schlomo I totally agree. The key is for Arena and his staff to spend enough time talking to coaches, watching tape, and watching players live to figure out just who that magic handful of guys could be to bring in to really find the one or two (hey more would be great) who really could be difference makers to the team next summer.
Right. I see him as competition with Bedoya, Zardes, Arriola, etc. for wing minutes. Saief is a bit of a different player though. He's more likely to pinch in and combine, which may work well with Altidore and Dempsey.
Williams is one of those guys who does better for club than for country. I won't be sold on him until he actually plays for the NT in a game that matters, and shows well. Until then, I'm a Dwill-skeptic.
Lynden Gooch <-- don't see it, guy's just fast, otherwise terrible. Emerson Hyndman <-- YES! ASAP. Danny Williams <-- time for him to get another shot. Terrence Boyd <-- no, sorry. Aaron Johannson <-- he's done, never was that good to begin with. Jonathan Klinsmann <-- one for next cycle. Weston McKennie <-- next cycle too. Alfredo Morales <-- no, he's like Bradley minus the work rate. Ashton Goetz <-- why would we want a HSV-reserves lifer? Kenny Saief <-- sure he deserves a shot, don't expect much though. Julian Green <-- let him actually play first, and I don't mean pre-season friendlies. Haji Wright <-- another for next cycle. Andrew Carleton <-- next cycle, maybe even the one after. Joshua Sargent <-- next cycle. Joshua Perez <-- let him get minutes above the Primavera first. We don't have enough time left. Also, being in a top club academy is very different from being in a top club. It only means you might have potential. Oh, and looking awesome in U20 competitions doesn't always translate to looking awesome among the big guys. You have to see the kids when playing with the main team, first. Otherwise, you can burn them far too early.
100% agree. Bruce has been fine, the players and particularly the ones we needed to step up, have been disappointing. The hope now as others said is that the young Euros break through and prove their case at the club level.
Some of these guys will need to perform at club level before they are seen with the NT, others could be seen now. I break this list down like so... CALL THEM IN NOW (WCQ) Danny Williams - he is ready to contribite now Alfredo Morales - same as Williams, see how he fits in CALL THEM IN NOW (FRIENDLY) Lynden Gooch - He had some minutes in the EPL, he is an option for a friendly now Terrence Boyd - he does not have a lot of minutes in 16/17, has he been injured? Julian Green - he could possibly be bumped down, but he close Kenny Saief - Arena will call him in again CALL THEM IN AFTER SOME CLUB MINUTES (FRIENDLY) Emerson Hyndman - Did well in the SPL, I think he needs to get some minutes in a better league before called in Aaron Johannson - Needs some time with his club to show he can still compete Weston McKennie - Has shown well in preseason, hopefully he gets minutes in the regular season Haji Wright - Same as McKennie Joshua Perez - He needs more time with his club, hopefully he gets more minutes early this season NOT READY Jonathan Klinsmann - not needed now (to young for a 2018 WC GK) Andrew Carleton - needs more minutes with Atlanta Joshua Sargent - needs to be a professional DONT KNOW HIM Ashton Goetz Edit: @Suyuntuy beat me to it, but we disagree on a few.
I think the MLS guys at GC suck is a bit over the top. I agree they haven't looked great but I think most or all of them would look much better if introduced one at a time with the regulars. We'll see how it plays out the rest of the way with the reinforcements but that is why coaches usually don't bring in a whole new eleven that have never played together into competitive games. Also why even MLS teams can be great Euro teams in preseason with new players.
Is Mbappe next cycle for France? Donnarumma next cycle for Italy? A player should play whenever they are ready, its stupid to say they have to wait until a certain point in their career. And I really don't know where people are getting Jonathan Klinsmann from as an option. There are numerous better GK's in his age group, we know why he's gotten the chances he has.
Mbappe is a proven elite player, a Champions League starter, a 100M+ dollar man. Name any US player that is CURRENTLY at the level of Mbappe (outside of Pulisic). It's foolish to think Wright, McKennie, or Sargent can start right now for the US. They are still unproven potential. Even though I would still like to see some of these guys get some minutes during this Gold Cup games. It's probably a bit more entertaining to watch these guys, versus the likes of Zusi, Bedoya, Zardes, etc.
That I would agree with. If these guys get significant minutes with their clubs this campaign, I would love to see them brought in for some friendlies before the WC to see what they can do. Green was brought to Brazil and scored a goal. Yedlin had a pretty good WC in Brazil. You never know what these young guys can bring to the table, regardless of age. If they have talents, consistently play for their clubs and perform well, then they deserve time with the Nat team, no matter if they're 16, 20, or 30 years old.