photo by ISIphotos.com
by GIANFRANCO PANIZO
In the final weekend of club action before a pair of critical World Cup qualifiers, some of the U.S. national team regulars enjoyed solid showings.
Charlie Davies had a stellar outing, going 85 minutes in Sochaux's 1-0 victory over AS Monaco. Davies helped set up the lone goal, drawing a penalty kick in the 20th minute of the match.
Jose Francisco Torres also impressed in his first start of the Mexican Apertura, going the full 90 minutes of Pachuca's 2-2 draw vs. Guadalajara.
It was not all positive though as stalwarts Oguchi Onyewu and Michael Bradley did not see the field for their respective clubs.
Here is how the rest of the Americans Abroad did this weekend:
England
PREMIERSHIP
- Tim Howard started, played 90 minutes and made two saves in Everton's 2-1 win vs. Wigan Athletic on Sunday.
- Jozy Altidore came off the bench and played 27 minutes in Hull City's 1-1 draw vs. Wolverhampton Wanderers on Saturday.
- Clint Dempsey started and played 90 minutes in Fulham's 2-0 loss vs. Aston Villa on Sunday.
- Eddie Johnson came off the bench and played 14 minutes in Fulham's 2-0 loss vs. Aston Villa on Sunday.
- Jonathan Spector started and played 90 minutes in West Ham's 0-0 draw vs. Blackburn Rovers on Saturday.
- Brad Friedel started and played 90 minutes in Aston Villa's 2-0 win vs. Fulham on Sunday.
- Brad Guzan dressed but did not play in Aston Villa's 2-0 win vs. Fulham on Sunday.
- Eric Lichaj did not dress in Aston Villa's 2-0 win vs. Fulham on Sunday.
- Marcus Hahnemann dressed but did not play in Wolverhampton Wanderers' 1-1 draw vs. Hull City on Saturday.
COCA COLA CHAMPIONSHIP
- Jay DeMerit started and played 90 minutes in Watford's 1-1 draw vs. Swansea City on Saturday.
- Frank Simek did not dress in Sheffield Wednesday's 3-1 win vs. Plymouth Argyle on Saturday.
LEAGUE ONE
- Ian Joyce did not dress in Southend United's 2-1 loss vs. Swindon Town on Saturday.
- Zak Whitbread did not dress in Millwall's 1-1 draw vs. Brighton on Friday.
- Mike Grella dressed but did not play in Leeds United's 2-1 win vs. Colchester United on Saturday.
- Jemal Johnson started and played 62 minutes in Milton Keynes Dons' 2-1 win vs. Exeter City on Saturday.
- Jon-Paul Pittman came off the bench, played 30 minutes and scored a GOAL in Wycombe Wanderers' 2-1 win vs. Bristol Rovers on Saturday.
Scotland
- Maurice Edu did not dress in Rangers' 4-1 win vs. Hamilton Academical on Saturday. He is recovering from an injury.
- DaMarcus Beasley dressed but did not play in Rangers' 4-1 win vs. Hamilton Academical on Saturday.
Italy
- Oguchi Onyewu dressed but did not play in AC Milan's 4-0 loss vs. Inter Milan on Saturday.
Germany
BUNDESLIGA
- Michael Bradley did not dress in Borussia Moenchengladbach's 2-0 win vs. Mainz on Friday.
- Steve Cherundolo started and played 90 minutes in Hannover 96's 1-0 loss vs. TSG Hoffenheim on Saturday.
- Sal Zizzo dressed but did not play in Hannover 96's 1-0 loss vs. TSG Hoffenheim on Saturday.
- Jermaine Jones did not dress in Schalke 04's 1-0 loss vs. SC Freiburg on Saturday. He is recovering from an injury.
BUNDESLIGA 2
- Kenny Cooper started and played 90 minutes in 1860 Munich's 0-0 draw vs. Ahlen on Friday.
- Luis Robles dressed but did not play in Kaiserslautern's 0-0 draw vs. SC Paderborn 07 on Sunday.
- Matt Taylor came off the bench and played 2 minutes in FSV Frankfurt's 3-0 loss vs. Alemania Aachen on Sunday.
- David Yeldell started, played 90 minutes and made one save in TUS Koblenz's 2-0 loss vs. Energie Cottbus on Friday.
France
- Carlos Bocanegra started and played 90 minutes in Rennes' 2-2 draw vs. Lens on Saturday.
- Charlie Davies started and played 85 minutes in Sochaux's 1-0 win vs. AS Monaco on Saturday.
Denmark
- Benny Feilhaber started and played 70 minutes in AGF Aarhus' 2-0 win vs. FC Nordshaelland on Saturday.
- Jeremiah White started and played 61 minutes in AGF Aarhus' 2-0 win vs. FC Nordsjaelland on Saturday.
- Dan Califf did not dress in FC Midtjylland's 1-0 loss vs. Aalborg on Sunday.
- Michael Parkhurst started and played 90 minutes in FC Nordsjaelland's 2-0 loss vs. AGF Aarhus on Saturday.
- Marcus Tracy did not play in Aalborg's 1-0 win vs. FC Midtjylland on Sunday.
Norway
- Troy Perkins started and played 90 minutes in Valerenga's 2-1 win vs. Molde on Saturday.
- Mikkel Diskerud and Stabaek play Lillestrom on Monday.
- Clarence Goodson started, played 90 minutes and received a yellow card in IK Start's 1-0 loss vs. Brann on Sunday.
- Hunter Freeman did not dress in IK Start's 1-0 loss vs. Brann on Sunday.
Sweden
- Alejandro Bedoya and Orebro SK play Gefle IF on Monday.
Mexico
- Jose Francisco Torres started and played 90 minutes in Pachuca's 2-2 draw vs. Guadalajara on Saturday.
- Michael Orozco started and played 90 minutes in San Luis' 0-0 draw vs. Puebla on Saturday.
- Edgar Castillo and UANL play Santos on Sunday evening.
- Marco Vidal started and played 90 minutes in Indios de Ciudad Juarez's 1-1 draw vs. Atlas on Saturday.
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What do you think of these performances? Is Davies the best U.S. forward in the national team pool? Based on his 90-minute performance, should Torres should start vs. El Salvador? Worried by Bradley and Onyewu's lack of playing time this weekend?
Share your thoughts below
Is Davies the best U.S. forward in the national team pool?
At this exact moment base on current form?
yes! without question. Jozy isn’t in game shape just yet, he’ll be there in a week or so.
Castillo needs a look at left back. Dempsey’s low workrate is very discouraging. Zizzo needs a call-up as soon as he gets on the field at Hannover.
Bradley not playing is a bit of a concern. Not sure what is going on there but he needs to get on the field to continue his development. Onyewu wasn’t going to waltz in and start from day one and he didn’t have the best pre-season in the WFC games that they played here in America. Maybe that 4-0 loss to Inter will help him get into the lineup.
Also, Bradley needs to call in Orozco and Castillo since our left back spot still isn’t settled. I think one of those two may be a better option than Carlos.
the bradley bashing has to end. honeslty when is it so bad for a player to have a bit of a mean streaK. he has BY FAR been our most consitant player over the past two years. what do you want our players to be happy when they get taKen out? for christ saKe his competitive nature is a good thing.
bradley bashing because his father is the coach is just something i cannot understand, STOP LOOKING FOR NEPOTISM THERE IS NONE TO BE FOUND HERE
I wouldn’t worry too much about Bradley. Likely a small hurdle of poor form to overcome. I don’t see Bob pulling Junior anytime soon.
Happy to see EJ get some minutes. Fulham’s #5 fw behind A.Johnson, Zamora, Nevland, and Kamara. He does have a small window to break through as Nevland and Kamara have been inconsistent and A.Johnson is hurt.
So really. Is Bornstein better than Castillo?
The Bradley question could get interesting next spring if Jones and Edu and Feilhaber and Torres are all fit and playing well.
You think BB would ever try a Jones and Torres combo? Not saying I’d advocate, but it I also believe that without injury Davies and Spector are also fringe players currently. Lucky for BB the old guys got hurt.
Why isn’t Bob Bradley trying players like Jeremiah White, Jeremiah White, Jon-Paul Pittman, Marco Vidal, and Edgar Castillo?
Charlie Davies becoming the star of France.
Xander, of all the reasons to criticize Bob, him playing Michael isn’t one of them. I do not see any hypocrisy because he played Beasley when he wasn’t playing for his club. Plus, it’s not like our playing pool is really that deep. If LD were riding pine in Europe, he would still be starting for the Nats. Gooch would start against El Salvador if it weren’t for the suspension even though he sees no minutes for Milan.
You are right though – our players need to be getting minutes with their clubs.
Here’s a rough translation of the French site’s write-up on CD, who made their Ligue 1 Top XI for the week:
“The American is already making [Sochaux] forget Mevlut Erding [who moved to PSG this summer]. In just four games, Charlie Davies has become indispensable to the Sochaux formation. Along with the Czech Vaclav Sverkos, he has found his mark. Lively, fast, powerful, Davies caused much worry for the Monacan defense.”
What infuriates me is that by the time next week’s qualifier rolls around, Baby Bradley will have played one competitive half in three weeks. Bob Bradley has repeatedly stated that those players who play with their clubs will get playing time – if Michael’s not playing in Germany, then he damned well better not be in the lineup next week.
Only problem is, every person reading this site knows Bob won’t sit Michael… hypocrisy and double standards at their finest…
If Michael Bradley was not the coaches son I question if his recent behavior would warrant an automatic start in every match. Going after referee’s after matches and his behavior at the club level are none too impressive. Sure he is a good player but he is not good enough where he should not be held accountable and expected to maintain a certain level of professionalism. He is a good player and he is still developing but his temperament could use some fine tuning.
thanks George for the Charlie Davies highlights. He’s so confident right now, he feels like he could do anything he wants inside the box. Great to see one of our forwards playing like that. Expect him to score against El Salvador.
I was under the impression Bradley’s club knows he is a solid contributor when on form and are willing to be patient. That is what someone translated a few articles as that I read on another forum.
That said, he does seem to have an attitude problem. But it’s not like talented players aren’t worth having because of attitude, especially on the USMT.
Span,
I agree that two did come when they were down a man, the week prior they almost drew against a newly promoted club. They are in a bit of turmoil, something will have to change, not just defensively.
Brian,
Thanks for the article about Bradley. It didn’t quite clear up Bradley’s situation. However, it highlighted the need for google translate to improve though.
It seems Bradley has been playing too much and his coach thinks a rest might help improve the consistancy of his performances. At least that was my take away from a confusing translation.
Posted by: Green76 | August 30, 2009 at 09:12 PM
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No problem. I actually got it from “Aaron” on the Soccer Saturday: Your Running Commentary post.
My German is a little rusty (I took it in high school and used to have a German girlfriend) but the article was mostly positive about Bradley. It didn’t exactly say what Bradley did, other than that he didn’t take too well to being taken out of the game at half and that he’s not taking criticism too well.
Bradley’s story would be big in any other sport in America. Where is the coverage on this? We have Ives, ESPN, Trecker at Fox, YA? Dont let Bigsoccer be the only coverage on this. Whats the deal, USSF holding it down.
as far as google translate is concerned its pretty much impossible to have better translations that aren’t done by a person, google just word for word translates
Brian,
Thanks for the article about Bradley. It didn’t quite clear up Bradley’s situation. However, it highlighted the need for google translate to improve though.
It seems Bradley has been playing too much and his coach thinks a rest might help improve the consistancy of his performances. At least that was my take away from a confusing translation.
“Castillo’s goal is at 2:10
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ma87TG1UqGs”
Dang. Nice goal!
Davies is playing with incredible confidence, Bradley is a heck of a player coach’s son or not he deserves his spot on the US team, needs an attitude adjustment, but he didn’t dominate holland and play well in Germany b/c of his dad being the coach, Castillo had a nice goal, Mexico wouldn’t take him back after what he said so i don’t think we have to worry about losing him, but I agree a cap in maybe the last game or so wouldn’t be a bad idea
Don’t worry Bradley junior. Daddy still loves you even if you have temper tantrums.
“Gringo” Torres I love that nickname. Every time he had the ball the announcers called him that.
It’s pure speculation on my part,what else are these blogs good for, but it looks like the coach’s son is losing his mind.
Castillo’s goal is at 2:10
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ma87TG1UqGs
Posted by: George | August 30, 2009 at 08:01 PM
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We need to cap his ass!
Article about Michael Bradley
http://torfabrik.de/einwurf/aktuelles/datum/2009/08/29/problemfall-bradley.html
Davies Highlights:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dh_4btdVl28
Castillo’s goal is at 2:10
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ma87TG1UqGs
Sean,
I don’t think Leonardo is going to be in panic mode just yet or feel any pressure to put Onyewu in despite the 4-0 loss to Inter. Two of the goals were given up while short a man…so “clearly they have defensive issues” is a bit of an overstep at this point. I think that the Nesta – Thiago Silva pairing in defense is going to be the primary one. Gooch should count on some Coppa Italia games or Nesta getting hurt (not that uncommon).
I heard that Michael Bradley was suspended by the team on Friday for getting into a verbal altercation with the gaffer at halftime of the last match. Color me unsurprised that the annoyingly petulant junior Bradley would try and show up his manager.
Ching = “0” World Cup expierance. Since Ching has yet to play in any World Cups…….so i dont how Ching will be on the WC team next year since he is even gonna be slower and older………..MLS “expierance” will not equal good World Cup play……..see Agoos 2002.
Pittman is the only yank to score again this week.
Why is Baby Bradley not playing?
Charlie Davies made the Best XI on this French website below:
http://maxifoot.fr/articles/7971/
Good to see the recognition. If he keeps at it and Jozy does the same…we may actually see some goals in SA.
I’m going to try an make a list of the potential pool for each respective position for the US (MLS and elsewhere). Feel free (nay, encouraged) to add to it:
Goalies: Howard, Guzan, Perkins, Hahnemann, Busch, Robles, Yeldell, potentially Frei from TFC
Defenders: Boca, Gooch, DeMerit, Spector, Dolo, Heydude, Orozco, Bornstein, Castillo?, Goodson, Marshall, Parkhurst, Califf
Midfielders: Bradley, Clark, Edu, Jones, LD, Dempsey, Torres, Holden, Feilhaber, Adu, Beckerman, Rogers (ugh), and maybe Quaranta and Arnaud? In the future, I assume Sam Cronin will be in here as well. And if Szetela can get on Tommy Soehn’s good side, maybe he can revitalize career and maybe even get back to Europe someday (hopefully in a better league and where he can get PT)
Forwards: Jozy, Davies, LD, Dempsey, KC, EJ, Quaranta, Arnaud, Ching (even though it pains me to put him on this list, but he’s far more likely to get PT with the Nats than KC, SQ, or Arnaud- all of whom I would rather see playing in a World Cup than Ching).
Again, please add any other players whom I have left out or forgotten to the list.
This is a very good and pretty deep pool of players, for now and for the long term. I’m pretty excited about the future prospects of USMNT soccer!
Could Bradley be on the verge of a transfer? They could be holding him out for that reason. Guess I’m an optimist.
Should Torres start? Starting or coming off the bench, Torres should be getting serious minutes.
This summer Bradley repeatedly went with Sasha Kljestan, while Torres got almost nothing in the way of playing time.
This fact is mind-boggling.
It tells us a great deal about the rare combination of daring and keen football intelligence that mark Bob Bradley out as a great coach.
Is Charlie Davies our best attacker? Well he’s certainly making a good case for himself.
Imagine, now, that Brian Ching had not gone down injured this summer. Where exactly would Charlie Davies be? What would his prospects be for breaking into the team? And what does that tell us about the way our team is selected?
I need an explanation for why Bradley isn’t even dressing!
also think cooper should stay with his club and become a regular there, jozy and davies start, move dempsey up and bring in holden or something along those lines, for now we don’t need to use a third forward
don’t get the calls for EJ to come back to the US, he’s only 25 and working his way back in favor, i recall people thinking the same about Benny not so long ago, EJ needs to stay in England and prove he can hang, we don’t need another Ching or Casey who is good in the MLS, but a 3rd striker playing time in a first league in Europe we do need
Being pro-Gooch I would say that the 4-0 score is good for him. the score says he wouldn’t have done any worse.
WHAT IS GOING ON WITH BRADLEY???
I went the Colorado Dallas game today, just got back- Ching and Casey have very little to offer. We need to get Cooper some more experience with the big boys!
milan clearly has some defensive issues, i would expect some pressure will be put on leonardo soon to change something. EJ only played today because of lack of a better option to place on fulhams bench. I hope that he continues to work hard though, it will do him good.
EJ in the game! i really hope EJ, DMB and Marcus Hahnemann return to the MLS soon tho. it would be best for their careers and would be great for our league.
also i don’t get to watch Villa much at all but how often does Guzan play and how many more years does Fridel have there? it sounds like Brad is still at the top of his game and guzan could get a loan somewhere else where he could be a number 1 for a few months.
after this season and a great WC Cooper, Davies and Jozy move up to big clubs with big starting roles!
Ives, any news on how much longer Maurice Edu will be out for?
He’s been out since the end of last season, lord knows we could use him on the national team.
Matt, I’m really excited about Johnson getting some minutes too, but I’m a little worried that he’ll practically stop getting any minutes once Andy Johnson returns. He seems to be fourth on the depth charts right now. Maybe he can use this chance to push himself up.
Reading the USsoccerNews twitter feed it sounds like Edgar Castillo has scored an incredible goal for Tigres against Santos. Apparantly it was a 25 yard volley. Tigres lead Santos 2-1 at the half.
When do we start to panic about Gooch’s lack of playing time for Milan?
I was extremely proud to see him sign with them, but I think we all worried in the back of our minds that he wouldn’t get enough minutes there. Is there a chance that he works his way into the lineup, or do we hope for a loan move during the winter transfer window?
Also, is Bradley in the coach’s doghouse or what?!?
Wheres freddy adu
I think one of the bigger developments here is Eddie Johnson seeing the field for Fulham. Altidore and Davies are clearly our best forwards, but there would be nothing wrong with having EJ regain form and earn call-ups. Even having that extra depth in camp would make Altidore and Davies that much better.
Scotland
DaMarcus Beasley dressed but did not play in Rangers’ 4-1 win vs. Hamilton Academical on Saturday.
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It’s time to come home, Beasley and get back on track for the World Cup and the betterment of your career.
Also, is Bradley injured or has he fallen out of form/favor with the manager?