Tuesday, July 21, 2009

Donovan to Serie A?


Recent reports say that recently promoted Serie A club Livorno is interested in signing Landon Donovan. Livorno's president had this to say,
“We have spoken with his representative, but we have to understand what his requests are and whether we can afford him, I know the lad since he was 18, I like him very much and even though his fee would not be a problem, I believe his wage demands exceed our parameters.“But we could arrange something with some of our sponsors in Los Angeles, just like I did with [Kazuyoshi] Miura years ago, hoping it will bring us less bad luck…”

European interest was likely after his performance in the Confederations cup. However, signing Landon will not be an easy task. MLS will not be keen on letting their poster boy go. Also, Landon is going to make a sizable amount of cash wherever he goes. At a recently promoted club like Livorno that could be a problem.

Monday, July 20, 2009

USA vs. Mexico only on telemundo and mun2


The highly anticipated World Cup Qualifier against Mexico will not be available to the vast majority of Americans in English. Apparently NBC owned Telemundo will be airing the game in spanish but would not present a reasonable price for the rights to the game in English. Sources say that ESPN offered the normal amount for this type of game and were still 3 to 4 times lower than what telemundo was demanding. I urge you as american soccer fans to become active and stuff inboxes at NBC. For your convenience I have provided these emails. brian.walker@nbcuni.com adam.freifeld@nbcuni.com Lyndsay.Iorio@nbcuni.com dick.ebersol@nbcuni.com Perkins.Miller@nbcuni.com Jeff.Zucker@nbcuni.com Do not be innapropriate simply ask that one of the most anticipated soccer matches in recent history is being hidden on an incredibly small network and that they should make the game available to everyone.

Soccer maintaining media buzz after Confed Cup


With David Beckham's return, the Gold Cup run, the world football challenge, and MTV's Real world going to DC United games, soccer has remained in the spotlight. Sportscenter has, as usual, been all over the Beckham saga. They have also covered the friendlies that have involved the European giants involved in the World Football Challenge. Also, the Real World cast recently took a trip to RFK for a DC United game. The one downside would be the fact that the upcoming WCQ against Mexico will only be on tv in english on mun2.

European Season Continued

Michael Bradley returns to Borussia Moenchengladbach after helping them escape relegation last year. He will most certainly start and get plenty of playing time. Hopefully he can continue his growth in the top flight in Germany and help anchor the US midfield in South Africa. He is traditionally a defensive midfielder with crunching tackles but if he can develop a finishing touch and a creative flare he could propel the US to new heights.
Freddy Adu is on the ropes. His progression since joining Benfica has been non existent. He needs to either get a better loan situation than AS Monaco was or break into the lineup at Benfica. This is a very important season for a young player with loads of potential and expectations. The US could definitely use his creativeness and attacking mentality out of the midfield but he must improve his defense and consistency. Steve Cherundolo will be looking to earn his spot back at Hannover and get back into the lineup for Bob Bradley's squad. Playing time after his injury will help to bring back his form and confidence. Riding the bench would be devastating for Cherundolo and could mean the last World Cup was HIS last as well. Carlos Bocanegra is looking safe and confident at Rennes and is definitely still a starter there. Bocanegra will look to repeat as Rennes' most attractive player as voted on by the fans. Barring injury Carlos will be ready for the summer in South Africa. Best of luck to all the Americans playing overseas!

Sunday, July 19, 2009

Important European Season for Americans

With the World Cup looming and several American players involved with transfers, this European season looks to be filled with intrigue. Oguchi Onyewu may have one of the toughest tasks as he tries to secure a starting spot with AC Milan. His dominating presence in the air will hopefully secure him enough starts in Serie A to improve his skills for the next World Cup. He will be closely watched by those stateside and a lot of pressure is on him to perform.
Clint Dempsey will look to continue his impressive run at Fulham which doesn't look to be a problem. He will again look to be a top scorer from the midfield in the EPL.
Eddie Johnson is another interesting story. Could this be the year he gets it together? An active preseason for Eddie may get him a look this year instead of another loan. If he can make his play consistent and become a crowd favorite at Craven Cottage like he was at Cardiff City this could be an exciting season for him. Perhaps Eddie could make it back into the national team picture before the summer. Fulham could definitely be exciting to watch with Dempsey and Johnson on the field.
Charlie Davies stock has skyrocketed after the Confederations Cup and his signing with French Side Sochaux looks perfect. Charlie should be able to start on a consistent basis and unlike his time at Hammarby he will have other weapons on the field he can use. Charlie's blazing speed and great hold-up skills look to dice up Ligue 1 defenders and help Sochaux move up the Ligue 1 ladder. More on Freddy Adu, Michael Bradley, Steve Cherundolo and others later.

USA into the semifinals

well done by the us to come back tonight after going down 1-0 in the first half. Kyle Beckerman continued his bid for more national team playing time with the game tying blast. Kenny Cooper finished off the Panama squad in extra time from the spot after receiving a boot in the belly from a Panama defender. The US now plays Honduras in Chicago for a chance in the finals. Go get your tickets and make it a pro US crowd! How do you think the nats will fare against Honduras in the semis? do you think Bob should call in some more experienced players. please leave your comments.

Saturday, July 18, 2009

Welcome

Welcome to my blog! First I would like to tell everyone a little bit about myself. I am 18 years old and will soon be attending Macalester College in St. Paul where I will be playing soccer. After following several blogs online and watching every game I could get on TV, I decided to make my own blog and weigh in on US soccer, the MLS, and Americans abroad.