The Short List: A Chance To Shine

By Allen Ramsey

After a first game that looked more like a training session against Grenada, the U.S. will have presumably its biggest test of the group stage Wednesday night against Honduras. As the Hondurans showed Bob Bradley’s first choice eleven in Chicago a month ago, this match will be no cakewalk.

Win or lose, the U.S. will have every opportunity to make the knockout rounds with a win over Haiti, but for many of the younger stars of the U.S. this game could represent a golden opportunity to earn more chances on the pitch in the near future.

With Bradley’s squad being handed extra slots for the competition it looks as though Bradley will have plenty of options in the late stages of the competition, but the players who are getting chances to shine in the group stage could earn the coaches trust by showing well against Honduras.

Here’s a look at some of the players who could use to show well against Honduras to earn a more regular spot with the Nats.

Kyle Beckerman: With Ricardo Clark and Benny Feilhaber both on the list of extra players Bradley has at his disposal, Beckerman could be on the outside looking in when the competition heats up. His showing against Grenada was unspectacular, but very efficient. Beckerman seems to fit the mold Bradley likes in a holding mid and has shown some competence on the ball to go along with strong defensive skill. Honduras will test his ability to distribute under pressure, and could give a bit more understanding to the coaches of how ready he is for the big stage.

Freddy Adu: Adu could again be on the outs if he doesn’t perform well against the Hondurans. Against Grenada, playing in behind Charlie Davies, Adu did a decent job. However, he was never under massive amounts of pressure and still failed to show many flashes of brilliance. A good showing against one of CONCACAF’s better sides could find Adu more time on the field, but a bad showing could have Bradley opting for his more trusted options in the later rounds.

Chad Marshall: Marshall should have a golden opportunity to show out against a team that loves to feed crosses into the box. His form in Major League Soccer over the last couple of years has been fantastic, but the match against Honduras will be the defenders first chance to show what he can do against a top quality side in quite a while.

Stuart Holden/ Robbie Rogers: The 2010 World Cup squad should have room for at least one of these players on it, but probably not both. Given that the Hexagonal is looking more and more like it could come down to the final few matches, Rogers and Holden may not get too many chances to shine after the Gold Cup. The options in wide areas on the Gold Cup roster are slim enough that both should get playing time throughout, but a good showing tonight could be a deciding factor in who Bradley favors in the future.

Allen Ramsey is an assistant editor of Goal.com USA. The Short List runs every Wednesday afternoon on Goal.com.

For more on the U.S. National Team visit Goal.com's U.S. National Team page.