USMNT's Julian Green Stays Positive After Tough Season on Loan with Hamburg

Julian Green truly arrived on the U.S. soccer scene last summer when he was named to the men's national team's 23-man World Cup roster.

Green didn't play much in Brazil, but he was able to score his only senior international goal to date in the round-of-16 loss to Belgium at the Arena Fonte Nova in Salvador.

What followed his stint in Brazil was a chaotic year on loan at Hamburg from Bayern Munich in which the struggling side used four coaches in order to remain in the Bundesliga for another year. On top of facing so much change, Green dealt with a rib bruise midway through the season. 

"Now I am fully arrived in professional football—with its ups and downs," he told Bleacher Report. "The calling to the national team last year, the time in Brazil and then scoring in the World Cup was the best thing I've ever experienced—an incredible feeling.

"Directly after the World Cup, I was on loan from Bayern to HSV. I was very motivated when I arrived in Hamburg and was looking forward to my first season as a professional."

Unfortunately for Green, things didn't quite work out.

Themba Hadebe/Associated Press

"I came in as a coach-favorite player who should strengthen the first team and then sat for a couple of times on the bench, and at the end I was not even in the squad," he said. "I have experienced four coaching changes, the rib bruise was my first extended outage. These are all experiences that have helped me."

Green totaled five appearances for Hamburg's first team before moving back to Bayern Munich at the end of the season. Because of the lack of playing time he received over the last year at the club level, Green might end up out on loan again this season. 

"It's looking likely that he'll come back at the end of the season, and we'll have to sit together to find the best solution for him," Bayern Munich president Karl-Heinz Rummenigge said in March, per Goal.com's Mike Slane. 

"I don't believe that at first he'll be here at Bayern. He will probably need one more year at a club wherever—in Germany or England, I don't know—to show his quality, and I believe he has that quality," Rummenigge said.

"I was really looking forward to returning to Munich," Green said recently. "The experience from last season has again increased my motivation to give everything to earn time on the field at my home club and to make it at FC Bayern. That's the challenge that I want to put myself in the next season with all my strength." 

In order to focus on the upcoming club campaign, United States coach Jurgen Klinsmann opted not to bring Green along for the 2015 CONCACAF Gold Cup currently taking place in the United States and Canada.

"He needs a break now. We'll give him a break. He goes back to Bayern Munich. Bayern will sort out where his next step will be. He keeps growing, so we leave him out of the Gold Cup and we give him a break," Klinsmann said before the United States men's national team's friendly against Germany in June, per Fox Sports' Kyle McCarthy. 

As for the conversation Green had with Klinsmann discussing the Gold Cup, he said, "Conversations with Jurgen Klinsmann are always good and pleasant. We have a very trusting relationship and talk openly with each other."

Before his break to prepare for the 2015-16 club season, Green participated in the Toulon Tournament with the USMNT U23 side that will look to qualify this fall for the 2016 Olympics in Rio de Janeiro next summer. 

In the Yanks' final group game of the tournament, Green netted an eighth-minute strike against Qatar that turned out to be the winning goal. The victory allowed the USMNT U23s to face England in the third-place game. The U.S. beat England 2-1 to earn bronze in Toulon. 

"The tournament in Toulon was very important," Green said. "Many scouts from around the world were there and were watching us."

"For me, this tournament has gone well. I've played in four games each over 60 minutes and scored in the match against Qatar. I could prove myself and think that this was also perceived. I am ready to fill the role as a striker and shoot important goals," he continued. 

Green will face plenty of competition for spots on the Olympic team, as members of the successful USMNT U20 squad are expected to receive a chance to shine as well. That means the Olympic qualifying squad could feature Green, Jordan Morris and Gedion Zelalem, all of whom have made headlines in the last 12 months on the international level. 

"Jurgen Klinsmann has an eye for talented players and gives them the chance to prove in the national team—just as he did with me.

"Of course, I am following the matches of the national team but concentrate and focus on myself and my game. Whether in training or in the game, I always give 100 percent and want to score goals. Which brings me more than to compare myself with others.

"The World Cup was a great experience, and I can well imagine to travel again to Brazil next year to play for the USA at the Olympic Games. At the end, the coach decides who plays."

Wherever he lands next season, fans of the USMNT will have a keen eye on Green's development. If all goes well, he could be back in Brazil with a chance to score another memorable goal. 
 

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

All quotes obtained firsthand unless otherwise noted.