Five nominated for U.S. Soccer Male Player of the Year

The final list of nominees for United States Soccer's Male Player of the Year is in. Michael Bradley, Clint Dempsey, Fabian Johnson, Brad Guzan, and DeAndre Yedlin are your five finalists for the annual award. It's a very curious list with a clear favorite and one notable snub.

Bradley and Dempsey making the list should come as no surprise. While neither of them had particularly great years, they're still the backbone of the USMNT. DeAndre Yedlin has continued his rise up the professional ranks by becoming a semi-regular starter in the Premier League this season with Sunderland and having some very good performances with the national team. His inclusion is acceptable considering how bad of a year it's been overall for the group. Then you have the clear favorite, Fabian Johnson. Despite getting sent home after the CONCACAF Cup loss to Mexico, it's been a great year for him. He's currently in the form of his life right now and it's hard to see him not winning this award.

Here's where the list gets a little controversial. Brad Guzan being named a finalist over Jordan Morris is a little ridiculous. There's a good chance that the Stanford striker will win the U.S. Soccer Young Player of the Year award, but there's no reason he shouldn't have been up for this one as well. He scored against Mexico for the senior national team, scored numerous goals for the U-23 team, and won the national championship. Couple that with Guzan losing his starting job at the end of last season and starting this year off in poor form and possibly losing his national team job to Howard, it's hard to see why he's a finalist over Morris.