For USMNT Twitter bots and supposed fandom, John Brooks was the missing piece of the USMNT’s defense for the better part of two years. The Anti- MLS fans who somehow support the USMNT but don’t support MLS or MLS players on the national team would have you think that Gregg Berhalter was leaving off the equivalent of Lothar Matthäus.
It was quite the opposite as Brooks’ form began to sink in the Bundesliga and on the national team the 29-year-old had begun to become a liability rather than a necessity at the back. At the club level, Brooks began to mix good performances with bad ones at VfL Wolfsburg, so much so the team did little to renew his contract rather have him leave as a free agent.
On the national team, Brooks began as a key component to Berhalter’s backline but his inability to keep up with the highline and his difficulty containing attackers with speed, Brooks saw himself dropped from the national team.
Why is John Brooks missing the Qatar 2022 World Cup?
While Brooks may have been a talking point for the better part of two years, the reality was Berhalter had seen enough of Brooks to determined he was surplus. While Brooks is a capable defender, he was not a leader on the USMNT rather a role player. A luxury Berhalter could not afford since many on his backline including his goalkeepers were “new” to international soccer.
Lionel Messi #10 of Argentina against John Brooks of the USMNT (Photo by Bob Levey/Getty Images)
When Walker Zimmerman, a more vocal presence at the back, took over the position, Berhalter had found his replacement for the “experienced” Brooks. Since then, a money move to Benfica in Portugal has seen Brooks play only 3 games in the last six months. While not completely written off of the USMNT player pool a massive change in form and personality will be needed to see John Brooks in a USMNT jersey again.
