CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. — Walker Zimmerman was hobbled at the start of the US national team’s January camp and head coach Bruce Arena didn't have substantial expectations for the FC Dallas defender.
But after his performance in Friday’s 1-0 win over Jamaica, Zimmerman started to make a name for himself on the international scene.
In his first appearance for the national team, Zimmerman and fellow center back Steve Birnbaum helped anchor the defense against a physical Jamaican team to give the US a second consecutive clean sheet.
“I thought Walker Zimmerman played very well tonight in the center back position,” Arena told reporters in his postgame press conference. “The center backs did a good job.”
On the opening day of camp, the Atlanta-area native was sidelined after tweaking his knee, and was overshadowed by his partner in the heart of the FC Dallas defense.
“We had his teammate in camp, Matt Hedges, who was defensive player of the year in MLS,” Arena said. “Matt was having a real good camp and they play together in Dallas, and at times Walker wasn’t noticed.
“As the last couple of weeks went on Walker got better and better every day. I think tonight he had a terrific game, so I’m very impressed with him. I think it’s real encouraging that we have those two center backs that played tonight plus Matt Hedges down the road. That’s a real positive for us.”
Zimmerman and Birnbaum faced a physical, speedy Jamaican squad in Chattanooga, and their ability to hold up under those conditions stood out on a cold night.
“They’re a very quick team,” Zimmerman said after the win. “We saw a couple of times that if we turned it over, they were very quick on the counter. To be prepared for that and be prepared physically, I think we did very well.
“I thought we set the tone with our physicality and our presence, so that’s another good attribute from tonight’s game.”
Friday’s performance, with a starting lineup full of players looking to impress Arena moving forward, gives Zimmerman hope that he can continue to progress and perhaps make the team when World Cup qualifying resumes for the US national team on March 24 against Honduras.
“All you can ask for as a player is an opportunity,” he said. “I think the mentality of this group is this is a new coaching staff, and everyone’s got a fresh slate.
“For me coming in, it was ‘Why not me? Why can’t I try to make a push and get on this roster in March.' I know there’s a lot of young guys here, but we all have the mentality of 'Why not us?’ That’s the competitive nature and the mentality that’s going to push this program forward.”
With goals hard to come by in the first two games of Arena’s return to the US squad, the strong play by the defense — and by new players such as Zimmerman — has give him something to build on as he puts his system in place going forward.
“I would like to have us score a few more goals in these past few games, but that usually comes a little later in the preseason,” Arena said “The attacking players need a little bit more time.
“The thing we can influence the most is our mentality when our opponents have the ball to move and react. I’ve been encouraged by how we’ve been able to become a pretty solid defensive group over the last couple of weeks so that’s a real positive.”
