By FRANCO PANIZO
The championship hangover just won’t end for Josh Gatt and Molde FK.
The back-to-back Eliteserien league winners continued their dismal start to the season on Saturday, suffering a 2-1 loss at home to Sogndal on Saturday. The result dropped Molde to 0-4 on the campaign and left them in last place in Norway’s top tier. Gatt went the distance in the match, picking up a yellow card in the second half to add insult to injury.
While Gatt and Molde continued to suffer this weekend, two Americans found the back of the net. Jozy Altidore scored the fastest hat-trick in AZ Alkmaar history and upped his season total to 28 goals in all competitions in a 6-0 thrashing of FC Utrecht on Sunday, while DaMarcus Beasley tallied his fifth of the season for Puebla in a 2-1 defeat to Jaguares de Chiapas on Saturday.
More good news came out of England, as Stuart Holden continued to make progress. Holden started and played 72 minutes for Sheffield Wednesday in a 2-1 loss against Leeds United on Saturday, and those were the most minutes he has received in a single game since returning from his knee injury.
Here’s how the Americans Abroad did this weekend:
ENGLAND
Premiership
- Geoff Cameron started and played 71 minutes in Stoke City’s 2-0 loss vs. Manchester United on Sunday.
- Brek Shea did not dress for Stoke City.
- Sebastian Lletget did not dress in West Ham United’s 1-1 draw vs. Southampton on Saturday.
- Clint Dempsey and Tottenham did not play this weekend.
- Brad Friedel and Tottenham did not play this weekend.
- Tim Howard started, played 90 minutes and made three saves in Everton’s 2-0 win vs. Queens Park Rangers on Saturday.
- Brad Guzan started and played 90 minutes in Aston Villa’s 1-1 draw vs. Fulham on Saturday.
- Eric Lichaj did not dress for Aston Villa.
Championship
- Jonathan Spector did not dress in Birmingham City’s 2-2 draw vs. Leicester City on Friday. He is recovering from an ankle injury.
- Will Packwood did not dress for Birmingham City. He is recovering from a leg injury.
- Conor Doyle did not dress in Derby County’s 2-0 loss vs. Blackburn Rovers on Saturday.
- Tim Ream dressed but did not play in Bolton Wanderers’ 2-1 win vs. Bristol City on Saturday.
- Stuart Holden started and played 72 minutes in Sheffield Wednesday’s 2-1 loss vs. Leeds United on Saturday.
- Zak Whitbread did not dress in Leceister City’s 2-2 draw vs. Birmingham City on Friday.
League One
- Frank Simek did not dress in Carlisle United’s 1-1 draw vs. Preston North End on Saturday.
- Mike Grella came off the bench and played 27 minutes in Scunthorpe United’s 1-1 draw vs. Walsall on Saturday.
SPAIN
La Liga
- Oguchi Onyewu did not dress in Malaga CF’s 1-0 win vs. Osasuna on Saturday.
Segunda Division
- Carlos Bocanega started and played 90 minutes in Racing Santander’s 1-0 loss vs. Girona on Saturday.
ITALY
- Michael Bradley started and played 90 minutes in AS Roma’s 2-1 win vs. Torino on Sunday.
GERMANY
Bundesliga
- Fabian Johnson started and played 90 minutes in TSG 1899 Hoffenheim’s 2-2 draw vs. Werder Bremen on Saturday.
- Danny Williams did not dress for TSG 1899 Hoffenheim.
- Timmy Chandler came off the bench and played 45 minutes in FC Nurnberg’s 4-0 loss vs. Bayern Munich on Saturday.
- Michael Parkhurst did not dress in FC Augsburg’s 2-0 win vs. Eintracht Frankfurt on Sunday.
- Jermaine Jones did not dress in Schalke 04′s 2-2 draw vs. Bayer Leverkusen on Saturday. He is recovering from an ankle injury.
- David Yelldell did not dress in Bayer Leverkusen’s 2-2 draw vs. Schalke 04 on Saturday.
- Steve Cherundolo started and played 90 minutes in Hannover 96′s 3-1 loss vs. SC Freiburg on Friday.
2. Bundesliga
- Joe Gyau did not dress in St Pauli’s 3-1 win vs. TSV 1860 Munich on Saturday. He is recovering from an injury.
- John Anthony Brooks started and played 90 minutes in Hertha Berlin’s 1-1 draw vs. FC Ingolstadt 04 on Monday.
- Alfredo Morales started and played 90 minutes for Hertha Berlin.
- Andrew Wooten started and played 71 minutes in SV Sandhausen’s 3-1 loss vs. TSV Eintracht Braunschweig on Friday.
- Bobby Wood came off the bench and played 25 minutes in TSV 1860 Munich’s 3-1 loss vs. St Pauli on Saturday.
NETHERLANDS
- Jozy Altidore started, played 90 minutes and scored THREE GOALS in AZ Alkmaar’s 6-0 win vs. FC Utrecht on Sunday.
PORTUGAL
- Tony Taylor and G.D. Estoril Praia did not play this weekend.
- Caleb Patterson-Sewell and Vitoria Setubal did not play this weekend.
RUSSIA
- Eugen Starikov started and played 65 minutes in FK Rostov’s 1-1 draw vs. FK Rubin Kazan on Sunday.
TURKEY
- Maurice Edu did not dress in Bursaspor’s 1-0 win vs. Mersin Idmanyurdu on Saturday.
BELGIUM
- Sacha Kljestan started, played 90 minutes and received a yellow card in RSC Anderlecht’s 1-1 draw vs. Club Brugge in the Belgian playoffs on Sunday.
DENMARK
- Clarence Goodson dressed but did not play in Brondby IF’s 3-0 loss vs. SonderjyskE on Sunday.
- Charlie Davies came off the bench and played 24 minutes in Randers FC’s 4-0 loss vs. Esbjerg on Sunday.
- Conor O’Brien and FC Nordsjaelland play FC Copenhagen on Monday.
AUSTRIA
- Terrence Boyd started, played 79 minutes and received a yellow card in Rapid Vienna’s 2-0 win vs. FC Magna Wiener Neustadt on Saturday.
SWEDEN
- Alejandro Bedoya and Helsingborg IF play Mjallby on Monday.
- Brian Span did not dress Djurgarden IF’s 4-0 loss vs. BK Hacken on Sunday.
NORWAY
- Josh Gatt started, played 90 minutes and received a yellow card in Molde FK’s 2-1 loss vs. Sogndal on Saturday.
- Mix Diskerud started and played 85 minutes in Rosenborg BK’s 1-1 draw vs. IK Start on Friday.
- Steve Clark started and played 90 minutes in Honefoss BK’s 1-0 loss vs. Haugesund on Sunday.
MEXICO
- Herculez Gomez came off the bench and played 28 minutes in Santos Laguna’s 2-1 win vs. Toluca on Friday.
- Benji Joya did not dress for Santos Laguna.
- Michael Orozco Fiscal started, played 62 minutes and received a yellow card in Puebla’s 2-1 loss vs. Jaguares de Chiapas on Sunday.
- DaMarcus Beasley came off the bench, player 45 minutes and scored a GOAL for Puebla.
[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ttMkUNeZ03k?feature=player_detailpage]
- Jose Torres started and played 90 minutes in Tigres UANL’s 2-1 loss vs. Pumas UNAM on Sunday.
- Jonathan Bornstein did not dress for Tigres UANL.
- Edgar Castillo started and played 90 minutes in Club Tijuana’s 5-0 loss vs. Cruz Azul on Saturday.
- Joe Corona started and played 90 minutes for Club Tijuana.
- Greg Garza did not dress for Club Tijuana.
- Ventura Alvarado did not dress in Club America’s 1-1 draw vs. Leon on Saturday.
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What do you think of these performances? Do you see Gatt and Molde getting out of this early-season funk in time to make another run at a title? Think Altidore will end up with more than 30 goals this season?
Share your thoughts below.