2019 U-20 World Cup Roster Discussion

Why is Michael Edwards at Wolfsburg not an option on the back line? 9 appearances since he signed at the beginning of the year and seemed to be pushed up to the u-23’s this weekend.

 

Galaxy play Wednesday. Hopefully Araujo at least makes the 18 if not start. They claim he’s ok and in the trip but no proof of that yet.

 

And Rennicks

 

How many times to we have to tell these guys until the message finally sinks in - it's dynamic stretching before working out and static stretching afterwards!

 

I'm man enough to admit when I'm (probably) wrong.

I've never questioned Araujo's talent (thought he was a serious prospect dating back to his DA days with Barca) but I didn't think his ceiling was very high at RB and personally I didn't think he looked all that good there in the U-23 games.

While I still think he's better suited for and his ceiling is higher as a #6, at this point I think his ability is trancedent enough that not only can he make it work at RB but that he can be a good senior national team level player there eventually.

 

A great question. From what I can gather, when Edwards was in the DA, 12 months ago, he was a bit error prone, especially with mental lapses. He wasn't that thought of by the USSF scouts as anything more than a good athlete with long term potential.

I doubt anyone from Tab on down has watched him in Germany. They probably don't know if he has improved or not and maybe he hasn't. I don't know if he is on the 50 man provisional roster even as he was not that highly thought of.

 

Just for "fun" here's a hypothetical* 21-man roster without Aaronson, Araujo, Carleton, Lindsey, McKenzie, Pomykal, Rennicks, Sands, Scott and Taitague (or Adams, Sargent or Weah):

• GK: Dos Santos, Muse, Ochoa
• D: Dest, Gloster, Real, Richards, Rogers, Perez
• M: Amaya, Cappis, Durkin, Ledezma, Mendez, Servania
• F: Akinola, Amon, De La Fuente, Llanez, Soto

That's 20 guys. Candidates for that last spot might depend on where you want to shore things up, so maybe you look at Cerrillo, Dorsey, Fernandez, Keita, Torres, or a few others. Did not think about this all that carefully -- really just wanted to visualize the depth chart a bit.

*Obviously guessing at who is in the 50 but these don't seem like far-fetched choices.

 

This seems unlikely to me but, sure, anything's possible I suppose.

 

In this day, with the technology and video scouting, you would think not. But U19 Bund games can be hard to find. Plus, if you didn't think much about a player, why try? But in this age range, guys can take big leaps out of nowhere. But at some point, Tab has his "pool" probably down to 23-25, and is not spending time looking to expand that.

 

Whether he's in the 50 or a candidate for the final roster is one thing. I still think that the notion that not one person associated with U.S. Soccer would've found a way to watch a single game played by an American player in a situation like the one we're describing over the course of a third of a year just seems frankly implausible. It's basically the job description. But what do I know?

 

Brady Scott back in goal:

⚽️ Besonderes Derby für die #Zwote: Mit einem Heimsieg gegen den @fckoeln würde unsere #U23 heute den Klassenerhalt perfekt machen! In einer halben Stunde geht’s los. #f95 pic.twitter.com/37KXc8myZ0

— Fortuna Düsseldorf (@f95) May 6, 2019

 

And not a moment too soon!

 

Why would Servania be over Cerrillo when the latter starts and performs solidly where the latter doesn't play for the same club? That would be a major faux pas.

Also, I can't see how Rogers warrants a spot without a 1st team MLS contract at almost 20. It's not 2011. Don't have fully healthy alternatives off the top of my head, except Edwards which would be a superior shout. But that creates an impetus to call in McKenzie or Sands regardless. And Durkin at cb would also be a superior option.

This is probably the best depth the u-20's have ever seen. But there is still a sizable drop off after attrition. So I do think they have to take a couple of minor chances. Half those guys won't be out for an extended period. Sounds like they have to pull the trigger on Araujo, Rennicks, Scott, 1 of Sands/McKenzie, and at least 1 of Aaronson/Pomykal/Carleton. Have our team doctors talk to their team doctors.

 

On BS anything's plausible!

 

Sounds as though we may need Soto to score a decisive own-goal (or two).

 

You may imagine my pearls clutched!

 

What about the substance of the argument(s) though?

 

I respectfully decline the invitation to counter-nitpick something I pulled together in about 2 minutes for the heck of it without (as I said in the post) giving too much thought to the particulars.

 

Which means it is highly likely to happen. Some of you guys have to learn, how these decisions are made. Easiest way for you to try and predict what US Soccer will do in the future is to figure out what is most logical - they will more often than not do the opposite.

 

From the Pomykal news last week it sounded like FCD was shutting him down for two weeks so that he'd be ready and rested for the tournament.

The Duke asked why Servania over Cerrillo so possible reasons are Tab has seen Servania and he played well with the team. They play the same position differently and he may feel Servania fits better while Luchi feels Cerillo fits his scheme better. Tab could trust his own judgement more than Luchi's. The first coupled with the last makes it 50/50 to me because we've seen Tab be loyal before.

 

Here's my guess at the roster if Sargent and Weah are out, and given my (dim) understanding of the varying levels of people's injuries, and the news that Brady Scott just got back onto the field.

I'd bring Sands over Keita or Edwards but based on what we've seen from Tyler Adams' adductor injury, I'm not optimistic he'll be fit:

• GK: Dos Santos, Ochoa, Scott
• D: Dest, Gloster, Real, Richards, Araujo, McKenzie, Keita (or Edwards)
• M: Cappis (or Amaya or Carleton), Cerrillo, Durkin, Ledezma, Mendez, Pomykal
• F: Akinola, Amon, De La Fuente, Llanez, Soto

 

Yup. I mean, Servania was on the CONCACAF U20 Championships "Best XI."
Ramos has worked with him, and has never worked with Cerrillo. [I'm not criticizing him for that. Edwin came out of nowhere, even for FCD fans.]
So it wouldn't stun anybody if Servania was selected.

Heck, would it surprise me if Cappis was selected over both? Not really.

 

I don't think that aspect was a nitpick at least because it would be analogous to selecting Michael Edwards for a key nt camp over John Brooks. One is a solid starter for the club, the other a reservist. If that's Tab's choice so be it, but it's not worthy of a defense if so. He should be seriously questioned for it.