How Long Before Bradley Calls Up Altidore?

Jozy Altidore’s name was conspicuous by its absence when U.S. coach Bob Bradley announced his squad list for tomorrow’s friendly against Brazil. Maybe it was the calf injury the 17-year-old Altidore picked up playing against the New England Revolution two weeks ago. But ESPN’s Jeff Carlisle says that had Altidore been healthy, he probably wouldn’t have been called up anyway.

Is this due to Altidore’s ability, his age or something else entirely? Carlisle points out that Bradley has made a habit of making MLS coaches happy with his national team selections. For example, he tries to bring in players from teams (this week it’s Kansas City) that have the week off. In particular, he suggests that Bradley tries to select players from whomever the opponent of the L.A. Galaxy is, so as to balance out the inevitable selection of Landon Donovan.

But even if Altidore had been healthy and the New York Red Bulls had a bye week, Bradley would probably not have picked him, says Carlisle. Not yet. But why do young players like Hannover 96’s Sal Zizzo, Wolfsburg’s Kamani Hill or Heerenveen’s Michael Bradley get the call-up instead of Jozy? Precisely because — at 17 — Altidore’s already being hyped up as the Next Big Thing in American soccer. For one thing, nobody wants to repeat the mistakes made with Freddy Adu. For another, throwing him into a match against a world-class team like Brazil might do damage to his confidence. That said, Carlisle believes Altidore’s time is soon, likely at the beginning of next year.