***Official Soccer Discussion Thread*** (3 Viewers)

[andy_b]

Here is the U20 World Cup draw(can't wait for this tourny!)

Group A (Toronto, Edmonton):

Canada

Chile

Congo

Austria

Group B (Burnaby, Victoria):

Spain

Uruguay

Jordan

Zambia

Group C (Toronto, Montreal, Edmonton):

Portugal

New Zealand

Gambia

Mexico

Group D (Montreal, Ottawa):

Poland

Brazil

Korea Republic

USA

Group E (Ottawa, Montreal):

Argentina

Czech Republic

Korea DPR

Panama

Group F (Victoria, Burnaby):

Japan

Scotland

Nigeria

Costa Rica

 

[El Floppo]

Here is the U20 World Cup draw(can't wait for this tourny!)Group A (Toronto, Edmonton):CanadaChileCongoAustriaGroup D (Montreal, Ottawa)olandBrazilKorea RepublicUSA

Good gravy... Canada just can't help being bitter about the lil' brother status, can they? Any idea about TV coverage? I was thinking I'd try to get up to Montreal for a game or two, but the kid's due this summer, so I'll have to rely on TV. Is Adu going to play? He could end up playing in 8 U-20 WCs if my math isn't failing me...

 

[El Floppo]

Saw the Man City game, and in Beasley's defense, the entire side was awful. But Beasley's been entirely ineffective all year long. Fulham has the good US players

To be fair... City could have 10 guys named Henry playing and Beasley STILL would have been painfully bad. But you're right- the whole team was pretty awful... it must be that they're missing that dynamo, Claudio Reyna- the glue that held their whole team together!

 

[andy_b]

Any idea about TV coverage? I was thinking I'd try to get up to Montreal for a game or two, but the kid's due this summer, so I'll have to rely on TV. Is Adu going to play?

Yes, Freddy is the captain of the side. Its a nice looking squad, with Altidore and Adu as the main focus plus a handful of kids playing overseas.They have no yet announced the final roster but I will post it when they do.I have seen every U20 World Cup for a long time now on TV so it will bo covered by someone (likely Galavision and Univision for the Mexican games). I will also post when the TV schedule is published.

 

[El Floppo]

Delgado negado for RBulls.

It's a little old news at this point, but FIFA has upheld Ecuador's ban on Dlegado so that it's in effect worldwide. Sounds like the Metrostars were in fact going to sign him barring that ruling.

Word is, Arena's going to wait until summer to fill that major signing.

Too bad, IMO- Delgado would've been just what the Bullstars needed up front this season.

 

[Steve Tasker]

Saw the Man City game, and in Beasley's defense, the entire side was awful. But Beasley's been entirely ineffective all year long. Fulham has the good US players

To be fair... City could have 10 guys named Henry playing and Beasley STILL would have been painfully bad. But you're right- the whole team was pretty awful... it must be that they're missing that dynamo, Claudio Reyna- the glue that held their whole team together!

Does anyone else think Beasley is ridiculously overrated.....

 

[El Floppo]

Saw the Man City game, and in Beasley's defense, the entire side was awful. But Beasley's been entirely ineffective all year long.

Fulham has the good US players

To be fair... City could have 10 guys named Henry playing and Beasley STILL would have been painfully bad. But you're right- the whole team was pretty awful... it must be that they're missing that dynamo, Claudio Reyna- the glue that held their whole team together!

Does anyone else think Beasley is ridiculously overrated.....

No. Kinda.A few years ago, when the US was in qualifying for '06, Beasley was a monster for the US on the wing. He'd take over games, beating guys with a little skill and a lot of pace/quickness. He showed no fear- regardless of the opponent or the occasion- taking guys on, going at goal and being a difference-maker. Matched well with the rest of the players and did just enough on defense to not be a liability.

From the WC on, I dunno. Seems to have lost his pace/quickness just a bit- maybe it's that he's gotten kicked a gajillion times. But he just hasn't had anything worthwhile to show since Germany and has been down-right awful for City. Every time he gets the ball he just unloads it quickly- maybe it's the pace of the English game- seemingly without any purpose, just passing to whoever he's facing.

I've watched him in a few City and US games and he just looks timid, skill-less, and purposeless. I'm hoping he can get his #### together before qualifying starts up again.

 

[andy_b]

I think Beasely is a wonderful example of why the "go to Europe and improve" mantra is faulty. He has done nothing but regress since he left MLS.

 

[jpeace121]

Saw the Man City game, and in Beasley's defense, the entire side was awful. But Beasley's been entirely ineffective all year long. Fulham has the good US players

To be fair... City could have 10 guys named Henry playing and Beasley STILL would have been painfully bad. But you're right- the whole team was pretty awful... it must be that they're missing that dynamo, Claudio Reyna- the glue that held their whole team together!

Does anyone else think Beasley is ridiculously overrated.....

By our second game of WC06, my friends and I had taken to calling him 'backpass.'Too bad about Delgado. With United's signing of Fred (from Melbourne, not Lyon) imminent, it would be nice if there was one other team in the league that will be able to keep up with us this season.

 

[HoTnickZ]

I think Beasely is a wonderful example of why the "go to Europe and improve" mantra is faulty. He has done nothing but regress since he left MLS.

Some of that might have to do with the situation but a lot due to the fact that he wasn't THAT good to begin with, and the higher level of competition has exposed him.

 

[andy_b]

Too bad about Delgado. With United's signing of Fred (from Melbourne, not Lyon) imminent, it would be nice if there was one other team in the league that will be able to keep up with us this season.

Like DC needed any more skilled players...... Fred is going to make them near dominant if they can find a way to get the magic 4 on the field together.Any idea how they will line up?

 

[Steve Tasker]

I think Beasely is a wonderful example of why the "go to Europe and improve" mantra is faulty. He has done nothing but regress since he left MLS.

Some of that might have to do with the situation but a lot due to the fact that he wasn't THAT good to begin with, and the higher level of competition has exposed him.

That's true, but he was semi-successful when he first went to PSV. What happened since then?

 

[andy_b]

That's true, but he was semi-successful when he first went to PSV. What happened since then?

I guess its easier to look good when you are part of the best team (PSV) in a weaker league (Holland), than on an average team(Man City) in a stronger league(EPL).But for me as a US fan, I judge him from what he does internationally and I think he is actually less affective now internationally than he was when he was part of MLS.

 

[El Floppo]

That's true, but he was semi-successful when he first went to PSV. What happened since then?

I guess its easier to look good when you are part of the best team (PSV) in a weaker league (Holland), than on an average team(Man City) in a stronger league(EPL).But for me as a US fan, I judge him from what he does internationally and I think he is actually less affective now internationally than he was when he was part of MLS.

Even though I'm a supporter of guys going overseas to get experience, I agree with you guys here.Beasley, especially with his move to eh EPL, has been going in the wrong direction. I do think that the EPL is the flat out wrong league for him- way too physical, and more than enough people who can keep up with his pace (or just kick him if they can't). I think he'd do a lot better in Spain. And Andy's right- playing for a minnow instead of a shark can help expose your weaknesses pretty damn quick.The question is- would he be better off back in the MLS? He's still young- plenty of career ahead of him- where's the best place for him to develop as a player?

 

[jpeace121]

Too bad about Delgado. With United's signing of Fred (from Melbourne, not Lyon) imminent, it would be nice if there was one other team in the league that will be able to keep up with us this season.

Like DC needed any more skilled players...... Fred is going to make them near dominant if they can find a way to get the magic 4 on the field together.Any idea how they will line up?

Sorry about gloating. Just excited about what we might be able to do. From what I've heard, Fred is more of a central attacking midfielder in the vein of Gomito. But from what people on BS have heard, he seems to be a utility player. I think that Soehn might be hoping to line him up on the wing, something like this:

------------------Perkins--------------------------Namoff-----Boswell----------Erpen-----------------Olsen--------Carroll-----------------Fred-------------------------------Gros--------------------Gomez----------------------------------------------Moreno---------------------------------Emilio----------------------------

Sort of a modified 3-5-2, with Gomez supporting Moreno in a creative role for Emilio. There's also a possibility that United will be bringing in Welton Silva, but according to the beat writer for the Post, there seems to be less of a chance of that happening now. I suspect Fred may be used to spell Moreno quite a bit, so the idea would be that someone like Moose, Mediate, or Dyashenko might be able to fill in on the wings as needed.Oh, and we only go four deep on defense, so that is still our achilles heel. I guess Soehn is just planning on winning every game 4-3.

 

[El Floppo]

Too bad about Delgado. With United's signing of Fred (from Melbourne, not Lyon) imminent, it would be nice if there was one other team in the league that will be able to keep up with us this season.

... how long before the Bull's one damn signing of worth, Reyna, is hurt? As good as United already was looking, adding Fred just isn't fair, dammit!

 

[El Floppo]

Some other news and rumors...- MLS teaming up with Bundesliga (from AP)

MIAMI BEACH, Fla. - Major League Soccer is teaming up with Germany’s Bundesliga to promote the sport in the United States and exchange knowledge on stadium construction and player development.The cooperation may also include exhibition games or tournaments in the United States, but no players or funding will be exchanged under the deal announced Tuesday during the SportelAmerica convention in Miami Beach.“The idea is to share the know-how of both leagues and ... support the growth of soccer in the United States,” Bundesliga chief executive officer Christian Seifert said, “because the more interested people are in soccer in the U.S., the more they are interested also in international leagues like the Bundesliga.”

- Blanco going to the Fire? Seen it floating around the rumor boards...- Chelsea is reported by ESPN to be playing the Galaxy this summer on June 21- potentially Beckham's first game.

 

[El Floppo]

More news-

- Dynamo vs Pachuca Champions' Cup game postponed last night due to... power failure (?!) in Houston.

- United vs Chivas tonight in DC- here's hoping the lights stay on.

- Argentina take over top spot in FIFA world rankings. Italy 2, Brazil 3. US? 30. Finally- about where they should be. FWIW- Mexico is 21.

 

[El Floppo]

An aside- have a repeated Parana vs Flamengo Libertadores Cup game on in the background right now... showed a guy who broke his arm- and I mean snapped it, right in the forearm... :gag:

 

[andy_b]

Both Champions Cup games are on tonight. Houston is at 6:00 and DC is at 8:00, both live on FSC

DC is expecting a healthy crowd between 23-25k tonight so it should be a great atmosphere

Here is some more positive off the field Toronto FC news

http://web.mlsnet.com/news/team_news.jsp?y...p&team=t280

Toronto FC announced Thursday that the team has sold out of season seats for the 2007 Major League Soccer (MLS) season. In five months, the team has sold a record setting 14,000 seasons seats for Toronto's new soccer club that will play at BMO Field at Exhibition Place. In addition, BMO Field has also sold out its executive suites.

 

[_4_]

On our way to California tomorrow for a tournament. My daughter's team is the only one from outside of California in her age bracket. This will be an excellent test to see where we stack up right now...

Details to follow.

 

[El Floppo]

Both Champions Cup games are on tonight. Houston is at 6:00 and DC is at 8:00, both live on FSC

DC is expecting a healthy crowd between 23-25k tonight so it should be a great atmosphere

Here is some more positive off the field Toronto FC news

http://web.mlsnet.com/news/team_news.jsp?y...p&team=t280

Toronto FC announced Thursday that the team has sold out of season seats for the 2007 Major League Soccer (MLS) season. In five months, the team has sold a record setting 14,000 seasons seats for Toronto's new soccer club that will play at BMO Field at Exhibition Place. In addition, BMO Field has also sold out its executive suites.

I think I know both of the greengos who will be there.

 

[El Floppo]

On our way to California tomorrow for a tournament. My daughter's team is the only one from outside of California in her age bracket. This will be an excellent test to see where we stack up right now...

Details to follow.

Good luck!

 

[andy_b]

Great start for Houston winning 2-0.

DC made the return leg in Mexico very very hard for themselves. They are going to need Fred to come in and play a fantastic game to pull it off on aggregate. Could have been much worse I guess if they hadn't tied the core deep into stoppage time.

A side note: Here is the US roster for the next two friendlies. Interesting mix.

U.S. ROSTER BY POSITION

Goalkeepers (3) - Brad Guzan (Chivas USA), Tim Howard (Everton FC), Kasey Keller (Borussia Moenchengladbach)

Defenders (8) -Carlos Bocanegra (Fulham FC), Steve Cherundolo (Hannover 96), Jimmy Conrad (Kansas City Wizards), Jay Demerit (Watford FC), Oguchi Onyewu (Newcastle United), Heath Pearce (FC Nordsjælland), Frank Simek (Sheffield Wednesday), Jonathan Spector (West Ham United)

Midfielders (7) - DaMarcus Beasley (Manchester City), Michael Bradley (SC Heerenveen), Brian Carroll (D.C. United), Ricardo Clark (Houston Dynamo), Clint Dempsey (Fulham FC), Benny Feilhaber (Hamburger SV), Justin Mapp (Chicago Fire)

Forwards (6) - Brian Ching (Houston Dynamo), Kenny Cooper (FC Dallas), Landon Donovan (Los Angeles Galaxy), Eddie Johnson (Kansas City Wizards), Chris Rolfe (Chicago Fire), Taylor Twellman (New England Revolution)

 

[El Floppo]

Is the next US friendly in Europe? That's a Europe-heavy group of players, if not.

Although- it's interesting- not one European forward is on the side. I know there are some guys playing up front overseas- do you think none are included because we just don't have anybody good enough at that position to crack a lineup in Europe?

 

[andy_b]

Is the next US friendly in Europe? That's a Europe-heavy group of players, if not.

the games are in Tampa against Ecuador and in Dallas against Guatemala a few days later.I think these are official FIFA dates for games, so that is probably why its so Euro centric. Their are likely a ton of Euro qual games that week and as such I bet some Euro leagues are taking that week off from games.

Although- it's interesting- not one European forward is on the side. I know there are some guys playing up front overseas- do you think none are included because we just don't have anybody good enough at that position to crack a lineup in Europe?

Here is the list of Forwards in non MLS leagues. (I left McBride off on purpose)Charlie Davies is with Hammarby IF in SwedenGabriel Ferrari is with Sampdoria in ItalyRyan Guy is with St. Patrick's Athletic in IrelandKamani Hill is with VfL Wolfsburg in GermanyJemel Johnson is with Leeds United in EnglandSammy Ochoa is with UAG Tecos in MexicoJohann Smith is with Carlisle United in EnglandCam Weaver is with FK Haugesund in NorwayJosh Wolff is with 1860 Munich in GermanyJoe Zewe is with Viborg in DenmarkPreston Zimmerman is with Hamburg SV II in GermantOf these players above, we all know Josh Wolff but he is past his peak IMO and may not figure into WC2010 but may have a hand in early qualifying.Of the others, I have only seen Davies, Ochoa and Zimmerman play.Davies is a real class player. Of this group he is likely the one with the most potential to maybe make a mark at the intenational level.

 

[El Floppo]

Is the next US friendly in Europe? That's a Europe-heavy group of players, if not.

the games are in Tampa against Ecuador and in Dallas against Guatemala a few days later.I think these are official FIFA dates for games, so that is probably why its so Euro centric. Their are likely a ton of Euro qual games that week and as such I bet some Euro leagues are taking that week off from games.

Although- it's interesting- not one European forward is on the side. I know there are some guys playing up front overseas- do you think none are included because we just don't have anybody good enough at that position to crack a lineup in Europe?

Here is the list of Forwards in non MLS leagues. (I left McBride off on purpose)Charlie Davies is with Hammarby IF in SwedenGabriel Ferrari is with Sampdoria in ItalyRyan Guy is with St. Patrick's Athletic in IrelandKamani Hill is with VfL Wolfsburg in GermanyJemel Johnson is with Leeds United in EnglandSammy Ochoa is with UAG Tecos in MexicoJohann Smith is with Carlisle United in EnglandCam Weaver is with FK Haugesund in NorwayJosh Wolff is with 1860 Munich in GermanyJoe Zewe is with Viborg in DenmarkPreston Zimmerman is with Hamburg SV II in GermantOf these players above, we all know Josh Wolff but he is past his peak IMO and may not figure into WC2010 but may have a hand in early qualifying.Of the others, I have only seen Davies, Ochoa and Zimmerman play.Davies is a real class player. Of this group he is likely the one with the most potential to maybe make a mark at the intenational level.

Nice job, Andy! Man... I only know Wolff there- the others, I don't even recognize the names. I look forward to seeing Davies some day. I see that you left Rossi off the list- I really wish he'd make up his mind and come to the dark side.I raised the US forwards question mostly because after watching the Dynamo Pachuca game, I was reminded how little creativity on the ball the typical US forward shows. Made me also think of Mexico's complaint/mantra after losing to the US- "we're the better team, they stack defensively against the ball and do what they can to try and steal a win".Our forwards typically play well off the ball, make smart passes, good for a couple of touches once they get it- but then it goes to crap. I haven't seen any that can get the ball with their back to goal, turn and take a guy on. Clint Mathis was the last I can remember at the national level to at least try on a regular basis. Any of those guys on your list capable of that? Any guys out there that I'm not thinking of that can? Donovan will take a guy on if he's running at them- he lacks the skills, IMO, to do it on the turn where he can't use his pace. Eddie Johnson maybe? Clint Dempsey is the only I can think of who does it in the MF.

 

[andy_b]

Our forwards typically play well off the ball, make smart passes, good for a couple of touches once they get it- but then it goes to crap. I haven't seen any that can get the ball with their back to goal, turn and take a guy on. Clint Mathis was the last I can remember at the national level to at least try on a regular basis.

Yah that is a rare skill not only amongst Americans but world wide when you think about how few players do that affectively.Our forwards are quickly becoming our weakest spot. Donovan may be the best we have and yet he is more of an attacking midfielder playing forward due to lack of depth.

Players like Ching and Twellman should be good club players but when they are arguably in your top 5 forwards then you know you have a problem.

By the way, one player who you will be able to see more of this summer in MLS who could have that specific skill you mentioned is big Kenny Cooper from FC Dallas. He is a wide body who has the ability to shield the ball but also posesses some nice foot skills and slightly above average speed. Keep your eye on him this year.

http://fc.dallas.mlsnet.com/players/bio.js...tatType=current

 

[El Floppo]

Our forwards typically play well off the ball, make smart passes, good for a couple of touches once they get it- but then it goes to crap. I haven't seen any that can get the ball with their back to goal, turn and take a guy on. Clint Mathis was the last I can remember at the national level to at least try on a regular basis.

Yah that is a rare skill not only amongst Americans but world wide when you think about how few players do that affectively.Our forwards are quickly becoming our weakest spot. Donovan may be the best we have and yet he is more of an attacking midfielder playing forward due to lack of depth.

Players like Ching and Twellman should be good club players but when they are arguably in your top 5 forwards then you know you have a problem.

By the way, one player who you will be able to see more of this summer in MLS who could have that specific skill you mentioned is big Kenny Cooper from FC Dallas. He is a wide body who has the ability to shield the ball but also posesses some nice foot skills and slightly above average speed. Keep your eye on him this year.

http://fc.dallas.mlsnet.com/players/bio.js...tatType=current

Don't know that it's that rare world-wide. Pretty common-place for forwards and midfielders, IMO. Doing it really well... yeah, I agree that that's more of a rarity. I just don't see our player ever doing it- it's always two touches and pass it off. I'd be happy to see guys do it and fail... Ching and Twellman both are terrible in this regard. I've noticed that McBride is only just starting to try and turn- lacks the skills to do it well, but I'm happy to see him try it.ETA- really look forward to seeing Kenny Cooper, based on your recommendation! :thumbsup:

 

[andy_b]

On the chance that anyone would enjoy an MLS Fantasy game, I think the best game is located here

http://www.mfls.com/

Its been around since the beginning and gets better every year.

 

[Moe.]

two very interesting FA Cup replays going on right now. im recording the boro-united game and watching spurs v chelsea live (en espanol), and its been a great game so far, both teams have had chances and the game is flowing nicely. when these two teams played earlier this season in the league at white hart lane it was one of the better games of the season, hopefully this game is just as exciting.

 

[Moe.]

lots of good euro 2008 qualifiers tomorrow. its a shame that fox soccer channel is covering estonia v russia and norway v bosnia-herzegovina. germany against the czechs should be a good one and id like to see israel against england. why does fsc cover these crappy games?

 

[El Floppo]

lots of good euro 2008 qualifiers tomorrow. its a shame that fox soccer channel is covering estonia v russia and norway v bosnia-herzegovina. germany against the czechs should be a good one and id like to see israel against england. why does fsc cover these crappy games?

I'm going to guess that it's too much $$ for FSC to cover the big games. I'm sure Andy B will know.I'm watching England v Italy (u21)- question: Rossi played for Italy. Does a u21 cap count against Rossi if he somehow wanted to play for the USMNT?

 

[Mjolnirs]

I agree the games being carried today could be better. Being a fan of Germany I was hoping to catch their game, but no luck. I won't complain too much because at the beginning of March my cable company started carrying FSC and GolTV I've really enjoyed it.

Good tournament starting tonight locally. The Carolina Challenge Cup here in Charleston.

Tonight: Charleston Battery v New York Red Bull followed by Toronto FC v Houston Dynamo

Wednesday: Charleston v Houston then New York v Toronto

Next Saturday: Charleston v Toronto then Houston v New York

I get all 6 games for a $35 bleacher pass.

 

[Moe.]

lots of good euro 2008 qualifiers tomorrow. its a shame that fox soccer channel is covering estonia v russia and norway v bosnia-herzegovina. germany against the czechs should be a good one and id like to see israel against england. why does fsc cover these crappy games?

I'm going to guess that it's too much $$ for FSC to cover the big games. I'm sure Andy B will know.I'm watching England v Italy (u21)- question: Rossi played for Italy. Does a u21 cap count against Rossi if he somehow wanted to play for the USMNT?

by cap you mean that he was just on the team, and not the actual captain, right? cause i think as long as he didnt captain the side he can still switch. but i doubt he'll ever play for the usa

 

[El Floppo]

lots of good euro 2008 qualifiers tomorrow. its a shame that fox soccer channel is covering estonia v russia and norway v bosnia-herzegovina. germany against the czechs should be a good one and id like to see israel against england. why does fsc cover these crappy games?

I'm going to guess that it's too much $$ for FSC to cover the big games. I'm sure Andy B will know.I'm watching England v Italy (u21)- question: Rossi played for Italy. Does a u21 cap count against Rossi if he somehow wanted to play for the USMNT?

by cap you mean that he was just on the team, and not the actual captain, right? cause i think as long as he didnt captain the side he can still switch. but i doubt he'll ever play for the usa

Cap as in- made an appearance with the national team. Almost positive captaining the squad has zippo do to with switching countries. Pretty sure once you make an appearance with one national team, you can't appear for any other national teams. My question is more about whether playing for one of the youth squads counts in that regard. And yeah- I would agree that Rossi won't play for the US.... dammit. I wonder if the kid even speaks english? Or if he was one of those US "citizens" that lived their entire life in another country.Where's andy when we need him? Did you catch any of the Euro qualifiers?

 

[Moe.]

i believe rossi was born in nyc to italian immigrants but the whole family moved back to italy when he signed a youth deal with an italian club (parma?).

im trying to find the rules re: switching national sides online but i cant find anything. i thought i read that you could switch as long as you didnt captain but im probably wrong. i thought ghana wanted adu to play for them in '06 and for some reason that it wouldnt have cost him a place on the usmnt.

i didnt watch any of the qualifiers, just wasnt really interested in the matchups fsc was showing. i'll probably watch them on replay this week though. i saw that israel held england to a scoreless draw, england have looked pretty bad under mcclaren, granted they have been hit with a few injuries.

 

[Moe.]

i dont know how reliable this site is but its the best i could find. you were right about switching national sides. link.

 

[El Floppo]

i dont know how reliable this site is but its the best i could find. you were right about switching national sides. link.

so many words...And Adu... that's right- he'd played for the US u17 and u20 sides, IIRC, and Ghana could still call him up to their Men's squad. So I guess youth national appearances don't count. .... where's andy b!?

 

[andy_b]

Almost positive captaining the squad has zippo do to with switching countries. Pretty sure once you make an appearance with one national team, you can't appear for any other national teams. My question is more about whether playing for one of the youth squads counts in that regard.

Up to ~3 years ago, appearing for your country at any level in an OFFICIAL FIFA game (ie most friendlies don't count), you were tied to your country.But FIFA changed this rule to be that you are only tied once you represent your country at the senior level in an official FIFA game. As such, I don't think Freddy is yet tied 100% due to the only game he played for the US was in a friendly.

And yeah- I would agree that Rossi won't play for the US.... dammit. I wonder if the kid even speaks english? Or if he was one of those US "citizens" that lived their entire life in another country.Where's andy when we need him?

Rossi was born and raised in NJ. He lived in the US until he was an early teenager and then moved back to Italy and played with a Parma youth team before Man U bought him.No one tracks Rossi as a US player any more as he has represented the Italian national team at Under-16, 17, 18 and 21.Rossi will play for the US as much as Freddy will play for Ghana. That being he is still eligible, but he almost certainly won't.It should be mentioned that FIFA seems likely to face a strong opposition to their rules as they are poorly written and almost ambiguous at times concerning this topic.Andy

 

[El Floppo]

Phew... andy b has returned! Thanks for the info.

Rossi was a bonafide yank!? The little traitor

A couple questions:

- Any idea what "Official FIFA" game means? A lot of countries had friendlies last weekend while most of Europe was involved in their qualifiers... weren't those "Official"? I can see where the ambituity is problematic.

- Do you know the answer to Moe's question about FSC not carrying the better Euro qualifiers? Is it purely $$, or were there other reasons?

I remember somebody talking about their coverage Serie A- that they only pay enough to cover the bottom of the division, which is why they show such crap games (although this year we've gotten to Lazio a lot- something to be thankful for in terms of the Italy sanctions).

 

[andy_b]

A couple questions:- Any idea what "Official FIFA" game means? A lot of countries had friendlies last weekend while most of Europe was involved in their qualifiers... weren't those "Official"? I can see where the ambituity is problematic.

Official FIFA games at the senior level includeQualifying games for your regions championshipGames in the regional championshipQualifying games for World CupGames in the World Cup itselfThere are also a select list of "A" level games, that land some where between friendlies and qualifying that FIFA considers official as well. Good luck getting a useful definition for those

- Do you know the answer to Moe's question about FSC not carrying the better Euro qualifiers? Is it purely $$, or were there other reasons?

No I don't, but Oliver Tse will. He knows more about soccer on TV in the US than any person alive, including those that work for FSC, ESPN and Univision.Email the following and he will give you a ton of information on the topic. Don't mention my name though as we do not get along at all.publisher@soccerTV.comAndy

 

[andy_b]

Interesting rumor about Red Bull and Juan Pablo Angel

http://bigapplesoccer.com/article.php?article_id=9055

"MLS and Aston Villa have agreed on a transfer fee for Colombian forward Juan Pablo Angel to join the Red Bulls if he and the club can agree on compensation, according to Soccer America.

Ridge Mahoney wrote in his MLS Confidential column Tuesday that the Red Bulls are willing to pay Angel $2 million a season, according to a source that has knowledge of the negotiations.

The 30-year-old Angel has scored 44 goals in 175 English Premiership games since joining Aston Villa in 2001. He has found the back of the net only four times this season.

Mahoney also speculated that Angel might be using MLS as a bargaining chip. Angel's former Argentine club, River Plate, offered him a slary of $2.5 million to return to the team. He also recently said that he would like to remain in England for a few more years. He claimed a potential move to Arsenal fell apart because the two sides could not agree on a transfer fee, Soccer America reported."

 

[Moe.]

anyone catch the USA against ecuador the other day? was that their "a" team? if so, that's pretty impressive.

 

[El Floppo]

Interesting rumor about Red Bull and Juan Pablo Angel

http://bigapplesoccer.com/article.php?article_id=9055

"MLS and Aston Villa have agreed on a transfer fee for Colombian forward Juan Pablo Angel to join the Red Bulls if he and the club can agree on compensation, according to Soccer America.

Ridge Mahoney wrote in his MLS Confidential column Tuesday that the Red Bulls are willing to pay Angel $2 million a season, according to a source that has knowledge of the negotiations.

The 30-year-old Angel has scored 44 goals in 175 English Premiership games since joining Aston Villa in 2001. He has found the back of the net only four times this season.

Mahoney also speculated that Angel might be using MLS as a bargaining chip. Angel's former Argentine club, River Plate, offered him a slary of $2.5 million to return to the team. He also recently said that he would like to remain in England for a few more years. He claimed a potential move to Arsenal fell apart because the two sides could not agree on a transfer fee, Soccer America reported."

I'm going to agree with the Mahoney speculation. Angel's still young enough to have several years ahead of him playing at the highest level- the MLS ain't that.That said, I'm not sure how I feel about him actually playing for the Bulls. I like his workrate and tenacity/flair around the goal, and he's a definite step up in talent from what's there. But there's something about him- I dunno... seems to make a lot of bad choices on and off the ball. Those bad choices will get compounded when the best player around him was a fair-to-midling player in the EPL. I'm imagining a situation similar to Sergio Galvan Rey- comes over as a lethal goal scorer and craps out in the MLS after costing the Bulls a pretty penny. And IIRC- he picked it back up as soon as he left the league.

 

[El Floppo]

anyone catch the USA against ecuador the other day? was that their "a" team? if so, that's pretty impressive.

I didn't even know the game was happening From what I've read, there 11 players for Ecuador who played in Germany in 06. That must be pretty representative of their "A" team. From the looks of the US lineup, that seemed to be our "A" team as well.

 

[RocStar]

Kinda skimmed this thread, but isn't it strange that England U20 didn't qualify?

Any reason?

 

[_4_]

On our way to California tomorrow for a tournament. My daughter's team is the only one from outside of California in her age bracket. This will be an excellent test to see where we stack up right now...Details to follow.

We won the first game 2-0, second game 2-0 and lost the third game 4-1. The fields were terrible compared to what we are used to in Las Vegas - but the more we travel, the more we are realizing we are pretty spoiled here I guess.The first two games were cakewalks and we went into Sunday morning's game overconfident. The other team came out and attacked hard and fast - they were first to nearly every ball in the first half and after they scored two, several of our girls hung their heads. We beat them 1-0 in the second half, but unfortunately they counted the half where they scored 4 too.

 

[andy_b]

anyone catch the USA against ecuador the other day? was that their "a" team? if so, that's pretty impressive.

That was the first time this year that the US has played with its A team. Ecuador was also fully loaded.The US played a very average game IMO.

Howard was solid in the nets.

The full backs(Cherundolo and Boca) rarely moved in the attack and both played ok on defense to help with the speed of the Ecuadorian front line

The center backs (Conrad and Gooch) had their worst game combined in a long time. They were clumsy, indecisive and got caught out of position numerous times.

The wing midfielders (DMB and Dempsey) handled themselves ok. DMB did not take players on very much, Dempsey attempted more attacks but only got into dangerous a couple of times

The anchor(Fielhaber) was popping his cheery. He got caught a couple of times out of position but overall did a fine job breaking up plays. His strength is his distribution. He doesn't just destroy and play simple balls, he is always looking for a more creative springing pass.

The forwards (EJ and Ching) were relatively non existent. Johnson tried to make runs and Ching worked hard and channeled McBride as best he could, but in the end, lack of service caused them to be invisible. EJ was taken out at half time, ensuring his continued pace of never scoring against a non CONCACAF opponent.

So how did the US impress so much? It was the Landon show from start till the game was affectively killed off. All 3 goals were top top notch including a rocket in the first minute from 20 yards out with his "off" foot, a sniper deadly break away goal, and a world class strike from 24 yards out in the upper V.

Here are all 4 goals in the game

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iHalZE9Zf3E

 

[andy_b]

Reminder that the US plays again tomorrow night on ESPN2 against the Guats at PHP