Remember when Brad Friedel made those comments about Landon Donovan? Well, today is the day Donovan can make his former teammate eat those words.
Donovan and Friedel are set to square off on Wednesday afternoon when Everton visits Tottenham in a game American fans have been salivating over ever since Donovan agreed to a loan deal with Everton. The match, which will also see Tim Howard in action, will air live at 2:30pm on Fox Soccer.
Still in search for his first goal since rejoining the Toffees, Donovan could open his account against Friedel, who made some less-than-generous comments about Donovan to a radio show in December.
Donovan has kept mum on the subject, but a strong performance against Friedel and the Spurs might make more of a statement than any comment could.
How do you see Donovan's match-up against Friedel turning out? Have your DVR set to record? Think Donovan will score?
Share your thoughts below.
IVES,
The Gamecast on soccernet.com says the match has been postponed to play at a later date. Any news on that?
I don’t disagree with your point. My point, however, is different. Your point is about the players and mine is about the fans. Yes, the players should look up to Dempsey and Howard.
But for the success of soccer in the USA we need some of that talent to stay in the MLS and develop the fan base. The league is best served to have an American star get fans to the stadium along with the European stars like Beckham and Henry.
My best scenario would be to have half the American stars stay in the MLS and grow the league and have the other half excel in Europe and then come back and have a huge impact on MLS ala Kasey Keller
agreed
hate when that happens. 😉
Landon Donovan should call Friedel a “fake American!”
“I saw him at the stadium and he could barely speak English with an American accent.”
Friedel was wrong for calling out Donovan. It’s not that Donovan didn’t want to play in Europe, it’s that he tried 3 times and failed miserably. It’s probably still a sore spot for him and others.
It does not do any good to compare a goalkeeper to a midfielder. A more appropriate comparision would be Dempsey vs Donovan. Donovan has done a lot for MLS, but the question is whether he would have become a superior player if he went to Europe to face stronger competition like Dempsey did. And, for whatever it is worth, younger players on the USMNT view Dempsey as their role model and are trying to emulate him. Shea, for example recently said, “Look at Clint Dempsey – he just scored a hat trick [last weekend]. I don’t think he lets the hype get to him. I think he’s a big role model to everyone on the national team and the US. He just stays humble and plays for his family and the country. Learning from him is a big help.”
I was hoping someone would mention the context of the comment. It had nothing to do with each player’s ability but referred to the fact that Landon Donovan is the face of men’s soccer and Deuce is relatively unknown. Brad’s comment was that Landon took the easy route as far as endorsements and domestic fame is concerned.
I have no problem with Friedel’s comments. Landon did take the easy way out by returning to play in LA rather than stick it out in Europe. I think Donovan would be the first to tell you he got homesick and wasn’t enjoying himself. No shame in admitting that. The great players show their love for the game in the way they play, and Landon had and showed none at Leverkusen.
As long as Bale or Ade score all the goals. I need some help as far as my fantasy team goes.
Thank you Marco! Friedel back tracked and cleared things up in a follow up interview with Jamie Trecker. Making a mountain out of a mole hill. I’m still going to watch though and hope Landon scores hehe.
I think that Friedel has earned the right to speak his mind. And he did not say that Donovan is a bad player, he just made a fair point that Donovan did not pursue hard the challenge of playing in Europe preferring to play in the MLS against lesser competition. As for Donovan’s response, well, he is with an EPL team now, albeit on loan.
Nope. Hat trick for Tim Howard tonight. I feel it.
whoops… late to the party 🙂
Friedel’s comments were overhyped and taken way out of context by the media. This is a fake controversy.
Joel, Yevgeniy was replying to the initial statement from TGA which I agree was a bit absurd.
Reid’s example was a thousand times better and more appropriate to the situation.
Yevgeniy also made a valid point that his baseball example would be more similar to playing for the reserve team of a club and not wanting to actually play for the club.
There’s a terrific profile of Friedel on the Guardian website this morning:
http://www.guardian.co.uk/football/blog/2012/jan/11/tottenham-brad-friedel-shrewdest-signing
I think you missed Yevgeniy’s point. You two are in agreement, just a misunderstanding. His reply was to the original poster (MLB & Triple A in the same country)
go away.
Yea, I agreee with many of you guys… I have been following the US casually forever, but only the past 6 or 7 years have I been a die-hard. My knowledge of him sort of begins right there, and from what I’ve seen and heard of him, he comes off a little arrogant and too-cool-for-school.
Maybe if I knew him better when he was the USMNT’s GK I would appreciate him more.
Hope Landon plays well. I can’t really figure out what’s wrong with Everton this season. They have a bunch of individual talents, but can’t seem to put it all together this year. In addition to them never being able to spend money in the transfer market, Moyesey is also starting to grow a little stale on me, and doesn’t seem to be making the most of his squad.
thanks.
What are you talking about same country? The MLB is not in Japan. Oh I’m not sure had the opportunity to come to America, if someone could educate me on this, that would be great. That was a good example by Reid.
It appears that they gave MB90 the day off for this Coppa tie.
Absolutely silly comparison. You are talking about 2 leagues in the same country for baseball. It’s like playing on a reserve team and not wanting to play on the first team. But that’s not the case for Donovan. He chose to stay home as opposed to living 5,000 miles away and he chose to be a star and face of the league that he wants to see grow. Doesn’t seem like you care, but many soccer fans do
Bradley not the roster today
How do you guys feel about how soccer is presented and analyzed on TV? I’ve spent a lot of time thinking about this, and I have created a video that I believe you will find very valuable. You won’t look at a soccer game on TV the same way again, whether or are a soccer fan, or a hater!
http://youtu.be/TX5hkcMcK2o
My theory is based on a study of how we watch soccer, and the differences in the viewing experience provided by soccer vs. the “big 3” sports.
I feel that the analysis in this video holds the key for what is needed in order for soccer in America to take the next step.
Please take a few minutes to check it out, I assure you it will be well worth it.
Praying that the Young Don scores, American press will have a field day.
I hope Donovan rockets one off Friedel’s face. Maybe that will correct his faux-accent.
“… against Friedel, who made some less-than-generous comments about Donovan to a radio show in December…”
Friedel later admitted he chose his words poorly, as he meant to say that Landon’s staying in the USA made it easier for him to garner more attention from media and fans than Clint in England.
Agree with you on LD staying in MLS, he is a MUST have for the league. Critics say that he would do much more for American soccer if he went over but i see it as lost revenue/lower attendance/and losing the face of the league. When MLS ever reaches the heights that we all hope for, we’ll remember who was responsible for helping the league thrive….loans are ok with me just as long as he comes back …win win
There is that small matter of the $10MM. 🙂
Wow, stout example, Reid. Well said.
yes, being honest with yourself and others about the world we live in and the decisions we make is something I consider “lame” too.
hahaha. Brilliant. I expect Howard to keep his scoring streak alive…he’s really in form right now.
For the sake of fairness, Donovan isn’t the only American in search of their first EPL goal this season. I’m looking at you, Friedel.
If we are gonna do a baseball comparison lets go with Sadaharu Oh. Is he any less great because he chose to stay in Japan and play.
I’m sure there are some Japanese who would have liked to see what he could do against MLB competition, but they are proud that he was one of the greatest ever in Japan
Decent comparison. It would be wierd to pay a AAA player 10 mil a year though
Can also watch M Bradley in SerieA Udinese v Chievo Verona at 11:30am est
Landon Donovan should be given huge props for staying in MLS. Having an american star stay in the league was and is huge for the domestic profile of the league. Love him or hate him you have to give him credit for supporting MLS by staying in the league. If you care about MLS you care that Donovan is in the league.
Which has helped grow the domestic fan base more?Donovan staying in MLS or Friedel being one of the best GK in the primier league.
The causual fan knows who Landon Donovan is. The causual fan (USA) has no idea who Friedel is.
According to the online schedule it will be replayed at 11PM EST
Several replays of the match on FSC tonite and over the next few days….i hope friedel and spurs smoke everton…LD is a wussy man…
can u imagine a top prospect in baseball continuing to decide to play in AAA ball instead of the big leagues…
and MLS may even be equivalent to AA in baseball..
Yeah it says replay at 11:00 tonight
+1000 exactly what i was going to say
Cant wait to get home and fire up the dvr
Friedel shouldn’t have use Donovan as a comparison as it was always going to stir things up, but I will say he went at great lengths to apologize / clear up his comments through the media
I rather thought that the Friedel remarks were a tempest in a teapot. I mean, he was really just complementing Dempsey and remarking how much better he got by playing in England. Sure, a backhanded shot at Donovan but they probably just don’t like each other.
That said, I hope LD torches him. 😉
Donovan: Hat Trick Hero
Will FSC be replaying this at night?
As a Spurs fan, 6-3 (Donovan hat trick) would be acceptable.
I don’t think we will see any outward animosity, but it is safe to assume Donovan is licking his chops for an opportunity to put one past Friedel.
I know they won’t show it but I’d love to see the players when they shake hands before kick-off and see how Donovan reacts to Friedel.
Friedel is an American legend, our greatest GK ever, but it was lame to take a shot at Donovan, who is one of our best field players of all time.