Bruce Arena will surprise you

Bruce Arena will have some surprises when he unveils his starting lineups this World Cup. If I recall correctly, he changed his lineup for every game of the 2002 World Cup, and not because of injuries.

Here's a chart for the 2002 World Cup. The chart lists:

Position, Name, Games played, Games Started, Goals, Assists, Minutes Played

F Brian McBride 5 5 2 1 374
F Landon Donovan 5 5 2 0 435
F Clint Mathis 3 2 1 1 204
M John O'Brien 5 5 1 1 450
M Eddie Lewis 3 2 0 1 196
D Tony Sanneh 5 5 0 1 450
F Josh Wolff 2 1 0 1 67
D Jeff Agoos 3 3 0 0 215
M DaMarcus Beasley 3 2 0 0 219
D Gregg Berhalter 2 2 0 0 180
GK Brad Friedel 5 5 0 0 450
D Frankie Hejduk 4 4 0 0 334
M Cobi Jones 4 0 0 0 105
D Carlos Llamosa 2 0 0 0 12
D Pablo Mastroeni 3 3 0 0 258
M/F Joe-Max Moore 2 0 0 0 48
D Eddie Pope 5 5 0 0 439
M Claudio Reyna 4 4 0 0 360
M Earnie Stewart 4 2 0 0 154

Tony Sanneh and John O'Brien (!!!) played every minute, as did Brad Friedel.

Arena started 15 different people in the 10 field positions. Only McBride, Donovan, Sanneh, O'Brien and Pope started every game (Friedel did too). In total, 19 people saw time on the pitch (including Friedel). Cobi Jones subbed in 4 of the 5 matches, so he saw a bit of time too.

Arena just isn't afraid to go with his gut. Have you ever heard Arena question himself or his decisions? I haven't. He seems like a self-assured coach. He's not afraid to buck the conventional wisdom. Remember how he started unproven DaMarcus Beasley against Luis Figo in the first game last Cup, despite the fact that Figo was considered one of the top 5 players in the game?

Expect to be surprised. Arena won't release his starting lineup until an hour before game time.