OMNISPORT

If you had to describe the U.S. national team to someone who knew nothing about the team or its players, what would you say?

Would you start with saying something about the team's style of play? Or maybe about what you considered the team's strengths? Maybe you would start with the indomitable spirit of Michael Bradley and work from there.

If you give it some serious thought, there is a good chance you would struggle with just how to describe the current U.S. setup, and you wouldn't be alone. That's because the current U.S. team doesn't really have a clear-cut identity.

As the Americans resume World Cup qualifying on Friday in Guatemala, they do so with a team very much still in search of a personality. Whether you talk personnel, system or even style of play, the U.S. is like a race car having its engine rebuilt with key races just hours away.

The upcoming qualifiers against Guatemala do matter, in as much as winning them both would secure a place in the final round of World Cup qualifying. Those games — the only meaningful matches the U.S. will play in before this summer's Copa America — actually mean just as much, if not more, for helping this team find itself.

Who will step up to be the team's go-to goal scorer? Which midfielders will emerge to grab starting spots on the wings? Which center backs will win the battle to start? Which goalkeeper will pull ahead to make the No. 1 shirt his own?

Klinsmann was always going to face a challenging task rebuilding and reshaping the U.S. after the 2014 World Cup, but as we approach the midway point between the Brazil World Cup and Russia, it doesn't feel like the coach is any closer to having all sides of this U.S. Rubik's Cube showing solid colors. Not even close.

That is what makes the upcoming qualifiers even more important. These are the last official matches before the Copa America, the final tests with something on the line before Klinsmann has to put together his Copa America squad in May. As much as he can't completely overlook a pair of World Cup qualifiers, Klinsmann has to be thinking how these matches can help him identify the players he can count on to give the U.S. a chance at a deep Copa run this summer.

Should the U.S. be in this much disarray so close to the June tournament? The easy thing to do is to blame Klinsmann for the squad not having more cohesion by now — and he certainly bears some of the blame for his casual reconstruction of the team — but the reality is the current talent pool has hit a dip in quality. Long-standing leaders have either retired (like Landon Donovan, Steve Cherundolo and Carlos Bocanegra) or moved past the primes of their careers (like Clint Dempsey, Tim Howard and Jermaine Jones). A generational void has left Klinsmann without ample replacement options as fewer and fewer Americans have spent the past couple of years reaching the world's best leagues.

An encouraging young generation of talent is on the horizon, with the likes Christian Pulisic, Matt Miazga, Cameron-Carter Vickers and Emerson Hyndman, but they aren't ready to step in right now and be the stars the team needs.

Klinsmann brought in a squad of 26 players to camp this week to try and look at has many players as he can, and create as much competition as he can for starting spots in the coming days, and roster spots this summer. With veterans like Dempsey, Alejandro Bedoya, Geoff Cameron and Omar Gonzalez back in the fold, and younger standouts John Brooks and Bobby Wood entering in good form, the U.S. has a chance to come together and show us a team with some quality, a team capable of giving fans something to be encouraged about.

Will the U.S. reveal a more visible identity in the coming days? We shouldn't expect it, but what we can more realistically hope for is to see a team take some positive steps toward building an identity.

With that in mind, here is a look at the starting lineup Klinsmann could turn to in Guatemala, and five players who could play key roles in the upcoming qualifiers:

CLINT DEMPSEY

The U.S. attack needs Dempsey's ability to create and finish chances and his leadership in the final third. He has proved himself as a big-game player many times, and if Jozy Altidore can't start, then the U.S. will need Dempsey's attacking qualities even more.

JOHN BROOKS

The Hertha Berlin center back is in excellent form for his club team, and though he has never played in a World Cup qualifier before, Guatemala offers the perfect opportunity to give him his first taste of a hostile road atmosphere. Matt Besler is a capable challenger to the starting left center-back spot, but Klinsmann knows he needs to give the team's best young central defender experience.

DEANDRE YEDLIN

The Sunderland defender has shown considerable improvement in the defensive side of his game, and while Klinsmann has been wary of using him much at right back, now may be the time to give him an extended starting run at the position. Klinsmann has other players who he could slot in at right back, but none have the potential at the position, or even the recent playing time at the position, that Yedlin has.

BRAD GUZAN

Klinsmann has yet to commit to a starting goalkeeper, but Guzan has a prime opportunity to make the position his. He has an edge on Tim Howard right now because he's starting for Aston Villa while Howard is stuck on the bench at Everton. Those circumstances could carry on through May, which would give Guzan a considerable edge heading into Copa America. Before he gets there though, Guzan must shine in whichever of the upcoming matches he is chosen to start in.

BOBBY WOOD

The red-hot Union Berlin striker has been lighting up the German second division, and with the forward position being an unsettled one for the U.S., Wood could grab a starting role in both qualifiers. His speed gives him an advantage over some other forward options, and if Klinsmann ultimately decides he can't play Altidore and Dempsey together as forwards, then Wood could wind up being the beneficiary this summer a Copa America. He has to impress against Guatemala though to really boost his chances.