Frankie Simek

Quaker · Feb 28, 2003

Jamie Trecker actually had a positive article about an American soccer player. Frankie Simek's the 18-year old central defender in Arsenal's reserve system. He's joining the U.S. U-20s in the World Youth Cup in the UAE in late March.

http://sports.yahoo.com/sow/news?slug=simekfeature&prov=st&type=lgns

sch2383 · Feb 28, 2003

Good read...I had heard about the kid going to Man U, but not this one.

Sandon Mibut · Feb 28, 2003

I hate to be dick all the time after this guy writes but it seems like he always makes simple mistakes of fact or makes presumptions that aren't true.

The United States is fortunate to have him as an option in the first place. Because his parents hold a work permit, Simek holds a British passport and also is eligible to play for England, a fact that crossed his mind.

Simek was eligible to play for England. After he played against Canada in CONCACAF qualifying, he became cap-tied to the United States.

The question is how Simek shakes out. Knocks on him are his size - he is about 5-7 - and his quiet demeanor on the field.

5-7? Did Trecker even talk to this kid in person? Does he really think that a club like Arsenal would play a 5-7 kid as a central back or that the US, with all of our hulking kids, would have a 5-7 center back? Please.

US Soccer lists him at 6-0 -
http://www.ussoccer.com/news/fullstory.sps?iNewsid=28222&itype=113&iCategoryID=0

Arsenal lists him at 5-10 but that's the measurement they've used since he signed on fulltime with them full-time in the summer of 2001 -presumably he's grown a bit since then.

http://www.arsenal.com/sportsappcontroller.jsp?command=forwardOnly&nextPage=/reserves/simek.jsp

And while I'm nitpicking, he didn't join Arsenal fulltime when he was 12, like the article said. He trained with them in the summers but he was still living in Illinois and going to high school and doing ODP and all that till the summer of 01.

And, to get really whiney, if Trecker was up on what's going on at Arsenal regarding youth and Americans, he'd have mentioned Danny Karbassyon (whose name I just butchered), the kid from VA who has agreed to a deal with the "Gooners."

I know it's popular to rip on Trecker because he sometimes takes unpopular stances. Personally, I have no qualms with him being critical or even negative. But, in story after story there are just simple, silly mistakes that make him and his stories seem sloppier than a drunk sorority girl.

The Wanderer · Feb 28, 2003

Sand on my but, just email Trecker or his paper, I did the same thing to Graham Jones(as did others), and he "took a little vacation."