USMNT manager Jurgen Klinsmann announced on April 29th the preliminary 40-man roster for the upcoming Copa America Centenario to be held in the US later this year, and in classic Klinsmann form he’s delivered quite a few surprises for what should be an incredible competition.
The roster goes as follows:
GOALKEEPERS (5): David Bingham (San Jose Earthquakes), Brad Guzan (Aston Villa), Tim Howard (Everton), Ethan Horvath (Molde), Nick Rimando (Real Salt Lake)
DEFENDERS (15): Kellyn Acosta (FC Dallas), Ventura Alvarado (Club America), Matt Besler (Sporting Kansas City), Steve Birnbaum (D.C. United), John Brooks (Hertha Berlin), Geoff Cameron (Stoke City), Edgar Castillo (Monterrey), Timmy Chandler (Eintracht Frankfurt), Brad Evans (Seattle Sounders FC), Omar Gonzalez (Pachuca), Eric Lichaj (Nottingham Forest), Matt Miazga (Chelsea FC), Michael Orozco (Club Tijuana), Tim Ream (Fulham), DeAndre Yedlin (Sunderland)
MIDFIELDERS (12): Kyle Beckerman (Real Salt Lake), Alejandro Bedoya (FC Nantes), Michael Bradley (Toronto FC), Mix Diskerud (New York City FC), Fabian Johnson (Borussia Moenchengladbach), Jermaine Jones (Colorado Rapids), Perry Kitchen (Heart of Midlothian), Alfredo Morales (Ingolstadt), Darlington Nagbe (Portland Timbers), Lee Nguyen (New England Revolution), Danny Williams (Reading FC), Graham Zusi (Sporting Kansas City)
FORWARDS (8): Jozy Altidore (Toronto FC), Clint Dempsey (Seattle Sounders FC), Ethan Finlay (Columbus Crew), Jordan Morris (Seattle Sounders FC), Christian Pulisic (Borussia Dortmund),Chris Wondolowski (San Jose Earthquakes), Bobby Wood (Union Berlin), Gyasi Zardes (LA Galaxy)
There are takeaways we can get for every line on the roster.
Starting with the goalkeeping, the biggest question seems to be who will be the third keeper. Brad Guzan and Tim Howard are locks for the tournament, and the third place seems to be a battle between Nick Rimando and David Bingham. Ethan Horvath is a talented young goalkeeper on his own right, but he’d better suited to stay at FK Molde where he can gain some valuable first-team experience.
The defensive line also has questions of its own, particularly in the center-back position. Geoff Cameron, John Brooks and Matt Besler are locks to make it, but the fourth spot will likely come down to Ventura Alvarado (Klinsmann’s favorite who has struggled), Omar Gonzalez (who’s excelled at Pachuca) and Steve Birnbaum (who represents the future at DC United).
One of the big surprises here is the presence of Dortmund’s wonderkid Christian Pusilic, listed as a forward but he’s likely to play behind the strikers. The playmaker scored consecutive goals for The Yellow Bees a few weeks ago, and he’s quickly emerging as one of the nation’s top talents. It remains to be seen if he’ll be included into the side, especially considering the US will need their best players if they want to do something remarkable in the competition.
The attack also has a few questions marks, most notably due to the fact that Klinsmann called up six strikers when he’s likely to bring only four or five to the tournament. Jordan Morris (Seattle), Chris Wondolowski (San Jose) and Ethan Finlay (Columbus) are all vying for one spot, and Morris has the edge right now due to this impressive form in recent weeks.
The USMNT will certainly have a tough challenge if they want to leave the Cup at home. Current Copa America holders Chile, Brazil, Argentina and Uruguay are expected to be the candidates for the title, although teams like Paraguay and Mexico can’t be counted out either.
Whoever ends up winning the title, there’s no question that it will be an awesome tournament. The USMNT will try to live up to the expectations, and they certainly have enough talent to match up with almost every single team.
Everything’s on Klinsmann’s hands.