Okay so we have donovan and mathis up front, and wolff when he recovers (another couple months) but beside that who do we have in the immediate future??? Cunningham has flashes here and there but needs to be straight in his methods before makeing an impact, Twellman has been a non-existent in every game for the NATS so far.....who else do we have up there? any suggestions, b/c I doubt Everton is going to be giving us back Brian McBride anytime soon ( he is playing fantastic futbol over there)....so who do we have on the depth chart???
Adu or Ricketts would be next. Regardless, I would imagine that our depth chart would look something like this...... Assuming Donovan and Kirovski are MF, and Joe-Max and Earnie are not on the team due to age?............ 1. McBride 2. Mathis 3. Wolff - if and when he get's healthy 4. Twellman 5. Cunningham 6. Razov? 7. Casey? 8. Buddle 9. Kreis - Not that he would get a run out unless he blazes up MLS again 10. Quaranta? 11. E. Johnson thereafter I am probably out of my league to speculate.
In my book, I'd take Razov over Cunningham any day of the week. I think he is underrated, and he always comes to play. Just my opinion.
You've got EJ, SQ and Buddle too low... Those guys are going to show some stuff this season. They all play the game all-around at a higher level than Twellman, Razov, Kreis and Cunningham for sure. Wolff is a question mark, as he is so injury prone... The young guys are catching up fast. Eskandarian is also a good player, who plays at a high level mentally. All of these guys need time, but they are going to be right up there competing with Wolff and Mathis in a few years. Connor Casey could be in the mix too, but the other guys are just more athletic I think, and playing in the US is an advantage right now. I am sure that at least one of the young crew is going step it up this year, and become a serious USMNT contender.
i heartily agree and i think EJ is gonna be a star we also have an 18-year old target type vardan azmenian or something scoring well with panathinaikos U-21s - maybe hell get a look during the cycle i think finding a suitable understudy to BMB is vital - id love to see twellman get some proper PT and service
DEFINETLY Johnny Bragantino , he plays for this team in Huskerville Alabama and he ceratinly has the knack for scoring. Last year he scored 31 goals for his side. This year he will be in the team for 6 and 7 year olds! Go Johnny Go! (All characters and places in the above story are fictional and have no shread of reality whatsoever, though Im sure there is a Johnny out there)
NEXT? I think that presupposes we actually had a bona fide striker in the first place. With all due respect to Wynalda, McBride, and Mathis...the U.S. has yet to produce a high quality striker...let alone one that can be considered world class. In our defense, world class strikers are undoubtedly the most difficult to develope. It's no coincidence European clubs will pay just about anything to obtain one. The closest to world class we've had at that position have been Mathis and Donovan. Mathis, whether due to injury or sheer lack of motivation, has plateud since his injury. He was a disappointment at the WC. After watching him live against Argetina, I can tell you his fitness level and fire are not there yet. Though Donovan is world class...he is better suited as an attacking mid or withdrawn forward. Of the current crop of players, I just don't see anyone out there who can reach such status. Guys like Wolff, Razov, McBride, Kreis etc., are all nice players. Yet, they've all had their chances to show what they have and frankly...it's time to give the younger players a chance.
Ed Johnson is my bet. He has the size, speed, and touch. All he needs now is the experience. Hopefully he will get some more PT in MLS. I think a Twellman Donovan combination is worth a try. Arena would have to sit Mathis down. Both Twellman and Donovan exert a ton of energy and should be able to cause a few problems. Twellman is not afraid of doing the dirty work like McBride and JMM. Mathis and Twellman doesn't work because Mathis is not flicking on head balls or finding the seems for Twellman. Twellman is very strong and can knock it back to a supporting player. I think Razov should also be given another chance.
I've been talking to some people on the Everton board and from what I gained from them, I think he will be back at the beginning of the year unless Everton puts some big money up. They say that he talks about how he misses his family and stuff. I think he'll be back. As for Twellman, give him some time. He still needs to get a few more caps under his belt before we can make a fair assessment. What about Santino Quaranta?
Buddle is the real deal. He is a big man with good technical ability and terrific nose for the ball. He can create and power through to get the "junk" goal. He just started getting used to using his strength in the open field and can now make the power runs the big Germans make. Edson's versatility means he can pair well with either a McBride/Donavin/ Twellman type partner.
Best assesment I've read. Anyone watch Saviola's play today for Barca? I particularly liked the quick peek he took in the box after beating his man, before he dished off to Kluivert running in for the goal. Also the Rabbit, who is slightly bigger than Bease, get's posession by popping up all over the place. Shows you don't need a big target man I haven't seen EJ play yet. Maybe he'll be a bigger player like Henry. We could use one of each (Saviola/Henry) or two of both.
Still on the same point: I can't belive people rate Donovan as "world Class" come on people... He's GOOD and HAS TALENT but you need to be a Saviola level player to be called World Class... Donovan is not yet there... A world class player changes and commands a game, Donovan has had great games but he still has not COMMANDED the USA... Not yet anyway.......
I believe the future's bright for the Nats, but I don't think we'll have an answer for a pure top notch striker anytime soon. Mathis, Donovan, McBride, Kirovski -- style not really that of a pure striker Wolff, Ravoz, Twellman -- haven't shown it yet on the international level, not consistently Johnson, Buddle, Adu, others -- fill me with hope, but need to perform consistently at MLS level first, then (maybe) top Euro level, then step up to the international level in a qualifier or WC match; none are close at this point Would be great to have a Saviola type. What a thing to behold combining with Kluivert against Inter! But I don't think it hurts us not to have a pure striker on board by '06. Look what we did in '02 without one?
quote:Originally posted by bluedaddy19 and i think EJ is gonna be a star quote: I totally agree! I expect a phenomenal season from Eddie this year -- Watch out!!! Nothing against EJ, and I hope you were right. What I see in EJ is that he takes too long to make decision what to do with the ball. I also think Quaranta (sp?) has more flair.
So was the "round earth theory" at one point. We've not yet produced a truly world class striker. Would you mention any American forward alongside Raul, Henry, Del Peiro, Ronaldo, etc. As bullish as I am on American soccer, I wouldn't say that. There's no real shame in this, BTW. By definition, world class only means the very best of the best. The only position where we are truly world class is keeper. Sachin
I'll agree that Donovan's not world class yet, but you don't think having teammates who are world class helps a player achieve that status? No one's expecting the kid to dribble through defenses like Maradona, and as such his level will always be limited to the level of the players around him. Until the US Men's National team level is higher or he goes back to Europe it's an unknown situation IMHO...
A player can become great if he has good players around him... And that's why kids like Patrick Klivert and Raul are great but not world class. But a Saviola and Pablo Aimar have proven to be world class because out of all the great players they play w/ they are the ones who stand out! Who run at other players change the game... You don't need to score to change a game.. Paolo Maldini proves that! He is world class... Agreed that the USA' trully world class talent have been kasey keller and Brad Fridel... Other than that JOB can be said as a player who can become world class... if injuries don't hold him back... Other than that NO USA PLAYER is world class... to use a phrase from Trainspotting: "Eddie Pope had it, and then lost it" A move to Europe 4 yrs ago and today we would have had a world class defender!
C'mon, I can name 10-20 forwards better than Saviola. Saviola is further along than Donovan, but making him the 'line' for World Class players is going a bit far IMHO.
Originally posted by SamsArmySam "What a thing to behold combining with Kluivert against Inter! " Almost as good as the Reyna to Wolff to McBride thing in JK. How did Wolff see that? That was the World Stage, and that was Class. We may not be all that consistant yet, but we have some flashes. We have some hot kids (my bet is on Quaranta), and they even have sort of a tradition and definitely an example to look up to. So El Mono Mario, what was Saviola doing right then? Counting his money? Catching some rays? Don't remember him doing much on the World Stage, but he is a nice club player. If he stays hot for the next 5 years he may be in Raul's class? And Kluivert, all he has is a stupid Euro trophy....