I think we've seen enough of these players.

I agree with everything except for Noonan. Who can do anything with Armas and Olsen orchestrating the midfield?

 

I have always thought Noonan future with national team is in the midfield so I still have hope for him. Conrad was better than Sanneh so he is in the mix but will not make the '06 team

Twellman needs to stay healthy and get a real chance! Outside of Johnson and McBride we are very weak at forward. Wollf needs to do more with the chances he has been given especially since his speed is not what it used to be

 

I totally agree, but let's not forget Brian Ching either. Having EJ, Twellman, and Brian Ching on this Gold Cup roster would have made this team so much more dangerous.

 

You don't need to have great speed to be a great international forward. You need to be able to finish, create space, and make good runs. I think Noonan can do all these things and he adds a certain amount of creativity that is unusual in American forwards. Given another chance up top with EJ and our best players in midfield, I believe he can suceed.

 

Is'nt Ching badly injured?

Twellman since the begining of 2004 he has played 3 games and a total of 36 mins for the nats. He deserves more of a hance

 

Admittedly I'm biased, and I don't think he'll ever be first choice, but I'd like to see Olsen get a run out as the sole defensive mid. He's played twice in that role with Armas and they're falling all over one another, not to mention that if you replace a d-mid with an attacking player the other team has to react to that...

But at least he got in one of the Tico's face after an early hard foul.

 

We already knew that Sanneh, Armas, and Olsen were toast. Unfortunately, Arena blew an opportunity to give some additional younger players a look. Bruce would do well to take the notion from this article:

http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2005/writers/gabriele_marcotti/07/12/cash.crunch/index.html

... paying particular attention to this passage:

Judging by what we're witnessing this summer, soccer is mirroring real life: Top-notch superstars have spent the summer being shopped around by clubs who would rather have younger, cheaper versions. It's a function of the current cash crunch, of course, but it's also a result of clubs realizing that it often makes sense to move veterans well before their inevitable decline.

Just like the aforementioned players, Reyna, Pope, and even McBride should retire from the USMNT. If they feel like Sanneh in his USSoccer podcast before the Gold Cup -- and ignoring reality -- that he is at the level where he feels he can play in G06 (yeah, right ), then Arena should take the initiative to *help* them retire by giving them a nudge in that direction and not calling them back into camp.

It's up to Arena to steer the ship. And he's much better served by relying on his youth to carry us forward...

 

You are an absolute idiot if you think McBride should retire from the USMNT.

 

I would agree that Sanneh looks to be done. His pace and skill level have regressed to the point where national team service is no longer a realistic option.

Armas isn't playing well in this tournament, and that's disappointing. He's capable of better play, but he's not showing it in what may be his final chance.

Olsen isn't playing badly, and is showing some nice aggressiveness. I agree that running him out there without Armas as a partner might be the fairest way to take a look at him.

Noonan is being pushed to see if he might be able to serve as both a midfielder and forward. He seems a bit uncomfortable with the roles he's playing, but he isn't playing his way out of consideration at all. In fact, demonstrating some positional flexibility may very well be his ticket to Germany.

Conrad played decently against Cuba in a tough formation for a first cap, and did an excellent job as a sub for Pope against Cuba. He's still learning Arena's system, and has played with different players and formations during this 3-game stretch. That's tough on anyone, but I'm not displeased with his performance or call-up, and Costa Rica is the best team he's faced so far.....

 

I won't call you an idiot. But you see the part preceeding where you put the bold in?

it's a function of the current cash crunch

that whole article was about how teams are getting rid of older players who are still playing well because of their high salaries and impending decline

Old players cost the Nats the same as young players

And in case you didn't notice, the Nats run on a 4-year life cycle

In 12 months, those three will be basically done with the national team, but if you think they should go now, you're an...

 

Wolff-Can't Finish.
Armas-too old/slow.
Olsen-too slow.
Sanneh-too slow???
Noonan-Jury's Out
Dempsey- " "


Where was Twellman?
" " Buciagra?

 

Ive been saying Armas was done when he tore his ACL...bye bye Armas.
Why do you guys want to see more Roy Lassiter, oops I mean Taylor Twellman. He falls to much is out of position to much (with USA) and has had opportuities to score with US and hasnt. I wouldnt mind seeing him pan out, but he's nothing more than Roy Lassiter, Conor Casey and Jason Kries.

 

You know what really, it is not the fault of these players that they get selected and played bad. It is the fault of Bruce Arena for selecting these players. >90% of Bigsoccer posters know that Armas, Olsen, Sanneh are worthless players for the Nats, but yet Bruce called in these players anyway. With all the young talents we have, wouldnt it be better to spend the time to get these young talents ready for the WC06 instead of wasting time on these has beens.

Sometimes Bruce's conservative management of the US team really baffles me. I thought he learned a lesson a while back during the time when we played against Jamaica in WCQ, or even after the WC02 when he stated that soccer is a game for young players. It is so frustrating to see Bruce just forgetting all the lessions that he had learned. Does he want to be Agoosed again?

 

I soooooooooooooo agree with this original post. I just hope BA gets a decent lineup for the playoffs, no more experimenting, lets win and win well

 

assuming that bruce doesn't call olsen, conrad, noonan, wolff, sanneh back..who does he replace them with?

olsen --> reyna
conrad --> gibbs (who's probably gonna start anyway)
noonan --> gaven (at least for the last few qualifiers + friendlies...if hes not ready for germany, fine leave him out. )
wolff --> it's sad that we can't find a decent backup forward in all of america. i dont think cunningham will cut it...ching still injured, twellman?? at worst.. i think we should just leave wolff in there (as much as it pains me to say so)
sanneh --> burciaga?

spector will need to spend time with his new (loaned) club... i dont know if he'll be getting called up anytime soon (in time for 06)

if eddie johnson does not get better soon, and stay healthy...we are in for a rude awakening come germany. EJ + mcbride is ok...mcbride + anyone else =

- edit: forgot armas...replace him with anyone...anyone at all

 

Twellman was injured when the roster was selected. I think that Arena's decision to leave him off was more of a "get back in playing shape" decision. Not a knock this time on his playing abilities.

 

Captain 10 is a good guy, but he takes the spaghetti analysis approach; let's throw whatever we can against the wall and see what sticks.

This particular piece of pasta just slide right down the wall right into a dust bunny.

 

Wanted : Forward who can score.

 

Plus the fact that Arena also called up Noonan, Dempsey, and Ralston, and Reis if you want to count him. A Twellman callup would make the Revolution look a lot like their reserve team...

 

Part of the problem with watching Olsen now is that we remember how he played as a young star on the rise with plenty of promise. That guy wasn't really at the level of a national team perennial starter, but he seemed sure to get there as he developed and reached the prime soccer-playing years for most guys. But the current Olsen is a mere shadow of the young Olsen. So if you think, as I do, that the young Olsen wasn't quite at the national starter level, it's hard to believe his shadow can do much for the team.