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U.S. soccer to move closer to starting World Cup lineup with game against Turkey

Two weeks remain before the United States plays its opening game in the World Cup in South Africa.

And with the 23-man roster having been finalized on Wednesday, today’s send-off match against Turkey at Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia marks the first opportunity for coach Bob Bradley to begin sorting out who will be in his starting 11 when the Americans meet England on June 12.

So whereas Bradley used Tuesday’s game in Hartford, Conn., against the Czech Republic to get a last look at the bubble players, the lineup he uses today figures to be a lot closer to the one he will use.

Players like goalkeeper Tim Howard, defender Carlos Bocanegra, midfielders Landon Donovan, Clint Dempsey and Michael Bradley, and striker Jozy Altidore — all of whom rested Tuesday — should play against the Turks as Bob Bradley begins to try and settle on the right combination.

Howard is the clear No. 1 goalkeeper, Michael Bradley the top defensive midfielder and Altidore the top striker. That much is set in stone. After that, there are many questions. How will Bob Bradley deploy players like Bocanegra, Donovan and Dempsey? All will be on the field somewhere, but where?

“With regard to Clint and Landon, at different times they get used in different ways, whether that means tilted left, tilted right, or playing a little bit underneath,” Bob Bradley said. “As you get closer, there are sometimes considerations in terms of the opponent. But that’s sort of at the end of it all.”

In Bradley’s preferred 4-4-2 formation, Donovan and Dempsey are asked to trigger the attack from the outside midfield positions with Michael Bradley and either Ricardo Clark or Maurice Edu playing defensive roles in the center.

But with the absence of injured striker Charlie Davies, either Donovan or Dempsey likely will be used as a support striker behind Altidore. And while Donovan said he would prefer to play on either wing, he feels he can make an impact from anywhere.

The defense is unsettled, as well. Bocanegra, the team captain, usually plays left back for his club, Rennes, in France. But most often the U.S. plays him at center back, and Bocanegra said he finds it easier to help organize the defense when he is playing in the middle.

Where he plays in South Africa may have a lot to do with health — his own, as well as that of fellow defenders Jay DeMerit and Oguchi Onyewu. Bocanegra had hernia surgery May 5, while DeMerit is recovering from an eye injury and a lower abdominal strain. Onyewu’s appearance Tuesday was his first in a game since rupturing his left patellar tendon in a World Cup qualifier last October. The 6-4, 210-pounder went 65 minutes Tuesday and was badly beaten, when the Czech Republic’s Tomas Sivok jumped over him to head in a free kick.