Process has started for Arena to select 23 good men for World Cup roster.

By Robert Wagman
SoccerTimes

PASADENA, Calif. (Tuesday, January 29, 2002) -- United States men’s coach Bruce Arena will take 23 players to the 2002 World Cup. The training camp here in California and the American participation in the CONCACAF Gold Cup matches were the start of the process leading to final decisions as to who will be part of that roster.

"A couple of people continue to solidify where they stand," Arena said after the U.S. won its first two Gold Cup matches. "What we’re looking for in this tournament is to narrow down our pool of players as we get closer to May, and I think it has been helpful. Obviously I’m not going to be publicly critical of any player, but I’m better able now to evaluate where some of our players stand."

That selection will continue for European-based players in matches in Italy in February, Germany in March and Ireland in April. For Major League Soccer players, many of whom are playing in the Gold Cup, friendlies against Honduras and Ecuador in March could be critical. The U.S. Cup in May, the details not yet finalized, will be the venue for Arena’s final decisions

"I doubt we’ll really have our entire squad together until the (U.S.) Cup here in May," Arena said. "The European season will be over and we can get those guys back over here."

"I can probably pencil in 10 or so of the players now," Arena said recently, but, truth be known, he can probably make some educated guesses on as many as 17 or 18 he will take to the World Cup which begins runs from May 31 to June 30 in South Korea and Japan.

Given the American experience in 2000 and 2001 during World Cup qualifying, when the team was hit with repeated injuries, players are likely to be lost. Assuming everyone is healthy, however, this is how things shape up at the moment.

Three goalkeepers will be part of the 23-man roster with Kasey Keller and Brad Friedel being two. The third will almost certainly come from this MLS trio -- Tony Meola of the Kansas City Wizards, the 1990 and 1994 U.S. Cup starter who was not taken to France ’98, Zach Thornton of the Chicago Fire and the MetroStars’ Tim Howard.

Although he has not said so specifically, Arena will likely take seven defenders; ideally, one or two outside backs should also be versatile enough to man the flanks in the midfield. Jeff Agoos, Carlos Llamosa, Eddie Pope, David Regis, and Tony Sanneh would seem to be five of Arena’s choices barring unusual circimstances, leaving Gregg Berhalter, Greg Vanney, Pablo Mastroeni, Steve Cherundolo and Carlos Bocanegra battling for the two remaining slots. Cory Gibbs, a youngster learning quickly on the job at St. Pauli in the German Bundesliga would be the dark horse candidate, but there just doesn’t seem time for him to make an impression.

If that formula holds, that would leave room for 13 midfielders\attackers. Since many of the U.S. players play a similar attacking midfield role, it is sometimes hard to distinguish between midfielders and forwards on this team.

Claudio Reyna, Earnie Stewart, Chris Armas and John O’Brien would seem to have midfield positions locked up, just as will Brian McBride a striker spot. One would have to think that Landon Donovan and Joe-Max Moore, who fall into the midfield\forward category, are also almost certain picks.

That leaves six spots and it is hard to picture Arena leaving home the experienced Cobi Jones who, by World Cup time, will have surpassed Germany’s Lothar Matthaeus whose 150 caps are the most international appearances ever.

When injuries struck at the outset of the final round of World Cup qualifying, midfielder\forward Clint Mathis and pure striker Josh Wolff thrust themselves onto the scene, figuring heavily in the U.S. winning its first three matches. Then both went down with serious injuries with both just now returning to the national-team scene. Should they regain their form of a year ago, there will be no keeping them off the team.

Midfielder DaMarcus Beasley, who like Donovan is 19, has opened eyes at the Gold Cup with his blazing speed and his flair for attack. He will be diccicult not to include him on the roster.

Ante Razov is a forward who can either play himself onto or off of the Cup squad. While not consistent at the Gold Cup, he has shown flashes of his dangerous potential.

And there are a number of players on the bubble for a variety of reasons. Midfielder Eddie Lewis, when in top form, is a dangerous left-side player who would be valuable addition to the roster. He is hampered, however, by not playing at his club, Fulham in England.

Midfielder Richie Williams has always been a role player valued by Arena. Midfielder\forward Jovan Kirovski is demontrating at Crystal Palace in England he can be a dangerous attacker.

Midfielder Ben Olsen, still only 24, was one of the brightest hopes of U.S. soccer just two years ago before a devastating series of ankle problems. Will a return to D.C. United in MLS allow him to regain form? Now that Columbus Crew veteran Jeff Cunningham has been added to the national-team pool, can he make the impact at the international level he has in MLS?

And there was the happy sight Sunday of midfielder Brian Maisonneuve, a major part of the 1998 Cup team, making his first appearance for U.S. since then in the 4-0 victory over El Salvador. It’s a real long shot, but should he return to form after years of serious ankle injuries, Arena would have to seriously consider him.

And who are the players that Arena has in mind that others might not even be considering at the moment?

"Just look at the last two years during qualifying, you just can’t believe we are going to be able to go through 2002 injury-free," Arena said. "It might be anywhere. It might be in goal. You have to have a broad group of players ready to go so you have options in picking a final squad. That’s what we are trying to do"

Senior correspondent Robert Wagman's "It Seems To Me . . . " appears regularly on SoccerTimes. He can be e-mailed at bobwagman@soccertimes.com..