Silly Season, Abridged Edition

Tomorrow officially opens the January transfer window and a lot of focus is going on some current Yanks in need of new homes.  I'll give a run down on all the rumored moves.

Oguchi Onyewu
Back in 2009, following the Confederations Cup in South Africa, Gooch was hot commodity.  His defensive performance for the US throughout that tournament lifted him from the heights he'd attained at Standard Liege in Belgium, to make a transfer to Italian super-club AC Milan, who currently sit first in Serie A.  While being a back-up defender on a league leading club is respectable in its own right, playing time is the single most important thing in keeping fit and in form.  Reportedly, there are all loan options on the table for Onyewu's services, within Italy at clubs like Palermo, Chievo, and AC Bari.  His former coach Michel Preud’homme, now in charge of FC Twente who currently sit second in the Dutch Eredivisie, have expressed the most interest, and some sources are saying that this move could be made this week.

Benny Feilhaber
Feilhaber is currently the best player on his AFG Aarhus side in the Denmark second division.  He was close to a move at the end of summer but not enough dominoes fell the right way for it to happen.  There is reported interest from the SAS Ligaen, the Eredivisie, and the Spanish Primera in Europe.  But the most interest comes from this side of the pond, where Mexican power Cruz Azul is reported close to gaining Feilhaber's services.  A late charge from Brazilian club Botafogo set things back, but Feilhaber is 100% set to leave this winter.

Edson Buddle
Buddle who was on trial with Birmingham City last week, is reportedly garnering interest from both the Blues and Champsionship side Sheffield United.  If Robbie Findley can get a work permit, then surely Buddle can.

Jermaine Jones
Jones' situation at Schalke has gone from consistent starter to dog house.  He's looking for a new club and Wolfsburg have expressed interest.  

Adrian Ruelas
Rumored to be set to sign with Scottish power Celtic.  Just a rumor though.

Jonathan Spector
Despite his renaissance in the West Ham midfield, I'd look for Spector to still make a move to the mainland.  Cologne in Germany was reportedly interested.  Maybe West Ham keep him around until they are relegated come the end of the season.

Relegation Battlers  
Clint Dempsey and Michael Bradley, two consistent starters for the United States could be house hunting come the end of their respective teams campaigns.  Dempsey and Fulham's win against Stoke City pushed them just above the the relegation zone, and past history tells us that Fulham will stay up with a furious finish to end the season, but if they are relegated, Dempsey will definitely be on the move.  Bradley is currently the best player on the worst team in the Bundesliga, they are set for relegation, there is no hope.  Bradley will be sold, and Premiership and higher up Bundesliga clubs are sure to be waiting in the wings.

Robbie Findley signs with Nottingham Forest

U.S. international and World Cup player Robbie Findley has signed a 2-and-a-half year contract with Championship side Nottingham Forest.  Forest currently sit in a 5-team tie on 30 points.  Can Findley take his raw "run everywhere but do nothing game" into a "sneaky late sub game".  We shall see.  Best of luck to him, but I'm not getting my hopes up.

Happy Holidays from Ninety Plus

Happy Holidays from everyone at Ninety Plus. 

Thomas Rongen Quietly Assembling a U-20 Class to Remember

Thinking back to 2007, everyone was hailing the youth being boasted by the United States U-20 side, and for good reason.  Names like Josmer Altidore, Michael Bradley, Danny Szetela, Sal Zizzo, and Freddy Adu came out of that class and those five (for better or for worse) had set up shop at European clubs, Altidore with Villarreal in Spain, Bradley with Borussia Monchengladbach in Germany, Szetela with Racing Santander in Spain, Zizzo with Hannover 96, and Adu with Aris Thessaloniki in Greece.  Those five players helped lead the US to finish 1st in their group (which included a 6-1 trouncing of Poland and a dramatic 2-1 win over Brazil), then proceeded to beat out Uruguay in the Round of 16 before falling in the quarterfinals to Austria.  It was a great run and Altidore and Bradley have established themselves as regular starters for the US National Team.

The 2009 version featured significantly less popular youngsters as the US fell out in the group stage, following embarrassing 3-0 losses to both Germany and South Korea.  The 2009 class featured players like Bryan Arguez , Mikkel Diskerud, Jared Jeffery, and Sean Johnson, but even these successful professionals weren't enough to push the US through.

Gearing up for a busy 2011, Thomas Rongen has a depth pool that many international coaches would drool over.  He's also done his fair share of digging up some some dual, and in one a case, a triple international player(s).  Names in this class include promising young stars such as GK Cody Cropper (Ipswich Town), DF Gale Aggbossoumonde (Estoril Praia) DF Greg Garza (Estoril Praia), MD Joseph Gyau (Hoffenheim), MD Sebastien Lletget (West Ham United), MD Joshua Gatt (Altach), FW Jack McInerney (Philadelphia Union) and FW Conor Doyle (Derby County).

Other big names coming out of this class include the well known New York Red Bulls prodigy Juan Agudelo, Adrian Ruelas who is currently on trial at Celtic in Scotland, and cult hero Omar Salgado, who gave up his position at CD Guadalajara to play for the United States.

Two names that I am particularly excited about are dual-international Fabien Hurzeler, a 17 year old Bayern Munich academy star, who was the German U-17 captain, but no longer appears to be in the plans with them any longer.  Rongen scooped him up and has invited him to the US' training camp for the beginning of January.  The other is triple-international Alex Zahavi, currently playing professionally at Maccabi Haifa, he holds citizenship from the United States, Portugal, and Israel.  He is a right-footed, left winger who loves to cut inside and attack.  He made his US debut at the Torneo de las Americas tournament in November and scored a goal against Colombia.

This is arguably the deepest, most collectively talented class for a US youth team ever.  Where the other classes have featured popular young stars, there were significant holes.  If there is a hole in this class, I really am having a hard time finding it.  A solid collection of professional and college players have really gelled under the guidance of the Dutchman Rongen.

With 2011 holding the U-20 CONCACAF Championship in April in Guatemala, and the U-20 World Cup in July and August in Colombia, Rongen will need to nail down his final group of around 30ish players and next months training camp is part of that.

Looking forward, I expect nothing less than at least a win in the CONCACAF Championship, and a march to the quarterfinals in the World Cup.  That is where Rongen and these young players need to aim.

In 2011, the United should be expecting nothing less, with the start of a new World Cup cycle, a star could rise in the U-20s and make a name on the national side come June 2014.  This is where it starts.

American Outlaws Rally

A quick shout-out to my 3,000+ brothers and sisters around the country who will hopefully be converging on Las Vegas in March.  I'll hopefully be among them.  I urge any reader of this blog and any follower of US Soccer to check out these guys.  US matches just wouldn't be the same without them.