I think !Bob cleared this issue up, but it still does not answer a key problem--How are Bornstein and Feilhaber going to get around a huge Israeli stamp on their passport? I know the whole "Two Passports" strategy has been brought up, but it's clear public record that both players have visited Israel, both for the Maccabiah games and for personal reasons. Iran will have to swallow some pride if they let either in. And, if niether is granted entrance, the US should not play them and a FIFA sanction should be levied to Iran. Yes, last year's friendlies were good...But they were LAST YEAR. Two of those three games didn't have Landon Donovan, and our lineup is quite different now. (Eddie Johnson, Heath Pearce, and Josh Wolff are no longer A-Squad players, Jonathan Bornstein, Jose Torres, and Jozy Altidore have come into their own, etc.) It's good to see where we're at now from last year. Furthermore, please do not say that Iran is poor opposition when you mention Cameroon, Cote d'Ivoire and Ghana. While I do agree the US should play at least two African teams away, I would honestly rank Iran as having a more well rounded squad than all of those countries. The problem with Iran is that they are a quality side, but age is starting to catch up with them. Of course, that was the Mantra we lived with in 2006 against the Czechs, and we learned that sometimes age is nothing but a number. And by the way, one of the real problems with this young US squad right now is handling match pressure. The US looked terrible against England, and poor against Spain. However, against Argentina and Brazil at home, we looked good, and even dominated in stretches of those games. We looked poor against El Salvador as well, and even though it didn't mean a thing, we let the crowd bite us a bit against T&T. This team really does have a problem playing against hostile crowds, and part of the reason BB wants this friendly to happen is to cover just that issue. In addition to trying to play quality teams away (Like England and France), the US should genuinely start scheduling friendlies that would be considered away games under normal circumstances. (Like playing South Korea in LA, Poland in Chicago, Mexico in Houston, etc.)
For those considering attending this potential match. http://iran.visahq.com/requirements/United_States/resident-United_Arab_Emirates/ I did verify this information through the Iranian Counsel here in Dubai.
you can play against whoever you want in the U.S. it's just not the same as an real away game. Houston is not Azteca. New York is not la bombonera . the langauge, the food, the comfort, the familiarity of the hotels, no security concerns. It's not the the crowd that's the problem, it's the long travel, it's not getting sleep in your hotel, it's practice conditions you can't control, it's not having your right with you, it's being driven late to the game so you can't warm up properly. It's not getting running water in your dressing room. Toilets purposely stopped up, it's your equipment being stolen by the people that are supposed to load it on the bus, it's the fact that unlike in Houston the fans actually could invade the pitch and stab someone. It's just not a comparison. Sorry Cameroon, Ivory Coast, and Ghana all have world class players and are extremely good teams. Iran is just ok. They aren't even doing good in qualifying. They are like second fromthe bottom. Regardless i think you underrate the African teams like most Americans underated Ghana before the 2006. take some of the people on the Ivory Coast squad for example. Kolo Toure - Arsenal Eboue - Arsenal Yaya Toure - Barcelona Zokora - Spurs Kalou - Chelsea Drogba - Chelsea Kone - Marsaille Keïta - Lyon Far from a mediocre squad. (Eboue's an idiot though. lol.) But they have quality players playing at the highest level and deep in the champions league every year. More then i can say for either the U.S. or Iran. Cameroon? Well they got that Eto guy and Ghana has Essien. That's some quality there.
I think that it could be scheduling conflicts, not politics, that are most likely to stop this match from happening. All reports on the possibility of an Iran-US friendly state that the match would take place "in October or November". The only FIFA international dates in October are the 10th to the 14th, and the only international dates in November are the 14th to the 18th. Iran currently has no matches scheduled in October, but the US is playing a World Cup qualifier at Honduras on October 10th and another against Costa Rica at RFK on the 14th. The US then has no matches scheduled in November, but Iran has Asian Cup qualifiers at home against Jordan on November 14th and then at Jordan on the 18th. This is all assuming that both the US and Iran qualify for (or are completely knocked out of qualification for) the World Cup in their current respective rounds. If not, the situation would be further complicated as the US could be playing a home and away playoff against the fifth place finisher in CONMEBOL in November (very unlikely) and Iran could be playing one against New Zealand in October and November (much more likely). Since I don't see qualifiers (for the World Cup or the Asian Cup) being rescheduled in order to accomdate a friendly, the match would probably need to take place on a non-FIFA international date. This too is unlikely as the European leagues, the Iranian league, and the end of the MLS season and MLS playoffs are all in session at this time of the year.
For one, yes, I agree that real away games are far better than "Fake" away games, but the reality is we can't play all of our games away, because then the Fed would go bankrupt. I just want to avoid "Cookie Cutter" games like the US had against friendly crowds in 2006 (Like Poland at K-Town, Japan at Seattle and pointless games against Jamaica, Venezuela and Estonia), which will instill character in our younger players. And I for one will never underestimate or underrate African teams. Where did you get this from? I for one think it's essential that the US play at least two away games in Africa in WC tuneups. Whoa there chief. Looking at that schedule means that this friendly is DEFINITELY happening, and it's a great idea for both nations. I would estimate the friendly will take place around early November, maybe November 6-7. The deal is, that would be the end of the MLS season, and by then, many playoff teams will have been eliminated, leaving a lot of US players needing playing time in the offseason. Combine those players with guys sitting on benches in Europe (Brad Guzan and Freddy Adu immediately come to mind) and you get a good squad. Yes, this will not be an A-Team. But Iran is tuning up to play Jordan, not Korea. Furthermore, if Iran finish 3rd (As they are currently), this may be a battle for the AFC playoff game, one which will be held November 14 (Meaning the Jordan game will be pushed back). So, it makes very good sense for both teams to hold a friendly then. Iran will be preparing for extremely critical matches against opposition who will be the strength of a US B or C team. Likewise, this game will provide playing time for US players facing a long offseason in the MLS and sitting on benches in Europe, and will be a last chance for some players for Bob Bradley, as well as a look at some younger guys fresh out of the U-20 tournament in Egypt. (I can see Brek Shea, "Sueno" Flores and Bryan Arguez making a splash here)
I didn't suggest anything like we need to play every game away. I was only responding to you're statement about "The U.S. has trouble with hostile crowds"... "the US should genuinely start scheduling friendlies that would be considered away games under normal circumstances. (Like playing South Korea in LA, Poland in Chicago, Mexico in Houston, etc.)" I was rebutting the issue of "the crowd". I dont' think it's a crowd problem it's everything else that goes with an away game besides a crowd screaming especially in the states. And the latter statement sounds to me like you're saying the U.S. should play South Korea in LA, etc as they would be "away" games. And i was further saying for the same reasons those aren't away games because it's all comfortable in the U.S. for players. I got that from your statement: "Furthermore, please do not say that Iran is poor opposition when you mention Cameroon, Cote d'Ivoire and Ghana...I would honestly rank Iran as having a more well rounded squad than all of those countries." That seems to indicate some belief that Cameroon, Ivory Coast, and Ghana are somehow poor opposition compared to Iran. As though i've called Iran poor but somehow contradicted myself by then suggesting so called poor teams like Cameroon. That's how i read that statement. I gotta disagree with the assessment of Iran. The other teams just have deeper squads and play better competition at club and international level. I think Africa is quite a bit stronger then Asia as a federation when it comes to internationals so the African teams are playing better nations more often.
The reason African nations play stronger (read: UEFA) nations more often may have very little to do with the strength of their federation, and more to do with the fact that there's a minimal time change. (Of course, how often do European teams venture into sub-Saharan Africa, anyway? I honestly don't know, but I can't think of that happening too often...)
Okay...Being a "Great Team" and being "Well Rounded" are different things. For example, Iran is a well rounded team. All their Goalkeepers are starters at their clubs (Even if it is Iran), their defenders are all starters and have decent experience, they have a midfield which has genuine talent in Karimi, Shojaei and Mahdavikia, coupled with a bevy of workhorse type mids (Domestic and UAE based, who all start for their clubs, and who are also all in the prime of their careers--Mid 20's). Only in forward does Iran really lack talent and depth, Iran still depends on oldtimers like Hashemian and (until recently) Daei. Now let's take Ghana for instance. Ghana have bags of talent, and yes, on paper, can crush Iran. But is Ghana well-rounded? I can't say that. In goal, Ghana is painfully weak, Kingson is Ghana's starter and the backup at Wigan. In defense, Ghana are covered---Depth in all positions. In the mid, Ghana is the best and worst--Essien, Muntari, and Appiah are all legendary players. But aside from those great starters, looking closely you find players growing mold on benches in Europe--Annan, Ayew, Buaben, Kingston..Etc. Ghana has no real star forwards, and most of Ghana's forwards who do get playing time do so in leagues that would be comparable to Iran's domestic league (Cypriot League, Ligat-Al, Saudi League). So no, to answer your question, a random team (Like Ghana) is NOT deeper than Iran. You can look at Cameroon with the same lens--You will find superb talent, and a lot of head scratching at some other selections. My point is, while African countries can boast some of the best players in the World, rarely do Africans field well rounded teams. The trap is that on paper, African teams have sides studded with European based talent, but most of it sits on benches or have auxillary roles. This is why teams like Egypt and Tunisia dominate the CAN: Sure Egypt doesn't have spectacular players like Essien or Muntari, but everybody on their team gets consistent playing time with their clubs, and are highly professional. It also explains why Egypt and Tunisia have very little success in the World Cup--Because yes, workman like teams like Egypt rarely breed creativity, and you need players like Essien to advance from a WC Group Stage. However, when you are going to play a friendly to examine players, it's usually a good course of action to play well rounded teams. I feel (And this is my opinion) that it's better for the US to play well balanced teams for now, as we are still examining the relative strengths of our side (Even though Cameroon can probably smack Denmark, Poland, Australia or Egypt in a game, any of those teams would be a better friendly simply because the roster would be better balanced). We can play African teams in Africa during the actual run up to the World Cup, when we have our roster down to about 25-30 players. But until then, I rank a well rounded team equal to a team that has World Class talent mixed with benchsitters.
Well, it seems like there are in fact two friendlies in the works. There have been some reports that the sides have agreed on the dates too! First one in Tehran on October 10 and the second in Los Angeles on November 14. Someone mentioned the difficulties in scheduling, so interesting to find out if these are FIFA dates and I guess neither team has a game for those dates already!
@JumboBuc. Don't be scared, put politics and media that numbs our mind away, and what you have is a friendly football match. Im looking forward to this match.
I doubt the U.S. would be playing in the CONCACAF v. CONMEBOL playoff in November as they would have already qualified. But Iran however it is very likely they could be playing in the AFC v. OFC playoff. Depending on what happens on June 17th in the AFC matches Iran could either finish 2nd which would ensure automatic qualification, 3rd which would mean a playoff in September for the right to play in the OFC/AFC playoff in October and November. But I'm sure US Soccer is probably looking for opponents for a match or two in November during those fixture dates and I would expect the matches to be in the Middle East, Northern Africa, or Europe as most of U.S.A.'s top players are based in Europe and they would try to eliminate travel as much as possible for those November fixture dates.
Besides drawing attention to the team I dont see much upside to this, playing Iran wont make us better. If we schedule friendlies as WC tuneups lets play some of the big boys.
There is a tough balance between scheduling people you can test yourself against and still keeping the team confident. If I was running US Soccer this is how my lead up to the WC would look like. November 2009 @ Turkey January 2010 v. Sweden at The Home Depot Center (Like always) February 2010 @ Netherlands Late March/Early April 2010 @ Scotland @ Denmark Late May/Early June (Friendlies before WC) Colombia at Dick's Sporting Goods Park Tunisia or Nigeria at Charlotte, NC Bank of America Stadium @ Portugal v. Ivory Coast in South Africa somewhere
Basically, we learned something from 2002 and 2006's campaigns. In 2002, the USA played 15 games from the end of the hex to the start of the World Cup. Of course, that also included 5 gold cup matches. Nevertheless, that send up included a major tournament, as well as 8 friendlies against some pretty steep competition (Korea@Korea, Mexico, @Ireland, @Italy, @Germany, Uruguay, Ecuador, Netherlands). Only 2 friendlies were "Cookie Cutter" games. (Jamaica, Honduras) In 2006, our preperations were nonexistent. We played only 11 matches, and only had barely 4 games of any quality. A full 5 were complete crap (Canada, Guatemala, Jamaica, Latvia, Venezuela), and another 5 were against decent opposition but no big "Heavy" teams (A terrible Japan, Norway B, Poland in a Neutral venue, @Scotland, and Morocco-Who beat us), and only one "Big" team (Germany). Notice that we only played 2 "away games"..Period. I think the idea should be that the USA should play at least 12 games, and at least 4 of them should be against "Heavy" teams, and no more than 3 should be "Crap" games designed to make money. I think we should abandon the traditional sendoff in order to play more away games, as I feel at least 5 games should be played away. (And NO, never again Neutral venues. It makes no point playing in Europe in front of a Pro-Us crowd, unless we are playing an African country, as Nigeria and Ghana sometimes plays friendlies in Holland and England.) Lastly, a good idea is that we should play at least 3 African teams, including the WC host. Here would be my run up using my logic: Late 2009: Japan@Seattle January friendlies: Honduras@DC Denmark at the HDC (Heheh hopefully full strength!) Then, before the MLS season, a 2 game african tour @Tunisia @South Africa Then some European games in March @Netherlands Ghana@Netherlands @Ireland April Friendlies: Mexico (Houston) Argentina (New York) May Friendlies "Sendoff"--Note, I predict Portugal to be the strongest UEFA team to not qualify, and Colombia or Uruguay to be the strongest Comnebol teams to not qualify. If not, the send off series can be moved away to get stronger opponents) Portugal(Foxboro) Iraq(Nashville-Trust me, this game would make cash) Colombia(Miami) I think this schedule would be an awesome WC preparation.
I used the FIFA calendar for international fixture dates so our best players would be playing thus getting the much needed prep before the WC. You also have no away games in the sendoff. I think that was a major flaw in our preparation in 2006 as we weren't ready for Czech Republic and a WC atmosphere. That's why I have a stop off in Portugal before we go to South Africa. As well as playing a match against an African team in South Africa getting used to the surroundings while playing an African team who would have most of the support. The January friendlies would be for MLS or Scandanavian players exclusively as they are the only ones out of season, but it would be a game to see what fringe players you could use.
From another thread: Heck, I didn't even know that these things were every agreed upon. But this article says it was in May?