Tonight the US Mens National Team opens up their Gold Cup
group stage with a game against Belize in the raucous confines of Jeld-Wen
Field in Portland, Oregon. This is a guide to the group stage of the tournament with a roster breakdown, projected starters, players to watch, and my prediction.
The United States was placed in group C along with Belize
(#18 in CONCACAF), Cuba (#8), and Costa Rica (#3) and are heavy
favorites to win the group, even with what is being labeled as a "B" squad making up the roster.
Due to World Cup Qualifying in June, the roster for the US
does not include most of the names that American soccer fans are accustomed to
seeing start. There won’t be any Clint Dempsey, Jozy Altidore, Michael Bradley,
Tim Howard or many others. In fact, the only player on this roster that has
been featured prominently in the Hex is Demarcus Beasley. It will be a fun
tournament to see where the depth of this nation’s soccer program is at, and
many of the players will be fighting for a spot on the 2014 World Cup roster so
there will be plenty of motivation and plenty to play for. The way I see it, 16
of the 23 spots are set in stone for Brazil (Howard, Brad Guzman, Nick Rimando,
Steve Cherundolo, Timothy Chandler, Omar Gonzalez, Matt Besler, Geoff Cameron,
Fabian Johnson, Beasley, Bradley, Jermaine Jones, Graham Zusi, Dempsey,
Altidore, Eddie Johnson) if everyone stays healthy. That leaves 7 open spots, many
of which will come from this Gold Cup roster—which makes for some very
interesting positions and players to watch.
Here is the roster:
GOALKEEPERS (3) :
Bill Hamid, Sean Johnson, Nick Rimando
DEFENDERS (8) :
Corey Ashe, DaMarcus Beasley, Tony Beltran, Edgar Castillo, Clarence Goodson,
Oguchi Onyewu, Michael Orozco Fiscal, Michael Parkhurst
MIDFIELDERS (7) :
Kyle Beckerman, Alejandro Bedoya, Joe Corona, Mix Diskerud, Brek Shea, Stuart
Holden, Jose Torres
FORWARDS (5) : Will
Bruin, Landon Donovan, Herculez Gomez, Jack McInerney, Chris Wondolowski
Look for Jurge Klinsmann to stick
with the 4-2-3-1 that he has been running for much of the past 12 months,
especially because the players that look to be starting can easily switch to a
4-4-2 with no substitutes.
The back line will more than
likely be made up of Demarcus Beasley (Captain and Right Back), Oguchi Onyewu
(Center Back), Clarence Goodson (Center Back), and Michael Parkhurst (Right
Back). Beasley has pretty much locked up a spot on the World Cup roster, while
it seems to me like Onyewu and Goodson will be fighting for the 4th
center back spot. Parkhurst doesn’t have much of a chance to make the roster.
There aren’t really any young and exciting defensive players on the roster so
expect to see this back four for the majority of the group stage. It is very
hard to figure out what role Edgar Castillo will play in this tournament, as
Beasley will start every game after being named captain. I highly doubt that we
will see Beasley in any position other than left back, and with so many options
in the midfield for the left side (which is a spot that is very much up for
grabs on the “A” team), I don’t see Castillo featuring there.
In the midfield, I think we will
see Stuart Holden and Kyle Beckerman in the two holding midfield spots.
However, I would much rather see Mix Diskerud in for Beckerman, as he is young,
has loads of potential and the offense thrived when he was paired with Holden
against Guatemala. I think you could bet your life savings that Landon Donovan
will be put in the right wing spot to start the game, with him moving up to
forward if Klinsmann decides to switch to a 4-4-2. It will be very fun to watch
the most decorated American soccer player of all time try to reinstate himself
in the national team picture, and he will need a good Gold Cup to do so. In the
“Clint Dempsey spot,” you’ll see either Joe Corona or Alejandro Bedoya. Bedoya
has been on fire lately for Helsingborg in Sweden while Corona has been playing
steadily for Club Tijuana in Mexico. Both of these players can also play the
wing, so there’s the potential that they both start with one playing left wing.
If Beckerman starts ahead of Diskerud, this is a spot that Mix could play in as
well. Out left, Brek Shea is the most logical selection to start, but as I
said, don’t be surprised if Corona or Bedoya are in this spot.
Up top, Herculez Gomez will very
likely be the lone striker in the 4-2-3-1. Gomez has been a favorite of
Klinsmann’s throughout his tenure, and looks a very safe bet to be the #2
striker when the team heads to Brazil next summer. Jack McInerney will look to
get his first cap for the United States, and hopefully the 20-year-old
Philadelphia Union star will get a lot of quality time to prove himself on the
international level. Chris Wondolowski is a veteran who has never been able to
establish himself on the international level, and is a very long shot to make
the team next summer. Will Bruin is another young forward who will be looking
to make a name for himself in red white and blue.
Predicted Starting 11:
Rimando
Parkhurst Goodson,
Onyewu Beasley
Holden Beckerman/Diskerud
Donovan Bedoya/Corona Shea
Gomez
The 5 players I’m most interested
in watching are
1) Landon Donovan: Everyone wants to know
if he can reestablish himself and get back in the mix with the “A” team. If he
has a solid tournament it will be nearly impossible for Klinsmann to leave him
off the roster for the September qualifiers, and then it just becomes a
question of where he fits. This is a very important two weeks for Landon
2) Stuart Holden: Another player looking
to reestablish himself with the national team, but in Holden’s case it was due
to some horrible luck with injuries that put him out of the picture. If Holden
plays anywhere near the level he was at against Guatemala, Jermaine Jones
better watch his back as Holden could potentially make a wonderful pair with
Michael Bradley.
3) Mix Diskerud: Loads of potential and
this will be the first time US Soccer fans get a chance to have an extended
look at him. He will finally be cap tied to the US the first time he steps on
the field in the Gold Cup. At 22, he will be looking to make an impression and
start his national team career with a bang in the hopes of traveling to Brazil
next summer.
4) Jack McInerney: Very young and very
talented. Has been on a bit of a cold streak for the Philadelphia Union lately,
but hopefully he will see his luck change while wearing the stars and stripes.
He has never played for the senior national team before. Really hoping that
Klinsmann gives him a true look and shot at this tournament, even though Gomez
will be the starter at striker.
5) Brek Shea: Shea was a very late
addition to the roster (replacing the injured Josh Gatt). He had an awesome
start to the Klinsmann era before seeing off the field issues and injuries put
him out of the picture for both club and country. This is a hugely important
tournament for the very talented winger, as he needs to have a very good Gold
Cup to establish himself once again and to impress the coaching staff at Stoke
City. Shea will miss an extremely important preseason with his club, so I doubt
that Klinsman would have called him in if he didn’t plan to give him
significant playing time. He could be the player with the most potential on the
roster.
Games:
USA Vs. Belize (Jeld-Wen Field,
Portland Oregon) 11 pm EST, July 9th, 2013
USA Vs. Cuba (Rio Tinto Stadium,
Salt Lake City, Utah) 3:30 pm EST, July 13th, 2013
USA VS. Costa Rica (Rentschler
Field,Hartford,Connecticut) 8 pm EST, July 16th, 2013
Prediction: The United States will
sweep the group stage, with only the Costa Rica game ever truly being close.
Costa Rica will take 2nd in the group, while Cuba takes 3rd
and advances as one of the 2 3rd place qualifiers.
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