“It's a great problem to have,” Zimmerman said. “Everyone feels pressured to perform and knows that they have to go out there every training session and try and impress. We have a great group of center backs, amazing people as well. Looking at the last camp in November, this camp in December, and moving forward to January, there's a lot of center backs that are in this pool and a lot of competition. It's a great group of guys to work with and compete with and we continue to push each other along in a healthy way.”
The USA’s potential-packed player pool features tight competition for roster spots across the board, but the central defense might be the most up for grabs.
WATCH: McKenzie Talks Center Back Competition
“We all see how deep and talented the center back position is in this cycle,” McKenzie said. “I see that as an opportunity to push myself. I think that internal fire is something that each of us have. Whenever we get the opportunity to come in here, we're pushing and we're fighting because we know (head coach) Gregg (Berhalter) said it was an open spot. It's a daily battle, a daily fight, both when you come into camp but also at the club level.”
The center backs currently in training camp with the USMNT all arrived following superb seasons with their club teams. After a trade before the start of the season from LAFC, Zimmerman shone as he anchored defensive-minded Nashville SC to a postseason berth and two playoff victories in its first MLS campaign. The 27-year-old earned Best XI honors last year as he held down the back line for one of the league’s highest-flying offenses in LA. This season, he took his game to a new level with Nashville, whose stingy defense led the way to success in an abnormal campaign.
“I think being on certain teams brings out different attributes that you have,” Zimmerman said. “In Nashville, I think what you saw was a lot of the things that I'd grown up with: the anticipation, a lot of duels, aerial challenges, positioning, defending in the box and that physical presence. Those things came out a little bit more. It was a great year, individually, collectively, and that's just not easy to do, especially with the limited training that we had this year.”
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Center Back Competition an Intriguing Characteristic of USMNT December Camp - U.S. Soccer
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