I'm honestly not a fan of Leanders (the writer). Aside to Cramer - check
my post on page 2 for my total speculation on pro/rel.
Leander's prone to hot takes.
Within the soccer media, those folks are at the stage of Klinnsman's tenure as coach of the Nats that just about everything comes under criticism. They also really like to be snippy. Like... really enjoy it.
I really think he's reaching here.
The Gold Cup is the major tournament on the docket, and calling it "major" is a stretch.
The Gold Cup squad is just about always a B squad made up of MLS and Liga MX guys. Those guys don't really factor into your main squad. They're good players, just not quite good enough to compete at a World Cup level. He's correct that the post-World Cup year is usually the year people bring A teams, but....
The US won in 2013, so they're already qualified for the Confed Cup playoff. They could win the Gold Cup again this summer and make the playoff unnecessary, but it's far from critical that the US wins this tournament. They're likely to curb stomp any team in a playoff not named Mexico, and the US should probably win the Gold Cup on US soil *anyway*.
So Leander's arguing for team building for a tournament that really doesn't matter. If Klinnsman wants to use this friendly schedule to identify a few fringe guys that could, you know, help him out in the Gold Cup, I don't see what's the big deal.
You've also got some youth tourneys coming up, though, which is why you're seeing some younger guys being brought in. Klinnsman's putting a priority on the Olympics and the U-20 World Cup, and he should. Those guys need run in order to make a difference in those tournaments.
And guys like Rubio Rubin and Julian Green will be factoring in on the top shelf squad soon, anyway. I don't see any problem with bringing those guys in.
The only ones I find questionable are:
Brek Shea - because he sucks.Julian Green - dude's totally out of form and not playing for his club. Calling him up may send a bad message.Yarborough - He's not that great, plays at a position we're deep at, and is more likely to accept a call-up from Mexico
The "team-building" argument is hot-take garbage that was just a good excuse to pick up a freelance check.