I thought it was one of those I'll lay down for a few minutes and get carried away then go back in until I saw he was subbed at the 20 something minute mark. Then I knew this isn't looking good. I hope he goes back to Dynamo.
I don't think there's ever been any doubt about Landon's talent, just his desire. As good as he is if he'd been willing to challenge himself along the way he could be even better.
Yep. If Landon Donovan had Clint Dempsey's psyche, he would be a force. That desire to want to challenge yourself, and be the best is what separates the elite from the great.
That does not always mean going to Europe to play though. It is his career in the end and he plays great wherever he is from the Galaxy to Everton, the guy can flat out ball. DD
He balled at Leverkusen the rare times he got an opportunity iirc. I think the problem there was few opportunities and he wanted to start and play regularly. (Plus returning home)
That desire is also more evident in Clint because Clint had a much more difficult path to becoming a professional and international player than Landon did. Clint was never the best player on his youth teams and not until later after his college career began did people-fans, opposing teams, national team, start noticing him. He had to work a bit harder to get to the top. Landon was always the best player from an early age and that led to his getting ODP blah blah blah notice and getting on the US youth teams. Michael Bradley-another player w/ a desire to challenge himself, didn't have the same difficulties as Clint but MB had to work twice as hard as other players just because he was the coaches son and prove to other players and fans that he wasn't just on the team because he was the coaches son or knew so and so coach through his dad. For sure if Landon had that desire it would be to his benefit. Regardless, even w/out that, he is still undoubtedly the best player the US has ever produced. Which is why I still believe it was an insult to omit him from the WCQ's and put him on the GC roster. (He should have been on both).
Forgive for bailing on his team(s)? I don't know if forgive is the right word. Willing to look past it? Yes. Especially if he's able to keep this form in the qualifiers and it meshes with what the first team has been doing. I disagree on beckerman. He had some nice moments, but there was still a lot I didn't like. I hate that his first instinct is almost always backwards. I hate the stupid fouls. I don't think he's a player that makes anyone better and other than forcing the backs to have to cover for his mistakes.
Ah c'mon man. That's my beef with US fans looking at it as Landycakes bailing on his team(s). I disagree totally. He has been the poster boy for US Soccer for over a decade-not Dempsey, not Bradley or anyone else. He needed a mental break and to his credit he didn't say he needed to step aside from international matches for a little bit. He wanted to step aside from everything and clear his mind. Do you want to know about players bailing on their teams(Just national teams because most players still want the paycheck from the clubs) . Try Kevin Prince Boateng of late. The list of African players( or players with African parents that choose to play for the African country internationally while playing club ball in Europe) that decide to step away "only" from International soccer while they recharge and then magically feel recharged and focus in a World Cup year- right on time to join their teams at the tail end of African World Cup Qualifiers, is a lengthy list. Those mercenaries prefer to let their other teammates do the work to qualify- the work of playing qualifying matches in locales like Congo, Malawi, Somalia, Sudan, and the more intense stadiums in countries like Egypt and Libya. Unfortunately, the US player ever feels pressure at times and it caught up to him at the end of last season. He took a few extra months off to recharge and has come back as good as ever. I just don't think it should be held against him like it has been. I'm not the biggest Beckerman fan but in his defense, he does his job. His job is to break up plays and find his teammates. He wouldn't be the first DMid to constantly pass backwards. One of the best ever-Claude Makalele did the same but mostly sideways passing was his forte(and John Obi Mikel has followed suit for Chelsea). As long as he learns to keep the mistakes down, I'd have no problem with his passing limitation. Either way we gotta believe he won't see a starting role next summer as long as Jermaine Jones and Michael Bradley are healthy. With him on the bench it should be all good. What would be nice would be to see Klinsy experiment even more with Geoff Cameron. Not just at CB and RB but also at holding mid. I forget who else is in the mix with Beckerman apart from possibly Cameron and maybe Mo Edu in that position. Who else is there to compete with him to backup Jermaine Jones and Michael Bradley?
Based on the Gold Cup I'd say our CM depth is now Starters - Bradley Jones Backup - Cameron Fighting for last 1 or 2 spots - Mix Beckerman Edu I think Beckermann is great for Concacaf matches but internationally can be exposed. Although if Edu doesn't see any time for Stoke this year (or on loan) then you have to bring him in as a defensive cover late in a game. I'd say Mix has won himself a backup CM spot based on the Gold Cup (especially with Stu's unfortunate injury), but he will need to have another solid season to guarantee it.
I agree that his sabbatical shouldn't be held against him. I understand leaving him out of the lineup for the qualifiers since he wasn't fully fit, but to say he needed to earn his spot was silly. If he's fit and ready to play then he should be on the team. Danny Williams is also an option in central midfield. I'd say he's ahead of Beckerman and Edu. It's tough to say where Mix is in the list, I guess we'll see if he starts getting minutes in qualifiers after his Gold Cup performance.
We have a friendly in August, is that the Sr. team going to play there, or will it be a younger group again? DD
Thank you! That notion just drove me crazy. Made no sense to me(then again, I guess some might say it lit something in Donovan but I feel he would have played just as well as he did anyway) Yup forgot about Danny as well. The U.S. does have a fair amount of versatility with Geoff, Danny Williams, Mo. Edu and even Fabian Johnson. Definitely a good thing to have.
I just returned from a mission trip to Honduras, and I was in La Ceiba when the USMNT was playing the Honduras team in the semifinals. They were relatively confident that they could keep up and hopefully score a late goal to win the game. After losing the game, most Hondureños blamed the "Gringo" refs who love the United States. Here is the headline from La Prensa (translated) the next day: "Valiant Honduras lose to rival gringos." I asked some Hondurans if they hated the United States or our soccer team, and they said "No, only the Mexicans."
Because Mexico is the one who always takes them out of the qualifiers... they have no beef with the United States. I could have told you that. Also, most Central American countries, including El Salvador and Honduras, have the saying: "Al mundial no vamos, pero a México le ganamos" :grin:
Swoly, are you worried at all about Mexico qualifying? I mean Hondorus and Panama are right there with Mexico... DD
