Fabian Johnson Is On Fire And Bruce Arena Needs To Take Advantage

USMNT manager Bruce Arena will have been pleased with the opening weekend of MLS play: Clint Dempsey returned from his irregular heartbeat scare to go 90 minutes and score a goal, Kellyn Acosta scored for FC Dallas, Ethan Finlay did the same for Columbus, Matt Besler and Graham Zusi were strong in defense for Kansas City and with Tim Howard only just returning to full training, the ever reliable Nick Rimando stoned Sebastian Giovinco’s penalty to extend his MLS-best record to 29 career penalty kick saves.

But with must-win matches against Honduras and Panama just two weeks away, Arena will know that it’s the European-based internationals that’ll make all the difference. 

Geoff Cameron has returned from injury to start for Stoke, Matt Miazga is getting consistent minutes with Vitesse, Emerson Hyndman’s play with Rangers is cause for optimism and DeAndre Yedlin is in great form for Newcastle United.

But it’s the play of Americans in Germany that is the greatest cause for optimism among US supporters. Bobby Wood has been the one bright spot in an otherwise disappointing season for Hamburg, scoring eight goals in 22 appearances, and Christian Pulisic scored his third goal of the Bundesliga season over the weekend.

One player that appears to be finding his form at the perfect moment is Gladbach winger Fabian Johnson. Johnson played well in Gladbach’s 2-0 victory over Ingolstadt on February 26, and he followed that up with a brace in a Man of the Match display against Schalke on Saturday. 

While it was Jurgen Klinsmann that got Johnson to represent the United States after playing for Germany at the youth level, Klinsmann was never able to get the most out of the explosive fullback/winger. 

Two goals in 54 caps, his only competitive goal coming in a 6-1 victory over Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, is hardly a fair representation of a player whose quality should see him tearing CONCACAF defenses apart. Against two sides that will be looking to play extremely defensively against the US, Johnson's forays forward will be crucial in unbalancing the numbers between attack and defense.