KANSAS CITY, Kansas — Gregg Berhalter has known for a while it’s important to remain flexible as the coach of the United States men’s national soccer team — especially when that squad is gearing up for its first World Cup since 2014.
“Nothing at this level is set in stone just because of the nature of what we are doing,” Berhalter said after the U.S. drew 0-0 with Uruguay on Sunday at Children’s Mercy Park. “What I have learned in this job is not to set anything in stone.”
A key focus, between the bookend questions at the striker and goalkeeper positions, is one that seemed solved during World Cup qualifying.
Center backs Miles Robinson and Walker Zimmerman were the exceptions to the rule: They were all but set in stone. The pairing played six of the 14 World Cup qualifiers together, including the last four, and recorded a 4W-1L-1D record when starting together. Four of those games were clean sheets, and they conceded only three goals total.
And then Robinson ruptured his left Achilles tendon in a game between his Atlanta United side and the Chicago Fire on May 7.
Though he’s not officially ruled out for the World Cup, which kicks off in November, it would be an abnormally quick recovery if he did make it back. Fellow center back Aaron Long returned earlier this year after eight months of recovery from the same injury.
Long, a New York Red Bulls defender, missed most of World Cup qualifying due in part to his torn Achilles. He paired with Zimmerman for the first 45 minutes of the USMNT’s 3-0 win over Morocco on Wednesday and played another half alongside Zimmerman on Sunday before making way for Kansas City native Erik Palmer-Brown to get his casting call in front of a hometown crowd.
The scoreless draw against Uruguay was the second opportunity in four days where Berhalter could see players battle against a top-25 FIFA ranked team on its way to the World Cup.
“We played two games against World Cup opponents and didn’t give up a goal,” Berhalter said. “Center backs are playing against high quality strikers, and we didn’t give up a goal against them.”
Thor, the God of Thunder and teamwork
While the cast of players rotates to find the next best fit, Zimmerman — who is also part of the national team’s leadership council and was instrumental in the recent collective bargaining agreement negotiations — stands as a steady beacon in the team’s backline.
“I try to make their role as easy as possible. I think a lot of that is done with communication and organization,” Zimmerman said after the draw with Uruguay. “I think an underrated quality of a center back is the way that they read the game and the way that they help their teammate read the game.”
On Sunday, when Palmer-Brown came into the game at halftime, it took him a few minutes to get used to the pressure Uruguay was bringing. Zimmerman was there to back him up.
In the 88th minute, while the USMNT was holding on to the draw, Palmer-Brown tripped while tracking Diego Rossi. When Rossi sped past the defender, he turned his nose to goal. But Zimmerman was there to back his teammate up, making a tough tackle and forcing the ball out of danger.
Zimmerman coming up HUGE! 💪🇺🇸 pic.twitter.com/o5d2QC7i1G
— FOX Soccer (@FOXSoccer) June 5, 2022
Like the USMNT as a whole, the success of the center back position relies on buy-in from every player — whether starter or on the fringe.
And while players are competing against each other for coveted seats on the plane to Qatar, the players speak highly of the camaraderie that holds them together. The center backs in particular hold regular meetings to discuss game performance and what could be done better.
“We [all] sit down before games. We meet over what we can do better — over what we should do in certain situations, and everyone’s got open dialogue,” Palmer-Brown said. “We talk and we hype each other up. It’s a great environment for this team. The vibes are unbelievably high.”
Zimmerman, 29, knows what it’s like to be on the outside looking in. He was part of the first World Cup qualifying group in September 2021. But he did not perform up to Berhalter’s standards and did not receive a call back in October until veteran center back Tim Ream had to stay out of camp due to family reasons.
The Nashville SC defender got his second chance and didn’t take it for granted. He soon became Berhalter’s go-to man, holding down the defense.
“I am trying to be a good teammate to where I am covering for them, making sure they are covering for me and trying to get everyone on the same page,” Zimmerman said. “They probably get so annoyed with me, honestly, being in their ear. But that’s the way you can make sure you get on the same page and ultimately get shutouts.”
Now he is a leader on defense and creating chemistry with anyone who lines up beside him.
“He’s a beast. He’s Walker. He looks like Thor, the God of Thunder,” Palmer-Brown said. “He’s such a good dude off the pitch, and on the pitch, he is a leader.
“He’s one of those guys you want to play with.”
This article first appeared on USA Today Sports+