Cowell is like Pepi, a U-20 for 2023 as well. Pepi would have had a better chance given the uncertainty in depth at the position. I think for Cowell, there tougher better competition on the wings. De la Fuente, Harper, Llanez. To play up a cycle, you have to be really good and play a position that is thin among the normal age players of the cycle. I don't get the sense Cowell checks those boxes for 2021.
There are always some guys that end up injured or unfit like Llanez with Olympic qualifying, so I think that would have taken care of some of the calls at the margins where it would have been hard to narrow down the strikers and wingers if everyone was fit. Also, the U20 tournament would have been in May 2021. It would been very unlikely to have a player play at both the U20s and the Olympics (if we qualify) so that would have raised some interesting issues with Araujo, Bello, Reynolds, Johnny, Llanez, and Hoppe. They would be in consideration for the Olympics if releases can be worked out with their clubs and some would have been needed for the Olympics. If Roma does not committ to releasing Reynolds, would have put him on the U20 team and saved Araujo for the Olympics?
I’m not biased and think Ricardo Pepi makes the roster. I just think he’s a better player than Charlie Kelman with way more upside Cade Cowell didn’t have much of a shot for the u20’s in my opinion. Uly, Konrad, and Harper are head and shoulders above the rest. With that being said Cade is a lock for the 2023 u20’s though.
How will Dallas split time with Pepi and Ferriera at the 9? Good problems to have I guess, but would be great if they could both breakout in the scoring column this year.
Good points, @bshredder and @Clint Eastwood . I based my hypothetical roster more on who I would have selected vs. anticipating the coach's decisions. I agree that Anthony Hudson likely would have favored Cameron Harper, and Kelman vs. Pepi was a 50/50 decision for me. I just think Kelman has proven a bit more at the club level as of now, so would optimize for making a deep run in the tournament. But Pepi is definitely a superior prospect and the fact that he's a dual-national would have made him a pragmatic selection for the program. Cade Cowell is definitely an interesting prospect. He looked promising in limited minutes in MLS last season, but the wing depth on this squad (Llanez, de la Fuente) is strong, and I think Caden Clark is without a doubt "just a little bit ahead of him" (as Jurgen Klinsmann would say ).
In a Federation that hired Jason Kreis, Anthony Hudson was the worst hire they’ve made. Then again, he has international success.
Hey, Hudson is also the best hire they have because do we even have any other employed YNT coaches at this point?
I think so. I've seen another name. National Youth Coaches are not people with strong resumes, generally.
Gonzalo Segares is the current u17 YNT head coach. Just hasn’t been publicly announced because he didn’t get to have any actual camps with the 04’s
Do any of these guys have confirmed pro contracts that we know of? Benalcazar Nico Boateng Kwabena Pierre Kurowskybob "Bobby" Ritchie Stuart Schulte Patrick Stojanovic Stefan
http://www.americansoccernow.com/articles/the-2021-u-s-u-20-world-cup-team-what-could-have-been Good article from one of the Godfather’s of YNT fandom @bshredder Like he mentioned, this u20 team would’ve gone as far as Owen Otasowie and Leo Sepulveda let them. This team was going to be solid in possession and creating offensive chances but shaky defensively I think the 2019 team was better overall but this 2021 group is still very good. In 2019 we had a very week core age group in the 1999’s with a very strong supporting age group in the 2000’s carry the team. For this cycle the 2001’s were excellent while the 2002’s were very weak. For 2023 it will be pretty similar to 2021 with a strong 2003 class and a weak 2004 group
3) Damian Las (Fulham) How does Damian Las make the roster over Alex Borto when Borto is starting for the Fulham U-18s while Las is in USL to get playing time? I know Borto is two years younger but it's the third goalkeeper spot, which is often a younger goalkeeper who is eligible for the next cycle...
When we don't get rosters to debate, we're left with ... extremely hypothetical third GK controversies. Can U.S. Soccer just publish a list of a couple dozen names or something? Just look at what we've become...
Is that really a fair comparison considering Las isn't age eligible for the U18s? And what indicates Borto is actually any good? As far as I can tell, he's just another kid with a European passport who was able to get to Europe early rather than being a highly coveted prospect.
Has anyone actually seen Borto play to vouch that he’s good? I see all this praise for him, but is it deserved? I don’t think I’ve seen one review of his game. I remember Luca Lewis got a lot of this same praise based on how he was doing in youth games nobody was watching, and now we see in USL that he’s a generic keeper. He was never a real YNT player, like some suggested he should be. Could it be the same for Borto? Las has a prior track record. We know his skillset. He had an injury that cost him the end of 2020 and beginning of 2021. When he returned, he went out on loan. He was starting over Borto before he got injured. Why would anyone think U-18 soccer is a higher level than USL L1?
I like to think that the actual camps -- what players do and don't do well in the eyes of coaches - matter for better or worse. If Che impresses, he'll get fast tracked. On the other hand, there are those rumors of friction with Holmes during a camp and he doesn't get called in.