US world cup in review, look ahead.

Now that the US' world cup hopes are done, and I have taken a few days to calm down and fully asses what happened, here is what I think about the US performance.

Assessment By Position

Defenders

The defense in general was simply not good enough. Too many easy goals were conceeded, and Tim Howard never really had one of those shining games where he just puts it all together and dazzles us. Although, some may argue that this defense has been doomed ever since that fateful night back in October, when Oguchi Onyewu went down with a knee injury. There was simply no way that he could have come back in top form in time for the world cup. The reason this had such an impact is not just the loss of his talent and experience, but it causes a ripple effect on the rest of the defense. Carlos Bocanegra shines in the left back position, but with Onyewu not being fit he is forced to slid into the middle. Jonathan Bornstein played well at the left back spot, but Bocanegra showed that he lacks the fortitude to command the defense from the center as well as the skill to take on top class strikers.

Jay Demerit was another guy who may have struggled from missing time due to injury. He wowed with his effort and grit but he made a couple of huge mental mistakes that led to a couple of goals. With the damage he has already done to his body, i would be surprised if he plays in another world cup.

The highlight of the defense was Steve Cherundolo, and experienced defender who showed some great crossing ability. He is 31, and looks to be in incredible shape, so he may have another shot at making the 2014 team, but more than likely as a sub.

Hopefully there are a few guys that just missed out on this world cup (Heath Pearce and Chad Marshall to name a few) who will develop into starting defenders because the cupboard is pretty bare as far as young promising defenders. If i were to guess right now, I would say Gooch is the only returning starter at the next world cup.

Midfield

The midfield was again the strength of the US team, scoring all of the goals and showing some great promise. The only lone dark spot was the play of Ricardo Clark. Clark had been a regular for the team this cycle and had been a goal scoring threat during qualifying. However, a few mental mistakes led to goals scored by the opposition. He was poor possessing the ball, and was constantly being beat to the ball.

Outside of Clark, the midfield shined. Landon Donovan had an incredible tournament and is currently tied for the lead in most goals scored in the tournament. He without a doubt set himself up for a permanent move to Europe with his performance. Dempsey, while only netting the one lucky goal, showed a tireless work ethic that was the fuel that kept this team going. He possessed the ball well and made some great runs. Michael Bradley was one of the best young stars of the tournament. At only 22, you have to think the future looks bright indeed for coach Bob Bradley's son. Substitutes Maurice Edu and Benny Fielhaber logged a number of quality minutes, and were great sparks off the bench. It was just bad luck that neither of them were able to get a goal. Both of those guys are also pretty young, and should challenge for a starting spot, with Edu potentially moving to center back. Another guy who showed some promise the last month was Jose Torres. He had a couple of good looks and show good ability to possess the ball. It truly was a story of an entire midfield playing well with the exception of Clark.

Forwards
This was the biggest question mark for the US going into the world cup. Would strikers that had less than 5 caps each be able to provide the spark necessary to fuel the offense. The answer was no. The US went yet another world cup without any goals being scored from the forwards. Jozy Altidore made some great plays and showed some tremendous ability, but was not able to finish on any of his chances. Robbie Findley simply showed a lack of finishing ability, and Edson Buddle and Hercules Gomez could not stay true to their great club forms. With Buddle is unlikely to be back in the world cup in four years, and Gomez and Findley have a long way to go before being able to be that second piece to Altidore consistently. Charlie Davies remains the best hope for finding a striker to partner with Altidore.

Coach
Bob Bradley certainly did a capable job at this World Cup. He showed that he is great at assessing the game as it happens and knowing what tactical changes he needs to make for the team to be successful. However, the fact that the US started so poorly in nearly all of their matches shows to me that the team is poorly prepared for each match. It is not a coincidence that the opposition keeps scoring so early in the match. In my opinion, that goes back to the coach and his preparation of the game. I don't think Bradley will be back. Perhaps US Soccer makes another run at Jurgen Klinsman, a move that I would love, but the fact is that US Soccer needs to continue to develop, and I just don't think that happens any further under Bob Bradley.

Ultimately this team showed that it was better than the second round exit. They won their group despite their struggles, and in my opinion could have gone far in the tournament with a few minor improvements. Consider this... while every team has injuries to overcome at some point in the world cup cycle, could it have come at worse spots for the US team? Midfield has always been one of our strengths. While it would have been awful if Donovan or Dempsey had gone down, we have a lot of depth at midfield. The same can not be said for defense and forwards. Losing Onyewu and Davies might have had an immeasurable impact on this team, and cost them some greater success.

Potential new faces at the next world cup:

Charlie Davies- Davies needs to continue to develop and become the compliment to Jozy Altidore we all want.
Freddy Adu- Can the once heralded youngster turn his career around and become a factor on the national stage?
Justin Braun- Young forward- plays for Chivas USA
Kevin Alston- Young defender- plays for New England Revolution

Wave goodbye to...
Jay Demerit- at 31, and with the damage already done to his body, he is likely on the way out.
DeMarcus Beasley- The once star of the US seems to be fading quickly off into the sunset.
Carlos Bocanegra- He will be 35 at the next cup, and frankly he didn't play well in this one. Would be surprised if he gave it another run.
Edson Buddle- Couldn't capitalize on an opportunity to re-ignite his career. Will be 35 at the next cup. No chance.

Other possibilities include Steve Cherundolo, Stuart Holden, and Hercules Gomez.

Potential 2014 starting lineup

RS- Jozy Altidore
LS- Charlie Davies
LM- Landon Donovan
LCM- Freddy Adu
RCM- Michael Bradley
RM- Clint Dempsey
LB- Jonathan Bornstein (assuming he continues from his good performance saturday)
LCB- Maurice Edu (He is too good to not be in the lineup)
RCB- Gooch
RB- Spector or maybe still Cherundolo.

This is impossible to truly predict more than 4 years away. There is a lot of young talent that should be back, but you never know when a kid like a Jozy Altidore might come along. There were only 4 starters from this team that started at the last world cup. Will Brazil 2014 be a similar story?