http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/3905029.stm Neither Boca nor McHead (no Malbranque either) played in what looks like a sub-par Fulham effort vs. Celtic...Maybe the boss has given them a little time off? Always helps the cause (I guess) when the team plays poorly in your absence...
Not surprised at all that they didn't play. McBride and Boca are in similar positions to the Euro players since they participated in friendlies and WC Qfiers this summer. They should get at least 3-4 weeks off before seeing any action in my opinion.
But Coleman is citing problems up front in the Celtic match as why they signed Andy Cole. What impact does this have on McBride?
Any time they might have off for qualifyers is long used up by now I should think. They might have recieved an extra week or so before reporting to pre season training, but they're in pre-season friendlies now, they should be ready to go.
I think they should get as much of a break as possible as they aren't exactly from London and what little time they've had off this summer has been spent in camp with the Nats. SAF of ManUtd is leaving half his roster at home for the tour of the USA because he believes that a player needs a minimum of four weeks off from soccer during the offseason to reload for a long season ahead. I would tend to agree with him...especially on the mental side. It would be one thing if Boca and McBride signed with Fulham last week, but they have been with the team for a little bit and Coleman knows what he has in them.
Right, so I was here and I don't know if this will be detrimental to Fulham and thus possibly Boca's and McBride's performance, but the Fulham crowd was nonexistent. It may be attributed to a large Celtic following in England but I thought the crowd could've been up to 75% Celtic, sold out and all. That doesn't seem like a great situation considering the team just moved back into their real home.