Jurgen Klinsmann made the 2015 Gold Cup a top priority but his team delivered multiple poor performances against regional competition. Has Klinsmann made any improvements since Brazil?

BY Brian Sciaretta Posted

July 23, 2015

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LET’S CLARIFY SOMETHING. Wednesday’s 2-1 loss to Jamaica is not why the 2015 Gold Cup was a failure for the United States men’s national team. Sometimes upsets happen—they just do.



No, the reason why this tournament was such a disappointment is that the team played far below its potential in four out of five games.

Recent wins over Germany, the Netherlands, and Mexico earned rave reviews at the time but in hindsight these victories only masked what has been a poor 12-month interval for the U.S. men’s national team.

For most of that time, the team coughed up late goals and struggled to score goals. Since the World Cup Jurgen Klinsmann had 13 friendlies to prepare his team for the 2015 Gold Cup, and there’s no escaping the fact that he failed to have his team ready to win the continental championship.

Here are some thoughts on what has gone wrong.

Alvarado and Brooks

Klinsmann made it clear from the beginning of the tournament that John Brooks and Ventura Alvarado were his first-choice central defense tandem. Why?

Alvarado has played a total of 1,317 Liga MX minutes in his career. Since receiving his first cap in March he has been inconsistent for the U.S. and he really only impressed once, in April’s win over Mexico. He has potential, certainly, but he was fast-tracked into the starting lineup and based on his performances it’s hard to understand why.

Brooks is another high-ceiling player and he has had good moments at Hertha Berlin.

Over the past year for the U.S. national team, however, Brooks has been inconsistent. He hasn’t always played to his potential and he was exposed multiple times against Denmark, the Netherlands, and Switzerland.

As the Gold Cup began, this pairing didn’t have a solid foundation to build upon. Brooks had played just one game for the U.S. in an official competition. Alvarado had no international games beyond friendlies to go along with his limited career minutes at the club level. By default, Brooks was asked to be the leader of the backline—and he’s just not there yet.

Klinsmann had other options. For example, Matt Besler and Omar Gonzalez have both played well at the World Cup, both have shown that they can win in CONCACAF, and both players are in their prime (Besler is 28 and Gonzalez is 26).

But Klinsmann didn’t opt for experience and maturity. He gambled with two youngsters, and it didn’t work.

Age has caught up with Beckerman

Kyle Beckerman, 33, has been a loyal servant to the United States men’s national team and he has many accomplishments for which he should be proud. His grit and willingness to do the dirty work is remarkable and he almost always completes a high percentage of his passes.

Good things, however, must come to an end.

Beckerman’s struggles against Jamaica underscore the fact that youth is needed in the No. 6 role. Yes, it’s hindsight, but the U.S. needed a younger, faster, more athletic defensive midfielder—like Danny Williams or Perry Kitchen—in the 2015 Gold Cup.

Beyond Dempsey, attack was anemic

Aside from one game against a very poor Cuban team, the U.S. offense in this Gold Cup consisted of Clint Dempsey and not much else. In the group phase, Dempsey scored all but one of the team’s goals and Michael Bradley’s strike against Panama was only possible because of a terrific pass from Dempsey in the build-up.

Jozy Altidore had a chance to step up in this tournament but either due to health-related issues or poor form, he struggled badly in the group phase and was bumped from the roster.

Aron Johannsson worked hard and showed flashes but didn’t put the ball in the back of the net in crucial moments.

Dempsey had to shoulder the offensive load at last summer’s World Cup, and it wasn’t enough to take the Yanks on a deep run. He was forced to do so again at the 2015 Gold Cup, and this time the Americans lost, at home, to Jamaica.

Glaring problems remain

Has Klinsmann solved any of the problems that plagued the team in Brazil?

First, where is the attack from wide positions? That has been a problem for a while and the result at the Gold Cup was to keep pressing with Alejandro Bedoya (a central player for his club), Gyasi Zardes (a forward), and DeAndre Yedlin (a right back). It should hardly come as a surprise that these options have not resulted in consistent results.

The reliance on Timothy Chandler remains a mystery. While it is true that Chandler was out of action against Jamaica (presumably with an injured knee suffered against Cuba), he is still the national team’s top right back.

Chandler has 124 Bundesliga appearances on his resume but at what point is that no longer enough to start for the national team? At what point must he produce for the national team to keep his spot? Why, despite commitment issues and poor play, does he keep getting chances when players like Eric Lichaj remain on the outside looking in?

Does the team seem improved in any area from the World Cup?

Soul searching for Klinsmann

The United States deserves to be out of this tournament. Group stage opponents outshot the U.S., 36-17, and every game was closely contested.

The team was not prepared for this tournament and it showed in the way his players regularly started games slowly. The first step for Klinsmann should be to accept some of the blame himself, which is something he has been reluctant to do—at least in any public forum.

Doing so would help him build support among his players and the U.S. fanbase. Taking some responsibility for the team's shortcomings would also take some of the pressure off the players and put it on the coach's shoulders—which is where it should be. It's also something that many top coaches do in times of crisis.

Klinsmann has said that his first World Cup cycle laid the foundation for the program and that his second cycle was going to build on it. Now, more than a year into the second cycle, it is appropriate to question why the team is not progressing and what must be done to right the ship.

It's all about October now

Klinsmann isn’t going anywhere. He is not just the national team’s head coach—he’s also the technical director and a very powerful figure within U.S. Soccer. Sunil Gulati wanted Klinsmann in charge dating back to 2006 (and maybe even before).

October, however, will be Klinsmann’s crucible.

In three months the United States will play the 2015 Gold Cup champion—either Mexico or Jamaica—for the opportunity to play in the 2017 Confederations Cup in Russia. That same month, the U-23 men’s national team will participate in Olympic qualifying and attempt to return to the Olympic games for the first time since 2008.

If U.S. Soccer is successful in both endeavors, the federation can consider 2015 a successful year and the loss to Jamaica will fade from memory.

There is potential, however, that U.S. Soccer comes up short in both competitions—and this would be an absolute disaster.

Klinsmann has stated repeatedly that qualifying for the Confederations Cup and the Olympics are top priorities. As both head coach and technical director, he will be measured against these goals.

Failure would leave the U.S. men’s national team with a shortage of meaningful tournaments in which to participate—a dilemma exacerbated by the murky circumstances that now surround the Copa America Centenario.

It’s all on Klinsmann now.

Brian Sciaretta is an American Soccer Now columnist and an ASN 100 panelist. Follow him on Twitter.