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by jeff

Bradley To The EPL?

1:41 pm in International by jeff

U.S. Mens National Team coach Bob Bradley has confirmed he is interested in the opening at Aston Villa in the English Premier League.

Bradley remains under contract with the national team until the end of the year and is currently in the midst of talking with the United States Soccer Federation about an extension.

There are many who believe that Bradley is out as U.S. coach.  Bradley has done a decent job overall with the national team, but his roster decisions at the World Cup were disastrous.

Aston Villa would be going out on a huge limb by signing Bradley, which would leave no room for error for the manager.

What do you think?  Can Bradley hang with the Elite managers in the EPL?

by jeff

U.S. Soccer Announces Friendly With Poland

3:43 pm in International by jeff

The U.S. Mens National Team will take on Poland in their next match on October 9th at Soldier Field .  This will fall upon an international fixture date which will allow the European based players to play with the team.  Although, there is a major MLS scheduling issue as some key players will play with their clubs two days prior to the match.

As of now, Bob Bradley is still in charge of the national team.  Let’s hope to see a new face leading this group so we can get some different players on the pitch.  Bradley has done a decent job as coach but it’s time to move in a new direction.  Bradley’s roster decisions have not been the best and his ability to get his team prepared was awful this summer.

How great would it be to never see Robbie Findlay on the pitch again?

Look for the U.S. to add another friendly match on October 12 or 13.

by jeff

France Suspends Players Involved In World Cup Dispute

1:00 pm in International, NEWS by jeff

The French Football Federation has handed down a stiff punishment to the leaders of the French National team who were  blamed for the inappropriate behavior at the World Cup.  The FFF suspended striker Nicolas Anelka for 18 matches, former captain Patrice Evra for five matches, Franck Ribery for three matches and Jeremy Toulalan for one match.

Sources say Anelka and former coach Raymond Domenech were involved in a heated exchange in the locker room at halftime of the 2-0 loss to Mexico.  Domenech and the FFF decided to send Anelka home while the majority of the players disagreed with the move.  The French players chose to skip the following day of training in protest and were sent home after the knockout stages from the Cup.

New French manager Laurent Blanc, dropped all 23 players from the World Cup roster in a friendly against Norway, which they lost 2-1.  Blanc has extremely talented players at his disposal in France but needs to get his players on the same page. Only time will tell if this overhaul of the national team will do any good.

Give us your comments and tell us what you think.

by jeff

No More Ties At World Cup?

3:05 pm in International, NEWS by jeff

FIFA President Sepp Blatter is considering eliminating all ties in group play at the next World Cup in Brazil.  FIFA is looking at sending the draws straight to penalty kicks or a sudden death overtime period to determine a winner.

This is a great idea to get these group games to be more entertaining.  At the World Cup this summer there were many 1st round matches that  were played with the mentality of  “not to lose.”  This change would open up the games and allow more attacking play to take place.

Blatter is on the right track on improving the sport looking at all options to garner more interest.  Getting rid of ties in bracket play is a great idea and should be put into place.

Leave a comment and tell us what you think about the change.

by jeff

Bradley Names Roster For Brazil Friendly

9:26 pm in International by jeff

U.S. Men’s National Team coach Bob Bradley announced his roster that will face off against Brazil at the New Meadowlands Stadium next Tuesday night. Bradley’s roster includes 14 players who were on the U.S. World Cup squad this summer.

Key performers Jay Demerit, Clint Dempsey, Jozy Altidore and Stuart Holden will not be with the squad as they prepare for their upcoming league seasons.

As the USSF has yet to determine Bradley’s fate as head coach, this is a very important match for the national team. I question some of the players on this roster, as this could be a great opportunity to let some young faces get some key experience at the International level.

Bradley did however go out on a limb and call up Jermaine Jones for the match. Jones has three appearances with Germany but since he has an American father chose to play for the Americans. Since Jones had seen time with the German national team he had to persuade FIFA to let him go with the U.S.

Robbie Findlay does not deserve to be on this roster. Bradley must see something in him that the rest of the world doesn’t. Findlay was a no show this summer and has proven time and time again that he cannot score goals at this level. He has great pace but has yet to show any kind of technical ability going to goal.

Roster
Goalkeepers: Brad Guzan, Tim Howard

Defenders: Carlos Bocanegra, Jonathan Bornstein, Steve Cherundolo, Clarence Goodson, Chad Marshall, Jonathan Spector

Midfielders: Alejandro Bedoya, Michael Bradley, Landon Donovan, Maurice Edu, Benny Feilhaber, Jermaine Jones, Sacha Kljestan

Forwards: Edson Buddle, Robbie Findley, Herculez Gomez