http://www.ussoccer.com/news/fullstory.sps?iNewsid=29217&itype= But then again, neither was Danny Califf, Taylor Twellman, Jeff Cunningham, or Ben Olsen, and I doubt they're out of the picture. Not sure what to make of this roster in terms of where he stands, with all the Euros on it. Excited to see Edson Buddle get a shot. Be interesting to see what happens vs. Mexico.
I'm just guessing but if you look at the roster... 1. There are a lot of "versatile" players who could be slotted into multiple positions. O'Brien, Stewart, Donovan, Bocanegra, even Convey have all played 2 or more positions for the USA. That's important b/c only 18 were invited to camp. Assume 1 or 2 go down with minor injuries and you need to have guys who can do wear multiple hats. 2. You're absolutely right that a number of other guys who are "still in the picture" were not invited. Rimando, Olsen, Ralston, Mulrooney, etc. Some of these guys are coming off of nicks (such as Rimando). In other cases, I think Arena has seen them recently in camp and wants to give them a chance to do well with their clubs, build their confidence and assertiveness in games and that might move them up a level internationally. Given that the whispers (nothing formal from Arena mind you) were that Suarez wasn't impressive in 2 camps (and he also was hurt in one of them I think), maybe Arena wants him to spend the week with the Burn (instead of away) and hope that by being successful at the club level, he'll gain more (in terms of international readiness) than he would being in camp. I think Olsen is in the same boat in that regard (and probably Mulrooney).
Another thing to factor in is that 3/29 is a Euro international date, so for once all of our Euros will be available. I see this as mostly seizing the opportunity to have most of our Euro players in camp. Also, Japan named their roster, and it includes all of their big guns.
If Suarez keeps working hard, he'll have a real chance later on. There's still 3 YEARS before the next World Cup.
Yes, but realistically, WCQ starts in about 1.5 years. I think part of the lesson Arena takes from the past WCQ is that he won't want to introduce international novices to WCQ pressures in Saprissa and Azteca. But another lesson is that the Euro players aren't easily recalled (Gibbs, Gooch, Vanney, Sanneh, O'Brien, Berhalter, and probably more will head overseas between now and then) and also aren't like to be in the kind of shape they need to be for the initial WCQ (which are likely to be in hot and humid climes--unless we play Canada). So Suarez doesn't have a lot of time. But being in MLS is a huge edge in this case (being on the WCQ shortlist). And there will be tons of caps in the next 1.5 years. Confed Cup, Gold Cup plus more friendlies just this summer alone. He will definitely get chances to impress.
No, realistically WCQ starts in 11 months with the new format, with the first potentially "harder" games set for 15 months or so. That said, if we're drawn with Haiti, Cuba, or both in the first round, we certainly can't afford to overlook them.
Absolutely correct. I didn't do the calendar math when thinking about the new CONCACAF qualifying format. Again, it's a long WCQ process and a lot of people will earn caps during that time. Even more will be capped before then. If Suarez has a good camp, he'll get a chance to impress on the field sometime during this summer.
Probably the best thing Ryan can do to improve his chances of gaining a spot on the USMNT is to have a great year with the Burn in 2003. Suarez had a terrific rookie year, but IMHO, suffered a bit of a sophmore slump last year. For Ryan to have a realistic shot at becoming a USMNT regular, he needs to up his game a bit, particularly on the offensive side.
Could all be void... http://sports.yahoo.com/sow/news?slug=ap-japan-us&prov=ap&type=lgns After all, we canceled our MLB games in Japan. This may be their "payback"
I think the Bruce is going to be more liberal about taking players to the WC this cycle, Bocanegra would have made it with basicaly just Gold Cup 2002 experience, but he got injured.