UEFA Champions League winners Chelsea take on the MLS All-Stars tonight at the 2012 MLS All-Star Game (8:30pm, ESPN2).
The MLS All-Stars will be trotting out a star-studded lineup featuring Thierry Henry, David Beckham and Landon Donovan, while Chelsea's starting lineup for the match will feature standouts such as Frank Lampard, Ashley Cole and John Terry.
Here is my FOX Soccer preview on tonight's match, which should be a great test for both teams.
SBI will be providing live commentary on tonight's match so please feel free to follow along here. You can also keep track of all the action at FOX Soccer, which will be providing live stats updates.
Enjoy the action (Tonight's commentary is after the jump):
He was actually wanted by several clubs but chose to re-sign with Hannover.
Amen. He gets a lot of hate sometimes but the guy has brought a lot to the MLS.
And don’t get me started on Johnson. What he has not done to and for the USMNT is epic. He can never undo his mistakes. Beckerman has few mistakes to hide from. No brilliance either. But nothing to hide from.
Also, it is a defensive game. There is a reason Seattle has sucked it up this year. They forgot that fact. They focused on all this stupid crossing into the goal area instead of defense. LA has the same problem. A bad defense. Beckerman plays defensively and is very consistent. He rarely has a bad game. You may not like it, but it is a legit style that many of the best teams in the world play.
Bradley & Jurgin both see something you don’t. I never attacked you personally. But I think you should consider the fact that both US coaches have used him and that RSL is the only team in the league that has been in the running four years in a row. You don’t have to like him, plenty of fans don’t. He is never voted in by the fans. But all the coaches have put him on the All Star team three years in a row and they have played him each time. Are you smarter than the past three MLS all star coaches, Jurgin and Bradley? Just asking.
Second best — Steve Cherundolo was one of the better defenders in the entire tournament. But otherwise I totally agree. Unbelievable that no European team wanted him after the 2010 WC. . . .
I am glad MLS won but I thought Chelsea should have been awarded a pk for a handball in the box by one of the MLS defenders.
Mea culpa below, but that pass was weak and behind Johnson, allowing the David Luis get between the ball and the keeper. And yet — without that wounded-duck Beckerman pass, the deflection would never have happened!
Truly, I think the guy is a waste of space. I would love to educated (without being attacked personally) as to his quality.
There is a reason RSL has been the only team in the MLS that is in the top three the past four seasons. That reason is Beckerman. He is the real deal. He is not the most talented player on the pitch but he is one of the smartest.
I wanted PKs…..robbed by EJ’s lucky shot
How about you hate on the assist to Eddie Johnson. Beckerman is awesome.
Let me further admit that the last two MLS goals came from Beckerman forward passes. However reluctant, lucky or awkward they were, he was there.
Dude you need to chill….Beckerman doesn’t suck….
The hate for this guy from some areas rivals those who hated/still hate Michael Bradley…
Let me admit that I really have no players on the USMNT that I out of hand dislike. I’m sure it’s the whiteboy dreads, but I watch Beckerman like I watch Glenn Beck: Only to outrage myself. I have a drinking game I play. If Beckerman makes a forward pass or dribbles the ball into space, I drink a case of beer. Needless to say, I am sober.
Demerit although a good tackler, his lack of vision out the back and passing is horrible. All he knows is bomb it out and hope we win the balls in the air. Cameron and Ream will be starters 2014.
I’m sorry, but Henry off the field and Beckerman on? I know they weren’t subbed for each other, but…
Beckerman just sucks. And now there is no one who can hold and distribute the ball in the midfield. GOD, is Beckerman terrible.
Agreed. Even when healthy and in-form, Gooch has always been… lumbering. I’m a Gooch fan, too, but DeMerit has always seemed a bit more coordinated to me.
It can be argued, whether folks believe it or not, that Jay DeMerit was our best defender in WC2010 and hasn’t done anything (except age a bit like everyone) to warrant not being on the Klinsmann radar. He certainly is as good if not better than Gooch and could compete with Boca…
The main camera angle on ESPN2 seems lower than HD resolution. Players look fuzzy making MLS silver numbers and names even harder to read. Close-ups are ok.
Michael Bradley with a goal and a tremendous performance for AS Roma in their 2-1 win over Liverpool at Fenway Park…played the full 90+ munites for his new club…
Looking forward to this match too…:)