Herculez Gomez proved why he will be in South Africa last night. (Getty Images)

We had a feeling last night’s game would be an interesting one to watch. Going in we figured most of the key guys would sit it out so Bob Bradley could figure out who those last four to six guys were that would be going to South Africa.

Turns out the auditions got in the way of the game and the U.S. ended up getting beat 4-2 to the Czech Republic. There was plenty of good but also plenty of bad from the game last night. In a way I don’t want to read too much into the scoreline because for the most part it was a fairly even match. Still losing to a “B” squad at home is never the way to go.

Here are a few things I saw last night plus where I think the roster will go later this afternoon.

1. Gooch still has a long way to go.

I think physically we’ll find out more today how he’s feeling but mentally I don’t believe he’s there a 100% just yet. The way he was beaten on that first Czech goal was not pretty and not Gooch like. His knee is still bothering him and giving him issues in his head more than anything. I’m also a bit worried that he didn’t go the full 90 last night. Maybe that was by design for all we know and he’ll go the full 90 this weekend against Turkey. He is still getting back into game shape which does take time.

2. The D needs work…and lots of it.

I know the depth is an issue across the board, I get that but in the back its really bad. Injuries are playing a part of it I know but how many times did we get burned on the wings last night in the back? Heath Pearce will definitely be back in Dallas come tomorrow, and Jonathan Bornstein should be on his way back to LA. The difference there is I wonder if Bradley really passes on one of his guys in Bornstein. After last night he totally should.

There were some bright notes though in the back particularly with Clarence Goodson. I know there was a botched play at the end with him and Maurice Edu (another bright spot) but for the most part I felt comfortable with Goodson in the back. I doubt he is capable yet of being a full-time starter but if it comes to it come next month due to these injuries I wouldn’t be that upset.

One thing we should be able to rest on is that last night’s defense won’t be the starting defense against England.

3. Not much in the middle

Again it was audition night so the playmaking out of the middle was not there. However on the wings it was with Demarcus Beasley and Robbie Rogers. Both really brought their “A” game in a time that they both needed to. Rogers especially made his case for a roster spot last night after probably hearing for the last couple weeks that he was going to be back in Columbus after the Turkey game. Beasley did a good job tracking back to bail out Bornstein too.

Stuart Holden eased my mind about where he is physically too. He was a work horse out there and we have to be smiling for that.

Again Edu was a bright spot for me, he not only scored a goal but he was all over the place defensively. I thought in the first half he worked pretty well with Jose Francisco Torres.

Still there wasn’t much there to create offense. Obviously not having a Landon Donovan or a Clint Dempsey there was the reason so we shouldn’t put too much stock into this game.

5. Up top is still a mess

And by mess I mean there is still good reasons for a couple guys to go after last night. Obviously Eddie Johnson and Robbie Findley are out. Johnson did little to help his cause as he was nonexistent in the first half while Edson Buddle worked his ass off I thought to create chances. Findley didn’t even get a sniff of the field so that should tell you what his chances are here.

Then there is Brian Ching and Herculez Gomez who worked very well in the second half together. Ching should easily be on the plane to South Africa and I see little reason now that Gomez doesn’t join him. Buddle should but I have a feeling it will be down to him and a couple other players for that final spot.

6. So where does Bradley go?

He said he knew that 17-19 players were “in” before last night. So those other few had to play their way in last night? Partly so but I also believe too that Bradley knew for the most part who would be in that 23 and who wouldn’t be.

Below is where I think he’ll go with his roster.

Goalkeepers: Tim Howard, Marcus Hahnemann, and Brad Guzan

Defenders: Oguchi Onyewu, Carlos Bocanegra, Steve Cherundolo, Jonathan Spector, Jay DeMerit, Clarence Goodson, and Jonathan Bornstein

Midfielders: Landon Donovan, Clint Dempsey, Michael Bradley, Stuart Holden, Ricardo Clark, Maurice Edu, DaMarcus Beasley, Jose Francisco Torres, and Benny Feilhaber

Forwards: Jozy Altidore, Brian Ching, Herculez Gomez, and Edson Buddle

Seven left out: Chad Marshall, Heath Pearce, Alejandro Bedoya, Sacha Kljestan, Robbie Rogers, Eddie Johnson, Robbie Findley

After last night it came down to Buddle and Bedoya for me. Terrible really because both deserve a shot at the World Cup but I went with Buddle for different reasons. I know you can throw Dempsey and Donovan up top with Altidore or Ching but Buddle is a work horse and like Gomez has plenty of confidence right now. Its so hard for a manager to not pick a player that is playing with loads of confidence. Also he just seems to get “it” these days as he puts himself where he needs to be on the field.

We’ll likely see Bedoya get the ticket to South Africa and that’s fine.

I know a lot of folks would love to see Bornstein left off but at the end of it I know he’s a Bradley guy. With the issues in the back sometimes you have to take a risk like this. Because of the amount of injuries for this team Bradley’s hands are tied here and unfortunately its a move he’ll likely have to make.

Who stays and who goes...tonight will tell us. (Andrew Pearson)

This is a week we’ve been debating all year long about. Two international friendlies on our soil to help send our national side to South Africa with hopes of World Cup glory. The U.S. faces a pretty tough task when they host the Czech Republic tonight in East Hartford (ESPN, 7 p.m.).

The age old question who will start will loudly be sung by many over the next few hours. Does manager Bob Bradley start the usual suspects or does he go for a less traditional lineup to help answer some roster questions? Either way there are lots of different ways he could go tonight.

One thing we can count on is Bradley trimming his roster from 30 to the final 23 after tonight’s contest. Based on quotes we’ve seen over the last week or so it seems he will do just that. He has stated that he knows 17-19 guys are safe, so that leaves room for only a few more. He also doesn’t want to complicate things for players who won’t go and he wants to help build his team chemistry more by setting the roster up for this weekend’s match against Turkey.

So let’s talk fringe players for a moment. In some ways due to injuries we can probably already rule out one or two guys from the 30-man roster. Another six to eight will be playing for their World Cup dreams tonight.

Shaking off injuries in the back

I have a feeling we’ll see a full 90 from a couple key guys in the back who are needing some playing time to get back into full game speed. Oguchi Onyewu, Jay Demerit and Carlos Bocanegra are all shaking off injuries and I’d be shocked if all three didn’t go at least 70 minutes or more. I think Onyewu will likely go a full 90, and if possible so will Bocanegra.

I do wonder exactly how much of Clarence Goodson, Chad Marshall and Heath Pearce we will see tonight. Out of those three I see Goodson as the only one that has a real shot of making it to South Africa, though Pearce wouldn’t be a bad idea for the left back.

Fun in the middle

To me the midfield seems a little more clearer. We can pretty much bet on about seven or eight of the 12 that were called into camp to be safe here. Its Robbie Rogers, Demarcus Beasley, Sacha Kljestan, and maybe Benny Feilhaber and Jose Francisco  Torres that are going to get a little more attention tonight. Some may put Alejandro Bedoya in that group but I honestly believe he is going to South Africa with this team.

Where to go up top

Here’s the biggest question for everyone, what is Bradley going to do with his strikers? Jozy Alitdore is safe we know that. I’m willing to bet so is Brian Ching. So that leaves the other four in Edson Buddle, Herculez Gomez, Robbie Findley and Eddie Johnson.

The fun really comes down to this group though. You have a couple speed guys in Findley and Johnson (you could probably toss Buddle in there too). Then you have a guy that works well with Landon Donovan (Buddle) and then you have someone who just got absolutely hot at the right time in Gomez.

Steve Goff is reporting this afternoon that the US is set to finalize their World Cup tune ups on home soil against some strong competition. The first match is likely set for being at Rentschler Field in East Hartford, Conn., against the Czech Republic. Goff goes on to say that after a game in Hartford the US will likely head to Philadelphia to play either Turkey or Ireland at Lincoln Financial Field.

Even though nothing is set in stone the possibility of these matches already blow 2006 out of the water. Let’s not the US will also be playing in Holland soon too. Playing strong competition to tune up things before the World Cup is a smart way to go in my books. Already the thought of facing the Czechs who saw Slovenia in qualifying makes sense.

It will be interesting to see where the third location is and who the third opponent will be for the US. Hopefully the US is lined up with some African country for a tune up match. We’ll see.

Update: The game in Philly will be against Turkey on May 29.

Its not that I’m not jazzed up for it (because I totally am), its I don’t have enough time or energy right now to preview it like Ives or someone else out there.

As for who I’m rooting for…well seeing how I am a Swede, the boys in yellow will be the ones I will follow closely but once they exit the tournament (which they will probably after group play) I will probably lean towards Portugal or Italy winning it all. Everyone is high on someone like Croatia or Spain, but I’m still hoping Sweden can be that dark horse if their defense holds up.

Who are you all rooting for? Let’s hear it.