The Summer of Stars is in full swing on FOX with the European Championship in Germany and the United States-hosted Copa América. Both tournaments characteristic the world’s greatest soccer gamers, however what number of of them are all-time nice gamers for his or her respective nations?
To reply that query, FOX Sports has put collectively 11 all-time worldwide groups. Up subsequent is the United States.
*All-time stats and information for people talked about under seek advice from males’s nationwide crew solely
GK: Brad Friedel
Caps: 82
Notable golf equipment: Liverpool, Blackburn Rovers, Aston Villa, Tottenham Hotspur
It’s arduous to not go together with Tim Howard, the Americans’ all-time caps chief in objective who made a World Cup file 15 saves in the 2014 spherical of 16 loss to Belgium. But with all respect to Howard, Friedel was the most proficient in a protracted line of elite USMNT keepers. In 2002, he backstopped the most profitable U.S. crew of the trendy period, saving two penalty kicks in the group stage — together with one in an important 1-1 tie with World Cup co-host South Korea — as the U.S. reached the quarterfinals. Friedel retired from the nationwide crew a yr earlier than Germany 2006 however continued to excel in the English Premier League into his 40s. He nonetheless holds the Prem file for consecutive video games performed, with 310.
DEF: Sergiño Dest
Caps: 32
Notable golf equipment: Ajax, FC Barcelona, AC Milan, PSV Eindhoven
As strong a servant as Steve Cherundolo was as the USMNT’s No. 1 proper again for greater than a decade, Dest is the most gifted proper again in program historical past. Born and raised in the Netherlands to a Dutch mom and American serviceman dad, he rejected the advances of then-Oranje supervisor Ronald Koeman and dedicated his worldwide future to the U.S. in 2019. Just 23, he is already suited up for Ajax, Barcelona, AC Milan and present membership PSV — groups with 17 European titles between them. Dest was a standout at the 2022 World Cup, beginning all for video games and offering the game-winning help to Christian Pulisic in the 1-0 group stage win over Iran — a victory that put the U.S. into the knockout stage.
DEF: Eddie Pope
Caps: 82
Notable golf equipment: D.C. United, Real Salt Lake
Widely thought of the greatest U.S. defender of all time regardless of spending his complete skilled profession in Major League Soccer, Pope backstopped his nation to the World Cup quarterfinals in 2002 and was a first-choice starter in 1998 and 2006, too. His elegant model on the subject and low-key method off of it belied his bodily dominance, significantly in the air. The University of North Carolina product was additionally excellent at membership stage, main D.C. United to a few MLS Cups, two Supporters Shields and Concacaf, Intercontinental and U.S. Open Cup titles in the late Nineteen Nineties.
DEF: Carlos Bocanegra
Caps: 110
Notable golf equipment: Chicago Fire, Fulham, Rangers
A starter at the 2006 and 2010 World Cups, Bocanegra captained the USMNT at the latter and at the 2009 Confederations Cup, the place the U.S. shocked all-conquering Spain in the semis earlier than falling 3-2 to Brazil in the remaining. The UCLA product additionally wore the armband for Fulham in the Premier League and for Rangers in Scotland. In addition to his management and lockdown defending, Bocanegra additionally had a penchant for scoring in huge moments. His 14 objectives are the most of any U.S. heart again, and he was Fulham’s second prime marksman throughout the 2006-07 season, trailing solely fellow American Brian McBride.
Caps: 41
Notable golf equipment: Fulham
For a long time, the USMNT’s left again depth chart was so shallow {that a} parade of proper backs or transformed wingers — Frankie Hejduk, Eddie Lewis and DaMarcus Beasley amongst them — ended up manning the hard-to-fill spot. But pure lefty and famous Star Wars fan Robinson has made the place his personal. England born and raised, the lightning fast two-way fullback was one in all the prime American performers at the 2022 World Cup, serving to shut down right-sided Three Lions stars Jude Bellingham and Bukayo Saka in a scoreless draw with England in Qatar. He’s solely gotten higher since, rising as one in all the greatest left backs in the Premier League in 2023-24 and successful the Cottagers’ participant of the season award.
Caps: 51
Notable golf equipment: FC Schalke 04, Juventus
It’s not simply that McKennie has been an computerized starter ever since making his U.S. debut — and scoring — in opposition to Portugal in 2017, when he was nonetheless simply a teen. Now 25, the hard-running Texan was one in all the prime midfielders in all of Italy’s Serie A final season. In May, McKennie helped Juventus win the Italian Cup, his second since arriving in Turin in 2020. He’s performed in the UEFA Champions League with each Juve and German membership Schalke, which signed the six-foot, box-to-box midfielder out of the FC Dallas academy in 2016. McKennie was voted U.S. Soccer’s Male Player of the Year in 2020 and he was named the Concacaf Nations League finals MVP a yr later. He began all 4 video games for the U.S. at the 2022 World Cup and likewise helped the USMNT retain their Nations League crown in 2023 and 2024, enjoying all 210 minutes on this yr’s finals as the Americans topped Jamaica in the semis and Mexico in the title decider.
MID: John O’Brien
Caps: 32
Notable golf equipment: Ajax
Injuries reduce quick his ascendant profession, nevertheless it’s no coincidence that O’Brien was a key determine on the two most profitable U.S. males’s groups of the trendy period. The cerebral, technically good, two-way central midfielder logged each minute of the Americans’ run to the semifinals of the 2000 Olympics and the quarters at the 2002 World Cup, the place he scored the opening objective in the 3-1 group stage upset of Portugal.
“When he’s on the field, he makes us so much better,” U.S. captain Claudia Reyna mentioned at the time of O’Brien, who left his native California for Ajax’s famed academy at 16 and went on to assist the Amsterdam membership win two Dutch titles and attain the final eight of the Champions League. His final skilled match got here in 2006 at the age of 28.
MID: Tab Ramos
Caps: 87
Notable golf equipment: Real Betis, MetroStars
Arguably the most skillful attacking expertise in program historical past, Ramos was the piano participant on U.S. squads dominated by piano carriers at the 1990, ’94 and ’98 World Cups. Born in Uruguay, Ramos moved to New Jersey at 11 and shortly discovered himself on the identical youth crew as fellow future National Soccer Hall of Fame inductee John Harkes. He was drafted by the New York Cosmos of the outdated North American Soccer League whereas nonetheless in highschool, and although he accepted a university scholarship as an alternative, Ramos went on to play for Spain’s Real Betis (who he helped get promoted to La Liga) and Tigres of Mexico earlier than coming house to assist launch MLS in 1996 as the new league’s first signing. A yr after being named Concacaf’s greatest participant, in 1994, he helped the U.S. attain the semifinals of the Copa América — a run that included a surprising 3-0 group stage win over Argentina.
Caps: 66
Notable golf equipment: Borussia Dortmund, Chelsea FC, AC Milan
Still simply 25, Pulisic is effectively on his method towards changing into the greatest American males’s participant ever. He was the first U.S. participant to seem in and win the UEFA Champions League when he helped former membership Chelsea to the European title in 2021. He’s received 4 U.S. Soccer Player of the Year awards already, tied with Landon Donovan for the most all-time, and he scored the game-winner over Iran to ship the USMNT to the knockout stage of the 2022 World Cup. Pulisic is simply enhancing as his prime approaches. In his first season with Italian titan AC Milan in 2023-24, Pulisic set profession highs in objectives (15), video games (50) and minutes performed (3,617). His subsequent strike for the U.S. will pull him even with Brian McBride for fifth on the USMNT’s all-time scoring chart and simply two shy of fourth-place Eric Wynalda.
FW: Clint Dempsey
Caps: 141
Notable golf equipment: New England Revolution, Fulham, Tottenham Hotspur, Seattle Sounders FC
The solely American to seek out the web at three totally different World Cups (2006, 2010, 2014), Dempsey can be the joint-top scorer for the nationwide crew together with Donovan — although “Deuce” bagged his 57 profession U.S. objectives in 16 fewer video games. The rangy Texan would absolutely stand alone if not for a coronary heart ailment that sidelined him for components of 2016 and ’17. Dempsey can be nonetheless Fulham’s all-time main scorer in England’s Premier League, with 50 Prem objectives for the London membership between 2006-12. He tallied one other 47 instances for the Seattle Sounders and gained an MLS Cup earlier than calling it a profession halfway by means of the 2018 season.
FW: Landon Donovan
Caps: 157
Notable golf equipment: San Jose Earthquakes, LA Galaxy, Bayern Munich, Everton
Donovan burst on the scene at the 1999 FIFA U-17 World Cup, the place the Southern Californian gained the Golden Ball as the match’s greatest participant and led the Americans to the semifinals. Three years later, he scored twice at the fundamental occasion in Japan/Korea as the U.S. narrowly misplaced to Germany in the quarters. (Donovan was named the prime teenager at the 2002 World Cup afterward.) He had three objectives in 4 video games in South Africa in 2010, and he gained a file six MLS Cups between stints with topflight European golf equipment Bayer Leverkusen, Bayern Munich and Everton. With 58 profession assists, Donovan trails solely Brazilian nice Neymar for the most helpers ever at the worldwide stage.
Honorable point out
Tim Howard, Marcelo Balboa, DaMarcus Beasley, Claudio Reyna, Michael Bradley
Doug McIntyre is a soccer author for FOX Sports. Before becoming a member of FOX Sports in 2021, he was a employees author with ESPN and Yahoo Sports and he has lined the United States males’s and girls’s nationwide groups at a number of FIFA World Cups. Follow him at @ByDougMcIntyre.
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