Predicting World Cup Roster Spots Is the Goal

Venturing out once again onto an increasingly thin limb and trusting that U.S. national team Coach Steve Sampson will not saw it off when he makes the official announcement, we bring you now--drum roll, please--the 1998 U.S. World Cup team.

Or at least a list of players most likely to be on the 22-man roster when Sampson unveils it Tuesday on ESPN’s “SportsCenter” at 3:30 PDT.

As they say in France, even a blind pig can find a truffle now and then, so the selection of many of these players is not that difficult. There are, however, likely to be a few surprises.

One position where the prediction is on rock-solid ground is goalkeeper. Sampson will take the following three players to the France ’98 tournament: Kasey Keller, Brad Friedel and Juergen Sommer.

Under a new rule agreed upon in March, World Cup teams can opt to include only two goalkeepers on their 22-player rosters and keep a third on standby, but not in France. Sampson has shunned that option.

“What happens,” he asked, “if Kasey is injured in our first game and then Brad gets red-carded in the next game? What do we do then?”

DEFENSIVE DEBATE

Next comes the defense, and here matters become considerably more complicated.

World Cup ’94 veteran Thomas Dooley turns 37 on May 12, but he remains the most experienced, the most level-headed and the most stylish of the U.S. players. The German-born sweeper inherited the captain’s armband from the discarded John Harkes, and either he or Keller is likely to lead the Americans in France.

“Thomas is a leader on this team and is the most respected player on the entire squad,” Sampson said. “I would lean on him heavily to lead us into the World Cup.”

Also sure of their place are defenders Mike Burns, Eddie Pope, Alexi Lalas and Jeff Agoos. After that come the questions.

Two players who could very well be starters in the World Cup are trying desperately to attain U.S. citizenship in time for the tournament. One is Carlos Llamosa, who is from Colombia but has lived in the U.S. for several years and starts for Major League Soccer’s Washington D.C. United.

Llamosa could take Burns’ starting spot at right back, and Sampson particularly likes the fact that he already plays alongside Pope and Agoos in MLS.

The second is David Regis, a Frenchman who plays for Karslruhe in the German Bundesliga but who is married to an American. His English is virtually nonexistent, perhaps making citizenship more difficult, but if he achieves it he could immediately make the starting lineup, probably taking Agoos’ spot at left back.

“He’s a very good player,” said U.S. midfielder Claudio Reyna, who plays against Regis in Germany. “Unfortunately, Karlsruhe’s not doing so well right now, but he’s had a very good season for them. He’d be a strong candidate to start [in the World Cup], but that’s Steve’s decision.

“He’s a left-footed marking back. He’s played sweeper as well. He’s scored every one of his goals this year on headers. He’s pretty fast, pretty quick. He’s a very good player. Karlsruhe bought him from Racing Strasbourg in France, so he was obviously a main player there. He’d be valuable to this team, definitely.”

If Llamosa and Regis get their paperwork sorted out, it makes Sampson’s job a little tougher. It would mean he already would have seven defenders, with veteran Marcelo Balboa, of the Colorado Rapids, and the promising but internationally inexperienced Gregg Berhalter, of Sparta Rotterdam in the Netherlands, also vying for places.

It seems inconceivable that Balboa, with the second-most international appearances of any player in history, would be left off the team, but Sampson also has to look ahead to 2002, so who knows?

MIDFIELD MANEUVERS

If there is one area where the U.S. team has depth it’s in the midfield.

Reyna is the designated playmaker for France, with the Galaxy’s Cobi Jones and the fast-rising Frankie Hejduk, of the Tampa Bay Mutiny, providing speed on the flanks. Ernie Stewart, who plays for NAC Breda in the Netherlands, is equally fast, but more suited to a central attacking role. By Tuesday, all four can expect their names to be written in ink on the U.S. roster.

And then there is the surprise package, 24-year-old Brian Maisonneuve, who has impressed Sampson more with each outing.

“He’s one of those young players who manages to play well in big games,” Sampson said. “He did it in the Olympics. He’s now done it against Paraguay [in San Diego] and again in Austria.

“He can defend. He can hold the ball. He can come forward. He’s very, very comfortable in tight situations. And when Dooley comes forward [on attack], he naturally just holds [position defensively].”

Dooley and Maisonneuve, along with goalkeeper Sommer and forward Brian McBride, are MLS teammates on the Columbus Crew. All four will be in France.

Tab Ramos made a positive return to the New York/New Jersey MetroStars last week after being sidelined for several months because of knee surgery. If he stays sound, he will be adding a third World Cup to his resume, although his role this time might be coming off the bench, much like MetroStar teammate Lalas, whose role in his second World Cup might be to deflect media attention away from the starters.

Another midfielder certain to make the tournament and just as certain to come off the bench is the Kansas City Wizards’ Preki Radosavljevic, better known simply as Preki. That goal against Brazil at the Coliseum clinched his place in France.

Which leaves Joe-Max Moore, Chad Deering and John O’Brien fighting for a place. The New England Revolution’s Moore is injured but contributed tremendously to the team during qualifying and earlier this year. Deering, Reyna’s teammate at VfL Wolfsburg, impressed against Paraguay but was overshadowed by Maisonneuve in the Austria game. O’Brien, from Playa del Rey, is 20, plays for Ajax Amsterdam reserves and would be along simply to gain experience, not to play.

But can the U.S., which plays Germany, Iran and Yugoslavia in the first round, afford to have spectators on its roster?

FORWARD MARCH

McBride did himself a huge favor in the 3-0 victory over Austria in Vienna on April 22. He came on for the second half and played flawlessly in the very demanding lone-striker role, even scoring a goal.

“I hope this [result] dispels the theory that if you play with only one forward, you can’t score goals,” Sampson said at the time.

The other U.S. forwards have fallen by the wayside. Roy Wegerle started the year strongly but has faded fast. Last week, he was traded from D.C. United to the Mutiny for another national team forward, Roy Lassiter.

Lassiter scored in his Washington debut, but his play for the U.S. has not matched the MLS level he achieved in 1996. It would be surprising if he or Wegerle were selected, although Wegerle has a better chance than Lassiter.

David Wagner and San Diego’s Jovan Kirovski, playing in Germany with Gutersloh and Borussia Dortmund, respectively, have been consistently feeble and have no chance of making the team.

And then there is Eric Wynalda. The all-time U.S. scoring leader recently underwent what was termed minor knee surgery. But so much emphasis has been placed on the minor nature of the operation--by both the national team and the San Jose Clash--that skeptical souls begin to wonder. Was it more serious than is being let on?

Wynalda is supposed to be back soon, if not by May 11 when Sampson opens his World Cup camp in San Diego, then perhaps by the game against Macedonia in San Jose on May 16 and certainly by the time the U.S. plays Kuwait in Portland on May 24.

If the injury is not as minor as all are being led to believe, or if Wynalda returns in less than stellar form, his World Cup place is in doubt. He will not be taken to France to ride the bench.

NOT A WISE MOVE

Soccer has the possibility of sustaining another black eye today in Los Angeles, not because of anything the sport has done but because of a poorly conceived promotion by a local radio station.

KLAX-FM has distributed more than 100,000 free tickets to an afternoon Cinco de Mayo celebration that features a concert and a match between Mexican club teams Chivas of Guadalajara and Atlas.

The fact that the number of tickets given away exceeds the Coliseum capacity by many thousands does not bode well if all who have received them want to attend the game. Ugly scenes are not uncommon at the Coliseum. Hopefully, one will not occur today. KLAX-FM should have shown more sense.

(BEGIN TEXT OF INFOBOX / INFOGRAPHIC)

Possible U.S. 1998 World Cup Roster

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CERTAINTIES Player Pos. Comment Kasey Keller G Unquestioned No. 1. Brad Friedel G Ready if Keller falters. Juergen Sommer G Reliable backup. Thomas Dooley Def. Respected team leader. Mike Burns Def. Hustling right back. Eddie Pope Def. Unflappable, consistent. Alexi Lalas Def. Inspirational role likely. Jeff Agoos Def. Experienced left back. Claudio Reyna MF Playmaker of the present. Brian Maisonneuve MF Surprisingly confident. Cobi Jones MF In his best form ever. Preki Radosavljevic MF A not-so-secret weapon. Ernie Stewart MF Speed plus experience. Frankie Hejduk MF Fast and tireless. Brian McBride F Has won back his place. PROBABILITIES Marcelo Balboa Def. Vastly experienced but slower. Joe-Max Moore MF Injury questions remain. Tab Ramos MF Can he regain form in time? Eric Wynalda F Recent knee surgery. POSSIBILITIES Gregg Berhalter Def. Yet to prove himself. Carlos Llamosa Def. Awaiting citizenship. David Regis Def. Awaiting citizenship. Chad Deering MF Still on the bubble. John O’Brien MF One for the future. OUT OF THE RUNNING Gregg Vanney Def. Must wait until 2002. Chris Henderson MF Again a bridesmaid. Mike Sorber MF Fallen out of favor. Jovan Kirovski F Has not impressed. Roy Lassiter F Lost his scoring touch. David Wagner F No fire, no chance. Roy Wegerle F Age works against him.

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