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Bradley included on Roma squad list for match vs. Napoli

MichaelBradleyASRoma1-Napoli (Getty)

By DAN KARELL

After being sidelined for the last six weeks due to an ankle injury, Michael Bradley looks set to return on Friday.

The AS Roma midfielder was included in the team squad for Friday’s big match against Napoli at home, with Roma hoping to extend their perfect start to the season to eight games. Bradley played in Roma’s first two games of the season before suffering a grade two ankle sprain just minutes before the U.S. Men’s National Team match at Costa Rica.

It’s still unknown whether Bradley will start or even make the bench, but the fact that he’s on the squad sheet should alleviate some of the worry from USMNT fans about the status of the team’s star midfielder.

What do you think of this news? Glad to see Bradley returning to full fitness? Do you see him making the bench on Friday? Do you see him breaking back into the lineup?

Share your thoughts below.

Comments

  1. When they signed Strootman, I knew he was in trouble. It’s a shame his injury had to come when Roma has been so dominant. It’ll be difficult for him to crack the lineup for a little while until they start dropping some points. We know his quality, but that doesn’t mean they’ll need him. Obviously his time at Roma isn’t over, but it definitely got a lot more difficult.

    I could really see him making the move to a team in the premier league like Everton. Gibson’s probably out for the year with a cruciate knee ligament injury and Gareth Barry is only on loan. They need to replace the box-to-box presence that Fellaini was. Bradley could be that, but maybe even better for the team since he plays with discipline and is a much smarter player tactically.

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  2. You have to think Roma see some value in MB since they seemed pretty intent on not selling him despite their glut of quality midfield options. He’ll get his shot, he’s not a fringe squad player just not in the first 11 right now.

    I think even if he is not starting day in and day out Roma is still the place we want MB to be. They look like they will at a minimum be competing for CL spot and maybe even the Scudetto (still early). While yes, we want our players abroad to be playing a high volume of minutes, CL teams in the top four leagues all possess squad depth which means, if your not a world class player you might not always see the pitch.

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    • It’s inevitable that DDR or Strootman or Panjic will get some knocks or be really injuried at some point, so Bradley will get playing time and then have his chance to earn a spot in the starting 11. I think we’ll start to see him as late game sub until that happens. So no reason to be really concerned at this point.

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    • According to Gazzetto dello Sport, the coach, fans, and team mates rate him highly. I do believe he will make the bench but won’t start. Depending on the in-game situation he might play. Pjanic and Strootman are both attack-minded midfielders who’ve started on either side of de rossi in a 4-3-3 set up. It’s worked great up til now (as evident by the goal difference) Apart from Inter, Roma have been beating up on the average to weaker sides of serie A. When Roma want to play with more caution and composer they’ll play Bradley.

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  3. Great news! Certainly could be wrong, but I don’t see much point in his team including him on the squad unless they’re planning to give him a few minutes (if the game situation allows). In any case, this is awesome news for MB.

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  4. Best news we could get right now! Glad to see him heathy. In form will happen soon.

    Now if only Dempsey can get his situation back on track

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    • Dempsey is fine. No one comes into MLS and crushes it. It is a very competitive league and a very physical league. He will find his way and be great next year. Hopefully for me ( Sounder’s fan ) he will find a few magical moments in the playoffs…if we get there.

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      • “No one comes into MLS and crushes it.” I beg to differ. Carlos Ruiz and Luciano Emilio won both MLS MVP and MLS golden boot awards in their respective inagural seasons. Having said this, I don’t think that Dempsey is the player the Sounders should be concerned about – he will be fine.

      • Ruiz broke in back in 2002. Emilio in 2007

        My impression is that MLS is quite a bit more competitive now than then.

        On the other hand, Marco de Vaio is certainly “crushing it”.and Montreal look good.

      • His teammates, matins and Johnson certainly would argue you don’t have to crush it in your first year, just maybe score a goal or two

  5. He’s their first/second sub off the bench. Not bad for a team fighting for a CL spot in the 3rd best league in Europe

    sorry Bundesliga

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    • You seriously rate Serie A ahead of the Bundesliga? That is really ridiculous considering that Serie A only qualified two teams for the group stage of the last UCL, while the Bundesliga qualified three, two of which competed in the final.

      Serie A is quickly falling behind the top three leagues.

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      • Tough to compare leagues. Top teams, Bundesliga probably wins. Top to bottom of the table? Serie A may be tougher.

  6. I suppose that’s good, but with the kind of run Roma is having right now, I wouldn’t change a single thing about the starting XI.

    That said, anybody worried about Michael Bradley finding playing time is crazy. If he hasn’t made it back into the starting lineup soon, he’ll be finding another team in January where he is assured playing time, for both club and country.

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    • Or until Pjanic gets injured. Pjanic adds more to the attack than Bradley. He can offer everything that Bradley can + attacking quality.

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      • Actually I think Bradley is more insurance for Strootman or DDR.

        Bradley better start enjoying the bench, as that is where he will be until one of them gets injured or Roma falls apart.

      • Betting against Bradley finding playing time is not smart money. This is a really good Roma team, but throughout his career, Bradley forces coaches to play him. It may take a few weeks, or even a couple months, but Bradley will be challenging for those starting spots.

      • I disagree.,

        Take for instance his Monchengladbach stint where he fell out of favor and then went out on loan for 6 months where he hardly received any playing time.

        This is a not a great comparison, but a similar situation is the Alex smith/ Kapernick situation. Smith out, Kapernick. Smith back. too bad.

        yea…

      • Yeah, horrible comparison.

        Untested rookie QB whereas Bradley is firmly established in Europe and for national team.

      • I agree he struggled for playing time on loan at Aston Villa, but I think it’s clear his coach values him more at Roma than the coach at Villa.

        He was playing (not always as a starter, but playing) before the injury, so my assumption would be that he will see playing time if his ankle has sufficiently healed.

        I know Roma doesn’t have all the European challenges of some teams, but if they want to continue to chase the Scudetto, they will have to rotate their players, and Bradley is certainly part of that rotation.

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