Carson, CA (My Sportsbook) - U.S. men's national team coach Bob Bradley is 14-7-3 since he took over the team in January of 2007, but starting this Sunday, the first real games begin when his team starts its World Cup 2010 qualifying cycle by hosting Barbados at The Home Depot Center.

"... The excitement about beginning World Cup qualifying is there for sure and we are anxious to get started and look forward to using these last few days to polish up some little details as we get ready for Barbados on Sunday," Bradley said.

"It is the start of World Cup qualifying, everybody understands the importance of these games and we look forward to the time that we have together [as a full squad]," Bradley added.

The U.S. is currently on a three-game winless streak, however, the three results were against some of the top teams in the world. After being shut out in losses at both England and Spain in Europe, the U.S. battled to a scoreless draw with FIFA's No. 1 ranked Argentina at Giants Stadium in New Jersey this past Sunday, giving the team much-needed confidence heading into qualifiers.

"[Sunday] we stood up and made ourselves accountable, we didn't back down," said U.S. goalkeeper Tim Howard after making seven saves in a sensational performance against Argentina. "We stuck our heads and our feet in every challenge. That's what we are going to need to go forward for us to be successful."

Despite showing well on Sunday, it was still the third consecutive game in which the U.S. failed to score a goal. As always seems to be the case with the U.S. squad, goal scoring will be the hot button issue heading into qualifiers.

"When you play against three very good teams and don't get many chances it does highlight the fact that the continued attempt to improve - in terms of creating good chances and finishing good chances in the run of play - is a big part of what all teams are working on," Bradley said.

The key for the U.S. will be its ability to find a striker to mesh with an improving group of attackers that includes Landon Donovan, Clint Dempsey and DeMarcus Beasley.

Bradley seemed to imply in a conference call on Thursday that Brian Ching of Major League Soccer's back-to-back defending champion Houston Dynamo could be that striker.

"We are excited to have Brian Ching," he said. "I think that he's a different kind of forward for us, a player that is strong, can hold the ball, can bring other people into play. I thought that he had a good game for us against Poland [on March 26 in a 3-0 U.S. win] and we are pleased to have him back in our team [after missing the last three friendlies, all losses]."

The U.S. is a heavy favorite vs. Barbados, meaning the offense should resurface, but finding the right combinations for when the competition improves will be key.

"We are fortunate that we have some experienced players who have been through World Cup qualifying and I think that they do an excellent job of setting a good tone in terms of the importance of these games, understanding what to expect and making sure that we never take anything lightly," Bradley said.

There are actually 13 players on the roster with experience in World Cup qualifying, with Donovan and Howard leading the way. Donovan - who at 26 became the fourth youngest male player in history to reach 100 caps with the start against Argentina - leads the roster with 20 all-time World Cup qualifying appearances while Howard boasts 18 career wins and 11 shutouts in 31 appearances at the full international level.

After Sunday's qualifier the U.S. will travel to Barbados on June 22 for the second leg of the CONCACAF qualifier.

Below is the U.S. men's national team roster vs. Barbados:

GOALKEEPERS (3): Dominic Cervi (out of contract), Brad Guzan (Chivas USA), Tim Howard (Everton FC).

DEFENDERS (7): Carlos Bocanegra (out of contract), Dan Califf (FC Midtjylland), Steve Cherundolo (Hannover 96), Jay DeMerit (Watford FC), Frankie Hejduk (Columbus Crew), Oguchi Onyewu (Standard de Liege), Heath Pearce (Hansa Rostock).

MIDFIELDERS (7): Freddy Adu (SL Benfica), DaMarcus Beasley (Glasgow Rangers), Michael Bradley (SC Heerenveen), Maurice Edu (Toronto FC), Sacha Kljestan (Chivas USA), Eddie Lewis (Derby County), Pablo Mastroeni (Colorado Rapids).

FORWARDS (4): Brian Ching (Houston Dynamo), Landon Donovan (Los Angeles Galaxy), Clint Dempsey (Fulham FC), Eddie Johnson (Fulham FC).