Recent USMNT call-up Terrence Boyd says he’s looking for a better situation for next season, even as he gets set to join the national team for a month-long camp that could include his first full international match.
“I’m looking forward to the level of the games and just hoping that I can fight myself into the roster,” Boyd said on the phone with 10Kit. “It’s going to be a tough fight with all the strikers up top, so I’m just hoping that I can get some minutes and then I prove myself.”
The U.S. managed to beat Italy for the first time ever Wednesday, on Italian soil no less. And though the Italian team was far from a finished product and the U.S. spent much of the last half hour defending tooth and nail, none of that diminishes the significance of the historic victory.
It’s been a while since the U.S. enjoyed a signature win of this sort over world class competition. And unlike the last one, that 2-0 semifinal surprise over Spain in the 2009 Confederations Cup, the U.S. was close to Italy’s equal for most of this one.
Chalk that up to getting a little more comfortable playing in tough environments, and a general improvement on the ball across the board — not just partly because of the additions of the influx of German-trained Americans comfortable in their footballing shoes. The U.S. is no longer a team woefully short on the skill end of the equation. Jurgen Klinsmann’s group can honestly go into most stadiums in the world and expect to give the opponent a game.
Today, they were on the up end of that development.
Player ratings after the jump. (more…)
In the last decade jolly old England has become a refuge for those Spanish players seeking brighter futures. In the early 2000s, men like Mikel Arteta, Ivan Campo and Diego Tristan hopped Iberia flights in search of greener pastures. But lately the names have gotten bigger. Fernando Torres, David Silva and just this past summer Juan Mata have all joined English clubs as high dollar transfers.
No one has received more attention than Torres, and rightly so. Of the three, Torres is the more decorated player having scored the game-winning goal for Spain in the 2008 European Cup final versus Germany and excelling for three-plus seasons at Liverpool.
There is no need to delve into his scoring struggles since he transferred to Chelsea over 12 months ago. That is well documented. Rumors are swirling that his lack of scoring will prompt a move back to Spain to his first club Atletico Madrid. But he wants to win titles and unless you play at Barcelona or Real Madrid, he sees a return to Atletico, whether it’s now or when his contract expires in five years, as a fruitless endeavor. (more…)
Joe Gyau’s German debut could come as soon as Wednesday, when Hoffenheim squares off against Furth in the German Cup. The chance to rest some regulars as Hoffenheim fights its way into the top half of the Bundesliga table may mean a chance for the young American.
Whether he sees the field or not on Wednesday, though, Gyau’s rapid rise to the first team has been nothing short of spectacular. Just 19, Gyau is proving to be a rare American prospect who looks capable of living up to the expectations around him.
Gyau left U-17 residency in 2009 to head for Germany, by way of Vancouver. He played with the Whitecaps’ academy, alongside fellow youth prodigy Charles Renken, until he reached 18 and became eligible for the move overseas.
“When I was in residency I was getting a couple offers, but it was the Spain trip where there was a scout there from Hoffenheim,” Gyau revealed. “He contacted my agent and they worked something out where I would train in Vancouver for a year, because I wasn’t able to transfer at such a young age, and then I went over to Hoffenheim.” (more…)
A source with knowledge of the dealings told 10Kit Thursday that FC Dallas winger Brek Shea is in the sites of Ukrainian outfit Dynamo Kiev.
The perennial Champions League also-rans are supposedly prepared to pay $10 million for the Hoops star, but Shea’s camp isn’t convinced by the idea of going to Eastern Europe, and seems to think they can negotiate a better deal elsewhere, the source said.
A $10 million fee would match the most paid for an MLS player, dished out when Villarreal purchased Jozy Altidore from NY Red Bull. (more…)
While most American eyes were on last night’s U.S.-Panama friendly and other soccer fans has watched a certain other clásico earlier, but in Guatemala they were watching Comunicaciones-Municipal.
The 265th playing of the match also marked the debut of American striker Jeff Cunningham. Earlier in the week he had promised to score golazos for his new club. Well, it looks as though he’s a man of his word. Cunningham came on as a second half substitute and opened his account for the team, helping them secure a 2-0 victory after going a man down just after he had come on the field. He had an earlier chance (seen at the 1:55 mark of the clip below), and if nothing else just enjoy the LMFAO remixes playing in the background.
See it here:
Still just 16, it’s no wonder Texas native Emerson Hyndman is fearless. Somewhat undersized on the field, he comes from an international soccer tradition that has opened doors for him from a young age. Now in England with Fulham’s youth academy, the technically gifted young American looks to have a bright future.
“Emerson since the age of 12 has been recognized as a very technical player and excelled in some areas,” said FC Dallas coach Schellas Hyndman, also Emerson’s grandfather. “The thing that’s always been kind of a hamper to it all is that much like his grandfather, he just grew slowly. Just more immature for the age and the body.”
As the photo at left (from www.texasfutgol.com) proves, Hyndman had plenty of growing to do a few years back when he was already training occasionally with FC Dallas’ full team as a member of the Hoops academy. But mentally, the soon-to-be 17-year-old was looking for bigger adventures. (more…)
Earlier today at ESPN.com, I reflected on the paucity of Mexico-based Americans in contention for the Olympic team. There are plenty of U-20s who looked very promising during the last U-20 cycle, but haven’t taken a step forward the way MLS-based U-23s like Perry Kitchen, Zarek Valentin, and Ethan White have over the past year.
Along with several others, Moises Orozco is a promising young American on the roster at Mexican champion Tigres. But the quality at Mexico’s latest top team has been barrier to the half dozen or so American in the youth ranks in Monterrey, and Orozco seems to be on the outside looking in to America’s U-23 team, like fellow Mexican-Americans Adrian Ruelas, Ernest Nungaray, and Victor Garza, among others. (more…)
A lot of expectations are surrounding the United States U-23 squad for the Olympic qualifiers, and eventually the Olympics. One of those reasons is 20-year-old Joshua Gatt, who has dazzled US fans with his highlight real goals playing in Norway for Molde FK. The Michigan born winger/outside back is currently in California with his U-23 teammates for the January training camp.
“I have had a great time so far, it is great to be able to get out and play again because of my injury and the guys are great,” Gatt said about the U-23 camp. “We have a very talented team here and I think we are looking very good for the upcoming qualifiers.” (more…)
Old man. Grizzled veteran. Elder statesman.
These are not the usual characterizations US soccer fans make when talking about Freddy Adu. For the longest time Adu has always been the youngest player just about anywhere he has played. He was the youngest player in MLS. The youngest player at the Under-17 World Cup, the youngest on the US Under-20 team and the youngest ever to be capped on the US senior national team.
But time has a funny way of changing things. Four years ago, at age 18, Adu was on the US team at the Summer Olympics in Beijing. Now 22, Adu stands to make his second Olympic team and suddenly finds himself as the most experienced man in Caleb Porter’s Under-23 camps.
He cannot help but laugh when thinking of himself as ‘the old guy’ on the team, but for a player who has had a nomadic career such as his, Adu can provide a great lesson to his Olympic teammates on the pitfalls that soccer can bring.
“That is something that we we’re talking about at the last camp,” Adu told 10 Kit. “It is kind of strange to be around guys who are actually younger than me but it is a great opportunity for me to be a leader and bring not just my Olympic experience but also my national team experience to the table.” (more…)