Did Joseph say anything exciting and/or new?       GO EARTHQUAKES!!! -G
      Don't you mean that he spoke in freedom?       GO EARTHQUAKES!!! -G
So THIS is why we had to stand there for like an hour waiting to welcome him home!! Well, it was worth it (if only for the kiss on the cheek)! Good to see him back home where he belongs!
Joe seemed a little down... I caught Joe with Tom and Ralph on KNBR. To sum up, he was not his usual ebullient self. He did not have a lot to say that was new but he did have a good line about the French soccer players being a little soft (not on the pitch per se) as evidenced by their penchant for bikini style underwear under their kits and their general derision for his boxers. I am not sure when boxers became the definition of manliness but it was a funny line. Overall he seemed a little down about his experience in France but not regretful. He is eager to catch on with a new EU club next year to prove his meddle and implied he would be happy if it was in the French leagues, if nothing else to get a sample of the French soccer groupies (another funny line). His conversation was peppered with a lot of "you knows" and such, he didnt sound quite as articulate as I recalled him to be but he was interesting, funny, polite and very open. He made a point of thanking KNBR for their efforts to include soccer guests now and then. Ralph and Tom both seemed to genuinely enjoy the conversation, and seemed sincere in their request to have call back when his situation is known for next year and fill them in on his progress. As for a return to MLS, he remained elusive, maybe in a few years but I think he feels strongly its time to prove himself against the top levels of competition and enjoy soccer in a country where it is the top tier sport. Thats about all I can think of to recap. If you have anything specific I'll try to repost later ...
Re: Joe seemed a little down... He definitely said he would like to go back to France, I got the impression that he didn't get to prove himself and doesn't want to appear that he is coming home with his tail between his legs. He did say that there were current options with MLS but didn't say much more about it than that. After getting low-balled I don't think he really wants to deal with MLS again real soon.
Just a question, but do you think Cannon would be called in for this match if it were anywhere but in San Jose? I personally think not
I think so. Who else would be called in? Rimando is the only possible USA keeper from DC or SJ, so Bruce needed someone from outside MLS. Keller and Friedel weren't available, so who else would be? Hahnemann? Walker? We know Cannon has been at least on the outskirts of the national team pool, as he was in camp earlier this year before he left to find a job.
      If Onstad was an American instead of a Canadian (who's already played on the Canadian National Team, no less), he would have gotten the call... and he would have gotten the call precisely because the game is in San Jose (scheduling the Earthquakes not to play this weekend was no accident, after all)!       GO EARTHQUAKES!!! -G
Joe has been getting splinters and no game time while Hahnemann was in net and sharp. Joe is coming to SJ precisely because it is SJ. Same reason that CJ Brown was called up as well as Ryan Suarez. Do you know the way to San Jose?
Inthe QuakeMagic article, it mentioned Joe will figure in the next Nats camp in DC (for New Zealand) then go back to France to beging preparations for the Confed's Cup...so maybe he got called in for a reason other than his SJ connections....
You know, it's like, you know, when you know... I think those guys are available due to red card suspensions. Joe was a jet-lag zombie yesterday. As was his Freedom buddy, Vanney, who was walking around aimlessly after the match not knowing where he was or was supposed to go. I think this is why Joe was so inarticulate, although he was at least funny. And he did set the Guiness World Record for saying "you know" in an interview. Ralph was funny. He said something to the effect of: "Man, you're usually uplifting, but today you're depressing me!"