“Every time a player is not getting his playing time with his club team, it’s a concern for the national team. It’s always put into consideration,” Klinsmann said. “Right now, not having Tim Howard play, not having Brad Guzan play is a bit of a bummer for us. It’s difficult to see, but it’s the way it is. We are not able to change that because the club coaches make their own decisions, and we have to respect that and go from there.

AD

AD

“Obviously, the good thing with both Brad and Tim is that they have a tremendous amount of experience. Do they want to play week in and week out and be sharp as much as possible? Yes, but if they come off the bench, they know how to play the game. Helpful there is experience, so the level of concern we have is then not that big because they know how to handle that situation.”

For the autumn qualifiers, Guzan (Aston Villa) started against St. Vincent and the Grenadines in a 5-1 victory and Howard (Everton) manned the net for a 0-0 draw at Trinidad and Tobago.

D.C. United’s Bill Hamid, the third-choice keeper for those two matches, is sidelined for several months recuperating from knee surgery. Real Salt Lake’s Nick Rimando, the No. 3 keeper at the 2014 World Cup and a periodic starter over several years, is far along in his return from minor knee surgery.

AD

AD

Other candidates include William Yarbrough (Leon), Luis Robles (New York Red Bulls), David Bingham (San Jose Earthquakes) and Sean Johnson (Chicago Fire). Robles and Bingham earned starting honors for the friendlies at the recently completed winter camp.