With his first two matches since being extended for another for years as U.S. men’s national team head coach, Bob Bradley had the chance to prove that he and U.S. Soccer have both turned the page on the 2010 World Cup and on Bradley’s first four years in the job.
Instead, by choosing to bring back Eddie Johnson for what must be the striker’s 409th chance to prove himself at the international level, Bradley demonstrated that he still can’t get out of the starting gate without falling flat on his face, and U.S. Soccer is either complicit in the highly suspect decision or it is just standing idly by watching it happen.
Yes, the rest of the roster has some interesting inclusions and omissions, but bringing in Johnson sticks out as an egregious misstep, the kind of baffling decision that justifies criticism of Bradley’s retention and of the federation itself.
There are numerous future-pointing options better than Johnson, who will be 30 years old in 2014 and hasn’t been a consistent player for the last five years. If he scores against Poland and Colombia, perhaps another European club will be duped into taking a flyer on him, but U.S. Soccer’s job isn’t to help Johnson find gainful employment, it’s to develop players and prepare them for the next World Cup.
If the right time isn’t now to start moving on, when is? In alphabetical order, here are seven attacking players that U.S. Soccer would be better served by inviting into camp next week over Johnson:
Juan Agudelo, New York Red Bulls (age 17)
It’s not easy for any forward to get playing time when he’s behind Juan Pablo Angel and Thierry Henry, much less if he’s a rookie, but Agudelo has seen regular time this year with the U.S. under-20s (6 games, 466 minutes).
Justin Braun, Chivas USA (Age 23)
He leads his own team in scoring and is among the best in MLS with 9 goals this season – and Chivas isn’t going to the MLS playoffs. Unlike Johnson, his career is on the rise, not the other way around.
Jack McInerney, Philadelphia Union (Age 18)
If he’s good enough to land himself in Major League Soccer before he was old enough to vote, shouldn’t U.S. Soccer take a hard look at how his first year as a pro has progressed? Again, no playoffs here, and it would’ve been cool for him to be on the bench at PPL Park.
Adrian Ruelas (Age 19)
The best player for the under-20s at the Milk Cup (3 goals) has moved to Celtic, but he’s still only on trial there until the winter transfer window. The training environment with the U.S. has be at least as competitive.
Omar Salgado (Age 17)
Yes, he’s a little young. But he’s possibly the best U.S. under-20 prospect, and he’s already signed with Major League Soccer and could be the number one pick in next year’s SuperDraft. He’s also been bouncing around trying to find a training environment this fall. Even if there’s still the Under-20 World Cup ahead, wouldn’t a sniff of the full national team provide just the right amount of motivation?
Zach Schilawski, New England Revolution (Age 23)
Is he elite? Maybe, maybe not. But he’s got five goals, and he’s just an MLS rookie. What’s the best way to see if there’s greater potential there? By giving him a chance.
Davide Somma, Leeds United (Age 25)
The U.S.-raised striker is currently tied for fourth in the English League Championship with five goals after scoring nine times in 14 appearances for Chesterfield in League Two last season. Technically, he’s South African, but with so long to go before the next World Cup, at least an inquiry into his potential American interest would make sense.
The rest of the U.S. roster:
GOALKEEPERS (2): Brad Guzan (Aston Villa), Tim Howard (Everton)
DEFENDERS (8): Carlos Bocanegra (Saint-Étienne), Steve Cherundolo (Hannover), Clarence Goodson (IK Start), Eric Lichaj (Aston Villa), Oguchi Onyewu (AC Milan), Michael Parkhurst (FC Nordsjaelland), Heath Pearce (FC Dallas), Jonathan Spector (West Ham United)
MIDFIELDERS (7): Alejandro Bedoya (Örebro), Michael Bradley (Borussia Moenchengladbach), Maurice Edu (Rangers), Benny Feilhaber (Aarhus), Stuart Holden (Bolton Wanderers), Jermaine Jones (FC Schalke), Brek Shea (FC Dallas)
FORWARDS (3): Jozy Altidore (Villarreal), Clint Dempsey (Fulham), Eddie Johnson (Fulham)
