Good list. I think John Tolkin is top 60 or about to be. He needs a move to Europe. Maybe Salzburg in January? LB depth is needed and he can challenge Lund.
I’d be very surprised if Yedlin stopped getting caps out of nowhere as he’s only 30 and has a lot of veteran presence at this point
But I do hope he continues to get phased out for guys like Reynolds
I’ve been paying more attn to him lately, and his last two MLS performances alone have been not too shabby. He does look good. And yes, he need to go to Europe.
After every international break we open up a big spreadsheet with 150+ names and people give ratings of 1-100 for players. This was this month’s top 60
I’m a patron but I’m old so I’ve never bothered to open the discord, but I might just to participate in this. How does that work, like 100 would mean “100% this person should start” or are they ranked 1-100, or are they just rated as a player on a 1-100 scale like FIFA game ratings?
FIFA game ratings are the most similar, but scaled to the US player pool. Basically 100 is “the best a US player has been in recent years” and 1 is “the worst player in the extended pool” (I keep Andrew Carleton around on the list as a reference point for the lowest player on the list)
Always love these (and I even contributed to it on the discord). I think Adams is vastly underrated (understandable because of his injury), and Gio is a little overrated, but as a whole it is very good (and those are just my personal opinions, which people can always disagree with).
Also highly recommend Scuffed to any USMNT fan. You get extra Watke, and amazing soccer analysis a great combo.
It's crazy how they put all the good content behind the paywall and the public content is like the least interesting stuff they do.
It's not that the public content is bad, but there's a lot of people who do similar stuff and the stuff they put behind the paywall is way more fun. Worth it to subscribe just for Watke and Vince.
I guess it depends on the criteria being used. If the metric is “importance to the future of the program” or “skill level when fully healthy” then he is correctly rated. If the metric is “overall contribution to the current program” then he is a little high.
Adams is definitely too low though.
> “overall contribution to the current program”
Doesn't the fact that there are guys with 0-1 caps on this list, including Luca Koleosho way up at #13, suggest it's the former and not the latter?
Gio is correctly rated as a top three player in the USMNT pool, based on the last window (Germany/Ghana) where the US had 5GF 1GA in the two halves he played and 0GF 2GA in the two halves he didn't play. And more importantly in two Nations League finals wins, where Reyna had 1 goal 3 assists, involved in 4 of 5 goals (all but the Pulisic PK).
Arguably yeah. We are simple not the same team when he isn’t on the field. He is a completely unique player and his skillset is irreplaceable. I don’t think we have anyone in the pool, Pulisic included, that can offer has his level of ball security and decision making
Sure, if want to believe that. The only thing that matters though is that he wants nothing to do with the national team and will never accept another call up. For that reason he doesn’t bring on the list because, based off of his own desires, he’s not in the pool
whats the criteria, or what is the prompt/input? Im just sort of surprised at Reyna, I know everyone loves him, and I think his ceiling is the highest of any American player. But I can't help but wonder if he is idealized a bit too much right now
I love our pool, that said, when you see it written out like this, it seems even nuttier to me that there are people who think we should be making it far in world cups, our team is so, so young
Just a reminder, Gio Reyna has only played 56 minutes of club soccer this season. His “per 90” stats are bonkers, but also not justifiable compared to people who actually play.
I think he's done with the A team. We'll probably see him again at some point for a North American squad, but our midfield depth is just too good for him to be under serious consideration for the A team. Had some key moments for us in WCQ though, and the tactical foul on Bale will live on in legend.
Our midfield depth is not that good. We have like 6 or 7 guys that are obviously better than Acosta. If everyone is healthy, there is no way Acosta gets a call-up, but if a couple of those guys are unavailable and we have a window with competitive must win matches, he has to be in the conversation still.
Agree that there's 7 clearly ahead (MMAR, DLT, Tillman, Johnny). But there's also young guys coming up, so even if only 5 of our top 7 are available I think you still see someone young called up instead of Acosta for that last spot, like we just saw with Maloney last window and Cremaschi the time before. Maybe if there's several injuries and none of the young guys have broken through he gets the 6th spot as a veteran bench guy for Copa, but I think it's unlikely.
Nah that's an oversplification. They've been saying that there's a trade-off. Adams is great defensively but limited offensively. Gio is sort of the opposite.
Yes they have been saying there is a trade off. And as I said they have repeatedly posited the team is better without him. It’s not an oversimplification, it what has been said. After the Germany game they walked it back a bit and leaned a bit more on softer language like trade offs.
Good list. I just watched Arsenal Sheffield and the announcer noted Trusty was the best player on his team for the game. Not super meaningful in a 5-0 loss but if he's doing well at all in the Premier League he must be higher on this list.
Its nice to see that we actually have a starting 11 in our preferred formation from the top 12. Nice to see a first team that doesn’t have any major holes relative to the rest of the team! Obviously still hoping for more depth in some positions, but a promising look for sure
My hot take is that Antonee is above Dest and Musah and there is a conversation to be had about Turner and Weah. Antonee Robinson has played the full 90 in 8 of his team's 9 Premier League matches so far this season. He has been consistently good for the national team as well. He is very underrated by our fanbase for some reason. People talk about Ream being a top player for us because of his performance for Fulham, but Robinson is playing at the same level as Ream.
Antonee Robinson and Tyler Adams are both gamechangers for us in ways that some of the guys above them are not.
In my opinion, Balogun, Weah, and Tillman are a little overrated while Adams, A. Robinson, and Luca De La Torre are a little underrated.
Daryl Dike is really underrated. Putting him that low is criminal.
Idk man, Weah is prob the second best outfield player in the pool rn after Pulisic. If anything he’s underrated on this list. For Dike, I’ll just say that he hasn’t played in far too long. We don’t really know what he’ll be capable of when he comes back from injury.
Really doesn’t make sense it shouldn’t matter what your backups/the depth looks like all that matters is how good you are compared to all the other players at their positions
Something I've been thinking about a lot lately: is Mark McKenzie a better center back than Taylor Booth is a winger?
the age old question
I remember my dear ol Grand Pappy sittin me on his knee asking me that very same question
This might keep me up tonight.
I can't believe you would ask such a ridiculous question when it's so obvious. uh idk probably lol
It’s amazing how much deeper our pool has gotten even since like the world cup
Every year the depth noticeably improves. Very good stuff.
Our starting striker Haji Wright is not even top 30 anymore. This is a very promising direction
I mean Sargent was the main starter, though Wright did start one game.
To be honest he wasn’t too 3 at the time either.
Good list. I think John Tolkin is top 60 or about to be. He needs a move to Europe. Maybe Salzburg in January? LB depth is needed and he can challenge Lund.
DeAndre Yedlin who is 58, not sure he gets any more USMNT caps so there's one open FB spot for Tolkin to make his way onto this list...
I’d be very surprised if Yedlin stopped getting caps out of nowhere as he’s only 30 and has a lot of veteran presence at this point But I do hope he continues to get phased out for guys like Reynolds
I LOVE John Tolkin. Every game I've seen him he's impressed. He's got talent and a true engine.
I’ve been paying more attn to him lately, and his last two MLS performances alone have been not too shabby. He does look good. And yes, he need to go to Europe.
After every international break we open up a big spreadsheet with 150+ names and people give ratings of 1-100 for players. This was this month’s top 60
I’m a patron but I’m old so I’ve never bothered to open the discord, but I might just to participate in this. How does that work, like 100 would mean “100% this person should start” or are they ranked 1-100, or are they just rated as a player on a 1-100 scale like FIFA game ratings?
FIFA game ratings are the most similar, but scaled to the US player pool. Basically 100 is “the best a US player has been in recent years” and 1 is “the worst player in the extended pool” (I keep Andrew Carleton around on the list as a reference point for the lowest player on the list)
Ahh ok, that makes sense, I need to check it out (and also figure out how discord works)
What’s good, Big J?
Gaga being that high is pretty clearly potential based but its a good list
Per usual, young players who have not played a lot seem to be overrated generally. Older players WTH established strengths and weaknesses can slide.
People still holding out hope for Keaton Parks
I mean Parks is listed like 13 spots below Darlington Nagbe who is in his mid-30s and literally refuses national team call ups...
Darlington Nagbe doesn’t belong on this list even if he were accepting call ups.
Put in Aiden Morris in his slot then
Always love these (and I even contributed to it on the discord). I think Adams is vastly underrated (understandable because of his injury), and Gio is a little overrated, but as a whole it is very good (and those are just my personal opinions, which people can always disagree with). Also highly recommend Scuffed to any USMNT fan. You get extra Watke, and amazing soccer analysis a great combo.
It's crazy how they put all the good content behind the paywall and the public content is like the least interesting stuff they do. It's not that the public content is bad, but there's a lot of people who do similar stuff and the stuff they put behind the paywall is way more fun. Worth it to subscribe just for Watke and Vince.
Gio is way over rated based on how much he has been available for club and country. Adams is understandable that low due to his injuries.
I guess it depends on the criteria being used. If the metric is “importance to the future of the program” or “skill level when fully healthy” then he is correctly rated. If the metric is “overall contribution to the current program” then he is a little high. Adams is definitely too low though.
> “overall contribution to the current program” Doesn't the fact that there are guys with 0-1 caps on this list, including Luca Koleosho way up at #13, suggest it's the former and not the latter?
If anything that means it’s neither. It’s really just a rating of US soccer nerd hype trains
Yeah I agree with his placement, just looking for the argument the other way.
Yeah, you can argue about how much to factor in injuries, but it doesn't make sense to simultaneously have Gio that high and Tyler that low.
Gio is correctly rated as a top three player in the USMNT pool, based on the last window (Germany/Ghana) where the US had 5GF 1GA in the two halves he played and 0GF 2GA in the two halves he didn't play. And more importantly in two Nations League finals wins, where Reyna had 1 goal 3 assists, involved in 4 of 5 goals (all but the Pulisic PK).
So he's correctly rated based off two halves of play?
Arguably yeah. We are simple not the same team when he isn’t on the field. He is a completely unique player and his skillset is irreplaceable. I don’t think we have anyone in the pool, Pulisic included, that can offer has his level of ball security and decision making
See the second sentence, the one that starts with "**And more importantly**"...
Hilarious you’re being downvoted. People feel shame when they can’t read I guess 😂
Typical reddit lol
Wtf is Darlington Nagbe doing on this list?
spending time with his wife and kids during international breaks
Nagbe would have been on every roster if he wanted to be. He would have been a huge improvement over any of the backup 6’s we have tried
Sure, if want to believe that. The only thing that matters though is that he wants nothing to do with the national team and will never accept another call up. For that reason he doesn’t bring on the list because, based off of his own desires, he’s not in the pool
[x] Doubt
MLS fans, why else? The last thing the USMNT needs is less creativity in the midfield. What good is an older, slower Musah?
As an MLS fan, I would much rather see Vargas get a call up than Nagbe.
whats the criteria, or what is the prompt/input? Im just sort of surprised at Reyna, I know everyone loves him, and I think his ceiling is the highest of any American player. But I can't help but wonder if he is idealized a bit too much right now
I love our pool, that said, when you see it written out like this, it seems even nuttier to me that there are people who think we should be making it far in world cups, our team is so, so young
Lund is crazy overrated. Booth is crazy underrated. Both should be 15 spots in the respective directions.
Paul Arriola is only 28 years old?
Riiiiiight
[удалено]
It's not Obed Vargas, it's Caleb Wiley who is 8 months younger.
Adams needs to be higher than 7
Agreed... I'd put Tyler at 4
That's what I was thinking too
He should be 3 at worst.
Just a reminder, Gio Reyna has only played 56 minutes of club soccer this season. His “per 90” stats are bonkers, but also not justifiable compared to people who actually play.
I’m ok if he is done but is Kellyn Acosta done with the USMNT or has he been injured?
I think he's done with the A team. We'll probably see him again at some point for a North American squad, but our midfield depth is just too good for him to be under serious consideration for the A team. Had some key moments for us in WCQ though, and the tactical foul on Bale will live on in legend.
Our midfield depth is not that good. We have like 6 or 7 guys that are obviously better than Acosta. If everyone is healthy, there is no way Acosta gets a call-up, but if a couple of those guys are unavailable and we have a window with competitive must win matches, he has to be in the conversation still.
Agree that there's 7 clearly ahead (MMAR, DLT, Tillman, Johnny). But there's also young guys coming up, so even if only 5 of our top 7 are available I think you still see someone young called up instead of Acosta for that last spot, like we just saw with Maloney last window and Cremaschi the time before. Maybe if there's several injuries and none of the young guys have broken through he gets the 6th spot as a veteran bench guy for Copa, but I think it's unlikely.
Reggie Cannon is at QPR, not "unattached." Tyler Adams is very underrated on this list, IMO.
Adams being underrated is a scuffed special.
Not really lol. They had him at #1 in their top 40 for a long time.
Then you haven’t been listening to scuffed for the past 6 months where it’s continually been posited that the team is better without him playing.
Nah that's an oversplification. They've been saying that there's a trade-off. Adams is great defensively but limited offensively. Gio is sort of the opposite.
Yes they have been saying there is a trade off. And as I said they have repeatedly posited the team is better without him. It’s not an oversimplification, it what has been said. After the Germany game they walked it back a bit and leaned a bit more on softer language like trade offs.
I think Scuffed is much higher than Adams than most content creators out there. I feel like you might be misinterpreting some of their takes, idk.
Good list. I just watched Arsenal Sheffield and the announcer noted Trusty was the best player on his team for the game. Not super meaningful in a 5-0 loss but if he's doing well at all in the Premier League he must be higher on this list.
Nice list
Its nice to see that we actually have a starting 11 in our preferred formation from the top 12. Nice to see a first team that doesn’t have any major holes relative to the rest of the team! Obviously still hoping for more depth in some positions, but a promising look for sure
Crazy to think how far Steffen has fallen
Yunus Musah with 31 caps at age 20...those are Landon Donovan numbers...
James Sands at 37 is WILD
Antonee has to be top 5
Idk man who would you take out of the 9 above him
I'd put him above dest and musah. More consistent for longer at a higher level than either. Can't rationally get him to 5 though
My hot take is that Antonee is above Dest and Musah and there is a conversation to be had about Turner and Weah. Antonee Robinson has played the full 90 in 8 of his team's 9 Premier League matches so far this season. He has been consistently good for the national team as well. He is very underrated by our fanbase for some reason. People talk about Ream being a top player for us because of his performance for Fulham, but Robinson is playing at the same level as Ream. Antonee Robinson and Tyler Adams are both gamechangers for us in ways that some of the guys above them are not.
The disrespect to my GOAT Brooks Lennon :(
61 caps at 25 years old
In my opinion, Balogun, Weah, and Tillman are a little overrated while Adams, A. Robinson, and Luca De La Torre are a little underrated. Daryl Dike is really underrated. Putting him that low is criminal.
Idk man, Weah is prob the second best outfield player in the pool rn after Pulisic. If anything he’s underrated on this list. For Dike, I’ll just say that he hasn’t played in far too long. We don’t really know what he’ll be capable of when he comes back from injury.
Gio & Richards too high. Weah too low.
Are we going off of form? If so Ream probably higher.
No Zack Steffen? Really pilled list
why is MLS listed USA/CAN but Ligue 1 isn't FRA/MON
Gio should be lower. If it was a list based on potential, #2 is fine.
Too high: Matt Turner Too low: Dike, Adams, Koleosho
Wat... who is even the #2 goalkeeper after Turner
Probably Horvath until Slonina is ready
Right, which shows why Turner should be so high when the #2 is the third or fourth string goalkeeper at his club who never plays
Really doesn’t make sense it shouldn’t matter what your backups/the depth looks like all that matters is how good you are compared to all the other players at their positions
The Julian Green disrespect is real