USMNT Watch: Jozy Altidore's Copa Status in Doubt After Hamstring Injury
For the people invested in the United States men's national team, the news Saturday night was something they did not want to hear.
First-choice forward Jozy Altidore left Toronto FC's match with the Vancouver Whitecaps with a hamstring injury to put his Copa America Centenario status in doubt.
Outside of North America, a former USMNT boss came close to securing promotion in France, while a top player prepared for a fond farewell in England.
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We'll have news on all those stories and more below in our weekly USMNT Watch.
Jozy Altidore Leaves Match with Hamstring Injury
Altidore's hamstring betrayed him again on Saturday as he left BMO Field in the 38th minute with an injury.
The 26-year-old, who has been in decent form despite a lack of goals, would miss matches in an international competition for the third consecutive year if his injury is serious.
All Toronto would confirm on Saturday night is that Altidore suffered a hamstring injury, per Kurtis Larson of the Toronto Sun, but that was enough to send some panic across the USMNT fan base.
If the Toronto FC man can't play in the Copa, USMNT boss Jurgen Klinsmann will have to alter his formation. No other forward in the preliminary squad for the June tournament can hold the ball up like Altidore, which means trouble could be on the horizon in the crucial tournament.
The good news for Klinsmann is that Jordan Morris, Bobby Wood, Gyasi Zardes, Clint Dempsey and Christian Pulisic all enter June in good form. If Altidore is out, then Klinsmann will have to find a formation that gets the best out of his available talent.
Another option is to play Jermaine Jones—who has started in the No. 10 role for the Colorado Rapids recently—further forward so he can use his physical style of play to set up attacking moves.
Bob Bradley Comes Inches Away from Securing Promotion
Former USMNT boss Bob Bradley came close to earning promotion to Ligue 1 with Le Havre on Friday.
Bradley's side mirrored the USMNT on the final day of group play in the 2009 FIFA Confederations Cup as they reversed a goal differential against Metz and did everything in their power to end up in third place.
Le Havre downed Bourg-Peronnas 5-0 at the Stade Oceane, but they lost out on the goals-scored tiebreaker to Metz, who scored two more goals throughout the Ligue 2 campaign.
There is no doubt that Bradley will have Le Havre back in position for promotion next season. If a move up to Ligue 1 occurs, then expect Bradley's name to be mentioned when bigger jobs open up across Europe.
Bobby Wood Signs With Hamburg
Wood capitalized on his terrific campaign in the 2.Bundesliga with Union Berlin by securing a move to Hamburg on Sunday, per the team's official Twitter account.
The 23-year-old native of Hawaii should be a critical figure for the USMNT during the Copa. If Altidore is out of the tournament, Wood could feature as the focal point of the attack.
As for what he has to look forward to next season, Wood enters a club that finished 10th in the Bundesliga that had two players record over eight goals. Nicolai Muller was the team's top scorer this season with nine goals.
Tim Howard Records Clean Sheet in Everton Farewell
Tim Howard picked up a clean sheet in his farewell match at Goodison Park on Sunday. Howard and Everton ended the season with a 3-0 win over relegated Norwich City.
DeAndre Yedlin and Sunderland survived the drop on Wednesday with a 3-0 win over the Toffees. The win by the Black Cats sent Newcastle United down to the Championship alongside Norwich and Aston Villa.
Geoff Cameron's Stoke City finished in the top half of the table after a 2-1 victory over West Ham United at the Britannia Stadium.
Keegan Rosenberry Flying into USMNT Picture
The USMNT may have found a solution to the full-back problem that has plagued the team for quite a while.
Philadelphia Union rookie Keegan Rosenberry, who has impressed throughout the majority of his first year in MLS, found himself in the spotlight after he shut down Robbie Keane and Giovani dos Santos in the closing stages of the Union's draw on Wednesday against the LA Galaxy.
The Georgetown University product did the same on Saturday against Ignacio Piatti and Didier Drogba. If he continues to play well in 2016, Rosenberry will find himself in the USMNT discussion on a consistent basis. If Klinsmann values the player, then we could see him feature for the Yanks later in the year.
Elsewhere in MLS on Saturday, Lee Nguyen produced a goal and an assist for the New England Revolution's 2-0 win over the Chicago Fire, and Michael Bradley picked up an assist in Toronto's 4-3 loss to Vancouver at BMO Field.
Joe Tansey covers U.S. Soccer for Bleacher Report. You can follow him on Twitter, @JTansey90.
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