Dissecting Onyewu's Move to AC Milan

6'4" Oguchi Onyewu has become the first American to reap the rewards of a sterling (silver) Confederations Cup.

Big Oguchi "Gooch" Onyewu (27) has earned himself a three year deal at Italian giants AC Milan following the end of his contract at Belgian champions Liege. The exact terms of the deal are unknown. Onyewu becomes the first American outfield player at a top club in quite some time. Indeed, the last time an American played in Serie A was in the mid-90s, when Alexi Lalas spent a year with Padova.

The big question on everybody's lips is will he play? He should, but much will depend on his performances.

Onyewu included, AC Milan have 8 players capable of playing centerback on their books. Two, Marcus Diniz (21) and Matteo Darmian (19) are too young to present real competition unless they have breakout years. This means that the rough pecking order is as follows:

• Alessandro Nesta (33)
  
• Kakha Kaladze (31)
• Thiago Silva (24)
• Oguchi Onyewu (27)
• Daniele Bonera (28)
• Giuseppe Favalli (37)

Because Milan have a new coach, it is difficult to predict which player will get to start alongside World Cup-winner Nesta, who is virtually guaranteed a spot when fit. Favalli is perhaps the least likely-- an aging left back, he has been forced into the center more out of necessity than choice over the last season. Like Favalli, Kaladze and Bonera are also capable of playing as fullbacks; however, centerback is more natural for both of them. Meanwhile, Thiago Silva is something of an unknown in Europe. He signed from Fluminese for 10 million Euros back in January, but player registration restrictions have prevented him from playing since then.

My take: when everyone is healthy, Onyewu will be competing with Kaladze and Silva for the centerback spot, with the classy Silva likely to get the nod from coach Leonardo, a fellow Brazilian. Teams don't spend $14 million on second-rate centerbacks. However, given that Milan will be competing on a number of fronts (they played 46 competetive games last season), and Kaladze and Nesta both have a history of injuries, there is no question that Onyewu will get opportunities to play. None of Milan's other centerbacks top 6'2", so Leanardo may even favor Onyewu against the likes of Juventus and Inter, who boast tall forwards like Ibrahimovic, Amauri, and Iaquinta. The problem with having come in for free is that Milan has little incentive to give Onyewu a second chance if he fails to shine.

From the USMNT, this is likely to be a break-even move. I have a hard time seeing Onyewu being such a flop that he is dropped from rotation. Still, his performances on the international level may suffer with decreased club playing time. On the plus side, it obviously can't hurt to scrimmage Nesta, Seedorf, Ronaldinho, and Pato. I think top class coaching and training alongside the likes of Nesta will help him improve his positioning and distribution.

A cynic would say that Milan's purchase was largely commercial; an optimist would counter that Onyewu now has as good a chance as anyone to earn his playing time. I, for one, can't help but be excited. Gooch has clearly developed since his ill-fated spell with Newcastle; I think he will acquit himself well at Milan, and consequently open the door for more American players in Serie A and beyond.