US Names WCQ Roster

Bob Bradley has announced his 22-man roster for the upcoming pair of qualifiers against Honduras and Costa Rica.

Goalkeepers: Tim Howard, Brad Guzan

Defenders: Jonathan Bornstein, Carlos Bocanegra, Oguchi Onyewu, Steve Cherundolo, Jonathan Spector, Jimmy Conrad, Clarence Goodson

Midfielders: Michael Bradley, Clint Dempsey, Ricardo Clark, Stuart Holden, Benny Feilhaber, Robbie Rogers, Jose Francisco Torres

Forwards: Charlie Davies, Jozy Altidore, Brian Ching, Conor Casey, Kenny Cooper, Landon Donovan


There are no real surprises with the goalkeepers, as Tim Howard and Brad Guzan have firmly cemented their places as #1 and #2, respectively. There isn't anyone unexpected in the group of defenders either, as the injuries of Chad Marshall and Jay DeMerit required additional centerback depth. With their solid showings in the Gold Cup, it was no surprise to see Conrad and Goodson get the nod.


In the midfield, Robbie Rogers has gotten his first call back into the senior squad since the Gold Cup, where he had a bright start but trailed off towards the end of the tournament. He will add some depth to the outside left midfield position, possibly allowing Landon Donovan to move up front later in a game without sacrificing play on the outside.

Kenny Cooper earned a call into camp with his promising start in Germany with his new club 1860 Munich. The former FC Dallas striker has had an impressive strike rate in limited minutes with the National Team and will be looking to earn some minutes and add to that figure.

A prediction for the starting lineup would be the same one that we saw against Trinidad & Tobago:
-----------------Altidore----------Davies----------------


Donovan--------Bradley------------Clark--------Dempsey


Bornstein-------Bocanegra----------Onyewu-----Spector


---------------------------Howard-----------------------

Off the bench, Feilhaber, Holden, and Torres all provide good poise on the ball and distribute well, so if the US is leading in the second half, Bob Bradley might select any of them to come on and help possess in an effort to kill the clock. All three have played well off the bench in their last appearances and would add quality as substitutes.

With just a little over a week until the USMNT takes on Honduras and Costa Rica, the excitement is building for this pivotal pair of games.