Posts Tagged ‘Daniel kelley’

USA vs. Ghana: Let The Blame Games Begin

Sunday, June 27th, 2010

By Daniel Kelley
(OFFICIAL ONELOVE U.S. CORESPONDENT)

happier days in Ellis Park – photo cred: Alex V.

Team USA’s magical cup run has sadly come to an end. With tons of hype and momentum behind them USA had to beat their old foe Ghana. Unfortunately much like in 2006 Ghana got the better of the yanks once again. In the three out of the four games team USA played they found themselves down a goal early on. In all the other games they dug deep and found a way to claw back and salvage a point. Today though was just not their day.

Many will wonder now who they can blame for team USA’s failure to get past the round of 16. The finger will be solely pointed at one person, Mr. Bob Bradley. Heralded as the saint and savior of soccer in America just this morning before the match, many will be asking for his resignation of his post as head coach of team USA. Bradley did mostly everything right leading up to the game against Ghana. He won the Gold Cup, helped the team finish second behind Brazil in the Confederations Cup, and had team USA finish first in group C of the 2010 world cup. Still though a lot of his decisions need to be questioned.

When you have a good thing going, why change it? Many will be asking Bob Bradley that very same question in regards to playing Ricardo Clark tonight. Clark played poorly in the opening group game and hadn’t played since. Suddenly, and rather shockingly, he was reinstated in the starting lineup for an extremely important match. Bradley has been known to be a gambling man and sometimes taking a risk pays off, and sometimes it doesn’t. Replacing Oguchi Onyewu with Jonathon Bornstein was a huge gamble that paid off for Bradley. Replacing Maurice Edu/Benny Feilhaber with Ricardo Clark was a gamble that most definitely did not pay off. Clark started the Ghana game by giving up possession in the middle of the park that resulted in a goal, and then picking up an extremely dangerous yellow card almost immediately after. Give Bradley credit for admitting his mistake by subbing Clark after 30 minutes, but still he took a huge risk by playing Clark that really hurt team USA.

Bradley has done a wonderful job with team USA and exceeded everyone’s expectations, but after this loss to Ghana USA fans will be thinking that team USA could have, and should have, done better. Sometimes you have to stick with what works, and for some reason Bradley decided not to. USA had a respectable run, but excuses aside for why they didn’t go farther, they need to do better

Player Ratings:

Howard-6- Made some good saves tonight but probably should have done better with the opening the goal. Much like his central defenders in the opening minutes, Howard was ball watching and out of position.

Cherundolo-6.5- Not his best game by a long shot. Had some shaky moments in the beginning but got better as the game went on. Dolo probably has the most dangerous cross on the team and he used it to good effect today.

Bocanegra-6- Had both good and bad moments throughout the game. His poor communication with DeMerit and ball watching cost his team the game unfortunately.

DeMerit-6- One of the more consistent players on team USA throughout the tournament. Today though he made a lot of costly errors that hurt the team quite a bit. Won a lot of balls in the air like he always does, but had a really hard time communicating with his partner in central defense.

Bornstein-7- I never thought I would say this but…Johnny B. had a great game today. The best player on the backline, absolutely owned the left side of the field. A very surprising solid and mistake free game from Bornstein.

Bradley-7- Has raised his stock significantly in this tournament. Worked tirelessly today and did all he could to keep team USA in it.

Clark-3- An absolutely dreadful performance from Clark. Clark put on a real horror show today. His two most cringe worthy moments were giving the ball away in the middle field to help setup Ghana’s opening goal and then getting a silly yellow, which could have easily been a red, for a vicious tackle on Kevin-Prince Boateng. Clark was hauled off on the 30th minute, and walking off the field was the best thing he did the whole game.

Donovan-7- Superbly finished his penalty kick to tie the game and take his goal tally to three, but didn’t play as well as he had in the other games.

Dempsey-8- Great game from Deuce today, did everything but score a goal. Worked hard and was a constant threat on the attack. Made some great touches and was a real nuisance for Ghana’s backline. Drew the penalty that led to the tying goal.

Findley-4- Continues to not take advantage of good opportunities to score. Findley is just not good enough to compete at this level.

Altidore-6.5- Without a doubt the hardest working forward in this tournament, who cannot score goals. He has a real knack for keeping possession and drawing fouls, but his finishing really needs to get better. Solid game today but could have been even better had he done more with the chances he had.

Substitutions:

Edu-6- Made an immediate impact after he came on for Ricardo Clark. Broke up plays and won balls in the middle of the park. If he can improve his passing game he will become an infinitely better player. Wasted a lot of possession with errant passes.

Feilhaber-7.5- What is going on with Benny? Ever since his laser volley against Mexico in the Gold Cup he has been on downward spiral in terms of his form. Suddenly in the last two matches he has featured in, he has looked and played like a new man. Fantastic creative play and a newfound urgency in his defensive game has made him start to live up to his hype. The real question is why did Ricardo Clark start against Ghana and not the in form Benny Feilhaber?

Gomez-6- Next to Charlie Davies team USA only has one other player who has a real eye for goal and knows how to be in the right place at the right time. That player is Mr. Herculez Gomez. The super-sub from Las Vegas came on after regulation to push the Ghanaian defense but didn’t do much. He pushed up hard and did well to make things difficult for Ghana but never got the chance to put the ball in back of the net. Would have been a much more suitable forward to start alongside Altidore instead of Findley.

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USA vs. Algeria: Thoughts and Players Ratings

Friday, June 25th, 2010

By Daniel Kelley

(OFFICIAL ONELOVE U.S. CORESPONDENT)

Group C of the 2010 world cup has been nothing but an emotional rollercoaster for everyone involved.  Underdogs prevailed and shook things up in the beginning.  Slovenia got an unlikely stranglehold on the group’s lead, and England struggled immensely to get anything going.  Algeria started with a loss thanks to a major goalkeeping howler, but shocked everyone by tying England in a game that many thought they would lose.  In the end though team USA prevailed and surprised everyone by winning group C.

After making the most of the gift that Robert Green awarded team USA with his now infamous goalkeeping error and coming back against Slovenia in the most controversial game of the tournament so far, USA had to beat Algeria to have any chance of progressing to the knockout stages.  The game started in typical USA fashion with a miscommunication in the USA backline that resulted in Rafik Djebbour of Algeria letting off a blistering shot that flew past a hapless Tim Howard and smacked the crossbar.  From there USA went on the attack and relentlessly pressed the Algerian backline and went on to score a goal that was controversially disallowed.  One must think that the cries of a conspiracy must be lurking in the background because twice now USA has controversially been denied two legitimate goals.  Surprise starter Herculez Gomez let off a powerful shot that missed the goal, but allowed a waiting Clint Dempsey to pounce on the rebound and score.  Unfortunately Frank De Bleeckere of Belgium, the latest error prone referee to officiate a game, called the goal offside.  Replays would show that Dempsey was most definitely onside, but unfortunately De Bleeckere would only be able to see those replays after the game was over.

After the goal had officially been disallowed, both teams furiously attacked each other.  USA had more chances but they just couldn’t seem to take advantage of them, and with news that England was beating Slovenia desperation was beginning to set in.  There was a moment of hope when Clint Dempsey curled in a perfect shot that beat the keeper but hit the post instead of going in the net.    Just when everyone was ready to throw in the towel and brace themselves for another disappointing world cup campaign the unexpected happened.  In a goalmouth scramble in the 91st minute a loose ball fell to the feet of Landon Donovan.  In a game full of missed chances and blown opportunities Donovan did not hesitate and scored a dramatic game winner that will not only take USA to the next round but allowed them to win group C all together.  Donovan’s goal will be one of the most important ones ever for him.  It keeps USA in the tournament and more importantly it gives the team more support from their country than ever before.  USA is off to arguably one of their best starts ever to a world cup and looks set to use their momentum to progress even farther in what is becoming one of the most wild and unpredictable world cup’s ever.

Player Ratings:

Howard – 7 – In what is becoming a frightening recurring trend, Howard was nearly scored on by a powerful shot in the opening minutes.  Thankfully for Howard and team USA the crossbar prevented the shot from going in.  Solid play from Howard tonight, made some pointblank saves that kept team USA in the game.

Cherundolo – 7 – Dolo has looked pretty great on the right so far in this tournament.  He did his usual thing with relative ease tonight, he held down the right side and came up on the attack with penetrating runs and dangerous crosses.

DeMerit – 8 – It’s pretty amazing that DeMerit only plays in the Championship league in England because he has shone the world that he can compete at the highest level.  His passing game still needs work but his game in the air is unbelievable.  Has a knack of winning just about every aerial ball he goes for, great game for DeMerit.

Bocanegra – 6.5 – Looked a little uncomfortable in the middle at times.  Despite some unfamiliarity in the middle he had a solid yet forgettable game for the captain.

Bornstein – 6.5 – Came in for Gooch to provide more speed out of the back.  Had a solid game, played smart and contributed to the attack on a few occasions.  It was rare error-free performance for the Chivas USA defender today.

Donovan – 8 – Faded in and out of the game and was having trouble getting past the stingy Algerian defense.  Kept his recent goal scoring streak alive with a HUGE goal in stoppage time. Landy Cakes is trying to make everyone forget about his poor performances in 2006, and so far its working.

Bradley – 8 – Bradley is a star in the making, and this world cup is proving to be his showcase.  Endless amounts of energy and great vision on the field, what more could you want from a box to box midfielder?  He looked fearless today, and never seemed like he was resigned to be knocked out of the tournament.

Edu – 6 – Broke up lots of plays and won possession, but kept giving the ball away with poor passes.  Needs his offensive game to be as good as his defensive one.

Dempsey – 7 – Played a hard fought game and was unlucky to have his goal get disallowed, and was also unlucky to hit the post in the second half.  Was getting abused by the Algerian defenders and midfielders throughout the game but he still fought tirelessly.  Had a big hand in Donovan’s goal to win the game.

Gomez – 6 – A shock starter.  Very surprising to see him get the start today in such an important game.  Made the most of his chance and looked dangerous today.  Would have liked to have seen him play a little longer than he did.

Altidore – 7.5 – Jozy Altidore, the forward who does not score.  Did all the dirty work today up top.  Won balls, kept possession, and picked up fouls in all the right areas for team USA.  Will be frustrated not to have scored yet, but should be happy with his play.

Substitutes

Feilhaber – 7 – Came on at the half for Gomez and looked like a different player than from the one in previous games.  Played with intensity and grit, broke up plays and made dangerous passes.  Looked really solid today in the midfield.

Buddle – 5 – Held the ball up well but looked too slow to be playing at this level.  Needs to make better decisions with his passing game.

Beasley – 5 – Came on at the end as USA’s last attacking option off the bench.  Wasn’t able to do much except pick up some hard fouls and get a silly yellow card for a handball.

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USA vs. Slovenia: Thoughts And Player Ratings

Sunday, June 20th, 2010

By Daniel Kelley

(OFFICIAL ONELOVE U.S. CORESPONDENT)

Most people were pretty divided on how this game would be.  Many thought that this would be a complete blowout, a real USA thumping of Slovenia.  After all, Slovenia is a country that is about the same size as say…Houston, Texas.  Others however recognized that although Slovenia is tiny blip on the map in Europe they actually play some pretty decent soccer.  They only had four goals scored against them in world cup qualifying, and knocked out well-regarded Russia in a playoff to make it to the world cup.  Sure enough Slovenia gave team USA a real scare with some solid play and two goals that caught the red, white, and blue completely off guard.

The game got off to quite a start when Clint Dempsey unleashed a vicious looking elbow on Zlatan Ljubijankic of Slovenia, try saying that name fast five times, literally seconds after the kickoff. Dempsey was extremely fortunate to escape without any sort of punishment.  From there the tone was set for an extremely bizarre and physical game, both in terms of officiating and playing.  Valter Birsa of Slovenia went on to score on an incredible shot that left Tim Howard frozen, and then Ljubijankic got his revenge from the elbow and beat the USA offside trap to score.  USA was stunned, and looked like the euphoria from the England game had not yet worn off.  Somehow though team USA woke up and fought hard for one of the most astonishing comebacks in the team’s history.

With embarrassing officiating from Malian ref Koman Coulibaly team USA definitely had the odds against them.  Coulibaly’s performance was so bad that its already being said that he will not officiate any more games in the tournament.  There is much evidence to be seen for why he has no place officiating such high profile games.  Just see the call on Findley for a handball, Marko Suler taking down Altidore, and of course the goal Maurice Edu scored that was called back for a phantom foul.  Coulibaly robbed USA of a deserved victory and should really be ashamed for his amateur hour officiating.

All controversy aside USA played a poor first half and deserved to be down by two goals.  Bob Bradley must have had some stern and inspiring words at halftime because the team came out to play with fire in their eyes for the second half.  Landon Donovan scored a wonder goal on a tight angle, sort of similar to Maicon’s goal in the Brazil vs. North Korea game, and had a hand in Michael Bradley’s tying goal.  Great comeback from team USA, they needed a win but a tie still keeps them in it.  Also thanks to England’s Abysmal draw with Algeria everyone is still alive in this group.  Crazy game tonight, but the thought that Team USA was cheated by the ref will linger in the minds of USA fans for a long time, especially if they don’t end up advancing out of the group.

Player Ratings:

1

Tim Howard-7- Has a bad habit of coming too far off his line and getting punished for it.  There is no denying that the first goal was a nice shot but Howard misjudged the shot and put himself in a position where all he could do was watch the ball fly in the back of net.  Played a solid game other than the first goal, and did all he could for the second one.

Oguchi Onyewu-5- Gooch looked sluggish.  Thought he might be back to his old self after the England game but he still looks very rusty.

Jay DeMerit-7.5-Completely dominant in the air.  Won just about every ball he went for in the second half.  Still has the occasional miscommunication with his partner in the central defense and needs to work on his passing game.  Played with real conviction and determination, great performance.

Carlos Bocanegra-5.5- Tough game for ‘los, he was getting worked pretty hard on the left side the whole game.

Steve Cherundolo-6-Definitely didn’t have the amazing game he had against England.  Didn’t seem as sharp tonight but still had some nice plays both defensively and offensively.

José Torres-6.5- Had the opportunity to show the world his ability to hold down the middle and didn’t really do much.  Showed some fancy footwork and took a great free kick that nearly turned into a goal.

Michael Bradley-8-Bradley was all over the field, both breaking up plays and making them.  Hard working performance capped off by a clutch goal.

Landon Donovan-9-Landy Cakes stepped it up in a big way in this game.  While a lot of the other players seemed resigned to losing he got fired up.  Had a ridiculously nice goal and was involved with Bradley’s tying goal.

Clint Dempsey-6-Unbelievably fortunate to not get ejected for his elbow thirty seconds into the game.  Drifted in and out the match and had a somewhat anonymous game for Deuce.

Robbie Findley -5.5- Someone needs to remind Findley that forwards are supposed to score, or at least try to score.  Made good runs but was just too passive when it came time to attempt a shot.

Jozy Altidore-7- Huffed and puffed all game long and gave center back Marko Suler a very tough time.

Substitutes

Benny Feilhaber-5.5- A surprising half time substitution.  Took some nice touches and calmed things down in the middle.  His defensive play was pretty terrible though, seemed to forget that his team was losing.

Maurice Edu -6- Had a disallowed goal that would have made him the golden boy of American soccer. Sadly it was disallowed on one of the most shockingly bad calls in soccer history.

Herculez Gomez-6.5- Gomez has this undeniable ability to change a game.  Made immediate impact with his presence in the penalty area and nearly scored a goal himself late on.

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England vs. USA: Thoughts and Players Ratings

Tuesday, June 15th, 2010

By Daniel Kelley

( OFFICIAL ONELOVE U.S. CORESPONDENT)

The most anticipated match of the tournament thus far has come and gone.  England vs. USA was one for the ages, and will go down in both USA and English soccer history.  After a stunning opening strike from Steven Gerrard, England drew first blood and looked set to break American hearts.  Clint Dempsey however, was having none of it and scored what will be one of the most talked about goals in world cup history.

Only Robert Green will ever know what really happened, but his handling of Clint Dempsey’s shot was the howler of all howlers.  A shot that most keepers would have stopped with ease somehow got past Green and gave the Americans a most surprising lifeline.  Blame it on Green or blame it on the much talked about Jabulani ball, the goal stunned England and brought the Americans to life.  It was a hard fought game for the Americans, and if the world didn’t think this team could compete with the world’s best they saw first hand today that they most definitely can.  Thanks to an amazing display from Tim Howard and the back four, Steve Cherundolo in particular, USA played resiliently and came back from an early goal to get a much deserved point.

Player Ratings:

Tim Howard (G)-9- Was a rock in the goal today, an absolutely brilliant performance from Timmy Howard.  Time and time again thwarted England’s vicious attacks on goal and made some brilliant saves.  Emile Heskey will be having nightmares about Howard’s point blank stop on his shot.

Jay DeMerit (D)-8- After a moment of poor communication between him and Onyewu for the opener, DeMerit put on a great defensive display and effectively helped shut down Rooney.  The pride of Wisconsin wore his heart on his sleeve and played a great game today.

Oguchi Onyewu (D)-7- Sort of a surprise starter due to his lengthy injury and forgettable play in friendly matches leading up to this game.  Was caught ball watching on the opening goal but seemed to come to life afterwards.  Gooch started to look like his old self today, no longer afraid to jump for balls and threw himself into some hard tackles.  Gooch is back…well maybe.

Carlos Bocanegra (D)-6.5- Had a hard time dealing with the pace of the speedy England wingers at times. Still put on solid display and should be happy with his overall performance tonight.

Steve Cherundolo (D)-8- Absolutely fantastic game from the right back tonight.  Was an ever present threat in the attack and defended very well.  Made mince meat out of James Milner.

Ricardo Clark (M)-6- Forgot he was on the field at times.  Got the job done but never really put his mark on the game.  Would have liked to have seen a more creative midfielder like Torres or Feilhaber in his place.

Michael Bradley (M)-6.5- Much like Clark had a fairly anonymous game.  Still though he put in the dirty work in the middle of the field and had a solid game.

Clint Dempsey (M)-7- Wowzers.  What a goal and what a horrible howler from West Ham’s Robert Green.  This is a goal that will be talked about for many years to come. Dempsey made something out of nothing, got his goal and ran with it. Bad save, bad keeping, bad whatever the goal was clutch and allowed team USA to get a share of the points on the day.

Landon Donovan (M)-7- A Landon Donovan performance on the wing that we have all come to expect from our little internationally unknown superstar.  Donovan worked very hard today and had a good battle with Ashley Cole.  Also had some nice set pieces that his teammates should have done better on.

Jozy Altidore (F)-7- Worked hard and ran all over the place the whole game.  Was unlucky not to get a goal in the second half when Robert “Stone Hands” Green pushed his effort off the post.  Also had a great moment where he out muscled Jaime Carragher on a run towards the goal.  Needs to start making all that hard work turn into goals.

Robbie Findley (F)-4- Looked completely out of place. The only player on team USA who didn’t look like they belonged in the game. He was there for his speed and nothing else, and unfortunately all he really seemed to do was aimlessly run really fast.  Just about completely faded out of the game in the second half. Time to give Buddle or Herculez a chance up top.

Substitutes:

Edson Buddle (F)-4- Came into the game late and had very little impact.

Stuart Holden (M)-4.5- Replaced Altidore and came on bolster the midfield.

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Saturday, June 12th, 2010

By Daniel Kelley

(OFFICIAL ONELOVE US CORRESPONDENT)

The ads have been posted everywhere and just about every sports publication and major newspaper has had something to say about the second revolutionary war.  Tomorrow team USA will take on the mighty three lions in what many are saying will be England’s revenge match for the world cup game in 1950. A game that saw England lose to the lowly and unheard of, at least in the soccer world, team USA.  The Americans are taking every precaution they can to recreate the 1950 game, going as far as recreating the jersey’s worn in that game and giving it a slight modern update.  It’s 2010 now and both teams are much improved from their last previous competitive meeting.  The rematch is tomorrow and it’s looking to be one of the most anticipated games of the group stages.

It’s sixty years later now and much has changed for England since that fateful game in Brazil.  The three lions went on to win a world cup in 1966, famously got scored on by Diego Maradona’s hand in 1986, and managed to consistently miss tons of crucial penalty kicks in big time games.  They are world-renowned choke artists, but they have to be credited and respected for consistently going far in the tournaments they play in.  They also have managed to produce tons and tons of world-class players and have arguably the best professional league in the world.  England has been and continues to be a total powerhouse in Europe, a team loaded with real talent.

Team USA spent many years in soccer obscurity and mediocrity until the 1990’s, which saw them host a world cup and spark interest in the sport nationwide.  The result of that interest was the first legit professional soccer league since the NASL, a league that we all know as Major league Soccer. The league helped develop players that form the base of the current national team.  Players like Landon Donovan, Clint Dempsey, Tim Howard, and many more refined their playing skills playing in MLS.  While the MLS can most definitely not compete with England’s EPL it’s done pretty well for itself considering that the league is only fourteen years old, it also doesn’t hurt that one of England’s most celebrated players ever plies his trade in said league.  Since the formation of MLS team USA has become the perennial powerhouse in the CONCACAF region and has qualified for every world cup since 1990, a feat that not even mighty England has accomplished.

The playing field is much more even now then it was sixty years ago when team USA beat England.  USA was a practically an amateur team then, while England was loaded with well-respected professionals.  This time around both teams have well respected professionals, and while the odds are firmly on England to win because of star-studded talent like Wayne Rooney and John Terry, this will be a closely contested match and just might turn out to be another historic result for team USA.  With an injury to team captain and defensive talisman Rio Ferdinand, USA might be able to shake things up.  The real question though is how can a team like USA with no real superstars, in the eyes of people who don’t live in the US at least, beat a team with a reputation like England.  It’s quite simple really.  They can’t make costly silly mistakes.

With all of the drama of the Americans losing their influential stanky legging forward Charlie Davies, the general public was concerned that team USA would have a hard time scoring goals.  Well as it turns out USA has had no problem scoring as of late thanks to the heroics of the newfound/recycled talent of Edson Buddle and Herculez Gomez.  In USA’s last three friendly matches they scored a total of seven goals against pretty formidable opponents.  Unfortunately in the last three games they also managed to allow six goals against them, ouch.  Lets face it though, while they had some impressive wins they also had a lot of luck going in their favor.  Many laughable defensive errors were made in the friendly matches played.  The only team that took advantage of them were the Czech Republic.  The Czech’s scored four goals on USA and most of them were largely credited to some very woeful defending.  In the games against Turkey and Australia there were also some really noticeable defensive errors that went unpunished thanks to absolutely awful finishing.  England, unlike Turkey and Australia, has no problem taking advantage of defensive errors or scoring in general.  If team USA wants to go back to 1950 in 2010 they need to play smart, and they just can’t afford to make silly mistakes.

Bob Bradley won’t pull out to many surprises in the biggest game of his career, but there will be some new faces in the starting lineup that some people may not be used to seeing.  Meet Clarence Goodson the new starting centerback folks.  Oguchi “Gooch” Onyewu will retain his starting spot one day, but its not going to be in this game.  He is just not fit enough to play in a game like this.  In midfield Jose Francisco Torres, the new and much improved version of Claudio Reyna, will be the other starting center midfielder.  Look for Torres to prove his worth in this game show that while he is a finesse player he can dig in and get physical.  Finally up top next to Jozy Altidore will be…Robbie Findley?  Yeah that’s right, Robbie Findley is going to play and start in the world cup.  I honestly never saw this coming but lets all face the inevitable, Findley is going to start against England tomorrow.  He has looked like a new and improved player as of late. Only problem is that he can’t seem to score, even when it’s an open net.  In the Australia game he skillfully missed two open goals. Hopefully whatever force field was around the goal during that Australia game is gone tomorrow.

Projected line up:

Formation 4-4-2

Howard

Cherundolo, DeMerit, Goodson, Bocanegra

Donovan, Torres, Bradley, Dempsey

Altidore, Findley

Prediction:

USA-2, England-1

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USA 23 Man Roster

Thursday, May 27th, 2010

By Daniel Kelley

(ONELOVE U.S. Correspondent)

The time has finally come! The 23-man roster for team USA has been announced.  Bob Bradley has picked the best of the best to show their worth on the world’s stage this summer.  Still though Bob Bradley made a few roster decisions that will leave a lot of people scratching their heads.

The obvious picks were made in terms of goalkeepers and defenders, Bornstein is only there because sadly he is the closest thing we have to a left back, but there were definitely some surprises in the midfield and forward selections.  Most of the players I thought would not make the trip didn’t, however I was quite surprised to see Beasley make the team.  All credit to him, he successfully played his way back on the team.  Sorry not to see Bedoya make it, but Beasley earned his place. Is the old Beasley back in time to make a difference in 2010?

The forward dilemma has been the big story all year long.  I’m sure no one ever would have guessed that both Edson Buddle and Herculez “Goal: The Dream Begins” Gomez would be on the team, but sure enough here they are.  The most surprising thing to me is that Robbie Findley made the team.  He must have some incriminating pictures of Bob Bradley because it seemed like there was no way he would make the final roster, especially since he didn’t even play in the friendly on Tuesday.  Tough break for Brian Ching, he looked good against the Czech’s.  Elated to see Eddie Johnson will not be making the trip to Africa.  The guy just can’t compete at the international level, then again neither can Findley.

U.S. ROSTER BY POSITION (All-Time World Cup Roster Appearances)

GOALKEEPERS (3): Brad Guzan (2010), Marcus Hahnemann (2006, 2010), Tim Howard (2006, 2010)

DEFENDERS (7): Carlos Bocanegra (2006, 2010), Jonathan Bornstein (2010), Steve Cherundolo (2002, 2006, 2010), Jay DeMerit (2010), Clarence Goodson (2010), Oguchi Onyewu (2006, 2010), Jonathan Spector (2010)

MIDFIELDERS (9): DaMarcus Beasley (2002, 2006, 2010), Michael Bradley (2010), Ricardo Clark (2010), Clint Dempsey (2006, 2010), Landon Donovan (2002, 2006, 2010), Maurice Edu (2010), Benny Feilhaber (2010), Stuart Holden (2010), José Torres (2010)

FORWARDS (4): Jozy Altidore (2010), Edson Buddle (2010), Robbie Findley (2010), Herculez Gomez (2010

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USA vs. CZECH REPUBLIC: Thoughts and Player Ratings

Wednesday, May 26th, 2010

By Daniel Kelley

(ONELOVE U.S. Correspondent)

Bob Bradley decided to make a bold move and field a team for tonight’s friendly composed of fringe players on the outside looking in.  While the starters were resting in a luxury box, ESPN hilariously kept showing Carlos Bocanegra annihilating buffalo wings, many of those players vying for a spot on the 23 man team played their way onto to the team, and some played their way off.

In the first half we saw Oguchi Onyewu play his first game of competitive action since October and it was far from impressive. He was clearly at fault on the first Czech goal, and looked sort of afraid to push himself and win those all-important aerial battles.  After Gooch’s performance I’m not so sure he is fit enough to even make the squad. Fortunately for him he probably will make the team, at the expense of Chad Marshall of course.

Gooch’s defensive partner Clarence Goodson had a fantastic game and was involved in both of the USA goals.  His passing needs some work, but he had a real good presence in the air and played with a lot of confidence.

Speaking of confidence, or lack there of I should say, the play of both Jonathan Bornstein and Heath Pearce left me not feeling good about our left back situation.  Bornstein had the pace to keep up with the Czech’s but his passing was embarrassing. Failed cross after failed cross in the 45 minutes that he played.  The only good thing going for Bornstein is that Pearce managed to play even worse than he did.  Pearce got burned pretty badly on a few occasions and pretty much played his way off the team tonight.

In the midfield battle Jose Francisco Torres, Stuart Holden, Maurice Edu, and even DaMarcus Beasley had a good first half.  Torres played with finesse and passed the ball around pretty well.  He needs to add some physical play to his game to compliment his great touch and passing skills.  The Rangers duo of Edu and Beasley had good games on the night.  Edu scored one of the sloppier goals I’ve had the pleasure of seeing and Beasley looked lively in his 45 minutes, almost reminded me of 2002 world cup Beasley.  The midfield in the first half essentially booked their tickets to South Africa tonight.

Tonight we finally got to see how the forward situation would play out.  In the first half Edson Buddle and Eddie Johnson got the start.  Buddle huffed and puffed for 45 minutes and did all he could.  He played hard, held the ball up well and even got himself involved in the first goal.  Eddie Johnson did he what EJ does best, he held the ball up too long and never looked like he was going to score the whole game.  Johnson played his way off the team tonight with his dismal performance.  For Buddle his performance was just not enough because both second half strikers just played better.

Brian Ching came in and made a huge difference. He passed well and held up the ball, he looked dangerous.  Herculez! Herculez! Where do I begin with this guy?  No one ever would have guessed he would even be in the running for World Cup and yet here he is. He came off the bench and did what surely no one thought he would do.  He scored a goal!  I can no longer hide my bias for this guy, his story is truly inspirational and barring some sort of freak error in judgment from Bradley he will make the 23 man roster.  Herculez Gomez, USA super sub!

The second half midfield left little to be desired.  Sacha Kljestan was pretty much anonymous, and Alejandro Bedoya did more defending and backtracking then he really needed to being do.  Robbie Rogers had a pretty decent game and made the most of his chance tonight.  He held the ball a little too long at times when he probably should have passed, but he had some nice crosses and one nice shot from way out on Peter Cech.

This game was experiment to give the fringe players their chance at showing their worth.  I would say it was good exercise and should give Bradley an idea of who should really make this team.  Next up we get to see the starters in full action against Turkey.  Hopefully the starters didn’t eat as many buffalo wings as Bocanegra did.

Player Ratings:

Based on a scale of 1-10

(G) Brad Guzan-5- Not really at fault for any of the goals, but having 4 goals scored against you is never good. Would have liked to have seen Hahnemann play instead

(D) Steve Cherundolo-7- One of the few bright spots for the back four tonight.  Passed well, attacked well, and defended pretty well too

(D) Oguchi Onyewu-3.5- Gooch did not look like Gooch tonight.  He looked like he was afraid to jump and made some silly fouls.  Someone needs to remind him that he needs to actually jump to win an aerial battle.  Was 100% to blame on the first Czech goal.

(D) Jonathan Bornstein-3- Looked shaky and unsure of himself. Luckily for him Heath Pearce managed to play even worse than he did.

(D) Clarence Goodson-6.5- A pleasantly surprising performance from Goodson.  Was good in the air and had a hand in both goals, his header to keep the ball in play for Gomez’s goal was sublime.

(M) DaMarcus Beasley-7- Beasley is making his horrid performances in the last summers Confederations Cup easier to forget with his recent play for the national team.  He looked good tonight.

(M) Jose Francisco Torres-7.5- Looked really good tonight, distributed the ball well and had some killer touches.  Needs to be better physically.

(M) Stuart Holden-8- Whatever rust he had from his injury is gone.  Looked really good on the wing tonight.

(M) Maurice Edu-6- Had a typical Edu sloppy goal, much like the ones he scores for Rangers in Scotland. His passing left little to be desired, and he looked awful as a centerback in the second half.

(F) Edson Buddle-5- worked hard and did his best, but probably not enough to get to South Africa

(F) Eddie Johnson-3- EJ was ineffective and had his back to the goal for the whole time he played. Never looked dangerous and never looked like he want to score.

Substitutes

(F) Herculez Gomez-6.5- Wow. Did Gomez really just do what I think he did? Yup. Came off the bench and scored a goal, see you in South Africa buddy.

(F) Brian Ching-6- Nice performance from the flying Hawaiian, looked really confident tonight.  Played smart and held up the ball really well, sealed his spot on the roster tonight.

(M) Sacha Kljestan-4.5- Disappeared in the midfield tonight. Was supposed to be an attacking/creative catalyst in the midfield but decided to run around aimlessly instead. Probably on a plane back to Chivas USA tomorrow.

(M) Robbie Rogers-5.5- Had a pretty good performance tonight, probably going to make the team at the expense of Bedoya.

(M) Alejandro Bedoya-5- Didn’t get much of a look tonight which was very unfortunate for him.  Bedoya is a player with a lot of potential, but wasn’t able to do much with the limited time he had on the pitch.  Not going to make the final 23.

(D) Heath Pearce-2.5- Has had a revival in form playing for FC Dallas, unfortunately for him his strong play in MLS did not carry over onto the international level.  Looked out of place tonight and played terribly, played his way off the team.

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TEAM USA: 30-Man Roster and Analysis

Monday, May 24th, 2010

By Daniel Kelley

(ONELOVE U.S. Correspondent)

Coach Bob Bradley presented his 30 man roster to public last week and there were very few shocks and surprises to be had.  While many are in uproar about Charlie Davies not making the cut, Bradley has put together the best that the US has to offer.  The squad is primarily made up of the players plying their trade in Europe, and also includes the usual suspects from MLS and the Mexican league

GOALKEEPERS (3): Brad Guzan (Aston Villa), Tim Howard (Everton), Marcus Hahnemann (Wolverhampton)

Goalkeepers have always been our finest US import for the soccer world.  All three keepers play at the highest level in England, and will without a doubt be on the plane to South Africa.  Tim “Timmy” Howard is the undisputed starter.

The real question is who will be the back up.  Bradley loves Guzan but he has played sporadically at best for Villa this year.  Marcus Hahnemann on the other hand has been sensational this season for Wolves.  He should be back up for Howard, but Guzan is a Bradley favorite from his days back at Chivas USA and he’ll probably get the number two spot.

DEFENDERS (9): Carlos Bocanegra (Rennes), Jonathan Bornstein (Chivas USA), Steve Cherundolo (Hannover), Jay DeMerit (Watford), Clarence Goodson (IK Start), Chad Marshall (Columbus Crew), Oguchi Onyewu (AC Milan), Heath Pearce (FC Dallas), Jonathan

Spector (West Ham United)

The biggest concerns for the defense is who will play in the middle and who is the best person to play left back.  Oguchi “Gooch” Onyewu has finally recovered from his serious knee injury, but hasn’t played a competitive match since October.  Ideally he would be a starter but it remains to be seen how match fit he is.

Jay DeMerit is a total beast.  The guy is fearless and really plays with his heart on sleeve whenever he puts on that USA jersey.  There is no header he won’t go for and that’s the kind of player we need playing in the heart of defense.  What he lacks in creativity and vision on the field he makes up for with his hard play and fearlessness.

Captain Carlos Bocanegra often plays in the middle for the national team but plays left back for his Ligue One club Rennes.  The concern with him as a left back though is his speed.  While he is one of the best defenders on the team he does not have the speed to keep up with the likes of Shaun Wright Phillips and Aaron Lennon of England.

Jonathon Bornstein and Heath Pearce do have that speed on the left, but both are so prone to making big mistakes in big games that Bradley may opt to have Bocanegra play out on the left.  Cherundolo and Spector will duke it out for the right back spot.  Both have come off rocky seasons in Germany and England where both of their teams were nearly relegated.  Cherundolo will most likely be the starting right back, but with a strong camp and good performances in the upcoming friendlies Spector might give him a run for his money.

My guess is that all of these guys will be on the plane to South Africa except for MLS’ers  Chad Marshall and Heath Pearce.  Look for a backline with Cherundlo at right back, Gooch and Demiret in the middle, and Bocanegra playing on the left.  Don’t be surprised if Bradley’s favorite left back, Jonathon Bornstein, ends up playing on the left.  If that’s the case I may have to watch all these games with my eyes closed.

MIDFIELDERS (12): DaMarcus Beasley (Rangers), Alejandro Bedoya (Örebro), Michael Bradley (Borussia Mönchengladbach), Ricardo Clark (Eintracht Frankfurt), Clint Dempsey (Fulham), Landon Donovan (Los Angeles Galaxy), Maurice Edu (Rangers), Benny Feilhaber (Aarhus), Stuart Holden (Bolton), Sacha Kljestan (Chivas USA), Robbie Rogers (Columbus Crew), José Torres (Pachuca)

The US midfield has become one our deeper positions over the past few years.  This world cup will be a changing of the guard of sorts.  With players like Claudio Reyna retired and old favorites like DaMarcus Beasley having their best years behind them a new generation of players will lead the midfield.

Michael Bradley has shrugged off any claims of nepotism and has proven his worth as a solid defensive midfielder who can get the job done and even score every now and then.  Next time with him in the middle will either be Ricardo Clark, a Bradley favorite, or Maurice Edu.  Clark has found games hard to come by in Germany so I think Edu should get the starting spot.  He had a great season with Rangers and even scored against Celtic in the Glasgow derby, a goal that sealed his spot as a Rangers legend.  On the wings will be golden boy Landon “landy cakes” Donovan and Stuart Holden.  Both players went across the pond to play in England this year and have done well.

Donovan became a fan favorite at Everton and really showed his critics that he can play at the top level and is heralded as the best US player for a reason.  Holden was just starting to come into the team at Bolton till his leg break in a friendly against the Dutch.  He is healthy again now and will use his speed and crossing ability on the wings in South Africa.

Newcomer Alejandro Bedoya will be great off the bench and will probably push DaMarcus Beasley off the roster.  Jose Torres and Benny Feilhaber will make the team but only as substitutes.  DaMarcus Beasley, Sacha Kljestan, and Robbie Rogers won’t make the final cut and be sent home.  I have most definitely not forgot about the team’s creative catalyst, Clint Dempsey. He will not be playing midfield though, because due to the huge void left by the absence of Charlie Davies he will be playing up top in the tournament.

FORWARDS (6): Jozy Altidore (Villarreal), Edson Buddle (Los Angeles Galaxy), Brian Ching (Houston Dynamo), Robbie Findley (Real Salt Lake), Herculez Gomez (Puebla), Eddie Johnson (Aris Thessaloniki)

With limited striking options, due to the injury of Davies, Bradley has invited national team recluses Herculez Gomez and Edson Buddle.  The two strikers are in scintillating form at the moment and Bradley is hoping that their rich vein of form will carry over into the World Cup.  Gomez last played for USA in the forgettable 2007 Copa America and hasn’t been called up since.  He went from being an MLS phenom to an MLS reject over the past few years. Somehow though he managed to get picked up by Mexican team Puebla and became the top scorer in the league.  His story is reminiscent of a Disney themed sports drama. He has gone from zero to hero in a big way.

Edson Buddle is Bradley’s other hope of being able to fill the void that Davies has left.  Buddle last played for USA in a 2003 friendly against Venezuela and has not been called up since.  After having a lot of mediocre seasons at various teams in MLS he landed in Los Angeles and found his form again.  He’s started the 2010 season with 9 goals in 9 games.  He is a forward that seems to always pop at the right time when he scores goals, and in this case he has managed to find his form at the right time to make his way onto the preliminary squad.

Ching is the target man.  The flying Hawaiian is a big player who can hold the ball up well, and will most likely make the team but not be a starter.  Eddie Johnson was once touted as superstar forward but he has had a tough time living up to his hype and so called potential.  With disastrous seasons in England with Fulham and Cardiff he has found a new lease on life in Greece with Aris, and much to everyone’s surprise has actually scored some goals this season.  Bradley loves him, for whatever reason, and he’ll make the team.

Starting up top will be Jozy Altidore and Clint Dempsey.  Jozy had a decent campaign with Hull this season, even though he only scored two goals all season, and after reportedly telling David Beckham England will lose 3-0 to the US at a Laker game he has a lot of work to do.  Clint Dempsey has had a career year with Europa cup finalist Fulham, and with the absence of Charlie Davies will start up top next to Jozy Altidore.  Just watch his ridiculous goal in Fulham’s game against Juventus on youtube and you can see for yourself why it’s a no-brainer that he’ll be more useful to the national up top. Robbie Findley has no chance of making this team and should have never even been invited to the camp in my opinion. Findley will stay stateside and either Herculez Gomez or Edson Buddle will be left behind as well.

While I would like to see Eddie Johnson stay at home and Bradley give a chance to both Gomez and Buddle I know that he’s only going to take one of them.  My guess is that Gomez will win the battle for the last spot and do the unthinkable and go to the world cup next month.

Look for Gomez and Ching to make a big impact coming off the bench in games, and look for Eddie Johnson to come off the bench and probably miss an open goal from five yards out.

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