Friday, February 12, 2010

Friday Shootout

In our new Friday installment, we'll preview our Yanks Abroad weekend schedule and get you caught on everything else American Soccer.

First off lets take a gander at the weekend schedule shall we?

FRIDAY

Oguchi Onyewu and AC Milan play Udinese. (Onyewu is out injured.)
Michael Bradley and Borussia Moenchengladbach play Nurnberg.
Matt Taylor and FSV Frankfurt play St Pauli.

SATURDAY

Kenny Cooper and Plymouth Argyle play Barnsley.
Jon-Paul Pittman and Wycombe Wanderers play Brentford.
Zak Whitbread and Norwich City play Brighton.
Ian Joyce and Southend United play Tranmere Rovers.
Jemal Johnson and Stockport County play Colchester United.
Mike Grella and Leeds United play Leyton Orient.
Dominic Cervi and Celtic play Aberdeen.
Steve Cherundolo, Sal Zizzo and Hannover 96 play Werder Bremen. (Cherundolo and Zizzo are out injured.)
Charlie Davies and Sochaux play Le Mans. (Davies is out injured.)
Marco Vidal and Indios de Ciudad Juarez play San Luis.

SUNDAY


Stuart Holden and Bolton Wanderers play Tottenham Hotspur in the fifth round of the FA Cup.
Brad Friedel, Brad Guzan and Aston Villa play Crystal Palace in the fifth round of the FA Cup.
Clint Dempsey and Fulham play Notts County in the fifth round of the FA Cup. (Dempsey is out injured.)
DaMarcus Beasley, Maurice Edu and Rangers play Hibernian.
Jermaine Jones and Schalke 04 play FC Cologne. (Jones is out injured.)
Ricardo Clark and Eintracht Frankfurt play SC Freiburg. (Clark is out injured.)
David Yeldell and TUS Koblenz play Hansa Rostock. (Yeldell is out injured.)
Carlos Bocanegra and Stade Rennes play AJ Auxerre.
Freddy Adu, Eddie Johnson and Aris Salonika play Ergotelis.
Herculez Gomez and Puebla play Jose Francisco Torres and Pachuca. (Torres is out injured.)
Edgar Castillo and Tigres UANL play Monterrey.


Now on to more pressing matters.  Like the growing number of players with dual citizenship.  Of which, the US is in prime position to cash in on.  The "list" of players, that I know of at least, stands at six.  Three of whom we already know quite well (Jose Torres and Edgar Castillo picked the USA over Mexico and Jermaine Jones chose the States over Germany).  The other three are Michael Hoyos of Argentine champs Estudiantes de La Plata, Daniel Williams of SC Freiburg in the Bundesliga, and Fabian Johnson of reigning German champs VfL Wolfsburg.

Some quick background on these three hopefuls:

Michael Hoyos was born in Manhattan Beach, California in 1991.  He retains dual citizenship through his Argentina-born parents. This kid is star waiting to be kindled.  "In fact, he was playing two levels below the reserve team in what is called the quinta when the coaches realized they had a gem and moved him straight up to the first team this past winter."  Thats a pretty substantial jump, especially at a club like Estudiantes, which boasts Argentine stars like Juan Sebastian Veron.  He's young (18) and apparently has the skill to do some damage.  US Soccer is well aware of Hoyos and had invited him to the Under 20's camp, but Hoyos elected to stay at his club for the time.  All of this, in three years.  For more on Hoyos, Yanks Abroad had a sit down with him.

Daniel Williams another German with an American military father, born in Karlsruhe, Germany in 1989 (age 20) .  He plays right back for Bundesliga club SC Freiburg.  He has represented German youth teams (at the U15 level) but with the German wing back pool quite full at the time, he is in a position to make the switch to the stars and stripes. "Of course I would consider playing for the US National team," Williams admitted in an interview with Yanks Abroad.  His natural position is defensive midfield, but since his move to the first team has started at right back.  Another fast mover after spending most of his time with the reserves, then suddenly promoted to the first team and then becoming a starter.  He claims US Soccer has not contacted him about switching to the stars and stripes.  Better get on that Sunil!

Fabian Johnson, like Williams, born in Munich, Germany in 1987 (age 22) with an American father.  This is more of a hopeful pick on my part.  I say that because at 22 years of age he's played for numerous German youth teams (U19, U20, U21).  After making 43 appearances for the 1860 Munich II squad, he was quickly promoted to the first team where he made made 90 appearances and scored 4 goals (he is mainly a defender, but can be deployed in midfield).  In 2009 he made the switch to German champions Wolfsburg, where he has found playing time inconsistent, making only four appearances, scoring once.  This guy could have Jermaine Jones syndrome, a player who is on the fringe of the German national team but can't quite make it and see's the US as his ticket to the World Cup.  This is no offense to US soccer or its players, because lets face it, 8 of 10 times Germany beats the US (handball on the goal-line or not).  Here is his wikipedia page for those of you who want more info.


 Now, some US camp news and notes:

  • Kevin Alston will miss the beginning of camp with a hamstring injury, the same one that kept him out of the Honduras match.  Hopefully he gets well enough to play, as I'm sure most US fans don't want to see any more of Marvell Wynne
  • Zach "Big Boy" Thornton suffered a mild knock in training and will be evaluated by the US training staff.  Just in case, Kevin Hartmann has been recalled.

I found this very interesting with my afternoon coffee.  It seems that the International Football Associations Board has received an item from FIFA that would make the last-man foul a yellow card offense, reducing it from a straight red.  In this article from ESPN Soccernet, it also claims that "feinting" before a penalty shot and goal line technology and the addition of officials on the goal line will also be looked at.  Interesting.....

Stay tuned for more possibly coming should something arise. 

Wednesday, February 10, 2010

Wednesday EPL Round-Up

 
If one looked at the line-up in the EPL today, you would think it was Saturday.

The major match-up of the day was a 3-4 match pitting my Gunners against Liverpool.  Abou Diaby headed home the winner in the 72nd minute from close range ending a difficult run of matches for Arsenal.  With Chelsea and Tottenham going down and Man U held it ended a much better day for the Gunners than it started. 

Yanks today were up and down.  

*Jonathan Spector came on for the second half as the Hammers beat Birmingham 2-0 at Upton Park.  

*Landon Donovan and Tim Howard both enjoyed very strong performances as Everton upset league leaders Chelsea 2-1 at home.  Both went the full 90.

*Brad Freidel and Aston Villa held Manchester United to a 1-1 draw at home.  Brad Guzan rode the bench as usual.

*Jozy Altidore went the full 90 against Blackburn, but Hull City fell at Ewood Park 1-0.

*Marcus Hahnemann and Wolves upset Tottenham 1-0 at home.  

In Scotland both Maurice Edu and DaMarcus Beasley are recovering from injuries and weren't on the bench for Rangers match against Motherwell.

Wednesday Common Sense: The John Terry Fiasco

 
This is one of the new features on Ninety-Plus.  Every Wednesday we will examine shocking or strange stories from the world of football.

Obviously, the biggest news coming out of England football right now is the John Terry-Wayne Bridge affair fiasco.  The long and short of the story is basically John Terry had an affair with former teammate and fellow England National Team defender Wayne Bridge's ex-girlfriend Vanessa Perroncel, behind-the-back of Terry's current wife Toni Poole.  When Perroncel became pregnant Terry paid for a private abortion.  Terry was also reportedly paying to keep the affair secret....okay, I've caught my breathe.

The repercussions of the scandal?  John Terry was removed as captain of the England squad and replaced by fellow center-half Rio Ferdinand.  Wayne Bridge has reportedly told England manager Fabio Capello that he will refuse to be in the same side with Terry for future matches, which severely hinders Bridges chances of making the World Cup squad for England.  Losing the captain's armband is really all that Capello really could do?  A simple slap on the wrist, for Terry.  He still goes to the World Cup, and the real victim in all this, Bridge, loses his chance make the World Cup.  Now Terry's wife has insisted that in future he must come straight home after training, have far fewer nights on the town and agree to marriage counselling.  Terry will fly out to meet with Toni in Dubai after tonight's match with Everton in an effort to safe their marriage, in the company of Toni's family no less. 
Could this have any lasting effects come June 12?  Possibly.  Terry is likely to lose a lot of respect in the England locker room, but based on Terry's recent performances with Chelsea, I'd say Terry's on field performance won't slack off. 

The major problem I have with all of this is that Terry isn't really being punished for being unfaithful, dishonest, or any other word you want to call it.  Losing the captain's armband is NOT a punishment, it's Capello's way of saving face and giving the appearance of punishing Terry.  What should happen is the FA coming down hard on Terry, by say, imposing a suspension of a certain amount of matches, not to exceed the the first World Cup match.  I kidd, I kidd.  But that would never happen, because Terry is a household name, whereas Wayne Bridge is not.  
It's time for the FA to stop playing favorites with its players and dish out the appropriate punishment.  But then again, we all know that they won't because they are afraid of the name and there are way to many powerful people in London who are Chelsea fans. 

Monday, February 8, 2010

Weekend Yank MVP

 
Could Jozy Altidore earn consecutive Weekend MVP honors for a solid performance against billionaires Manchester City?  Let's find out how everyone did this past weekend.

England

PREMIERSHIP
  • Landon Donovan started and played 90 minutes in Everton's 1-0 loss vs. Liverpool on Saturday.
  • Tim Howard started, played 90 minutes and made two saves in Everton's 1-0 loss vs. Liverpool on Saturday.
  • Jozy Altidore started, played 66 minutes and scored a GOAL in Hull City 's 2-1 win vs. Manchester City on Saturday. 
  • Clint Dempsey did not dress in Fulham's 0-0 draw vs. Bolton Wanderers on Saturday. He is recovering from a knee injury.
  • Jonathan Spector started and played 90 minutes in West Ham's 2-1 loss vs. Burnley on Saturday.
  • Brad Friedel started, played 90 minutes and made five saves in Aston Villa's 0-0 draw vs. Tottenham Hotspur on Saturday.
  • Brad Guzan dressed but did not play in Aston Villa's 0-0 draw vs. Tottenham Hotspur on Saturday.

  • Marcus Hahnemann started, played 90 minutes and made four saves in Wolverhampton Wanderers' 2-1 loss vs. Birmingham on Sunday.

  • Stuart Holden did not dress in Bolton Wanderers' 0-0 draw vs. Fulham on Saturday. He is recovering from a thigh injury.
COCA COLA CHAMPIONSHIP
  • Jay DeMerit started and played 90 minutes in Watford's 1-0 loss vs. Barnsley on Saturday.
  • Frank Simek started and played 90 minutes in Sheffield Wednesday's 2-1 loss vs. Nottingham Forest on Saturday.
  • Kenny Cooper came off the bench and played 32 minutes in Plymouth Argyle's 1-0 loss vs. West Bromwich Albion on Saturday.
LEAGUE ONE
  • Ian Joyce and Southend United play Colchester United on Monday.
  • Zak Whitbread came off the bench and played 13 minutes in Norwich City's 2-1 loss vs. Millwall on Saturday.
  • Mike Grella dressed but did not play in Leeds United's 2-2 draw vs. Hartlepool United on Saturday.
  • Jemal Johnson did not dress in Stockport County's 3-1 loss vs. Milton Keynes Dons on Saturday.
  • Jon-Paul Pittman dressed but did not play in Wycombe Wanderers' 4-1 loss vs. Yeovil Town on Saturday.

Scotland

  • Maurice Edu did not dress in Rangers' 0-0 draw vs. St Mirren in the fifth round of the Scottish Cup on Saturday. He is recovering from an ankle injury.
  • DaMarcus Beasley did not dress in Rangers' 0-0 draw vs. St Mirren in the fifth round of the Scottish Cup on Saturday. He is recovering from a thigh injury. 
  • Dominic Cervi did not dress in Celtic's 4-2 win vs. Dunfermline Athletic in the fifth round of the Scottish Cup on Sunday.

Italy

  • Oguchi Onyewu did not dress in AC Milan's 0-0 draw vs. Bologna on Sunday. He is recovering from a knee injury.

Germany

BUNDESLIGA
  • Michael Bradley started and played 90 minutes in Borussia Moenchengladbach's 1-0 loss vs. Mainz on Sunday.
  • Steve Cherundolo did not dress in Hannover 96's 2-1 loss vs. TSG Hoffenheim on Saturday. He is recovering from a shoulder injury.
  • Sal Zizzo did not dress in Hannover 96's 2-1 loss vs. TSG Hoffenheim on Saturday. He is recovering from a knee injury.
  • Jermaine Jones did not dress in Schalke 04's 0-0 draw vs. SC Freiburg on Saturday. He is recovering from a leg injury.
  • Ricardo Clark did not dress in Eintracht Frankfurt's 3-2 win vs. Borussia Dortmund on Sunday.  He is recovering from a leg injury.
BUNDESLIGA 2
  • Luis Robles dressed but did not play in Kaiserslautern's 3-0 win vs. SC Paderborn 07 on Sunday.
  • Matt Taylor did not dress in FSV Frankfurt's 1-1 draw vs. Alemania Aachen on Sunday.
  • David Yeldell did not dress in TUS Koblenz's 1-1 draw vs. Energie Cottbus on Saturday. He is recovering from a leg injury.

France

  • Carlos Bocanegra started and played 90 minutes in Stade Rennes' 4-2 win vs. Bordeaux on Saturday.
  • Charlie Davies did not dress in Sochaux's 1-1 draw vs. AS Nancy Lorraine on Saturday. He is recovering from multiple injuries. 

Greece

  • Freddy Adu and Aris Salonika were losing 1-0 vs. Panthrakikos on Saturday before the match was abandoned at halftime due to a waterlogged pitch.
  • Eddie Johnson and Aris Salonika were losing 1-0 vs. Panthrakikos on Saturday before the match was abandoned at halftime due to a waterlogged pitch.

Mexico

  • Jose Francisco Torres did not dress in Pachuca's 2-2 draw vs. San Luis on Saturday. He is recovering from a hamstring injury.
  • Edgar Castillo started and played 90 minutes in Tigres UANL's 2-2 draw vs. Pumas UNAM on Saturday.
  • Marco Vidal started and played 90 minutes in Indios de Ciudad Juarez's 1-0 loss vs. Morelia on Sunday.
  • Herculez Gomez started, played 61 minutes, received a yellow card and scored a GOAL in Puebla's 1-1 draw vs. Atlante on Sunday. 

Weekend Yank MVP belongs again to Jozy Altidore.  In the first twelve minutes of the match Jozy drew yellows on both City central defenders and got the opening goal in the 31st minute on a layoff from Jan Vennegoor of Hesselink, which Jozy slotted home beautifully from 18 yards.



Bradley Calls 23 for El Salvador

 
A little late on this one, but as I'm sure everyone knows, Bob Bradley has named an entirely MLS roster for the February 24 match-up against El Salvador.  Another chance for several fringe players to put themselves in position to make the 23.  Speaking of naming rosters, the roster for the Netherlands match should be up within the week.  But without further adieu, here are the lucky 23.

U.S. ROSTER BY POSITION GOALKEEPERS (3): Troy Perkins (D.C. United), Nick Rimando (Real Salt Lake), Zach Thornton (Chivas USA)
DEFENDERS (7): Kevin Alston (New England Revolution), Jonathan Bornstein (Chivas USA), Omar Gonzalez (Los Angeles Galaxy), Chad Marshall (Columbus Crew), Michael Orozco (Philadelphia Union), Heath Pearce (FC Dallas), Marvell Wynne (Toronto FC)
MIDFIELDERS (9): Kyle Beckerman (Real Salt Lake), Geoff Cameron (Houston Dynamo), Brad Davis (Houston Dynamo), Brad Evans (Seattle Sounders), Eddie Gaven (Columbus Crew), Sacha Kljestan (Chivas USA), Dax McCarty (FC Dallas), Chris Pontius (D.C. United), Robbie Rogers (Columbus Crew)
FORWARDS (4): Conor Casey (Colorado Rapids), Brian Ching (Houston Dynamo), Jeff Cunningham (FC Dallas), Robbie Findley (Real Salt Lake)

A quick starting 11 from this squad?

-------------------Perkins

Alston-----Gonzalez-----Marshall-----Bornstein

----------Beckerman-----Cameron

Kljestan----------------------------------Davis

------------Ching---------Findley

The Injury Watch

So, the list of injured players continues to rise for the Yanks.  Currently it stands at this:

Oguchi Onyewu
Charlie Davies
Maurice Edu
Jermaine Jones
Jose Torres
DaMarcus Beasley
Stuart Holden
Ricardo Clark
Clint Dempsey

Yikes.

However, this could end up being a good thing in the long run, as some key players are focusing on getting healthy and fit rather than running themselves through their respective club seasons. All of the listed players, when healthy and starting, easily can make our World Cup squad.  So this could end up being better in the long run.

Sunday, February 7, 2010

Jozy Nets First EPL Goal vs Manchester City

 

Jozy Altidore is on a tear through the Premier League.  Well, during his last two games at least.  Altidore netted the game opener against Manchester City in what would turn out to be a 2-1 win.  In his last two games (against Wolves and Man City) he has recorded a goal, an assist, and a penalty drawn.  Not bad at all.  Up next for Jozy and the Tigers, away matches against Blackburn and West Ham.  Jozy could very well continue his form against the Rovers and Hammers, who like Hull, are sitting in the bottom half of the table.

Apologies for the lack of posts this week.  Insight Communications cable service sucks in my apartment. Later today look for a commentary on the injury plight that seems to be attacking the US and what it could mean for good in the long run.