BRADLEY NAMES 18-MAN ROSTER AHEAD OF SOUTH AFRICA MATCH

CHICAGO (Nov. 11, 2010) — U.S. Men’s National Team head coach Bob Bradley has named an 18-man roster to face South Africa on Nov. 17 in Cape Town.

"This game is a good opportunity to look at some different players and assess their place in the pool as we continue to build for the next cycle,” said Bradley. “With our immediate focus on the Gold Cup next summer, this game in many ways is just as much the start of 2011 as it is the end of a great year.”

Players out of season begin arriving into Cape Town on Saturday evening, with players with matches to play scheduled to arrive Monday.

The roster includes five players from the 2010 FIFA World Cup, where the U.S. finished in first place in Group C ahead of England, Slovenia and Algeria before going out in the Round of 16. Jonathan Bornstein started in the dramatic 1-0 victory against Algeria and the game against Ghana, while striker Robbie Findley started three of four matches. Clarence Goodson, Brad Guzan and Jonathan Spector round out the World Cup contingent. Spector started all five matches in the USA’s second-place finish at the 2009 FIFA Confederations Cup, and Guzan earned the 3-0 shutout against Egypt that put the U.S. through to the semifinal where they would defeat No. 1-ranked Spain.

The roster is evenly split with players based in MLS and abroad. On the domestic front, the Columbus Crew contributes the most players, sending a trio of midfielders to South Africa. Robbie Rogers was part of the 30-man preliminary roster for the 2010 FIFA World Cup, and also reached the final of 2009 CONCACAF Gold Cup. The group includes MLS Defender of the Year finalist Nat Borchers and Rookie of the Year nominee Tim Ream.

Juan Agudelo and Gale Agbossoumonde are the first two alumni from U.S. Soccer’s Development Academy to participate in a training camp with the full Men’s National Team. Agudelo – who signed a Homegrown Player contract with New York Red Bulls and appeared in both of their playoff matches this year – made two appearances at the 2009 FIFA U-17 World Cup in Nigeria, while Agbossoumonde, originally from Togo, captained the U-20s to the championship at the 2010 Milk Cup in Ireland.

Ream, Mikkel Diskerud and Teal Bunbury will also be getting their first opportunity with the national team. Diskerud made two appearances for the U.S. at the 2009 FIFA U-20 World Cup in Egypt, while Bunbury, who holds dual citizenship with the United States and Canada, is entering his first camp for the U.S. at any level. Goalkeeper Dominic Cervi was in camp previously but has yet to make an appearance, meaning a total of six players on the roster will be in search of their first cap.

The Nelson Mandela Challenge, an annual one-off event typically hosted in South Africa, began in 1994 and has seen South Africa face opponents like Brazil, Argentina, Holland, Nigeria and a host of others.

U.S. ROSTER BY POSITION

GOALKEEPERS (2): Dominic Cervi (Celtic), Brad Guzan (Aston Villa) 

DEFENDERS (7): Gale Agbossoumonde (Estoril Praia), Nat Borchers (Real Salt Lake), Jonathan Bornstein (Tigres), Clarence Goodson (Brondby), Eric Lichaj (Aston Villa), Tim Ream (New York Red Bulls), Jonathan Spector (West Ham United) 

MIDFIELDERS (6): Alejandro Bedoya (Örebro), Brian Carroll (Columbus Crew), Mikkel Diskerud (Stabaek), Eddie Gaven (Columbus Crew), Logan Pause (Chicago Fire), Robbie Rogers (Columbus Crew) 

FORWARDS (3): Juan Agudelo (New York Red Bulls), Teal Bunbury (Kansas City Wizards), Robbie Findley (Real Salt Lake)

A.C. Milan vs. Real Madrid Analysis

Tonight, NinetiethMinute.com takes a new stance on the way we report what we feel is grabbing the football headlines in the United States, Europe and South America.

Starting with the analysis below, NinetiethMinute.com will "tell-it-like-it-is". We want you, our loyal fan and reader, to feel the same way as if you were talking with your friends about a particular match, with the passion and "spices" in the commentary and analysis.

Let us know what you think of the new direction we are embarking on. We truly hope you enjoy it and make us one of your "buddies"!!

Earthquakes Fall 1-0 to New York Red Bulls in First Leg of MLS Cup Playoff Conference Semifinals

SANTA CLARA, Calif. – The San Jose Earthquakes dropped the first leg of their Eastern Conference Semifinal series 1-0 to the New York Red Bulls, who played without French superstar striker Thierry Henry, Saturday night in front of a sellout crowd of 10,525 at Buck Shaw Stadium.
 
The lone goal came in the 56th minute courtesy of Red Bulls midfielder Joel Lindpere, who collected a loose ball and finished well to Earthquakes goalkeeper Jon Busch’s left at the far post.
 
San Jose heads to Red Bull Arena in Harrison, N.J. for the second leg, which kicks off at 5 p.m. PT on Thursday, November 4. With New York leading 1-0, San Jose needs to win by two goals or more on Thursday to advance to the Conference Semifinal.
 
San Jose Earthquakes (0-1-0) at New York Red Bulls (1-0-0)
Aggregate Goals: NY: 1 SJ: 0
October 30, 2010 – Buck Shaw Stadium
Attendance: 10,525
 
Scoring Summary: NY – Joel Lindpere (unassisted) 56. 
 
Misconduct Summary: NY – Mehdi Ballouchy (caution) 47+; SJ – Chris Wondolowski  (caution) 65; NY – Roy Miller (caution) 71; NY – Bouna Coundoul (caution) 83.
 
San Jose Earthquakes: Jon Busch, Tim Ward, Brandon McDonald, Jason Hernandez, Ramiro Corrales, Geovanni (Khari Stephenson 82), Sam Cronin (Arturo Alvarez 69), Scott Sealy (Eduardo 62), Bobby Convey, Chris Wondolowski, Ryan Johnson.
 
Statistics: Shots: 12; Shots on Goal: 3; Saves: 6; Fouls: 12; Offsides: 5; Corners: 6.
 
New York Red Bulls: Bouna Coundoul, Chris Albright, Carlos Mendes, Tim Ream, Roy Miller, Dane Richards, Mehdi Balllouchy (Jeremy Hall 92+), Rafael Marquez, Joel Lindpere (Carl Robinson 91+), Juan Agudelo, Juan Pablo Angel.
 
Statistics: Shots: 13; Shots on Goal: 8; Saves: 3; Fouls: 21; Offsides: 3; Corners: 4.
 
QUOTES
 
SAN JOSE EARTHQUAKES HEAD COACH FRANK YALLOP

On the result:
“I think it was an even game, I thought we played well tonight. We had our chances to score, but it felt like one of those games where you’re going to get one. A couple fell to (Chris Wondolowski) Wondo in the second half where he is usually going to bury that, but he didn’t. I think a draw would have been a fair result, I don’t feel we deserved to lose.”
 
On the second leg in New York:
“New York are happy to come away with the win, but at least it’s only one goal down. We can head into New York and come away with a two-nil win and go through, so at least it’s not way out of reach, and we have that to hang on to.  Right now, we are one-nil down at halftime.”

Real Madrid and Club America Ready for Kickoff

Club America Training in San Francisco

Real Madrid Set to Face Club America

Real Madrid, now with a complete roster of world cup stars, is set to begin the series of international friendlies in preparation for the start of La Liga 2010-2011.

The Spaniards, now guided by controversial Portuguese coach Jose Mourinho, will face Mexican powerhouse Club America at Candlestick Park in San Francisco on Wednesday, August 4 at 8:00 PM. Real Madrid has set up camp in Los Angeles since last Saturday when they arrived to the exclisive Beverly Hills Hotel. FIFA World Cup South Africa 2010 Spain goalkeeper and captain Iker Casillas arrived to Los Angeles yesterday to join his teammates, while Sergio Ramos and Xabi Alonso were the last two players to join the team today. Mourinho now has 22 players from the first team and 5 from Madrid's youth divisions at his disposal for their USA two-game tour.

Real Madrid had its last training session prior to tomorrow's match today in L.A. where Mourinho continued to emphasize pressure on the ball and playing the ball wide through the flanks. Brazilian star Kaká worked differently from his teammates in what appeared to be recovery load. Madrid will arrive to San Francisco just hours prior to the match from Los Angeles, where they will return to for their Saturday match against the Galaxy on Saturday August 7 at the Rose Bowl.

Club America arrived to San Francisco yesterday and had a training session today, where the biggest and most demanding workload was shared by goalkeepers Guillermo Ochoa and Armando Navarrete. The rest of the team worked very lightly, mainly on muscle-losening exercises and recreational games with the ball. We will post some videos of Club America's training and will bring you all the excitement from the match tomorrow, directly from Candlestick Park. As always, follow us on Twitter at twitter.com/NinetiethMinute

The Analysis of the USA in South Africa

Now that the "storm" has passed -and so have a few days- and we have been eliminated from the world cup, I will attempt to make sense of what happened to the team in South Africa.

First of all, let's say that we pretty much played catch-up throughout the tournament. First with England, which went ahead in the score within the first 5' of the match. Then Slovenia which also went ahead in the scoreboard, but 2-0 instead. Then it was Algeria in a must-win situation in the last game of the group phase. The only, and winning goal came in the 91st minute -wish it would have been in the NinetiethMinute!-

Talk about an emotional roller coaster for 3 matches. Then it came Ghana in the round of 16. We all knew it would be a tough match. However, prior to the match we talked about some of the keys which could assure the US a win over the team that had denied us any chances -slim, at best- at advancing out of the group stage in the previous world cup, Germany 2006. We even talked about the line-up we thought could provide the US the best chance. It certainly did not include Ricardo Clark in the midfield, whose grotesque mistake originated the first Ghana's goal to, once again, put the US behind in the scoreboard only 5 minutes into the match. Two minutes later Clark would see a yellow card, and 25 minutes later he would be substituted by Maurice Edu. With this move, Bob Bradley conceded he had made a terrible mistake by starting Clark, and consequently wasted one substitution for when it could be needed most.

Bottom line is the gross coaching mistakes that were made in absolutely every US match were to blame for trailing in the score every match.

As we have repeteadly said US Soccer is trying to compete against world-class coaching talent and experience, in the biggest soccer stage in the world with American coaches whose only experience has been coaching college and MLS soccer. If anyone else in the world read this they would laughing uncontrollably. But here, we believe is the right thing to do. Are we really serious? We have, in Sunil Gulati, an India native man running soccer in this country. Who are we kidding for Pete's sakes? Nobody, that's the answer as we all could have seen during this world cup.

The players left all they had on the pitch, and that was our only saving grace. Tactically, what the US showed was poor at best. Everyone could agree on how we had to play against Ghana, but the coaching staff was on another planet. To be caught off-guard in the first few minutes of one match is understandable. But for that to happen in almost every match demostrates the lack of knowledge and experience of the coaching staff.

It is very easy now to point fingers in every direction, but when we have been talking about the same flaws that we saw in the world cup for years, someone has got to start paying attention. I truly believe we now have, for the most part, the player talent needed to compete with anyone in the world. Unfortunately, when it comes to coaching we are light-years behind everyone else in the world.

If US Soccer, or Gulati for that matter, is so fixated on having American-born coaches, fine. But let's train them properly. Let's send them to learn and acquire experience at the UEFA Coaching School, or the Brazilian and Argentinian Coaching schools. We have the resources to do that, but where are our coaches acquiring experience? This is a joke now, really.

As you can probably gather from this article I am fed-up with the coaching style and "talent" we have in this country. I applaud the players for their dedication, enthusiasm and desire to put the US on the world soccer-map. But with the stunning public response, support and involvement we all witnessed during this world cup from the American people it's time to get really serious now.

Regardless of what we say about the US participation in South Africa, I believe majority of people expected the team to advance further. And that is because we believe in the talent, we believe in the players and the experience most of them are now obtaining from playing in some of the top leagues of the world. Never once did I hear from anyone, "Bob Bradley is the man who is going to lead us into the quarter-finals, or the semi-finals," never! We have achieved a certain level of proficiency now that qualifying in CONCACAF should not be a threat. However, we just don't want to get to the big dance anymore. We want to keep going further and further.

The Bruce Arenas, the Bob Bradleys and company are certainly not the ones who will take us there!

How Can the USA Counter Ghana's Speed?

This is the question the broadcast giant ESPN is asking today. I hope Bob Bradley reads this and gets the message: The ONLY game he decided to bench the inept and slow Oguchi Onyewu was the only game the US National Team, not only won, but also kept its goal unbeaten.

Need we say more? Onyewu may be tall and strong as many people in the United States, who claim soccer expertise, believe those are the only good traits a soccer player needs to possess. They couldn't be more wrong, as Onyewu has demonstrated time-and-time again how dangerous he is in the back line due to his lack of speed, inability to read or anticipate plays, inability to properly use his size and strength -creating many dangerous situations and penalty kicks for opponents- to clear the ball out of danger, but most importantly, his lack of passion and heart. Am I the only one who notices Onyewu pretty much walking almost the entire match? He is always the last man to the ball. He is always the one leaving suicidal space between him and the opposing attacker. He is the only defender I have ever seen to duck on a shot to avoid getting hit by the ball. I could continue for hours on why Onyewu should not even be on the National Team, but the fact of the matter is that he is in South Africa. But how can we "defend" our team from Onyewu? Simple. Do not play him.

In Germany 2006 the US National Team was in a must-win situation going into the last match of the group phase against Ghana to have any chance of advancing to the second round. Onyewu, in a very stupid no heads-up play caused a penalty kick in favor of Ghana who went on to win the game.

Now in 2010 is a different story. The U.S. has advanced into the knock-out stage and now faces Ghana, again, on Saturday at 11:30 AM PST. The Ghanians are fast -very fast,- physical and technical. We all know that the weakest line on the National Team is the defense. So, the only chance to diminish the problem is to bench Onyewu. Bocanegra in the middle is not necessarily the best option, but it is all we have. Bornstein on the left side is also not the best answer, but will have to do. DeMerit, in the middle, and Cherundolo on the right side have had so far a superb World Cup, but will have to step-up their game to contain the Ghanian gazelles.

In the midfield line Maurice Edu has proven he is the starter. No more experiments with Torres, or anyone else. Michael Bradley is going to have to recover the ball, and most importantly serve it to American players, not Ghanians. Donovan and Dempsey should complete the middle line. Will the US need to play defensively and counter-attack in order to have a shot at winning the match? I don't think so. The US has the necessary weapons to beat Ghana, but will have to do so in an orderly fashion. So far in this World Cup the first 15 minutes of every US match have been atrocious in terms of lack of concentration in defense. We can no longer afford the same style. Possession, full concentration and pressing the Ghanian build-up and attack on their side of the pitch will prove to be the keys for a US win.

Obviously, none of the keys mentioned to win the game will have any meaning if the US does not put the ball in the net. Altidore and Gomez up front should be the starters, as they have proved to be the most dangerous. But Dempsey, as an attacking mid, along with Gomez and Altidore will need to be more accurate on the finishes.

In summary, if Onyewu does not play, if coach Bob Bradley does not even consider DaMarcus Beasley as an option at any stage of the game, if we press Ghana deep on their side, if we are fully concentrated from the opening whistle, and most importantly, if we capitalise on our scoring chances we should see the US National Team advance to the quarterfinals of the 2010 South Africa FIFA World Cup.

Huge Mistake is Game Difference for USA

An unbelieveable mistake by second-string England goalkeeper Robert Green allowed the U.S. National Team to earn a draw against heavily favored England in their World Cup opening match.

A late 40th minute first half shot by English Premier League-based U.S. midfielder Clint Dempsey slipped through Green's hands to the disbelief of millions of british fans around the globe. Although Dempsey's shot had some power behind it, it should have been easily handled by Green. Instead, it slowly rolled in to the goal as a deflection. This blooper, which will never be forgotten in England, became the equalizer for the USA.

When players were still "warming up" during the initial minutes of the match, a lack of concentration in the American backline saw England and Liverpool's captain Steven Gerrard penetrate the penalty box alone. Gerrard ran up the middle to take on Tim Howard and slip a low shot into the net barely at the 4th minute of the match.

The American reaction was inmediate in effort and intent, but shy. It lacked control of the mid-section of the pitch and it seemed as if the yanks took quite some time to shake off the debut jitters. England began to possess and control the ball, which in turn became the opportunity for goalkeeper -who earns his trade in the English Premier League- Tim Howard to start having tremendous saves. In the end, his continued brilliant performance earned him "Man of the Match" honors.

England dominated the match in all areas of the pitch, and Fabio Capello, England's manager, clearly outsmarted his American colleague Bob Bradley. In his effort to break the tie, Capello performed substitutions which further allowed the Brits to control the tempo and flow of the match. This, however, found absolutely no response from Bradley, who failed to get a decent read of the match even while in progress. Although American forward Jozy Altidore could have given the U.S.A. the much dreamt-of upset over England late in the game with a shot which hit the post after a deflection from Green, England had many wasted chances. The fact that Tim Howard was nominated as the Man of the Match speaks volumes of his performance, the number of spectacular saves he had and the clear dominance the Brits exercised at will on the pitch. When Bradley finally realized he should make some substitutions, he sent forward Steven Buddle to replace Jozy Altidore. While it was clear and obvious England was applying tremendous pressure on the American side of the pitch, the reasonable option for substitution should have been Jose Torres to aid in the recovery of the ball in the midfield. Bradley, however, seemed to be witnessing -or reading- a much different reality.

The Americans earned a hard-fought draw against one of the tournament favorites, mainly due to the heart and passion the players exhibited. It was definitely very far from playing head-to-head with the English team. As we have said many times before in this blog, this is where the main difference between U.S. Soccer and the rest of the world lies in. There is absolutely no possible way we can ever expect to become a soccer world power when we are managed by coaches whose only experience has been in American colleges and the MLS. Take Capello, for instance. Winner of everything in Italy with A.C. Milan in the eighties and Real Madrid in Spain. European Champions League experience for many years, European Cups, UEFA Cups, you name it, he's manged there. He is not the only manager with that kind of experience in the world cup. In fact, is the norm. How can Bradley -or any other American coach, for that matter!- compete against that? If we ever want to "wake up" to the reality of world soccer, especially at the world cup level we have to start by hiring world-class coaches.

It was nothing short of a miracle that we tied against England. We can not continue to invoke higher powers for ninety minutes in order to obtain decent results and not be embarrassed at the world cup.

Diego's Argentina Flies Past the Super Eagles

The biggest surprise on the Argentinian side was Diego Armando Maradona's wardrobe choice. I had never seen Diego that well dressed, but that goes to show the level of respect he has for the biggest party of them all, the FIFA World Cup.

The entire stadium was also "dressed" in big-time party attire. The Argentine fans' flags hung throughout the stands and the Nigerian fans colorful attire and dance provided a true world cup feel to the highly anticipated match.

It did not take long for Argentina to settle well into match-level quality. In fact all of three minutes to generate the first clear scoring chance which in very characteristic fashion Gonzalo Higuain shot wide, alone in front of the goal. Three minutes later, Gabriel Heinze headed the ball into the net from a corner kick to give Argentina the lead. It did not take long for Argentina to settle well into match-level quality. In fact all of three minutes to generate the first clear scoring chance which in very characteristic fashion Gonzalo Higuain shot wide, alone in front of the goal. Three minutes later, Gabriel Heinze headed the ball into the net from a corner kick to give Argentina the lead.

As Diego himself had announced yesterday, there were no surprises in the line-up which jumped to the pitch. That is one of the characteristics of Diego, very consequent between what he says and what he does. As expected, though, the weakest Argentine line is the back four, and as they should continue to advance in the tournament that back line could give the Argentine people, and Diego, a real heartache.   

The albicelestes continued to control the match at will after the goal with no surprises as to who the main playmakers would be. Lionel Messi was the heart of the team, with Carlos Tevez displaying his usual talent and poise. A great first half by Nigerian keeper Vincent Enyeama prevented the Argentines, especially Messi, to extend their lead, so the first half ended with that lone early goal.

The second half was almost identical to the first in that Argentina controlled at will the tempo of the match. Aside from a close-range shot by a Nigerian midfielder that missed the target by inches on the 71st minute, Nigeria did not show the determination and will needed to have a chance to beat Argentina.

In the overall game analysis it has to be very worrisome for Argentina to control a game pretty much at will and come out with only a one-goal advantage, scored by a central defender. As it has been stated many times, Higuain is not the answer up front, and Maradona has to consider making Milito the complement to Tevez and Messi. Otherwise, Argentina is not going to have enough weapons to go far in this cup, and Diego will complete his on-going fallout with the Argentine people.

Uruguay and France Dissapoint

I expected this match to be a well-played, hard-fought, attack-and-defend ninety minutes. It was anything but. Uruguay, except for maybe two decent scoring chances, decided to group themselves deep in their territory to try and contain France's attacks.

It was a good defensive display by the Uruguayans. But the lack of offensive commitment almost goes against their hard-earned warrior-like reputation.

The French were able to constantly and almost continually play on the edge of the Uruguayan eighteen, but that was as far as they could get to. They lacked ideas and manpower to destroy that backline and was almost always finding Ribery alone in the push-forward commitment. Not enough for a team that is fighting really hard -and struggling in their efforts- to find an identity amongst a star-studded side which barely made it into the World Cup finals.

For Uruguay, one missed chance in each half by Diego Forlan would be all they could come up with. Not very much of creation in the midfield nor penetration up front for this team, which will have to change quite a bit in their remaining two matches should they expect to make it past the group stage.

France actually looked quite a bit better than they had in their last several friendlies where they were struggling to find their best form. Still it was not enough, and head coach Domenech is going to have to think long and hard about what he can do -if anything- to avoid the embarrassment of not making it out of group play.

South Africa vs. Mexico Recap

It took the South Africans, hosts of the FIFA World Cup, a good 30 to 35 minutes to get past the debut jitters and nerves. During that time, Mexico could have capitalized on at least half-dozen opportunities which were wasted by Franco and Dos Santos, including a disallowed goal for a clear off-side position.

When South Africa finally settled in the match they only had roughly 10 minutes left in the first half, but left a clear indication of the damage they could inflict upon the Mexican defense should they apply themselves. So, Mexicans and South Africans went into the locker room for the break tied at zero apiece.

In the second half South Africa was the team decided to emerge from the battle -figuratively speaking, of course- as the winner. Showing more control of the midfield through ball recovery and good distribution up the middle, the bafana-bafana tried to exploit the speed and explosiveness of Tshabalala up front. The efforts paid off when Tshabalala sent a left-footed rocket past diving surprise-starter Mexican goalkeeper Oscar Perez on the 55th minute. It was a superbly executed play and definition by the South Africans to send their anguished and excited nation into contagious ecstasy.

Surprisingly, South Africa continued to control the midfield and continued to create opportunities for them to extend their one-goal advantage, without much fortune. It would be Mexico, however, after three substitutions who would get on the scoreboard and tie the score on the 79' from a poorly executed South African defense off-side trap which left Mexican central defender Rafael Marquez alone in front of the goal to send his shot past keeper Khune through his near post.

It would be South Africa again who would create the last chance of the match on the 90' when forward Mphela hit the Mexican post when Perez was already beat. It would have certainly been the icing on the cake for a nation which turned en-masse to support the bafana-bafana in their world cup opener. The score would not be moved again and South Africans and Mexicans split everything evenly in a great party-like atmosphere during the opening of the 2010 FIFA World Cup.

When The Only Thing That Matters is Results

Only hours away from a very anticipated debut in the FIFA World Cup in South Africa, US National team head coach Bob Bradley has many unanswered questions. Our first game will be against, no less, England, one of the perennial cup favorites who manage to constantly disappoint its fans.

For this edition of the World Cup, however, England comes as a heavy favorite. In a sport where the only thing that matters around the world is results, and head coaching jobs are the most unstable positions in the world, the job security which Bob Bradley enjoys is stunning. Bradley replaced Bruce Arena, who spent eight years in front of the US National Team, at the end of 2006. Unheard of in the world of soccer. Why only in the United States are soccer coaches enjoying such longevity in their posts? Well, the quick answer is that the bulk of the sports media and fan base are focused on other "major" American sports, thus what happens in US soccer, stays in US soccer. Coaches and players are not praised when major accomplishments are achieved, let alone criticized when things don't go so well.

Bob Bradley, as the US National Team head coach, has taken the team to the world's biggest single sporting event. Excellent. But he has done it with a great share of mistakes which went mainly overlooked due to poor competition during the qualifying process in our region. But almost no one ever pointed out those mistakes, or were not important enough to make newspaper or magazine headlines. On the flip side, should some of those mistakes flourish again during the world cup, we are in for another France '98 or Germany 2006-like embarrassment at the world level.

Let's put things in perspective here. In any other country of the world Bradley would have been fired long ago. The United States had a chance to achieve world-renowned headlines and admiration in June of 2009 when it reached the FIFA Confederations Cup final against Brazil. After a stunning and unexpected 2-0 lead at halftime, Brazil was able to come back and defeat the Americans 3-2 almost exclusively on Bradley's mistakes. That would have gotten him fired anywhere else in the world. Not a word said about it in the United States. During world cup 2010 preparation every participating nation worked on their team strategies and tactics for several games prior to traveling to South Africa, while Bob Bradley, inexplicably, continued to evaluate potential roster members almost to the end of preparation. That would have caused an upheaval and uproar anywhere else in the world. Not a word said about it in the United States.

Knowing how Bradley thinks and operates he is very likely to start Oguchi Onyewu in the central defense for the US opener against England. Onyewu has not played a full ninety minute match since a serious knee injury requiring reconstructive surgery in October 2009. To even consider Onyewu on the match roster to play against the likes of England's Wayne Rooney, Frank Lampard, Defoe or Peter Crouch is nothing short of suicide, and the start of a possible very short-lived world cup experience.

When the only thing that matters in soccer is results, it is time to let people at the head of our national teams and soccer federation know when they do not conform to soccer-like norms. It is time for all of us to become vocal and express our feelings. The last thing we want is another embarrassment when the eyes of the world are placed on our national team.

All we can do now is wish Bradley and the boys the best of luck for a successful world cup. With the players we have I am confident we can at least advance to the round of sixteen. Anything less than that will be a major disappointment.

BRADLEY NAMES PRELIMINARY 30-MAN ROSTER

Players Will Report To Princeton Beginning May 15 for Training Camp; Send-Off Series Matches Are May 25 Against Czech Republic in East Hartford and May 29 against Turkey in Philadelphia

CHICAGO (May 11, 2010) — U.S. Men’s National Team head coach Bob Bradley has submitted to FIFA the 30-man preliminary roster for the 2010 FIFA World Cup. From this list, a squad of 23 players must be chosen by June 1 for the final roster that will travel to South Africa. The 30 players will begin reporting to Princeton, N.J., on May 15 for the start of training camp, with field sessions beginning two days later.

The U.S. will face two of the traditionally stronger teams from Europe in the Czech Republic and Turkey in the Send-Off Series prior to departing for South Africa. Nearly 25,000 tickets have already been sold for the match against Czech Republic on May 25 in East Hartford, Conn. Kickoff is set for 8 p.m. ET, and the match will be broadcast live on ESPN and Galavision. The final home tune-up match against Turkey will be played May 29 at Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia, where almost 40,000 tickets have already been sold. ESPN2 and Galavision will broadcast the match live beginning at 2 p.m. ET. For both matches, ESPN will be airing a special 30-minute pre-game show.

U.S. TRAINING CAMP ROSTER BY POSITION - Detailed Roster
GOALKEEPERS (3): Brad Guzan (Aston Villa), Tim Howard (Everton), Marcus Hahnemann (Wolverhampton)
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)
MIDFIELDERS (12): DaMarcus Beasley (Rangers), Alejandro Bedoya (Örebro), Michael Bradley (Borussia Mönchengladbach), Ricardo Clark (Houston Dynamo), 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)
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)

"Throughout the past three years a number of players have contributed to our journey toward South Africa and we appreciate all of their efforts," said Bradley. "We are very excited to get this group together to begin our pre-World Cup training camp as we continue to prepare for the challenge of the World Cup."

The U.S. team will depart for South Africa on May 30, arriving the following day. The United States will play Australia on June 5 in Roodepoort, South Africa, one week before playing its first match of the 2010 FIFA World Cup. Kickoff at Ruimsig Stadium in suburban Johannesburg is set for 2:30 p.m. local time (8:30 a.m. ET), and the match will be broadcast live on ESPN2.

The U.S. Men's National Team has been drawn into Group C with England, Slovenia and Algeria for the 2010 FIFA World Cup in South Africa. The U.S. will open its sixth consecutive World Cup finals tournament against England on June 12 in Rustenburg, and will follow that game with matches against Slovenia on June 18 in Johannesburg and Algeria on June 23 in Tshwane/Pretoria.

Inter Beats Juventus and Stays Atop of the Table

Beautiful goal by Brazilian Maicon.

Libertadores Cup: Libertad (PAR) vs. Universitario (PER)

Claudio Lopez Released by Kansas City

The Kansas City Wizards announced Tuesday that the team will not be renewing the contract of Argentine midfielder Claudio Lopez. The team had been in negotiations with Lopez throughout the preseason.
"We would have liked to have Claudio back in 2010, but unfortunately it became clear early in the contract negotiations that we could not give him what he desired," Wizards Manager Peter Vermes said.

"We thank Claudio for his two years of service here in Kansas City. He was a consummate professional and set a good example for the young players on our team both on and off the field. Looking forward to 2010, we are confident in the players we have in camp and there will be great competition for starting spots before our home opener on March 27th."

Considered to be one of the most skillful Argentines of his generation, Lopez played for two years with the Wizards, signing on in 2008 as the team's first designated player. He put up consistent numbers in both of his Kansas City campaigns, recording six goals and seven assists in 2008 and seven goals and eight assists in 2009. However, Lopez will be remembered by Wizards fans for scoring one of the most memorable goals in the history of the organization last season against the Los Angeles Galaxy. With a sell-out crowd at CommunityAmerica Ballpark and a national television audience on ESPN, Lopez collected an innocuous-looking clearance at half field, took a touch and lofted an inch-perfect shot over Galaxy goalkeeper Donovan Ricketts to give Kansas City the lead. The strike from 60 yards out also went down as the longest goal in Wizards history.

Before joining the Wizards, Lopez enjoyed a successful career abroad, having starred for Racing in his native Argentina before moving to Valencia in Spain in 1996. Lopez enjoyed his most prolific period with the Spanish side, making 123 appearances with 42 goals in five years with the club. Lopez led the team to a Champions League runner-up spot in 2000 and also won the Spanish Super Cup and the Copa del Rey in 1999. In 2000, Lopez was transferred to Italian Serie A side Lazio for $44 million - the third-highest transfer fee of that year and one of the top 50 most expensive transfers of all time. With Lazio, Lopez scored 28 goals in 105 appearances before moving on to Club America, one of the most successful clubs in Mexico, in 2004.

Lopez is notable for being the second player in the history of the Kansas City Wizards to have scored in a World Cup, having scored in the 1998 quarterfinals against the Netherlands. He was also named to Argentina's squad for the 2002 World Cup. In all, Lopez earned 58 caps with Argentina's national team, scoring 10 goals.

Early Signs of Alzheimer's for Sepp Blatter?

FIFA president Sepp Blatter has stated that the furore over John Terry's alleged affair with Wayne Bridge's former girlfriend would have been much less severe in countries other than England.

Indeed, Blatter believes that the center-back would have been applauded in Latin countries for his alleged infidelity, and certainly would not have been stripped of the national captaincy.

"Listen, this is a special approach in the Anglo-Saxon countries," the Swiss told reporters in Vancouver, where he is attending the International Olympic Committee's session.

"If this had happened in let's say Latin countries then I think he would have been applauded."

Terry has been given compassionate leave by his club this weekend as he looks to save his marriage. According to reports he is flying to Dubai to spend some time with his wife.

England manager Fabio Capello last week replaced the Chelsea star as Three Lions captain with Manchester United defender Rio Ferdinand.

San Jose Announces 2010 Schedule

Earthquakes Announce Preseason Schedule, Onward to Phoenix and London
 
SAN JOSE, Calif. – The San Jose Earthquakes announced the remainder of their preseason schedule today. The team travels to Phoenix for one week, from Sunday, Feb. 7 continuing on through Saturday, Feb. 13. The Quakes then return home until they travel across the pond to London from Thursday March 4 until Sunday, March 14.
 
While in the Phoenix area, San Jose will train every day at the Arizona State University Soccer Complex and play two exhibition games. Both matches will be against the Kansas City Wizards with the first taking place on Wednesday, Feb. 10 at 10:00 a.m. PT and the second on Saturday, Feb. 13 also at 10:00 a.m. PT.
 
The Earthquakes will then return home to continue their preseason training from Monday, Feb. 15 through Wednesday, March 3. During that stretch, they will train and play some exhibition matches in the area.
 
From Thursday, March 4 until Sunday, March 14 the Quakes will be in London, where they will train at club partner Tottenham Hotspur FC’s training ground. The team will play a number of matches during that time period. The full schedule of games in London will be announced in the near future.
 
Other preseason exhibition matches will also be announced in the near future. San Jose opens the 2010 regular season on Saturday, March 27 against defending MLS Cup Champion Real Salt Lake at Buck Shaw Stadium. The match kicks off at 6 p.m. PT and will air live on Fox Soccer Channel.
 
Earthquakes Preseason Schedule
Feb. 7-13 – Training in Phoenix, Ariz.
Feb. 14- March 3 – Training in Bay Area
March 4-14 – Training in London at Tottenham Hotspur’s training ground
March 15-March 26 – Training in Bay Area
 
Current Preseason Match Schedule
Feb. 6 – Real San Jose – 3-0 W (Wondolowski, Ibarra, Gjertsen) at Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum
Feb. 10 at 10 a.m. PT – Kansas City Wizards
Feb. 13 at 10 a.m. PT – Kansas City Wizards
Additional Games - TBD