Edu and Torres get minutes in midweek matches

Maurice Edu moved one step closer to returning to national team status after going 90 minutes in a Rangers' 1-0 victory over St. Mirren in the fifth round of the Scottish Cup. Edu stayed composed for most of the match, delivering tackles when needed, and occasionally getting into the attack. Edu even switched into the center back role for a short time. Rangers' Kris Boyd notched the winning goal just before the death to send Rangers through. Jose Francisco Torres' team suffered the opposite fate, losing 1-0 in a match to Chivas de Guadelajara. Unlike Edu, Torres went 71 minutes before coming off, filling his normal role in central midfield by creatively relaying the ball around the field and helping Pachuca keep possession.

Not all the American's got minutes however, as Stuart Holden was unable to even touch the bench of Bolton Wanderers.

U.S. El Salvador roster analysis

With the first game of 2010 behind them, a bad taste probably lingers in the mouths of most of the players who participated in the USA-Honduras match, not to mention their fans. A second chance comes against El Salvador for most of these players, who will have the help of Brian Ching and Michael Orozco. The following players are on Bob Bradley's roster:

GOALKEEPERS: Troy Perkins (D.C. United), Nick Rimando (Real Salt Lake), Zach Thornton (Chivas USA).

DEFENDERS: Kevin Alston (New England Revolution), Jonathan Bornstein (Chivas USA), Omar Gonzalez (Los Angeles Galaxy), Chad Marshall (Columbus Crew), Michael Orozco (Philadelphia Union), Heath Pearce (FC Dallas), Marvell Wynne (Toronto FC).

MIDFIELDERS: Kyle Beckerman (Real Salt Lake), Geoff Cameron (Houston Dynamo), Brad Davis (Houston Dynamo), Brad Evans (Seattle Sounders), Eddie Gaven (Columbus Crew), Sacha Kljestan (Chivas USA), Dax McCarty (FC Dallas), Chris Pontius (D.C. United), Robbie Rogers (Columbus Crew).

FORWARDS: Conor Casey (Colorado Rapids), Brian Ching (Houston Dynamo), Jeff Cunningham (FC Dallas), Robbie Findley (Real Salt Lake).

I could see Bradley going with this:

----------------------Findley----Ching---------------------

Davis------------------------------------------------Rogers

--------------------McCarty----Beckerman---------------

Bornstein--------------------------------------------Alston

------------------------Orozco----Marshall----------------

--------------------------------Perkins----------------------

Findley did well against Honduras considering how little he had to work with, showing his pace, tenacity, and work rate. Ching will be a good player for him to move off of and will provide good leadership for this squad. I put McCarty over Kljestan because there most likely will be no more chances for the FC Dallas midfielder to strut his stuff, at least not from the first whistle anyways. Moreover, McCarty had a better game in his short time than Kljestan did, helping the USA hold what little possession they had. He did well for FC Dallas in a deep-lying central role, so paired with Beckerman, someone who gets covers ground quickly offensively and defensively, the partnership could will really help the U.S. control the midfield. I would take Alston over Wynne because he is a possible future prospect who had a better season than Wynne did. Davis also had an excellent season in MLS and did well in little time against Honduras, keeping things simple in possession and delivering good set piece service, including the one on Clarence Goodson's goal.

My prediction? I'd say a 2-0 victory is a fair expectation and the goals will come from Beckerman and Findley with assists from McCarty and Ching.

CASL Cup 2009 Final

If you looked at the first two games of CASL Cup 2009, you would have expected the final to be very evident. After the first games, the Satellites stood at the top with 3 points, the Pirates and the Sunspots were tied each at 1 point with the Lightning rounding out the bottom. However, an exciting 3-2 win over the Sunspots, and 3-3 draw with the Pirates took the Lightning in the final with the Pirates as their opponents.

The first few minutes of the final was end-to-end attacking soccer until a penalty call finally gave the Lightning a clear cut chance. Gaurav took the spot kick with aplomb and gave the Lightning the lead. However, there was still no room to breathe, as the goal seemed to force the Pirates to find their second gear in the match.

They found that, and the net twice with two quick breakaway strikes that put them in the lead. The reality of a comeback seemed to be distancing itself when Weston chipped a pass over the top of the defense. Gaurav manuevered himself around the goalkeeper and calmly slotted into the open net. If the clock didn't indicate the importance of the goal, the raw excitement of the Lightning's celebration certainly did.

With the score tied, the teams headed into overtime. They locked horns for the whole 20 minutes of the extra time periods, each team having a fair share of opportunites. However, none were finished and so the dreaded penalty shootout followed. The first penalty went to the Lightning as Neel stepped up. Unfortunately, the defender caught the ball all wrong and it rolled weakly at the keeper. The Pirates jumped on the opportunity to take the lead in the shootout, their penalty sailing in to corner, past Sergio. The next penalty belonged to the forward, Isaac. He slotted the ball low and to his left, just out of the keepers reach. The Pirates were able to finish one more chance on another well-taken penalty. Gaurav would take the next penalty for the Lightning. He'd manage to finish all his chances from twelve yards that tournament and was the Lightning's highest goal scorer for the tournament, and the season. He didn't quite live up to either of those titles, as he curled his penalty over the bar. The Pirates had a great chance to go up by two. However, Sergio's knee-jerk reaction kept the shot out for the bottom corner. Weston was next on the Price is Right. He aimed for the top corner ,but sent his over the bar as well. Sergio managed to bail the Lightning out again with another save, this one coming right at him. The final penalty belonged to Alex with all the pressure in the world on his shoulders. If his didn't go in, the Pirates would be victorious. Ultimately, his shot struck the bar and went out. The ping of the bar was almost in unison with the roar from the Pirates, as well as their parents.

In the end both teams fought well, to which the Pirates' coach agreed and payed tribute to after the match. This time however, the Pirates ended up in first place.

Edu set to start in Old Firm Derby

I know what you're thinking ' We said this the last time there was an Old Firm Derby, and he didn't start'.

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This time, there is nothing to stand in the University of Maryland graduate's way.

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With Barry Ferguson out, and Edu continually piling minutes and good performances on top of one another, his chances of starting in tomorrow's Old Firm Derby look good. His two winning goals this season have kept Rangers in the title race, and with Rangers only 1 point behind Celtic in the standings, and this the last Old Firm Derby of the season, a victory at Ibrox could very well seal Rangers' spot at the top of the table.

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In short, it's the most important game of the season so far.

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However, Edu has been known to step up when the team needs him to. He's showed leadership qualities for Toronto FC and during the Olympics. His gritty, aggressive, athletic style of play on the defensive end make him perfect for the SPL and perfect for this match.

Share all thoughts below.

The U.S. Central Midfield

As far as lineup problems go, I’d have to say this is the one I’d like to have the most.

There are quite a few options in central midfield varying from gritty Pablo Mastroeni, to skillfull Jose Francisco Torres. Considering the influx of central midfielders there was in 2007, the starting central midfielders have changed around quite a bit, from Benny Feilhaber to Ricardo Clark, to Sacha Kljestan, with the only constant being Michael Bradley.

Pablo Mastroeni (Colorado Rapids)- The most experience of the central midfield bunch, Pablo operates really as more of a third center back. He has a really bad reputation for getting booked with for bad tackles. His red card against Italy still haunts many USA fans. He lacks the creativity and flashiness that you’d think a central midfielder playing next to Michael Bradley would have, but his ability to break up attacks, and make the possession-maintaining passes keep him an option Bob Bradley likes to use against physical teams.

Sacha Kljestan (CD Chivas USA)- After a good Qualifying campaign in 2008 and a dream start to 2009 with a hat-trick against Sweden, He looked a shoe-in to go to Celtic. But after the deal fell through, He started slumping in form. A technically gifted central midfielder, he’s able to orchestrate the attack with his creative passes. He’s also able to carry a bit of the defensive load. However, an uncomfortable percentage of his passes don’t work out. He’s also a bit on the slow side, but his ability to make runs into space with good timing somewhat supersedes that.

Maurice Edu( Glasgow Rangers)- In my opinion, the central midfielder in the best position of the whole bunch. With Barry Ferguson banned from international play and placed on the transfer list for Rangers, Edu stepped up to his starting spot and made an immediate impact with two winning goals that kept Rangers in the race for the Scottish Premier League title. The most athletically gifted of the central midfield group, reasonably skillful on the ball, and a sharp passer.. He’s also very versatile, playing as a center back during the Olympics. He’s got a bit of a problem with fouls and bookings. On paper, he’s the best partner for Bradley in central midfield.

Jose Francisco Torres( Pachuca)- The most skillful player on the ball we have in the central midfield. A constant starter for Pachuca, the Gold Cup looks to be his coming out party. His skill on the ball, creative distribution, and solid work rate make him great prospect in central midfield.He’s done more than enough to prove he’s good enough for the Confederations Cup. There was a scare in which everyone thought that he would go for Mexico but when they didn’t call him up, he decided to accept a call up from the U.S.A.. With significant playing time during the Confederations Cup, World Cup Qualifying, the Gold Cup, not to mention a good season for Pachuca, he could find his way into Europe.

So what order do I put these guys in? I see something like this

Maurice Edu
Jose Francisco Torres
Sacha Kljestan
Pablo Mastroeni

Edu tops my list mainly because he’s in Europe, getting playing time, and making a huge impact for his club. Mind you, his league isn’t the greatest, but he’ll be around European eyes and with the progress he’s making, I could see him starting. I also like the idea of two central midfielders who can create and destroy. Rather than looking for two polar opposite central midfielders so that one defends, and the other attacks, why not play a pair that can do both? I see the lineup working like this:


---------------Altidore------Ching------------------

Donovan-------Bradley---------Edu-------Dempsey

Beasley--------Bocanegra-----Onyewu------Hejduk

-------------------------Howard---------------------

I honestly like the central midfield pairing of Bradley and Edu for a couple of reasons. For starters, these are two players who are starting constantly for their respective club in Europe. Second off, they have been able to make a positive impact on their clubs.

Bradley has great pace, tackling ability, and offensive intensity. However, he's starting to learn the finer nuances of being a center midfielder. He's finding out that he needs to be more than just fast and have a good shot on the offensive end. He's gaining the vision in the final third, he's become great at keeping possession, and has learned to move with the team and put himself in good positions.

Maurice Edu is a special kind of center midfielder becuase he's able to play an aggressive, ball-winning midfielder on the defensive end, but still shows the finesse, ball skill and a great soccer brain going forward. He was useful in away games like the Switzerland and Guatemala where there wasn't much time on he ball and we're looking for some level of control and composure while still being able to be gritty on the defensive end. He's been good for Rangers of late with two winning goals that kept them in the title race and looks ready to start for them this weekend in the Old Firm Derby.

Share all thoughts.

It's time for Heath Pearce to come back home.



After suffering a dip in form in recent matchs, some have already suggested his departure. However, the nail in the coffin, at least for me, was being demoted to the Reserves of his club team, Hansa Rostock. An immediate solution seems to be to come back to MLS.

For starters, despite his recent rough patch, MLS teams would KILL for a left back with his stablity on both halves of the field. He bring's a fair amount of pace, good passing, loves to get forward, and has great recovery speed. 2008 was actually a pretty good year for him concerning the national team. He managed to stay pretty sharp, despite not getting playing time for his club.
But after sub-par perfromances against Mexico and El Salvador, his starting spot was given to Damarcus Beasley.

So which MLS club could use him? A club like DC United, San Jose, Colorado, or Real Salt Lake could find use for him.

What do you think?

Jozy Altidore misses the bench again

Altidore just can't catch a break, can he?

The 19-year old is trying so hard. With a goal against El Salvador and a hat-trick against Trinidad and Tobago, you think the manager of Xerex would give the man a reward. However, all he got this weekend was a ticket to watch the game from the stands. Jozy Altidore is yet to make his first appearance for Xerex off his loan from Villareal. For a while it seemed as though his work rate might be a problem, but with his success in recent World Cup Qualifiers, that doesn't seem the case.

What do you think Altidore should do? Should he have taken that loan to Everton? Still think Villareal want him?