BY RIDGE MAHONEY, Senior Editor Sobering thought: Frankie Hejduk played more games for the United States at the Gold Cup than he has for Bayer Leverkusen reserve team this season. That he played every minute of the tournament at right back and performed well says something about his determination and resiliency. “I haven’t lost it,” said Hejduk. “You have to keep an open mind. You’ve got to always think that you’ve got a chance. If you let your guard down it’s pretty much over. “And it might only be one chance so you have to capitalize.” Chances for Hejduk have been few in the past year. He hasn’t played for Leverkusen’s first team since picking up a red card against Hamburg in April, 2001. Prior to the Gold Cup he hadn’t been seen in a U.S. jersey since last March against Brazil. That he’s still in the national team picture and was named to the squad for a friendly against Italy Wednesday (2:30 pm ET, ESPN) says a lot about the few quality choices head coach Bruce Arena has at outside back. A broken shoulder and a couple of minor injuries have limited Hejduk to just three games this season for the Leverkusen reserve team, which plays in the Regionalliga Nord of Germany’s Third Division. “It’s tough for Bruce,” said Hejduk. “As a coach you want your players to be playing consistently. I understood his reasoning. What can you do? That’s how it goes.”

BruceGs backline options

On the right, Tony Sanneh and Steve Cherundolo are the top two choices. The left side has David Regis and Greg Vanney as well as Jeff Agoos. Carlos Bocanegra started the five Gold Cup games at left back but Arena believes his future is as a central defender. Ditto for Pablo Mastroeni. “If you’re not a right back or a left back on an everyday basis it’s hard to manufacture one,” said Arena. “In a little bit of time Richard Mulrooney has done pretty good there although I haven’t had a chance to use him. “The guys that play the most are Cherundolo and Sanneh, Regis and Vanney and maybe Agoos. We’ve looked at Bobby Convey, he could be a left back. We looked at Eddie Lewis.” Cory Gibbs? “It’s a little late to be looking at new faces,” said Arena. “We tried Pablo on the outside against Korea [a 1-0 loss Dec. 9 in Seogwipo]. He’s not comfortable at right back, he doesn’t have the pace.” Hejduk surely has the pace to play right back but has lacked the vital subleties of crossing and defending. He showed maturity and discipline during the Gold Cup by going forward less and tackling more. “In general I think I’ve been solid defensively,” said Hejduk. “I haven’t gone forward a lot on those crazy runs I like to do but I’ve been picking and choosing better times to go. Not every time but the right time. “Before I was just go, go, go and who cares what happens on the opposite end of the field. That can hurt you, especially if you’re playing right back.”

Working out

For the past year or so he’s spent several days a week lifting weights, trying to graft power and strength onto his incredible speed. If there is a benefit to not playing in Germany it is the extra work Hejduk has imposed upon himself. “The players over there are bigger and stronger,” said Hejduk. “Before I could always get away with my speed. “Over there everyone is fast. I’m still one of the fastest guys on my team but the guys who are slower aren’t that much slower and they really know how to use their bodies, so you’ve got to do something. “I was always one of those dudes who’d say, ‘I’m not working out!’ But it’s been good for me. I think it’s made me a little bit faster and stronger.” There are many more hours to fill away from training and games now that he is divorced and his son, Nesta, lives in Florida. His son visits three or four times a year. “Of course I miss him and I want to be with him as much as I can but you have to do certain things,” said Hejduk. “I have to work now and it’s not going to last forever.”

Acclimating to Germany

Hejduk has shorn his California surf mop for a close-cropped look. The upper body is more defined. He negotiates the city and its citizens much better than he did when he arrived. “The first two years were incredibly hard,” he said. “I know places, I know people, I know the language. Not fluently, but I understand everything. I have my places to go to and I have my routines. “The first two years I’d go home thinking, ‘What am I doing here, where’s my surfboard, where’s the sun?’ I know it’s going to be cold and rainy. You just learn to get used to it. The upside is the beer’s good.” The Third Division isn’t so good but it beats the bench. Hejduk makes the best of it. He trains with the first team every day and if healthy will get his 90 minutes on the weekends. “It’s competitive,” he said of games that can draw a few hundred fans or 10,000. “It’s a thug league. You have a lot of players in their early 30s that just retired from the Bundesliga. There are some decent players there. “When I was with the reserves last year we won the Fourth Division and that was a walk in the park. “It’s not as fast as the Bundesliga but when you get the ball you don’t have all day on it. You have to play quick and play fast. “In a way it helps because I can try some things I wouldn’t try in the Bundesliga. I end up getting a lot more crosses. For me that’s always where I’ve struggled.” Securing a spot on the World Cup roster will be a struggle as well. More will be needed than the blinding speed and box-crashing binges of France ’98. As the U.S. celebrated its Gold Cup win on the Rose Bowl field there were flashes of the old Frankie. He implored the crowd to pump it up, he swayed to his own reggae beat, he beamed a smile as he held the trophy. “I just have to find a way to get myself back on the team somehow,” he said of the U.S. or Leverkusen or both. “I’m thankful Bruce let me back in for the Gold Cup.”