WORLD CUP : THE UNITED STATES, PAST AND PRESENT : PROFILES
The U.S. national soccer team, which begins play in the World Cup on June 10 against Czechoslovakia in Florence, Italy, will open a training camp here today. Following are profiles of the 22 players by staff writer Randy Harvey Tony Meola
Position: Goalkeeper
Height: 6-1: Weight: 205
Age: 21
Hometown: Kearny, N.J.
Winner of the Hermann Award, the soccer equivalent of college football’s Heisman Trophy, as a sophomore last year at the University of Virginia. The son of an Italian immigrant who played soccer professionally for Avellino in Italy, he joined the national team midway through last year’s eight-game World Cup qualifying round and had shutouts in the final four games. Has proved human in exhibition games this year. Drafted out of high school as an outfielder by the New York Yankees, he played third base as a freshman at Virginia. Left school after last season to concentrate on a soccer career.
Kasey Keller
Position: Goalkeeper
Height: 6-2: Weight: 180
Age: 20
Hometown: Lacey, Wash.
Winner of the Silver Ball Award as the second-best player at the World Youth Championships in 1989, when the U.S. Under-20 team astonished the rest of the world by finishing fourth. Joined the national team in January. He was given a chance to overtake Meola, but so far has not. As a freshman in 1988, he started for a University of Portland team that advanced to the NCAA semifinals.
David Vanole
Position: Goalkeeper
Height: 6-2: Weight: 235
Age: 27
Hometown: Manhattan Beach
A national-team member since 1986 who started all three games in the 1988 Olympic Games. He also started in three of the first four games of last year’s World Cup qualifying round, allowing only two goals before he lost the job to Meola. Coaches think he’s too heavy. Dismissed from the team in January in a contract dispute but invited to return earlier this month because of his popularity with the other players.
Peter Vermes
Position: Forward
Height: 6-0: Weight: 175
Age: 23
Hometown: Delran, N.J.
U.S. Soccer Federation’s player of the year in first year with the national team in 1988, when he scored six goals in international games and started in the Olympics. For an American player, he is an exceptional talent. The first American in Hungary’s first division in 1989, he then became the first American in the Dutch first division in 1990 as the starting striker for FC Vollendam. His father was a professional player in Hungary before emigrating to the United States.
Bruce Murray
Position: Forward
Height: 6-1: Weight: 170
Age: 24
Hometown: Germantown, Md.
Hermann Award winner for Clemson University in 1987. A member of the national team since 1985, he played in two of the three games at the 1988 Olympics and in all eight of last year’s World Cup qualifying games. Has scored seven goals in full international games, tying him for third on the all-time U.S. list. Dangerous near the goal because he’s always around the ball. Experimentation with him in the midfield appears to have ended. A scratch golfer, his father is a country club pro in Potomac, Md.
Chris Sullivan
Position: Forward
Height: 6-0: Weight: 165
Age: 25
Hometown: Redwood City, Calif.
An experienced international player who spent two years in France before joining a Hungarian first division team, Raba Eto, last season. Has played rarely with the national team since making his first appearance in 1987. But in only a few games this year, he impressed the coaches with his instincts and speed. As a football wide receiver at Cupertino High School, he set Northern California records that still stand for the longest touchdown pass reception (96 yards) and most yards receiving in a game (197). Played at San Diego State and the University of Tampa.
Eric Eichmann
Position: Forward
Height: 5-10: Weight: 160
Age: 25
Hometown: Margate, Fla.
A former phenom who scored 118 goals in high school, helped Clemson win the 1984 NCAA championship, joined the national team in 1986 and played in the 1988 Olympics. He spent one season with Werder Bremen in the West German League. But he hasn’t fared so well in the last couple of years and was one of the last players assured a place on the team.
Tab Ramos
Position: Midfielder
Height: 5-7: Weight: 140
Age: 23
Hometown: Hillside, N.J.
A creative player who, in the absence of injured Hugo Perez, has developed as the playmaker. A world-class player when he’s on, but he’s inconsistent. A national team member since only 1988, when he started two of three games in the Olympics, but he was playing with the U.S. Under-20 team at age 15. An All-American at North Carolina State. He was born in Montevideo, Uruguay. His father played professionally in Uruguay.
John Harkes
Position: Midfielder
Height: 5-11: Weight: 165
Age: 23
Hometown: Kearny, N.J.
While Murray won the Hermann Award for Clemson in 1987, he was not voted the best player in the Atlantic Coast Conference. That was Harkes, who played for the University of Virginia. He also was the Missouri Athletic Club’s college player of the year. A member of the national team since 1987.
Paul Caligiuri
Position: Midfielder
Height: 5-10: Weight: 172
Age: 26
Hometown: Santa Monica
If there is such a thing as an international soccer star in the United States, he is it. The man who put the United States into the World Cup for the first time in 40 years with a spectacular goal in a 1-0 victory over Trinidad and Tobago last November. One of the first U.S. products to sign with a European team, he played in West Germany’s second division for three years. A national-team member since 1984, he was the USSF player of the year in 1986 and started all three games in the 1988 Olympics.
Eric Wynalda
Position: Midfielder
Height: 6-1: Weight: 172
Age: 20
Hometown: Westlake Village
A surprise when he emerged from this year’s first training camp in January. Very active around the goal as a forward, but he will start in the midfield as the team seeks more offense. In his first 10 games, he scored four goals. Learned soccer from an Italian coach, then was tutored by a former Austrian professional. After becoming California’s all-time high school scoring leader with 88 goals and 35 assists in 72 games, he played three years at San Diego State. His father played football at Princeton.
John Stollmeyer
Position: Midfielder
Height: 5-9: Weight: 175
Age: 27
Hometown: Annandale, Va.
A national-team member since 1986 and a starter in two of three 1988 Olympic games. A three-time All- American at Indiana University. Slow, but a hard tackler. Most American sports fans can relate to him because he is the team’s most effective player at one of the game’s few elements that does not require footwork, the throw-in. His father was a swimmer at Penn State. His uncle was a world-renowned cricket player for Trinidad and Tobago.
Chris Henderson
Position: Midfielder
Height: 5-9: Weight: 150
Age: 19
Hometown: Everett, Wash.
A UCLA freshman who won’t turn 20 until December, he is the team’s youngest player. Has the speed and quickness necessary for an offensive midfielder. A two-time Parade High School All-American and the Gatorade player of the year as a senior. A starter on the 1989 Under-20 team that finished fourth in the World Youth Championships. A soccer junkie, he was given a bag of eight balls by the UCLA coaches so that he can practice whenever he wants. His older brother, Pat, was San Diego State’s captain when it went to the NCAA finals in 1987. Younger brother Sean will play soccer for UCLA next season.
Brian Bliss
Position: Midfielder
Height: 5-8: Weight: 150
Age: 24
Hometown: Rochester, N.Y.
A starter in the 1988 Olympics, but his star has descended since. He had difficulty making the team. A midfielder and defender, his versatility helped him. Played at Southern Connecticut State.
Neil Covone
Position: Midfielder
Height: 5-8: Weight: 135
Age: 20
Hometown: Hialeah, Fla.
The last player selected when it was determined that Perez was unable to play. Captain of the 1989 Under-20 team that finished fourth in the World Youth Championships. Plays for Wake Forest, where he has a double major in politics and economics.
Mike Windischmann
Position: Defender
Height: 6-0: Weight: 175
Age: 24
Hometown: Glendale, N.Y.
Along with Ramos, one of the most skilled players on the team. Also the most experienced, having played more international games since joining the national team in 1984 than any other player in U.S. history. The USSF’s player of the year in 1989. In the 1988 Olympics, he scored the goal that gave the United States a tie with Argentina. The team captain, he is too quiet to lead verbally but is respected by the other players for his talent and intelligence. He is the sweeper, which means he’s the last line of defense before the goalkeeper. He perhaps takes that job a little too seriously. The coaches would like for him to be more aggressive offensively, like his hero, former West German sweeper Franz Beckenbauer. Played for the Lazers in the Major Indoor Soccer League. Born in Nuremberg, West Germany.
Desmond Armstrong
Position: Defender
Height: 6-0: Weight: 175
Age: 25
Hometown: Washington D.C.
Missed most of last year’s World Cup qualifying after breaking his leg in January. But he has recovered to become one of the team’s most reliable defenders. Good on the wing because of his speed. A member of the national team since 1987, he played in the 1988 Olympics. An aspiring artist who wants to attend law school. Played at the University of Maryland.
Steve Trittschuh
Position: Defender
Height: 6-0: Weight: 175
Age: 25
Hometown: Granite City, Ill.
A member of the 1988 Olympic team, he played every minute of the eight World Cup qualifying games last year. Sometimes has mental lapses, but he is a good one-on-one defender, particularly in the air. Also a solid tackler. A two-time All-American at Southern Illinois University.
Paul Krumpe
Position: Defender
Height: 5-10: Weight: 170
Age: 27
Hometown: Redondo Beach
The most offensive defender. A starter in all three games during the 1988 Olympics, he was missed when sidelined with a stress fracture in his right foot for most of the eight World Cup qualifying games last year. He returned for the crucial game against Trinidad and Tobago and moved immediately into the starting lineup. But he still hasn’t fully recovered. He and Caligiuri were co-captains for the 1985 UCLA team that won the NCAA championship. An aerospace engineering major, he quit his job at McDonnell Douglas to concentrate on soccer.
John Doyle
Position: Defender
Height: 6-3: Weight: 185
Age: 24
Hometown: Fremont, Calif.
Proved this year that he can hold his own in the middle. Particularly effective on air balls because of his height. Might replace Trittschuh in the starting lineup. A member of the national team since 1987, he was a 1988 Olympian. Played at the University of San Francisco.
Jimmy Banks
Position: Defender
Height: 5-8: Weight: 145
Age: 25
Hometown: Milwaukee
Another fast wing, he played for U.S. Coach Bob Gansler at the University of Wisconsin Milwaukee. Came out of the projects in Northwest Milwaukee, where he became interested in the sport by watching his older brothers play in a youth league sponsored by the Salvation Army. Good one-on-one defender because of his quickness. Made his first national team appearance in 1985.
Marcelo Balboa
Position: Defender
Height: 6-1: Weight: 170
Age: 21
Hometown: Cerritos
The sweeper of the future, perhaps even the present if Windischmann moves to the wing to become more involved in the offense. Joined the national team in 1988, when he went to the Olympics. Played at San Diego State, where he is a criminal law/recreation major. His father played professionally in Argentina.
