Soccer By Ives

ESPN Press Pass discusses Donovan's potential Bayern move

For those of you who have missed it, ESPN Classic has begun airing ESPN Soccernett Press Pass every Monday and Friday at 7pm. Hosted by Adrian Healey and Derek Rae, and including New England head coach Steve Nicol, Tommy Smyth and Janusz Mchallik, the show is one of the best you will see discussing American soccer.

Last week's episode included interviews with Juergen Klinsmann and Jozy Altidore. Tonight's episode will feature special guest Claudio Reyna. The former U.S. national team captain will discuss topics ranging from the U.S. national team to Landon Donovan's potential move to Bayern Munich.

Here is a sneak peak:

Altidore staying put at Villarreal

 

If you were hoping to see Jozy Altidore loaned out to a smaller European team with the hope of getting more playing time in the second half of the European season, it isn't going to happen.

Villarreal manager Manuel Pellegrini stated after his team's recent win against Recreativo Huelva that none of Villarreal's players will be leaving on loan this winter, and that all, including Altidore, will remain until the end of the season.

Americans Abroad: Weekend Rewind

It was a landmark weekend for Americans in Europe. From Brad Friedel record-breaking performance to Jozy Altidore's impressive start for Villarreal, several Americans Abroad enjoyed success across Europe.

Friedel set a new record for consecutive matches played, with 167 in a row in the English Premier League. Clint Dempsey made it tough on his countrymen by testing Friedel with a pair of quality shots in an inspired performance that should keep him in the Fulham starting lineup for the forseeable future.

Altidore earned a rare start for Villarreal and proved a handful for Recreativo Huelva in a 2-1 victory. Sal Zizzo didn't play for Hannover 96, but did make the subs bench for one of the few times this season. Matt Taylor continued his impressive first season in Germany's second division by scoring another goal for TUS Koblenz.

Not all the news was good for Americans this past weekend. Michael Bradley notched an own goal in a Borussia Moenchengladbach loss while Freddy Adu, Danny Szetela, Maurice Edu, Eddie Johnson and Heath Pearce failed to play.

Here is a rundown of how Americans Abroad did this past weekend:

USA draws Brazil, Italy and Egypt in 2009 Confederations Cup

 

                                                                    Photo by ISIphotos.com

When the U.S. national team won the 2007 CONCACAF Gold Cup U.S. coach Bob Bradley stated how important it was for the U.S. team to play in the 2009 Confederations Cup and face top competition in the same nation where the 2010 World Cup will be.

Well, competition is exactly what the U.S. national team will get.

The USA has been drawn into a loaded Confederations Cup group that includes Brazil, Italy and defending African champions Egypt. The draw, held early on Saturday, also put together a significantly weaker group including Spain, New Zealand, Iraq and host South Africa.

The Confederations Cup takes place from June 14-24 in South Africa. Start saving up for that trip because it should be a good one.

USA-Mexico to kick off 2009 World Cup qualifying

Those of you who can't wait for the U.S. national team to face off against Mexico in World Cup qualifying next year won't have to wait too long. The CONCACAF super powers will square off in the opening match of 2009 qualifying in the United States.

The draw for the Hexagonal round of qualifying took place earlier this morning and the first of two USA-Mexico tilts was drawn first and is set for Feb. 11.

Here is the full USA schedule:

MLS News & Notes: Cooper transfer looking inevitable, Donovan's loan done (or not) and more

   

                                                                                                 Photo by ISIphotos.com

U.S. national team fans weren't the only ones who caught a glimpse of Kenny Cooper's performance against Guatemala on Saturday. Scouts from several European clubs, including German club Eintracht Frankfurt, were also in attendance at Dick's Sporting Goods Park and the interest in Cooper should only continue to grow as it becomes increasingly unlikely that Cooper will be signing a new deal with FC Dallas.

Cooper is preparing to head into the final year of his current contract and negotations over a new deal with FC Dallas have stalled, sources with knowledge of the talks told SBI on Thursday. With Cooper seeking designated player money, and FC Dallas offering in the $325K to $375K range, look for MLS to do it's best to sell Cooper in January in order to avoid losing him for nothing after the 2009 season.

Here are some other tidbits to go over in the MLS scene:

Altidore discusses the Red Bulls and Villarreal

  

                                                                                         Photo by ISIphotos.com

Call it coincidence, or true twist of fate, but it is at least pretty interesting that in the same week that the New York Red Bulls are heading to the West Coast to play in their first MLS Cup final, one of their former young stars was also be shining in the Western part of the United States.

U.S. national team striker Jozy Altidore spent Wednesday night impressing observers with his ever-improving skill and the progress he has enjoyed since making his $10 million move from the Red Bulls to Villarreal. Just a day later, the Red Bulls were on a charter flight West, heading for Los Angeles and an MLS Cup final few could have imagined being in, especially without Altidore.

The 19-year-old striker won't be playing for the Red Bulls on Sunday, but he will be rooting for them. Altidore spoke with SBI correspondent Sulaiman Folarin after the U.S. team's 2-0 win against Guatemala. He spoke about his time at Villarreal and how he has kept in touch with his former MLS club:

USA 2, Guatemala 0: A second look

 

                                                                    Photo by ISIphotos.com

If the U.S. men's national team's 2-0 victory against Guatemala was a glimpse into the future for the United States, then that future sure looks bright after several young standouts took full advantage of the chance to show that they plan on being factors in 2009 World Cup qualifying.

Freddy Adu, Jozy Altidore, Kenny Cooper and Sacha Kljestan were all impressive in the U.S. team's handling of a Guatemalan squad that, to be fair, was a young team missing several key veterans as a new coach shook up his squad. Guatemalan B team or not,The Fab Four Americans certainly had to impress U.S. coach Bob Bradley, while also exciting fans that had been waiting months to see them all play together.

What did you think of last night's performance. Did Freddy Adu restore your faith in him? Were you happy to finally see the Kenny Cooper-Jozy Altidore tandem (or as I like to call them, the People's Tandem) in action? Were you disappointed with Jonathan Bornstein's return to the national team fold? Did the match leave you excited at what lies ahead in the Hexagonal Round of qualifying?

Share your thoughts on last night's match in the comments section below.

CONCACAF World Cup qualifying matchnight: Your running commentary

Good evening everybody, or late afternoon to those of us on the West Coast. It's time for the final matchday of the penultimate stage of CONCACAF qualifying for the 2010 FIFA World Cup. While the United States, Costa Rica and El Salvador have already booked safe passage, thee others nations will find a way into the final hexagonal stage tonight.

What match will you follow? Which teams do you think will advance? While the SBI jet has yet to land in L.A., please join me in providing live commentary of the two televised matches -- United States vs. Guatemala and Mexico vs. Honduras.

To get you started, here is the U.S. starting lineup:

Brad Guzan; John Thorrington, Clarence Goodson, Michael Parkhurst, Jonathan Bornstein; Ricardo Clark, Freddy Adu, Pablo Mastroeni, Sacha Kljestan; Kenny Cooper, Jozy Altidore

For those wondering, that's the first ever start in World Cup qualifying for Thorrington, Goodson, Bornstein, Clark and Cooper.

Here are the starters from Kingston for the match between Jamaica and Canada. Red Bulls fans can breathe, Dane Richards is not in John Barnes' XI.

Canada: Lars Hirchfeld, Adrian Cann, Andrew Hainault, Nik Ledgerwood, Paul Stalteri, Chris Pozniak, Will Johnson, Charles Gbeke, Marcel De Jonh, Kevin Harmse, Issey Nakjima-Farran

Jamaica: Donovan Ricketts, Damian Steward, Claude Davis, Ian Goodison, Ricardo Fuller, Luton Shelton, Demar Phillips, Tyrone Marshall, Ricardo Gardner, O'Neil Thompson, Rodolph Austin

It should be a dramatic night of qualifying. Share your thoughts below.

What USA lineup would you like to see vs. Guatemala?

                                                           Photo by ISIphotos.com

The last World Cup qualifier of the year for the U.S. men's national team is two days away, meaning the last chance for U.S. fans to see some of the team's younger prospects, as well as a chance to see some veteran faces back in the mix.

The game won't be an easy one as Guatemala enters needing a victory and some help to reach the Hexagonal round of qualifying. It should provide a good test for this group of players:

• GOALKEEPERS: Brad Guzan, Troy Perkins, Matt Pickens
• DEFENDERS: Jonathan Bornstein, Sean Franklin, Cory Gibbs, Clarence Goodson, Drew Moor, Michael Parkhurst
• MIDFIELDERS: Freddy Adu, Davy Arnaud, Ricardo Clark, Sacha Kljestan, Pablo Mastroeni, John Thorrington
• FORWARDS: Jozy Altidore, Conor Casey, Brian Ching, Kenny Cooper, Chris Rolfe

So what lineup might we see on Wednesday? Here is one possible combination you could see against Guatemala:

Altidore and Adu headline 20-man USA roster for Guatemala qualifier

                                                               Photo by ISIphotos.com

Jozy Altidore, Kenny Cooper and Freddy Adu headline a roster of 20 players called in for Wednesday's World Cup qualifier against Guatemala at Dick's Sporting Goods Park.

Here is the squad:

GOALKEEPERS: Brad Guzan, Troy Perkins, Matt Pickens

DEFENDERS: Jonathan Bornstein, Sean Franklin, Cory Gibbs, Clarence Goodson, Drew Moor, Michael Parkhurst

MIDFIELDERS: Freddy Adu, Davy Arnaud, Ricardo Clark, Sacha Kljestan, Pablo Mastroeni, John Thorrington

FORWARDS: Jozy Altidore, Conor Casey, Brian Ching, Kenny Cooper, Chris Rolfe

Some of the new faces include MLS rookie of the year Sean Franklin, Chicago Fire midfielder John Torrington and Mr. Fan Favorite himself, Kenny Cooper.

Colorado striker Conor Casey also gets a well-earned nod after finishing the MLS season strongly. Casey and Rapids teammate Cory Gibbs join Pablo Mastroeni in the contingent of Colorado players who could play in front of their home fans.

What do you think of this group? Who are you looking forward to see play? We'll save lineup projections for Monday. For now just share your thoughts on the roster in the comments section below.

Gulati: Subotic to Serbia report "untrue"

In the wake of a report out of Serbia claiming that Borussia Dortmund defender Neven Subotic has chosen to play for the Serbian national team, U.S. Soccer president Sunil Gulati has stepped forward to shoot down the report.

We have spoken to Neven's representative and can confirm the story is untrue," Gulati said on Saturday.

Subotic has yet to choose a national team to play for and can play for either the United States or Serbia. The 19-year-old defender scored two goals in Borussia Dortmund's 4-0 win against Eintracht Frankfurt on Saturday.

Sources with knowledge of Subotic's process have stated for a long time that he would not make a decision until after the current club season was over, which appears to still be the case.

What do you think of this news? Breathing a little easier? Do you see a tug-of-war between Serbia and the USA?

Share your thoughts below.

Report: Subotic chooses Serbia

According to a report out of Serbia picked up by Fox Sports, the Borussia Dortmund defender and former U.S. Under-17 national team player has decided to play for the Serbian national team. (U.S. soccer president Sunil Gulati has called the report untrue)

Subotic has yet to speak publicly about a decision, but if he has chosen Serbia then it would end a lengthy saga that saw Subotic flirt with the possibility of playing for Germany before FIFA stepped in and ruled he would be unable to because he wasn't a German citizen before playing for the United States on the youth level.

Landon Donovan's European Vacation

If you are scratching your head at the above photo, and the sight of Landon Donovan clad in Bayern Munich attire, then you probably missed the news that Donovan is spending 10 days training with the German champions, a stint that began on Tuesday.

While it is being called just a training stint, it is safe to say the 10-day stint is being used as a test drive by Bayern Munich, whish is strongly considering acquiring Donovan during the January transfer window. While Los Angeles Galaxy officials have stated strongly that Donovan will be back with the Galaxy in 2009, you can't help but get the feeling that it is time for Donovan to leave MLS and step up to the challenge of playing in one of Europe's top leagues.

Count me among those intrigued at the prospect of the U.S. national team star potentially joining Juergen Klinsmann at Bayern Munich, one of the top teams in Europe. If the thought of a Luca Toni-Landon Donovan partnership gets you excited then enjoy the photo below.

Feel free to share your thoughts on Donovan's Bayern training stint, and a potential departure from MLS to Europe this winter, in the comments section below.

Who would you like to see start for the USMNT against Guatemala

                                                                               Photo by ISIphotos.com

With the berth into the Hexagonal round of World Cup qualifying already secure, the U.S. national team has the unique opportunity to play a World Cup qualifier with nothing on the line, which means having the chance to play some younger players and giving some new players a look.

Next Wednesday's World Cup qualifier against Guatemala should offer us a chance to see some faces we haven't seen with the national team in a while, and some players who have seen their stock rise in recent months.

We still don't know who will make up the match roster, but we know we aren't likely to see key starters such as Tim Howard, Landon Donovan, Carlos Bocanegra, Oguchi Onyewu and Michael Bradley. With that in mind, here is a lineup I wouldn't mind seeing next Wednesday:

Americans Abroad: Weekend Rewind

                                                 Photo by ISIphotos.com

As far as second seasons in Europe go, Charlie Davies had himself a very good one.

The U.S. national team striker concluded the Swedish season last weekend by scoring two goals to give him a season total of 14, that is 11 more than the three he scored in his first year with Hammarby. Having shown promising glimpses for the national team, Davies is looking very much like a candidate for the 2010 World Cup.

Davies' performance was one of severa good ones for Americans Abroad last weekend. You had Michael Bradley returning to the Borussia Moenchengladbach lineup in a crucial victory. You had Clint Dempsey helping set up the eventual game-winning penalty kick for Fulham with one of his first touches and you had Carlos Bocanegra helping Rennes post yet another shutout.

Here is how all the Americans Abroad did last weekend:

Donovan wins Honda Award as clueless voters get it wrong

In what has to be one of the more embarrassing results in American soccer award history, Landon Donovan has been named the 2008 Honda Player of the Year, beating out Tim Howard in a vote that can best described as a bad joke.

The announcement marked Donovan's fifth Honda Player of the Year award, and while he has certainly earned many of those, the 2008 prize will go down as the clearest example of a flawed voting set-up that has culminated in a result that has to diminish the credibility of a once-prestigious award.

Bradley calls in 19-man roster for brief training camp

The U.S. national team has called in a 19-player roster for a four-day camp in Colorado. The short came comes a week ahead the team's upcoming World Cup qualifier against Guatemala on Nov. 19 at Dick's Sporting Goods Park. The roster for the mini-camp is NOT the World Cup qualifying roster, or even the final qualifying camp roster. Veteran midfielder Pablo Mastroeni and MLS star striker Kenny Cooper are among the selections for the short camp.

Here is the rest of the group:

GOALKEEPERS: Brian Edwards (Toronto FC), Troy Perkins (Valerenga IF), Matt Pickens (out of contract)

DEFENDERS: Jonathan Bornstein (Chivas USA), Sean Franklin (Los Angeles Galaxy), Cory Gibbs (Colorado Rapids), Clarence Goodson (IK Start), Drew Moor (FC Dallas), Michael Parkhurst (New England Revolution)

MIDFIELDERS: Colin Clark (Colorado Rapids), Ricardo Clark (Houston Dynamo), Sacha Kljestan (Chivas USA), Nick LaBrocca (Colorado Rapids), Pablo Mastroeni (Colorado Rapids)

FORWARDS: Davy Arnaud (Kansas City Wizards), Chad Barrett (Toronto FC), Conor Casey (Colorado Rapids), Brian Ching (Houston Dynamo), Kenny Cooper (FC Dallas)

Again, this is not the entire group that U.S. coach Bob Bradley will select his final roster from, with players whose teams lose in the MLS conference finals as well as some other European-based players being possibilities to be called in. in fact, a good number of the players on this initial roster won't be on the roster vs. Guatemala.

What do you think of this group? What name surprises you the most? What player are you happiest to see get a call (besides Kenny Cooper)?

Share your thoughts below.

Morning Ticker: Donovan training with Bayern, more MLS awards and Howard set to be honored

                                                Photo by ISIphotos.com

In what could be a prelude to a loan move and potentially a full transfer, Landon Donovan is in Germany preparing to begin a week-long training stint with Bayern Munich.

Donovan could wind up joining Bayern as replacement for out-of-favor German striker Lukas Podolski, who appears on his way out. Bayern general manager Uli Hoeness stated that Podolski wouldn't leave unless the team could find a suitable replacement. With Juergen Klinsmann being a fan of Donovan, the U.S. national team star just might be that replacement.

Here are some other stories to get your day started:

Who gets your Hall of Fame vote?

                                                              Photo by ISIphotos.com

While the presidential election remains a hot topic today, there is another upcoming election that should have American soccer fans extremely interested. Twenty-five former players are on the ballot for induction into the 2009 National Soccer Hall of Fame class and the list is loaded with MLS and U.S. national team standouts.

The list is comprised of 19 former Major League Soccer stars, four standouts from the U.S. women's national team and two former NASL/indoor all-stars. Select members of the media, Hall of Famers, U.S. national team coaches past and present, select MLS coaches and administators from MLS, WPS and U.S. soccer get to vote, but being in the democratic society that we live in, we at SBI are offering you, the fans, a chance to voice your opinion.

Here are the 25 candidates for the 2008 class of the National Soccer Hall of Fame: