Photo by Howard C. Smith/ISIphotos.com
United States national team centerback Clarence Goodson made his return to Brondby's starting lineup Thursday and scored in the club's 3-0 win over Esbjerg.
Goodson, who made an appearance as a substitute last week, started for the first time since breaking his toe and scored on a header off a corner kick just before halftime to put Brondby out front.
With seven games remaining in the Danish Superliga season, Brondby sits in third place and would qualify for the UEFA Europa League if it finishes third or fourth. The club is two points behind Odense BK for second place and the league's UEFA Champions League qualifying spot that comes along with it.
What do you think of Goodson's progress? Where do you think he fits in the national team picture? Do you think he should be starting during the Gold Cup?
Share your thoughts below.
Is Lichaj (sp) hurt? I like his game, even with the mistakes.
Dempsey is mighty in the air…for club. Hasn’t had the same impact with the USMNT.
he is also great finisher with his feet and a good distributor. Lots of people didn’t think too much of him because they haven’t heard from him.
Goodson might have the best head in the usmnt pool. Kid gets up in the air something fierce. Gooch might have been better 2years ago. I can’t think of anyone else that really stands out in the air. Maybe boca… anyone else? Brek shea is big but not that great in the air from what i’vevseen.
I think Feilhaber goes over Mixx.
And right now I’d definitely put Altidore, Agudelo, and Bunbury and maybe even Buddle and Gomez ahead of Davies right now. I like the guy but I haven’t seen enough yet.
Some other guys you may have forgot: Eric Lichaj and Jonathan Spector. They are 3rd and 4th, respectively, on the RB depth chart (behind Dolo and Chandler). I won’t be surprised if Spector goes because he is very versatile. He can fill in at RB, CB, CM, RM and even LB if needed. I can see Lichaj going if Cherundolo, Chandler, Spector or even Lichaj himself show an ability to play LB because Bob can leave off Bornstein.
Good for Goodson. I haven’t been impressed yet – but I haven’t seen much of him honestly. All evidence points to him as a +.
My GC 23:
GK:Howard, Guzan, Yeldell
Def:Dolo, Chandler, Gooch, Goodson, Demerit, Boca, Bornstein, Ream
Mid:Dempsey, Donovan, Jones, Bradley, Edu, Mixx, Bedoya
Fwd:Altidore, Agudelo, Davies, Bunbury/Buddle/Gomez (whomever is on top form)
…did I miss anyone?
Avi, this is not a particular criticism of you, but don’t you think we can all do without the “what do you think about…,” “do you think” stuff? We all pretty much know about commenting on blogs and don’t really need conversation starters. Just an idea.
UEFA league rankings 2011
10 Turkey
11 Greece
12 Denmark
13 Belgium
14 Romania
15 Scotland
16 Switzerland
17 Israel
18 Czech Republic
19 Austria
20 Cyprus
21 Bulgaria
22 Croatia
23 Belarus
24 Poland
25 Slovakia
26 Norway
27 Serbia
28 Sweden
29 Bosnia and Herzegovina
30 Finland
Seltzer made a great point about Gooch v. Argentina: it was the freakin’ Argies! And they’re REALLY GOOD. Gooch did just fine if you remember the competition. The rapid clearances were likely just the ticket for a bunch of dudes facing a massive onslaught.
I think you are right. A healthy Goodson is probably the top CB in the US pool. I can’t see him not starting in the GC if healthy. Gooch has looked very shaky. He is also not get getting as many club minutes as I would have thought. I don’t think he has been the same since the knee injury. Ream has potential, but if I were Bradley, I would side with experience in the GC. I see Goodson and DeMerit logging the most minutes at CB (assuming Gooch’s form does not improve). An interesting idea would be to try Ricardo Clark at CB and see how that goes. I recall seeing him at CB for his club before his injury and there was definitely potential there. Our CB situation definitely could use the help. Heck, might not hurt to stick him at LB!
It’s more about the level of the individual team than league. Copenhagen is a class of their own. Behind them Rosenborg even if they started this season poorly. Those two have the biggest resources. And behind them you have teams from all 3 leagues. I think Sweden in general pays less and have younger players and no dominant team.
I’ve always been impressed with Goodson. Plays composed and is great in the air on both ends. GC lock.
Came off the bench actually.
Daniel Williams also started today in SC Freiburg’s loss to Cherundolo’s Hannover
I don’t think BB will tear any MLS players away from their clubs for a month that are not likely to be in the starting XI or a significant substitute.
We have European-based players that will be just out of season and in form.
MLS callups:
For sure: Donovan, Agudelo, Ream
Maybe: Davies, Bunbury, Feilhaber
I think 1 of Davies or Bunbury will go, with Altidore and Buddle rounding out the striking corps. Feilhaber is on the bubble depending on his form with his new club. Diskeruud would be his likely replacement.
Wore the captains armband today which is pretty impressive.
We don’t have any strong LB candidates. Bornstein is not really a defender, Boca is too slow and must rely on wits, savy, cover by the CBs and a bit of luck. Still Boca will probably be out left. Ream (barring that awful giveaway vs Philly) and probably Demerit have looked the best in the middle. Dolo/ Chandlerj at RB. That leaves Onweyu, Goodson as subs, with Lichaj making it if one of the RBs are injured and Bornstein probably makes the squad just incase Boca can’t play.
I don’t want to think about what we do if Boca and Bornstein both get injured. None of the other LBs have risen even to JB’s level. (sad, but true, we would have to trust a young guy or go with someone who was found wanting in the past).
It is so hard for a young defender to get noticed simply because a good result is that nothing the other team does goes through him. He has to have multi games with no errors and must do that against good attackers. The other things the backs do are either more subtle like distributing the ball well (no headlines for that!), scoring or setting up a goal just do not happen routinely enough to make a big splash.
Bedoya also got an assist today. Highlights are at Yanks Abroad Videos.
Expect more playing time for Goodson. He subbed in at the 29th minute last Sunday after Brondby had gone down 2-0, replacing the right side center back. Looked very solid, and spent much of the last 15 minutes up top looking for an equalizer. Not surprised at today’s start.
Agreed as well. He’s solid.
I am not predictiong him to be a starter but I think he will be on the roster. but that could change depending on how many left back options we bring.
I see him as a lock for the GC squad…and in my book, if he stays healthy he is one of our starting CBs.
I believe the Danish league is ranked around 12th in UEFA while Norway and Sweden are hovering around 30. No idea about Finland. Would imagine it is pretty far down the list.
goodson is such quality
I think that Chad Marshall’s level of play this season should at least put him in the conversation.
he is the best cb we have right now.
As for the UEFA coeficients: Denmark is the best of the 4, followed by Norway, then Sweden, and lastly the Finnish league.
Now it’s time to start predicting the full 23 😉
Ives or any other expert. How do the three Scandinavian leagues rate against each other in terms of perceived level of play? Are they perceived to be of similar quality? Is there one that pays much better than the others? Would be curious what payrolls for teams look like in each league.
Those are good bets. I’d say the pool looks like this, with Spector getting left out.
CB: Gooch, DeMerit, Goodson, Ream
CB/LB: Bocanegra
CB/RB: Spector
RB: Dolo, Chandler
LB: Bornstein
I believe he’s a fairly sure-bet to make the GC squad if he keeps playing through the spring.
Potential CBs: Gooch, Ream, DeMerit, Goodson, (Boca)…anybody else?
Agreed. Depending on Gooch’s form and DeMerit, he could be starting. But needs to get more playing time first.
Goodson’s always looked good in the middle for us when he’s in form. I think he’s definitely on the Gold Cup squad, and likely starts some games.