Copa America Brasil '19: USA Invited

The one that makes sense is Qatar. They're starting the process of preparing for 2022, and won't have Asian qualifying as they're the hosts. So they need to get as many opportunities with in games that matter as possible.

For the USMNT/USYNT program, 2019 has all of a sudden turned into a REALLY busy year.

U17 CONCACAF Championships/World Cup
U20 CONCACAF Championships/World Cup
U23 CONCACAF Championships (2020 Olympic qualifiers)
Gold Cup
Copa America
CONCACAF League of Nations

Lots of opportunities for lots of players to impress the next coaching staff and earn places moving forward.

 

Problem is that no one wants to coach the US or be its Technical Director. The incompetent USSF is a major roadblock to improving the MNT.

 

I'll take the extra games, but won't this just be our B team getting murdered again?

 

Probably.

But even in the Copa Americas that we've sent "B" teams to in order to get murdered, we identified a couple of players to work with the team moving forward. The 2007 Copa America is the best example of that. That was the first opportunity in games that mattered for players like Charlie Davies, Sacha Kljestan, Kyle Beckerman, Brad Guzan, Lee Nguyen, etc. etc.

 

Indeed, but the collective soccer world's (and in particular, the American casual fan/Liverpool shirt buyer's) inevitable dismissal of our program in the wake of what is sure to be an ugly tournament for us isn't exactly the branding campaign that the USMNT could use right now.

 

I'm sure there are people who want to coach the Nats but they aren't looking at a coach right now so you aren't hearing any names. No one want to be the TD because it seems like the position has no power behind it. I fully agree with the last sentence tho.

 

Not really a Copa America with all of these guest teams now is it?

 

We'd make more money scheduling a molero against Mexico than going to this Copa America anyway. And, as we all know, the point here is making money.

 

Benny, Clark and Bornstein were there as well. Better B team than 2016-17 A team.

 

Now, looking back, that tournament doesn't seem to be that horrible. Our expectations were much higher than today.

 

It's about giving players some competitive game experiences. They will at least get 3 solid games from this tourney.

 

Our expectations weren't high for that tournament.
You are certainly correct that we didn't embarrass ourselves.

We were tied with Argentina 1-1 at the half in our first game.
Has anybody looked at the lineup that Argentina used in that game recently?

Abbondanzieri
Zanetti
Ayala
G. Milito
Heinze
Cambiasso
Mascherano
Veron
Riquelme
Messi
Crespo

Subs:
Aimar
Gago
Tevez

Hello? Hello? Hello? EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEFUS! That's an insane lineup. How did we not lose that game 10-0?

Our starting defense was Bornstein, Conrad, DeMerit, and Wynne. Pfffft.

This is the problem with taking a "B" team to Copa America. You do have the potential to get truly embarrassed, because you're playing some of the best in the World. As long as we all go into the tournament knowing that's a possibility, and the goal is to give young players experience, then we should all be in favor of participating.

 

Grant Wahl is reporting that COMNEBOL has officially invited the US to the 2019 Copa America.

https://www.si.com/soccer/2018/04/0...klinsmann-copa-america-2019-emre-can-juventus

Grant Wahl‏Verified account @GrantWahl 1h1 hour ago
Additional note: If US does agree to play in Copa América 2019, I’m told it would send A team to Gold Cup and B team to Copa América.

Grant Wahl‏Verified account @GrantWahl 1h1 hour ago
FIFA doesn’t require clubs to release players for a tournament that isn’t in their own confederation.

Even though it would suck to see players like Pulisic and McKennie at the Gold Cup instead of the Copa America, this would be the correct callup strategy, because unfortunately clubs such as Dortmund and Schalke are likely to deny callups for the Copa America since it is within FIFA rules.

USSF needs to accept this Copa America invite.

 

What Mexico does is negotiate with the clubs to get the players for one of the two. Basically, since they have to release the players for the Gold Cup, they play their cards wisely and hint that if Player X is not released for the Copa America, they'll just move him to the Gold Cup team, and then they must release him.

 

With a B team, we would get wrecked.

 

True. It should probably be done on a player-by-player basis.

I guess it helps that the Copa America is scheduled for June 14 to July 7, while the Gold Cup is TBA (presumably July?). European clubs might be a little friendlier if a Copa America callup would result in a player missing less of the 2019-2020 club preseason than a Gold Cup callup would.

So be it.

Plus, if the USSF does hire a big-name European or South American manager, I would be flabbergasted if that manager turned down any opportunity at the Copa America.

 

Yeah I think we'd get murdered, but I'll take any chance to expand the pool.

In 2007 we did have 5 European players on the squad. I imagine clubs might be a bit cooler about it if it's in the offseason. You could also use it to bring in some younger guys who aren't getting time over there

 

That Copa America Roster did have Charlie Davies, Jay Demerit, Herculez Gomez, Benny Feilhaber, Jonathan Bornstien, and Ricardo Clark. All guys who went on to play big roles later in the cycle and in South Africa

 

Agreed that would be awesome, I love tons of international soccer, but clearly we would be cannon fodder.

 

I would tweek it and make it an U-23 Olympic styled team. Bring our best young players, anyone 23 and under that isn't a top 23 for the gold Cup, then add some veteran leadership here and there that's young enough to be worth playing in the tournament for potential use in qualifying (by this I mean vets that are between 24-28 or thereabouts in 2019, and are good enough to where we'd imagine they'd make say a top 45 to top 50 in 2021).

I don't see any sense in basically just send third and fourth string options regardless of age, use it as an opportunity to play young players that matter in a serious competition, veterans added again for leadership and potential utility down the line (for instance, Nguyen or Feilhaber, if they were 28 or 29 instead of 31 and 33, would make sense in this guise).

 

"A"

GK: Hamid, Guzan, Bono
DF: Yedlin, Chandler, Besler, Brooks, Miazga, Palmer-Brown, Glad, D. Acosta
MF: Trapp, Bradley, McKennie, Roldan, Pulisic, Saief, Lletget, Nagbe
FW: Altidore, Agudelo, Johannsson, Wood

"B"

GK: Steffen, Guzan, Bono
DF: Lima, Cannon, Besler, Palmer-Brown, Glad, Carter-Vickers, D. Acosta, Vincent
MF: Trapp, Roldan, Parks, Acosta, Lletget, Nagbe, Rubin, Arriola
FW: Agudelo, Morris, Wright, Novakovich


U-20 WC: Carleton, Adams, Durkin, Weah, Amon, Sargent, Pomykal, etc.

 

Doubtful.

Those clubs would know we could call our players for the GC. So would they rather release them for the earlier Copa and get them for a full preseason, or see them play in a garbage GC tournament and miss most of preseason?

Play in the GC and you're not back training with your Euro club until about two weeks before the season kicks off.

And did we not just win the GC. Send the A team to Copa and if we don't win the GC, bring them in for the Confed playoff. If there even will be a Confed Cup before Qatar which there are doubt about.

 

Absolutely, after screwing the WCQ pooch, we need a real tourney to cheer and toughen the team before 2022.

 

If it's correct that Mls would release players for CA and Euros would only release for Gold Cup (in theory only)

CA

--------------------------Jozy---Morris
----Rowe----Adams----Bradley---Delgado--Lletget
------------------parker----glad---long
-------------------------gk: Steffen

Gold Cup

------------Saief-----Nova---pulisic
--------------Wes--------------Parks
---------------------Williams
-----ream-----miazga-----ccv----Yedlin
----------------------gk: Hamid

 

Gross. I feel like Pulisic and Wood will be with new teams next season and having them be with their new teams the entire preseason would be ideal for them.