me and a friend of mine were kicking around some great MLS names that never really have gotten a true legit shot to strut there stuff on the nat'l team level. and these 3 names we found to be the most "scratch ur head" worthy. kreis being the all time leader in goals in MLS and has been very consistent his entire career. Cunningham a great scorer who could bring a rare dimension to the attack up front with his speed and elusivness. and Cannon is just as consistent and professional as it gets. but yet guys like rimando and reis garner more nat'l team attention. just wondering what everyone elses views were in regards to these 3 players and why or why not u think they belong in the pool of players. and also, if u have any other worthy names, feel free to post them. what say you??
With regards to Kreis, he played roughly 15 games with the US, only scoring 1 goal, I believe. As a result, he was basically dropped as a legitamate option at the international level. Cunningham, after getting his citizenship, was immediately called up by Arena. He also got time at Confed Cup 2003. Believe his cap total is now 6. In his few performances, he evidently showed too little. I think his tendency to dribble too much sometimes and refusal to pass have hurt his chances. With Joe Cannon, there is no reason he shouldn't be in the national team picture. However, he's certainly held back by the amazing depth the US has at the position.
A sort of related question I have is how come Reis (#3 keeper) was released to play for his club this weekend while apparently no one else was? Club *AND* Country a great deal if you can get it? We ended up sort of not missing Pablo on Monday but last Wednesday ... Also, is Reis still in the 'camp' for the Gold Cup or is Bruce going with just Keller and Hahnemann or what? Maybe it's just me but with 23 players, keeper is the only spot I would want to be more than 2 deep at? All the field players can be just two deep (20 spots) and still have 3rd player flexibility by moving people around -- keeper is another story. Lastly, if Cannon does see some playing time it can be a good thing for Foss as well. He is in such a huge shadow that no one even ever really talks (posts) about him and I think (from what I saw on a single occasion) he might be ready to get some first team minutes.
USAFooty is right on about Kreis and Cunningham ... they've been given a shot and just didn't capitalize. Way too late for Kreis now. At that level ... if you're given a shot ... you'd better show up. With Cannon, I think Bruce has it in his mind who'd going to the World Cup in Germany - Howard, Keller, and Hahnemann. So the call up for the 3rd spot is just generally a recognitional thing. And as far as Reis' release, you only need to dress two keepers. So if Keller gets hurt, I think Reis can just leave NE and go ride the pine for the Nats.
Bazooka Joe, Player of the Week!http://www.ussoccerplayers.com/latest_soccer_news/482401.html Damn right!
In a related note Chris Klien sure looked 'NATworthy' on the 4th against our Rapids. I think Cannon is such an obvious choice that I really don't get that one. Cunningham is starting to look awful good. Frankly I think the US could use a forward who likes to run at defenses and isn't always looking to pass.
I think that Chris Klien needs to hold a soccer camp for young kids on how to hit a soccer ball from outside the box. Maybe the Rapids could send Luci to pick up some tips on how to finish, Just a thought..