I'm sorry about the tardiness of this post; I've just been caught with random happenings and was gone in Vermont for the weekend. Anyways, on with the game log!
I'd like to first point out how hilariously large the Gold Cup actually is. The world cup is the size of a large goblet, the Gold Cup is literally the biggest trophy I have ever seen. Aliens from space would assume this is the single most prestigious trophy in the world.
22-0-1 in the group stage. Always comforting.
Starting XIs:
I don't know a single player other than Palacios, who will surely be the best player on the pitch tonight.
USA Starting XI:
Adu Ching
Quaranta Beckerman Pause Rogers
Cherundolo Parkhurst Marshall Pearce
Perkins
I only have heard of Rogers from his domination at the Grenada game (ooohhh how impressive) and then I only know Adu, Ching and Cherundolo well, and know only bad things about Parkhurst and Pearce. I could be more thrilled by the lineup: Adu is unproven, Ching isn't particularly talented and then everyone else not named Cherundolo either sucks or is unknown.
Pretty big Honduran support here, always good to see the road crew.
After the coin toss, the refs put their fists together in a foursome as if they're on Captain Planet. Is this good or bad?
1' Early corner, always a good sign.
2' I'm sure Pause and Beckerman played well against Grenada, but no matter how well they play, sorry commentators, they are NOT closing the gap on the starting midfielders.
3' Wow, we almost shipped a goal (an English phrase I adore), sloppy play.
4' Oh, it's Carlos Palacios. Who the fuck is that? Well so much for Wilson Palacios being the best player on the field. Now everyone sucks.
6' Do we need to go for super-authentic Latin pronounciation? It sounds so forced. I feel like Americans are the only people on Earth who feel like they're not entitled to have their own accent. No one will be insulted if you say a Latin name with a white American accent, and you won't get laughed at.
8' We look like shit, this is so sloppy. Considering the quality of the other side, I feel like this is going to be a "Sloppy Drunken Hookup" game. It was sloppy, it was ugly, no one wanted to watch it, but at the end of it, you got laid anyways.
10' Why is Honduras's B team here? What is their A team up to? They had no other touneys.
12' Weak free kick by Freddy Adu.
13' Honduras doesn't really want to win this, and we keep shooting ourselves in the foot. I, on the other hand, want to shoot myself in the face.
14' God, Heath Pearce sucks.
15' I like this Rogers fella, he's exciting, though not nearly as exciting as this terrier of a commentator would have you believe.
17' Just as I start to like him, Rogers loses the ball in a particularly dumb fashion.
19' Honduran coach Reyna is a professor apparently, but honestly looks much more like a drunk barfly who goes off the handle whenever someone asks him where his life went wrong.
20' Honestly, the Honduran "B" team is the better team thusfar, but they are gunning for the Guinness World Record for whiffs in a single game.
22' Ching misses a golden, albeit difficult, opportunity, but that was great play by Beckerman.
25' Speaking of Beckerman, is there a reason we have a white rastafarian? Do you think he would have been a top player if he had shaved that shit?
27' Decent corner.
28' Ref is "letting them play." This game is honestly going to have to take a knife to get a card.
30' Martinez just missed a one-on-one with Perkins that he had all day, all park and all life to regret. As unforgiveable as it gets.
32' Pause just handballs. That may be the first time he touched the ball.
34' Adu misses a free header from 6m out, and Rogers skys a shot from 30m. Sigh.
36' Ching just got DECKED.
38' Horrendous finishing. This is painful to watch.
40' Frustration tackle by Heath Pearce, absolutely moronic. Deserved the yellow.
42' Both teams playing for half.
44' Rogers is ready for Europe, he has been diving all half.
45' Pearce is AWFUL!
Well that was ugly. Honduras has been the better side. Rogers has had great and awful moves, Beckerman has been the best and Heath Pearce has unfortunately been the worst.
51' I was more interested in making myself sandwiches. Missed the first six minutes. More horrendous finishing greets me as I return, though Ching nearly lands a nasty goal.
55' Rogers can effortlessly get to the wing.
57' Great Honduras chance, followed by a great counter. This is futbol!
61' Rogers really could be great if he puts it all together.
63' Feilhaber for Pause, Davies for Adu. Great subs, massive upgrades, though I'm sorry John, I think "household name" is pushing it for Charlie Davies.
66' Ok, no one was more excited by Oguchi Onyewu going to Milan than me (read below), but one nasty drawback: commentators getting a little too, shal we say hopeful?, with transfers. "Charlie Davies could be going to a top European club, even a Real Madrid, perhaps?" Perhaps not.
68' Don't get me wrong, I love Stanky Legg Davies, I'm just saying he won't be going to Real Madrid anytime soon (or later most likely).
71' Davies nearly COBRA STRIKES Escobar for a goal. That leg is capable of so much.
74' BRILLIANT GOAL! Great play by Feilhaber, set the whole thing up, but well played by Ching and then great pass/hold by Davies and Quaranta finishes emphatically.
77' Davies is looking quite tricky, I like it.
79' GOL! Cherundolo puts in a great cross, Ching finishes it, all started by a cheeky free kick. All great things. Cherundolo wants that starting spot, and probably deserves it.
81' Look, I give commentators a lot of flak. But can someone explain to me what exactly a "Bundesliga cross" is? I can understand a "non-MLS" cross, and that would be a good one.
82' Cooper for Brian Ching. Might as well. Cooper is the poor man's Conor Casey. Which is probably way too harsh of a insult. Sorry coop.
85' Looking positively Euro with this one-touch pass possession. Benny Feilhaber might become the best American outfielder in a few years.
86' A screamer by Cooper. Casey is now the poor man's Cooper, that shot was enough.
87' Well, my TV is fucking up, and I can't see anything. This looks like it for the journal, though as we all know, it all ended up OK. Giblinho, signing off.
Wednesday, July 15, 2009
Tuesday, July 7, 2009
Onyewu to Milan! What does it mean?!
Well, there's another one from left field. In a 24 hour span, I've learnt about an American player whom I have never heard of being transferred from an amateur team to fifth best team in England, and then the next day, a player who failed to impress at NEWCASTLE, played in Belgium and I personally derided for a horrible performance in the 06 World Cup, has been signed by one of the most prestigious clubs in the world to replace one of the greatest defenders in history. Quite the day.
Onyewu to Milan is really quite the shocker, regardless of his playing history or nationalty. The fact of the matter is, the only other teams who were rumored to be interested in him were newly promoted Birmingham and Wolverhampton, and in the 11th hour, a little outfit known as AC Milan swooped in and took him. Does his Confederations Cup performance have anything to do with this? Obviously. He played lights out from the third game on, shutting down Egypt and Spain, and played quite respectably against Brazil. I'm still not fully over the shock, and if I may, I believe I'd like to give a quick recap of Onyewu's career:
Signs for then-Ligue 1 FC Metz (3 Appearances in 3 years) 2002-2004
Sent on loan to La Louviere in 2003 (First Division Belgian Team that is eventually rocked by gambling scandal in 2006, and is now no longer in existence) (24 Appearances)
Sent on loan to Standard Liege, and eventually made permanent 2004-2009, wins Juniper League in 2008 and 2009, makes 179 appearances, wins Foreign Player of the Year and makes the Best XI all full years spent there
Sent on Loan to Newcastle United (2007), but is paired with Titus Bramble, and both do an excellent impression of Dumb & Dumber and the deal is not made permanent
Signed by AC Milan (2009)
Well, I noticed two things about Oguchi Onyewu. One, he did far better in Belgium than I truly realized, and two, you do NOT mess with him in ANY capacity. Look at the teams who gave up on him. Metz, one of the most prestigious teams in France, was relegated. La Louviere doesn't even exist anymore due to a gambling scandal. We all know the current fate of Newcastle. And Standard Liege plays in BELGIUM! To be fair,he really just outgrew Liege, and so they will probably not be cursed.
You don't mess with the Gooch
Onyewu is going in as Maldini's heir, and I really think he can live up to it. Onyewu is a human wall, and his play is very well suited to the Italian league (they play slow and deliberate, with lots of headers, he will eat them alive). But, one final question. Is this the highest an American has ever gone in the club world? Surely, it's hard to argue that a club could be more prestigious than AC Milan, but Milan is in a down time, in a down time for Italian Serie A (though it should be noted that they were the Champions of Europe in only 2007). Where does this rank as the most prestigious landings of Americans?
Tim Howard Manchester United Duration: 2003-2006, 3 Seasons
Timbo Slice probably gets the nod here. He played first choice keeper for three seasons, and made the PFA Best XI in his first year. He had that awful mistake to Porto, and he really never recovered for the Red Devils. The only reason he stayed in the lineup those next two seasons was purely off how bad his competitors were. After appearing 40 times his first year, he made only 33 apperances over the next two. After lashing out when Edwin Van der Sar was signed, he went onto Bluer pastures and signed with Everton. Overall, started promising but ultimately was quite disappointing for quite possibly the greatest American player ever.
Brad Freidel Liverpool Duration: 1997-2000, 3 Seasons
Went to a slightly worse (at the time) team in England, a little earlier. Unlike Howard, he never really solidified himself in the starting role, and only made 31 appearances over 3 seasons for the Scousers, and only 4 in his last season there. After three frustrating years, moved onto Blackburn Rovers.
Landon Donovan Bayern Munich Duration: 2009, A Few Months
Well, I would label this as glamorous a club, and it is nice as Landon is the first outfield player on this list, but honestly, he made only six competitive appearances (not counting friendlies) and has still yet to score in a competitive European match. Landy came back after Rummenigge stated that all new strikers (who would have to be backups to Klose, Toni and Podolski) should be young "with perspective." To be fair, Landon really shouldn't be backing up at this stage in his career, and it really is a shame that his German dream didn't work out. I would expect him to make a big European move sometime in the next twelve months however, and if he doesn't after the World Cup in 2010, he never will.
Jozy Altidore Villareal Duration: Ongoing, signed in 2008
Jozy now loses his crown as the outfield American on the best team. To be fair, Jozy has yet to really star for Villareal, and was on loan with Xerez for most of last season, and has made only six appearances, but did become the first American to score in La Liga. Villareal remain high on him (which is understandable, as he is only 19), and sent him to Xerez over Everton so he could better assimilate into Spanish culture. I expect only bigger and better things from Altidore, and if you seem in Barca or Real Madrid in five years, I wouldn't be surprised. However, for the time being, his being at Villareal can't compete with AC Milan.
DaMarcus Beasley PSV Eindhoven Duration: 2004-2006, 2 Years
Remember when DMB was considered the next big thing? We would argue, who would be the best American player, DMB or Landy Cakes (no Demps in the discussion)? Well, sadly for everyone involved, that argument is long over, as is DMB's hopes for the national team or any other club that isn't in the MLS unless he starts to turn everything around. It's hard to blame him, as the injuries have really piled up and he is never really game-fit anymore, but he has bounced around Europe rather unsuccessfully, and in my opinion should return to more American pastures. Unless he goes to Sweden, Norway or some other crap league, he is just going to keep struggling and if he wants any hope of coming back, he needs to be a star at SOME level again. He played in 76 games for Eindhoven, and scored 15 times (not bad for a winger), but was really more of a disappointment his second year. He became the first American to play in a semifinal of the Champions League and he got to play under Guus Hiddink. Unfortunately, he bounced from PSV to City to Rangers, and has played less and less at each destination. He has fallen out of the starting lineup of Rangers, and his performance at the Confederations Cup won't have anyone rushing to put him back in.
That's really it. I am only doing players who were transferred to perennial Champions League clubs, and with all due respect to Claudio Reyna, Maurice Edu, Jonathan Spector, Clint Dempsey, Carlos Bocanegra, Brad Freidel, Tim Howard and DMB (again), and scores of other Americans playing in Europe, but clubs such as Rangers, Manchester City, West Ham, Fulham, Rennes, Tottenham or Everton don't really make the cut. PSV could probably be left off, but DMB did play in a CL Semifinal, and that can't really be understated. Looking back, Onyewu's move is clearly the biggest ever for a field player. The only clubs on that list that truly compete with Milan in prestige are Man U, Liverpool and Bayern. Those three all ended poorly, and only one of those is an outfield player, and he was a loan. The Gooch carries quite a weight on those massive shoulders all of a sudden, because if the Gooch can solidify himself as a top-class world defender, teams are going to realize (even more than they have already) that Americans can not only play in Europe, but play at the highest level, at the best clubs. Onward, Sir Gooch, ONWARD!
Onyewu to Milan is really quite the shocker, regardless of his playing history or nationalty. The fact of the matter is, the only other teams who were rumored to be interested in him were newly promoted Birmingham and Wolverhampton, and in the 11th hour, a little outfit known as AC Milan swooped in and took him. Does his Confederations Cup performance have anything to do with this? Obviously. He played lights out from the third game on, shutting down Egypt and Spain, and played quite respectably against Brazil. I'm still not fully over the shock, and if I may, I believe I'd like to give a quick recap of Onyewu's career:
Signs for then-Ligue 1 FC Metz (3 Appearances in 3 years) 2002-2004
Sent on loan to La Louviere in 2003 (First Division Belgian Team that is eventually rocked by gambling scandal in 2006, and is now no longer in existence) (24 Appearances)
Sent on loan to Standard Liege, and eventually made permanent 2004-2009, wins Juniper League in 2008 and 2009, makes 179 appearances, wins Foreign Player of the Year and makes the Best XI all full years spent there
Sent on Loan to Newcastle United (2007), but is paired with Titus Bramble, and both do an excellent impression of Dumb & Dumber and the deal is not made permanent
Signed by AC Milan (2009)
Well, I noticed two things about Oguchi Onyewu. One, he did far better in Belgium than I truly realized, and two, you do NOT mess with him in ANY capacity. Look at the teams who gave up on him. Metz, one of the most prestigious teams in France, was relegated. La Louviere doesn't even exist anymore due to a gambling scandal. We all know the current fate of Newcastle. And Standard Liege plays in BELGIUM! To be fair,he really just outgrew Liege, and so they will probably not be cursed.
You don't mess with the GoochOnyewu is going in as Maldini's heir, and I really think he can live up to it. Onyewu is a human wall, and his play is very well suited to the Italian league (they play slow and deliberate, with lots of headers, he will eat them alive). But, one final question. Is this the highest an American has ever gone in the club world? Surely, it's hard to argue that a club could be more prestigious than AC Milan, but Milan is in a down time, in a down time for Italian Serie A (though it should be noted that they were the Champions of Europe in only 2007). Where does this rank as the most prestigious landings of Americans?
Tim Howard Manchester United Duration: 2003-2006, 3 Seasons
Timbo Slice probably gets the nod here. He played first choice keeper for three seasons, and made the PFA Best XI in his first year. He had that awful mistake to Porto, and he really never recovered for the Red Devils. The only reason he stayed in the lineup those next two seasons was purely off how bad his competitors were. After appearing 40 times his first year, he made only 33 apperances over the next two. After lashing out when Edwin Van der Sar was signed, he went onto Bluer pastures and signed with Everton. Overall, started promising but ultimately was quite disappointing for quite possibly the greatest American player ever.
Brad Freidel Liverpool Duration: 1997-2000, 3 Seasons
Went to a slightly worse (at the time) team in England, a little earlier. Unlike Howard, he never really solidified himself in the starting role, and only made 31 appearances over 3 seasons for the Scousers, and only 4 in his last season there. After three frustrating years, moved onto Blackburn Rovers.
Landon Donovan Bayern Munich Duration: 2009, A Few Months
Well, I would label this as glamorous a club, and it is nice as Landon is the first outfield player on this list, but honestly, he made only six competitive appearances (not counting friendlies) and has still yet to score in a competitive European match. Landy came back after Rummenigge stated that all new strikers (who would have to be backups to Klose, Toni and Podolski) should be young "with perspective." To be fair, Landon really shouldn't be backing up at this stage in his career, and it really is a shame that his German dream didn't work out. I would expect him to make a big European move sometime in the next twelve months however, and if he doesn't after the World Cup in 2010, he never will.
Jozy Altidore Villareal Duration: Ongoing, signed in 2008
Jozy now loses his crown as the outfield American on the best team. To be fair, Jozy has yet to really star for Villareal, and was on loan with Xerez for most of last season, and has made only six appearances, but did become the first American to score in La Liga. Villareal remain high on him (which is understandable, as he is only 19), and sent him to Xerez over Everton so he could better assimilate into Spanish culture. I expect only bigger and better things from Altidore, and if you seem in Barca or Real Madrid in five years, I wouldn't be surprised. However, for the time being, his being at Villareal can't compete with AC Milan.
DaMarcus Beasley PSV Eindhoven Duration: 2004-2006, 2 Years
Remember when DMB was considered the next big thing? We would argue, who would be the best American player, DMB or Landy Cakes (no Demps in the discussion)? Well, sadly for everyone involved, that argument is long over, as is DMB's hopes for the national team or any other club that isn't in the MLS unless he starts to turn everything around. It's hard to blame him, as the injuries have really piled up and he is never really game-fit anymore, but he has bounced around Europe rather unsuccessfully, and in my opinion should return to more American pastures. Unless he goes to Sweden, Norway or some other crap league, he is just going to keep struggling and if he wants any hope of coming back, he needs to be a star at SOME level again. He played in 76 games for Eindhoven, and scored 15 times (not bad for a winger), but was really more of a disappointment his second year. He became the first American to play in a semifinal of the Champions League and he got to play under Guus Hiddink. Unfortunately, he bounced from PSV to City to Rangers, and has played less and less at each destination. He has fallen out of the starting lineup of Rangers, and his performance at the Confederations Cup won't have anyone rushing to put him back in.
That's really it. I am only doing players who were transferred to perennial Champions League clubs, and with all due respect to Claudio Reyna, Maurice Edu, Jonathan Spector, Clint Dempsey, Carlos Bocanegra, Brad Freidel, Tim Howard and DMB (again), and scores of other Americans playing in Europe, but clubs such as Rangers, Manchester City, West Ham, Fulham, Rennes, Tottenham or Everton don't really make the cut. PSV could probably be left off, but DMB did play in a CL Semifinal, and that can't really be understated. Looking back, Onyewu's move is clearly the biggest ever for a field player. The only clubs on that list that truly compete with Milan in prestige are Man U, Liverpool and Bayern. Those three all ended poorly, and only one of those is an outfield player, and he was a loan. The Gooch carries quite a weight on those massive shoulders all of a sudden, because if the Gooch can solidify himself as a top-class world defender, teams are going to realize (even more than they have already) that Americans can not only play in Europe, but play at the highest level, at the best clubs. Onward, Sir Gooch, ONWARD!
Monday, July 6, 2009
Just who exactly is Anton Peterlin?
NEWS FLASH: Everton FC have signed the latest, greatest American sensation! Anton Peterlin!
Wait, who?
Well, I've never heard of him, but then again, I don't spend a lot of time watching the USL Premier Development League. Anton was the star player for the Ventura County Fusion, a team so impressive it uses a high school's stadium for its home games. After a stellar performance, he was being courted by Chicago and San Jose, but out of nowhere (well really out of a series of mind-blowingly improbable events), David Moyes hands the kid a 10-day trial. He trains with the first team, and apparently "did not look out of place." Credit to Peterlin, he took the most of his opportunity, and now he is going from an amateur league to the fifth best team in England (yes it really is an amateur league).
Well lets, put a face to him before we get some background:
He is a 22-year old Defensive Midfielder from California who played for UC Santa Cruz and then Cal Polytech. He has dual citizenship with Denmark (cap him! cap him now! we can't lose another one!) and as correctly pointed out by many other sources, has a life story remarkably like that of the movie Goal! I wish I could write more about him, but everyone else seems as amazed by this as we are. I like the fact that Americans can be signed on pure promise now, and I hope Anton Peterlin proves Moyes right. Now, I present to you the only video that is viewable when you search Anton Petelrin on YouTube:
Wait, who?
Well, I've never heard of him, but then again, I don't spend a lot of time watching the USL Premier Development League. Anton was the star player for the Ventura County Fusion, a team so impressive it uses a high school's stadium for its home games. After a stellar performance, he was being courted by Chicago and San Jose, but out of nowhere (well really out of a series of mind-blowingly improbable events), David Moyes hands the kid a 10-day trial. He trains with the first team, and apparently "did not look out of place." Credit to Peterlin, he took the most of his opportunity, and now he is going from an amateur league to the fifth best team in England (yes it really is an amateur league).
Well lets, put a face to him before we get some background:
He is a 22-year old Defensive Midfielder from California who played for UC Santa Cruz and then Cal Polytech. He has dual citizenship with Denmark (cap him! cap him now! we can't lose another one!) and as correctly pointed out by many other sources, has a life story remarkably like that of the movie Goal! I wish I could write more about him, but everyone else seems as amazed by this as we are. I like the fact that Americans can be signed on pure promise now, and I hope Anton Peterlin proves Moyes right. Now, I present to you the only video that is viewable when you search Anton Petelrin on YouTube:
Stanky Leggs in Football: An Investigation
Charlie Davies has proven to be a revelation for more than one reason the past month. Not only is he a great foil for star-in-the-making Jozy Altidore, a high-intensity striker who always harrasses defenses and never seems to slow down, he also is single-handedly bringing the Stanky Legg to the world's game. For those of you not familiar with the Stanky Legg, here is what I'm referring to:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cKr0DeUuy-o(sorry no embeds)
Charlie Davies (with sidekick Altidore) showcased their own rendition already in the Confederations Cup:
Then Charlie busted it out in full against mighty Grenada
The real question is, will it catch on? Sweden already seems to have a rather big hardon for Charlie Davies, will we see Swedes do their own rendition of the Stanky Legg? (For those of you who are wondering, stanky leg in Swedish is "Obehagligt Ben")
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cKr0DeUuy-o(sorry no embeds)
Charlie Davies (with sidekick Altidore) showcased their own rendition already in the Confederations Cup:
Then Charlie busted it out in full against mighty Grenada
The real question is, will it catch on? Sweden already seems to have a rather big hardon for Charlie Davies, will we see Swedes do their own rendition of the Stanky Legg? (For those of you who are wondering, stanky leg in Swedish is "Obehagligt Ben")
Friday, July 3, 2009
The Updated Gold Cup Roster
The US, due to a rule change (it allows nations who participate in the Confederations Cup to bring 30, as opposed to 23 players to the Gold cup in that same year) has now added 7 players to it's Gold Cup roster. They are:
Altidore, Casey, Feilhaber, Clark, Kljestan, Bornstein, and Guzan.
Well, this obviously changes the lineup quite a bit, doesn't it? My new best XI would be something along the lines of:
Guzan
Cherundolo Marshall Parkhurst Bornstein
Rogers R.Clark Feilhaber Adu (playing the Donovan role)
Davies Altidore
Five out of the new eleven were not even in the squad when I made my first post... I think a change of expectations for this team is to be expected. With all these guys coming in from the Confederations Cup, probably feeling really confident right about now, expect us to get past Costa Rica in the semis like I predicted... Honestly we can probably win the Gold Cup at this point. Mexico is in tatters, Costa Rica is our closest competition. And if you ask me, the team above could handle Costa Rica.
OOOOOOOOHHHHHH the Yanks are coming!!!!!!!!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8zDVenF_k
Altidore, Casey, Feilhaber, Clark, Kljestan, Bornstein, and Guzan.
Well, this obviously changes the lineup quite a bit, doesn't it? My new best XI would be something along the lines of:
Guzan
Cherundolo Marshall Parkhurst Bornstein
Rogers R.Clark Feilhaber Adu (playing the Donovan role)
Davies Altidore
Five out of the new eleven were not even in the squad when I made my first post... I think a change of expectations for this team is to be expected. With all these guys coming in from the Confederations Cup, probably feeling really confident right about now, expect us to get past Costa Rica in the semis like I predicted... Honestly we can probably win the Gold Cup at this point. Mexico is in tatters, Costa Rica is our closest competition. And if you ask me, the team above could handle Costa Rica.
OOOOOOOOHHHHHH the Yanks are coming!!!!!!!!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8zDVenF_kEQ
Monday, June 29, 2009
Question: What's the difference between the summer of 07 and the summer of 09?
Answer: In 09, the USSF chose the correct tournament to take seriously.
With the Confederations Cup behind us, it is now the Gold Cup that comes to Bob Bradley's attention. A less-than B strength roster has been called up, leading many to believe that the US will not retain the title this time around. The official roster includes:
GOALKEEPERS- Jon Busch (Chicago Fire), Troy Perkins (IK Start), Luis Robles (FC Kaiserslautern)
DEFENDERS- Steve Cherundolo (Hannover 96), Jimmy Conrad (Kansas City Wizards), Clarence Goodson (IK Start), Jay Heaps (New England Revolution), Chad Marshall (Columbus Crew), Michael Parkhurst (FC Nordsjaellands), Heath Pearce (Hansa Rostock)
MIDFIELDERS- Davy Arnaud (Kansas City Wizards), Kyle Beckerman (Real Salt Lake), Colin Clark (Colorado Rapids), Sam Cronin (Toronto FC), Brad Evans (Seattle Sounders), Stuart Holden (Houston Dynamo), Logan Pause (Chicago Fire), Robbie Rogers (Columbus Crew)
FORWARDS- Freddy Adu (AS Monaco), Brian Ching (Houston Dynamo), Kenny Cooper (FC Dallas), Charlie Davies (Hammarby IF), Santino Quaranta (D.C. United)
Obviously this roster is missing a lot of talent. Mostly this is because players are not typically expected to be available for two tournaments over the course of a single off-season, and given that the US made the Confed. Cup its primary tournament this year, that's where all of the talent went. So now we are left with the upper-tier of MLS and our contingent of Denmark players who are (hopefully) all vying to make a name for themselves in the USMNT picture. Given my somewhat limited knowledge of our roster, here is my starting XI:
Busch
Cherundolo Conrad Parkhurst Marshall
Holden
Rogers Clark
Adu
Davies Cooper
Busch in goal for me is a no-brainer. MLS Goalkeeper of the Year is not an award to scoff at, given the quality of keepers in America's top flight.
Cherundolo and Conrad- pencil them in. These are experienced guys who are still in the conversation for spots on our A-team, much less this C+ roster.
Parkhurst and Marshall are the two latest winners of MLS Defender of the Year, and it is for this reason that I put them in the team. I know next to nothing about the rest of our defenders (except for Heath Pierce, but I think I've seen enough out of him for a while...).
Holden I remember as being the BOSS back when I first started to watch MLS (summer of 2007). He was part of a Dynamo midfield that included Ricardo Clark and Dwayne de Rosario, a combination that yeilded back-to-back MLS cups.
Robbie Rogers is an obvious choice for RM, he's been a key to Colombus' recent success and at 22 is looking to trade in MLS for Europe very soon.
Colin Clark I am not so sure of. I know for a fact that he plays the LW for Colorado, though honestly I am not sure of his skill level. I know he has had a break-out year in 2009, but is that really saying something? For what it's worth, Colorado have been a great turnaround story this season.
Adu is another obvious choice, he's probably got the most talent of anyone on the roster. He has ALWAYS played well in a US jersey, I can't wait to see him in that attacking midfielder/playmaker role once again. Maybe he can use this tournament to convince a club to buy him (preferably a club that will PLAY HIM).
Davies and Cooper up top is not exactly a given, but I think it will work very well. Honestly I think a Ching-Cooper pairing would be more effective, but there is no way Charlie Davies is going to ride the bench in this tournament, given that everyone is all about him after the Confed Cup. Davies is another player I would love to see move to a better league (Sweden? Come on, man, you're better than that...).
Let me be honest in saying that I do not know if Chad Marshall has ever played left back, I just desperately wanted to keep Heath Pierce out of my starting XI. Also I am not totally sure of whether or not Stuart Holden is a holding midfielder by trade at the Dynamo, I am reasonably confident that he is but I could be wrong. Really I put him in because he is just a much better player than the other of the midfielders on the roster that could potentially fill that DM position (maybe Kyle Beckerman could play there instead? Those dreads would be enough to break up any kind of offense that Mexico throws at us...).
Some notable absentees that I wanted to see in this squad are:
Chris Seitz- I was under the impression that he was the next Marcus Hanneman (always overshadowed by his contemporary keepers, but still a quality shot-stopper), so I figured that this would be a great tournament for him to showcase himself in.
Eddie Johnson- I know that Eddie has improved during his time in England. Now I want to see him show his improvement for the Nats... Unfortunately he won't be getting that chance in the Gold Cup. I just have to wonder why.
Jose Francisco Torres- The lone standout of the USA-Costa Rica match, I have been dying to see him get some more games for the US. He didn't get any time at the Confed Cup, which I was ok with, assuming that he would play a big role in the Gold Cup. I guess I was wrong. I assume that his club team (Mexico's Pachuca) didn't want to lose him for a further three weeks, given that they are preparing for the start of La Apertura.
Michael Orozco- Michael is a great defender, but he has not been called up since the Olympics. The Gold Cup seemed like the perfect venue for him to throw himself into the mix for the future of the US defense.
Sal Zizzo and Danny Szetela- I will group these guys together because they are basically the exact same story- midfielders who excelled at the U-20 WC a few years back, made moves to European clubs (Hannover 96 and Racing de Santander, respectively) but have seen little to no playing time. Szetela was loaned out to Serie-B side Brescia, where according to wikipedia he made 26 appearances. In any case, Serie-B is not much (if any) better than MLS so a season there is not much to speak of. These two haven't been getting any time on the International stage mainly because they have not showed development (through a lack of playing time), which is a perfectly good reason to not call someone up to an important match... but for this Gold Cup, which we are clearly not valuing as a major tournament, you would think that Bradley would give these two VERY promising players a chance.
Ok, so now on to my predictions: We will come out of group B on top (honestly I could see us faltering vs Honduras and coming in second, but let's be optimistic for a moment here). Winning group B will put us against a third-place team from group A or C, which could concievably be any of Panama, Jamaica, Canada, or El Salvador. None of those teams scares me, though with this roster, Canada could probably manage to beat us.
However, I am going to go with my head and say that we get past the 1/4 finals. In the next round we will most likely play Cosa Rica, and it is here in the Semis that I see our squad failing. Sadly, the USA will not retain the Gold Cup title.
With the Confederations Cup behind us, it is now the Gold Cup that comes to Bob Bradley's attention. A less-than B strength roster has been called up, leading many to believe that the US will not retain the title this time around. The official roster includes:
GOALKEEPERS- Jon Busch (Chicago Fire), Troy Perkins (IK Start), Luis Robles (FC Kaiserslautern)
DEFENDERS- Steve Cherundolo (Hannover 96), Jimmy Conrad (Kansas City Wizards), Clarence Goodson (IK Start), Jay Heaps (New England Revolution), Chad Marshall (Columbus Crew), Michael Parkhurst (FC Nordsjaellands), Heath Pearce (Hansa Rostock)
MIDFIELDERS- Davy Arnaud (Kansas City Wizards), Kyle Beckerman (Real Salt Lake), Colin Clark (Colorado Rapids), Sam Cronin (Toronto FC), Brad Evans (Seattle Sounders), Stuart Holden (Houston Dynamo), Logan Pause (Chicago Fire), Robbie Rogers (Columbus Crew)
FORWARDS- Freddy Adu (AS Monaco), Brian Ching (Houston Dynamo), Kenny Cooper (FC Dallas), Charlie Davies (Hammarby IF), Santino Quaranta (D.C. United)
Obviously this roster is missing a lot of talent. Mostly this is because players are not typically expected to be available for two tournaments over the course of a single off-season, and given that the US made the Confed. Cup its primary tournament this year, that's where all of the talent went. So now we are left with the upper-tier of MLS and our contingent of Denmark players who are (hopefully) all vying to make a name for themselves in the USMNT picture. Given my somewhat limited knowledge of our roster, here is my starting XI:
Busch
Cherundolo Conrad Parkhurst Marshall
Holden
Rogers Clark
Adu
Davies Cooper
Busch in goal for me is a no-brainer. MLS Goalkeeper of the Year is not an award to scoff at, given the quality of keepers in America's top flight.
Cherundolo and Conrad- pencil them in. These are experienced guys who are still in the conversation for spots on our A-team, much less this C+ roster.
Parkhurst and Marshall are the two latest winners of MLS Defender of the Year, and it is for this reason that I put them in the team. I know next to nothing about the rest of our defenders (except for Heath Pierce, but I think I've seen enough out of him for a while...).
Holden I remember as being the BOSS back when I first started to watch MLS (summer of 2007). He was part of a Dynamo midfield that included Ricardo Clark and Dwayne de Rosario, a combination that yeilded back-to-back MLS cups.
Robbie Rogers is an obvious choice for RM, he's been a key to Colombus' recent success and at 22 is looking to trade in MLS for Europe very soon.
Colin Clark I am not so sure of. I know for a fact that he plays the LW for Colorado, though honestly I am not sure of his skill level. I know he has had a break-out year in 2009, but is that really saying something? For what it's worth, Colorado have been a great turnaround story this season.
Adu is another obvious choice, he's probably got the most talent of anyone on the roster. He has ALWAYS played well in a US jersey, I can't wait to see him in that attacking midfielder/playmaker role once again. Maybe he can use this tournament to convince a club to buy him (preferably a club that will PLAY HIM).
Davies and Cooper up top is not exactly a given, but I think it will work very well. Honestly I think a Ching-Cooper pairing would be more effective, but there is no way Charlie Davies is going to ride the bench in this tournament, given that everyone is all about him after the Confed Cup. Davies is another player I would love to see move to a better league (Sweden? Come on, man, you're better than that...).
Let me be honest in saying that I do not know if Chad Marshall has ever played left back, I just desperately wanted to keep Heath Pierce out of my starting XI. Also I am not totally sure of whether or not Stuart Holden is a holding midfielder by trade at the Dynamo, I am reasonably confident that he is but I could be wrong. Really I put him in because he is just a much better player than the other of the midfielders on the roster that could potentially fill that DM position (maybe Kyle Beckerman could play there instead? Those dreads would be enough to break up any kind of offense that Mexico throws at us...).
Some notable absentees that I wanted to see in this squad are:
Chris Seitz- I was under the impression that he was the next Marcus Hanneman (always overshadowed by his contemporary keepers, but still a quality shot-stopper), so I figured that this would be a great tournament for him to showcase himself in.
Eddie Johnson- I know that Eddie has improved during his time in England. Now I want to see him show his improvement for the Nats... Unfortunately he won't be getting that chance in the Gold Cup. I just have to wonder why.
Jose Francisco Torres- The lone standout of the USA-Costa Rica match, I have been dying to see him get some more games for the US. He didn't get any time at the Confed Cup, which I was ok with, assuming that he would play a big role in the Gold Cup. I guess I was wrong. I assume that his club team (Mexico's Pachuca) didn't want to lose him for a further three weeks, given that they are preparing for the start of La Apertura.
Michael Orozco- Michael is a great defender, but he has not been called up since the Olympics. The Gold Cup seemed like the perfect venue for him to throw himself into the mix for the future of the US defense.
Sal Zizzo and Danny Szetela- I will group these guys together because they are basically the exact same story- midfielders who excelled at the U-20 WC a few years back, made moves to European clubs (Hannover 96 and Racing de Santander, respectively) but have seen little to no playing time. Szetela was loaned out to Serie-B side Brescia, where according to wikipedia he made 26 appearances. In any case, Serie-B is not much (if any) better than MLS so a season there is not much to speak of. These two haven't been getting any time on the International stage mainly because they have not showed development (through a lack of playing time), which is a perfectly good reason to not call someone up to an important match... but for this Gold Cup, which we are clearly not valuing as a major tournament, you would think that Bradley would give these two VERY promising players a chance.
Ok, so now on to my predictions: We will come out of group B on top (honestly I could see us faltering vs Honduras and coming in second, but let's be optimistic for a moment here). Winning group B will put us against a third-place team from group A or C, which could concievably be any of Panama, Jamaica, Canada, or El Salvador. None of those teams scares me, though with this roster, Canada could probably manage to beat us.
However, I am going to go with my head and say that we get past the 1/4 finals. In the next round we will most likely play Cosa Rica, and it is here in the Semis that I see our squad failing. Sadly, the USA will not retain the Gold Cup title.
Thursday, June 25, 2009
Freddy A-Who?
It seems like a long time ago that Freddy Adu was big news. In fact, it seems like a long time ago that Freddy Adu was even worth mentioning, for any reason whatsoever. The golden child is suddenly the red-headed stepchild, and considering how much playing time he is getting for his national team (riding the pine), his club team (loaned out) OR the team he was loaned to (lucky to ride the pine), it doesn't appear like Freddy is getting his fair shakes. Perhaps we are expecting too much of Adu too soon, as he is still very young (only just turned 20) and outside of England, most countries are reticent to give major playing time to youngsters (there were some brilliant articles about this in relation to the Federico Macheda saga and how that would not have been possible back home for Lazio). Lets just give a recap of the already-quite-eventful career of Mr. Adu (Adu's age is in parantheses):
1997: Family wins immigration lottery and moves to the DC area from Ghana (8)
Spotted early on by some soccer scouts, and is quickly put into to advanced soccer training and plays with the US Development Academy
At a U-14 tournament involving many strong club sides youth squads, Adu finishes the tournament as the MVP, leading scorer and leads his team to victory. Was offered a six-figure transfer to Inter Milan but his mother turns it down due to advice of his agents. Adu is 10.
2004: Selected first in the MLS Superdraft by DC United (14).
April 3, 2004: Youngest player to ever appear in the MLS
April 17, 2004: Youngest player ever to score in the MLS
2004-2006: Adu sees regular action for DC United, and eventually starts for them in 2006. He is selected as an all-star twice, though his first appearance was widely seen as a publicity stunt considering his less-than-all-star performance (not shameful when he is only 14). Over 87 total appearances, Adu found the net 11 times, though this goal average is hard to truly measure considering how often he was a substitute.(14-17)
February 2006: A very overhyped two-week trial with Manchester United sees Adu receive praise from Sir Alex, however he only plays with academy players for a couple weeks and then returns home, to much fanfare. (16)
December 2006: Adu is traded to Real Salt Lake. He has a rather uneventful season, falling below many expectations. He scores 2 goals in 11 appearances. (17).
Summer 2007: Adu captains the US U-20 squad in the U-20 World Cup, an event where the US played considerably well and raised expectations for the future of American talent. The United States is bounced in a rough semifinal match with Austria, losing in extra time. Adu finishes the tournament with 3 goals (a hat-trick against Poland)and is widely considered to have had a very strong showing in the tournament. Other notables on the team were now-senior-squad-regulars Jozy Altidore and Michael Bradley. (18)
July 30, 2007: Adu, after years of overseas transfer speculation, is finally transfered to Portugese side Benfica. Adu is initially very well-received by the coaching staff, and is promised increasing playing time and impresses the few times he is on the pitch. With a few weeks, that coaching staff is entirely fired. Adu does not see playing time again, and ends the season with only 11 total appearances, with 2 goals. (18).
July 2008: The following summer, as opposed to having Adu ride the pine all season again, Adu is sent for a full-season loan to AS Monaco, with an option to buy. Monaco took to Adu as enthusiastically as the new Benfica coaching staff, and Adu has 9 appearances for Monaco, all of them as a substitute. Monaco declined the right to buy Adu, and he will be returning to Benfica in the fall. (Currently 20)
So, there you go, a rather topsy-turvy tale for Mr. Adu, but one many footballers can relate to. You can pepper in there that Adu has only had 12 senior squad apperances, mostly as a substitute or in friendlies and has one goal to his name. There is good news and bad news. The good news is Adu is less than a month from turning 20, so he has plenty of time on his side, as he is still very young for a footballer of any class. The bad news is that he really needs to get out of Benfica and go to a league more focused on youth development, maybe a Holland or a lower-tier English squad. Really it doesn't matter where he goes, as long as he plays. In the last two injury-free years, he has made 20 appearances for a club team, and he started all of ZERO of them. Look, I know, younger players don't start, younger players need to develop, but Adu is in what I like to call the "Michelle Wie Zone." He was so good, so young that he was considered too advanced to play with his own age group, but his development was ironically stunted by him jumping so high so fast. He can't compete with seasoned professionals because he is too young, so he spends too much time languishing on the bench while players younger than him who come up in a more organic way, say a Jozy Altidore, end up flourishing before them as they were given time to develop. Adu hasn't been allowed to develop since he was 14. He has been constantly pushed as the next big thing. I mean, as a 15 year old, he whined to the media that he wasn't getting enough playing time. YOU ARE 15! He was a prima donna superstar at 15! Adu needs to stop being called up to tournaments he won't play in, and just start focusing on a league where he can play. He isn't getting much time in the reserves with Benfica/Monaco because he is too busy riding pine to actually play with *cough* lesser talents. Adu could use the consistent playing time, and he does quite well in slightly-less-talented situations. While he is an afterthought for the senior squad, Adu has dominated in every youth tournament he has ever been in, be it U14 through U23. Adu is far too young and talented to write his career off now, but for it to be saved, we need to stop worrying about him and let him work his way up through a club system. And no, that club system doesn't have to involve champions league.
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