CARSON, Calif. – The consensus from the US national team technical staff and players was that Steve Birnbaum's first appearance for the Yanks offered great promise – confirming what they saw during his splendid rookie campaign with D.C. United.
The 24-year-old center back went the full 90 – one half in a three-man backline, the other half in a standard four-man back – in last week's loss in Chile, and he could get the call again Sunday when the US take on Panama at StubHub Center (4 pm ET; ESPN, UniMas, UDN).
Sporting Kansas City's Matt Besler, to whom Birnbaum has been compared, likes what he sees.
“Great player, great player,” Besler said. “I've really enjoyed playing with him and playing against him. A smart guy, plays simple with the ball. I can see why he's in this camp, and I can see why he had such a good year.”
D.C. made Birnbaum, who grew up in Irvine, Calif., and was an All-American at the University of California, the No. 2 selection in the 2014 MLS SuperDraft. He first needed some time – on the practice field and in a loan stint with the USL PRO's Richmond Kickers – to acclimate to professional soccer.
He stepped in to the United lineup when Jeff Parke went down with a foot injury (it was subsequently revealed Parke was suffering from migraine headaches, leading to inner-ear surgery that kept him sidelined the rest of the season) and made 21 starts next to Bobby Boswell as D.C. won the Eastern Conference regular-season title. Birnbaum was honored as a finalist for the MLS AT&T Rookie of the Year award.
“I don't think it came as easy [as everyone thought],” Birnbaum said. “Preseason was a little tough for me, and it took me awhile to kind of figure things out, and then I kind of got going. From there, I felt I was prepared enough to step in and play once Jeff went down.
“I was lucky to have Bobby Boswell next to me and kind of being my mentor in that process.”
It all led to the invitation to join the USMNT’s January camp.
“It's been great,” Birnbaum said. “I learn a lot just from watching [veterans such as Besler and Jermaine Jones], and they also take me to the side and kind of tell me some things I can improve on or what to do in some situations. It's been an awesome learning experience.”
US head coach Jurgen Klinsmann likes his progress.
“In general, he's done very well and made it clear that he wants to be part of this senior national team,” Klinsmann said. “He presented himself from day one as in shape, focused, determined. We believe he played a very solid game in Chile and deserves to be part of this roster.”
