Its been one of those "good news, bad news" types of weeks for U.S. soccer. Jurgen Klinsmann notched his first win as national team head coach this past Saturday against Honduras, and FC Dallas starlet Brek Shea is reportedly attracting the attention of Manchester United and Liverpool. So what's the bad news? Well, the EPL big boys may be after Shea.

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Ronald Martinez/Getty Images Who knows if there's any truth to the rumors that some big EPL clubs are thinking of signing Brek Shea. What is certain is that he's a rising star, and MLS shouldn't let him go. Who knows if there's any truth to the rumors that some big EPL clubs are thinking of signing Brek Shea. What is certain is that he's a rising star, and MLS shouldn't let him go.

The 21-year-old Texan is the best prospect to travel through the U.S. residency program in Bradenton, Fla., in some time. The Beatles playing at Shea Stadium was a blessing; Brek Shea playing for Liverpool could be the exact opposite. MLS should make every effort to keep him at least through the 2014 World Cup.

Now, I've got absolutely nothing against anyone signing on the dotted line for a massive payday and the chance of learning at the feet of the Good Knight or King Kenny. Soccer is big business and a professional career is fragile. So good luck to Shea, but MLS doesn't need to rely on luck. It's time for the league to invest in a rare commodity it could use most -- a homegrown, marketable American player who could be a potential star.

And that's where Shea's breakout 2011 season has put him.

U.S. Soccer's Klinsmann era has been launched with an unexpected youth movement, and Shea is one of the shining gems of this brave new world. The early Rod Stewart flaxen hair, the fast feet and his cut inside from the left power-ball shooting move is fun to watch. It's enough to have more than a few folks -- including Klinsmann -- thinking this kid could be for real.

After the Ecuador defeat (excuse the digression, but Tim Ream is one experiment that needs to be put on hold for a while), Klinsmann proclaimed that Shea had "secured his starting spot in the starting lineup." The head coach talked up the tandem of Timothy Chandler and Shea, and how they are beginning to develop an instinctive understanding on the U.S. left flank.

Hopefully, the instincts of the top brass at MLS HQ are screaming for the league to not let Shea go to Europe anytime soon. Once upon a time, MLS invested in Landon Donovan and has reaped dividends from that decision ever since. But later on the league refused to do the same with Clint Dempsey. Most perplexingly, in 2008, MLS let Jozy Altidore head to Spain just as his Madison Avenue profile was bursting across giant billboards. Back then, Altidore was in exactly the same spot as Shea is now. He was a charismatic, young player who was capturing the imagination of American soccer fans and the media.

At that time, I wrote that MLS should make Altidore a huge offer to stay with the Red Bulls with the proviso that he would have the freedom to make a deal with any team in Europe after the 2010 World Cup. The league could have built its image around a groundbreaking new star, and Altidore could have made a great short-term deal with the potential for an even bigger windfall not too far down the line. But that didn't happen.

Presumably, Altidore has boosted his bank balance considerably, but his career is only just beginning to get traction again after being stalled for three seasons all over Europe. And it's not beyond the realm of possibility that Shea would do the same if he leaves MLS at the end of this season. To be fair, MLS has built stadiums, added franchises (and sponsors) and expanded its footprint since Altidore left for his ill-fated Villarreal deal. But there's a strong chance the league could have made even more progress if Altidore had stayed a while longer and continued to thrive in New York.

That's a hypothetical, but it's a fact that MLS has invested in substantial contracts for designated players like Blaise Nkufo and Nery Castillo and got nothing in return. There is always an element of Russian roulette in signing players to big contracts, but if MLS doesn't make a major league effort to lock up its rising Lone Star state star, then all I can say is: Gimme a Brek.