Copa America Centenario Is Perfect Test for Jurgen Klinsmann's Master Plan

United States manager Jurgen Klinsmann has been in the spotlight for the majority of his five-year tenure, but as the Copa America Centenario arrives on American shores on Friday, the pressure is greater than ever.

The 16-team tournament that opens with the USMNT facing Colombia at Levi's Stadium will serve as a measuring stick for just how well Klinsmann's master plan is coming along. By bringing a side mixed with wily veterans and exciting youngsters to the Copa, the USMNT boss is trying to bridge the generational gap in the program ahead of the 2018 FIFA World Cup in Russia.

Klinsmann stated in a half-time interview with ESPN's Taylor Twellman during the recent friendly against Ecuador that the 23-man roster he has compiled for the Copa would be his World Cup side if he had to choose one right now. The prospect of that is both frightening and exciting.

Brad Guzan, Tim Howard, Geoff Cameron, Michael Orozco, Jermaine Jones, Kyle Beckerman, Clint Dempsey and Chris Wondolowski will all be 32 or older when the next World Cup rolls around. Not all of those players will stick around as USMNT mainstays for 24 more months, but in order for Klinsmann to let them go, he must start building a foundation for Russia with the young corps that's coming with him to the Copa.

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Dempsey, Jones, Cameron and both goalkeepers mentioned above are still vital parts of the USMNT. That may be a good thing for the Yanks if they want to chase a high place at an international competition this summer, but Father Time will catch up with some of them before the next World Cup. Each of the three outfielders mentioned could play alongside their replacement at some point during the Copa.

The most promising position in terms of building toward future success through the Copa is up front. Bobby Wood, Gyasi Zardes and Christian Pulisic all carry the potential to lead the USMNT line in future major tournaments. It must be noted the Yanks will head into the Copa without top target man Jozy Altidore, who also missed chunks of the 2014 World Cup and 2015 CONCACAF Gold Cup with hamstring injuries.

June's competition presents each of the aforementioned trio with a massive opportunity to prove he can thrive in attack once Dempsey steps aside.

Wood enters the Copa in terrific form after he broke an American scoring record in the top two German domestic flights at Union Berlin this season (17 goals). The confident 23-year-old secured a move to Bundesliga side Hamburg before joining up with the national team.

Zardes burst into life on Saturday against Bolivia, netting a pair of goals in the USMNT's 4-0 win at Children's Mercy Park.

If the LA Galaxy man's movement intertwines with Dempsey and Wood like it did against Bolivia, the USMNT have a potentially deadly three-pronged attack. And that doesn't even include what the 17-year-old phenom Pulisic can provide off the bench.

Pulisic has been the talk of almost all U.S. circles since arriving in Borussia Dortmund's first team in January. Klinsmann did the right thing by handing Pulisic a chance to impress throughout the Copa, and learning from players such as Dempsey in training will make him better as well.

Pulisic might not see the field in every match the USMNT play in, but he could come off the bench and provide a spark in the latter stages of certain contests.

The changing of the guard in midfield will not happen as easy as it is at striker because of the quality of Jones and the other experienced central players in the squad.

Many have doubted Jones' ability to remain on the USMNT roster since the World Cup in Brazil, but his positional understanding alongside Michael Bradley is too valuable to throw away just yet.

Bradley and the 29-year-old Alejandro Bedoya will be around for Russia 2018 if they remain healthy, but Jones is the wild card in that scenario. The good news for Klinsmann is he has Darlington Nagbe waiting in the wings.

Nagbe, who earned his citizenship in September 2015, is the creative playmaker in the middle of the park fans have been clamoring for since Klinsmann's arrival in 2011.

The 25-year-old won't start each of the Copa games because of the need for a more defensive-minded player such as Jones to disrupt opposing attacks. But there are fixtures throughout the Copa that will present mismatches for the Yanks if they utilize Nagbe, with Costa Rica on June 7 being the first.

If he makes the most of his time on the pitch, Nagbe will set the tone for the rest of the road to Russia.

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The switch over to youth is already apparent in defense, where the 22-year-old DeAndre Yedlin has turned himself into a first-team starter in just two years.

Yedlin, who first experienced a global competition at the last World Cup, moved to the English Premier League with Tottenham Hotspur and worked on his defensive weaknesses over the last year on loan at Sunderland.

Yedlin's development from raw prospect to stud right-back in two years is the type of progression Klinsmann hopes he can get out of Wood, Zardes, Pulisic and Nagbe, starting with the Copa.

John Brooks is also undergoing a similar transformation as Yedlin at center-back. The 23-year-old, who plays for Hertha Berlin in the Bundesliga, is the closest thing to a first-choice central defender. He also carries the potential to be a rock in defense for years to come.

Although he went through some growing pains at the 2015 CONCACAF Gold Cup, Brooks appears ready to take on the challenge of the Copa next to Cameron.

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The Yanks even have a plan in place at goalkeeper. Although 20-year-old Ethan Horvath will not sniff the pitch unless both Guzan and Howard suffer tournament-ending injuries, he will be receiving a taste of what the international stage is like. Training with two World Cup veterans will do wonders for the Molde player before he returns to Norway.

Despite the promise displayed by each of the young players on the 23-man Copa roster, there are plenty of Klinsmann doubters out there because of his failed experiment at the 2015 Gold Cup. During that competition, the former Germany international put too much trust in the wrong youngsters such as Ventura Alvarado and Brooks, and the Yanks ended up with a disappointing fourth-place finish.

The struggles of a year ago that sent an angry mob with pitchforks calling for Klinsmann's sacking in the direction of U.S. Soccer Federation President Sunil Gulati are still fresh in the minds of many who follow the USMNT.

A second consecutive failure on home soil with young players working their way into the squad may finally kill off the remaining job security Klinsmann has.

Although it hasn't been made public that Klinsmann is fighting for his job, one has to assume another struggle on one of the biggest international stages would place him directly on the hot seat.

Conversely, if his master plan of mixing the promising future with the veterans reaps rewards against the best sides in the Western Hemisphere, the USMNT will get back on the track heading toward the World Cup in Russia.

Joe Tansey covers U.S. soccer for Bleacher Report. You can follow him on Twitter, @JTansey90.