Edu replaces Feilhaber on USA roster vs. England

                                                                       Photo by ISI Photos

Toronto FC midfielder Maurice Edu will replace Derby County midfielder Benny Feilhaber on the U.S. national team roster that will face England at Wembley Stadium on Wednesday, sources told SBI on Thursday.

Feilhaber was replaced on the roster after suffering a knee injury with the U.S. Under-23 national team against Turkey on Wednesday in the opening match of the Toulon International Tournament in France, a match Turkey won 3-2. The severity of Feilhaber's injury has yet to be revealed.

Edu will join the U.S. national team after playing in Toronto FC's match at D.C. United on Saturday.

Here is the U.S. roster for the England match:

GOALKEEPERS - Dominic Cervi (Out of Contract), Brad Guzan (Chivas USA), Tim Howard (Everton FC)

DEFENDERS - Carlos Bocanegra (Fulham FC), Dan Califf (FC Midtjylland), Steve Cherundolo (Hannover 96), Jay DeMerit (Watford FC), Oguchi Onyewu (Standard de Liege), Michael Orozco (San Luis), Heath Pearce (Hansa Rostock), Jonathan Spector (West Ham United)

MIDFIELDERS - Freddy Adu (SL Benfica), DaMarcus Beasley (Glasgow Rangers), Michael Bradley (SC Heerenveen), Ricardo Clark (Houston Dynamo), Maurice Edu (Toronto FC), Eddie Lewis (Derby County)

FORWARDS - Clint Dempsey (Fulham FC), Landon Donovan (Los Angeles Galaxy), Nate Jaqua (Out of Contract), Eddie Johnson (Fulham FC), Josh Wolff (Out of Contract)

What do you think of Edu joining the roster for England? Share your thoughts below.

Comments

[brett]

>.< things just go from bad to worse for poor feilhaber....

altho in current form, i wont object to seeing a MB and Edu central mid combo... but when feilhaber is on form he does add that creativity in the midfield....

oh well, no loss in talent, and in fact we probably gained in work ethic..

[Geoff]

Ives, as a Toronto FC supporter I have to admit I haven't been very impressed with Edu in Toronto this year. He's been rather clumsy and sloppy in his play. I don't think he's on good enough form to see the field @wembley

[The Gentleman Masher]

Any word on the extent of Benny's injury?

[don]

I had a feeling feilhaber would be replaced after hearing about his injury. Hope edu can step up. I know Aston Villa will be watching

[Joe Ginto]

Well, he's replacing Feilhaber so who can tell the difference between he and Edu. I watched 30 minutes of that match last night and I noticed Benny only a few times and for all the wrong reasons.

He needs to go somewhere and get regular P.T. Haven't seen any Toronto matches this year but I remember Edu really playing very well when I saw him last year. Disappointed to hear he's fallen off.

[Rob]

a MB/EDU combo is perfect, you got the more attacking player in Bradley, and the more defensive force in Edu.

[Dominghosa]

Too bad for Feilhaber. I actually thought he played well in Toulon, good touches, good moves.
But would have rather seen Edu with the USMNT right now anyway.

[RK]

Could Edu join before the DCU game? Please?

[Pat the Red Bulls Fan]

Maurice is better than Ricardo and Benny. He and Bradley should be our center halves for qualifiers, Confederation's Cup in '09 and World Cup in '10.

[jpc]

Edu has not played well for the US since his first two appearances or so in my opinion. I like his ability going forward and his effort in defense. But he is way too careless w/ the ball in midfield right now. some of the balls he plays in midfield are inexplicable to me, b/c it seems he is making rushed decisions that end up going directly to the other team. hopefully he will only play if needed in the later part of the second half, and we see a midfield of Bradley and Clark and possibly dempsey or Donovan in the attacking role if we play five in the midfield.

[THE Nick]

Good....the national team shouldn't be used to "prop" guys up in their careers, it should be strictly a bonus. If a guy is having trouble getting first team action or signing for a club, he SHOULD NOT be on the National Team.

I like Edu better anyway.

[kpugs]

I like both players, but Edu has to have more confidence in his game right now. Probably a good move.

What sucks for Benny is that now there is no chance whatsoever of impressing any of the English coaches that will be watching the match.

[The Gentleman Masher]

Pat The RB Fan: Center-Half is an old school English term for Central Defenders...not midfielders.

It had to do with the old 2-3-5 formations they used back then, I believe.

[Mighty]

Yeaaaaaaa!!!!!!!

Now the only thing we need is for Eddie Johnson to get the Flue!!!! then we can get JOzy in!!!!

[Julio]

I still don't get Nate Jaqua and Wolff on the roster.....

[Spencer]

I'm excited for the change. Too bad it had to come as a result of an injury and just not good coaching. Edu is very fast and we are going to need all the speed we can get against England.

[Pat the Red Bulls Fan]

My apologies. Thought those were center backs. And those in front of them were center halves. Although Edu can and has played both.
Center or central mids for the future.

[brett]

jpc- we've seen the MB and Clark combo and it failed misreably....MB and Edu work well together... clark is solid but comes out with some pretty clumsy fouls in my book... altho i would say i enjoy having him on the roster... as i said before, clark is solid...

[daniel]

with those midfielders i don't see who is going to be able to hold on to the ball for more than a couple of seconds. even if they throw donovan in there at offensive mid it's not looking like we're going to end up seeing much posession.

[Erik Abarca]

-------------------------Tim--------------------------

Dolo----------Boca----------Gooch-----------Pearce

Donovan-------------Rico---------------------DMB

-----------------------Bradley-----------------------

-----------------------Clint--------------------------

--------------------------EJ-----------------------------

I don’t why I’m going with Eddie again, but this is his last chance…lol…
Rico gets the nod over Edu, Edu is not 100% according to TFC boss. Thou even with him 100%, it is still a tough decision.

[brett]

Julio- seasons are over, no teams to piss off by adding them to the roster... Jaqua is on good form... Wolff has always brought more to the table then scoring goals (which he seems to lack with the nats).... they arent superstars, but they serve a purpose....

i wouldve loved to have seen Jozy, Rogers and/or Cooper instead but to be fair, their seasons are underway and they are key players on their team, and these are strong yet meaningless friendlies

[Mighty]

Erik Abarca u have to be nuts........ lol EJ... with Clint in hi back... Then Bradley right in back of him and no wings... Yea nice job dude.... !! good thing u not the coach. lol

[Joamiq]

No drop in quality, though Edu and Benny are different kinds of players. Benny's creativity and fluidity in attack will be missed, but Edu's strong ball-winning presence in the center of the pitch will be welcomed.

[Joamiq]

Adu-Donovan
Beasley-Bradley-Edu-Dempsey
Pearce-Bocanegra-Orozco-Dolo
Howard

That's what I personally would like to see.

If Dempsey on the right doesn't seem to be working, I'd take him out, move Bease to the right, and put Lewis in at left mid. And if Orozco seems to be struggling, take him out for Gooch, though I'd like to see what Orozco can do over 60-70 minutes.

[wally]

I don't love any combo of Bradley/Rico/Edu in midfield. All strong defensive mids, but none very helpful in keeping the ball once they win it. If Reyna were healthy, I'd rather pair him than Edu with Bradley.

[Will]

Very good for him....Aston Villa were looking at him in January. This really kills about 4 birds with one stone: 1) Another cap closer to UK work permit, 2) Another chance for MON to look at him, 3) build experience against high quality opponent, 4) WC preperation.

Feilhaber looked very poor against a U21 Turkey. I think he needs to regroup before being giving extensive looks at the senior level. The U23 and his next club should be the main focus.

[Will]

Very good for him....Aston Villa were looking at him in January. This really kills about 4 birds with one stone: 1) Another cap closer to UK work permit, 2) Another chance for MON to look at him, 3) build experience against high quality opponent, 4) WC preparation.

Feilhaber looked very poor against a U21 Turkey. I think he needs to regroup before being giving extensive looks at the senior level. The U23 and his next club should be the main focus.

[groovester]

Yeah, concerned about not being able to hold possession in midfield. Could get ugly.

[djking2]

As a guy who's watched all Edu's games so far this year and most last year I have to say I'm surprised he got the call at this point in time. On last years expansion team Edu was one of the hi-lites. Surrounded by a vastly improved group of players this year his play looks laboured and uninspired and his touches often clumsy. He is carrying a slight injury for the last couple of games but that doesn't explain it for the other five. My hope would be that he plays 78 inspired minutes for your national team and comes back on fire ready to really play for TFC.

[why?]

somebody please name another team in the world that plays two defensive midfielders side by side in a 4-4-2. please! id be happy to hear it so that i can understand why everyone thinks the midfield pairing should be bradley/edu or bradley/clark. the only way we are going to stand a chance against england is by holding possession to counter their overwhelming attacking force. if we dont, it wont matter how many balls edu and bradley win, they'll overpower us. benny would have been much better in their to help control the play for the US...and bradley isnt attacking at all, watch his goals, hes turning into a great defensive midfielder, but thats it.

[Jamie Z.]

somebody please name another team in the world that plays two defensive midfielders side by side in a 4-4-2. please! id be happy to hear it so that i can understand why everyone thinks the midfield pairing should be bradley/edu or bradley/clark. the only way we are going to stand a chance against england is by holding possession to counter their overwhelming attacking force. if we dont, it wont matter how many balls edu and bradley win, they'll overpower us. benny would have been much better in their to help control the play for the US...and bradley isnt attacking at all, watch his goals, hes turning into a great defensive midfielder, but thats it.

Posted by: why? | May 22, 2008 at 05:34 PM

____________________________________________

San Marino.

[Drew2]

Not necessarily what I'd like to see but there's no way Adu gets a start here, so most likely starting 11 is:

Dempsey-Donovan
Beasley-Bradley-Clark-Wolff
Pearce-Bocanegra-Onyewu-Dolo
Howard

It's possible that right wing will be different, but knowing Bradley I doubt it.

[MikeinSD]

So is he going to get replaced at Toulon too?

[Pat the Red Bulls Fan]

Am I missing somebody? Who else can play with Bradley if not Edu or Clark? Is there someone in the pipe I don't know? Are we talking Adu or Deuce? We have what we have.

[Skinn]

Good for Edu, but not for TFC. Edu's carrying a knock, and I assume the reason he wasn't included on the roster for the England game originally was that TFC had come to an agreement with USMNT to keep Edu for their May 27 CONCACAF CL qualifier against Montreal.

[John]

----------------Howard---------
--Dolo------Onyewu--Boca------Pearce
--------Edu----Bradley----Clark
-----Donovan-------------Beasley
--------------Dempsey----------

4-5-1/4-3-2-1 hybrid

[jpc]

Brett,
I agree, when Bradley and Clark played together they were both bad (especially bradley). But to my knowledge that was the first time those two have ever played together, and it was a game (Mexico right?) that was before the MLS season started, and Bradley had a long flight to Houston w/ very little practice together... I know that sounds like an excuse, and it is (valid i think); however, I think these are the two most talented central midfielders on the team who can play both ways, are skilled, athletic, smart and tough... I would like to see them paired behind a more creative player (dempsey/donovan/adu/etc.), which was something that didn't happen in their pairing together... I think the pairing needs another go around, if its a failure again, then I will agree w/ you.

[MikeinSD]

----------------Howard---------
--Dolo------Onyewu--Boca------Pearce
--------Edu----Bradley----Clark
-----Donovan-------------Beasley
--------------Dempsey----------

----------------------------------

Jon,
That would be too defensive.

If we did use that formation I would hope MB gets pushed into a more attacking position. Play more like a 4-2-3-1

[nfitz]

An odd choice - of TFCs 5 normal starting mid-fielders, Edu seems the weakest this season. I guess the other 4 are European or Central American - but the implication is that he's the second best American mid-fielder in MLS?? Hard to believe.

[Utd fan]

HomeyBoehme:

WHY!!!!!! What the eff, man? What is the point in coming in here and spoiling random matches that I don't get to see until the weekend.

Asshole.

[Jamie Z.]

I just don't think a 4-5-1 formation works without a striker who is capable of holding up play: putting Dempsey in that role is a square peg in a round hole. He and Donovan are generally only useful when playing off a primary attacker. Unfortunately, Eddie and Jaqua are our only current options in that role.
First person to build a time machine and bring back a 27-year old Brian McBride wins a prize.

[Mark]

------------Howard-----------
-Dolo---Onyewu--Boca---Pearce
------Edu-------Bradley------
-Donovan----------------Lewis
-----Dempsey-------Wolff-----

It would surprise me if Beasley played let alone got a start. Bob Bradley is going to put Eddie Lewis on the left since he only uses Adu as a sub. He'll probably start Johnson instead of Wolff, but after that Poland friendly I hope he doesn't. Even though Feilhaber probably is a little full of himself, I would have still like to see him team with Bradley in the midfield. I actually like Edu over Clark because the Clark-Bradley tandem sucked against Mexico. Pearce played well against Brazil and Poland, but I'm interested to see what Bob Bradley does with that backline. If it's a tight game will he play by the friendly rules and have six subs or will he sticks with his big guns and go for the win. It should be a good game with those Chelsea and Man U players teaming up. Terry is going to look to impose his will on this game.

[Mark]

------------Howard-----------
-Dolo---Onyewu--Boca---Pearce
------Edu-------Bradley------
-Donovan----------------Lewis
-----Dempsey-------Wolff-----

It would surprise me if Beasley played let alone got a start. Bob Bradley is going to put Eddie Lewis on the left since he only uses Adu as a sub. He'll probably start Johnson instead of Wolff, but after that Poland friendly I hope he doesn't. Even though Feilhaber probably is a little full of himself, I would have still like to see him team with Bradley in the midfield. I actually like Edu over Clark because the Clark-Bradley tandem sucked against Mexico. Pearce played well against Brazil and Poland, but I'm interested to see what Bob Bradley does with that backline. If it's a tight game will he play by the friendly rules and have six subs or will he sticks with his big guns and go for the win. It should be a good game with those Chelsea and Man U players teaming up. Terry is going to look to impose his will on this game.

[Simona]

Benny just seems to be so unfortunate lately. Hopefully something good happens for him pretty soon.

[Joh]

MikeinSD,

the reason i suggested that the US uses that formation is the idea that the US will most likely be run over in central midfield by a gerrard/flavor of the day combination. Packing 3 central midfielders there would also try to starve rooney of service. i do agree with you though that bradley could sit higher up in the midfield then edu and clark.

[Angel]

Why are there so many (out-of-contract) players on the team????????????

[Jeffrey]

I know it has been said before but if anything happens to Howard we are screwed!

[Zach D.]

wally,
Really, Reyna his days are thankfully done with National Team, and thank God for that! Don't get me wrong I have a deep respect for all of the players that paved the way for the U.S. team now but he will never gain my respect. Especially after the '06 WC game vs. Ghana and now all he does is sit at NYRB with his "injury" what a waste of a DP spot!

[JB]

"somebody please name another team in the world that plays two defensive midfielders side by side in a 4-4-2. please! id be happy to hear it so that i can understand why everyone thinks the midfield pairing should be bradley/edu or bradley/clark."

Greece EURO 2004. That worked out fairly well for them, wouldn't you say?

[JB]

Katsouranis-Basinas for Greece is the closest example for Bradley-Clark.

[John]

Very good for him....Aston Villa were looking at him in January. This really kills about 4 birds with one stone: 1) Another cap closer to UK work permit,

Except only caps in competitive games count towards a UK Work Permit. He could play 150 friendlies and none of them would count.

[brett]

you all complain about the setup, but look at the results... just check out our record... i personaly choose to exclude Copa as it was a rather weak squad for such a competition (but you gotta deal with what you have in front of you)...

like it or not, think it to be ugly or great soccer, Bradly has grinded out the results... wins in europe, the Gold cup (giving us a trip to Confeds), it all has worked out well... what happens in these next couple weeks?? we'll find out

[cbr]

27 year old mcbride? a 35 year old mcbride would be an easy choice at this time. I really wish he would have used this game as a send off match

[HE from NJ]

DAMN IT !!!
I HOPE Benny Feilhaber IS GOING TO BE O.K. I HAD HOPES OF SEEING HIM PLAY AGAINST ARGENTINA, I LIKE HIS STYLE OF PLAY.

[NOLA soccer fan]

Hey ives,

could you explain to me why Kenny Cooper has not gotten anymore attention. I mean the guy is 23, 6'4", and a pretty good finisher. It seems to me he would fit into the USMNT system better than EJ who has always mystified with his wasted talent.

I mean Cooper seems to fit the mold of players like Brian Ching or Brian McBride.