Will he start or wonÆt he? If he starts, will he play on the right side or the left?
Those are among the questions U.S. star DaMarcus Beasley has been wondering.
''It's irritating not to know,'' Beasley said Monday in Hamburg. ''Of course, it's better to know. It helps you get your mind set. It wouldn't matter to me if I'm on the right, the left or the middle. But I don't even know if I'll even be playing the first game. He hasn't made up his lineup.''
''He'' is U.S. coach Bruce Arena, who confirmed Tuesday that he hasn't decided on a starting lineup for next Monday's opening game against the Czech Republic in Gelsenkirchen.
Four years ago, Beasley, then 20, was a surprise starter in the U.S. lineup when it opened with a 3-2 victory over Portugal. Now, it would be a surprise if Beasley didn't start, but several factors are at play.
Beasley's recent form with the national team has been mediocre, and he was in and out of the lineup at Dutch champion PSV. The most logical scenario would be that Beasley remains in the lineup but as a right-sided midfielder. The move from the left to the right would allow Beasley, Arena's best defensive specialist among his outside midfielders, to track Czech star Pavel Nedved, and also open up a spot on the left side for left-footed Bobby Convey, arguably the most improved player in the U.S. team.
''We have several guys who are comfortable on either side of the field, and sometimes you'll move a guy to another side of the field to open the door to get another player onto the field,'' assistant coach Glenn Myernick said Monday. ''What any coach tries to do is, at all times, try to have their best soccer players on the field and maybe this isn't their ideal position; that's okay, as long as they're on the field and that's probably the case with Beasley.''