US Interim National Team camp

Discussion in 'The Beautiful Game' started by Dan Loney, Dec 20, 2006.

  1. Dan Loney

    Dan Loney BigSoccer Supporter

    Mar 10, 2000
    Cincilluminati
    Club:
    Los Angeles Sol
    Nat'l Team:
    Philippines
    Part of the fun of the initial camp roster is figuring out who are the warm bodies simply there so that assistant coaches don't have to play in scrimmages. We didn't seem to have this before the Home Depot Center - if Bora or Steve Sampson called someone in, then that player had at least a theoretical chance of playing in the actual game. Now, with a Los Angeles-based training center, you can call in a guy who was just traded to Kansas City for a couple of freaking second round picks.

    *sniff* I'll miss Gato.

    Anyway. Since this camp is Heath Pearce and the MLS Singers, it's fun to speculate on who's missing. I looked over at the U-20 roster, and I don't think Thomas Rongen took anyone terribly important away from Bob Bradley. It's a U-20 World Cup year anyway, so these guys will probably be too busy to help us win the ALL-IMPORTANT GOLD CUP and the totally unimportant America's Cup (English spelling used for maximum annoyance).

    I'm led to believe that Brian Ching is injured. Still, it's not like Brian Ching has ever won any championships in the past three weeks, so we can live without him.

    I went over to Yanks-Abroad.com to see who was left in Europe. Remember when literally all of our important players were playing in Europe? Well, here are the names that jumped out at me from the YA list. Bocanegra, Califf, Convey, DeMerit, Feilhaber, Gibbs, Hahnemann, Howard, Gooch, Spector, and, OF COURSE, Grover Gibson. How many starters is that? Two? Three, maybe. Convey, Gooch and a goalkeeper. And we'll always have a goalkeeper sitting around somewhere.

    Oh, did I leave off DaMarcus Beasley? What do you know, I did. Why do you suppose I would do such a thing.

    Basically, if you hate the 29 players currently in the happy camp, then you probably aren't a super-optimist about the US national team.

    Ignore the Denmark game at your peril, though. Here was Bruce Arena's original lineup against Koalastan back in 1998:

    Zach Thornton
    Jeff Agoos
    Carlos Llamosa
    Eddie Pope
    Richie Williams (Chris Armas 46)
    Eddie Lewis (Ben Olsen 73)
    Clint Mathis (Mark Chung 69)
    Joe-Max Moore
    Cobi Jones
    Roy Lassiter (C.J. Brown 92+)
    Brian McBride

    A bunch of those guys stuck around for 2002. Next January might be a reasonably good idea of where Smilin' Bob Bradley is headed, if he sticks around for 2010.

    Hey, has anyone asked Bruce Arena whether he still think the next US coach will crash out in disgrace, now that it's Bradley, his protege and all-but hand-picked successor?
     
  2. SankaCofie

    SankaCofie Member

    Aug 8, 2000
    Skorgolia
    Club:
    Chicago Fire
    Nat'l Team:
    Ecuador
    "Yeah he's doomed. Its the Fed's fault. Are you going to finish those donuts?"
     
  3. CommonSense

    CommonSense Member

    Jul 12, 2006
    Portland
    i still find the Big Soccer Beasley hate-a-thon rediculous. He's been plauged with injuries lately. He's been one of America's top performers until injury. He's the only American to play a vital role in a solid CL run. He's a lot of talent and speed.

    if he gets healthy again I see no reason why he can't regain his form.
     
  4. Deimos

    Deimos Member

    Apr 23, 1999
    Louisville, KY, USA
    It turns out that these are pretty important. Not because anyone cares whether we win, (because no one does), but because these count as games in the calculation for a UK Work Permit.

    It seems to me that there was someone playing in the U-20's who maybe wanted a work permit.....hmmm.... can't remember his name.
     
  5. Dan Loney

    Dan Loney BigSoccer Supporter

    Mar 10, 2000
    Cincilluminati
    Club:
    Los Angeles Sol
    Nat'l Team:
    Philippines
    So was Buddy Holly.
     
  6. SankaCofie

    SankaCofie Member

    Aug 8, 2000
    Skorgolia
    Club:
    Chicago Fire
    Nat'l Team:
    Ecuador
    Dan. That last comment was stupid. Unless Bease has died in a plane crash and I haven't heard about it. In that case... yeah, he might be beyond rehabilitating.
     
  7. Clint Eastwood

    Clint Eastwood Member+

    Dec 23, 2003
    Somerville, MA
    Club:
    FC Dallas
    Because Beasley hasn't looked that good in years. Beasley when healthy is fast and.............

    I think Dan has made a good point here. People lament that the camp roster isn't that impressive without the Euro guys. Well, what Euro guys? Most of the good ones have retired from the National team (Reyna, Keller, McBride, etc. etc.) Beasley's always hurt, Gibbs is always hurt, Convey seems to be always hurt, Bocanegra seems to be always hurt.

    Dan don't forget about Michael Bradley
     
  8. Why wasn't John O'Brien included?
     
  9. ChelseaMatt

    ChelseaMatt Member

    Apr 12, 2005
    Memphis
    Club:
    Chelsea FC
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    John O'Brien played 5 minutes for Chivas USA this year, Bob Bradley's team. JOB was also dropped by Chivas USA last week. I think JOB has given up on soccer, and from his look lately, I gather he's been smokin' a lot of the jeeb.
     
  10. Clint Eastwood

    Clint Eastwood Member+

    Dec 23, 2003
    Somerville, MA
    Club:
    FC Dallas
  11. Dan Loney

    Dan Loney BigSoccer Supporter

    Mar 10, 2000
    Cincilluminati
    Club:
    Los Angeles Sol
    Nat'l Team:
    Philippines
    He wasn't really going to be a starter this year for the Full Internationals, but I'm not writing him off, or Altidore, or any of the other Yutes. It's just that for 2007, they're pretty much spoken for. I was thinking more of guys who would come flying in to save the day, like Euro-roster guys used to.

    If DaMarcus doesn't want to be compared to dead nearsighted rock gods, then frankly I think it's up to him to prove the comparison isn't warranted. He's a shell of the player he once was, and the only guy who had a worse World Cup was Dave O'Brien. If he can come back - and yes, I know he's only 24 - then wonderful. To me, though, optimistic - ridiculously optimistic - is that he comes back as far as Ben Olsen did, and establishes a niche somewhere in the squad. Although it probably won't be Olsen's bulldog, big-heart, never-say-die, win-or-die-trying hero ethic that I find so irritating.
     
  12. Indoor Recess

    Indoor Recess New Member

    Mar 10, 2002
    Hanover, NH
    This is a very god post, I wouldn't be surprised if many of the guys in camp form the core of the team going forward. And frankly, in my opinion, that's a depressing reality check. But what else is there besides assuming that Adu, Jozy, etc will improve...
     
  13. Wes369

    Wes369 New Member

    Mar 17, 2006
    Buffalo, NY
    Bad WC? Are you high? He definitely spoke out of turn to the media, but consider:
    Beasley scored a potential game winner against Italy, only to have it negated by a foolish offsides on the part of McHead. Beasley also had an amazing steal and subsequent assist against Ghana on one of ONLY TWO GOAL the US scored all tournament(and the other one was an own goal). Dempsey was given all of the credit for scoring the goal, and was named US player of the year arguably largely because of that one goal (he would not have earned the honor without it), yet the play was all Beasley. Hell, even I would have scored on that setup and I suck at soccer.
    In light of the fact that the only other goal the US scored was an own goal, would go as far to argue that Beasley had the most consistent offensive output of any US player on the field during the WC.
    Beasley has been out of form at times of late, but let's give credit where credit is due.
     
  14. Dan Loney

    Dan Loney BigSoccer Supporter

    Mar 10, 2000
    Cincilluminati
    Club:
    Los Angeles Sol
    Nat'l Team:
    Philippines
    He was beyond horrible against the Czechs, and he disappeared in the second half against Ghana. Nice assist, though.

    Since that assist, he's been loaned off to Manchester City, where he's done pretty much nothing. Trevor Sinclair is like, wonderful and all, but he's also nearly a decade older than Beasley, who should be in his prime. I'm hoping Claudio Reyna is giving Beasley tips on how to recover from lousy World Cups, because he's certainly not getting anything else from Manchester right now.
     
  15. FiveToOne

    FiveToOne New Member

    Jan 5, 2007
    Rome
    I think Beas' does well when he plays outside (like he does for his club). Why Arena tryed him centrally is a mystery to me. DMB is a one trick pony - supportive winger...but when he is in a groove, that pony can make things happen.
     
  16. TrueCrew

    TrueCrew Member+

    Dec 22, 2003
    Columbus, OH
    Club:
    Columbus Crew
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    Uh, you forgot Cherundolo.

    Yes. A GK (Howard); RB (Dolo), CB (Onyewu), a CB/LB (Bocanegra), a LM (Convey or Beasley), a possible LM (Lewis), a CM (Feilhaber), another LM (Pearce), a RM (Dempsey: though recent), another CB (DeMerit)

    By my count, AT LEAST FIVE starters (Howard, Onyewu, Cherundolo, Dempsey, and Convey/Beasley) are in Europe. Probably another 2 (Bocanegra and or Lewis/Pearce, or Gibbs if he's ever healthy, and or DeMerit). Feilhaber and Bradley will be pushing for a spot soon.

    In two years, it will be up to 7 or 8 in Europe, easy. Hell, its at 7 now.
     

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