Well IMO am not thrilled about the move to SPL... But another young American in a HUGE club in the UK is awesome. Rangers has been very kind to American players from Reyna to Edu and now Ale... It must have been very tough on Örebro SK to let Bedoya go now... They were going to lose him either way might as well get something for him... I was shocked to hear some fans of Örebro SK were mad at Bedoya... He scored more goals as a DMID than as a attacking player this season!!!!! Bedoya has a great career infront of him, I would have loved to see him go to Spain or Holland. But SPL and Rangers is always a great stepping stone to the EPL, which I think is Bedoya's main objective in the long run. I wish him luck. And the physical play of the SPL might be good for is international development. Rangers is a big club that MUST win always and that is good for a player to play with that Pressure. WISH U LUCK ALE!
How many games before Bedoya gets injured? He has a similar game and similar build as Beasley, who was constantly hurt while at Gers. I hate to be the pessimist, but I really don't like this move.
I'm surprised to hear you say he has a similar build to Beasley. I would have guessed he's taller and heavier than DMB. He certainly looks thicker. As far as playing style, he's played as a CM in Sweden while DMB has always been a winger. Are you saying they both rely on speed? I've only seen Bedoya in person once, last winter in the US/Chile friendly. He didn't strike me as exceptionally fast in that match but it was just a one-off. His close control was much better than what I typically expect from DMB. Didn't see enough to compare his finishing but I'd give Beaz the edge based on what I did see.
In terms of playing style, everything I've seen of Bedoya indicates that he is a high energy player with a motor that is constantly running. He doesn't have an off button, and when you play in a hackfest league like the SPL, it really is only a matter of time before you get crushed. Bedoya has about 2 inches on Beasley, and a few more pounds, but I wouldn't exactly describe his build as sturdy. Maurice Edu is a beast by comparison and he's been injured almost as much as he's been healthy at Gers. I just don't see Bedoya making it through a month, let alone a season, before he picks up an injury...potentially a very serious injury. Bedoya would have been better off moving to Holland or France than Scotland. But I really don't know what other offers he might have had. I hope I'm wrong, but I just really have a bad feeling about this move.
Looks like he won't be in the squad tomorrow, as Rangers have signed Boca and he'll be the one late addition to the Europa League squad that McCoist is entitled to make. http://www.rangers.co.uk/articles/20110817/exclusive-bocanegra-signs_2254024_2423804
OK, the Energizer Bunny thing about Bedoya makes sense. He did come across a bit frantic against Chile. I assumed that was him trying to make an impression on Bob. Game always looks slower on TV but he seemed much calmer and more tactical in the Gold Cup. Hopefully, Bedoya has less susceptibility to the injury bug than Edu (wasn't Mo injured most of his 1st or 2nd year with Toronto?).
Don't worry - Gers are out of the CL and unlikely to play Stutgart any time soon. And the preseason is over, so I doubt Bedoya will face SC Preussen Munster soon either. As long as Rangers don't play German teams Bedoya should be ok ... Now, I do advise keeping his car in the garage.
You're correct... Maybe Gio should never have left Rangers for Arsenal where a serious injury pretty much ended his career as a midfielder.
Bedoya is a high energy player but I wouldn't think to compare him size wise to Beasley. I guess I haven't seen him close up but to me seemed more somewhere between Beasley and Kljestan (wide range, I know). Has a motor, doesn't back down and does well challenging for balls in the air.
Bedoya played DM the last couple games at Orebo, and often played a CM role with them (not a #10 or wide). Bob played him out of position a bit with the nats, because, lord knows, we couldn't have any halfway skilled CM's (Holden, Feilhaber, Torres, Beodya, Diskerud) playing in the middle, that's where Jr plays. Anyway, point being, he's a lot more rugged than DMB, a waifish winger.
Obviously you can get hurt anywhere, don't get your panties in a bunch. The EPL is an extremely physical league as well. However, in the SPL, once you get past Celtic and Gers, the talent level drops off to pure shit on a stick. There are a lot more players in the SPL who only know how to stop a player by sharpening their studs, rather than a legit tackle or good positioning. And while Bedoya isn't Kate Moss running around out there, he isn't exactly a big dude either. Only playing at top gear + hackfest league + somewhat slight build = typically a recipe for a serious injury sooner rather than later. Is it at all possible for you to comment on any player at all in the US national team pool in any thread without making a stupid nepotism claim? Just curious.
i just enjoy the amount of rubbish that is talked in YA. You're entitled to your opinion but the SPL is not that much of a hackfest. Football is a contact sport. Or at least it used to be. You should try watching some junior football to see a hackfest.
Most posters on here have not actually seen enough SPL games to comment. The evidence, what evidence there is out there, actually shows that American players across the board have been more likely to get hurt elsewhere. Even Bease while at Gers got hurt by Germans more than Scots teams. Reyna got some ankle injuries while at Gers, did his ACL in England. Sure the sample is small, but it extends to other players as well.
There's a few hammer throwers kicking about like tokley but every league has a few hammer throwers in there. What would help football in Scotland is making the league bigger and summer football!
It's not to say there aren't very rough players - but the difference between SPL and EPL is the EPL hacks - De Jong, the old Keano etc, are all around better athletes and have a better chance of actually getting the studs into a good player's foot. Every league has hacks. If does not seem to me that the SpL officiating is any more lenient or encourages thuggery ... now in the stands, that's different!
depends what color you have on! I haven't been back as much in the past dozen years - but when I was there a lot in the early 90's it was crazy on the streets on game day - and not always good crazy - but yeah, the game atmosphere is hard to beat.
Since this thread is at 900 posts and he's moved to Rangers, somebody needs to start a new Bedoya thread.