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Americans Abroad: Weekend Rewind

Steve Cherundolo 4 (Getty Images)

By FRANCO PANIZO

Avoid relegation.

That is the main priority for several Americans Abroad as their respective season finales draw near, and for a trio of players, that goal is closer to becoming a reality after posting some much-needed wins this weekend.

Perhaps the biggest shocker was Steve Cherundolo and Hannover 96's victory over Schalke 04. A week after holding Hamburg to a scoreless draw, Hannover defeated second-place Schalke, 4-2, to bring itself within one point of safety. The result is likely to give Cherundolo – who started, played 90 minutes and received a yellow card – and Hannover a big boost in confidence as they head into their final four games of the season.

Jonathan Spector and West Ham United posted a second successive result, defeating Sunderland, 1-0, a week after tying Everton. The result lifted the Hammers four points clear of the relegation zone, and was the club's eighth shutout of the season. Spector started, played 90 minutes and received a yellow card at left back in the match.

Jay DeMerit and Watford improved their position with a shutout victory against Plymouth Argyle. The struggling Championship side won 1-0, and is now three points above the drop zone with a month left of action.

Here is how the Americans Abroad did this weekend:

England

PREMIERSHIP

  • Tim Howard and Everton did not play this weekend.

  • Jozy Altidore started, played 90 minutes, received a yellow card and got an ASSIST in Hull City 's 4-1 loss vs. Burnley on Saturday.


  • Clint Dempsey did not dress in Fulham's 0-0 draw vs. Liverpool on Saturday. He is recovering from a thigh injury.

  • Jonathan Spector started, played 90 minutes and received a yellow card in West Ham's 1-0 win vs. Sunderland on Saturday.

  • Brad Friedel started and played 90 minutes in Aston Villa's 3-0 loss vs. Chelsea in the semifinals of the FA Cup on Saturday.

  • Brad Guzan dressed but did not play in Aston Villa's 3-0 loss vs. Chelsea in the semifinals of the FA Cup on Saturday.

  • Marcus Hahnemann started, played 90 minutes and made one save in Wolverhampton Wanderers' 0-0 draw vs. Stoke City on Saturday.

  • Stuart Holden and Bolton Wanderers did not play this weekend.

COCA COLA CHAMPIONSHIP

  • Jay DeMerit started and played 90 minutes in Watford's 1-0 win vs. Plymouth Argyle on Saturday.

  • Frank Simek dressed but did not play in Sheffield Wednesday's 1-0 loss vs. Middlesbrough on Saturday.
  • Kenny Cooper came off the bench and played 1 minute in Plymouth Argyle's 1-0 loss vs. Watford on Saturday.

LEAGUE ONE

  • Eric Lichaj started and played 90 minutes in Leyton Orient's 0-0 draw vs. Exeter City on Saturday.
  • Jemal Johnson did not dress in Stockport County's 3-1 loss vs. Yeovil Town on Saturday.
  • Jon-Paul Pittman started, played 80 minutes and scored a GOAL in Wycombe Wanderers' 2-0 win vs. Hartlepool United on Saturday.

  • Mike Grella dressed but did not play in Leeds United's 2-0 win vs. Southend United on Saturday.

  • Zak Whitbread did not dress in Norwich City's 1-1 draw vs. Milton Keynes Dons on Saturday.

Scotland

  • Maurice Edu and Rangers did not play this weekend.
  • DaMarcus Beasley and Rangers did not play this weekend. 
  • Dominic Cervi dressed but did not play in Celtic's 2-0 loss vs. Ross County in the semifinals of the Scottish Cup on Saturday.

Italy

  • Oguchi Onyewu did not dress in AC Milan's 2-2 draw vs. Catania on Sunday.

Germany

BUNDESLIGA

  • Michael Bradley started and played 90 minutes in Borussia Moenchengladbach's 2-0 win vs. Eintracht Frankfurt on Friday.

  • Steve Cherundolo started, played 90 minutes and received a yellow card in Hannover 96's 4-2 win vs. Schalke 04 on Saturday.

  • Sal Zizzo did not dress in Hannover 96's 4-2 win vs. Schalke 04 on Saturday. He is recovering from a knee injury.
  • Jermaine Jones did not dress in Schalke 04's 4-2 loss vs. Schalke 04 on Saturday. He is recovering from a leg injury.
  • Ricardo Clark dressed but did not play in Eintracht Frankfurt's 2-0 loss vs. Borussia Moenchengladbach on Friday.
  • Daniel Williams dressed but did not play in SC Freiburg's 4-0 loss vs. Werder Bremen on Saturday.

  • Jared Jeffrey did not dress in Mainz 05's 1-0 win vs. Borussia Dortmund on Saturday.

BUNDESLIGA 2 

  • Luis Robles dressed but did not play in Kaiserslautern's 1-1 draw vs. FC Union Berlin on Saturday.
  • Matt Taylor did not dress in FSV Frankfurt's 1-0 win vs. RW Oberhausen on Sunday.
  • David Yeldell started, played 55 minutes and made one save in TUS Koblenz's 1-1 draw vs. Alemania Aachen on Friday.

France

  • Charlie Davies did not dress in Sochaux's 2-0 loss vs. St. Etienne on Saturday.

Portugal

  • Gale Agbossoumonde did not dress in Sporting Braga's 2-1 win vs. Uniao de Leiria on Saturday.

Greece

  • Freddy Adu started, played 90 minutes and received a yellow card in Aris Salonika's 2-1 loss vs. Asteras Tripoli on Sunday.

  • Eddie Johnson came off the bench and played 16 minutes in Aris Salonika's 2-1 loss vs. Asteras Tripoli on Sunday.

Denmark

  • Benny Feilhaber came off the bench and played 33 minutes in AGF Aarhus' 2-0 loss vs. Aalborg BK on Saturday.
  • Michael Parkhurst and FC Nordsjaelland play Koge on Monday.
  • Marcus Tracy did not dress in Aalborg BK's 2-0 win vs. AGF Aarhus on Saturday. He is recovering from a knee injury.
  • Chris Rolfe started, played 77 minutes and had an ASSIST in Aalborg BK's 2-0 win vs. AGF Aarhus on Saturday.

Sweden

  • Alejandro Bedoya and Orebro BK play GAIS on Monday.

Norway

  • Clarence Goodson started and played 90 minutes in IK Start's 4-3 win vs. Brann on Sunday.
  • Hunter Freeman started and played 90 minutes in IK Start's 4-3 win vs. Brann on Sunday.
  • Mikkel Diskerud started, played 87 minutes and received a yellow card in Stabaek's 0-0 draw vs. Lillestrom on Saturday.

Mexico

  • Jose Francisco Torres started and played 90 minutes in Pachuca's 2-0 loss vs. Atlas on Saturday.

  • Edgar Castillo did not dress in Tigres UANL's 0-0 draw  vs. Estudiantes Tecos U.A. de G. on Friday. He is recovering from a knee injury.
  • Marco Vidal started and played 90 minutes in Indios de Ciudad Juarez's 2-1 win vs. Puebla on Sunday.
  • Herculez Gomez started and played 90 minutes in Puebla's 2-1 loss vs. Indios de Ciudad Juarez on Sunday.

Argentina

  • Michael Hoyos and Estudiantes La Plata play Racing Club on Monday.

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What do you think of these performances? How surprised are you by Cherundolo and Hannover's last two results? How do you see Spector and West Ham's season ending? Think DeMerit and Watford will avoid relegation?

Share your thoughts below

Comments

  1. My arguement has been consistent. I still think Adu is an enormous waste of everyone’s time. If you doubt me, read my second reply to you and you’ll find the following:

    “Can Freddy still make it as a pro? Sure, but not at the prices he has been charging up until now and maybe not in Europe. ”

    What that means is sure, he can play in Sweden or Norway or wherever someone is willing to take him but they won’t pay him what Benfica is currently paying. And I’ll give Adu this much, he is smart to try and string it out in Europe because that contract is most likely the last big money contract he will ever get.

    If he had taken a pay cut to come right back to the MLS after Monaco and tried to rebuild his reputation like Donovan did, I think he is still in the MLS today, making a lot less money than he is commanding right now. The kid is very skilled but he can’t( or won’t) play.

    One gets the impression being a solid professional in Sweden or the MLS is beneath him. He thinks he’s a star already. Why should he be forced to try to beat players like Bornstein?

    He’s in it for the money. Next stop is Saudi Arabia to join Jeremiah White or Vietnam to join Lee Nguyen.

    Reply
  2. “i say take herculez to SA because he’s shown he can finish with the best of them…”

    When did he do that? Did he suddenly transfer to the EPL or La Liga? Did Barca buy him and not tell anyone? Is he now Messi’s partner?

    Reply
  3. The guy misses a sitter and he goes from being the greatest thing since sliced bread and the US’ World cup saviour to being a piece of dog poop.

    I so love the knowledgable US fans.

    Reply
  4. Kenny Cooper does not suck. He has a very good goals per game career average. That’s why Munich bought him in the first place. It just so happens he is still recovering from a knee injury. Those injuries are tricky and chances are he over did it in an attempt to get on BB’s World Cup radar. It’s a little premature to say his career is over.

    Reply
  5. There was no suggestion made of the kind, to imply so is self serving and misleading. ‘MLS finishing’ was picked so interested parties would know what to expect, not as a league comparison. Anyone interested in dramatically poor finishing should watch the game on ‘360 replay’. Also see if Bradley is being deliberately ignored when open on attack.

    Reply
  6. Well your argument has gone from the idea that adu’s time in europe is probably done, to Adu’s chance at being a star player in europe are done. With the latter i would say that i have to agree with you, it seems adu will never be the superstar so many expected him to be, and i highly doubt he will ever end up playing a major role on a major european club. Now on the other hand my beef with your general argument was that you were saying that Adu’s days in europe are numbered. Which i disagree with in a big way. There’s no way an mls club is going to dish out dp money for adu when they could get someone that is much less of a risk for the same price or even less. So it seems his only option now and in the future is to stay in europe, where i think without a doubt he could be a success in places such as norway sweden, greece, or even the netherlands and scotland. I feel Adu’s career will always be a disappointment compared to what we all once believed it could be, however that is not to say he won’t enjoy a decent amount of success on a smaller stage.

    Reply
  7. “Now as for the “talented player that could be brought around” that just simply isn’t true. Adu gets playing time for Aris, he started their last game, imo Adu’s stint at aris has been for the most part a success, because for the first time in europe he’s getting games and not purely riding the bench. ”

    Adu has appeared in 4 games.

    I’m not sure how many games Aris had left by the time Adu signed in January but I know he missed a number of them.

    This is significant because you don’t bring in loaners to sit on the bench. While this is an improvement over his dismal Monaco stint, it’s hard to call it a success. Loan players are used as much and as soon as possible if they are any good (see Landon Donovan). I doubt Cuper is happy about having to educate Adu on how to be a pro. You want to get your money’s worth.

    Cuper is the guy that Ives should want to have a drink with and discuss this topic.

    The difference between you and me is that you and Adu both think he has more time and opportunities.

    Adu has time to remain a serviceable pro but if he wants to be a big time player I think his time is fast running out. He’d better put it into overdrive yesterday if he he wants to still have a shot at a top level career.

    Reply
  8. I agree with your analysis of adu, at the time, he hasn’t shown that his work ethic is up to par, and really hasn’t seemed to progress much if at all since i watched him at the u-20 world cup. That being said Aris still made a significant investment on him because you still have to pay to get a player on loan as well as pay their salary, which from what i hear, is pretty large for adu. Now as for the “talented player that could be brought around” that just simply isn’t true. Adu gets playing time for Aris, he started their last game, imo Adu’s stint at aris has been for the most part a success, because for the first time in europe he’s getting games and not purely riding the bench. And as far as “name calling” i said your argument was ignorant, i don’t understand how that comes off as name calling after my “illogical” arguments failed.

    Reply
  9. Ah yes, when logical arguments fail resort to name calling. Typical.

    Don’t like the Messi/CR examples? Okay. Owen Hargreaves was a regular for Bayern Munich at 19. Now go look up a bunch of good european midfielders and you will find they mostly were clearly on their way by the time they were 20. Freddy has made 27 appearances ( not full games ) since 2007 and his future livelihood ( at least in Europe)is very much in question. This is not what I would call clearly on your way.

    “And why is a team like Aris willing to waste time and money on a player like Adu? ”

    I don’t know but Monaco did it and look what it got them. Maybe someone at Aris owes someone at Benfica a favor.

    “Aris made a significant investment with Adu and i doubt they did that without seeing enough talent in him to warrant not only a contract but also a good amount of playing time. ”

    Not true. Benfica still owns Adu’s contract. Aris took him on and EJ loan like many clubs who are trying to save money. If they were really so hot for him they would have bought him outright. They probably saw what everyone sees, a talented player who maybe could be brought around but not so talented that he is worth an outright purchase ( EJ and Adu are Aris’ only loanees).

    Adu isn’t worth arguing about.

    What everyone forgets is that his strong suit was that at 14 his skill level was way above average. Well his contemporaries grew up but Freddy did not. Every one got smarter, bigger, stronger and faster, more skilled. Freddy stayed the same and that skill is now only just slightly above average and everything else about him is below average.

    If he’s lucky, Cuper might be able to make a serviceable pro out of him. After all Benfica are still on the hook for big money with Freddy so they will try to get what they can out of him. But once that contract runs out, I think you can kiss him goodbye.

    As for the US, there are better alternatives on the horizon, players who might actually try to be professional and know how to work.

    Reply
  10. I can’t believe how ignorant your post is. First off Freddy Adu is NOT messi or ronaldo and in no way should he be judged on their level. Those are two of the best players of our generation and are truly freaks of nature. And why is a team like Aris willing to waste time and money on a player like Adu? Because they have professional scouts who suggest they do it, its not like these teams are making blind decisions to bring a player like Adu in based only on his name, i’m sure they watched plenty of tape on him and sent out plenty of scouts to watch him train. You mention that this is a business, and you’re right it is a business, Aris made a significant investment with Adu and i doubt they did that without seeing enough talent in him to warrant not only a contract but also a good amount of playing time.

    Reply
  11. “And although his stint in Europe has truly been a nightmare as far as US fans are concerned you cannot seriously be claiming that because he has struggled as a 17-20 year old in europe that his european career is shot.”

    That is exactly what I am suggesting.

    Maybe we as Americans would give him more time but why should clubs like Benfica and Aris who can easily replace him with younger, better, smarter, faster, stronger and CHEAPER talent bother?

    This is a business not a charity. Can Freddy still make it as a pro? Sure, but not at the prices he has been charging up until now and maybe not in Europe. European clubs don’t exist to develop players for the USMNT.

    Messi is 22, just two years older than Freddy and he has been a first team regular and standout since he was 18. Look at CRonaldo, who was also a regular at about 18 and you’ll find some people are thinking he his best days are already behind him. Burned out at 25.

    I’m not suggesting Adu is at their level but most European players are judged the same in terms of their age. Freddy has had a couple of years now to prove his worth and has come up empty. Adu has already had more time than most to prove his worth. If I’m Benfica I try to get what I can for him or cut him loose.

    Reply
  12. When did I say he should be on the USMNT team? all i said was he was on BB’s radar when he first got the job, but his attitude and lack of consistant play have hurt him. he has immense talent but has never put it all together. never did i “champion” him for the USMNT.

    Reply
  13. Adu’s attitude is very clearly displayed on the field. His whining and complaining to referees, his lack of wanting to defend, and at times, his selfishness. Benny Feilhaber is a player who is pretty similarly creative to Freddy, but, as anyone can see, he has an extremely high work rate and bite to his game that is lacking in Adu’s and look at him. Adu’s poor work rate is spawned from a poor attitude. It wouldn’t be as much of a problem if he was scoring/assisting goals like Dempsey, a similarly lazy player, does. Sadly, he’s not. I am confident that if he’s pushed in Greece that he will at some point though, and of all the World Cup fringe players, I’d say we stand to gain the most from him being in form

    Reply

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