I still believe Steffan lacks the refined foot skills to ever get much of a chance at City under Pep. Not saying he is horrible, but he is a bit stiff with it and when asked by the US to play shorter passes and control the ball a bit, he's been shaky. Maybe I overestimate what he would need, but he just never seemed a fit there to me.
He was better at it than Jesse Gonzalez before Luchi started working with him on it. Jesse has been dramatically better since then. Since Pep is a top twoish coach in the world I'm guessing Steffen would also dramatically improve with daily training. One thing Luchi does is have keepers involved in a lot of early practice rondos and small sided play. He probably stole it from Pep or a Pep acolyte.
#USMNT keeper Zack Steffen has returned to full fitness and will be Fortuna's starter should the #Bundesliga returned as planned on May 1 (kicker) #F95— Manuel Veth (@ManuelVeth) April 1, 2020
A recent article talking about the pending battle for goalie at Düsseldorf Coach Rösler says it well be a tough battle between Steffen and Kastenmeier when the season starts back up. The author speculates that the break in play has been good for Zack because it has allowed him to get healthy. Kastenmeier overall has been a solid replacement, so it will be interesting to see how both respond once team training commences. Steffen should have the edge based on ability and resume, but it is still not clear if his body is up to it. https://www.kicker.de/773908/artikel/f95_trainer_roesler_und_der_kampf_um_die_nummer_1
This is my view as well. I think Steffan is a nice player, if not quite Howard or Friedel quality. He should carve out a nice career in Europe. But it will be a lower level than Manchester City.
Another factor in the decision making could be his potential exit in the summer (back to Man City or somewhere else) as has been rumored earlier in the thread.
Yeah. The article mentions that Kastenmeier is 22, so it might be de facto Steffen's given that they might have long-term plans for the other guy.
Wouldn't it be the other way round? Katenmeier will definitely be there next season (unless a great offer comes in, of course) so there'd be a bigger incentive to keep him happy than with Zack. Mind you, it's likely to be a bit academic. At this stage the teams will need near-full pre-season before they'll be ready to resume play, so the starting place will surely go to whoever looks best in training.
I keep forgetting Zack is on loan. Either way, I see what you're saying but highly doubt Fortuna would want to piss off Man City in that regard. We'll see though!
Remember that Fortuna would love to keep Zach after all. I'd say he's odds on favorite to be their no.1 so long as he is healthy.
The loan ends June 30th, whether they play several games or none to end the season by then. Fortuna is very unlikely to ever be able to afford a City player. So, I'd put my money on they playing the younger guy who will be there with them next season, because even if they don't go down, why would City keep one of their players in a team that is circling the drain? Zack could do better. Hopefully.
Loans will get pushed back to accommodate the season being pushed back. He will be there to finish the year no matter what the loan date says in the contract. This is obviously dif circumstances.
No. We don't know yet, and it seems unlikely. https://www.ctvnews.ca/sports/fifa-braced-for-challenges-over-player-contract-extensions-1.4897472 --- FIFA is braced for legal challenges over the recommendation that player contracts should be extended until the pandemic-affected soccer season can be completed. [...] Another complication is that sports lawyers do not view the guidelines from Zurich-based FIFA as binding for any player, club or league. And it's unclear what happens if clubs from different countries disagree on which rules should apply.
Why wouldn't club be able to do this unilaterally to a loan (contract is different, for obvs. reason, although, of course, club and player can always extend by mutual agreement)? I would think a loan extension as long as it ends within legal transfer windows (for practical reasons, not legal) would be simple, no?
Because the parent club can object. Because, citing personal terms, the player can object. However, if the parent club and the player agree, there shouldn't be problems as long as the relevant transfer window is open.
Robert Lewandowski, Marco Reus and the five players who stand to gain from the delayed 2019/20 Bundesliga season https://www.bundesliga.com/en/bunde...-20-season-coronavirus-lewandowski-reus-10820 snip: Steffen’s start to Bundesliga life was of the highest calibre as he put in a Man of the Matchday display, making 10 saves in Fortuna Düsseldorf's 3-1 win away at Werder Bremen on the opening weekend. The USA international would go on to play every game of the Hinrunde, making 67 saves – the second most in the league – at an average of four per match. It turned out, though, that the 24-year-old had been playing through a knee injury. It would become too much for the Coatesville, Pennsylvania native and he’s spent the whole of 2020 on the sidelines... A fit-again Steffen will also provide Rösler with a positive selection headache as he provides competition to Florian Kastenmeier, who has also impressed in his eight games as deputy, as well as chipping in with a rare assist in the DFB Cup quarter-final defeat to fourth-tier Saarbrücken.
Not unilaterally. Steffen belongs to Man City, who can veto anything that happens after June 30th. Steffen may be able to object on personal terms grounds as well. We're all in uncharted waters now, which is precisely why nothing unilateral will happen.
Yes, I definitely meant if all parties agreed. I mean "unilaterally" meaning without any additional Fifa/FA guidance.
I basically meant: as long as everyone on the club/player level wants to extend the loan, there's nothing stopping them. Fifa/FA etc guidance/regs seems to only apply if one of them didn't want to extend a contract (and maybe a loan.)