Photo by Jennifer Buchanan/USA TODAY Sports
Matt Besler has played in a World Cup. He is an MLS Cup champion, a Gold Cup winner and an MLS Defender of the Year. With all he has gone through, the 29-year-old defender is as much of a veteran as it gets, but even Besler was a bit nervous to assume a role that would be make or break for the U.S. Men’s National Team.
On Wednesday, the day before the USMNT’s Copa America quarterfinal, Besler was informed by head coach Jurgen Klinsmann that he would be starting at left back. It’s a position that remains relatively unfamiliar to the veteran defender, one that required a whole different skill set than his usual centerback role.
When the dust settled and the nerves had finally wore off, Besler, the left back, joined his team in celebrating a 2-1 victory over Ecuador. Matched up with Manchester United’s Antonio Valencia before his untimely dismissal, Besler locked down the left side and, in turn played a major part in leading the USMNT into the Copa America semifinals.
“I try to stay ready in case there’s a situation that I needed to step in and play out on the left,” Besler said. “Obviously most of the preparation has been at centerback. That’s where we’ve been training this entire tournament. I knew (left back) was a possibility, and I mentally stayed ready for that.
“I’ve got to be honest. I was a little nervous going into the game,” Besler added. “Obviously I don’t have a ton of experience playing left back, or any experience having a partnership with Alejandro (Bedoya) in front of me. I thought we did well. Going up against a guy like Valencia, who plays at Manchester United, one of the biggest clubs in the world, is not an easy task. I think, for the most part, we handled him.”
Looking back at what was asked of him, it’s easy to see just how much was stacked against Besler. The Sporting KC defender had played the position just once for the national team with the sole appearance coming three weeks ago against a listless Bolivia. Now, weeks later and facing one of the biggest games of his career, Besler was asked to recreate that effort against an Ecuador team currently sitting second in CONMEBOL’s World Cup qualifying.
The key, Besler says, was communication. He’s not a left back, and he’s the first to admit it, making the help of his teammates vital. Defending, at any position, is never truly a one-man job, even if Besler did a bulk of the heavy-lifting down the left side on Thursday night.
“Tonight, I had a lot of help. I think the guys around me, especially Alejandro for most of the game, Michael (Bradley) in the middle, and then John (Brooks) behind me, they did an excellent job,” Besler said. “I think we all worked extremely well together. The communication, we were talking with each other the entire game, and that’s what helped me out a lot.”
“He’s not really a left back, and so for me it was more trying to help him out,” Bedoya added, “and I think we partnered pretty well. Every time they got the ball out wide there was one, two guys coming over and helping out. It went well.”
Now, heading into a semifinal clash against either Argentina or Venezuela, a short-handed USMNT has options. DeAndre Yedlin is set to return to the fold, but Jermaine Jones, Bobby Wood and Bedoya are all bound for suspension. Should Klinsmann opt to push Fabian Johnson up the field to account for the absences, it appears the U.S. has found a steady hand at the left back position, even if his third foray into the role would come against a world power like Argentina.
Only Klinsmann knows what he will do for the semifinal, while the USMNT’s opponent remains yet to be decided. However, Besler’s efforts will certainly be remembered going forward. The defender, hampered by nerves and inexperience, shined as bright as any on Thursday night, ushering in one of the biggest wins in recent memory for the USMNT.
“He did a tremendous job there defensively and we tested out that version against Bolivia with Matt, and there was a reason for that,” Klinsmann said. “We know what we’d be going through in the group stage already. Matt is top, top at just getting the job done. With the two wingers that they have, with (Juan Carlos) Paredes coming in behind Valencia, that is difficult to deal with.”
“I thought Matt did a great job. We believe in all the guys that are in that locker room,” added Brad Guzan. “Regardless of whoever was going to get the call, we knew they were going to do a great job. More importantly than that, the guys around Matt I thought did a very good job. Again, John was good. In front of him Ale was good. Really limited Valencia in the first half. He wasn’t much of a factor, and that was a credit to Matty’s work rate.”
