Eleven Bravo
14 Jan 2006, 07:01 PM
GOALKEEPERS
Kasey Keller-(locked. resume not needed)
Marcus Hahneman-After Keller/Friedel, Hahneman is having the best european career this season at Reading. And which he is one of the main reasons why his club looks to be promoted. but he is relatively inexperienced at the national level with only 6 caps and 2 shutouts. wntbd? stay in top form and Reading's promotion.
Tim Howard-is playing for Man U enough? EPL gk of the year in 2003 but has been rotting on the bench. 14 caps and 6 shutouts makes him the 2nd most experienced goalkeeper on our arsenal(pretty sad). wntbd? play more games!
Matt Reis-a great goalkeeper in MLS but no international caps! do you want a completely inexperienced 31 year old GK make his debut in the world greatest tournament? wntbd? stay in top form and impress during the camps and be ready to replace an injured GK.
Kevin Hartman-great MLS goalkeeper but is inconsistent and with 3 caps only to his name. wntbd? same as reis
Brad Guzan-young player that still needs to develop but i would rather bring in a 21 year future star for the national team than some old fart who will sit on the bench this World Cup and offer nothing in future WCs. so before people go crazy, he should not replace Keller if he gets injured but Hahneman or Howard as the #3 if they fall short. wntbd? show that he will be a main frame for the US in 2010.
Zach Wells-same story as Guzan. I'm glad that bruce finally is starting to look past the k/f/m generation. 30 is not the age to try and develop a world class goalkeeper. sorry reis, hartman, and cannon but the only thing you can do to help your resume is move to Europe like Hahneman. wntbd? same as Guzan
Joe Cannon-a little too late for this guy. Bruce got spoiled with one great generation of GKs (Meola, Friedel, and Keller) and he didn't look towards 2006 and beyond. he has great talent but also if he were to get on my ballot he should move to Europe and let the younger GKs take over MLS. wntbd? same as Reis and Hartman. a move to Europe wouldn't hurt.
DEFENDERS
Steve Cherundolo-(locked. resume not needed)
Oguchi Onyewu-(locked. resume not needed)
Cory Gibbs-man i hope this guy gets healthy and in top form because he would then be a lock in my book. i'm really hoping to see the Gooch & Gibbs combo in Germany. also he plays in Europe for one of the best teams in Holland. wntbd? just get healthy and be at the top of his game
Frankie Hejduk-can you believe he is 31? by his energy you would think those numbers are reversed. Frankie was great in TWO world cups. there aren't too many players in the world who are going on their third world cup and are in the best shape of their life. he can play on both sides of the field and he can play winger and wing back. he doesn't have the best technique but his athleticism is phenomenal. also, he has experience in playing in Germany. wntbd? RM and LB are the positions we are the weakest at. Frankie needs to show Bruce that he can at least trust him that he will fill one of these slots.
Eddie Pope-Come on Eddie! as one of my longtime favorite defenders on the USMNT i really hope he shows his true form. as our most experienced defender i really hope that he will become a leader for our backline. wntbd? be the Eddie we all know and love and also become more of a leader and an organizer of our backline.
Carlos Bocanegra-MLS defender of the year, years with the USMNT youth team, and a regular for an EPL team. He is strong and a good tackler but sometimes gets caught out of position. that is a little risky in a world cup game when players like Gilardino, Vieri, Toni, Koller, and Baros will be praying for just one slip up. wntbd? Stay healthy, regain his starting role at Fulham, be able to play both LB and CB, but mainly just become more reliable about not getting caught out of position.
Jonathan Spector-voted one on Fifa.com one of the players to watch. one of the best teenage defenders in the world and is also very versatile. He is very mature for his age and will become a world class defender. he can play DM, LB, CB, RB, and any other position you put him at. his versatility and promising future almost seems enough of a reason to bring him on the roster. wntbd? start playing more for Charlton and also show that he can play with the big boys on the greatest stage.
Heath Pearce-i never even heard of this guy before a week before he was named on the roster for the scotland game(thanks to yanks-abroad.com) but he seems to be on the spotlight as our LB for the future. he also shows that he is a very versatile player that can play LB, LM, and i even heard some say RM. wntbd? show bruce that you are the real deal. demand the LB spot so that will free up Boca to back up Gooch and Gibbs and Hejduk to fill any holes elsewhere.
Gregg Berhalter-a World Cup Veteran and a lifetime career in Europe. But his recent slip in the German 2nd Division doesn't sound good to me. if everyone is healthy, Pope and Berhalter will have to battle it out for the leadership role in Germany. wntbd? regain his form at Cottbus and show Bruce that if he brings him that his backline will be a lot more organized.
Chris Albright-a very athletic player but has horrible technique. he gets beat too often and seems to be out of place ALL the time. wntbd? not only show that he can play RM, RB, LB, and any other position Bruce asks of him but that if Bruce picks him that he won't cost the team any stupid mistakes.
Chad Marshall-a promising future CB for the MNT but specially with this recent injury it looks like Marshall has a long way to go before getting looked at. wntbd? get healthy, become more aggressive, and show that he can be a leader even at the tender age of 21.
Jimmy Conrad-MLS defender of the year but only 8 caps at age 29 is not impressive at all. However, if Pope sucks and Berhalter sucks he is the most capable of filling their shoes. wntbd? stay in top form in case one of our backs gets injured and also be able to play anywhere on the backline.
Ugo Ihemelu-has potential of making the roster in 2010 but has about a 2% chance of making it in 2006. wntbd? just be fit and ready in case of a injury of one of the other players
Bobby Boswell-same as Ihemelu.
MIDFIELDERS-
Landon Donovan(locked. resume not needed)
DaMarcus Beasley (locked. resume not needed)
Claudio Reyna (locked. resume not needed)
Pablo Mastroeni-would be a lock but this recent injury scares me. wntbd? recover quickly and get in the form that was so impressive in 2002.
John O' Brien-same as Mastroeni
Bobby Convey-Convey has been considered one of the most promising players of the US for about 7 years now. he is doing great at Reading but the problem he faces is Beasley will be our Left Midfielder and Donovan will be our attacking midfielder. wntbd? show that he can back up Donovan and Beasley but also be able to RM and LB. (Convey's first game was as sub for a RM).
Eddie Lewis-a true USMNT veteran and has arguably the most talented crosses on the team. also has been impressive playing regularly for promotion hopeful Leeds.wntbd? be able to play LB and LM and prove that even though he's 32 that he is no slouch.
Santino Quaranta-despite what some people say, i like Quaranta. i see a lot of Beasley in him. he doesn't have Beasley's speed or flair but he has strength and an underrated cross. instead of looping them in like Ralston he drives them home. he is also more versatile than Ralston. not only can he play RM, he can play FW. wntbd? get more experience and get back more and defend.
Steve Ralston-one of our best contributors in qualifying. Ralston might be too slow and too old to make an impression this summer. wntbd? show that he can play this summer like he did in qualifying.
Brian Carroll-with all the injured defensive midfielders he might actually stand a good chance of making the roster. he could be the Mastroeni of 2002. He will never be on the cover of any magazines but he does always seem to be in the right place during matches. wntbd? don't try and be a flashy player but just stick to being able to neutralize players like Nedved, Totti, and Essien.
Ricardo Clark-a more flashy young defensive midfielder and more versatile player than Carroll but his injury really screwed him over for this roster. he is quick, fast, energetic, mean(rough tackler), and good on the ball. if he was 100% i could really see him neutralizing Nedved, Totti, and Essien and still be able to get the ball forward. wntbd? cowboy the ********** up and get well fast, also get better on his passes, and become reliable enough not to get caught out of position where Totti, Nedved, or Essien could expose him.
Freddy Adu-this one is kind of hard because he shows more promise than any other player the US has ever produced but he's 16!!!. wntbd? show Bruce and the world that he's not hyped and he's the real deal.
Justin Mapp-a great left footed midfielder/forward. he could have been a back up LM, OM, and FW but this injury really screwed him over. wntbd? get healthy fast and come back and try to impress bruce but i don't see this happening. But it's okay, he's only 21 and he'll be back in 2010.
Ben Olsen-after 98, i really thought he was going to be the man but injuries have really hurt Olsen's career. Olsen, however, has bounced back and showed he can not only play RM but he can play DM, OM, LM, and FW. but is 29 too old for a World Cup debut? wntbd? He just needs to show that he can be a backbone player for the USMNT.
Pat Noonan- a great passer on the ball but is he talented enough to knock out one of the other players more likely to make it on the roster? wntbd? come out of the shadow and demand the RM position.
Kyle Martino-can play anywhere in the midfield and also can play forward but he isn't fast enough to be as small as he is. the defenders in our group will be licking their chops. wntbd? eat.
Kerry Zavagnin-with our whole entire nation injured, it might look like the stars have finally shined on Zavagnin to get selected on the roster. wntbd? get back in the form he was in 2004 and for him to hope that 3/4 of our nation still seem to be recovering from injury.
Clint Dempsey-very versatile player but seems his form has slipped. wntbd? not only get back in the form of early 2005 but just a little bit more.
FORWARDS
Brian McBride-(Locked. resume not needed)
Eddie Johnson-8 goals in 9 games? holy crap! but who has EJ played against? now don't get me wrong, i hope to see EJ exceed Donovan reputation for US soccer and i think he can do it. wntbd? just keep his composure and get healthy.
Josh Wolff-Wolff is a world Cup Veteran, US youth player of the year, and just a naturally good player. With Wolff's speed, vision, and flair he makes the perfect forward to tear defenses open. Also, Wolff always does a great job of opening up space for other players to run into. Sadly, injuries have somewhat crippled his career. wntbd? Stay healthy, Become a leader, and work on his shot.
Taylor Twellman-despite all the hate he receives, he is a natural born goal scorer. Twellman is NOT landon Donovan. he is not going to take the ball and dribble all the way up field and make a chance. most games i have watched Twellman play he didn't get crap for service or he just didn't play long enough for Pele to score(i can't wait to hear some moron say don't even dare compare Twellman to Pele). wntbd? Twellman needs to quit being a little bitch and score goals
Conor Casey-a former US youth international and rumored to replace the acclaimed Brian McBride. however, he has yet to have lived up to the hype. wntbd? get healthy. start scoring goals become available for the upcoming US friendlies in march.
Chris Rolfe-a player much like Josh Wolff. but only one should get the pick for the roster unless Rolfe can show some versatility and play RM. wntbd? Rolfe needs to show arena that he should go with youth instead of a stellar wc veteran.
Jeff Cunningham-if Twellman can't cut the cheese than i say go with Cunningham. he's fast, mean, and a decent goal scorer. wntbd? stay in top form and try to give twellman as much competition as possible.
Brian Ching-a good header and a good striker in MLS but unreliable against quality teams. wntbd? return to the form in 2004 where he scored against El Salvador and Jamaica and do it against quality teams. also, when you are known for your skills in the air don't get humiliated by some scot.
Nate Jaqua-Jaqua will be a great striker in MLS but i really hope we don't have to rely him on the international stage. wntbd? get faster.
(wntbd?=what needs to be done)
Kasey Keller-(locked. resume not needed)
Marcus Hahneman-After Keller/Friedel, Hahneman is having the best european career this season at Reading. And which he is one of the main reasons why his club looks to be promoted. but he is relatively inexperienced at the national level with only 6 caps and 2 shutouts. wntbd? stay in top form and Reading's promotion.
Tim Howard-is playing for Man U enough? EPL gk of the year in 2003 but has been rotting on the bench. 14 caps and 6 shutouts makes him the 2nd most experienced goalkeeper on our arsenal(pretty sad). wntbd? play more games!
Matt Reis-a great goalkeeper in MLS but no international caps! do you want a completely inexperienced 31 year old GK make his debut in the world greatest tournament? wntbd? stay in top form and impress during the camps and be ready to replace an injured GK.
Kevin Hartman-great MLS goalkeeper but is inconsistent and with 3 caps only to his name. wntbd? same as reis
Brad Guzan-young player that still needs to develop but i would rather bring in a 21 year future star for the national team than some old fart who will sit on the bench this World Cup and offer nothing in future WCs. so before people go crazy, he should not replace Keller if he gets injured but Hahneman or Howard as the #3 if they fall short. wntbd? show that he will be a main frame for the US in 2010.
Zach Wells-same story as Guzan. I'm glad that bruce finally is starting to look past the k/f/m generation. 30 is not the age to try and develop a world class goalkeeper. sorry reis, hartman, and cannon but the only thing you can do to help your resume is move to Europe like Hahneman. wntbd? same as Guzan
Joe Cannon-a little too late for this guy. Bruce got spoiled with one great generation of GKs (Meola, Friedel, and Keller) and he didn't look towards 2006 and beyond. he has great talent but also if he were to get on my ballot he should move to Europe and let the younger GKs take over MLS. wntbd? same as Reis and Hartman. a move to Europe wouldn't hurt.
DEFENDERS
Steve Cherundolo-(locked. resume not needed)
Oguchi Onyewu-(locked. resume not needed)
Cory Gibbs-man i hope this guy gets healthy and in top form because he would then be a lock in my book. i'm really hoping to see the Gooch & Gibbs combo in Germany. also he plays in Europe for one of the best teams in Holland. wntbd? just get healthy and be at the top of his game
Frankie Hejduk-can you believe he is 31? by his energy you would think those numbers are reversed. Frankie was great in TWO world cups. there aren't too many players in the world who are going on their third world cup and are in the best shape of their life. he can play on both sides of the field and he can play winger and wing back. he doesn't have the best technique but his athleticism is phenomenal. also, he has experience in playing in Germany. wntbd? RM and LB are the positions we are the weakest at. Frankie needs to show Bruce that he can at least trust him that he will fill one of these slots.
Eddie Pope-Come on Eddie! as one of my longtime favorite defenders on the USMNT i really hope he shows his true form. as our most experienced defender i really hope that he will become a leader for our backline. wntbd? be the Eddie we all know and love and also become more of a leader and an organizer of our backline.
Carlos Bocanegra-MLS defender of the year, years with the USMNT youth team, and a regular for an EPL team. He is strong and a good tackler but sometimes gets caught out of position. that is a little risky in a world cup game when players like Gilardino, Vieri, Toni, Koller, and Baros will be praying for just one slip up. wntbd? Stay healthy, regain his starting role at Fulham, be able to play both LB and CB, but mainly just become more reliable about not getting caught out of position.
Jonathan Spector-voted one on Fifa.com one of the players to watch. one of the best teenage defenders in the world and is also very versatile. He is very mature for his age and will become a world class defender. he can play DM, LB, CB, RB, and any other position you put him at. his versatility and promising future almost seems enough of a reason to bring him on the roster. wntbd? start playing more for Charlton and also show that he can play with the big boys on the greatest stage.
Heath Pearce-i never even heard of this guy before a week before he was named on the roster for the scotland game(thanks to yanks-abroad.com) but he seems to be on the spotlight as our LB for the future. he also shows that he is a very versatile player that can play LB, LM, and i even heard some say RM. wntbd? show bruce that you are the real deal. demand the LB spot so that will free up Boca to back up Gooch and Gibbs and Hejduk to fill any holes elsewhere.
Gregg Berhalter-a World Cup Veteran and a lifetime career in Europe. But his recent slip in the German 2nd Division doesn't sound good to me. if everyone is healthy, Pope and Berhalter will have to battle it out for the leadership role in Germany. wntbd? regain his form at Cottbus and show Bruce that if he brings him that his backline will be a lot more organized.
Chris Albright-a very athletic player but has horrible technique. he gets beat too often and seems to be out of place ALL the time. wntbd? not only show that he can play RM, RB, LB, and any other position Bruce asks of him but that if Bruce picks him that he won't cost the team any stupid mistakes.
Chad Marshall-a promising future CB for the MNT but specially with this recent injury it looks like Marshall has a long way to go before getting looked at. wntbd? get healthy, become more aggressive, and show that he can be a leader even at the tender age of 21.
Jimmy Conrad-MLS defender of the year but only 8 caps at age 29 is not impressive at all. However, if Pope sucks and Berhalter sucks he is the most capable of filling their shoes. wntbd? stay in top form in case one of our backs gets injured and also be able to play anywhere on the backline.
Ugo Ihemelu-has potential of making the roster in 2010 but has about a 2% chance of making it in 2006. wntbd? just be fit and ready in case of a injury of one of the other players
Bobby Boswell-same as Ihemelu.
MIDFIELDERS-
Landon Donovan(locked. resume not needed)
DaMarcus Beasley (locked. resume not needed)
Claudio Reyna (locked. resume not needed)
Pablo Mastroeni-would be a lock but this recent injury scares me. wntbd? recover quickly and get in the form that was so impressive in 2002.
John O' Brien-same as Mastroeni
Bobby Convey-Convey has been considered one of the most promising players of the US for about 7 years now. he is doing great at Reading but the problem he faces is Beasley will be our Left Midfielder and Donovan will be our attacking midfielder. wntbd? show that he can back up Donovan and Beasley but also be able to RM and LB. (Convey's first game was as sub for a RM).
Eddie Lewis-a true USMNT veteran and has arguably the most talented crosses on the team. also has been impressive playing regularly for promotion hopeful Leeds.wntbd? be able to play LB and LM and prove that even though he's 32 that he is no slouch.
Santino Quaranta-despite what some people say, i like Quaranta. i see a lot of Beasley in him. he doesn't have Beasley's speed or flair but he has strength and an underrated cross. instead of looping them in like Ralston he drives them home. he is also more versatile than Ralston. not only can he play RM, he can play FW. wntbd? get more experience and get back more and defend.
Steve Ralston-one of our best contributors in qualifying. Ralston might be too slow and too old to make an impression this summer. wntbd? show that he can play this summer like he did in qualifying.
Brian Carroll-with all the injured defensive midfielders he might actually stand a good chance of making the roster. he could be the Mastroeni of 2002. He will never be on the cover of any magazines but he does always seem to be in the right place during matches. wntbd? don't try and be a flashy player but just stick to being able to neutralize players like Nedved, Totti, and Essien.
Ricardo Clark-a more flashy young defensive midfielder and more versatile player than Carroll but his injury really screwed him over for this roster. he is quick, fast, energetic, mean(rough tackler), and good on the ball. if he was 100% i could really see him neutralizing Nedved, Totti, and Essien and still be able to get the ball forward. wntbd? cowboy the ********** up and get well fast, also get better on his passes, and become reliable enough not to get caught out of position where Totti, Nedved, or Essien could expose him.
Freddy Adu-this one is kind of hard because he shows more promise than any other player the US has ever produced but he's 16!!!. wntbd? show Bruce and the world that he's not hyped and he's the real deal.
Justin Mapp-a great left footed midfielder/forward. he could have been a back up LM, OM, and FW but this injury really screwed him over. wntbd? get healthy fast and come back and try to impress bruce but i don't see this happening. But it's okay, he's only 21 and he'll be back in 2010.
Ben Olsen-after 98, i really thought he was going to be the man but injuries have really hurt Olsen's career. Olsen, however, has bounced back and showed he can not only play RM but he can play DM, OM, LM, and FW. but is 29 too old for a World Cup debut? wntbd? He just needs to show that he can be a backbone player for the USMNT.
Pat Noonan- a great passer on the ball but is he talented enough to knock out one of the other players more likely to make it on the roster? wntbd? come out of the shadow and demand the RM position.
Kyle Martino-can play anywhere in the midfield and also can play forward but he isn't fast enough to be as small as he is. the defenders in our group will be licking their chops. wntbd? eat.
Kerry Zavagnin-with our whole entire nation injured, it might look like the stars have finally shined on Zavagnin to get selected on the roster. wntbd? get back in the form he was in 2004 and for him to hope that 3/4 of our nation still seem to be recovering from injury.
Clint Dempsey-very versatile player but seems his form has slipped. wntbd? not only get back in the form of early 2005 but just a little bit more.
FORWARDS
Brian McBride-(Locked. resume not needed)
Eddie Johnson-8 goals in 9 games? holy crap! but who has EJ played against? now don't get me wrong, i hope to see EJ exceed Donovan reputation for US soccer and i think he can do it. wntbd? just keep his composure and get healthy.
Josh Wolff-Wolff is a world Cup Veteran, US youth player of the year, and just a naturally good player. With Wolff's speed, vision, and flair he makes the perfect forward to tear defenses open. Also, Wolff always does a great job of opening up space for other players to run into. Sadly, injuries have somewhat crippled his career. wntbd? Stay healthy, Become a leader, and work on his shot.
Taylor Twellman-despite all the hate he receives, he is a natural born goal scorer. Twellman is NOT landon Donovan. he is not going to take the ball and dribble all the way up field and make a chance. most games i have watched Twellman play he didn't get crap for service or he just didn't play long enough for Pele to score(i can't wait to hear some moron say don't even dare compare Twellman to Pele). wntbd? Twellman needs to quit being a little bitch and score goals
Conor Casey-a former US youth international and rumored to replace the acclaimed Brian McBride. however, he has yet to have lived up to the hype. wntbd? get healthy. start scoring goals become available for the upcoming US friendlies in march.
Chris Rolfe-a player much like Josh Wolff. but only one should get the pick for the roster unless Rolfe can show some versatility and play RM. wntbd? Rolfe needs to show arena that he should go with youth instead of a stellar wc veteran.
Jeff Cunningham-if Twellman can't cut the cheese than i say go with Cunningham. he's fast, mean, and a decent goal scorer. wntbd? stay in top form and try to give twellman as much competition as possible.
Brian Ching-a good header and a good striker in MLS but unreliable against quality teams. wntbd? return to the form in 2004 where he scored against El Salvador and Jamaica and do it against quality teams. also, when you are known for your skills in the air don't get humiliated by some scot.
Nate Jaqua-Jaqua will be a great striker in MLS but i really hope we don't have to rely him on the international stage. wntbd? get faster.
(wntbd?=what needs to be done)