Manager Bob Bradley had a choice to make before the match last night. He could play for the result and some momentum for his top guys or give his fringe players a shot to prove themselves before the final roster is released on the noon CT SportsCenter today. He chose the latter.
Resting starters and world cup locks Clint Dempsey, Landon Donovan, Tim Howard, Michael Bradley, Jay Demerit, and Jozy Altidore and Bennie Feilhaber who is supposedly nursing an injury, Bradley gave his guys the stage to state their case. Some made a good argument and some made it easy for Bradley to let them go.
Four of the remaining five strikers received 45 minutes to state their case. Herculez Gomez and Brian Ching entered the match in the second half and were the most impressive of the bunch. Ching was considered a lock to make the roster did nothing to hurt his chances. He tracked back for the ball and distributed it very well, which are the reasons that he was considered a lock in the first place. Gomez on the whole looked about as good as Edson Buddle. Except for his second half goal that probably punched his ticket to South Africa.
DeMarcus Beasley, Stuart Holden, Jose Torres, and Maurice Edu did well as a midfield and Holden and Edu may have staked claims to starting spots. Oguchi Onyewu made his return and looked decent but not great. For stretches of the match, especially in the second half, he looked to be favoring his surgically repaired right leg and was beat on a lofted cross on the Czech first goal before the half.
Players on the rise:
1. Herculez Gomez made a strong case with his goal to be the 3rd and likely final choice at forward.
2. Jose Torres was a safe bet for the team but may have made a case to be considered for the spot next to Michael Bradley.
3. Maurice Edu did score a goal which counts for a lot. In my opinion, his skill set overlaps with Bradley’s which may make it tough to include him in the starting lineup.
Players on the decline:
1. Heath Pearce was just not good last night. If he was close to a roster spot then I think he lost it last night.
2. Robbie Rogers did not do enough to put himself above the other wing option Alejandro Bedoya and DeMarcus Beasley.
3. Eddie Johnson just confirmed what most know about him. Unless he is getting direct and great service he is not effective. That may be the last time we see him in a U.S. jersey.
As far as the final 23 man roster there, I think there will be 3 keepers, 7 defenders, 10 midfielders, and 3 forwards. Dempsey would be the fourth forward and likely starter at center forward behind Altidore. The mystery in all this is if Feilhaber was held out last night because he is a lock or because he is carrying an injury.
I have a hard time believing he is a lock to make the roster as he as bad enough after coming off injury that he was pushed to the bench for his Dutch club team that was relegated (demoted from the top league). Assuming Feilhaber is healthy, here is my final 23 man roster projection:
GK (3): Howard, Guzan, Hahnemann
Def(7): Carlos Bocanegra, Jay Demerit, Oguchi Oneywu, Jonathan Spector, Steve Cherundolo, Clarence Goodson, Jonathan Bornstein
Mid (10): Landon Donovan, Clint Dempsey, Michael Bradley, Stuart Holden, Maurice Edu, Ricardo Clark, Jose Torres, Bennie Feilhaber, DeMarcus Beasley, Alejandro Bedoya
Fwd (3): Jozy Altidore, Brian Ching, Herculez Gomez
Last 3 on the roster: 21. Bennie Feilhaber, 22. Herculez Gomez, 23. Alejandro Bedoya
First 3 off the roster: 24. Edson Buddle, 25. Sacha Klejstan, 26. Heath Pearce
If Feilhaber is dropped due to injury, I think Buddle is added to the forward pool but Klejstan could be added as a versatile midfielder.
What do you think?
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