Who should be the #3 goalkeeper on the U.S. nats?

[NEKSoccer]

Looking to the future, both Brad Friedel and Kasey Keller will be in their mid-30s @ WC2006. So Bruce Arena has to look for an heir apparent to the U.S. goalkeeping spot (though I am aware that goalkeepers can play into their late thirties and even into their 40s - so Brad and/or Kasey may even be around for 2010). Anyway, who is the goalkeeper of the future for the U.S. nats? Let me hear from ya!

[lurking]

Ok, you put Johnny Walker and Hartman up there but not Joe Cannon?

[kevbrunton]

Right now, it's pretty clearly Tim Howard.

But to call him the #3 for 2006 is quite a stretch at this point. There's too many things that can happen.

1) Even though Friedel and Keller will still be young enough, there's nothing to say that they'll still be playing at this level. Not ALL keepers keep their form into their late 30's.

2) There's a number of good young keepers coming thru the ranks right now and it's entirely possible that one of them could surpass Howard over the next 3 years.

[athens77]

Originally posted by NEKSoccer
Looking to the future, both Brad Friedel and Kasey Keller will be in their mid-30s @ WC2006. So Bruce Arena has to look for an heir apparent to the U.S. goalkeeping spot

http://www.comedycentral.com/tv_shows/southpark//images/timmy2.gif

TIMMY!

[Paul. A]

Obviously Howard has a great chance. I don't know that much about Rimando. Seen him play in person once and he was good. I wish he was taller though. I like Joe Cannon. Nobody seems to like Presthus that much. I really think he could do something!

[graywolfe81]

I don't think Rimando's height matters all that much because I thinik he has a far, far better vertical leap than any other goalie on our roster. My question concern's his wing span, Friedel is like a freaking Albatros, his reach is incredible, I can't remember what Rimando's arm's are like despite having seen him play nine or 10 times. I don't think their very long. However, I still think he's probably the most athletic goalie we have, and of all of our goalies, I think Rimando, and Howard are the one's most likely to get PT when Keller and Friedel aren't available over the next 18 months or so.

When it comes to the this next cup run, I think we should be looking for two keepers, because something tells me that probably only one of the Friedel/Keller duo will be playing for the nats by 2006, and probably earlier two. So my question is, who are those two goalies? Right now its Howard, and Rimando, but hell, for a in late '98 and early '99 Zach Thornton looked like a lock for the third slot. Anything can happen.

[Paul. A]

Things certainly change fast. I mean Keller was out there on his own it seemed. Then by the time of this World Cup I wanted Friedel to have a chance. Keller's been great! I haven't read any interviews with him lately, but I'm going to guess that he won't be around the next World Cup.

[SoccerStarved]

Adin Brown

[afgrijselijkheid]

howard then hahnemann or walker

brown does seem to be improving tho

[graywolfe81]

I wonder if the World Cup situation got in his head. Supposedly he is having an awful year in the EPL, and I'm wondering if it really screwed with his confidence or something. I'll fully admit that last spring I was 110% a Keller guy, mainly because I felt that while Friedel was a very good goalie, when it came down to the 'impossible save' needed to lift us to victory, Keller could provide that, but I didn't believe that Friedel could. The cup proved me wrong for the most part. And the after effects suggest that while the Cup seems to have lifted Friedel ever-higher in the Premiership, the opposite has happened with keller. I feel a bit bad for the guy, as I think he can be the best American Goalie around. Unfortunately things just didn't work out.

[Mr. Bandwagon]

Cannon, Joseph

[Paul. A]

I like Adin Brown also.
I definitely agree that Keller was the one who could make the impossible save but I thought it was Brad's turn to play this last cup.

[fidlerre]

Originally posted by graywolfe81
I wonder if the World Cup situation got in his head. Supposedly he is having an awful year in the EPL, and I'm wondering if it really screwed with his confidence or something.

awfull year? not really. his team is in the top ten of the EPL and back in november he was the highest rated keeper in the EPL. he has had some rough outings the past month or so, but in all fairness the defense that is in front of him has been playing particually poor during this stretch...

[joe guy]

[QUOTE]Originally posted by graywolfe81
[B]I don't think Rimando's height matters all that much

Nor do I. France won a WC with Fabien Barthez, and he appears to be less than 6'. Height matters to a certain degree, but excellent shorter keepers are out there, including Nick Rimando. I would have no problem with him as a starting keeper, although Tim Howard looks very impressive in all aspects of goalkeeping IMO.

[UncleSam527]

Originally posted by Paul. A
Nobody seems to like Presthus that much. I really think he could do something!

It's kind of hard to do anything when you're on the bench.

[Heist]

Whatever happened to Zach Thornton?
How much older is he than these other guys (especially Howard)?
I'm a DCU fan and I like Rimando as much as the next guy, but he just looks small. I don't know if Howard is even much taller... but it just seems that way. Rimando is good, but Howard should be the #3 and the starter when the EPL guys are gone (which is most of the time). It'll be interesting to see how much they get brought in when qualifying starts.

Back to my original question... why is Thornton off the map these days? Any Fire fans know if he's off his game recently? Or does Bruce feel like he's given Thornton a chance and he knows what he can do.
I've liked his athleticism and size, but not his distribution or decision-making in the box. As a shot-blocker he's still pretty good.

[atorres4]

i like these 3 guys for future goalkeepers on the national team:

1. tim howard

2. kevin hartman

3. nick rimando

but the one i chose for this poll is howard.

[graywolfe81]

Well, Tommy Smyth would definitely agree with you. He pointed out your exact thoughts in his last chat. Keller certainly hasn't gotten much in the way of defensive help this year. My main point is that his playing has suffered since the Cup, whether that's entirely on the defense, or if some if it has to do with confidence and frustrations is open to question. My main hope is that he puts it back together and is in top form the rest of the season. I've always thought he was absolutely outstanding goalie with few exceptions (sometimes when things go wrong in games, he seems to just get a bit sloppy), and at his best, I think he's the best American goalie. We were very lucky to see Friedel jump to a whole new level right in time with the cup, in the seasons preceding last spring, I just thought he was merely a good goalie, perhaps very good, but certainly not on Keller's level, but something happened with Blackburn, and it just continued with our nats during the cup, he just seemed to have had some goalie epiphany last season, and to this day it is continuing.

As for Rimando, perhaps height is a worry, but as I said earlier in this thread, based on the evidence I've seen, it is not. He regularly stood on his head all year long for DC United and routinely made outstanding saves, and I believe he has the most vert of any US goalie around, which makes up for the height. In fact, as I mentioned earlier, I'm more concerned about his wingspan/reach, then I am about his height, since I believe his leaping ability renders the height question irrelevant. Unfortunately, I just can't remember how long those arms are. If his arms are a bit short, then its a problem, because his reach will be weak. When you watched the cup, you probably noticed that it wasn't just athleticism that allowed Kahn, Friedel, and that outrageously skilled goalie from Turkey to come up with terrific saves, often it was their reach that helped a ton, particularly in the case of Friedel, who has extremely long arms.

[wjarrettc]

Originally posted by Mike Segroves
Keller = #3

It kinda scares me to think I'm thinking like this Segroves guy I've read so much about on BS, but I think the 3rd keeper will either be Keller or Friedel. Bruce will bring a veteran keeper along to mentor the two high-flying proteges that will be battling it out for 1 & 2.

Now who they are, I don't know...

[Bambule GK]

Dino Zoff
Peter Shilton


Those are two dudes that started for their national teams when they were 40. Mixed results, but the point is that they were considered the best by most @ the time.

Some of you guys need to come to grips with the FACT that Brad and Kasey may still be VERY much a part of the mix in 2 years.

Yeah, 2 1/2 years. Think about it. When does WCQ start?

Exactly.