Taking Stock of the (Euro-based) USMNT Pool

The European season is winding down while the MLS season is just getting started. And for those of us who are mainly USMNT fans…the really good stuff is just around the corner.

The CONCACAF Nations League will be played on June 3rd & 6th. Assuming the US gets by Honduras (looking at you Olympic qualifying team), the USMNT will play Mexico in the final. It will be the first chance to get a real measure of how much (and if) the team has progressed since the 3-0 bludgeoning that was absorbed in the post-Gold Cup friendly two years ago.

Next up will be the Gold Cup. It runs from July 10th to August 1st and the roster for this tourney will be mighty interesting. Assuming that Berhalter sticks to his plan, this will be a B team and probably full of up and comers looking to break into the full team.

Finally, it’s the real deal. In September the best squad Gregg can assemble will gather for a triple match, World Cup Qualifying window. LFG.

American players have been setting all sorts of high water marks for minutes played in Top 5 leagues, Champions League, etc. That has to result in better team performances…right?!

Anyhow, lets take a look at how the players in the pool have done (or started) this season.

The Lock Starters

Christian Pulisic

He’s going to need a solid season or two of good health before he can shed the dreaded “injury prone” label, but the conclusion of his season is looking remarkably good. Chelsea is in the FA Cup Final and the Champions League Final. Pulisic looks like the most dangerous attacking option the Blues possess and is doing everything within his power to be a locked in starter. He just needs to start dogging it when he comes off the bench so he always starts on the field. 😂

Overall, his numbers will be a little down from last year, but Christian is the best attacking option the USMNT can run out there and a quick trip to the Nations League followed by a long rest before next year sounds like a pretty good plan.

Tyler Adams

Tyler has gotten a few more games at d-mid towards the end of the season, but has also spent quite a bit of time at right wingback for Julian Nagelsmann. Transfermarkt has him down for 10 starts at defensive midfield and 11 at RM/RB (with a few more sub appearances at each spot).

The big news here though is Jesse Marsch. Nagelsmann is taking over at Bayern and Marsch will be the new man at Leipzig. Playing the flowing style of soccer that he has under Nagelsmann has certainly been great for Adams and a great help to his role as the #6 in Berhalter’s system. But I still think he fits better (and is more fun to watch) going balls out in Marsch’s all out press style. RB Leipzig is going to be appointment viewing for me next season….I’m off track though. Tyler will be rested and ready to go when June gets here. Arrow is pointing up.

Weston McKennie

McKennie has had a better season than I think anyone outside of Weston and his family could have expected. He has been a ball of energy and a welcome surprise on a disappointing Juventus team. With that being said he has slowed down towards the end of the season. McKennie missed the March window with a hip problem and his performances haven’t been quite as good as they were in the first half of the season. I wouldn’t be shocked if he missed the Nations League or maybe has some sort of minor procedure right after it (I’m totally speculating here – no inside info).

Still though, he has locked himself in as a starter at one of the #8s for the USMNT and earned his position on one of the European blueblood teams this year. Not a bad year’s work.

Q: Do you know what Andrea Pirlo translates to in English? A: Frank Lampard

Sergino Dest

I have to confess that I haven’t seen a ton of Dest this year. I don’t get beIN Sports and though I have seen a questionable stream here or there I’m mostly going by statistics and reputation. Barcelona as a whole struggled for a while and then got it together to get in the title race. Dest sort of mirrored that run. I also take it as a good sign that Barca fans are “mad online” when Roberto starts instead of Dest. I know playing for Barca kinda skews the numbers, but his offensive stats (via FBRef) look very encouraging:

Dest will be ready to go come June. But will it be at right or left back?

John Brooks

Knock on wood, but John Brooks has played an entire season without getting hurt. He has started and gone 90 minutes 33 times for Wolfsburg this year. Wolfsburg btw, may just qualify for the Champions league next year. They are in 3rd place and only have to beat out one of either Dortmund or Eintracht Frankfurt in order to make it. Brooks has been a critical part of the second best defense in the Bundesliga (32 GA so far – RB is best with 25 GA).

Brooks will also be at the heart of the US defense come June. His running mate on the other hand is an intriguing question…

Gio Reyna

Reyna has had a roller coaster of a season. He started out on fire, dipped for a while in the middle, and has now found form again at the end of the season. It may not be enough for Dortmund to make the Champions League, but it’s certainly enough to get USMNT fans fired up to see him on one side and Pulisic on the other. Pulisic and Reyna is a far cry from the days of wingers like Graham Zusi and Brad Davis (no disrespect intended). Reyna should be ready and raring to go for the Nations League and ready to wow Marco Rose in pre-season training come July.

Zack Steffen

Aside from that gaffe in the FA Cup semifinal Steffen has had a strong year in limited appearances. He has played twelve times this season (all cup matches) and spending time under Pep playing with that talent has surely helped him. How long until he needs to be playing though? Ederson is 27 and I don’t think Steffen is taking that job in the near future. Whatever happens with City…Zack will be the man for the USMNT for the foreseeable future.

Roster Locks, but are they starters?

Josh Sargent

I think Sargent is the starting forward against Honduras in game #1 of the Nations League. You never know though. Dike is coming on strong. Jozy could get healthy and make a run. Jesus Ferreira looks really good when he plays with the NT. And Gregg trusts Zardes quite a bit, doesn’t he?

Sargent has played his rear off for a really bad Werder Bremen team. Watching him on the field after losing to Leipzig in extra time in the DFP Pokal hurt. He gave everything he had and you wanted him to be rewarded. Personally, I hope his reward is a transfer to RB Leipzig or something. It’ll feel good for him to get a few chances with the national team this summer.

He’s developed into a really hard working, pressing forward at Bremen. I still think “scoring gene” is in there somewhere even if it has gone dormant from lack of opportunity.

Yunus Musah

This is a weird one. He has looked really good for the USMNT when he’s played for us. Then he goes back to Valencia and comes off the bench for a few minutes in a completely different position than where he plays with the US. I presume he’s the starter at the other #8 position, but it’s not impossible that Sebastian Lletget fills that spot.

Playing at right midfield for Valencia, he has been much more impressive defensively than offensively. In part, that’s because Valencia has been terrible, but also because comparing his stats to other wingers isn’t really appropriate since he isn’t one. *shrugs*

I’m sure he’s looking forward to playing his natural position this summer and showing his team (and maybe other teams?) that’s where he belongs next season.

Timothy Weah

Weah has shaken the injury bug (mostly) this year and has become an important piece for the French league leaders. They are one point up with three matches to go. Really wish there was an easy way to watch this league. He has five goal in all competitions this year and even being a sometimes starter/frequent sub is really good for a player his age at a club as good as Lille. He’s another player that could use a good summer with the NT as a springboard into bigger things with his club next season. Buy Ligue 1 rights already, ESPN+. Please?

Chris Richards

I think Chris Richards is better than Aaron Long right this instant. And yet I also think he is better served by going to the Gold Cup with the “B” team. Please hear me out before you fire off that angry tweet calling me an idiot. Long is still better than Richards defensively and isn’t a disaster on the ball. Richards is already better with the ball, but has less experience and hasn’t played much with the NT. If Richards goes to the Gold Cup he gets to spend six weeks with the team and probably play six or seven games. Let’s use the Gold Cup to get him ready for World Cup qualifying. The Nations League is a dumb, made up tournament anyway. 😂

Brenden Aaronson (late addition)

You know – you rack your brain when you write something like this and it seems like someone always slips through the cracks in my mind. Apologies, Brenden.

Aaronson is an intriguing case. He’s probably not a starter, but I think he’s also Pulisic’s likely backup at LW/LAM (whatever we’re calling it now). So do you bring him to the Nations League with the full team or do you put him with the Gold Cup team where he’ll get a lot more playing time? I think I’d be cool with either decision.

Antonee Robinson

Sadly, Fulham are going down again. Fulham and Everton were the two American friendly teams to watch when I started following soccer 20 years ago so I always have a soft spot for the Cottagers. (Craven Cottage would be my first choice for a game if I ever make it over to England)

While playing for this terrible Fulham team Robinson has managed to create 2.17 shot-creating actions per 90 – good for the 79th percentile among fullbacks in the top 5 leagues. I would bet he gets a transfer to a first division team this summer. A good showing with the USMNT wouldn’t hurt that at all. I still think Robinson at LB and Dest at RB is the USMNT lineup with the highest offensive potential, but he needs to get comfortable and play well there for a couple games in a row. I hope we get to see that in June.

Daryl Dike

NOBODY saw this coming. Dike got a loan to Barnsley and everyone was kinda like, “That’s cool.” Nine goals and a scissor kick later and suddenly he’s worth $20 million and is moving to who knows where. Someone needs to make a “Development is not linear” t-shirt that will kill with about .001% of people. I have no idea what to make of Dike atm, but I’d be happy to see him in the Nations League or the Gold Cup. Get that man on the field and let him bully some poor dudes.

Luca de la Torre

Speaking of development not being linear. I remember DLT from the 2017 U20 World Cup. He was fine. Not a standout or anything and it seemed like he was going to have a nice professional career in some second division in Europe somewhere. And that may still be the case, but he looked pretty darn good for the US in March and has locked down a starting job with Heracles in the Eredivisie. I think he’s a Gold Cup guy and one that I will be watching with interest. (Also, if ESPN+ gets a few Heracles games he may be a future scouting report)

Anybody Else?

Julian Green probably deserves a mention. He and Gruether Furth may very well earn promotion to the Bundesliga soon. One would think that would earn him another shot with the NT. He may be a Gold Cup guy already. Lots of midfielders to fight though.

Siebatchue has been playing well for Young Boys. Tyler Boyd had a min-renaissance with Sivasspor in the Turkish league. Matthew Hoppe had that nice little three game stretch with Schalke a couple months ago and Nicholas Gioachinni continues to toil away in relative obscurity with Caen in the French second division. Any or all of these guys could get a look during the Gold Cup and it wouldn’t be a surprise. Giovanni Soto, Owen Otasowie (got a start!), Konrad de la Fuente, and Ethan Horvath (he’s gotta get outta Brugge) also exist.

There are also like 7,000 players/prospects to keep an eye on in MLS/USL/lower Euro divisions

I remember when you had to watch maybe 1 MLS game to stay current with potential USMNT prospects. Good times these days. Good times.

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