He pulled out due to injury/sickness but you are correct anyway. At best he would have sat on the bench and watched first Altidore and then Davis play as a lone striker.
My feelings on this don't revolve around actually playing. After listening to those players, there is a ton of comraderie involved, they're trying to prove that they belong on the field, they're trying to prove that they belong on the team. They do it through practice and training and being together and seizing whatever little opportunity they get to show each other and the coaching staff that they belong. There are many steps to "getting there" besides just showing up and expecting to get on the field (not to insinuate that Cooper has this attitude; I don't believe he does). Players accept these calls knowing, in some cases, they may not see the field this particular camp; but they see it as an opportunity to show that they want to be there, it's important to them, and they belong there. They seize every opportunity to gain respect from their teammates. I just think this was an opportunity for Cooper to demonstrate this. *Edit: And if he truly is too injured/sick to seize this opportunity, I feel bad for him and do indeed hope he gets another chance.
Based on the team we fielded, the quality of our play, and the chemistry on the field, Cooper made a great choice to stay away from the Trinidad and Tobago game. How could he have looked good out there?
No, because I said "until this year" he only had one good year. NOW, he has had two good years, which is why he is getting callups again. But at the time call-up decisions were made for the last non-qualifiers, Cooper had one good year under his belt, which I think is important to remember.
Yeah, he actually would have. I mean, I look at Demerit. He flew over to camp even though he was injured. Unfortunately, he didn't respond to treatment and was a no-go. Jonathan Spector has done the same thing before, as well. He's heeded the call, even though less than 100 percent, hoping to respond to treatment and get in the game. I just think it would have made a statement had Kenny tried to do the same thing. Because it's not like his injury is keeping him from playing for Dallas. Maybe I'm too easily influenced by the Studio 90 video and the way the players talk about having each others' back, etc., and their camps and togetherness and all that. Maybe it doesn't mean all that much. But I still view it as an opportunity missed, which may come back to haunt him, may not. I repeat, I understand his reasons for coming to the decision he did (however, I think he should have just said he was injured and couldn't go, and he could have let the "Dallas is fighting for a playoff spot, blah, blah, blah, go unsaid; all the players have loyalties to their clubs, not just Kenny). [I don't know how I got on to this. I guess I was just pumped up by the video. All I ever wanted to do was point out the hypocritical (though that's too harsh of a word) of E66's position regarding Kenny missing a WCQ for injury and saying that LD should have played in a friendly while injured]
The difference being of course that DeMerit doesn't have club games on FIFA dates. So why not fly over and be a part of the team and demonstrate that you still want to be a part of the squad going forward? Even if you don't play, there's nothing to lose. In fact, I believe you still get a check from the USSF for just being there. As long as MLS continues to play games on those FIFA dates, deserving MLS players will continue to be left out of the squads. Simple as that. People continue to spazz out about certain MLS players not getting called in, when the explanation is usually similar to Kenny's. Can we please stop with the "Bob didn't send Kenny a get-well card after his broken leg" argument? I mean, are we men here? Or toddlers that needs our hands held?
Yeah, you're right about the Demerit situation. And as I said from the beginning, it's a shame MLS forces players to make these kind of decisions.
saving cooper for mls matches i suspect... with davies showing, cooper needs to get to the guatemala match... suspect we'll see altidore paired with davies... cooper off the bench in the 2nd half...
To the best of my understanding, most of the starters were rested, regardless of the state of their ankles.
Bradley called. Good for him, finally. Bottom line on this. I haven't read the whole thread, so maybe this has been discussed. But E66, does this have anything to do with possible eligibility for England/Ireland?
Cooper would love to play for the USA, of this there is no doubt. He is NOT going to change his game for Bob Bradley or anyone else...he is who he is, and thats it. If he never gets called in again while Bradley is the coach then that will be just fine with him as he NEVER concerns himself with things he can't control. The England thing is a huge longshot...HUGE...however he is eligible and they are aware of that fact....IF he goes to europe and IF he continues to improve and developes HIS game then 3 years from now who's to say what might happen...?? If Peter Crouch can play for England then so can Kenny Cooper.... Cooper COULD (not saying he would) bring something different to the USA....pity Bradley can't see that. THIS IS MY OPINION ONLY.... IMO it's fortunate that Cooper had a legitimate injury for the T&T clusterfcuk....he would have sat on the bench for the whole game in all likelyhood or at best got 15 minutes... Cooper is a straight up kid and any dad would be proud of him.....he has way more class than me.....(trust me all my friends are nodding in agreement at this) For had Bradley treated me like he's treated Cooper that would be motivation enough, motivation to bust my ass, become the best I could ever be, get to Denmark/Cardiff/wherever... tear it up... get to the EPL and then tell fcuking Bob fcuking Bradley to go stick it as far up his nepotism ass as it would go....while the idiot continues to mouth platitudes about "it's a process...the group" and the rest of the fcuking codswallop he puts out....
I thought you mentioned once that he had a grandmother born in Ireland and that he might be eligible there, no?
That is correct, although as he does'nt drink anything (much less Guinness) the Irish might not want him....
Kenny is a good player, but if that is really his attitude (which I don't necessarily believe), I'm thinking that he's going to have a tough time breaking in with the Nats. In order to get away with coming in to the USMNT coach and saying, "Sorry, I don't play that way. Take me as I am, or don't bring me in," you need to have C. Ronaldo-level talent. First of all, you're essentially telling everyone that you're uncoachable. Secondly, when you play tournament football, the ability to slot in players at multiple roles is a HUGE advantage, so by refusing to broaden your game you're painting yourself into a corner. Thirdly, you are pretty much asserting that you think you are more important than the team, and undermining team unity. As I alluded to earlier, I don't necessarily believe that E66's rendition here is really what's going on (he himself said he's not as squeaky-clean as Kenny). I really really hope that I'm right on that point, because Kenny is not gonna get any quicker or more agile, and I don't think he has those attributes at a level that will allow him to succeed in international play as a withdrawn forward.
cooper isnt' a mega talent who'd get special treatment... in fact, usa really doesn't have one mega talent player now... cooper is, at best, competing for a slot, and rejecting a call does him little good, although, i do believe, a call rejection doesn't hurt him... it puts him in a situation where it does no good.... right now, davies is clearly ahead in the pecking order... but cooper still has a chance...but he's not a complete youngster, with tons of upside, what we see in him, is close to what he'll be... with an altidore, davies, dempsey troica at forward, in front of cooper, there's not really an easy path supplanting any of those 3, except accept any call, and prove it on the training pitch and in any training time.. plus, i don't see cooper remotely close to putting donovan in danger.. people see cooper enough... most never see davies... so, it's all about what you see... BB, sees more than anyone, when it comes to americans... the torres affair speaks loudly here..