American goalies

Steven Goff has an interesting catch in today's Post: the three US goalies in Germany this summer will probably be Keller, Howard and Hahnemann, and that no MLS goalies will called in:

"In all fairness, do you punish Tim Howard for being at Man United behind one of the best goalkeepers in the world?" Arena said. "Do you punish Marcus Hahnemann? These are guys who, in their own rights, have earned an opportunity to be part of the World Cup roster. Is it set in stone at this point? No, but I think we have three goalkeepers who appear to be a little bit ahead of the domestic keepers at the moment."

This is almost certainly the right call. Although one of the strengths of MLS is their keepers, there isn't one goalkeeper who has stood head and shoulders above the rest over the last year. Hartmann is not good enough with his feet, Thornton is too immobile, Guzan is too young and Reis is a touch too adventurous. The only one who might have gotten short shrift is Joe Cannon, and even he didn't have as good a year as he did in 2004. Keller, Hahnemann and Howard are unquestionably the top three choices in my mind.

The biggest question, re: goalies, is who would replace Keller if he picked up an injury. Do you go with the match sharp Hahnemann or the rusty, but with top flight experience Howard? Not an easy call. I think they'll probably both be called up for the Jamaica match despite it not falling on an international date--Howard's a sub for Man U, and Hahnemann's season is essentially finished with Reading's promotion--and we'll get a chance to compare them then.