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***Official Soccer Discussion Thread*** (5 Viewers)

I have no idea why anyone thinks United wants to let De Gea go. Or swap him for Valdes.He has 3 more years left on his contract, is young, and I have seen no lack of faith put in him from SAF, especially of late. Is someone else seeing something I am missing?

 
'guru_007 said:
I have no idea why anyone thinks United wants to let De Gea go. Or swap him for Valdes.He has 3 more years left on his contract, is young, and I have seen no lack of faith put in him from SAF, especially of late. Is someone else seeing something I am missing?
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There's been a lot of media chatter/rumors/speculation about Man U losing patience with him. Apparently Atletico and Barcelona would be interested. :shrug:
 
Danish newspaper claims that Liverpool/Debrecen was fixed in 2009, with Debrecen's goalie being in on the take.http://www.101greatgoals.com/blog/the-fixed-champions-league-game-was-liverpool-1-debrecen-0-sept-2009/

 
'Good said:
Danish newspaper claims that Liverpool/Debrecen was fixed in 2009, with Debrecen's goalie being in on the take.http://www.101greatgoals.com/blog/the-fixed-champions-league-game-was-liverpool-1-debrecen-0-sept-2009/
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If true, that would be pretty funny. The goalkeeper was on the take, but Liverpool still struggled to score.
 
'The Gator said:
'jonessed said:
'Good said:
Danish newspaper claims that Liverpool/Debrecen was fixed in 2009, with Debrecen's goalie being in on the take.

http://www.101greatgoals.com/blog/the-fixed-champions-league-game-was-liverpool-1-debrecen-0-sept-2009/
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If true, that would be pretty funny. The goalkeeper was on the take, but Liverpool still struggled to score.
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Can't make it too obvious :unsure:
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So the goalie took money to ensure there would be more than 2.5 goals. In a game where shots on goal could end up in the single digits, that's pretty bold. I wonder if he had to give the money back?
 
'sporthenry said:
'The Gator said:
'jonessed said:
'Good said:
Danish newspaper claims that Liverpool/Debrecen was fixed in 2009, with Debrecen's goalie being in on the take.

http://www.101greatgoals.com/blog/the-fixed-champions-league-game-was-liverpool-1-debrecen-0-sept-2009/
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If true, that would be pretty funny. The goalkeeper was on the take, but Liverpool still struggled to score.
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Can't make it too obvious :unsure:
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Like Reina did this weekend?
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:lmao: :lmao: Well played
 
A few hours after Dallas traded for Hasli, they completed a trade with NY for Kenny Cooper.

FRISCO, Texas (AP) -- FC Dallas is bringing back former All-Star forward Kenny Cooper in a trade with the New York Red Bulls.The deal announced Monday sends allocation money to New York for Cooper, a former Dallas high school standout who scored 11 goals in 29 starts when he made his MLS debut in 2006.Cooper had 18 goals and three assists in 30 starts 2008, when he was an All-Star and the league's comeback player of the year after an injury-shortened 2007 season.Cooper was transferred to 1860 Munich during the 2009 season and was limited by injuries in two seasons there. The 28-year-old returned to MLS with Portland before getting traded to New York.
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Nike USMNT Centenary (away) jersey leaked?http://todosobrecamisetas.blogspot.com/2013/02/exclusive-nike-usa-centenary-home.html#more

 
Looks like Becks was not being as charitable as we thought. The media in France found out that Becks is not really being paid at all, and PSG is donating his salary directly to charity. By doing this, Becks gets around having the French tax system go after his world wide income (which dwarfs his salary). He ends up saving money by not being paid.

 
'NewlyRetired said:
Looks like Becks was not being as charitable as we thought. The media in France found out that Becks is not really being paid at all, and PSG is donating his salary directly to charity. By doing this, Becks gets around having the French tax system go after his world wide income (which dwarfs his salary). He ends up saving money by not being paid.
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I, for one, am shocked!
 
This is a long but interesting interview with Klinsmann trying to link how he was coached to how he handles some of the US players today

Jurgen Klinsmann is buzzing. The multiple double-espressos he pounds through the course of our conversation may have had something to do with that. We meet at a hotel coffee shop in Torrance, Calif., and in our hour and a half together, it is never entirely clear whether the trim coach is suffering a perpetual caffeine rush, or thriving from the challenge of infusing US Soccer with his philosophy and experience. With the U.S. on the cusp of the final round of CONCACAF World Cup qualifying, I traveled to Torrance in search of a deeper understanding of that philosophy. Klinsmann is an enigmatic character. Few ex-professionals who have won both the World Cup and the Euros carry themselves as he does. The striker-turned-coach prefers to exchange freewheeling ideas in the present rather than rely on personal achievements in the past. Indeed, Klinsmann can be so consumed by the present -- he begins our meeting by expounding on the Boeing Dreamliner debacle -- it is sometimes easy to forget that he was once one of the most feared forwards in football. It is only when the U.S. manager opens up about his playing days that you realize he learned the game from some of the most iconic coaches in modern football -- Arsene Wenger, Giovanni Trapattoni, and Cesar Luis Menotti among them. Klinsmann smiles as I mention those names, and admits "I always had supportive coaches I adored and early on, I began to try and be a sponge and learn from them." As the USMNT players who are his charges buzz around the hotel lobby, Klinsmann, 48, agrees to revisit the experiences he amassed playing for eight clubs over the course of 17 seasons, exploring each coach's philosophy and mining the elements he synthesized it into his own. I begin by throwing Trapattoni's classic quote "a good manager makes a team 10 percent better and a bad manager makes it 30 percent worse" at Klinsmann. He does not miss a beat before launching into a response. "Look, a manager's role is very simple," he declares. "A good manager helps players understand they have a results-span in their lifetime and their job is to get the most out of that span by fulfilling 100 percent of their potential." In the 18 months since taking the U.S. job, Klinsmann has fostered a style of perpetual experimentation, tweaking personnel, positions, formations and even nationalities. In the German's mind, the swarming uncertainty this approach has created is unavoidable -- the collateral damage of systemic change. "My goal with the U.S. is not to maintain the standard but to raise the bar and go beyond where we were before," he declares. "If i just keep doing what was done before, we will stay where we are, so I have to do it differently." Klinsmann remains keenly aware of the pressure of expectation. "Americans are, by their nature, a very ambitious people. They don't want to be number two. They want to be the best at whatever they do," he admits. But despite the pressure, nothing is certain. "Do I know the end result if this will work out at the end of the day? No!" he exclaims. "You have no guarantee about the end result when you do something differently so you have to take a little bit of risk, which i just love!" Klinsmann punctuates his last comment with a laugh -- his signature half-cackle, half-shriek -- that the transcription service who typed up my interview, perhaps under the influence of Christoph Waltz, would later describe as "German Laughter." Arie Haan: Leaving The Comfort Zone To understand Klinsmann's management philosophy means to go back to the beginning. To Goppingen in southern Germany, where he was born in 1964. The area was "Handball Country," and young Jurgen initially excelled with his palms rather than his feet. Once "I experienced my first soccer practice at age 8 1/2, I never looked back," he said with a grin. By the time he was 9, seeds of the phenomenal finisher Klinsmann would ultimately become were already evident as he drilled 106 goals in a season. Progressing from the youth program at local club Stuttgarter Kickers, onto regional power VfB Stuttgart, Klinsmann learned from a series of coaches he viewed as "paternal figures," including Helmut Benthaus, an old-school coach whose management style was to "reassure everyone at every opportunity." But it took a Dutchman, Arie Haan, to goad Klinsmann to the next level by forcing him outside of his comfort zone. "We had just played in the UEFA Cup Final against Maradona's Napoli when he took me aside," Klinsmann remembers. "He told me 'Jurgen, it is nice here but this world is too small for you.'" Klinsmann still admits to the astonishment he experienced at the time. "I said, 'Coach, don't you want me to stay?' And Haan replied, 'I would love you to. You make my job more secure, but I will tell you the best thing for your career is to leave and give it a shot.'" The lesson Klinsmann derived was immediate. "Every coach you encounter has a philosophy of life, not just a footballing philosophy," he explains. "Arie Haan had a cosmopolitan personality and he saw in me that I had a similar curiosity to explore the world outside of Germany." It is hard to listen to this story without hearing an echo of Klinsmann's recent barbed public challenges to Clint Dempsey. As Klinsmann describes it, his approach is confrontational. "When I come in here I tell the players straight to their faces 'I'm not content with where you are right now. Even if you play in the Premier League, I am here to get you to the next level.' When I get this feeling a player is giving me the sense that he has made it then he will hear from me that he hasn't made s---. That is my approach," he confides. "Not every player will buy into it. It's as simple as that." Giovanni Trapattoni: Life's Stark Choice Klinsmann landed at Giovanni Trapattoni's Inter Milan in 1989. Even in the serene surroundings of our suburban California cafe, the former player is able to summon the sense of excitement he had once felt about the move. "In those days Italy was where the music was played," he confesses. "I desperately wanted to play the music and be part of the band."The legendary Trapattoni employed a defensively dour approach to win four different titles in four different countries. "The coach made Inter sit back and kill the opponent on the break, but I was still able to work out a way to score my goals," Klinsmann laughed, discussing the UEFA Cup medal he won, and the takeaway he drew from three years in Italy, with equal pride. "Moving through coaches, I realized they all had different personalities and I learned as a player at Inter that what really mattered was your ability to adjust." Learning to adapt was not always a comfortable experience for the young star. "For me to learn to take people the way they were forced me to go against the German way of thinking -- there they take people they way they are meant to be," Klinsmann says. The footballer remembers the frustration he experienced when a washing machine repairman was three days late for a 2 p.m. appointment. "I initially felt that I could not handle it but then I figured it out: They just look at life differently in Italy. They want to have a coffee first and maybe think about coming over in the afternoon." Klinsmann learned to see life as a stark choice. "If you can take people the way they are and learn to adjust you can have a good time. If you can't, you will go crazy." Arsene Wenger: Every player must understand his job Klinsmann's next mentor was the astute Arsene Wenger, coach of a young, fast-paced AS Monaco team. "I admired Arsene because he was incredibly detailed without ever losing sight of the long-term picture. He understands the path of young players, sees where they could be in two or three years, and has the patience to stand up for them." Klinsmann arrived in France in 1992, age 28, believing he was a finished product. "I was pretty well-molded," he remembers with a chuckle, "especially in comparison to the rest of the squad, which was mainly young, full of a lot of players who thought they owned the world." Wenger opened Klinsmann's eyes when he benched talented young bon viveur Youri Djorkaeff. "Because of my seniority, I was the only player who had direct communication with Arsene and I told him that if we wanted to win, we needed this kid as we did not have a deep squad." Wenger replied he had benched the 24-year-old Djorkaeff because he did not understand his job. "He told me Youri needed to learn what it meant to 'become a 24/7 pro.'" Klinsmann admits he was initially confused by Wenger's approach. "I really liked Djorkaeff, but as the games went by, I watched and saw how he got Arsene's message. It took weeks and weeks, but when he broke through, there was no looking back. Ultimately we made it to the semifinal of the Champions League and Youri ended up winning the World Cup." The conclusion Klinsmann drew is reminiscent of his recent handling of 23-year-old Jozy Altidore. "Arsene taught me a coach needs to lead these guys. They don't understand it all yet." Cesar Menotti & Ossie Ardiles: Argentine Iconoclasm Some player-coach interactions were brief yet impactful. Klinsmann encountered the legendary coaching philosopher Cesar Menotti when he moved back to Serie A with Sampdoria. Striker and manager overlapped just three months, but Klinsmann used the time well, talking for hours with the man who led Argentina to 1978 World Cup glory. "Menotti was able to inspire people to play the elements he loves -- to move off the ball and pass quickly -- even though it has to be 'in your stomach' to play that way." Klinsmann revelled in the Argentine's non-conformity, fostering a free-flowing style in an era when Serie A was dominated by autocratic technicians. "Menotti was the opposite," he declares. "He encouraged players to find paths, channels, and ways to be inspired, where you didn't know what the team would do next because they confused opponents, and maybe even confused themselves. But it worked." Menotti was not the only iconoclastic Argentine Klinsmann learned from. Ossie Ardiles managed Tottenham Hotspur at the beginning of the striker's fabled Premier League spell in 1994-95 and Klinsmann responds gleefully when reminded of Ardiles' quixotic attempts to field a top-heavy line-up featuring five forwards. "It almost worked!" he screams as he remembers lashing home 29 goals alongside the likes of Darren Anderton and Teddy Sheringham. "I had the blast of my life that season," Klinsmann reveals. "I was so full of energy because Ardiles created a really positive environment." Despite the fact the German was named Football Writers' Player of the Year, the driving sense of ambition he harbored compelled him to move on. "I wanted to win the league and understood I could not do it with the team I played for even though I loved the club. So I moved to Bayern and won the title." Franz Beckenbauer: The Cult of Personality "There is Pele, Maradona, and Cruyff but in my mind, there is only one personality in world football like Franz Beckenbauer," Klinsmann enthuses while simultaneously ordering a second double-espresso. Der Kaiser, the man who won the World Cup as a player and coach, managed Klinsmann with both the West German national team and Bayern Munich. Admitted Klinsmann: "You grow up in Germany and his achievements mean he is held in higher regard than the Chancellor. He only had to turn up at training sessions and stand there because he knew his mere presence would make us run faster." I ask Klinsmann if he had learned to use his charisma in a similar fashion, but he made a face and rejected the notion. "I don't know a thing about using charisma. I see myself as part of a process to get the game here to another level by getting to Brazil and hopefully surprising some big nations. I don't want to pull my stories out all the time. The players should be defining their own stories now." Klinsmann knocks back his espresso, using the pause to reflect before returning to the question. "There are times when I use my past but mostly to make sure the (U.S.) players understand they need to step it up. I will tell stories to serve as an example so they know they have a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. I was lucky to win a World Cup but I also lost two -- especially in 1994 when we were the best team in the tournament. I need the players to know there are reasons why a team loses early. There are always reasons." Broadening Horizons After retiring in 1998, Klinsmann decamped to his wife Debbie's home state of California. Out of the limelight but far from idle, the curious German used the time to stretch his understanding about management technique. "I wanted to dig my nose into other sporting environments and sponge it up because the environment in American sport is just so different," he gushes. "In American football they take every part of the game and introduce a specialist to drill technique! technique! technique! If you had done that in soccer back then – introduce a set-piece coach in the same way the NFL has receiving coaches -- they would have said you were crazy." Klinsmann spent a day with Lakers coach Phil Jackson to observe his work. "I was curious to see how he lead the environment with the Kobe Bryants of the world," he said, detailing the impression Jackson made with the way he empowered the specialist coaches around him and ensuring everyone felt important. "Jackson has a God-given charisma," Klinsmann reflected, " No matter how crazy the game becomes, he always retains his calm." The basketball guru's cool contrasted to the trademark frenzy of Pete Carroll, whom Klinsmann visited at Southern Cal. "I spent time with him to see how his scouts work and he was high-energy 24/7." Klinsmann was dumbstruck by the array of technological assets the college football coach had at his disposal. "He put up a big screen and asked me which play I wanted to see from any game in the last three years and I just sat there with my jaw wide-open saying 'Holy Moley!' as I realized how far behind football was in terms of systems and technology." Away at Home These lessons were put to good effect as soon as Klinsmann assumed the coaching mantle with the German national team in 2004. "I came in with the American approach and changed the way the head coach did everything. I came in believing in the empowerment of people. I told my assistant coaches their goal should be to become head coach. I did not just want Jogi Loew to put the cones out on the training field. I told the players I was not there to give them motivation because they should be driven and so full of motivation that I should actually have to slow them down." Klinsmann drew a breath to pause for thought, before concluding, "I believed a coach should be there to set out different options, and let the players choose between them and define their own paths." As he struggled to rebuild the German program under conditions of intense pressure and public scrutiny, Klinsmann was aware of the barrage of public criticism, ridicule and doubt that surrounded him. "Everybody made fun of me," he admitted about the battery of specialist coaches he bought in, from psychologists to fitness experts. "But now these kinds of coaches are standard across the Bundesliga." Klinsmann's young, bold German team thrilled a nation as they battled into the semifinals in 2006. "The whole experience proved to me that people will ultimately listen to new ideas," he said, "but I knew the whole time if it did not work out I would just move on and try the next thing." Klinsmann would have to activate that escape strategy during his doomed 10 months in charge at Bayern Munich, once he was undermined by Bayern's board and rumored to have lost control of the dressing room. "You basically have to pull in the same direction with everyone involved and if that is not the case, attempting to empower and educate the players simply won't work," he declares, leaning back to consider his words carefully before complaining about the "aggressive ending" to his tenure as he was fired with his team still technically in the title hunt. "Bayern was a huge lesson," he admitted. "When you try to move forward in a specific environment, you need to have a certain chemistry to pull this whole ship forward. If it is not completely that way you can't do it." Back to the Future Klinsmann has few doubts the "whole ship" that is the US Soccer Federation is open to change. The German was approached after both the 2006 and 2010 World Cups without being able to come to agreement. "When we talked again after the 2011 Gold Cup, I told them it is only going to work if you are open for change," he said. "If our big goal is to break the top ten in the world -- to play England or Germany eye-to-eye -- it is not possible by doing the same thing. We have to train harder, find more effort, more education, more drive, change the youth environment, change coaching education, change everything. But that is what I love to do because only by doing that am I improving myself. I'm in the same learning curve as everyone else." With that huge burden on his shoulders, I ask Klinsmann what fears keep him awake at night. "I sleep well," he snapped. "I stop drinking my espressos at 4 p.m." With that, he looked at his watch, discovered it was exactly 3:50, and giggling with delight, ordered one more. twitter: @rogbennett
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Any predictions for the US game tomorrow?As usual, I don't feel good about any away games. I could see a 2-1 loss but would be happy with any sort of draw.

 
My soccer education continues.I am confused. I am watching the Real Madrid/CSKA Moscow Champions League match, and Ronaldo is playing for Moscow. How does that work?EDIT: Never mind, had the wrong guy..... :banned:

 
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'massraider said:
My soccer education continues.I am confused. I am watching the Real Madrid/CSKA Moscow Champions League match, and Ronaldo is playing for Moscow. How does that work?EDIT: Never mind, had the wrong guy..... :banned:
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Just in case you don't know, you are watching a replay from the previous competition (2011-2012). This game was a knock out round game (round of 16).The current Champions League does not start up again until next week.
 
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Busy day tomorrowBoth African Cup of Nations Semi Finals are on and all 3 CONCACAF WCQiers are on.I think CONCACAF is the only region who is playing tomorrow. All other games outside of the two in South Africa are friendlies I believe.

 
Some good friendlies tomorrow:Holland-ItalyFrance-GermanyEngland-BrazilSpain-Uruguayplus Gordon Strachan's debut as Scotland boss

 
'NewlyRetired said:
Any predictions for the US game tomorrow?As usual, I don't feel good about any away games. I could see a 2-1 loss but would be happy with any sort of draw.
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I am irrationally confident, which should make you doubly nervous.3-1 good guys. Jozy with the brace. Jozy is good enough to give any CONCACAF team fits now. Time for him to do it.
 
'NewlyRetired said:
Looks like Becks was not being as charitable as we thought. The media in France found out that Becks is not really being paid at all, and PSG is donating his salary directly to charity. By doing this, Becks gets around having the French tax system go after his world wide income (which dwarfs his salary). He ends up saving money by not being paid.
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Good for him. He's not a French citizen. Ef the French for trying to tax his worldwide income.
 
'Christo said:
'NewlyRetired said:
Looks like Becks was not being as charitable as we thought. The media in France found out that Becks is not really being paid at all, and PSG is donating his salary directly to charity. By doing this, Becks gets around having the French tax system go after his world wide income (which dwarfs his salary). He ends up saving money by not being paid.
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Good for him. He's not a French citizen. Ef the French for trying to tax his worldwide income.
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:goodposting:
 
I was reading on Big Soccer that due to the fact that the Honduran crime rate is so incredibly high, that the US won't have to deal with the parties outside of the hotel and fire alarms being rung type stuff as the police have basically sequestered the team.This is in Spanish but it gives you an idea of the security measures being taken.http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=_nDc7ZFwWHI

 
It's been a while since I posted an AFC Wimbledon update. Things have gone from bad to worse. Today's 3-0 defeat away at league leaders Port Vale was a low point. They're current at the bottom of the league with 28 points from 29 games. :bag: No place to go but up (or the Conference).The Dons did bring in some January help and haven't lost sight of the relegation cutoff line. There are six clubs within three points of the drop and only two will go down.

 
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I really want Jozy to start tomorrow, but I'm not optimistic.I just think he's too good of an asset to relegate to 20-30 minutes of playing time. He won't become the force we need that way.Don't think I'll be able to see any of the game. Bummer.

 
Looks like we now know why Gus Johnson was calling SJ Earthquakes games on the radio last season.

Gus Johnson steps up to big-time soccer

By Ridge Mahoney and Paul Kennedy

Not many American broadcasters have shown they can cross-over from other sports to soccer, but FOX Sports is giving Gus Johnson a big shot.

Johnson, who has worked numerous sports during the past two decades and joined the network in 2011, will team with FOX Soccer analyst Warren Barton for the Real-Madrid-Manchester United Champions League match Feb. 13 live from the Santiago Bernabeu Stadium.

Johnson has also been assigned to English Premier League matches, the English FA Cup final and the Champions League final. To help his preparation, he worked some MLS games on radio and spent several weeks in Europe watching games and meeting veteran soccer broadcasters such as Martin Tyler.

“No doubt that the followers of this sport are among the most passionate, knowledgeable fans in the world, and I’m a newcomer,” said Johnson 45. “The effort to learn the sport and absorb its nuance has been a humbling experience. While I’ve put a lot of time into my preparation thus far, it’s definitely going to take a lot of reps before I’ve mastered soccer’s rhythm and pace, but I am determined to do so, and with all the support I’m receiving I have no doubt that I will.”

After debuting with Barton in Madrid, Johnson will call the Arsenal-Bayern Munich match Feb.19 with former Liverpool keeper Ray Clemence, and the Manchester City-Chelsea Premier League game Feb. 24 with ex-Arsenal defender Lee Dixon. Other assignments will be announced as they are determined.

Johnson, a native of Detroit, worked 15 years for CBS Sports and attained notoriety for his hyperventilated calls of NCAA men’s basketball tournament games. He works college football games and NFL programs for FOX.
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I really want Jozy to start and for Gomez to be the second half sub. I have said this before, but Gomez is the only player on the squad who has shown he understands and can have an impact with being a second half sub. He led the Mexican league in scoring a couple of years ago primarily being a sub. Cameron's incredible versatility really does open up a lot of different possibilities for the lineup but where he ends up is likely based on how secure Klinsmann feels with either Besler or Gonzo starting.

 
'Good said:
'The Gator said:
'wdcrob said:
So what's the starting XI look like?
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my guess
Code: 
TimmyCameron         Boca           Gonzo          Johnson                         Edu                                               Bradley        Jones                                        Zusi                                    Dempsey                        Gomez
Boom
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What about Chandler? He needs to/should be cap-tied, no?+1 on Altidore. For what's likely to be such a low-scoring game, I don't see how he can be left off.
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Yeah, don't see why you move Cameron to start a player with so little international experience when you have a ready replacement in Chandler that also needs to be cap tied. Plus, he could help provide width that no one else in that lineup is going to.Would be nice if we went Gomez/Altidore/Dempsey up top.
 
'dparker713 said:
'Good said:
'The Gator said:
'wdcrob said:
So what's the starting XI look like?
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my guess
Code: 
TimmyCameron         Boca           Gonzo          Johnson                         Edu                                               Bradley        Jones                                        Zusi                                    Dempsey                        Gomez
Boom
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What about Chandler? He needs to/should be cap-tied, no?+1 on Altidore. For what's likely to be such a low-scoring game, I don't see how he can be left off.
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Yeah, don't see why you move Cameron to start a player with so little international experience when you have a ready replacement in Chandler that also needs to be cap tied. Plus, he could help provide width that no one else in that lineup is going to.Would be nice if we went Gomez/Altidore/Dempsey up top.
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I know Scooby has made good cases for why wingers are not as valued any more in the current formations of soccer but even with that being said, this may be the least mobile squad the US has ever assembled. Our two most mobile players are Chandler and Fab and I agree with you that both should start to provide what little width can be had with this squad.
 
Honduras has officially announced the Starting XI for tomorrow:Valladares; El Caracol Peralta, El Muma, Figueroa, Juan Carlos Garcia; Garrido, Espinoza, Boniek, El Zurdo Martinez; Bengtson y El Cocherito Costly ==============================================

 
Good article on Van Persie and his success at United. He credits the tactics that United coach Rene Meulensteen teaches mid-week as the difference between winning and losing. Pretty cool.http://soccernet.espn.go.com/news/story/_/id/1328611/van-persie:-i-have-found-home-at-manchester-united?cc=5901"The way he [Meulensteen] trains is refreshing. He is truly one of the best coaches in the world. I've had a lot of good trainers, but it's the way he prepares our team for games. Every match is different so every training session in build-up is unique. We know exactly what to expect. He wins points for us through his training."We've won a lot of games by the odd goal - they are point winners. Consider the game against Chelsea. I scored after a low cross from Antonio Valencia on the right. It might seem like a fluke, but the whole week before the game was spent working on that move. Another example is my goal against Wigan when I cut the ball inside and shot with my right foot - again this was a situation we trained on."

 
A fan who watched the US train today in Honduras said the team looked very sharp but also looked like the heat was getting to them as they had to take many water breaks. The weather is expected to be hot and rainy I believe tomorrow. The heat is one of the reasons the game was chosen to be played in the afternoon.

 
'Steve Tasker said:
'NewlyRetired said:
The weather is expected to be hot and rainy I believe tomorrow. The heat is one of the reasons the game was chosen to be played in the afternoon.
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Is this the only reason? Is there some sort of psychological advantage that Honduras thinks they're getting? Who sets these gametimes?
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Well a 4PM home start worked great for Honduras in their last game, beating Canada 8-1. But we're much much better than Canada...well you know, except last week...
 
'Steve Tasker said:
'NewlyRetired said:
The weather is expected to be hot and rainy I believe tomorrow. The heat is one of the reasons the game was chosen to be played in the afternoon.
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Is this the only reason? Is there some sort of psychological advantage that Honduras thinks they're getting? Who sets these gametimes?
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I think it is more physio the psycho the choice of the starting time. They wanted to play during a hot part of the day to make the US players as uncomfortable as possible. No different than US scheduling Mexico in Columbus early in year in past hexes I guess.The home country sets the time and location of the game. There must be some basic parameters for time set by the federation but I do not know what they are.
 
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Here is Grant Wahl's prediction for the starting lineup..................................Tim Howard; Timmy Chandler, Geoff Cameron, Carlos Bocanegra, Fabian Johnson; .......................Danny Williams; Graham Zusi, Michael Bradley, Jermaine Jones; ............Clint Dempsey, Hérculez Gómez.

 
Interesting that he thinks they'll play Demps in the hole and Jones on the left midfield. I don't love the formation, but it could prove useful in breaking down a team that's playing behind the ball and trying to counter.MB needs to have a big game all over the pitch. He needs to get stuck in so that Jones doesn't. He needs to protect Zusi from getting out of sorts from playing in that environment, and obviously he needs to spring Dempsey on some diagonal runs into the box.

 
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