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ASN Weekly Debate

What Should the USMNT Accomplish in 2013?

The last months of 2012 saw the United States find some success and a little bit of failure. As Noah Davis and Ryan O'Hanlon conclude, there's only one thing the Americans need to accomplish in 2013.
BY Noah Davis and Ryan O'Hanlon Posted
December 28, 2012
5:52 AM
Noah Davis: RO, give me your hopes and dreams for the United States national team in 2013.

Ryan O'Hanlon: I had a dream, once, that I was playing for the USMNT, but my legs stopped working. I was really tired and couldn't do anything I wanted to do, and it was kind of sad, but no one actually felt bad for me in the dream or then, after that, in real life because it was a dream and, therefore, not real.

Davis: I only feel bad for the people reading this.

O'Hanlon: Yeah, just stop now and go eat some bread or something more exciting than this. But, my only hope, really, is that the team qualifies—hopefully smoothly—for the World Cup.

Davis: I'll admit, you have totally brought me around to that way of thinking. You're right. There is one goal and then a bunch of other really teeny, tiny ones in comparison. Along those lines, though, I would like to see the U-20 qualify for the World Cup, if for no other reason than I would like an excuse to go to Turkey. Oh, and also, that team has the potential to be awesome.

O'Hanlon: I would like that, too. It's been a while since we had a youth team actually do well in a major tournament—and that team had Michael Bradley and Jozy Altidore… also: Freddy Adu. So that would be a cool thing to see and not-ever a bad sign of anything.

Davis: So far, we have (1) qualify for a major tournament and (2) qualify for another major tournament. That's a pretty short, and obvious, list. And yet, I think it's the right one. But are we looking too big picture? How much development or whatever you want to call it can we reasonably expect in a year? Should we expect any, or should we just let it happen given that a) national teams are weird entities and b) we have no control over anything at all? This might be a discussion about the role of the US fan/journalist, too, although I'm not sure. Unpack away.

O'Hanlon: /reaches into bag for pick axe.

/pulls out sausage links instead.

It's, hmmm. We're getting at the weird nature of the National Team here, too, which is something we've touched on basically every week because that's what this website is about. The smaller changes are more important, yes, but they're also kind of tough to track objectively or clearly. While the big-picture stuff is, in the end, what having a national team is all about. So, I guess we're getting to a point where we've seen some smaller changes since Klinsmann took over, and we'd like to see those smaller changes then translate directly and obviously into wider success, a la the team playing well in Honduras and then winning that game by playing well and not just by being more talented and bigger and faster.

Davis: So basically we should just all give up and go home until Brazil 2014?

O'Hanlon: Yep, it was fun. See you guys then! Have a Happy New Year(s)!

Davis: I'm not sure the bosses would approve. One goal I would like to see, and this is abstract but also maybe not, is for the player pool to get smaller. Or at least more organized. We talked a lot about growing it in 2012, but now I think it's time to bring it on back. Experimentation is fun, until the U.S. arrives in Brazil without any type of set lineup.

O'Hanlon: That is fair. A little more cohesion re: roster construction would be nice, but it's getting closer, maybe. We at least know the core of, what, 15 or so guys, and then it's a rotating door otherwise. So, few names added to that core would be a welcome development. A way for that to happen, possibly, is for a few more guys to carve out some more significant places in Europe, either by moving overseas, moving while overseas, or staying put overseas and just playing better/more/both.

Davis: Segue! Let's talk about Jozy Altidore in 2013. The dude had zero goals in three appearances in 2012, yet scored a bunch in the Netherlands. There was that weird thing with Klinsmann in the fall, but he was back—and played well—against Russia. Is 2013 his year on the national team?

O'Hanlon: It would seem that way, wouldn't it? The team is getting better and more set, while he's playing the best soccer of his life—scoop: he was named to the Eredivisie Team of the First Half of the Season—so things appear to coming together. At the same time, CONCACAF is weird and so is soccer, so I'm not totally sure. In the end: He just turned 23.

Davis: My friend is a huge Fiorentina fan. I emailed him when the Jozy to Fio rumors were flying around, asking if he would want him. He responded that he wouldn't, then emailed me about five minutes later retracting the statement and writing that he thought Altidore was 27, not 23. Jozy is so young. And spare me the "23's not young in international soccer" reasoning. It is for Americans. I really don't see any other forward starting in Brazil. And, for the first time, that's not by default; to me, Altidore is that good now, especially if he keeps improving for another 18 months.

O'Hanlon: He seems old because he's so big and he's been so big and been around for such a long time already: 51 caps! He's the best American forward/striker/whatever by a wide margin, I think. Which, like you said, is more on him than on anyone else. It's reasonable to have high expectations—as in, actually expecting these things to happen—for him for the first time ever.

Davis: Reasonable and, I think, also fair. So goals for 2013: Qualify for two World Cups. Play in one. Buy Altidore a birthday cake with 24 candles on it.

O'Hanlon: Some others: Better haircut for Klinsmann. Jay Demerit being involved somehow, some way. Air horn. Blowtorch. Whatever.

Davis: Sounds good to me. And less Jermaine Jones.

O'Hanlon: I just had an epiphany that will solve everything: Jermaine Jones, Centerback.

Davis: See, this is why we have these chats. You tell Jurgen. I'm off to Crumbs.

O'Hanlon: Just added it to my to-do list after "put on clothes" and "use shower."

Davis: Spoken like a true blogger.

O'Hanlon: And: "leave my parents' basement."

Noah Davis and Ryan O'Hanlon do this every week. Sometimes, there are cupcakes.

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