http://americansoccerreader.com/2008/07/17/us-olympic-squad-announced/ "Goalkeepers: Brad Guzan, Chris Seitz Defenders: Michael Parkhurst, Maurice Edu, Michael Orozco, Marvell Wynne, Nathan Sturgis, Patrick Ianni Midfielders: Freddy Adu, Michael Bradley, Sacha Kljestan, Stuart Holden, Danny Szetela, Benny Feilhaber. Forwards: Brian McBride, Jozy Altidore, Charlie Davies, Robbie Rogers" What do you think? I think that looks like a pretty strong squad.
I'm happy. I may have traded Franklin for Ianni, but that's it. Glad Rogers and Davies made it, and it looks like a very good squad. We're just a little weak in the back though.
I can't believe the nerve of Donovan for flaking on his country. How DARE he not fulfill my fantasy of playing on the Olympic team? [/cue NY Times 2002 photos]
Personnally I just can't, for the life of me, understand the fasination with a reserve player from the worst team in the history of the EPL.
Wow. I thought for sure McBride to Olys was going to turn out to be far fetched. I would've referred to it as a 'pipe dream' but that would be him coming back for WC qualifying.
Strong, strong squad - really shows how our youth is coming up. Let these guys play the way they know how and we could really do some damage. Love the overage choices as well. For once, I have no complaints. I'm very excited about this team!
Why'd you quote my post? Regarding Benny... yeah. I'm surprised to see him get on the squad. I guess the coaching squad wants him to get games somewhere.
It's a good squad. Nothing spectacular, but good. We'll be competitive in the first round. Hopefully we'll squeeze on through. But I don't have high expectations.
no reason. just clicked on the quote by mistake and sent my opinion. Sorry for any mis understanding.
good squad, edu as defender might lead to bigger and better things with the full seniors... edu as defender opens up a slot for a more talented mid, either szetela or feilhaber paired with bradley... edu skillset as defender improves the backline...the major question would be his defending... an edu gooch pairing might be very interesting
You joke, but interesting front line. Rogers is really a winger, so you have 3 forwards: Davis, Jozy and McBride. Everyone wants Jozy to become the new McBride, so it makes sense to tie them together during training. But do you want both of them to play the target man for each other? Does McBride become the scorer and Jozy become the set-up player or vice versa? In other words, Davis is the only small, fast true forward, and that might be needed in games where we're playing counter-attack. He's been playing well, apparently, in Sweden, but showed poorly during qualifiers. Is he trust-worthy of being the only option? Could he have been picked in an effort to feature him and resurrect his career?
That's a terrific roster with some very exciting players; it's really a surprise to see Guzan on there, I figured Seitz would be the main man in net, but hey, all the better. McBride up top makes this a team that could really do some damage. Hopefully some of these damn games will be televised; does anyone know how the Olympic format is setup? Is it basically a tournament type setup with group matches followed by knockout stages?
with only 5 "defenders" listed on the roster, likely Edu and/or Szetela and/or others might be called into a defensive role during the tournament. for all the "positives" that these midfielders could bring role of defender, i do have to point out that line above. for all the potential and excitement that looks to be in the attacking portion of this roster, I am a bit concerned about the squads chances for success given the current group of available defenders. (not that I have any better suggestions/options.)
Sturgis is a surprise to me. He hasn't played in months. Feilhaber is a bit of a surprise but there's no questioning he's talented. Otherwise, not many complaints. Szetela, btw, hasnt been with the U23 team in any camp so far. Granted, he knows most of the pool from having been on the last two U20 teams and a couple of senior team camps, but it's still interesting that this is his first U23 call-up. Same with Bradley, too. Finally, disapointed there's no Subotic but certainly not surprised. I hope that, like Torres, this is a matter of choosing his club over the Olympics and not picking another country over the US.
It wouldn't surprise me to see Nowak use Adu, or Holden or Rogers in that role, should Davies not be up to snuff during the tournament.
On an 18 man roster, we're taking 5 DMids. And the best of them is listed out of position. I would have taken Hill for his versatility and Franklin because he's the best U23 CB, dropping Ianni and one of the DMids (for me, that would be Bradley). I would also not have taken Guzan and instead brought in Pearce. Sturgis is an OK LB, but he's certainly not at his best there. Other than that, looks good. There is no doubt that top to bottom, this is the best US Olympic Team ever. Put Donovan, Beasley, Spector, Dolo, and Pearce in that mix and I'd take that as our MNT today.
i suspect davies, mcbride and altidore act as a 3 man rotation thru the 1st round this is the sort of attacking based squad many have wanted to see... i do like the mobility of the squad.. the pre olympic tourney in hong kong, who is the usa playing??
Official US Soccer announcement: http://www.ussoccer.com/articles/viewArticle.jsp_7962632.html -------- 2008 U.S. MEN’S OLYMPIC TEAM ROSTER BY POSITION GOALKEEPERS (2): Brad Guzan (Chivas USA), Chris Seitz (Real Salt Lake) DEFENDERS (5): Patrick Ianni (Houston Dynamo), Michael Orozco (San Luis), Michael Parkhurst (New England Revolution), Nathan Sturgis (Real Salt Lake), Marvell Wynne (Toronto FC) MIDFIELDERS (7): Freddy Adu (SL Benfica), Michael Bradley (SC Heerenveen), Maurice Edu (Toronto FC), Benny Feilhaber (Derby County), Stuart Holden (Houston Dynamo), Sacha Kljestan (Chivas USA), Danny Szetela (Brescia Calcio) FORWARDS (4): Jozy Altidore (Villarreal), Charlie Davies (Hammarby IF), Brian McBride (out of contract), Robbie Rogers (Columbus Crew) The U.S. will begin their final preparation for the Beijing Olympics on Sunday, July 20, with six days of domestic training in San Jose, Calif. The team will then depart for Hong Kong, where they will participate in the ING Cup, facing fellow Olympic participants Ivory Coast on July 30 and Cameroon on Aug. 2. -------- -------- U.S. Men’s Olympic Team Alternates List – 2008 Olympic Games Goalkeeper: Dominic Cervi (Out of Contract) Defender: Frankie Hejduk (Columbus Crew) Midfielder: Dax McCarty (FC Dallas) Forward: Robbie Findley (Real Salt Lake) -------- the page also has links to full podcasts with Michael Bradley and Brian McBride.