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| PACK YOUR BAGS, BOYS |
 Carlos Bocanegra - D, Saint-Étienne (France)
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"Coach Bradley, I play left back at my club team, in Ligue One." (BL) Is it safe to put the 'Captain for Life' title on this guy? (KB) |
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Michael Bradley - M, Borussia Mönchengladbach (Germany)
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Dinner table discussion would be a little awkward otherwise (KD) If 'Gladbach get relegated there might be a feeding frenzy around him. (DS) |
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Tim Howard - GK, Everton (England)
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Pwnage of Man Utd makes this a logical choice. (AB) Going to an FA Cup final won't hurt his credentials. (MA) |
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Oguchi Onyewu - D, AC Milan (Italy)
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Has anyone else noticed how much Gooch has cut down on the yellows and reds? (CW) The American linebacker goes. (AV) |
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Clint Dempsey - M/F, Fulham (England)
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Contributes necessary poise and swagger. (KD) Has done the unthinkable and helped bring Fulham to the brink of the Europa League. (DS) |
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Landon Donovan - M/F, Los Angeles Galaxy (USA)
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Still disappears way too much when it counts... (RF) ... But way too versatile and useful to ever be off the field. (BL) |
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| NEARLY A LOCK |
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Jozy Altidore - F, Villarreal (Spain)
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More club games would move him up. (MA) Someone get this kid some nail clippers. (RF) |
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Steve Cherundolo - D, Hannover 96 (Germany)
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Needs to get healthy, or the surfer overtakes him. (RF) Dude or Dolo...we're bringing two right backs from San Diego. (CW) |
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DaMarcus Beasley - M/F, Out of contract
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He's becoming the Kamasutra of the 'Nats - flexible at many positions. (DS) Too many injuries left for him to suffer and recover from before next summer to know for sure. (KD) |
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Brad Guzan - GK, Aston Villa (England)
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Performance against El Salvador was not acceptable for an American keeper. (CW) I don't know why he's ahead of Hahnemann or Keller in the pecking order. (MA) |
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| FAIRLY SAFE BET |
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Frankie Hejduk - D/M, Columbus Crew (USA)
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If you don't give him a ticket, I think he'll run to South Africa. (KD) As long as Frankie's breathing, he'll be on the US roster. (BL) |
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Jose Francisco Torres - M, Pachuca (Mexico)
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Showed great against Mexico in limited minutes. (AV) Slowly coming in from the fringes and staking his claim to be a core figure for the team. (DS) |
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| IN A BATTLE |
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Maurice Edu - M/F, Rangers (Scotland)
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Thank you Barry Ferguson. (KB) A happy Mo is a playing Mo and a playing Mo is a goal-scoring Mo. (AB) |
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Sacha Kljestan - M, Anderlecht (Belgium)
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Struggled on the road in qualifying, needs to show more. (RF) That hat trick against Sweden probably sweetened the Kool-Aid a little too much. (CW) |
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Bobby Convey - M, San Jose Earthquakes (USA)
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I remember this guy! (MA) Back in the lineup means back on the radar screen, especially when you can play left back. (BL) |
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Charlie Davies - F, Sochaux (France)
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We both graduated from the same high school, thus explaining his awesomeness. (AB) Lethal in Sweden but must prove his ability next year in greener pastures. (KD) |
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Brian Ching - F, Houston Dynamo (USA)
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I want to believe in Brian Ching. I really do. (AB) Not the best striker on the planet, but Bradley seems to trust him. (AV) |
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Freddy Adu - M/F, Benfica (Portugal)
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Sunday five a side would get him more play time! (AV) It is time to find a nice mid-level club that is going to get you into some games. (KB) |
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| WORK TO DO |
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Jay DeMerit - D, Watford (England)
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Hard nosed player and within six degrees of separation of Elton John, which is only a plus. (KD) Solid in the back. (AB) |
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Jonathan Spector - D, West Ham United (England)
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Maybe if he just doesn't play, he'll stay fit. (AV) With all those injuries, the "Work to Do" consists of staying healthy. (MA) |
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Danny Califf - D, Philadelphia Union (USA)
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Has his limitation, but he's still the best of the rest when it comes to central defenders. (DS) Good choice to back up Bocanegra and Onyewu. (KB) |
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Heath Pearce - D/M, FC Dallas 96 (USA)
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Too much talent for his recent performances. This has to be a confidence issue. (CW) This year has been a disaster for Heath. (DS) |
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Kasey Keller - GK, Seattle Sounders FC (USA)
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Italy and England have relied on 40-year old keepers in the past... (KB) The ageless wonder will take that third, "Be a Good Teammate" spot. (RF) |
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MOVING UP
Marcus Hahnemann - My personal first choice keeper! (MA)
Eddie Johnson - So I declare him done, then he goes and starts playing well for Cardiff as a supersub. If he continues, could be sufficient in the same role for the US. (CW)
Pablo Mastroeni - What he did against Blanco in 2002 and his pre-undeserved red card performance against Italy in 2006 makes it impossible to count him out. (KD)
Danny Szetela - Slowly getting healthy and could be a late surprise. (AB)
MOVING DOWN
Marvell Wynne - We're still waiting for you to step up, Marvell. (BL)
Benny Feilhaber - The past two years have been unkind to Benny. (CW)
OTHER BUBBLE BATTLERS
Arturo Alvarez, Jonathan Bornstein, Conor Casey, Ricardo Clark, Kenny Cooper, Cory Gibbs, Stuart Holden, Jemal Johnson, Chad Marshall, Michael Orozco, Troy Perkins, Michael Parkhurst, Robbie Rogers, Frank Simek, Marcus Tracy, Jeremiah White, Sal Zizzo
note: Yanks Abroad's Michael Adubato, Arch Bell, Kenya Brown, Kevin Dolan, Rich Fidler, Brent Latham, David Smith, Andrew Vorce and Chad Winger compiled this feature. |
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