

Lewis would be a lock if not for DMB. We need to find a role for him.

Reyna would be a good sub but he's getting old fast and the WC is a young man's tourney.

[I. Tristeza]

[QUOTE=FC Tallavana]Lewis would be a lock if not for DMB. We need to find a role for him.[QUOTE]

Couldn't agree more. He's a player that I would really like to see in the starting 11 in '06, but not at DMB's expense. Can he play left back?

[Adam Zebrowski]

as to adu, let's see how u-20 concacaf qualifying proceeds next month...

[Chester FC]

a 4-3-3 is interesting, but requires a few real horses with bite and savvy across the midfield that we just don't have at this point. demspey and danny s. have the potential.

we are still a counter-attacking team against most world cup opponents and perhaps mexico and costa rica at the very least away in the hex. so, i think you'll see a stay at home central midfielder or two guys sharing that role for the foreseeable future. i hope that means masto gets most of the time in the Hex, though i would like reyna and job to share the role if health. unlikely . . .

spector is likely a better option than gibbs at left back. good call. i just hope spector doesn't get into "call-up politics" if he does get loaned out for the second half. ironically, it may end up being better for the Nat's if he stayed with the ManU reserves. he'd certainly get more freedom to come to all the Hex games without hassle or Arena burning good will with EPL managers.

getting closer to the initial premise of the thread, i think that reyna and job are the keys to this team going anywhere in the Cup. the hex we can get through even if these two are not healthy, but against better opponents, we just don't have the players to replace the controlled and insightful play of claudio or john.

the future is bright and the supporting case is getting better and taking more of the lead, but reyna and J.O.B. are still the indispensable players on our team for the next Cup.

[JohnR]

I wasn't the first to say it, but DMB, Landon, Bocanegra are the answers.

The goalkeeper position is open, nobody on defense is a certain starter except Boca, right mid & defense mid are unsettled, and Arena has actively been seeking McBride replacements.

Reyna & O'Brien? Not locks, no. Reyna will be over 30 and O'Brien hasn't played in years. Even if they're healthy for the next World Cup, they might come off the bench.

I think that EJ will soon become the #4 lock, but he's not there yet.

[IASocFan]

DMB and LD are the only locks. There are too many options on defense. Boca has been playing LB and is more suited for CB. EJ took advantage of Panama playing with 2 tired defenders and needing to score goals. 6-0 didn't hurt them any more than a 3-2 loss.

[FC Tallavana]

Spector is supposedly off to save Blackburn from a Coca-Cola fate so he's looking more and more like our 2006 LB.