MLS Cup Playoffs Impact Bradley's Roster

With the friendlies against Slovakia and Denmark less than two weeks away, Bob Bradley will soon have to decide which players he will bringing over to Europe. MLS Cup playoffs could significantly influence Bradley's decisions, as the dates for the Eastern and Western Conference finals would likely conflict with the friendlies. Though the dates have not been officially set, it's a safe bet to say that the games will likely be anywhere from the 12th to the 15th, likely ruling participating players out for the first friendly (and, if they advance, the second).

Essentially all of the MLS-based players that are in the conversation for the USMNT are involved in the MLS Cup playoffs right now, with Conor Casey being one exception. Jonathan Bornstein and Sacha Kljestan (Chivas USA), Landon Donovan (LA Galaxy), Chad Marshall (Columbus Crew), Robbie Findley (Real Salt Lake), and the Houston trio of Ching, Clark, and Holden all have a legitimate chance to move on to the next round after fairly even opening legs of their respective first round series. This could really hamper Bradley's opportunity to experiment and give some different players some playing time.

In particular, because of the various injuries to USMNT players, Bradley would likely want to tinker with replacements. Robbie Findley has worked his way into the USMNT conversation with his play this season and would provide a speed option up top to help fill the void left by Charlie Davies' unfortunate injury. But if Findley and RSL move on to the conference finals, Bradley would have to wait until January to give the Oregon State product his chance.

At centerback, Bradley might want to give Chad Marshall a run, as he searches for suitable replacements for injured starters Oguchi Onyewu and Jay DeMerit. Marshall, 25, earned Gold Cup All-Tournament accolades this past summer and is coming off a knee injury. Jimmy Conrad and Clarence Goodson, who also played well in the Gold Cup, will be available as well, but if Bradley wants to explore all the options, he's going to want to see the Columbus Crew standout play against quality international sides.

With the injury to Charlie Davies, Clint Dempsey might see himself pushed forward to striker, meaning Bob Bradley might want to search for depth at outside midfielder. Sacha Kljestan, who has been in good form as of late, might be a guy that Bradley would want to call in. The Chivas USA star showed great promise early in the year but tailed off in the summer and hasn't been a part of the USMNT set up for a few months. With his recent solid play, Bradley might want to give him another shot with the senior squad.

Beyond just looking to fill the holes left by injuries and add depth to the lineup, Bradley will want to test his first team against two good European sides. Bradley might want to see how his first team looks with a few formation or position changes (like pushing Dempsey forward, as previously mentioned). The playoffs, however, might keep regulars like Landon Donovan, Ricardo Clark, and Stuart Holden off the roster, so gauging the effectiveness of these moves would be a little harder without a true first team on the field. Bob Bradley and his staff probably won't get to do everything they'd like with these friendlies, but they should at least be able to do a little of both, since a few of the players listed above will see their seasons end this weekend.

Our take? We'd like to see Findley get some time to see if his ability translates well to the international level (sorry RSL fans). Then again, we'd also like to see a Chad Marshall-Carlos Bocanegra centerback pairing (sorry Crew fans). And while on one hand it'd be nice to see Landon Donovan running the US attack, it might be of better use to see if Sacha Kljestan is ready for international play again. Basically, we have no idea what we want, but fortunately, the decisions will be made for us, with playoff matchups ensuring at least some of the domestic based players will be available for selection.