So begins the great 2026 center back battle: so let it be written, so let it be done

I don't ever want any American player to retire from the national team, they should all be ready to accept a call up at a moment's notice... obviously that doesn't mean they should actually be called up, but that decision should be made by the national team coach based on performance level and the available options.

 

Miazga

 

^ I was considering Miazga as above "long shot"... in any case it's a list of guys who could break in and Miazga is sort of already in the pool even if he hasn't been getting call ups lately.

Hate to say it but I'm going to bet against this, based on their very different attitudes and mentality...

 

Lots of competition at the back which is fantastic!

 

That's what I'm betting on!

 

Hugh Jackman on Broadway (the real one not where tourists get drunk) holding a Nashville SC jersey, what a time to be alive.

Shoutout to Wolverine himself, this is a great gesture. Also, great to see Walker getting the respect he deserves.#EveryoneN pic.twitter.com/QQVzBnhcAD

— Valair (@valairshabilla) December 8, 2022

 

The only one that interests me is Campbell. He's started to breakout, has pretty good tools, and is still relatively young for the position. The other guys are low potential.

I'm not sure why Harriel was listed. He played right back AFAIK and is only listed at 5'10". If there's a positional convert that intrigues me, it's Brandon Bye, at 6'+. He was elite in the air for a RB & overall a good player, but I don't think he has much potential on the outside. Moving inside could untap potential & make him largely a fresh prospect.

I'm looking for guys who haven't had much of a shot because they haven't been in the league that long, whether it be from the academy or college. Coming from college, that could run you into the mid 20's. Zac McGraw was mentioned. I've never seen him before. But he got some hype and has solid metrics. He also plays for a team known for not being amenable to integrating youngish domestics. E-Will was a late bloomer for them too as a result. Ian Murphy for Cincy showed some promise as an all-arounder when he played.

I could also see the highly touted college guys from the draft the last year or two emerging when they finally get a chance, after a couple years of not playing much. There's plenty of precedent, i.e. Zimm & MRob. Maybe it's Bartlow, Longmire, Keller, Burks, etc. I don't have much opinion on which one, but that's where those longer shots would most likely come from, as opposed to a guy who's been around for a while and is just around average.

 

It was a list of "long shot CBs" so it probably shouldn't interest anyone too much.
Campbell probably doesn't belong on such a list, which explains why he does interest you...

 

But I do think there's a list of MLS CD's one could classify as long(ish) shots, that would still interest me, in the sense that MRob and Zimmerman could have interested a prospect nerd when they were in their early 20's and sitting the bench for their respective clubs. It just doesn't include any of those guys, or their "types".

Another guy that I edited in was Ian Murphy. I don't think anyone's given him a shout, but he was a top 15 pick this last season, got some starts for Cincy, including in the playoff game, and showed some flashes, plus all around ability in them. He still needs to put it all together and be consistent, but it's early days for him.

As is the case for the other CB's who came out of college the last 2 years.

Then there's the blue-chip prospect teens who are hanging out between USL & MLS in Tony Leone, Brandan Craig, Jalen Neal, Efrain Morales, etc. 2026 could be early for them (if they ever make it), but if they're prodigies, then they're in play. They'll be around Chris Richards' age.

 

Did he run his adamantium claws into his skull because of giving away that careless penalty to Wales?

 

i wouldnt look to any of ream, zim or long beyond jan camp. i vaguely prefer pairing a more mobile, marking cb with a bigger ball winner, but im not too concerned with a lefty at lb stuff. i dont see any level of passing/comfort on the ball as disqualifying (nor giving extra importance). i think we have fairly modern cbs and i definitely dont think building out of the back deserves the importance its been given. all that said, a rough depth chart (more accurately a prioritized chance chart) for me...

robinson richards
palmer-brown mckenzie
carter-vickers trusty
tomkinson miazga

(full disclosure im not very familiar with trusty beyond his youth days and tomkinson period- in terms of style/ability level- but theyre at/beyond a threshold of being "worth a look")

 

The domestic, young guys I would keep an eye on this year are Jalen Neal of the Galaxy and Josh Wynder of Louisville. Both have been training overseas this winter. Wynder will probably sold abroad very shortly. He's really intriguing.

 

Totally. But I'd like to think there's still plenty of hope for Che and Richards and Trusty and McKenzie, and perhaps still even EPB, though he's no longer an age-level-aged guy. Miazga might be a really good MLS reclamation project. He was developing very nicely at Red Bulls, and then made a bad move to Chelsea and everything from there went sideways and he stagnated. His last MLS season was a very good one, and he might begin progressing as a player yet again. Too many years have been lost for him to become the star defender that he once had an outside chance of becoming, but he could yet become a solid anchor in the back for us, a Time Ream-level guy with good range and passing ability as well as obvious strength in the air. Perhaps good enough for a second foray back to Europe to the right situation next time...

 

Che is playing as a right winger for Hoffenheim II. So I don't know on that one (and I'm an FCD homer).

But you're totally right. We have this group of CBs that are 23-25. Those guys could be around two more cycles. So Richards, Palmer-Brown, Carter-Vickers, Trusty, McKenzie, and the list goes on are still options in the pool. We'll see who really steps up.

Kobi Henry, the kid that got a USMNT callup recently, is another to keep half an eye on. He's moved to Ligue 1.

🇫🇷 Championnat National 2

🧐 18 yr old 🇺🇸YNT CB Kobi Henry starting for Reims B https://t.co/oTHWzpuCt4

— 🇺🇸 ⚽ east (@eastdeflection) December 10, 2022

 

Yes, but that doesn't necessarily mean anything in the long run. Richards had spells of playing as a right fullback and playing on the left side and everything. Hoffenheim has a tendency to do stuff like that. We'll see where he ends up in the long run. Hey, Valencia was treating Musah as a right winger for the most part until recently.

I think that CCV is a guy who is going to be a part of this for some time now, but I'd imagine that he has a bit less of a ceiling than some others. He's pretty close to what he'll be. That's probably good enough to be in the rotation for now, and maybe for some time to come.

 

Che was a forward while in the FCD academy. Very athletic. Its not a total shock to see him playing further up the field.

FC Dallas have a tendency to do that. Cannon and Reynolds were also forwards.

But anyway, he only just turned 19. Still lots of development time.

 

I was bummed after watching this to learn that Wynder can't head abroad until the summer of 2023... then I realized that's now just one transfer window away.

 

Maybe. The point that Ream was able to help us was the point at which he became a good, reliable Premier League center back. Just so we all have a reference as to who exactly Ream is at this point, as opposed to who he was when he was having difficulty firmly establishing himself for us all those years.

 

Tim Ream should pick up a lot of awards this year.

 

Neal settled in quite nicely, and I was impressed after the shaky start. Not an easy situation as a young, inexperienced CB getting thrown in as a halftime sub against Jamaica’s strong, athletic front line. After the early nerves, he held up quite well. And his distribution was solid. Good enough to be on the edge of the 2026 radar for me.