Five key questions for Jurgen Klinsmann, U.S. national team

With Clint Dempsey not in camp, Jurgen Klinsmann has a variety of options to consider playing alongside lead striker Jozy Altidore. We saw the Altidore-Gyasi Zardes combo against Costa Rica, and while it didn't exactly light things up on the first go-round, that doesn't mean we won't see it again.

The better bet to start next to Altidore is Bobby Wood, who has been playing regularly and producing for his club team. The memories of his CONCACAF Cup goal are also fresh, and after all the big goals he has scored this year (against Germany, the Netherlands and Mexico), Wood has earned a chance to start in a qualifier.

Jordan Morris is arguably the most exciting young prospect in the U.S. player pool, and he has done very well with the chances he's been given, but is he ready to step in and start in a qualifier, even against a minnow? That might be a step too far at this point, but it's a safe bet we see him play.

Bobby Wood (Getty Images)

Klinsmann made it clear that he wants to give opportunities to his young forwards to help them keep growing.

"You have to continue this process and give them opportunities and minutes on the field and you will, over time, see if they're capable of stepping up one day in a World Cup," Klinsmann said. "If you don't do that, if you don't take those risks at a certain time, then we don't get answers.

"We believe they're ready to give everything they have," Klinsmann said. "I don't expect from them three goals tomorrow night. I expect for them to have lots of energy and be confident and give everything you have. They're going to continue to grow over time. Especially in the forward positions, it's about learning experiences. It's about building confidence and smelling the thinner air in an international game where you can mature.

"At the end of these games, you'll know what you're maybe still lacking, what you're missing still to make your next step in your career. They all have, hopefully, a lot of steps in their career and that's what we're going to do. We're going to continue that process and we are confident that they will give a lot of energy back to us."

Klinsmann has an affinity for playing DeAndre Yedlin as a right winger, but now that Yedlin is playing regularly for Sunderland at right back — the position he has played the most in his career — Klinsmann might have to reconsider his options.

If Yedlin stays on the right wing, then Fabian Johnson stays put at right back, but if Klinsmann shows some faith in Yedlin to be good enough defensively to hold down the right back slot, then Friday's qualifier would be a good opportunity to deploy Johnson at midfield and see if he can help spark the attack, and perhaps most importantly, help provide some service for Jozy Altidore.

For his part, Yedlin made it clear he was feeling very comfortable at right back at the moment thanks to the run of games he has enjoyed there with Sunderland.

"I'm feeling good," Yedlin said. "Obviously, when you're getting games, you're getting confidence as well. Even though the results haven't been the best, personally, I just feel like I'm kind of getting back in the groove of things and under [Sam] Allardyce. It's a bit more defensive, a bit more direct, so I'm working on my defensive game and I think that's definitely improving."

Yedlin wouldn't say which position he enjoyed playing the most, choosing to keep things diplomatic and maintaining some mystery heading into Friday's qualifier.

"I think it depends on the coach and depends on the day," Yedlin said. "It's obviously whatever they like me to play. Any position. I really don't mind either position. I like to attack obviously. I'm a bit more used to right back, a bit more comfortable, but right mid is definitely a position I've played and a position I'm getting more comfortable in."

St. Vincent and the Grenadines is the perfect opponent to give Yedlin a start at right back. The Vincy Heat do boast speed in their attack, but Yedlin should be able to handle that, which would give him a good warm-up ahead of what should be a much tougher challenge from Trinidad & Tobago.

DaMarcus Beasley may or may not be done with the U.S., but for now he has been left out as Klinsmann tries to develop younger options for a left back position that has been a trouble spot for most of his tenure as coach.

Tim Ream and Brek Shea are the options heading into this camp, with Ream looking like a very good candidate after holding his own at the position in the September friendlies against Peru and Brazil. Ream lacks the top-end speed Klinsmann would prefer from a left back, but he is disciplined defensively and an excellent passer out of the back.

Shea is a threat going forward, and his physical attributes match up well against any number of different styles of wingers, but his defending and defensive positioning need work, even though he did show progress in those areas after getting a run of games at left back early in the 2015 season with Orlando City.

One option that would address the void at left back, but might cost the team in other areas, is Fabian Johnson. He has played left back and would probably be the best option there in the U.S. pool, but Klinsmann seems to desire playing him further forward.

"When I have a player like Tim that can play the left back in the same way he plays the center back role, this is a good feeling," Klinsmann said on Thursday. "It's good to have that and it gives us different options and it means I can maybe put Fabian Johnson in the midfield, where he currently plays with his club team, and have somebody else maybe covering the right side."

Images of Darlington Nagbe slicing through MLS defenses over the past month have been enough to ramp up the hype surrounding his first national team call-up, and now that he is with the team in St. Louis for Friday's qualifier, the question everyone wants to know is whether he is ready to step in and start.

It is probably a bit early to expect Nagbe to start in a qualifier in his first cap, but he is a safe bet to see playing time on Friday. If he can make the most of that chance, then a role in Tuesday's trip to Trinidad could be a possibility.

Nagbe will likely have to bide his time while established players man the wings, but given the fact Fabian Johnson and Gyasi Zardes can play multiple positions, Nagbe could shoot up the U.S. depth chart with some good cameos in the upcoming qualifiers.

Matt Miazga is 20 years old, and enjoying a dream year that saw him go from Under-20 player and New York Red Bulls reserve to national team call-up and MLS Defender of the Year candidate.

Will that rapid rise include an appearance on Friday?

Klinsmann isn't likely to hand Miazga a start but Friday is the perfect match to introduce the young defender, even in a late cameo. For one thing, it would cap-tie Miazga, though Klinsmann insisted on Thursday that his decision to call in Miazga had nothing to do with wanting to cap-tie him.

Another young defender Klinsmann could turn to in central defense is Ventura Alvarado, a player who hasn't been seeing playing time with Club America, but who Klinsmann rates highly as a top center back of the future. If Klinsmann decides he would rather save Matt Besler for the Trinidad & Tobago match, with its much more dangerous attacking threats, Alvarado could start. Friday's friendly would be a perfect opportunity to help Alvarado rebuild some of the confidence he may have lost in recent months.