Timmy Chandler, DeAndre Yedlin Leave USMNT Wanting More on Right Wing

As the United States men's national team worked its way toward a 4-0 win over Guatemala at Nissan Stadium in Nashville, Tennessee, on Friday night, one spot on the pitch drew plenty of criticism from observers of the red, white and blue. 

The combination of full back Timothy Chandler and right-sided midfielder DeAndre Yedlin on the right wing produced a mixed bag of results throughout their 90 minutes together on the field. Despite some of the positive exploits from the pairing on the right side of midfield, there are still plenty of concerns about the duo heading into Tuesday's CONCACAF Gold Cup opener against Honduras. 

At the beginning of the match, Yedlin used his speed to create distance between himself and the Guatemalan defenders. His quickness reaped rewards for the Yanks in the 19th minute, as his cross hit the head of Guatemala's Carlos Castrillo and found the back of the net. Soccer by Ives' Ives Galarcep singled out Yedlin for his confidence on the ball: 

Despite his successful surges into the final third, Yedlin displayed some defensive weaknesses during the first half. In the eighth minute, we caught the first glimpse of Yedlin tracking back near his own goal, as Chandler tucked into the middle of the penalty area. 

Yedlin misjudged his sliding tackle against Carlos Mejia, but luckily for the 21-year-old midfielder, the Guatemalan midfielder's cross turned into nothing substantial. However, this became a trend throughout the first half, as Mejia was able to find space on the wing because of Chandler's lack of exceptional positioning.

In the 33rd minute, Yedlin was left all by himself again because of Chandler's presence inside the box on a free-kick. The set piece was played out wide to Mejia, who whipped in a dangerous cross that Brad Guzan eventually covered up. USMNT boss Jurgen Klinsmann noted the concession of chances as a concern entering the Gold Cup, per Fox Sports' Kyle McCarthy: 

Just a few minutes later, Mejia was at it again after no one picked up his surge down the left flank. Like his first few dangerous moves forward, Mejia was wasteful with his cross. But the Yanks may not benefit from the same fate in Group A against Honduras, Haiti and Panama. Two of the three teams in that group have the potential of causing plenty of damage throughout the competition, especially 2013 runners-up Panama. 

With that in mind, Klinsmann may have to alter his defensive alignment. The good news for the USMNT manager is he does have a few options available in his 23-man squad. The most obvious selection change would shift Fabian Johnson to right-back with Greg Garza starting at left-back. Yedlin could keep his starting spot on the right wing and enjoy some defensive cover from the reliable Johnson. 

Klinsmann could also swap out Yedlin for Alejandro Bedoya or Gyasi Zardes on the right wing to get the best out of the speedy youngster as a substitute in the latter stages of each group contest. If that is the case, few defenders will be able to keep up with the winger's pace, especially after 60 or 70 minutes of potentially energy-sapping play. 

However, if Klinsmann wants to keep things the way they are on the right, he can present a fair case for that based on the second half of the win over Guatemala. 

The standout moment for Chandler came in the 58th minute, when he struck a brilliant shot into the bottom-left corner of the net to hand the Yanks a two-goal advantage. To set up Chandler's first career international goal, Yedlin brought two defenders with him to the right wing. The attention paid to Yedlin allowed Chandler to sneak underneath him and find space to shoot.

Grant Wahl of Sports Illustrated compared Chandler's goal to Bobby Wood's late strikes against Germany and the Netherlands. Wood also entered those clashes as a much-maligned player. 

Eight minutes later, Chandler sparked a move forward with an interception in the middle of the pitch. The right-back played a long ball in the direction of Jozy Altidore, who dumped the ball to Yedlin on the right side of the box. After the ball was played back to Altidore, he sent a poor pass out of harm's way. But without Chandler stepping up, the USMNT forward would not have had a chance to break through the Guatemala back four. 

Although Yedlin failed to produce many substantial chances in the second half, Chandler continued to search for another goalscoring opportunity down the wing. In the 70th minute, the Eintracht Frankfurt player found plenty of open space on the right side of the box, but he waited a few seconds too long to play a ball to Clint Dempsey. 

But just as we were on the verge of handing out some high marks to Chandler for his second-half performance, he picked up a booking in the 82nd minute and looked far from interested in marking Carlos Ruiz in the 84th minute. ESPN's Taylor Twellman voiced the far-from-trustworthy sentiment surrounding Chandler during the match: 

As active as Chandler was in the final third during the last 45 minutes, Yedlin was as quiet. Given Chandler's lack of quality in defense and Yedlin's disappearance from attack for long stretches in the second half, it is hard to fully support both of them starting Tuesday's opener. 

While we may see this pairing in the near future because of Klinsmann's expected squad rotation with three days in between group-stage matches, it is not the USMNT's best combination on the right at the moment. Although there were plenty of bright spots from each player, the deficiencies in their respective games will cost the Yanks a chance at the Gold Cup if they remain in the starting 11 together. 

Joe Tansey covers U.S. Soccer for Bleacher Report. You can follow him on Twitter, @JTansey90.