Best athletes just aren’t playing soccer in U.S.

Photograph by Matthias Calmer

This trope comes up every time soccer percolates into the American consciousness, that our best athletes just aren’t playing soccer. I saw it for the nth time this month today on Yahoo!.

Until 8-year-olds aspire to be Landon Donovan rather than LeBron James, the United States is as far away from matching the new world-standard Spain as it has been with any World Cup champion of the past 80 years.

I'm not saying I disagree.  In fact, I've been saying it for a decade now.  But what bothers me is that no one has taken the time to really mine this particular meme for all it is worth.  This is blog fodder of the purest form. Link bait extraordinaire!  So I'm, um...  taking the bait and am doing it myself.   Who would make the "USA best athlete" starting eleven, and why?

In the popular 4-2-3-1 formation:

Goalkeeper:
Tim Howard - Well, we'll start out by taking a step back and not dislodging the incumbent from this position.  Tim Howard has established himself as a world-class keeper but he's also a world-class athlete.  He is 6'3", 210lbs and was a successful basketball player in high school. He was even "drafted" by the Harlem Globetrotters last year.  I see no reason that Howard shouldn't be on this team.

Defense:
Dwyane Wade -  I tried to avoid picking too many obvious names, and Wade is certainly someone I would rather have avoided considering the recent hoopla surrounding him.  And though he's someone more known for his offensive prowess, the fact remains that he is exactly what we would look for in an attacking fullback.  He is 6'4", 220lbs and in basketball he can get to the rim whenever he wants.  So he's quick and good brining the ball through traffic.  That quickness is also an asset on the defensive side of his game as he is very good at closing down passing lanes and shooters (who would likely be the wide-men crossing the ball on our pitch).  He has a tendency to gamble for the steal (dive in for the tackle), but we can  live with that.  If it works, you wouldn't want anyone else starting (or finishing!) the counter.  If it doesn't work, well, the following players should be enough to cover for Wade's freelancing.

Dwight Howard - Following his fellow NBA star, Howard is practically the cliched "first name on the team sheet" here.  At 6'11 with a 40" vertical leap, the two-time NBA Defensive Player of the Year is at his best defending the net and would be unbeatable in the air.  The knock on Howard is the lack of a polished offensive game, but if he's able to get his head on something ten feet in the air (skip to :40 into this video to see him hitting his head on the rim practicing a dunk) from a set-piece, that's all we'd ask.

Ndamukong Suh - Suh has been described as a "physical freak" since he was a high schooler.   Today he is 6'4" and 300lbs with the kind of speed and footwork that has him being compared to some of the greatest defensive NFL players of all time.  Last year in college, he was able to dominate games from his defensive tackle (along the line of scrimmage) which is very difficult to do.  In our defense his size and speed would simply swallow opposing forwards.  You couldn't get past him, and you couldn't find your man if you were looking to pass the ball past him.  Suh would also be eligible to play for Jamaica, so one complication would be if we couldn't attract this star away from the Reggae Boyz.

Darrelle Revis - Our other fullback spot would go to Revis, the best shutdown corner in the NFL and perhaps the best corner since Deion Sanders in his pomp.  As a cornerback, Revis is charged with defending the other team's wing player - in the NFL that's a wide receiver.  Revis is so good that in one-on-one coverage most teams simply ignore his side of the field.  That kind of athleticism (6', 200lbs, 4.4sec 40-yard dash) on our wing would shut off that outlet for the ball.  Teams would have to play through the middle, which would play right into Suh... which as we just discussed, is not going to be very successful for the opposition.

Midfield:

Troy Polamalu and Ray Lewis - These two NFL stars would patrol the center of our midfield and provide a screen in front of out back line.  As safety and middle linebacker, respectively, these two are the best at patrolling the center of the field and disrupting - if not exploding! - anything the offense tries to do across the middle.  "In the flat", in football parlance.  These two are also the leaders of their teams.  They call the defensive plays and direct their teammates.  They are also their teams heart and soul - the emotional hub of their teams.  This USA soccer team would feed off the energy and drive of these two.  They would form an incredibly formidable engine room.

Rajon Rondo - The creative hub of our team would be Rondo.  As an NBA point guard, his job is to run the offense - distributing the ball to his teammates if he can and score himself if the opportunity presents itself.  Rondo has shown a flair for playing in the biggest stages, winning an NBA title in 2008 and taking his team, the Boston Celtics, to a Final this year as well.  Rondo can probe the defense with his own runs with the ball and he can pass out of tight situations and find a better placed teammate.  He can also rebound surprisingly well for a player his size and in his position, which speaks to a great sense of spacing and timing.   That would serve him well on our football pitch.

Lebron James - Supporting the attack would be another obvious name - one I tried to leave off the team, but in the end I couldn't.  Like Suh, Lebron James is a physical freak.  He is 6'8", 250lbs.  I imagine his role on our team as comparable to Dirk Kuyt's for the Netherlands.  Nominally a forward, he plays more on the wing and will even support his defence if say Dwyane Wade comes forward from his fullback position.  James can finish a play, but is also happy to be the distributer and is a very good passer of the ball .

Reggie Bush - If Lebron is out Kuyt then Reggie Bush is our Arjen Robben.  He's the danger man in space with the speed and unpredictability of movement that can unlock even the most packed defences.  His NFL team, the New Orleans Saints won the Super Bowl in no small part due to Bush's ability to run with the ball either from a set play, or from a kickoff or punt where he got to run at the opposition.  And not to mention that our team will need some WAG credibility.

Forward:
Kobe Bryant - The ultimate closer.  The player with the killer instinct; the meanest streak.  Kobe is a finisher and as our striker he will score goals.  Kobe may be all about the glory and may only want to win on his own terms - in ways that glorify Kobe - but that's okay in a striker.  There's no more selfish position on a football side and Kobe has a perfect mindset - and of course the athleticism - for the role.  Kobe also grew up in Europe as is well known as a Barcelona fan.

That's my starting XI.  I would also love to see Peyton Manning on the bench playing a "Sheringham for ManU" role.  Coming in for limited minutes but being able to see the field and make something happen.

What about you?  If you're Bob Bradley - or Phil Jackson or Mike Tomlin - who plays for your USA Men's National Team?