6 Things Jurgen Klinsmann and USMNT Need to Do in 2015

As the United States men's national team heads into 2015, head coach Jurgen Klinsmann has his work cut out for him. Having already set the semifinals as the team's goal for the 2018 World Cup in Russia, the USMNT promptly went on to finish 2014 with a 1-2-2 record in its five post-World Cup friendlies.

To turn things around, Klinsmann has work to do on both sides of the ball. He has chosen an ambitious set of opponents to do it against as well, with the U.S. facing Chile, Panama, Denmark, Switzerland, Mexico, the Netherlands and Germany prior to this summer's Gold Cup.

Here are six things Klinsmann needs to do to get the team on track.

Find a True Attacking Midfielder

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Although Klinsmann has continued to insist that Michael Bradley is suited to fill an attacking role for the U.S., it has become obvious to just about everyone else that Bradley's talents are wasted in that role.

Eventually, one has to believe that Klinsmann, no matter how stubborn, will come to the same conclusion and begin looking elsewhere.

The best candidates at this point appear to be Mix Diskerud and Lee Nguyen, although the U.S. might also be able to make do with a talented withdrawn forward—like Aron Johannsson or Rubio Rubin—acting as the team's maestro.

Until the U.S. has a true playmaker on the field, and one who is given the reins of the offense, it will continue to struggle offensively against top teams.

Learn How to Finish a Game

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Second-half goals have cost the U.S. a result in six of their last eight matches, and in all six of those matches, the U.S. has conceded a goal after the 85th minute.

It may be cliche, but the game is not over until the final whistle—a lesson the USMNT seems slow to learn.

As coach of the U.S., Klinsmann has repeatedly pushed the fitness issue, putting his team through two, and sometimes even three, workouts a day while in camp.

But that, combined with the United States' results late in matches, has led many to wonder whether the USMNT's late-game collapses aren't due to their poor fitness, but overtraining.

Whatever the cause, if the U.S. can't learn to close out a game, it will never have a chance competing with the world's best.

Play Geoff Cameron as a Defensive Midfielder

With many Americans returning to Major League Soccer over the past two years, Geoff Cameron is one of only a handful of Yanks still competing in a top European league. However, for the U.S., Cameron still hasn't locked down a position of his own.

Despite playing as a right-back and a defensive midfielder for Stoke—and the U.S.—Klinsmann has insisted that Cameron's best position is in the center of the defense.

The problem with that is Cameron rarely gets minutes there for club or country, and has shown a troubling propensity to switch off at key moments—the most obvious being Portugal's late equalizer in this summer's World Cup.

Cameron has size, strength, ability on the ball and experience, making him the perfect candidate to fill the defensive midfielder role for the U.S. Considering the crowded pool at center-back (especially with Jermaine Jones being used there recently), plenty of talent on the right and the likelihood that Kyle Beckerman will soon be moving on from the national team, it's time for Cameron to assume the role as the team's No. 6.

Sort out the Situation at Center-Back

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The U.S. has plenty of options for the center of its defense, but the constant rotation of players has inhibited any one combination from forming a true partnership.

Matt Besler enjoyed a standout World Cup—save the last 30 minutes against Belgium—and Omar Gonzalez looked more than capable against top teams like Germany. John Anthony Brooks has overcome a shaky start to his Bundesliga campaign to reassert himself as a regular in Hertha Berlin's lineup, and Jermaine Jones has showed promise in his new position.

Now is the time for Klinsmann to pick a starting combination and stick with it, allowing the U.S. to establish those "relationships on the field" he is always talking about.

Find Fabian Johnson's Best Position

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There is little doubt that Fabian Johnson is one of America's best players, but where he can make the most impact for the USMNT is still a big question. As an outside back (on either the left or right), Johnson gets forward extremely well. Those attacking instincts have even led Klinsmann—as well as Johnson's club coaches—to use him as a wide midfielder at times, and even occasionally as an attacking midfielder.

With the emergence of Greg Garza and DeAndre Yedlin as legitimate options for the U.S. on the back line, now may be the time to finally get Johnson into a more attacking role.

Pick a Formation and Stick to It

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Tactical flexibility is important, but so is having a system in which every player understands their role. Klinsmann has been loath to settle on any one formation, essentially leaving his players to figure things out on the fly in each match.

Sometimes the results have been fantastic, other times disastrous.

It's not unreasonable for Klinsmann to expect his team to understand different systems of play and to be able to adapt as opponents and game situations dictate. However, never settling on any one system as the team's base has frequently led to confusion and disjointed efforts by the U.S. on numerous occasions in Klinsmann's three and a half years in charge.

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