Photo by C.A.M. Stephans

By now you have probably heard the Bob Bradley deadline of May 23 to announce his call-ups for the U.S. National Team. This is a critical call-up, as not only will these players play in the 2011 Gold Cup but also in the friendly versus Spain.  As such, Bob Bradley will likely go the opposite of Camp Cupcake and take a veteran lineup to Foxborough.

But should he?  What should be the goals of the US Men’s National Team, June 2011 edition?  I’d argue the following should be the goals of Bob Bradley’s squad, in this order:

1. Win the Gold Cup and punch the ticket to the Confederations Cup
2. Begin finding the players for the 2014 World Cup
3. Not embarrass the country in the Spain match

In order to do this, Bob Bradley should bring a mix of veterans and up-and-comers, and in the process take a few gambles with this team.  Here are my suggestions by position for Coach Bradley, as well as a few predictions of who he will actually bring.  Feel free to agree or disagree in the comments section:

Keepers He Should Bring: Tim Howard, Marcus Hahnemann, and Bill Hamid

Keepers He Will Bring: Howard, Hahnemannn, and David Yeldell

Until he proves otherwise, Tim Howard is the #1 keeper for this team and that will not change during the World Cup. The #2 keeper should be someone with experience who can step in during an emergency, so Hahnemann fits that profile as he transitions from Europe to MLS.  Brad Guzan is seemingly on the outs with Bradley plus scheduled his wedding for the end of this month.  Bradley could go with David Yeldell to continue the German connection but could again give Dominic Cervi a chance to earn a place on the team, despite the fact he can’t even get a start for his club team.  One day Howard will be too old to play for this team, and the US needs to begin planning for that now.  The final spot should go to a young stud who should begin to be groomed to be the next Tim Howard; the two MLS candidates right now are Sean Johnson and Bill Hamid, with Hamid getting the call due to having a better season so far.

Defenders He Should Bring: (starters) Tim Chandler, Oguchi Onyewu, Clarence Goodson, Carlos Bocanegra, (bench) Steve Cherundolo, Zak Whitbread, Tim Ream, Jonathan Bornstein, Chad Marshall

Defenders He Will Bring: (starters) Cherundolo, Goodson, Onyewu, Bocanegra, (bench) Chandler, Bornstein, Ream, Whitbread, Eric Lichaj

The backline is up in the air, but you can bet Bradley will go conservative here.  The U.S.’s biggest problem has been conceding early goals, so Bradley will likely thwart this by throwing out a veteran lineup.  My thought is that the Gold Cup is put up or shut up time for two U.S. defenders – Tim Chandler and Gooch.  Gooch is coming back from injury and it’s time to see if he can be an international starting defender before 2014 qualification.  Tim Chandler took the soccer scene by storm with a good showing against Paraguay; now’s a good time to see if he can maintain the hype.

Midfielders He Should Bring: (4-2-3-1) Michael Bradley, Jonathan Spector, Landon Donovan, Mikkel Diskerud, Clint Dempsey, (bench) Benny Feilhaber, Brek Shea, Alejandro Bedoya

Midfielders He Will Bring: (4-4-2) Donovan, Bradley, Jermaine Jones, Dempsey, (bench) Edu, Feilhaber, Bedoya, Jonathan Spector

I have always been a believer in the U.S. playing with 5 midfielders, with Bradley and Spector alternating between making advancing runs and playing back in the holding role.  Donovan and Dempsey are locks to start but the U.S. needs someone with vision and talent to make the right pass to get the wings and forward the ball in scoring chances.  Although young, Diskerud has shown flashes of this ability and he should get a chance now.  If nothing else, a call-up binds him to the U.S.  On the bench, Brek Shea has shown the ability to be a world class midfielder, with FC Dallas’ recent good run of form showing how good Shea can be.  Bradley, however, will probably fall back into the comfortable 4-4-2 and keep his standards in the midfield.  The bench for Bradley will also be experienced, with players we’ve seen before who have specific talents for specific scenarios.

Forwards He Should Bring: Teal Bunbury, Jozy Altidore, Chris Wondolowski

Forwards He Will Bring: Altidore, Juan Agudelo, Herculez Gomez

Let’s be ambitious.  If Bradley plays a 4-2-3-1, he needs a lone striker type, something Altidore is not.  He is talented enough to make the team, but he needs a second forward up front with him.  Agudelo could be that guy, but he is in danger of over-exposure and over-use this year.  Let’s see if Bunbury is as good internationally or better than Agudelo.  In the same vein, let’s give Chris Wondolowski one more chance.  The guy can score in MLS, so let’s see if he can do the same for the national team.

The list of the 2011 Gold Cup sites was unveiled yesterday and there were two story lines coming out of the announcement: the number of venues that would be hosting their first Gold Cup matches and the number of cities that were inexplicably left off the list.

As a reminder or, if you are new to the sport, an explanation, the Gold Cup is the tournament where in 2011 the winner advances to the 2013 Confederations Cup.  It does not impact World Cup qualifying directly.  What a win in the 2011 Gold Cup does do is allow a team a series of matches against other federation champs in a World Cup-style format.  The United States used a great Confederations Cup run in 2009 (we beat Spain!) to create positive momentum for the 2010 World Cup.

The first round takes place June 5-14, and some of the venues are no-brainers to be on the list.  The Dallas Cowboys’ mammoth stadium will host the first match on June 5, and repeat hosts include Soldier Field (Chicago) and the Home Depot Center (Carson City).  The other four new hosts are Ford Field (Detroit), Raymond James Stadium (Tampa), KC Soccer Stadium (Kansas City), and Bank of America Stadium (Charlotte).  While Detroit and Tampa are huge media markets that make sense for international soccer, CONCACAF seems to be looking to build the culture in Charlotte and Kansas City, and I will be curious to see the crowds for the matches.

The quarterfinals will be held June 18 at the New Meadowlands Stadium and June 19 at RFK Stadium (Washington DC).  The semifinal matches will be held in Houston on June 22 and the final held in the Rose Bowl on June 25.  None of these sites are a surprise except for maybe Houston having the semifinal over the New Meadowlands.

What is a surprise may be the cities left out of this list.  Philadelphia and Foxborough, MA on the East Coast both have MLS teams but failed to get the nod.  Columbus, Denver, Salt Lake City, and San Jose are other MLS metropolitan areas that were not selected.  But the biggest shaft may have been the West Coast, which has two hosts both in California, and none in the Pacific Northwest.  Sounders fans will miss out on the opportunity to see Gold Cup matches next year.

The total list of sites is after the break, but what are your thoughts on which cities were selected and which were left off?  Should the West Coast or the Rockies gotten more matches?

2011 CONCACAF Gold Cup Schedule and Venues

First Round

June 5 – Cowboys Stadium (Arlington, TX)

June 6 – The Home Depot Center (Carson, CA)

June 7 – Ford Field (Detroit, MI)

June 9 – Bank of America Stadium (Charlotte, NC)

June 10 – FIU Stadium (Miami, FL)

June 11 – Raymond James Stadium (Tampa, FL)

June 12 – Soldier Field (Chicago, IL)

June 13 – Red Bull Arena (Harrison, NJ)

June 14 – KC Soccer Stadium (Kansas City, KS)

Quarterfinals

June 18 – New Meadowlands Stadium (East Rutherford, NJ)

June 19 – Robert F. Kennedy Memorial Stadium (Washington DC)

Semifinals

June 22 – Reliant Stadium (Houston, TX)

Final

June 25 – Rose Bowl (Pasadena, CA)

The last time many of us saw DaMarcus Beasley, his miss on a corner launched a Brazilian counter-attack that led to the eventual trouncing of the US in the group phase of the Confederations Cup.  It was the culmination of a number of mediocre and lackluster performances from him in the national team shirt, which was the only shirt he was wearing due to his lack of play at his club Rangers in Scotland.

Fast forward to this December which sees Beasley inserted back in to the starting line up and producing. In five games he’s given Rangers 2 goals and 4 assists, which has many of us US supporters wondering if this play is sustained thru the season, does he merit a call up for next summers World Cup in South Africa.

In my opinion yes. For the simple fact that he solves some of the tactical problems Bob Bradley has due to the loss of Charlie Davies.

We are all wondering if Jeff Cunningham or Robbie Findley can be a suitable replacement for Davies, in reality the perfect replacement for him would be Landon Donovan.  In the current setup moving Donovan up top would leave a hole on the left side of midfield, a hole that Beasley can and has filled in the past.  He has pace to match Donovan and he has a fine tuned understanding of Donovan and Clint Dempsey’s play. It is also gives us a true left footed midfielder, one who can ease the burden of set pieces off Donovan.  Beasley is also easily the most experienced American player who has played in Europe. With a resume that includes  playing in the PSV/Ajax derby, in a Champions League semi-final, the Manchester City/ Manchester United derby, and in 2 World Cups.

With the US getting their most favorable draw ever in a World Cup and desperately needing to get rid of the bad taste of the 2006 World Cup out of everyone ‘s mouth, this summer Bob Bradley has to send an all hands on deck call to all players who can help them progress out of their group. Now this is all contingent on Beasley maintaining his current level of play, if that is done, then not only does Bob Bradley have an extra tactical option, but we all have a greater sense of hope as we head to South Africa.

There has been some talk lately about how the USMNT has regressed from its best teams of the past decade – that a lack of veteran leadership has made this team shakier and that Bob Bradley is making do with a hand full of poor cards.  I don’t believe that to be the case.  The current US team has as much potential as the 2002 World Cup quarterfinalists, and if they can catch some of the same breaks as that 2002 team, they can go just as far if not farther.

To make my point, let’s compare the 2002 team that took the field for its greatest World Cup victory (2-0 win over Mexico) against the team that took the field this summer in South Africa in its greatest victory (2-0 vs Spain).  Before we do the apples to apples comparison, a couple of global comparisons:

• The 2002 team finished the World Cup Final with 2 wins, 2 losses and a draw.  The 2009 finished the Confederations Cup with 2 wins and 3 losses, including two losses to Brazil.  Neither record was all that stellar.
• Both teams upset a top 5 team (Portugal in 2002 and Spain in 2009).
• Both teams were really lucky to advance out of group play.  The 2002 team advanced because, despite their loss to Poland, an already-through South Korea did them a huge favor by beating Portugal.  Similarly, the 2009 team got through because Brazil was nice enough to beat Italy by three goals.

Let’s look at the players:

Goalie – 2002 Friedel vs. 2009 Howard.  A wash.  Two great goalies who had the ability to get super hot during a tournament, and did.  They have both played overseas with good clubs in great leagues, and each US team felt relieved to have that type of quality between the pipes.

Back Line – 2002 Berhalter, Sanneh Pope and Mastroeni vs 2009 Spector, Onyewu, DeMerit and Bocanegra.  You have to give the edge to the 2009 line.  As professionals, the entire 2009 back line has spent most or all of their careers in Europe and have played more minutes at a higher level than the 2002 line.  Pope was a stalwart leader, but no less than Gooch is one today.  Both lines played with heart, but DeMerit, Spector and Bocanegra each had a season or longer trying to keep the Henry’s Rooney’s, Torres’ and Ronaldo’s of the world from scoring.

Midfield – 2002 Lewis, Reyna, O’Brien and Donovan vs 2009 Dempsey, Bradley, Clark and Donovan.  On the wings, the 2009 team is better, and in the middle, the 2002 team was far better.  The 2009 Donovan is a much better player than the 2002 version – a better dribbler, passer and finisher – and is probably operating at the height of his powers right now.  Similarly, I would pick Dempsey over Lewis any day.  Lewis is quicker and a better crosser, but Dempsey is a more complete player who can hold the ball, create and score.  On the other hand, Reyna and O’Brien were the perfect match – O’Brien’s creativity and Reyna’s toughness were as ideal as the US could hope for, and while Bradley and Clark may be there one day (especially Bradley), they are not there yet.  Overall, I would give the slight edge to the 2002 team, but it is not a slam dunk.

Striker – 2002 McBride and Wolf vs 2009 Altidore and Davies.  Despite my affection for McBride, you have to give this one to the 2009 team.  Altidore and Davies are that strength and speed combination that can unbalance their opponents.  McBride was a scrapper and great in the air, but the McBride/Wolf combination is a step behind the 2009 combination.

Overall, I would give the edge to the 2009 team, but my larger point is that it is a mistake to think that Bruce Arena was dealt and inside straight while Bradley has nothing but bum cards.  Bradley has every opportunity to do as well as any US team has ever done.

How far can this team go?  Nobody will favor them to go far or, depending on who is in their bracket, even get out of their group.  However, the US is good enough to do what plenty of mid-level teams have done in the past – catch some breaks, have a goalie get NASA hot, meet some opponents who are underperforming, and progress pretty far in the competition.  In a knock-out tournament, anything can happen, and the US is good enough to make the most of whatever fortune they happen to stumble across.

Today is a good day.

The sky is a bit more blue, the air carries a hint of possibility and the birds are signing Better Than Ezra tunes.

Because today is the first day of a new era of American soccer.

Of course you know that the United States beat Spain, 2-0, Wednesday at the Confederations Cup.

Now, my friends cover the entire spectrum when it comes to the beautiful game.

I know people that refer to soccer as “a communist sport.” I know other people who, like me, are walking around channeling the Special One this morning:

“Shut up, Europe!”

No matter where you come down on the beautiful game, if you bleed red, white and blue, you’ve got to love what went down yesterday and, by extension, what’s happened to American soccer during the last four days.

• The impossible scenario that faced the U.S. on Sunday before its final group match with Egypt, a team that lost to mighty Brazil on a 93rd minute penalty and blanked Italy 1-0, was this: Beat the Pharaohs by at least three goals and hope for a matching result from Brazil over Italy. Somehow, someway it happened.
• So, buoyed by the fact that they had escaped the group stages by overcoming long odds (9,000-to-1 was the English bookmakers’ line on the States advancing on Sunday morning), the Americans entered Wednesday’s game against the reigning European champions and current top-ranked team in the world, Spain, playing with the proverbial house money.
• Still, playing free and easy wasn’t likely to be enough against a team that had gone 35 matches without a loss, including 15 straight victories. A team that features a laundry list of the world’s best players – Fernando Torres (Liverpool), David Villa (Valencia, for now), Iker Casillas (Real Madrid), Carlos Puyol (Barcelona) and on and on. Let me put it this way. With the possible exceptions of Oguchi Onyewu and Landon Donovan, no American would see the field on that squad.

So, the odds were long again. But, despite being out-shot (11-4), enduring another dubious red card and three times as many corner kicks (9-3), not to mention getting absolutely dominated in the possession stats, the United States made the most of the chances it created by getting goals from Jozy Altidore and Clint Dempsey in a stunning 2-0 win.

So what does it all mean?

Personally, I think a new day is dawning.

Our Gold Cup win over Brazil in 1998 was nice, but it came on our home soil in a game we really didn’t need to win. The victory over Portugal in the 2002 World Cup was great, but it happened in Asia (read: the middle of the night) and it didn’t really resonate with the public.

This one feels different.

The U.S. team had come under a great deal of scrutiny, and rightfully so, after some awful, low-effort performances against Italy and Brazil.

It’s as if a switch has been flipped, clueing the national team into something that some of its fans have been feeling for quite some time.

We want more.

It’s not enough to just show up in South Africa, get your three games of World Cup practice in and then go home and gear up for the Gold Cup.

We want heart. We want hustle. We want a burning desire to win every ball, get the uniform dirty and play hard for your country.

We got that yesterday.

And when something like that happens, it can transcend the boundaries of the normal sports fan.

Jim Rome, radio and TV host and known soccer hater, led his show yesterday by congratulating the U.S. team for its win. Even the biggest non-believers in soccer have to take their caps off to the red, white and blue today.

Soccer is not where I wish it was in this country. We are No. 14 in the latest FIFA World Rankings and if a team on either side of us on that list, Paraguay or the Czech Republic, did what we did yesterday, they’d still be dancing in the streets of Asuncion or Prague.

But Rome wasn’t built in a day and the roaring passion that burns for this game in Europe or South America can’t be fostered overnight.

But every fire that rages anywhere on this planet begins the same way.

With a spark.

Very much like the one that happened yesterday.

So, you don’t have to love soccer. But anytime a team sells out and shocks the world – for you, you’ve got to tip your cap.

And maybe someday, you’ll even stand up and cheer…

They said it

“If you’re not ready to defend for your life against a team like Spain, then you’re in big trouble,” defender Jay Demerit said.

“It’s a big day for us and one of the biggest moments in our history,” defender Carlos Bocanegra said. “It’s hard to believe right now; it hasn’t really sunk in. There were a lot of acrobatic, sliding blocks. One guy would be sliding in to clear the shot away, and another guy would come in behind to clean it up. The defense was amazing, but it wasn’t just the defenders – the whole team worked the slam the door shut.”

“We knew we were going to have to defend for our lives,” goalkeeper Tim Howard said. “To pull off a shock win like this you have to defend like your life actually depends on it.”

Dual citizenship, discussions about players being raised in one country, then playing for another have been running rampant the last several days. Some like the new FIFA rule change, some don’t. For some the thought of Guiseppe Rossi playing for Italy after being born in the States, causes their blood to boil. Some take it with a grain of salt and move on. No matter your feeling on these issues, it’s hard not to wonder what could be.

Bob Bradley’s decision making and tactics have come under fire with increasing intensity. I’m one of the supporters of the USMNT that is seriously unhappy with how the team and USSF are being run currently. But poor tactics aside, surely much of this has to be the talent at Bradley’s fingertips. While the player pool is deeper than anytime in the history of the beautiful game here at home, the overall technical skill on the team leaves much to be desired. We have several solid players, but no one apart from Donovan who can take a game over, who is a true menace with the ball at their feet.  It almost seems like we have a quantity over quality situation here.

Many including myself aren’t exactly thrilled with our usage of the bucket formation. Perhaps Bradley feels he has no other choice than to play in that setup, given his choices for the squad. I’m sure he would also be quick to note that both holding midfielders are two – way components. Imagine if a few things had gone differently for our National Team.

Let’s say Guiseppe Rossi had decided to accept Bruce Arena’s invitation to join the US squad. Suddenly the argument on whether Donovan should be playing up top or in the midfield, wouldn’t be as much of a devisive issue. With Rossi partnering up top alongside Jozy Altidore, Landon would be free to roam the midfield. As good as he is on the left, it would be nice to see him in a central attacking role.

Let’s imagine Freddy Adu actually receiving playing time at AS Monaco or some other European club. Let’s say this gives Bob Bradley more confidence in putting him on the pitch. Let’s say that Bradley takes notice to the fact that Jose Francisco Torres is playing well for an excellent world – class team, in Pachuca. This would allow him to place Torres and Adu on the left and right wing respectively. This gives us speed and technical quality not only on the wings, (which we need desperately) but also a conductor of the attack in the middle.

We don’t have to stretch our imaginations too far to see Jermaine Jones playing as a tough nosed defensive midfielder. Jermaine would be our grit in the middle and he could serve as an important pivot point in the middle, linking with Donovan and the wingers from his deeper position.

Now imagine, Jay DeMerit getting some respect and stronger consideration at center back. Again you don’t have to try to hard here because his ability was on display against Italy, where he was more calm than Bocanegra. Imagine Neven Subotic keeping with his original intentions of wanting to play for the US. Imagine him bringing some closure to our continuing search for answers at left back. Imagine him showing some respect for the youth system which nurtured and cultivated his natural ability.

So with all this imaginative thinking, our lineup could look something like this:

**************Howard*************

Spector  Onyewu    DeMerit   Subotic

***************Jones**************

****Adu*****************Torres****

*************Donovan*************

****Rossi**************Altidore****

Sure a lot of these players aren’t proven commodities yet. But doesn’t it look so much more dangerous than what’s been rolled out lately?

Bunkering down in defense isn’t going to work at the highest levels of international soccer. It certainly hasn’t led the USMNT to win much beyond CONCACAF. I’m not suggesting that we play as free – flowing as teams like Spain. But certainly we need to focus more on the attack. Donovan, Adu and Torres make more for a deadly attacking triangle in midfield. Altidore would be the physical, target striker, with Rossi bringing speed and flair. Subotic is probably better than any option we currently have at left back.

Of course what ifs and imagination get us nowhere, but it’s interesting to see how differnt things could be.

The official dry run for the 2010 World Cup in South Africa is upon us, as the 2009 Confederations Cup is under way.

ESPN and its family of networks will be showing every game of this competition of champions from every region of the planet.

Here’s what you need to know:

Schedule

Opening round
June 14 – South Africa vs. Iraq, 9:55, E2/360/EM
June 14 – New Zealand vs. Spain, 2:25, E2/360
June 15 – Brazil vs. Egypt, 9:55, E2/360/EM
June 15 – USA vs. Italy, 2:25, E1/360/EM
June 17 – Spain vs. Iraq, 9:55, E2/360/EM
June 17 – South Africa vs. New Zealand, 2:25, E2/360/EM
June 18 – USA vs. Brazil, 9:55, E2/360
June 18 – Egypt vs. Italy, 2:25, E2/360/EM
June 20 – Spain vs. South Africa, 2:25, E2/360/EM
June 20 – Iraq vs. New Zealand, 2:25, 360
June 21 – Egypt vs. USA, 2:25, E2/360/EM
June 21 – Italy vs. Brazil, 2:25, E1/360

Semifinals
June 24 – Group A winner vs. Group B runner-up, 2:25, E1/360/EM
June 25 – Group A runner-up vs. Group B winner, 2:25, E1/360/EM

Third-place match
June 28 – Semifinal Losers, 8:55, E2/360/EM

Final
June 28 – Semifinal Winners, 2:25, E2/360/EM

Guide: E1 – ESPN, E2 – ESPN2, 360 – ESPN360.com, Mo-TV – ESPN Mobile TV

Except for the Iraq/New Zealand game on June 20, you can watch every game from your couch. And, on that day, you should probably be watching Spain anyway.

Who’s playing?

The champions of FIFA’s six regions, plus the World Cup holders (Italy) and host (South Africa) make up this tournament.

Spain, New Zealand and Iraq will join South Africa in Group A while Brazil, Italy, Egypt and the United States comprise a far tougher Group B.

Team capsules

Spain

Qualified: Euro 2008 winner
FIFA World Rank: 1
Players to watch: Fernando Torres (Liverpool), David Villa (Valencia), Iker Casillas (Real Madrid) and Cesc Fàbregas (Arsenal)
Skinny: Have to be considered the favorites, along with Brazil, to take the trophy.

New Zealand

Qualified: 2008 Oceania Cup winner
FIFA World Rank: 82
Players to watch: Simon Elliott (San Jose Earthquakes), Chris Killen (Celtic) and Ivan Vicelich (Auckland City)
Skinny: As the lowest ranked team in the field, the Kiwis have their work cut out for them. They are in a favorable group, however.

Iraq

Qualified: 2007 Asian Cup winner
FIFA World Rank: 77
Players to watch: Younis Mahmoud (Al-Gharafa), Emad Mohammed (Sepahan) and Hawar Mulla Mohammed (Anorthosis Famagusta)
Skinny: Earned a 1-1 draw with Poland in South Africa in a friendly last week, and looked pretty good doing it. The Iraqis have a good chance of finishing second in this group.

South Africa

Qualified: 2010 World Cup host
FIFA World Rank: 72
Players to watch: Steven Pienaar (Everton), Aaron Mokoena (Blackburn Rovers) and Rowen Fernández (Arminia Bielefeld)
Skinny: Not having Benni McCarthy in the side could spell big trouble for the Bafana Bafana. His 75 career caps and 31 goals will be sorely missed by a team that might end up lacking punch in this tournament.

Brazil

Qualified: 2007 Copa America winner
FIFA World Rank: 5
Players to watch: Kaka (Real Madrid), Robinho (Manchester City), Luis Fabiano (Sevilla) and Júlio César (Inter Milan)
Skinny: Has had mixed results under Dunga in recent months. The real question is this: Which Brazil side will show up?

Italy

Qualified: 2006 World Cup winner
FIFA World Rank: 4
Players to watch: Fabio Cannavaro (Juventus), Luca Toni (Bayern Munich), Gianluca Zambrotta (AC Milan) and Gianluigi Buffon (Juventus)
Skinny: The re-hire of coach Marcelo Lippi has done wonders for the Italians. And if that first match with the U.S. is anywhere near as goos as their 2006 World Cup clash, this tournament will be off to a fine start.

Egypt

Qualified: 2008 African Cup of Nations winner
FIFA World Rank: 40
Players to watch: Ahmed Hassan (Al-Ahly), Mohamed Aboutrika (Al-Ahly) and Mohamed Shawky (Middlesbrough)
Skinny: No one’s talking much about Egypt, but any nation that wins the African Cup has to be worth its salt. Still, being without their best striking option, Zaki, hurts them quite a bit.

United States

Qualified: 2007 Gold Cup winner
FIFA World Rank: 14
Players to watch: Landon Donovan (L.A. Galaxy), Tim Howard (Everton), Clint Dempsey (Fulham) and Carlos Bocanegra (Rennes)
Skinny: Some injuries to the back line and central midfield have coach Bob Bradley shuffling the lineup a bit. And playing Italy and Brazil right out of the chute isn’t going to help.