Not sure if there is another thread like this, but I thought it would be good to start a running count of all the players currently playing in the Big Four European Leagues (England, Italy, Spain, Germany). Let's keep this limited to first team (ie. no youth or reserve players), and limiit it to this current season. In other words, any players on this list have had to have played at least one competitive (League, Cup) match for his club's 'A' side this season. Off the top of my head (so you know this list will be incomplete): USA Kasey Keller - Southampton (EPL) Brad Friedel - Blackburn Rovers (EPL) Tim Howard - Manchester United (EPL) Carlos Bocanegra - Fulham FC (EPL) Brian McBride - Fulham FC (EPL) Conor Casey - FSV Mainz (Bundesliga) Clint Mathis - Hannover 96 (Bundesliga) Steve Cherundolo - Hannover 96 (Bundesliga) Mexico Rafael Marquez - Barcelona (La Liga) Canada Tomasz Radzinski - Fulham FC (EPL) Jim Brennan - Norwich (EPL) Paul Stalteri - Werder Bremen (Bundesliga) Julian De Guzman - Hannover 96 (Bundesliga) Jamaica Ricardo Gardener - Bolton Wanderers (EPL) Jason Euell - Charlton Athletic (EPL) Deon Burton - Portsmouth (EPL) Ricardo Fuller - Portsmouth (EPL) Trinidad & Tobago Shaka Hislop - Portsmouth (EPL) Dwight Yorke - Blackburn Rovers (EPL)
Since France has closed the gap in recent years it should really be called the Big Five (if you are going to call it anything...)
If you include league and cup, then you need to add more US players: Claudio Reyna - Manchester City (EPL) Jonathan Spector - Manchester United (EPL) Gusippe Rossi - Manchester United (EPL) --Cup match, but he is US version of Canadian player who played for Bayern Munich :>) Zak Whitbread - Liverpool (EPL) Denny Karbyssyioon - Arsenal (EPL)
I think Frank Simek's loan at QPR is done and he's back at Arsenal, he's played in a cup match right?
Yeah the french league is very good....i love watching games of PSG, Monaco, auxerre, Olympique...in the french channel, the huge problem is that i understand 1% of what they say. Costa Rica Paulo Cesar Wanchope - Málaga (LaLiga) Gilberto Martinez - brescia (il calccio)
The answer is contained in this thread: https://www.bigsoccer.com/forum/showthread.php?t=27359 A quick count shows the following: US - 10 players [your list plus Reyna and Spector -- I don't count Whitbred and Karbs because I don't count Carling Cup games] Jamaica -- 6 players [you ommitt Kevin Lisbie of Charlton, Damien Francis of Norwich, Damien Moore of West Brom, -- though they may not have played for Jamaica, they do have Jamaican heritage and are not capped by anybody else -- Deon Burton is now in Div 1] Canada -- 4 Costa Rica, T&T, Mexico -- 2 Honduras - 1 [David Suazo plays at Caligiri in Serie A]
interesting that the most successful concacaf team are the ones with the most US and least MEX players in Europe.
You can now add Landon Donovan to the list, since he's returning to Bayer Leverkusen (Bundesliga.) http://www.mlsnet.com/MLS/news/mls_news.jsp?ymd=20041123&content_id=19573&vkey=news_mls&fext=.jsp
I think he means that: [It is] interesting that the most successful (aka the best) [teams in] CONCACAF are the ones with the most [players in Europe] (which would be the USA) and [also the] least players in Europe (which would be Mexico).