my brother and I were talking about options at cb and he thinks dolo could transition nicely there for the US... thoughts
Only if he'd play there for Club. We have a long line of good CBs that aren't getting chances so I'd rather not risk playing someone out of position when there are plenty of other alternatives.
This has been suggested before. Cherundolo is--at about 5'6"--too short to play as a CB and moving our (current) starting RB to a position for which he's less suited would result in an actual reduction in the quality of the back line. Even if you think of it as a way to play Tim Chandler at RB while still keeping 'dolo's skills on the pitch, it doesn't make sense. The current leading contenders for CB are better--at that position--than 'dolo would be.
I think truefan was on interstate 420 when the idea of Dolo at CB was brought up. As Kenny Smith say, Hell to the No.
Its a hilariously awful idea... Is there anyone in the current player pool smaller than Dolo? Torres maybe? Dude's like 5'6".
We have actual centerbacks to try out like Cameron, Gonzalez, John, etc. before we stoop to "gently used" short right backs. I have no idea how this could be viewed as a good idea. What's next? Jozy Altidore to left back?
When will we stop dismissing a guy at CB just because he is not built like a tree? I am not saying Dolo should be moved to CB, in fact, I dont think it is necessary, but to say he wouldnt be a good CB because he is too small is nonsense to me, and it just goes to show you the mentality of a US soccer fan is much akin to college soccer coach. Big, strong, fast and good in the air > small, good touch, great positioning, good timing on tackles and a high soccer iq.
Find me a few regular, well-regarded 5'6" CBs from Europe as examples, and then I will agree with you that this height issue is a "US college soccer" problem. And don't try Cannavaro, who was 8cm and 9kg (3 inches and 20lbs) bigger than Cherundolo. Steve's 5'6" and 146lbs is REALLY tiny for a CB. Anywhere. At least anywhere this side of women's soccer or U13 boys.
While I am all for more skill in central defense, I would guess moving Cherundolo centrally would probably not work out, especially in Klinsmann's system. The US is doing a good job under Klinsmann of forcing teams wide and making the opponent beat the US with crosses. Moving Cherundolo centrally would accentuate his limitations. I think highly of Cherundolo as a player, but this is one experiment I would avoid.
dolo at cb would finally give us the cb that our coach has been after... he can play out of the back and is faster and quicker then any other option that has been used so far. plus it moves chandler to the rb. i wouldnt be too worried about his size when paired with a player like gooch. for those that question my brothers opinion thats fine I do too. I wanna see some of the other cbs tried out but the name calling is unneeded and childish. He knows more about soccer than most on this board... he played in college and then pro for a brief period and is now moving through the coaching ranks. if you disagree state a legit opinion as too why and if you cant then just dont post
i agree that we should not move him inside but not that it would accentuate his limitations. yes he is not very big but our coach is looking for a cb that can play out of the back and can move laterally from side to side with speed. plus he gives us experience and is one of our better defenders. my two biggest problems with moving him inside is one he doesnt play there for club so there would be a learning curb and two he is getting up there in age and id rather us find a long term answer in the middle
javier mascherano played very well as a cb for barca when pique and puyol were out. they even shifted to a 3-4-3 at times which puts even more pressure on the cb but he played great in the center of their d.
Splitting hairs, but Mascherano is actually 5'9". But what's not splitting hairs is that Mascherano reads the game and marks players at a world-class level, which you have to do if you're that small playing in central defense.
Ivan Cordoba (Inter Milan) -5'7 Luis Fernando Fuentes (Pumas) 5ft 7" Gialuca Grava (Napoli) - 5ft 71/2" Only examples I could find. But to be clear, my point was this.... The only reason I was seeing for people to dismiss him as a CB was size. That was my gripe. An undersized CB can still be effective. Thats my point. I dont even think we should try Dolo as a CB, but to me, his size is the last thing I would worry about.
Size, age, and he's not as quick as he used to be. Also, we have lots of decent MLS options that haven't even been tested yet. We need Dolo outside as long as his legs can go.