The fates have aligned to give him a definite future with the NT what do you think? Can he prove to Arena that he's a top3/4 keeper in the pool? or did JK accurately peg him as 7th?
Luis Robles is better, and has an argument to be #2 if Guzan isn't seeing regular playing time come March.
Better at what? Hamid had a higher save percentage and better goals against average in a down year. You're a Redbull guy, so it's to be expected, but needless to say, I strongly disagree. Robles is much better against pks, that is all.
I'm certainly biased, but Robles has played every game for a team that has won their division 3 of the last 4 years. That ain't nothing.
Hamid is the far superior nt prospect. He's 6-7 years younger, much bigger, more athletic, and has been among the very best in the league in terms of estimated goals saved the last few years, while Robles has been mediocre in that department. Robles also got a shot more recently, against Iceland, and he didn't resemble an international keeper at all, let alone #2, and #1 if Howard isn't ready or over the hill. There are a lot of keepers I'd be more interested in as internationals than Luis Robles, i.e.: Hamid, Horvath, Bingham, Bush, Deric, etc.
Viewed from a distance (i.e., don't see every minute of every match), Hamid was much better by the end of the MLS season than he was early on. Robles was steady. That said, the time for integration of up-and-coming keepers like Hamid has unfortunately been squandered. The best thing is if he gets periodic involvement in camps. Granted, again, I don't watch game film of these guys, but my sense is that Bruce has too many other positions involving complex decisions to be overly nuanced in assessing keepers. I would guess Hamid is outside looking in for the most part until the Qatar cycle begins.
Even with Guzan not playing regular I doubt he gets jumped as a second. None of the alternatives have much experience internationally and if Howard can't go in a qualifier Bruce will most likely lean towards experience then not. Howard Guzan Take your pick
I don't think either one ever will play anything outside of a January friendly for the national team.
Howard is injured and declining. Guazan isn't playing. If these keepers want an oportunity now is the time.
Howard is done.Guzan is poor. The rest all suck.Internationally speaking. Our keeping situation hasn't been this bad since before Shep Messing.
Keepers can play til their 40, and Howard is like 35 or something. I think you have to look at both Robles and Hamid because individually Hamid is good but Robles has been the most consistent keeper in the league. Also beyond them, where do you go? You look to Yarbrough, which ain't happening or Horvath?
Yes, Robles is. If you go on the logic that MLS is Championship level, which it is, then one starts and has started for 4 years straight while the other doesn't
Howard is still our clear #1 and is still a very good GK, but is not nearly the player he once was and it remains to be seen how he will recover from the injury he suffered vs. Mexico. Guzan is capable of great things but inconsistent. He needs to start getting consistent club minutes, even if it's in MLS, if he wants to seriously compete for the starting job (I'd happily take him in Philly if we lose Blake to Europe). Hamid has been the best GK in MLS over the last few seasons, his major weaknesses are injury-proneness and more frequent howlers than you'd like from your #1. Still, he's young, most of his injuries have been bad luck, and the hope is that with consistent experience the gaffes will go away. He needs to be given a serious chance to play his way into the #1 shirt, but even if he seizes it his international inexperience could prove a liability in the Hex. I wouldn't be surprised to see a platoon next year with Hamid starting the home WCQs and Howard or Guzan getting the nod on the road. Robles is already 32, unlikely to ever be an international #1 but I see him and Bingham as the Rimando/Hahnemann of this cycle, good locker room guys who can fill in in an emergency but you wouldn't want to rely on them in a meaningful game. Arena likes to bring an experienced veteran as his #3 GK (which was somewhat controversial in 02 when he took Meola over Howard), so I wouldn't be surprised to see one of these two guys as the #3 in Russia. A guy like Evan Bush could be in this group as well. Horvath and Steffen are the future but Horvath needs to start playing again and in a better league (wouldn't mind seeing him move to the Championship, BL2, or Belgium) and Steffen needs to challenge for the starting job in Columbus. I'm very excited about both of those guys long term (Steffen in particular reminds me of a young Friedel) but I don't think they have time to crack the top 2 by Russia and given Arena's preference for a veteran #3 I think they're both very long shots to be on the WC team. I expect both to mount a strong challenge for the #1 shirt post Russia, however. Also, a caveat--if we go into Russia with Howard, Guzan, or both in the top 2 Bruce may feel that he has enough veteran leadership at that position and could be more amenable to bringing one of the young guys as #3--but again, he took Meola over Howard as #3 in 2002 despite having Friedel and Keller as the top 2, so it's no guarantee. My best guess is that our GKs in Russia are Hamid, Howard, Guzan in that order.
At a World Cup level anyway. Howard is a special player--legit top 10 in the world at his peak (and those are the GKs that usually end up playing to 40-42) and it wouldn't shock me if he can do it, but we shouldn't rely on it. The other issue is that guys that age need more recovery time and at the WC you're talking 3 games in ~8 days, more if we advance.