Pretty badly, I hear. Rumor has it that the day after he scored a goal in the reserve match, two of his training partners discovered him secretly playing Playstation. I am afraid the Grown A__ Man is going through a regression.
Any chance we can start a new thread on the same topic? Maybe one that won't be hijacked by talk of Michael Owen and bizarre inside jokes about Playstation?
Beau, it's not an inside joke about playstation -- we can all be in on it. In his USSoccer interview, EJ was asked what game system he likes best, to which he replied "I don't play videogames, I'm a grown-ass man." There began his new name, the grown-ass man. Oh, and I have nothing to add about his trials or Michael Owen.
Come on Beau - tell me that you have read (or at least heard about) the infamous US Soccer interview in which Eddie Johnson refers to himself as "Grown A** Man"? http://www.ussoccer.com/editorial/fullstory.sps?iNewsid=112864&itype=4129&iCategoryID=0 The nickname has become nearly ubiquitous on these boards. There is not likely to be tons of information about Eddie Johnson. We all know that he scored a goal in a reserve game. There are likely a few ManUtd fans who can sneak a glimpse of Eddie at Carrington. But ManUtd is not going to be releasing reports or even giving much exposure to a trialist at their club. A), they don't want more PSV's showing interest in a player that has been training with Man Utd several times. B) Eddie is not eligible to participate in any remotely meaningful competitions while training with Man Utd. We all know that reserve team matches are of dubious quality (endless drivel about JK's reserve team goal scoring rates) and Eddie is not even able to participate in those. Since it is impossible for us to have a grasp of how well EJ is schooling Gabriel Heinze or Wes Brown - or how motivated the latter players are when defending against a fresh-faced Yank/Grown A$$ Man, I thought that I would inject some humor into this neurotic thread. I am not exaggerating when I suggest that hundreds, if not thousands, of US Soccer fans would be pretty disappointed if they heard that Eddie Johnson spent 1+ hour on Playstation.
Well, I consider myself a Grown Ass Man, to some degree, but I still play FIFA 2005 until 2:30am almost every weekday and habitually load up my team (currently West Bromwich Albion...in my 3rd career season as manager) with the likes of Robben, C. Ronaldo, RVN, Viera, Lauren, and Heinze while selling all my benchers and all but one GKer). And I'm almost 4 years older than EJ and I make a living doing a more grown-up thing than EJ (i.e. real work). My point is, EJ, you need to get with the times bro. Freddy is doing it, so why aren't you? And...like everyone else, I have nothing of substance to add to this (or arguable any other) thread. EDIT: By the way, is that THE Beau Dure from USA Today or an imposter? (just like I am not, believe it or not, actually Ronaldo's Idol. In fact I am more his mentor, or "sensei" if you will.)
You are nothing. Real Grown A__ Men play Champ Man or Football Man (or whatever it has been re-branded). They don't need any steenking player game-play graphics to keep them engaged in the game until 2:30 AM.
To be fair, I dont' think Owen got the fairest of shakes in Madrid. When he was given a good shot he did do pretty well and ran with it. But at one point he even had a "teammate" saying detrimental things about him upon his arrival. I'm confident he'll emerge as one of the world's best again - just not so sure he will do it with Madrid. Having said all that, IMO he has to take accountability for requesting the move and taking it - he wasn't exactly forced out the door at Liverpool, a team that would've been much better with him right now and could've used him this season. If it doesn't work out for him in the end he really should look at himself for part of the blame. Don't blame him for looking for the challenge, but he has to accept the consequences that may come with the decision he ultimately agreed to. On topic: Hopefully Eddie Johnson does well in his trials and hopefully he will get the deal with Manchester United and actually be a regular, forcing someone out of the line-up. Wishful thinking? Pehraps but he wouldn't have been the first CONCACAF striker to do so for that club, after all so why not? Maybe it would be the sort of challenge that he would excel with.
With Sir Alex pleading his case, EJ would be a shoe in for a permit on appeal. He's only 20 years old and his scoring record in limited time with the senior team speaks for itself.
Agreed...maybe if EJ plays and does well in the first few matches of the Hex it could happen over the summer, but that is a big IF. But like others have said, EJ wants to play, so maybe a move to a smaller club to begin with would be a better move.
Did Tim Howard have better credentials than EJ when he won his appeal for a permit? They make exceptions for exceptional talents. EJ is exceptional. He's only 20 for god's sake.