’KEEPER STILL IN QUESTION
U.S. goalkeeping is its most uncertain in 30 years, and coach Gregg Berhalter sidestepped saying whether he would be comfortable starting Zack Steffen, Matt Turner or Ethan Horvath at the World Cup if they aren’t playing regularly for their Premier League clubs.
Steffen, 29, played in just one league game at Manchester City this season behind Ederson. Turner, 27, joins Arsenal next month from New England as a backup to Aaron Ramsdale. Horvath, 26, had just six league appearances at Nottingham Forest before replacing an injured Brice Samba in the final minutes of Sunday’s promotion playoff final.
“I’m not sure that the question needs to be answered right now,” Berhalter said Tuesday, a day before the U.S. plays Morocco in an exhibition at Cincinnati. “I think it’s time to just let all of this play out. And that’s the beauty of time in this case. So what we can do is assess the situations.“
Tony Meola, Kasey Keller, Brad Friedel and Tim Howard provided continuity and confidence as regular starters for most key matches of the 1989-2017 period.
Turner started eight of 14 World Cup qualifiers in this cycle and Berhalter said he will be in goal for the 15th-ranked U.S. against No. 24 Morocco.
Steffen is skipping the four World Cup prep matches in June, citing family reasons, and was replaced on the roster by 33-year-old Sean Johnson of Major League Soccer’s New York City.
Retired U.S. star Clint Dempsey said the goalkeepers should consider loans if they are not starting regularly.
“Whoever is going to win that spot is whoever is going to be playing more consistently,” the American career scoring co-leader said two weeks ago. “And if you’re not playing consistently for your club, then you need to go on loan and get those minutes, because it’s all about being sharp when that time comes.”
Berhalter wouldn’t say whether he would advocate a loan. The Premier League season opens Aug. 6 and the transfer window closes Sept. 1.
“That will be a conversation that we’ll have to have in August,” he said.
Alexi Lalas, a former U.S. defender now a Fox analyst, said Steffen may be too valuable as a backup at Man City, precluding a temporary move.
“Saying you want to go out on a loan isn’t going to necessarily make it
happen,” he said.
Lalas maintained that all three not playing heading into the World Cup opener on Nov. 21 “sets you up for an excuse.”
“I would all rather that our goalkeepers are playing, but I’m not worried that within the three months or whatever before they leave in November that they suddenly become bad goalkeepers and can’t save the ball,” he said. “In the international game, form can be fallacy.”
In other news:
Bayern Munich midfielder Malik Tillman was approved for a change of association from Germany to the United States by FIFA on Tuesday, three days after his 20th birthday. Forward Haji Wright and defender Joe Scally also could make debuts, though Berhalter said Scally won’t start today.
Weston McKennie is fit to play about 20 minutes as he regains fitness after breaking two bones in his left foot during Juventus’ Champions League match at Spain’s Villarreal on Feb. 22.
Cup shot still there
Ukrainian soccer star Oleksandr Zinchenko couldn’t hold back the tears as he tried to explain what it means to represent his country’s national team at this moment, with a spot at the World Cup within reach.
Ukraine is two games away from qualifying for the World Cup in Qatar, starting with a match against Scotland in Glasgow today (11:45 a.m., ESPN2, TUDN) — which was postponed in March following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. The winner at Hampden Park will play against Wales on Sunday in the decisive playoff.
“We want to give incredible emotions to the Ukrainian people because Ukrainians deserve it so much at this very moment,” Zinchenko, the Manchester City defender, said at a news conference. “Our mood, I would describe as a fighting mood, because everyone understands what is going on in Ukraine these days.”
Zinchenko put soccer in perspective, saying the one thing Ukrainians want is “to stop this war” but that those who could follow the game at home would do so.
“I’m pretty sure that all Ukraine who has this opportunity is going to watch us, and we are going to feel this support 100 percent,” he said.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy gave his blessing for Ukraine’s players and coach Oleksandr Petrakov to leave their homeland to prepare for and play what they hope will be two games in Britain this week.
“Clearly it’s a very difficult task to prepare your team for the game when every single player is thinking about mothers, fathers, close relatives, family back home in Ukraine,” Petrakov said. “We use all sorts of methods, even jokes. We motivate people in a light manner. But clearly every player understands how huge the task is.”
While Zinchenko and nine others in the 26-man squad have continued playing for clubs outside Ukraine since the war started in February, the home-based players have not had a competitive game since December. The national league paused for a midwinter break and never resumed because of Russia’s invasion.
With officials from Scotland and Wales giving their consent for FIFA to postpone the playoffs, Ukraine got extra months to prepare to field a team.
A mutual respect is clear between the two teams ahead of the game.
“Nothing but good thoughts for them and good wishes for them — except during the game,” Scotland coach Steve Clarke said Tuesday. “Because obviously they want to go to Qatar and represent their country. But I’m desperate to go to Qatar with Scotland.”
Notable
Panama has replaced Iran as Canada’s opponent for a World Cup prep exhibition on Sunday in Vancouver, British Columbia.
The Canadian Soccer Association announced Iran as the opponent for the friendly on May 12, then canceled last week following criticism by Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.
The Canadian government says 55 Canadian citizens and 30 permanent residents were among the 176 people killed when Ukraine International Airlines Flight 752 was shot down on Jan. 8, 2020. The plane was shot by an Iranian surface-to-air missile minutes after taking off from Tehran.
Los Angeles FC is finalizing a deal to bring veteran Italian defender Giorgio Chiellini to MLS.
Atlanta United defender Ronald Hernandez will miss three to four months after injuring a knee ligament in a 2-1 loss to Columbus.