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American Soccer |OT| Life, liberty and the pursuit of the beautiful game

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C

Cornballer

Member
- Grant Wahl for SI: Tim Howard to take one-year break from U.S. national team
“Having played overseas for the last 12 years and missing out on spending time with my family, making this commitment to my family is very important at this time," Howard said in comments released by U.S. Soccer. "I am grateful for the willingness of both Jurgen Klinsmann and Everton manager Roberto Martínez to afford me the opportunity to spend time with my kids. It’s the right decision at the right time. Jurgen has always been up front with all the players in saying you have to earn your place, which is something I agree with, so I look forward to coming back next fall and competing for a spot.”

Howard, who will suit up for Everton to face Arsenal on Saturday, will be available for selection to the national team again starting in September 2015, with the start of World Cup qualifying and the combined Copa América set to take place in 2016. And given how Klinsmann works, Howard will have to earn the top spot again, which is hardly a bad thing.

Competition for starting spots is always good on a national team, and one of the hallmarks of Klinsmann’s tenure has been the increased internal competition at every position on the field. Now Brad Guzan, the 29-year-old Aston Villa keeper, will get the chance he has been craving for a long time, an opportunity to stake his claim as the U.S. No. 1 between the posts.

“We had a very good and productive conversation," Klinsmann said. "I totally understand Tim’s situation. He was very straightforward and honest in his approach, and I admire him for that. He has a wish to take a step back to take care of his family, and we came to the conclusion that it’s absolutely fine that he takes time off from international soccer until after next summer’s Gold Cup, and then we re-evaluate. I told him as long as he is the same Tim Howard that we always see performing well, he will be welcome back with open arms and right back competing for a spot. He knows that he has to prove that he deserves to be back.

“This gives us a huge opportunity to see Brad Guzan and Nick Rimando going forward and fighting for the No. 1 spot. We have young talented goalkeepers with Sean Johnson and Bill Hamid, who have been brought along the last couple years, so this may give them a chance here and there to get some game time. Always when somebody steps aside for a moment, it gives an opportunity for the next ones in line. “
Click to expand...
 
C

Cornballer

Member
@BrianStraus said:
Good news. Multiple sources say MLS will have new brand ID, logo in '15. After 19 yrs, say farewell to the boot/ball.

HGrvduR.jpg
Click to expand...
.
 
O

Osorio

Member
So long Timmy

Excited to see Guzan as our no. 1 for the future.

Surely, Timmy can come back but Guzan is amazing, and we need to see who will be the future after him.
 
J

Judderman

drawer by drawer
That ESPNFC article made me feel optimistic for our future for some reason. Hopefully it works.

Cornballer said:
- Grant Wahl for SI: Tim Howard to take one-year break from U.S. national team
Click to expand...

Please Timmy, no. ; _ ;

Hopefully Klinsmann doesn't give him the LD treatment.

Cornballer said:
.
Click to expand...

That rumored logo I saw last week doesn't inspire confidence, imo. It looks like the Revs will be the sole reminder of MLS 1.0. Hopefully US Soccer does something about our awful crest as well.
 
C

Cornballer

Member
Judderman said:
That rumored logo I saw last week doesn't inspire confidence, imo. It looks like the Revs will be the sole reminder of MLS 1.0. Hopefully US Soccer does something about our awful crest as well.
Click to expand...
Can you post it? I'm curious what it looks like.

The US crest is in desperate need of a refresh, too.
 
J

Judderman

drawer by drawer
Jürgen Klinsmann ‏@J_Klinsmann 1m
Spoke a lot with @TimHowardGK & totally respect his position. Looking forward to watching him @Everton & having him available next fall !!
 
X

xbhaskarx

Member
Wait so who is allowed to take a break from the US team and who isn't? I need a list to keep track...

Donovan: few months not OK
Chandler: qualifying OK
Howard: one full year OK
 
O

Osorio

Member
Judderman said:
That ESPNFC article made me feel optimistic for our future for some reason. Hopefully it works.
Click to expand...

So much for Metro :(

I guess their ticket sales are getting better though. All the games minus the mid-week DC game for the upcoming future are "in the red". I think it goes from yellow to red around the 18,000 sold mark.

Also, our academy seems great, but when is that going to show on the field? Lade is just a versatility/depth guy, and Castano is third in line but Robles is the fucking man. I can see NYCFC taking Meara since he's a Yonkers guy. Then Castano will "get his chance"

Otherwise, there was Borrajo who is/isn't playing for the Cosmos, that Albanian kid that got cut after a few injuries, Agudelo's been gone, and I can't think of the other guys. We couldn't draft Dilly Duka but he's proven to be not that great.
 
O

Osorio

Member
xbhaskarx said:
Wait so who is allowed to take a break from the US team and who isn't? I need a list to keep track...

Donovan: few months not OK
Chandler: qualifying OK
Howard: one full year OK
Click to expand...

One was a sabbatical from the game itself, the other a break from the national team.

Those guys didn't diss him at Bayern either...
 
D

daoster

Member
xbhaskarx said:
Wait so who is allowed to take a break from the US team and who isn't? I need a list to keep track...

Donovan: few months not OK
Chandler: qualifying OK
Howard: one full year OK
Click to expand...

Donovan: Right smack at the beginning of the final WC qualifying round (including an important one at Azteca)
Howard: Right after a long World Cup cycle.

Also, it seems like Howard actually spoke to Klinsmann about taking a break.

Also, while Guzan is a good back up for Howard in terms of skill, I wonder if his leadership abilities are as good as Howard's. That's a big part of Howard, beyond his goalkeeping ability. He's the general of the back.
 
C

Cornballer

Member
Fabian Johnson with a start today at right back for Borussia Monchengladbach. I think I'll start abbreviating the team name as BM from now on.

daoster said:
Also, while Guzan is a good back up for Howard in terms of skill, I wonder if his leadership abilities are as good as Howard's. That's a big part of Howard, beyond his goalkeeping ability. He's the general of the back.
Click to expand...
He seems to be doing great at Aston Villa. Undoubtedly, each keeper is different stylistically in terms of how they go about their business, but I don't think it'll be a problem for the USMNT.
 
M

Meier

Member
R.e. Howard: It's not like he'd have played in the Gold Cup anyway. Realistically, he'll only be missing a handful of games that he'd have possibly even played in. With that being said, I think there's a possibility he could decide that he's enjoyed the time away and never come back to the USMNT.
 
X

xbhaskarx

Member
Cornballer said:
Originally Posted by @BrianStraus

Good news. Multiple sources say MLS will have new brand ID, logo in '15. After 19 yrs, say farewell to the boot/ball.

HGrvduR.jpg
Click to expand...

I'm worried about what they'll do, perhaps the disappointing Earthquakes rebrand has traumatized me...

I think they should keep the current logo with some minor changes... I like the one they already use for their iOS app

0oitkIH.png
Click to expand...

Just removing "Major League Soccer" improves it quite a bit.

black or red white and blue wouldn't be bad, either

cM2lNQT.png
Click to expand...
 
C

Cornballer

Member
@PCarrESPN said:
In the last 53 weeks, Tim Howard has played 52 official games for club/country, going 90+ min. in all but two.

Only games Howard didn't play 90+ in the last year: Dec. vs Sunderland (red card) & June friendly vs Turkey (halftime sub).
Click to expand...
.
 
X

xbhaskarx

Member
2014 "24 Under 24," presented by adidas, coming September 22-26

A 50-player short list (see below) was selected by a preliminary panel of MLSsoccer.com editors and external constituents, and then the larger panel rated the 50 players based on the following criteria:

Technical (skills, dribbling, shooting, first touch, heading, etc.)
Soccer IQ (positioning, reading game, etc.)
Physical Attributes (speed, endurance, strength, vertical leap, etc.)
Personality (marketability, media savvy, quotability, charisma, intangibles, etc.)
Potential (upside, national team potential, potential future transfer value, etc.)
Click to expand...

2014 "24 UNDER 24" SHORT LIST

Edit: here it is by team...

Chicago: 1
Harry Shipp, Chicago Fire

Chivas: 3
Leandro Barrera, Chivas USA
Marky Delgado, Chivas USA
Erick Torres, Chivas USA

Colorado: 4
Deshorn Brown, Colorado Rapids
Shane O'Neill, Colorado Rapids
Dillon Powers, Colorado Rapids
Dillon Serna, Colorado Rapids

Columbus: 1
Wil Trapp, Columbus Crew

Dallas: 6
Kellyn Acosta, FC Dallas
Tesho Akindele, FC Dallas
Fabian Castillo, FC Dallas
Mauro Diaz, FC Dallas
Andres Escobar, FC Dallas
Victor Ulloa, FC Dallas

DC: 3
Steve Birnbaum, DC United
Bill Hamid, DC United
Perry Kitchen, DC United

Houston: 2
Alexander Lopez, Houston Dynamo
Kofi Sarkodie, Houston Dynamo

KC: 3
Igor Juliao, Sporting KC
Erik Palmer-Brown, Sporting KC
Soony Saad, Sporting KC

LA: 1
Gyasi Zardes, LA Galaxy

Montreal: 2
Felipe Martins, Montreal Impact
Jack McInerney, Montreal Impact

NE: 4
Diego Fagundez, NE Revolution
Andrew Farrell, NE Revolution
Patrick Mullins, NE Revolution
Kelyn Rowe, NE Revolution

NY: 1
Ambroise Oyongo, New York Red Bulls

Philadelphia: 3
Zac MacMath, Philadelphia Union
Amobi Okugo, Philadelphia Union
Andrew Wenger, Philadelphia Union

Portland: 1
Maximiliano Urruti, Portland Timbers

Salt Lake: 4
Olmes Garcia, Real Salt Lake
Luis Gil, Real Salt Lake
Joao Plata, Real Salt Lake
Carlos Salcedo, Real Salt Lake

SJ: 1
Tommy Thompson, SJ Earthquakes

Seattle: 1
DeAndre Yedlin, Seattle Sounders

Toronto: 3
Nick Hagglund, Toronto FC
Doneil Henry, Toronto FC
Jonathan Osorio, Toronto FC

Vancouver: 6
Erik Hurtado, Vancouver Whitecaps
Gershon Koffie, Vancouver Whitecaps
Matias Laba, Vancouver Whitecaps
Kekuta Manneh, Vancouver Whitecaps
Omar Salgado, Vancouver Whitecaps
Russell Teibert, Vancouver Whitecaps
Click to expand...
 
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