USA vs. Ghana: Why is so much of the US team German?
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Mark Sappenfield Staff writer
The men of the US soccer team will begin play in one of the hardest World Cup groups June 16, without their all-time best player. Coach J眉rgen Klinsmann has left Landon Donovan at home, questioning his fitness and commitment to the team.
With games against Ghana (June 16), Portugal (June 22), and Germany (June 26), the United States will be hard pressed even to qualify for the knockout stages. But Klinsmann鈥檚 focus might be beyond these two weeks. His job is to rebuild an aging US team, and he鈥檚 turned to his native Germany to do it.
Team USA will have a distinctly Northern European flavor in Brazil, with five players having been born and raised in Germany, one in Norway, and one raised in Iceland after being born to Icelandic parents attending college in Alabama.
These players all play in European leagues, a crucible of competition above what America鈥檚 Major League Soccer can offer. Klinsmann will be counting on that experience.
But the moves have also been forced on Klinsmann. Many of America鈥檚 young prospects have stalled. The overseas recruits 鈥� who, except for Icelander Aron Johannsson, all have one American parent 鈥� are partly to fill in that gap.
The only member of the 鈥渓ost generation鈥� that failed to qualify for the London Olympics to make the 2014 World Cup team? Norwegian-American Mikkel 鈥淢ix鈥� Diskerud. In Brazil, he鈥檒l be wearing Donovan鈥檚 No. 10 shirt.
