Shea's future at LB?

I was under the impression he started out at LB. Kind of like a homeless mans Gareth Bale

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I was under the impression he started out at LB. Kind of like a homeless mans Gareth Bale

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I thought he was a utility player for a while in Dallas before finding his feet as a wide midfielder?

I don't think he has any meaningful professional experience there. I just seem to remember hearing he was once a LB somewhere.

Just found an article from 2011 that says Shea played a little bit of LB for FCD and actually played CB as well.

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I don't think he has any meaningful professional experience there. I just seem to remember hearing he was once a LB somewhere.

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Well there was that one game where he played as a CB against Athletico Madrid, and was apparently impressive.

I think Shea might be so athletic that he can play pretty much any position. For playing purposes it might be better for him to play LB, as so many teams need a LB.

Johnson and Shea at LB and LW or vice versa would give us great depth, as well as the ability to interchange and use movement to create opportunities down the opposition's right.

It's rare for a player to move up the pitch from defense, so I'm hoping that points to superb athleticism as well as good technique. I haven't watched Shea enough to really make a good judgement on him, but I'd love for him to develop into a versatile left-sided player that can play in multiple positions on that side.

I can't figure him out, I have Brek USA jersey just bc I think obscure jerseys are awesome. I'm not sold on him though, his head is not in the game. Would love for him to one day realize his potential. We shall see.

Well he's played about 100 professional games in his career and is only 23. He needs to play somewhere consistently for a season or two before we can fully realize the depth of his talent. He could go in a lot of directions. He could be the next Kenny Cooper, a quintessential American athlete who, despite the physique, couldn't adapt to the modern game, or he could go the way of Cameron, another all everything player who could not only adapt, but showed proficiency at nearly every position he has played.

I hope we produce more soccer players who are as big and athletic as Cameron and Shea. It'd be sweet if that was our forte.

I'd be interested to see him play center back to be honest. I think Omar Gonzalez will eventually be a good center back but as of now, he's inconsistent but above average.


You're right about the versatility though. I think having players who are versatile is one of the most important things you need as a national team. A left side of Shea + Johnson gives you two good athletes who are both good crossers of the ball. Johnson also has underrated vision. I think Shea's potential at left back is what Jurgen is trying to create with the Beasley experiment.