The only concern can be playing time. It's a vital year for the first-string national teamers, it would be a bummer if most of it is spent on the bench. Very positive for the international perception of our NT though... whatever that is worth.
ac milans defense is poor poor poor. This is gonna be GREAT! BIG CLUB+PLAYING TIME= I'M GETTING AN ONYEWU AC MILAN JERSEY!!!
This is absolutely stunning. Even as a squad player, which he undoubtedly will be, this represents a fantastic chance to grow as a player and should be great for the USMNT.
wow. i guess i'll be buying 2 jerseys in the coming weeks (antonio valencia Man U jersey and GOOCH milan jersey)
Since they signed Silva and have Nesta already, how much PT is he really going to see? My concern is that he was signed by upper management to placate the fan base and that Leonardo won't play him. In a WC year, we need key players on the field for any team, not riding the bench at a name club.
This is as petty as I'll get, but I had to pull this quote up from one of Karl K's "We're Just Not That Good" posts after the Spain victory: I do think that when bigger clubs (although not necessarily this big) start bidding on our players en masse, it will be after our players have already arrived at that level, so we might not even realize right away when our players are that good if we're just looking at the size of their clubs at present. This move, and the interest from Everton in Bradley, Altidore, and Dempsey are a start though and certainly signify a shift from the time when we were just happy to have any players signed to Premier League or Bundesliga clubs.
I've heard this as well. In any event, this is quite probably the most impressive signing of a US player. It's also kind of cool in the information age, that this came out of nowhere. In my reading of the YA forum, I don't recall AC Milan as one of the possible destinations.
This is massive. You could argue that this is the biggest club that a US player has ever played at. Yes, I know Reyna was offered a contract at Barcelona, but he (unwisely?) turned it down. And yes, I know Brad Friedel played at Liverpool 1997-2000, but those were not great years for Liverpool, and I would argue that Milan is a bigger club than Liverpool anyway. Milan has 8 Champions League finals and 5 Champions League trophies over the past 20 years, as well as 2 Intercontinental Cups and 1 Club World Cup, making them the most successful club in Europe, and the world.
I like the move...IF it results in match time. The US needs to have a "use em or lose em" escape added to USNT players and prospects contracts.
I'm just concerned that if Nesta is healthy enough to play (an admittedly big if), he is playing, period. It won't matter if Gooch outplays him in training; this is Italy. And Silva was a new signing as well who obviously expects to play. And he does share Brazilian heritage with the manager. I hate to inject nationality / ethnicity into the debate, but I don't feel Americans have always been able to get a fair shake. So will he play? Yes. But how much? There are some pretty significant variables. I would have been happier with him at a mid-table team where his spot would be more secure.
Great move for Gooch, should set him up for life financially. If he gets to play a lot then this will be the a first as far as a USA field player playing much for one of the very top teams in Europe....Spector played only a few games with Man Utd and West Ham is hardly one of the "very top teams" in England...much less Europe.