Thanks for the list of intriguing young prospects. Are any of them Camp Cupcake worthy as of now in your opinion? I don't watch a lot of MLS other than big games plus FC Dallas who I get locally. CCV at LB is a bad idea for me. That game against Man City he did not look very good. He is another Tim Ream without the benefit of being left-footed. I'm a fan of CCV's game and personally think he and Ream should both be more highly rated in our CB pool than they seem to be but I don't like either of them as a LB. As for Lichaj, right now we don't have a good answer at LB. WCQ starts in basically one year when he will be 31. I agree that he could have helped quite a bit in the last WCQ'ing cycle (does anyone really think he isn't better than both Zusi and Villafana?) and the GC (same with Ream and Lovitz). However, what if we draw Mexico home and Costa Rica away the first two games like we did last time? I'd personally feel a lot better about taking Lichaj to the Saprissa or to Columbus to defend Lozano at LB than anyone else in our pool. I hope someone passes him up by 2022 because I don't like the idea of a 33-year-old LB but we have to get there first. I'd be shocked and disappointed in many guys if he's our LB in 2022 but in 2020, it's plausible. As I've said, my money is on Gloster to be the starting LB in 2022 and if he starts getting time at PSV, the future may become the present. This isn't directed at you but a lot of times I think the national team is viewed like career builder mode on football manager. We need to be looking for the best guys at the present moment while taking steps to make sure the young, very promising guys like Dest are being incorporated until such time as they are the best. That's why I think a Lichaj/Robinson LB pairing is optimal at the present time and a Yedlin/Dest RB pairing.
Glad to see Dest get the starts against Mexico and Uruguay. It is clear that he is our top fullback prospect. He is probably better on the right side but the need is greater on the left. He is obviously not the finished product. But we should keep giving him most of the starts at left back. I was a little disappointed that Lima did not get some playing time at left back. Hopefully in the next round of matches.
I would say that Dest is either RB or LB prospect. Chris Gloster (NYRB academy product), who recently moved to PSV, played just as well as Dest at the u20 World Cup. He's more of a natural LB. I put him neck and neck with Dest, but he hasn't made his first team club debut yet. When he does, I think folks are going to start really being high on him. Also George Bello of Atlanta is a beast. BEAST. Was out injured for a while, but was back with USYNTs this week.
Agreed. I think either Gloster or Robinson will be our LB in 2022. Dest will very likely be our RB but I'm not as down on Yedlin as most seem to be. Let's see what he does this year. That being said, I do not think Dest is our best LB right now nor do I think he fits the system particularly well. We need a better pure defender. I loved he and Ream's ability to work the ball around on the left side but despite what Egg thinks, we aren't going to have 80% possession any time soon. I think Dest is more natural and a better, but still not great, defender on the right side. He can do what Lima did when he came on last night but better.
https://www.cbssports.com/soccer/ne...s-call-up-from-gregg-berhalter-down-the-road/ Fabian Johnson wants back in. I would personally find it inexcusable to not call him in in November if he's healthy (I realize he might not be). He's only 31, was one of our best players last cycle, and for gods sake we've been playing Daniel Lovitz at left back the past few games. Oh, and when healthy he's a spot starter for the current #1 team in the Bundesliga. Johnson at LB and Pulisic at LW would be fun to watch, and could very well unlock Pulisic in that position. At the very least, he would be able to mentor some of our younger wing backs like Dest (hopefully) and Cannon. Thoughts?
I am pretty in favor of going young... but it is difficult to field an entire team below 25 and compete. Lovitz doesn't belong anywhere near the USMNT... so I would take Johnson over him in a heartbeat.
I do worry about his health long term, but you need a few experienced guys, so why not one of our most experienced guys who has had success for both club and country and who also plays a position in high need? Seems a no brainer. Then again, Lovitz.
This is what Egg has done. Nobody has even considered or cared about even discussing Fabian for the last two years. Both coaches (Egg/Sarachan) were given carte blanche, a free license to dispose of pretty much everyone over 30. 9 months in, we're already begging for Fabian. I agree w/ the sentiment here. I don't care much to have him back, even though I enjoyed his play, but at this point? Get him in the team asap.
What about Hollingshead? Jay DeMerit got his FIRST cap at 27 going towards 28. DeMerit then went to the world cup and started 4 games at 31. If you are good enough, I don't care at all how old you are.
I'd argue that other than maybe Lichaj vs Portugal, no left back has been able to claim a single performance at the level Fabian consistently did for the USMNT. So, I'd definitely give him a call-up. He should be called in with ARob or Dest, someone who will likely be better in 2022 and can be groomed for the spot while currently being at least close enough to international quality. I wouldn't want to see a Johnson plus Ream/Lovitz/Lichaj LB pairing because we do need to have some concern for the future. As for Hollingshead, he absolutely should get a shot. I'd personally start him both games at Camp Cupcake. He is certainly better than Lovitz.
Gloster is nowhere near as skilled as Dest. He had a nice U20 World Cup, but I think he's got a ton of ways to go on the skill front. He has improved a lot in the last year, so the work ethic is likely there. But I wouldn't put him anywhere near Dest and I wouldn't be shocked if he takes a while to break through with his first team. Bello ... his injury cost him a lot of development. He's got a ton of potential, but I think he's got a lot of tactical work to get down. As for more immediate considerations: Fabian won't be there in 2022, but we may need to consider. Hollingshead and Dotson are both better than Lovitz if we are going MLS. Dotson also has some substantial upside and should really get a senior team look, especially if we aren't going to call in Robinson.
Not sure how much Fab has left in the tank. He is an old 31. And it's not like he's been balling out with Gladbach. Wouldn't hurt to give him a look, I guess. The old guy I'd really like to see is Geoff Cameron. Morales, Adams, and McKennie are all hurt. Geoff is getting starts in a strong league and putting in tackles.
I think Timmy Chandler is persona non-grata. I think Fabian is more out of sight, out of mind. I suspect that when Berhalter started, he didn't think of Johnson in terms of a viable option for 2022. And there may be some back and forth on position as well. Factor in that back then Berhalter was committed to his RB/CM thing and you can see why Fabian didn't make a lot of sense. He makes more sense now. The CM/LB seems to be dead. LB is a wasteland of suck. The team could use a player who could help in 2020 even if they aren't there in 2022. Berhalter pulled in Morales after a while, so it's not impossible. But he loves his continuity. So it will be interesting to see if we see Fabian. I don't think it is impossible.
I still have ARobinson, CCV, and Hollingshead. CCV started at rb, against Huddersfield. 2 key passes, 87 touches, 83% passing, 2 tackles, WS_7.0 The left-mid opposite him is averaging over WS_7.0 on the left. He had 6.3 here. This adds another data point to the ManCity cup match, in which he'd played on the left. Hollingshead: had another impressive season at leftback. Perhaps he'll get MLS Best XI.
Antonee Robinson is averaging 4.7 tackles + interceptions per game. That would be a huge # for a cdm, let alone is it for a fb. Plus he's averaging almost 2 dribbles by opponents per game. For perspective, Pulisic's is 1.4. And he is the best crosser among lb's in the pool. These are attributes we could really use right now. His call-up is a must this camp. He would also finally become cap-tied.
When Berhalter gets sacked, the job criteria needs to have: Will you start Hollingshead at left back for the national team? If your answer is no, you dont need to bother applying.
His recall could be waiting on what Dest decides. Supposedly he announces today. If he stays with us he needs time at LB to grow. If he switches to Holland then Johnson may be a stopgap.