What Have We Learned So Far?

We can assume, barring injury, that these players will be in the starting eleven when the U.S. men's team takes the pitch against Ghana on June 16 in Natal: Tim Howard, Matt Besler, Jermaine Jones, Michael Bradley, Clint Dempsey, and Jozy Altidore. 

So that leaves us with the questions of who will man the position alongside Besler in the center of defense, who the two outside fullbacks will be, and who the two wings will be.

Against Azerbaijan, Jurgen Klinsmann started Geoff Cameron at center back, DeMarcus Beasley (left) and Fabian Johnson (right) at fullback, Alejandro Bedoya (left) and Graham Zusi (right) on the wings. Many who know more than me thought that this line-up was also the one likely to start against Ghana and at least one blogger noted that it is arguably "the best eleven players that the U.S. has on the roster." Dempsey didn't start after having some discomfort in his groin while warming up for the match (Chris Wondolowski started in his place), but Dempsey's place is in the lineup is a foregone conclusion.

Omar Gonzalez seemed a lock a few months ago to start at center back, but some nervy play and a tweaked knee seemingly have him on the outside looking in for a starting spot. Beasley started the final qualifying matches at left back, almost out of desperation, and did passably well and was the clubhouse leader to man that position in Brazil as well.

Howard, Besler, Cameron, Jones, Bradley, Dempsey, Altidore, Johnson and Zusi started, in the same positions, against Turkey on Sunday. Brad Davis and Timmy Chandler manned the left wing and back positions, respectively, in place of Bedoya and Beasley. Neither Beasley nor Gonzalez played at all, even though Klinsmann used all six of his substitutes.

The U.S. won the match 2-1 thanks to a marvelous one-two from Johnson to Bradley and back that earned Johnson his first international goal for the U.S. and man of the match honors (along with his defensive play). Dempsey added a tap-in following a mistake in the Turkish defense before the U.S. surrendered a late goal on a penalty kick awarded after Cameron handled the ball in the box (on a play that was started by a bad defensive mistake by Chandler).

Johnson celebrates his goal (photo from usatoday.com).

My impression was that all who have started both matches did nothing in either one to severely hurt their chances to start on June 16. Being the dutiful blogger (and researching lawyer) I decided to see how soccer experts rated the U.S. performances against Turkey. The results confirmed that, much like legal research, there is no clear answer, only varying opinions. Some rated Zusi's performance highly. But Soccer America found his performance the "[m]ost disappointing of the projected World Cup starters."

That Chandler was the weakest link on the pitch was agreed to by most if not all the commentators. And if not him, then the honor went to Julian Green, the 18 year-old starlet who looked overwhelmed by the enormity of the situation after coming on as a substitute and who, honestly, should not see the field for any of the matches in Brazil.

Brad Davis, while putting in some good crosses, did nothing to lead one to conclude that he should start instead of Bedoya. His lack of pace and inability to consistently defend his side of the field probably put more pressure on Chandler than would allow a completely fair assessment of Chandler's play.

One interesting option for Klinsmann would be to play Johnson at left fullback instead of the right, where he has started both friendlies. Johnson played both left back and left wing for his club team, Hoffenheim. But Klinsmann likely has Johnson at right back to allow his best outside defender to match up with the likes of Cristiano Ronaldo in Brazil.

Johnson on the left would enable Klinsmann to start Davis, who offers more interesting offensive options than Bedoya and, if Davis pinches toward the middle as he often does, allow Johnson to make more effective offensive runs from the back. That would likely leave the right back position to DeAndre Yedlin another youngster (he's 20) who has buckets of pace but seems to rely on it at the expense of proper defensive positioning (Ronaldo would likely tear him up).

Or Klinsmann could move Cameron to right back, the position he plays for his club, Stoke, in the English Premier League, and start Gonzalez in the center of defense with Besler. But to do so would seemingly sacrifice the speed that Klinsmann values in his full backs.

All in all, it seems that those three positions, left back, left wing, and right back are the only ones up for grabs. And that Johnson will start at one of those outside back spots. So who's it going to be between Davis, Bedoya, Beasley, Johnson, and Gonzalez? My guess is Bedoya and Beasley. Saturday's match against Nigeria may tell us for certain.

Or Klinsmann may have one or two tricks up his sleeve yet ...

The Klinsmann Era Begins

So, rather than jumping to conclusions based on the U.S. men's national team's first match in the Klinsmann Era (which, after all, came only 10 day after Jurgen Klinsmann's appointment as manager and was against our biggest rival, Mexico), I thought I'd wait a while to see how the dust settles.

After all, Klinsmann himself insists that that this is all part of a "process" that goes far beyond a win or a loss in a friendly.

Good thing.

The team looked close to abysmal in the first half of the match against Mexico, with a line-up and a level of play that was, frankly, reminiscent of its effort against Tres Colores in the Gold Cup Final. Second best at best, the Yanks chased the ball and, on those rare occasions when they actually won it, looked largely inept with it at their feet.

After the half, though, the Americans played inspired soccer, at least in part because Mexico substituted some of its best players, most notably Rafael Marquez. Klinsmann moved players around and freed up Landon Donovan to play a more pivotal role in the offense. The change was so dramatic, in fact, that I wondered if Klinsmann wasn't tweaking U.S. Soccer and his predecessor, Bob Bradley, by showing the contrast of the way things were under Bradley in the first half, and the way they will be under Klinsmann in the second.

Juan Agudelo, Brek Shea, and Jose Torres celebrate Robbie Rogers'
equalizer against Mexico, while Rogers runs to join in.

Unfortunately, things didn't improve, and in fact regressed, in the squad's next two matches. Using a variety of U.S.-based and European based players, the Americans lost 1-0 to Costa Rica in California and to Belgium by the same score in Brussels.

The U.S. dominated the Costa Rica match, wasting several opportunities to score in the first half while dominating possession. The second half was more even, although Los Ticos scored on their only really quality chance of the entire match. The Americans looked less threatening against the Belgians, although Clint Dempsey (absent from both the Mexico and Costa Rica matches due to club obligations) had several good chances.

Should we hit the panic button after a less-than-impressive start under Klinsmann? Should we pine for the good old days of Bradley or Arena? I don't think so.

While a skeptic may ascribe Klinsmann's talk of patience and process as excuses, I think he truly believes them. His plan for his job goes far beyond the performance of the U.S. Men's National Team and extends to the youth program as well. A measure of his approach is apparent as well in his unorthodox decision to employ a number of temporary assistant coaches in the early stages of his reign to garner input from a variety of sources, both close to the national team program and to MLS.

He has also already given opportunities to a number of young players who were only on the fringes of the full national team prior to his arrival. Brek Shea, Robbie Rogers, and Jose Torres have all figured prominently in the offense since Klinsmann's arrival. Torres' consistent inclusion in the center of midfield is particularly noteworthy as he was rarely called upon by Bob Bradley who preferred two defensive midfielders in his formation and his playmaking and imagination give the team something that it sorely lacked under Bradley. Klinsmann has tested out a number of defenders as well -- Timmy Chandler has looked particularly impressive while Michael Oroczo Fiscal and Edgar Castillo have had inconsistent efforts.

Jose Torres on the ball.

The biggest problem, and the one that Klinsmann may be unable to solve, is up front. The U.S. lacks a true target man at forward. Jozy Altidore and Juan Agudelo have had the lion's share of opportunities so far, but have failed to score.

Altidore works hard, but hasn't seemed particularly threatening in the opponent's defensive third. Fortunately, Altidore is for the first time in several years getting regular playing opportunities with his club team (Dutch side AZ Alkmaar) and it's easy to forget that despite his 40 caps for the Men's squad, Altidore is only 22. Agudelo has come on mostly as a substitute and, like Altidore, at the tender age of 18 still has plenty of time to grow as a player. He's great on the ball, but seems to lack the poacher's instinct required of a striker, particularly when playing alone up top as seems to be Klinsmann's preference when it comes to formations.

Still, while there are uncertainties, Klinsmann's willingness to look at young new players adds an air of excitement and anticipation to the team, much as his ascension to the job did. While we wait to see how the process works in the end, it will at least be an interesting ride getting there.