By FRANCO PANIZO
As far as goals go, Alejandro Bedoya’s recent strike might be the best you see before the turn of the new year.
Bedoya hit a spectacular bomb from distance for FC Nantes on Saturday, scoring his first Ligue 1 goal of the season and giving the club an early lead in their tilt against powerhouse Paris Saint-Germain. Bedoya struck in the eighth minute of the match, picking up a loose ball and smashing it into the top corner from about 25 yards out. Unfortunately for Bedoya and Nantes, they surrendered the lead and lost the match, 2-1.
While not quite as aesthetically-pleasing, Aron Johannsson’s Saturday goal was just as important for AZ Alkmaar. Johannsson netted the winner in a 2-0 victory over Go Ahead Eagles, scoring in the 25th minute with a one-timed effort. The goal was Johannsson’s second this season, and both tallies have come in AZ’s last three games.
Terrence Boyd was not as fortunate, as he tore the ACL and meniscus in his right knee in RB Leipzig’s 1-0 loss to FC Ingolstadt on Sunday. The injury was to the same knee the forward hurt back in July, and he had to be stretchered off the field before being substituted in the 37th minute. Boyd now looks set for another lengthy spell on the sidelines, a frustrating development for Boyd in his first season at the 2. Bundesliga outfit.
Here is how the Americans Abroad did this weekend:
ENGLAND
Premiership
- Tim Howard started, played 90 minutes and made two saves in Everton’s 1-0 loss vs. Manchester City on Saturday.
- Jozy Altidore started and played 70 minutes in Sunderland’s 0-0 draw vs. Liverpool on Saturday.
- Brad Guzan started, played 90 minutes and made three saves in Aston Villa’s 2-1 win vs. Leicester City on Sunday.
- Brad Friedel did not dress in Tottenham Hotspur’s 0-0 draw vs. Crystal Palace on Saturday.
- Geoff Cameron started and played 90 minutes in Stoke City’s 3-2 win vs. Arsenal on Saturday.
- Cody Cropper did not dress in Southampton’s 2-1 loss vs. Manchester United on Monday.
Championship
- Brek Shea came off the bench and played 19 minutes in Birmingham City’s 1-0 loss vs. Blackpool on Saturday.
- Jonathan Spector did not dress for Birmingham City. He is recovering from a thigh injury.
- Tim Ream started and played 90 minutes in Bolton Wanderers’ 0-0 draw vs. Reading on Saturday.
- Eric Lichaj started and played 90 minutes in Nottingham Forest’s 1-1 draw vs. Charlton Athletic on Saturday.
- Danny Williams started and played 85 minutes in Reading’s 0-0 draw vs. Bolton Wanderers on Saturday.
- Emerson Hyndman dressed but did not play in Fulham’s 5-0 loss vs. Watford on Friday.
- Zak Whitbread did not dress in Derby County’s 3-0 win vs. Brighton & Hove Albion on Saturday.
- Oguchi Onyewu dressed but did not play in Charlton Athletic’s 1-1 draw vs. Nottingham Forest on Saturday.
League One
- Will Packwood did not dress in Colchester United’s 1-0 win vs. Peterborough United in the FA Cup on Sunday.
GERMANY
Bundesliga
- Fabian Johnson came off the bench and played six minutes in Borussia Moenchengladbach’s 3-2 win vs. Hertha Berlin on Saturday.
- John Brooks started and played 90 minutes in Hertha Berlin’s 3-2 loss vs. Borussia Moenchengladbach on Saturday.
- Timmy Chandler started, played 90 minutes and received a yellow card in Eintracht Frankfurt’s 5-2 win vs. Werder Bremen on Sunday.
- David Yelldell did not dress in Bayer Leverkusen’s 1-0 loss vs. Bayern Munich on Saturday.
- Julian Green did not dress in Hamburg SV’s 2-1 win vs. Mainz 05 on Sunday.
- Joe Gyau did not dress in Borussia Dortmund’s 1-0 win vs. TSG 1899 Hoffenheim on Friday.
2. Bundesliga
- Alfredo Morales started, played 90 minutes and received a yellow card in FC Ingolstadt 04’s 1-0 win vs. RB Leipzig on Sunday.
- Terrence Boyd started, played 37 minutes and received a yellow card in RB Leipzig’s 1-0 loss vs. FC Ingolstadt 04 on Sunday.
- Bobby Wood did not dress in TSV 1860 Munich’s 2-1 loss vs. FC Nurnberg on Monday.
- Andrew Wooten started and played 63 minutes in SV Sandhausen’s 3-1 win vs. Fortuna Dusseldorf on Friday.
- Jann George did not dress in SpVgg Greuther Furth’s 0-0 draw vs. SV Darmstadt 98 on Saturday.
FRANCE
- Alejandro Bedoya started, played 90 minutes and scored a GOAL in FC Nantes’ 2-1 loss vs. Paris Saint-Germain on Saturday.
NETHERLANDS
- Aron Johannsson started, played 90 minutes and scored a GOAL in AZ Alkmaar’s 2-0 win vs. Go Ahead Eagles on Saturday.
- Rubio Rubin started and played 90 minutes in FC Utrecht’s 4-2 loss vs. SC Heracles Almelo on Sunday.
BELGIUM
- Sacha Kljestan started and played 45 minutes in RSC Anderlecht’s 4-2 loss vs. Mouscron-Peruwelz on Saturday.
AUSTRIA
- Conor O’Brien started and played 90 minutes in FC Magna Wiener Neustadt’s 2-0 win vs. SC Rheindorf Altach on Saturday.
SERBIA
- Freddy Adu did not play in FK Jagodina’s 1-1 draw vs. OFK Beograd on Sunday.
MEXICO
- Jose Torres started and played 90 minutes in Tigres UANL’s 0-0 draw vs. Toluca in the second leg of their Liguilla semifinals series on Sunday. Tigres UANL advanced on being the higher seed after the two games finished scoreless.
- Herculez Gomez came off the bench, played seven minutes and received a yellow card for Tigres UANL.
- Ventura Alvarado started and played 90 minutes in Club America’s 0-0 draw vs. Monterrey in the second leg of their Liguilla semifinals series on Sunday. Club America advanced via a 3-0 aggregate score.
- Joaquin Alonso Hernandez did not dress in Monterrey’s 0-0 draw vs. Club America in the second leg of their Liguilla semifinals series on Sunday. Monterrey were eliminated via a 3-0 aggregate score.
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What do you think of these performances? Were you encouraged by Altidore’s showing against Chelsea? Could Packwood’s debut have gone any worse?
Share your thoughts below.
Is Alejandro’s goal, the YA goal of the season thus far?
Bodoya making that strike look easy!. WOW!
Anyone else have the feeling that we’ll be needing Kevin Baconnsson bad in the upcoming years?
The tough part about Aron is that he’s not a lone striker type. And neither is Jozy. Boyd was our big hope and that’s why I’m gutted he’s out.
I’ve always seen Aron as Dempsey’s replacement.
2018:
—————Boyd————
Green——Aron——-Gyau
———-Mix—-Williams—-
Freddy Adu is going to be on that plane for Russia! Based on the fact he is reportedly not dead. If he is dead I don’t doubt his resilience and ability to come back from the dead!
If by plane for Russia, you mean that he just got an offer to play with Russia’s 2nd/3rd division, I completely agree with you. I think it might be time for him to change clubs again.
FREDDY ADU
Has anyone been following cody cropper’s development at southampton? I know he hasn’t been making the bench this season, but obviously he’s still young and I don’t follow their reserve team. It may be an interesting article for an SBI writer to look into….