By Jared Launius
Well hello.
If you missed part one of my silly attempt to recap the year for the USMNT, there's a link at the bottom of the page (That, friends, is what we call a tease. Journalism schooling at work!). Here's a quick recap – I'm giving a grade, A-F, to all 47 players to earn a cap for the U.S. men's senior team this year. Taken into account is both their club play as well as how they performed in their time wearing a U.S. shirt. For simplicity's sake, I'm going in alphabetical order. Last week, I did A-C (a surprisingly high 16 players' last name start with one of those three letters), so we'll start with D and roll on to L today.
Is this particularly sophisticated? No. Is it fun? For me, at least, yes. So yeah, onward, ho!
Jay DeMerit: C: – two caps, two starts – It's hard, I think, to really grade someone who spent a sizable chunk of the year injured. But, well, you can only grade on what you have in front of you, and there isn't a ton. His best outing in a U.S. shirt was a typical DeMerit 90 against Argentina, center backing like a linebacker against Messi and co. He missed 13 games for his new club, Vancouver, and was too banged up leading into Gold Cup to Merit (see what I did there?) a selection to Bob Bradley's roster. Based on what I saw of his games with Vancouver, he seemed to spend much of the season hampered by nagging injuries. I watched him in person against Kansas City in June and he looked a step slow all night – particularly when his slide tackle of Omar Bravo gave the KC winger a penalty. DeMerit, in the past, has had fantastic timing on last-ditch tackles, so that, to me, was an indication maybe he wasn't 100%. His days in a U.S. shirt are probably over, but I'm certainly glad to have the gregarious center back in MLS where his personality can be a big part of the league – and hopefully transition into a professional position when he retires.
Clint Dempsey: A – 14 caps, 13 starts – It feels good to give a pure, unbridled A. Because, well, that's what Deuce's game was this year. The Fulham attacker began his 2011 by capping a 12-goal EPL campaign (the highest-scoring of any U.S. player in that league's history) and helping the Cottagers into Europa League qualifying through the Fair Play slot. His form has yet to dip either, as he followed that up with an (I thought) incredibly influential Gold Cup, where he bagged three goals and was the U.S.'s most dangerous attacker. He's begun his 2011 EPL campaign where he left off in May – four goals (two more in Europa) and three assists through 14 matches, and his 55 shots are good for third in the league. He bagged five times for the Yanks this year, my favorite being his dance around Donovan Ricketts to put away Jamaica in the Gold Cup quarters.
Mikkel Diskerud: B- – one cap, one start – It was, far as I could tell, a tough year for the 21-year old attacker. I say "far as I could tell" because I had little (re: zilch) access to Stabaek matches this year and thus have only statistics, occasional highlights and scarce news stories. Here's what I do know, thanks to Greg Seltzer: to pay off a deal on a new stadium, Stabaek sold off it's most expensive players before this season, leaving Mix behind to run the show. I can't put a ton of stock, then, into Stabaek's paltry offensive output (1.2 goals a game) or a modest three-goal, three-assist season for the attacking midfielder, especially given that I couldn't watch his games. We'll call his club season a wash. His lone appearance with the national team was an industrious – though not particularly influential – 90-minute shift against Chile in January.
Landon Donovan: C+ – ten caps, eight starts – By his own standards – and following what was probably his best two-year run in a national team shirt –
Maurice Edu: B- – 12 caps, 10 starts– I should probably start with a disclaimer: I've never really been a huge fan of Edu's game. I think he's often harried on the ball, imprecise with his passing and reckless in tackle. Truthfully, I didn't catch many Rangers matches in 2011, though it's certainly impressive Edu was an every-week starter on a title-winning team – only one other Yank abroad can say that (high five to whoever names him in the comments). When featuring for country, I found Edu to be pretty unsophisticated and unspectacular – particularly in his auditions to be Klinsmann's #8.
Sean Franklin: B+ – one cap, one start – It was a good year for Franklin – manning right back for a historically stingy LA Galaxy defense and all that – but when you're behind two Bundesliga starters and Aston Villa's right back of the future, it takes more than good to steal your way up the depth chart. Like Diskerud, Franklin was only given one shot to impress the U.S. managers this year and, also like Diskerud, left something to be desired.
Omar Gonzalez: B+ – one cap, one start – Heard of him? Tall guy? Spiky hair? Maybe it will help if I put his name in context:
[U.S. roster released] "WHERE IS OMAR GONZALEZ?!?!"
That help? Thought so. Bad joke aside, the constant complaints surrounding Gonzalez's omissions from recent U.S. rosters is perfectly representative of his game and his season: some bad (the omissions) mixed with good (the fact SO many people seem to rate him). The MLS's defender of the year was certainly sturdy in the tackle this year – he led MLS in duel conversion rate according to Opta – but what continues to hold him back is his play once he wins the ball. Regardless of his still-subpar distribution, it was a it was a strong year for Gonzalez, despite only 45 quiet minutes to prove himself in a national team shirt.
Clarence Goodson: B – ten caps, nine starts– It's hard to blame the Brøndby captain for his side's current position one place above the drop zone – his defense, despite a lot of turnover this year, is still in the better half of the league in goals conceded. He started his year there by helping his team qualify for the Europa League, captaining the second-stingiest defense in the Danish Superliga – not a terrible year for the bearded giant. His national team appearances were up and down, struggling at different times to cope with both speedy (Chicharito) and strong (Loic Remy) forwards. Not that he's the first (nor the last!) to be bested by those two.
Marcus Hahnemann: C- – one cap, one start – Yes, he lost his starting spot with Wolves and made only one not-exactly-sure-handed appearance with the U.S., but, well, I see no point in discussing the struggles of a player who clearly is just on his way out. So, instead, let's talk about this: assuming this was his last year with the national team, Marcus Hahnemann's national team career, though only nine-caps deep, spanned 17 years. 17! I find that remarkable. Always the loyal backup, always an interesting dude, I'm going to miss having the Soul Patch around. Cheers to you, sir.
Tim Howard: A – 15 caps, 15 starts – What can you say? The Everton netminder – in my humble and probably biased opinion – is one of the best ten shot-stoppers in the world, and he did nothing to diminish that for me this year. He'll pop up every now and then with a gaffe – like coming out too early on Giovani Dos Santos' dagger in the Gold Cup final – but they're far fewer and farther between than they were earlier in his career, and he'll always make up for them. Remember his remarkable triple save vs. Canada?
Fabian Johnson: B – two caps, one start – It's hard to classify the first two-thirds of Johnson's 2011 as successful, given that he spent it as a rarely-used reserve for Wolfsburg and, well, he was German for most of the year. He's made two moves since that seemed to have been pretty big boosts: first, a transfer to Hoffenheim this summer where he's become a starter and, second, a one-time FIFA switch to the United States, where he figures to vie for minutes on both the offensive and defensive wings in coming years. Not a bad ending to a middling start.
Sean Johnson: B- – one cap – Much like Teal Bunbury, it was a very up and down – though brimming with promise – year for the 22-year old Chicago goalkeeper. Moments of pure brilliance (just look at this save against FC Dallas' Jackson) were consistently met with complete lapses, like his spill (around 3:02 in this video) of a Davy Arnaud cross against Kansas City in April that led to a Sporting goal. Only 23, there's little reason to be concerned about his inconsistency, it's just worth noting he's not near his ceiling yet. His 45-minute audition for Bob Bradley in January was uneventful save a Chilean goal he had no shot at.
Jermaine Jones: C – 12 caps, nine starts – It was a forgettable first full year as a Yank for the German-American, whose solid play at Blackburn in the spring couldn't be converted into a purchase away from Schalke, where he had fallen out of favor. Jones finally won back his spot at Schalke under new coach Huub Stevens in October, under whom he's won six league and two Europa starts. In perhaps the perfect summary of Jermaine Jones, The Player, he's already missed a game for yellow card accumulation despite only appearing in eight (eight!) league matches*. His U.S. appearances have been underwhelming, save a nice game against Jamaica in the Gold Cup quarterfinals in which he had a goal and drew a red card to narrow Jamaica down to 10 men.
*Just. Wow.
Sacha Kljestan: B+ – nine caps, four starts – It's hard not to feel good about Kljestan after he vaulted into the starting XI for – and played a crucial role with – Belgium's best side in 2011. The Anderlecht midfielder's improvement abroad has been evident in his national team shifts – particularly his work against Jamaica in the Gold Cup. Bonus points for winning the Larry Johnson Award for a player who unambiguously calls out his coach via Twitter. But seriously, given the qualities Kljestan offers – and how seamlessly they ought fit in with what Klinsmann is trying to do – it's fair to wonder whether the U.S. manager has been paying attention to Kljestan's stellar form with the Eruopa League's best side so far.
Jeff Larentowicz: B – two caps, one start – Certainly no disrespect meant here – Jeff Larentowicz is a fantastic player and seems to be a very enjoyable human – but I'm not sure how much you all really care to read about Jeff Larentowicz. If I'm wrong, let me know in the comments and I'll type a hundred or so more words. But, yeah, another solid MLS year, but the Ginger Ninja isn't international caliber and he's not a prospect. So, yeah, moving on.
Eric Lichaj: B+ – six caps, five starts – Given that Lichaj has been sidelined since early September, it can be easy to forget the notable campaign he waged for the first eight or so months of 2011. After playing effectively as both a right and left back (not at the same time, of course) for Leeds in the spring, Lichaj filled in capably at left back for the U.S. in Gold Cup, with the Yanks conceding zero goals in the three-plus matches he played on the left defensive flank (remember he moved to right back against Mexico when Steve Cherundolo left injured). His injury came at a bad time, too, as he was aiming for Aston Villa's starting right back spot with Luke Young off to QPR. Doesn't diminish what was an otherwise encouraging year, though, for the recently-turned 23-year old.
Zach Loyd: B- – one cap, one start – The year started with some optimism for the FC Dallas man, as his shift at left back for the U.S. in January was encouraging. I wouldn't call Loyd's 2011 with the Hoops a negative – I was pretty impressed by each game of his I watched – it's just that it wasn't the step forward necessary to merit real national team consideration. As a right back, he was – at best – the third best American in MLS this season behind Chance Myers and Sean Franklin and as a wrong-footed left back, he can't possibly be ahead of either Tim Chandler and Eric Lichaj, each of whom have shown a measure of promise there in several national team starts apiece this year. Not a bad 2011 for Loyd, just not enough.
* * *
So there's that. As promised, here's a link to my grades for A-C from last week. Keep them eyes open for McCarty through Yelldell next week sometime – probably later (much later) due to, you know, college finals and stuff.
As always, please feel free to share thoughts and opinions in the comments. I shall be around.
