It has not been much attention around this player for some time in this forum, but he could play for the US. He has played Youth International matches for England, but no senior internationals. He is at the moment 1st choice goalkeeper at Huddersfield, and their fans ranks him highly. He's still young so maybe he could develop to a future US goalkeeper. If you ask his former boss Alex Ferguson he will for sure tell you that Rachubka will be good enough. A friend of mine told me that there goes a rumour about Ferguson smashing a cup of tea to his office wall, when he heard that Rachubka wanted to leave Old Trafford. By the way here is a link to his profile at the largest Huddersfield supporters net site: http://huddersfieldtown.rivals.net/default.asp?sid=910&stid=8367196&p=2
Rachubka may be a decent goalkeeper, but he has no shot of playing for the US at GK unless he improves dramatically. He's clearly not in the top 10 at the position for the US.
Ok, how can you realistically say this. There's little way you could support this without just your gut feelings as I don't know how you'd have seen him play. Who are the top 10 then that you'd use for the USA? Remember of course that Friedel has retired from the national team and Keller's lasat hurrah will be at the World Cup - assuming he can keep others out of the net through next year. So... we have Howard... We have Cannon - who didn't make it as a starter in Europe... though I think he's a great shotstopper. We have Hahnemann... who hasn't been a keeper of choice and now that Friedel and Keller are about to step aside... will likely be too old to take over the role in any meaningful way. Bush? Maybe... but I'm not convinced he will move to the international stage. Rachubka was born in 1981 if I am not mistaken... meaning he'll be 24 by the end of this year. That is still very young for a keeper. Who knows how he'll progress... or if he will. Personally I don't think he'll ever play for hte USA ... but I am sure that the USA is not nearly as well equipped in the keeper spot as we were for the last decade. We can use all the possibilities out there to push the next generation to get better. What 10 Keepers for the USA do you think are better?
This thread is proof that some things never change around here. I've got another hot tip for all of the Rachubka fans. His name is Michael Ricketts. Why don't you do some research on him and get back to us?
Rachubka DOES qualify for a passport... seeing as he's a citizen... being born in California. However, he was (and possibly still is) captied to England. I'm not sure what the rules are for people that played in youth internationals for teams and had dual citizenship and if tehy can now change their country for FIFA matches... Assuming he could play for the USA... I'd never rule him out unless he wasn't good enough... and I've never seen enough of him to know that. I do know Baardsen isn't available to the USA. David Yelldell should be.
Ummmm.... their situations are nothing like one another. Ricketts never was a US citizen and short of marrying a USA citizen or emigrating... never would be eligible. Thus never had any chance to play for the USA. Rachubka has USA citizenship. He was captied to the English team due to youth caps but that may or may not have changed with recent rulings.
Ummmm...there is more than one way to be alike... IMO, they are alike in the one way that matters and which I was specifically referring to. That is, periodically someone posts a link to a story about one or the other of them asking why they aren't under consideration for the USMT. You are correct that Ricketts never was eligible for the U.S., though that didn't stop endless speculation that he would some day be called into camp. (I will say that I haven't seen a Ricketts thread for a while.) Rachubka has never given even the slightest interest in playing for the U.S.--especially given his involvement with the England U-20s. [If he has showed a scintilla of interest, please post a link.] Nevertheless, every six months or so, someone finds a web page somewhere that lists Paul Rachubka, born in San Luis Obispo, Calif. and starts a thread asking why he isn't being considered for the USMT. This, of course, is someone who left Man U, went to Charlton, left there on a free transfer and is now playing at a mid-table League One (read Division 2) English side. So just to be clear: this is how they are alike--they are both players who play in England who have been/and are speculated about WHO WILL NEVER play for the USMT.
I've never seen the kid play, but the one thing that we are not short on is keepers. I know it can't hurt to have more good GK's, but he would have to be exceptional to get at chance at the USMNT. I'm not sure that it would be worth our time or his. England isn't exactly swimming in keepers right now. It seems to me that he has a better chance with them.
Quick question for those who keep saying that the one thing the USA doesn't need is a keeper. I've asked this before... who are these keepers we have that are tops in the world? Arguably the best keeper we have (based on league form over the past few years) is retired from international play. Our currnet #1 is likely trying to hold onto that spot until next summer... then he'll retire from international play. We have Tim Howard at Manchester United... but it wouldn't be terribly suprising if they brought in someone else over the summer. (wouldn't be too suprising if they didn't either). Who else? Walker didn't impress last year in MLS. Hahnemann is in the Championship League and getting up there in age. Meola is fighting off injuries and is up there in age. Cannon has done fine in MLS but didn't make it in Europe last time he tried. I think we're fine into next summer... but after that... who will we have at keeper? But to get back to this thread... I agree with you JohnW.... Rachubka has never shown any indication he'd like to play for the USA and he probably still isn't eligible to change to our team now.
You keeps asking the same question Wahoo. IMHO, it isn't that hard. Rachuka may improve or he could be good and be in the 3rd level of the English game through bad luck. But right now, Keller, Howard, Cannon, Hahnemann, Walker, Hartman, Busch, Rimando, Brown, Thornton all are likely better. Frankly, I would take Countess or Steve Cronin as up and comers. Not saying the US is deeper than England or top class in goalies, just that we are not likely to be looking to Division 1 or 2 or wherever.
This discussion just isn't going to have any relevance whatsoever until after WC2006. So for the next 14 months at least we should totally s***can it. Maybe if like 3 of our top keepers die after that time, we can discuss whether we would try to go out and get a lower level keeper who clearly chose someone other than his birth country to represent us. Personally, I'd rather have Fat Tony rolling around back there than have this weiner. If we are that desperate (i.e., none of our young guys behind Howard pan out--Walker, Busch, Countess, Ring, you-name it), we are in big trouble. But I personally do not think that even if Howard (or all the others) somehow doesn't cut it that we're going to have too many problems in this area. Someone will step up--they always have, for 16 years + now.
Didn't FIFA recently (last year or so) change the rule that you are cap-tied to a country only if you have played for their senior team? Or did I dream that?
I always get confused when I try to remember how the relevant FIFA rule works, but I think that to switch national teams, the player must have not have been over 21 when he was capped for the national team he is switching from. But as long as that's true, and as long as the player had dual citizenship at the time of those caps, I think he can change national teams even if he is older than 21 at the time he'd like to change national teams.
not quite true...FIFA's revised Statutes gave former youth players who are now over 21 the one-time option to change associations... Article 15.5 Any Players who have already had their 21st birthday at the time of implementation of these provisions and who fulfil the requirements in par. 3 (a) are also entitled to submit such a request to change Associations. This entitlement will expire definitively twelve months after implementation of this provision. ...and since Rachubka is over 21, if he didn't file to change to the US by December 31, 2004, he's stuck as an England International barring any further revision to the Statutes.
I asked the same question because nobody would answer. Personally i find it interesting that we have so many better keepers... when I'm guessing almost none of us have ever seen Rachubka play. Personally I doubt hes a superstar ready to burst out... but then I'm not quite as impressed with the list you named after Hahnemann. A bunch of respectable keepers to be sure... but nothing spectacular out of the last 6. But as I said, I can't really compare him to anyone since Ive only ever seen him play once... and that was for ManU a couple years ago.
ricketts and rachubka. both are crap, both are captied, yet for some reason people want them to play for us. are you on crack? i mean, just cause HUDDERSFIELD supporters rank him highley, you think that hed even HAVE a shot (assuming that he would mysteriously even be able to play for us) over guys like busch, cannon, howard, keller, hartman, ect....
Not saying any of the other keepers, especially Hahnemann on down, are spectacular. But neither is Rachubka, at least on paper. The point is not that Rachubka can't or won't do it, but that he is unlikely to do it. Just a guess, but given that our goalies are all decent and Rachubka's constantly downward career trajectory (though he appears to have found his level), an educated one. We shall see.
Rachubka's constantly downward career trajectory??? I would agreed with that until he signed on loan for Huddersfield last season. Before that he had lost almost to seasons with injuries and illness. At Huddersfield played magnificent and helped the club achieving promotion to league one. Then when he came back to Huddersfield this season their defensive record had an enourmous improvement. The fact is that several Premiership and championship clubs are tracking him now, so I will say that his career is moving upwards. After watching him in around 15 matches this season, I'm pretty sure that he in the future will play in the Premiership, and that's more than Hahnemann ever achieved.