by GIANFRANCO PANIZO
While there were few positives to draw from the U.S. U-20 national team's World Cup opener, there were reasons for optimism from some of the Americans Abroad this weekend.
Tim Howard once again provided Everton with a solid performance, making three saves en route to a 1-0 win over Portsmouth. Howard's cleansheet was his second of the season.
Another sign for optimism was Michael Bradley seeing Bundesliga action for the first time in almost a month. Bradley did not start in Borussia Moenchengladbach's 3-0 loss to SC Freiburg, but he did come off the bench at half-time.
Not everything was good, though. Defender Oguchi Onyewu failed to see the field again for AC Milan in their 0-0 draw against lowly Bari.
Here is how the rest of the Americans Abroad did this weekend:
England
PREMIERSHIP
- Tim Howard started, played 90 minutes and made three saves in Everton's 1-0 win vs. Portsmouth on Saturday.
- Jozy Altidore came off the bench and played 7 minutes in Hull City's 6-1 loss vs. Liverpool on Saturday.
- Clint Dempsey started and played 90 minutes in Fulham's 1-0 loss vs. Arsenal on Saturday.
- Eddie Johnson did not dress in Fulham's 1-0 loss vs. Arsenal on Saturday.
- Jonathan Spector and West Ham play Manchester City on Monday.
- Brad Friedel started, played 90 minutes and made two saves in Aston Villa's 2-1 loss vs. Blackburn Rovers on Saturday.
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Brad Guzan dressed but did not play in Aston Villa's 2-1 loss vs. Blackburn Rovers on Saturday.
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Marcus Hahnemann dressed but did not play in Wolverhampton Wanderers' 5-2 loss vs. Sunderland on Sunday.
COCA COLA CHAMPIONSHIP
- Jay DeMerit did not dress in Watford's 1-1 draw vs. Reading on Saturday. He is recovering from an injury.
- Frank Simek dressed but did not play in Sheffield Wednesday's 3-1 loss vs. Cardiff City on Saturday.
LEAGUE ONE
- Ian Joyce dressed but did not play in Southend United's 1-0 loss vs. Oldham Athletic on Saturday.
- Zak Whitbread did not dress in Millwall's 1-0 loss vs. Leyton Orient on Saturday.
- Mike Grella started and played 90 minutes in Leeds United's 1-0 win vs. Milton Keynes Dons on Saturday.
- Jemal Johnson started, played 90 minutes and received a yellow card in Milton Keynes Dons' 1-0 loss vs. Leeds United on Saturday.
- Jon-Paul Pittman started and played 76 minutes in Wycombe Wanderers' 1-1 draw vs. Swindon Town on Saturday.
Scotland
- Maurice Edu did not dress in Rangers' 0-0 draw vs. Aberdeen on Saturday. He is recovering from an injury.
- DaMarcus Beasley dressed but did not play in Rangers' 0-0 draw vs. Aberdeen on Saturday.
Italy
- Oguchi Onyewu dressed but did not play in AC Milan's 0-0 draw vs. Bari on Sunday.
Germany
BUNDESLIGA
- Michael Bradley came off the bench and played 45 minutes in Borussia Moenchengladbach's 3-0 loss vs. SC Freiburg on Sunday.
- Steve Cherundolo started and played 90 minutes in Hannover 96's 4-2 loss vs. VfL Wolfsburg on Saturday.
- Sal Zizzo dressed but did not play in Hannover 96's 4-2 loss vs. VfL Wolfsburg on Saturday.
- Jermaine Jones did not dress in Schalke 04's 1-0 win vs. Borussia Dortmund 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. SC Paderborn 07 on Sunday.
- Luis Robles dressed but did not play in Kaiserslautern's 2-0 win vs. Karlsruhe on Saturday.
- Matt Taylor came off the bench and played 17 minutes in FSV Frankfurt's 3-0 loss vs. Energie Cottbus on Friday.
- David Yeldell started, played 90 minutes and made four saves in TUS Koblenz's 1-1 draw vs. FC Augsburg on Sunday.
France
- Carlos Bocanegra started and played 90 minutes in Rennes' 1-0 loss vs. Bordeaux on Sunday.
- Charlie Davies started and played 90 minutes in Sochaux's 2-1 loss vs. AS Nancy Lorraine on Saturday.
Portugal
- Freddy Adu and Belenenses did not play this weekend.
- Kamani Hill and Vitoria de Guimaraes play Uniao de Leiria on Monday.
Denmark
- Benny Feilhaber and AGF Aarhus play Esbjerg on Monday.
- Jeremiah White and AGF Aarhus play Esbjerg on Monday.
- Dan Califf did not play in FC Midtjylland's 2-0 loss vs. Sonderjyske on Sunday.
- Michael Parkhurst did not play in FC Nordsjaelland's 2-0 loss vs. Odense BK on Saturday.
- Marcus Tracy did not play in Aalborg's 2-1 loss vs. FC Copenhagen on Sunday.
Norway
- Troy Perkins started and played 90 minutes in Valerenga's 2-0 win vs. Bodo/Glimt on Sunday.
- Mikkel Diskerud did not dress in Stabaek's 3-1 win vs. Stromsgodset on Sunday. He is with the U.S. U-20 national team.
- Clarence Goodson started and played 90 minutes in IK Start's 1-0 loss vs. Sandefjord on Sunday.
- Hunter Freeman started and played 90 minutes in IK Start's 1-0 loss vs, Sandefjord on Sunday.
Sweden
- Alejandro Bedoya and Orebro SK play GAIS on Monday.
Mexico
- Jose Francisco Torres and Pachuca play Santos on Sunday evening.
- Michael Orozco started, played 59 minutes and received a yellow card in San Luis' 3-0 loss vs. Chiapas on Saturday.
- Edgar Castillo started, played 90 minutes and received a yellow card in UANL's 2-1 loss vs. Atlas on Saturday.
- Marco Vidal dressed but did not play in Indios de Ciudad Juarez's 2-1 loss vs. U.A. de G. on Saturday.
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What do you think of these performances? Think Howard and Everton will finish in the top eight this season? Happy to see Bradley getting back into Moenchengladbach's rotation? Do you hope Onyewu gets loaned out in the winter?
Share your thoughts below.
Off topic, but sort of related in a weird way.. anyone play a LOT of FIFA 09 still? Do any of these guys wind up pretty good down the line, like 8 years into Manager mode? Any good new Americans pop up outside of Defenders? Jared Jeffrey seems to be the star at Brugge after about 7 years that is.
Another pathetic performance by our Yanks on the bench Abroad. I mean it is pretty ridiculous. Out of 40 players, not one goal, and about 10% of the players actually played. The US is still so far behind internationally it is depressing. Then add on the horrible U20 team that can’t pass the ball to a teammate, and you have a sorry state of affairs at the international level. I really hope our U17 team is the real deal. I have liked what I have seen of Renken, Lletget, Gyau and Jerome so we will see!
Bari should have put 2-3 on Milan yesterday. The defense isn’t as air tight as some of you would like to think. Stolari stole the show.
i think Gooch should play up top… he looked pretty good in that one exhibition game he played up top for Milan
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2v51EUiZRG8
4:45
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z7zqzs_Gy9s
0:02, 0:07, 0:19
yeah…I think you get the point….. That one against Mexico still gives me Goosebumps…..
It was probably unrealistic to think Gooch would step right in and play. He is solid and was available on a free this summer. It was a no brainer for a team like AC Milan to pick him up as cover for their starters.
Perhaps his performance at the Confed Cup pulled the wool over our eyes to what was really happening with that deal. Perhaps we thought he was set for the big time but the reality was he was a no expense backup option. Nothing more in Milan’s eyes.
It is unfortunate. I think there were probably other teams that seriously wanted him and wanted him to play.
i think some people forget how good onyewu is
he is better than any defender on AC Milan in the air and is 6.4 bigger than any other on top of that….he is faster than a kaladze and has much more ability because he is in his prime years while kaladze is slow in his 30’s
i want to clear something else up too….AC Milan is only safe at the GK position at the moment…..anybody that has actually watched the last couple of milan games would know that…..there defence hasnt been good, slow and doesnt react to any shot which is what onyewu is best at(throwing his body in front of things and being the first to a ball) and they end up being saved by storari in the net…..his attackers are even worse though, it just shows you how pathetic leonardo’s management is when he cant get pato, ronaldinho, flamini, pirlo, and huntelaar scoring…..
leonardo doesnt know how to manage his players right now
P.S. leonardo will be gone before onyewu by christmas if these results keep up….so i dont think you guys are going to see him go on loan…..leonardo said he was bringing onyewu in to freshen up the D with younger players(thiago silva too)….well, for whatever reason we havent seen the two on the field together since preseason(thiago is injured now, but i would personally like to see silva at right back, onyweu and nesta at centre back when silva is healthy if leonardo is smart enough or if he gets sacked, silva has good skill going forward and that could help with ball movement)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eQS_nS6fJYo&feature=related
3:55
“You know, I never doubted myself. I just kept my head down, worked hard in training, and did what the coaches asked of me. I’ve always believed you become a stronger player and person by fighting to stake your place, and I think I grew on both fronts.”
— Oguchi Onyewu …
… a few months down the road, after key injuries and other opportunities have allowed him to establish a presence in the Milan backline.
And this moment right now, this irritating stretch where we’re all fretting about what’s going on with Gooch, is the period he’ll be talking about. It’ll seem a bit hazy and distant to us by then. So just let time pass, keep your hopes up, and assume Gooch is putting in the work he needs to put in.
And when he gets there, you can join him in saying you never doubted him either!
“Saw the Fulham game and Dempsey’s ball striking is terrible when it comes to shooting from outside the box. He makes Rico Clark look like Frank Lampard.”
Andrew you don’t know what you’re talking about. Go watch the Fulham Amkar highlights…Everyone mishits the ball, even Lampard.
Love the fans on here sometimes…
Good point above about the small number of players who participated in wins. Also consider that none of them scored and few in the top leagues were playing for teams in the top half of their tables.
I think it’s something to consider when criticizing BB or the team’s WCQ results. It seems to me that the MNT is in a transitional phase where US players are actually getting looks from top teams and some PT with solid ones, but there’s a lot of pine-riding and zero stars. Check out the FIFA rankings and you’d have to say that the US is getting the most out of its talent, overrated (at 11), or both.
Anyone know of a reason other than form that would have Altidore seeing a total of 7 mins of action in Hull City’s last two games? What I’m reading in the British press suggests that the Hull manager is basically throwing competition open to anyone for pt, given the team’s poor performance. Is Jozy a talented kid who doesn’t work hard enough?
Finally, think on this, Dempsey and Bradley haters: they are the only US midfielders or forwards who’ve got more than a partial season of starting for a team in one of the big four European leagues.
Gooch is the man! in time he’ll come through. we Americans train that much harder than the rest, and eventually the coaches will notice.
must say im disappointed Jozy’s not getting more time. i actually watched that game. that dude with the long name that won’t even fit on his jersey needed to be benched at least at the 60th minute. Jozy needs 20 minutes to get in rhythm to score baby!
I may be wrong, but I think Zizzo is developing better on a bundesliga bench than he would in MLS. EJ should still take a crack at it and probably land in the Coca Cola.. which I would rather be than MLS.
No surprise that Gooch isnt playing yet. He was always walking into a back up position fighting to earn or by attritution move up. Either one will take a couple to few months. Here’s hoping the competition and increased playing time by spring were better for him than the junipelier (sp?)
Not much to be excited about in the U20 game. But I’ll look with fresh eyes at the next one. Who can tell me the “questions about rongren’s starting lineup and changes” that I heard about?
thanks for the update. hope Edu is playing soon.
i hate to bring up/start rumors but lets make a column for YA that should return to MLS:
Eddie Johnson
DaMarcus Beasley
Sal Zizzo
Gabe Ferrari
Marcus Hannemann
also Cooper must get a call for the next round of WCQ!
Posted by: RLW2020 | September 28, 2009 at 01:04 AM
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Could probably add Freddy to that list too.
thanks for the update. hope Edu is playing soon.
i hate to bring up/start rumors but lets make a column for YA that should return to MLS:
Eddie Johnson
DaMarcus Beasley
Sal Zizzo
Gabe Ferrari
Marcus Hannemann
also Cooper must get a call for the next round of WCQ!
“I feel bad for Onyewu”
He’s a big boy who signed the contract. If you want feel sorry ofr someone feel sorry for us SA10 rolls around and our key defensive cog got maybe 3 games the whole year.
Whether he plays or doesn’t his check still cashs.
The U.S. youth team to watch is the one that will be playing in Nigeria in a month, not the one in Egypt now. The U-20s might develop a few good national team players in several years. Shea, Perk and Diskerud all have a lot of potential. But, the U-17s could bring home the trophy from that tournament. It might be the best U-17 class since the 1999 team that had Donovan, Beasley, Onyewu, Beckerman, and Convey.
Can someone let Leonardo know that Gooch has a much more upside than Kaladze. Not only can Gooch defend better, but HE IS DOMINANT IN THE AIR. If Milan cant score even if their lives depended ion it, you would think that a quality coach would look for more variety in attack. THUS……….insert Gooch in the lineup who i guarantee you will score a few goals off set pieces by Pirlo. If Milan cant score in the run of play, you mind as well concetrate on set pieces
@Brian,
Good one… 🙂
If our U-20 team is horrible, does it really reflect our country’s soccer? I think every other level of US soccer is much better, and there are a few bright spots on that team, but you look at the talent coming up behind them and the talent ahead, maybe this is just an anomaly. We can’t expect to dominate everything like Brazil, but I think we’re definitely getting closer to being a world power…
GO USA!
I think Gooch’s signing was a secret ploy by Italy to weaken the U.S. national team.
Obviously they’re scared of us. Haha
how giusseppi rossi and subotic et al playing??
would be great to see some updates on those guys
Posted by: Joe B | September 27, 2009 at 08:45 PM
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I believe you’re looking for Italians Abroad and Serbians Abroad.
44 Americans on this list, 3 of them played in wins. This season is not currently going the way I hoped it would for our boys abroad.
Bet Leonardo will be gone by Christmas. Any takers?
As for Rossi, well, Villareal is at the bottom of the table in La Liga.
Gotta love all the people shocked that Gooch isn’t playing for Milan. Newsflash: he went there for the $$$. Not for the PT.
also any update on Edu, Jones and Demerit’s injuries? when should we expect them back?
Posted by: RLW2020 | September 27, 2009 at 07:28 PM
I asked a friend in Scotland who follows the Rangers and he told me to expect to see Edu fully fit around mid-October.
good to see bradley back playing in the league. After playing 90 mid week, finishing off 45 is fine by me. Now we need to start seeing some more goals
Saw the Fulham game and Dempsey’s ball striking is terrible when it comes to shooting from outside the box. He makes Rico Clark look like Frank Lampard.
i think american fans are setting themselves up for disappointment again if they think gooch is automatically ahead of bonera or favalli either…i mean based on the fact that gooch being the 3rd CB when thiago was healthy did not translate into him seeing the field when thiago went down…and favalli and bonera have at least seen the field this season albeit briefly
I will say Dempsey had some fine touches against Arsenal and came close to scoring twice on clean up duty around the box.
What about Michael Palacio in Serbia?
Time for a new introduction paragraph for this article.
Dolo had a very inspiring game for Hannover 96. He was all over the place, wore the captain armband, got beat a couple times, but what do you expect with Dzeko (sickening goal in this game) and Grafite (probably the best Brazilian soccer name). If he played like that for the MNT he would be hands down our no. 1 right back.
Gooch needs to get a loan out of Milan. He can’t stand to be on the bench all year. We can forget about making it out of a WC group.
night…
It’s time for Zizzo to leave Germany, and maybe come back to the US. The Red Bulls could use him on the flank, playing next to Juan Roman Riquelme.
I didn’t realize until today that he’s 22, that’s not old, but it’s way too old to be not playing at all. He’s just collecting paychecks and practicing over there. Let’s put his talent to use, maybe he can blossom ala Robbie Rogers
‘how giusseppi rossi and subotic et al playing??
would be great to see some updates on those guys’
Posted by: Joe B
Don’t know about Nevin, but Rossi’s Villarreal is winless in five tries, as is Xerez who haven’t scored yet.
milan is not afraid to loan out defenders…they loaned out Oddo last year to Bayern. January will be here before we know it
Sucks that Gooch can’t get on the pitch, but it’s a fair point that their current problem is offense, not defense. He’ll get a chance eventually if Milan’s backline is as fragile this year as they’ve been in the past.
Meanwhile, the rest of the team looks shockingly ordinary. Ronaldinho has a big ol’ fork sticking out of his back (much as I’d like him to succeed), Seedorf and Gattuso are simply slowing down as the years pass, Huntelaar was invisible today, and Pato just can’t do it alone up front. Oh, and Abate is lousy. Pirlo really needs someone to serve the ball to in order to be as effective as he can be. I knew losing Kaka would hurt, but not THAT much. I peg Milan as a mid-table team this year…..seriously. They should have lost that game today. Not that Bari is awful – they look like they have some potential. Will be interesting to see if they can make a go of it in Serie A.
If Milan could earn some corners Gooch could be their top scorer.
As long as Milan continue to fire blanks I don’t see an opening for the Gooch very soon.
how giusseppi rossi and subotic et al playing??
would be great to see some updates on those guys
For the record, Leeds beat Milton Keynes 1-0.
Wow! Plenty of quality performances
also any update on Edu, Jones and Demerit’s injuries? when should we expect them back?
Posted by: RLW2020 | September 27, 2009 at 07:28 PM
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Did you catches Ives’ post on DeMerit’s eye injury?
http://www.soccerbyives.net/soccer_by_ives/2009/09/demerit-out-indefinitely-with-eye-problem.html
also any update on Edu, Jones and Demerit’s injuries? when should we expect them back?
nah.. he should be 3rd CB… not 4th… kaladze is ridiculously bad
at some point Gooch will see time. AC back line is thin and right now he is prime to get some time. i am suprised that they don’t bring him in vs. Bari… but it should be soon.
Yeah, because you know, he’s gooch. So he should just start automatically. Right?
Open your eyes people!!! Milan is having trouble scoring, not defending. Yes I’m dissapointed Onyewu isn’t playing, but you can’t sit there and tell me that, after what you saw in the pre- season, Oguchi Onyewu would be a better choice right now than Kaladze. You just have to trust that he’s working hard in training and getting better, and when his time comes we’ll see what how he does.
You guys are two-faced.
First, you cite Onyewu’s signing at Milan as the true sign of American football renaissance. Now you are hoping for a loan deal so that he might actually get some playing time.
Which is it?
Onyewu’s transfer looked like Gold at the onset. Don’t be surprised if he’s not even gotten an appearance by winter break.
Torres just finished 90 minutes with Pachuca in a 4-0 loss to Santos. He looked pretty tidy and there were few mistakes that I can point out. Nothing special though. None of the goals were his fault.
Kakha Kaladze started ahead of Onyewu.
This whole situation makes me wanna cry. I really hope he gets loaned out this winter if he doesn’t start getting playing time.
I feel bad for Onyewu.