Thank you Mr and Mrs Heyduk The only role I hope to see him in this time is the Cobi Jones run around and pi$$ off the opponents for 15 minutes role
Sorry but Hejduk and Pope will not be starters unless we have injuries. Dolo, Gooch, Gibbs, and Lewis is our first line with Boca as the first option off the bench. Johnson's only new if you haven't watched the team in over a year. Johnson's play in qualifying has been fantastic and i'm sure Bruce is more interested by his play against Mexico than against Canada in a preseason warmup match. Not so terrible but your the first i've seen honestly proposing that Wolff start ahead of Johnson. That wasn't a WCQ it was a friendly with Scotland. So you want Olsen and Reyna in the middle and Donovan Beasley at the wings? Right, that's a way to make our midfield a strong suit. Brazil's not strong? I missed that memo. The rambling portion was the most accurate part of your post.
Pope's been in for most of the qualifiers I can recall over the past 2 years...and Hejduk as well, though yes I could definitely see Gooch, Gibbs and Lewis in there as well. Johnson is still fairly new since last World Cup, though I shouldn't have grouped him with the likes of Rolfe and Adu, you're right - but I've seen every televised game since the 2000 Summer Olympics...and yes he has been spectacular. I wasn't necessarily picking Wolff over Johnson...but McBride over Johnson. I like the dynamics of a Wolff and Johnson up front even more than a McBride/Johnson up front (not sure why - just Wolff's speed and Johnson's uncanny goal-scoring ability) - but I like McBride's obvious experience, steadfastness and quality finishing as well - but still really like Wolff's speed and creativity up front. I think you're right about it being the Scotland friendly...my mistake. No no....not Olsen on the left. Beasley left wing, Donovan left middle, Reyna right middle, and Olsen on right wing (or even switch Olsen & Reyna). Hell I'm no coach, this is just my personal favorites as a fan - not an analyst...I'm just saying where I'd like to see them play based on how I've perceived their performances in the past. and I didn't say Brazil wasn't strong...just not AS strong right at this moment as they have been in past years. Obviously they're still THE powerhouse, but they're beatable, I think. I just like our chances...but maybe I'm being hopelessly optimistic. Who knows...either way, I'm just excited to see them play on the big world stage again. And wishing the Canada friendly was being televised.
I believe Cherundolo played in more than Hejdul and I can't see Hejduk starting over him. Judging by some of Arena's comments I would not be suprised to see Pope starting, though I hope this is not the case, unless he has a major turn in form.
Tony Sanneh wasn't even Tony Sanneh until the Dutch came to Foxboro shortly before the WC. It's no doubt lost in one of the server crashes over the years, but if you could go back through the archives after that match, you'd run across scores of posts along the lines of "who the hell was that wearing Sanneh's shirt?"
My thoughts are a lot of what everybody said on these threads. Our defense is better overall than 2002. Dolo is probably faster and is great at crosses. Gooch is bigger and badder than Sanneh. It would be great to have Sanneh of 2002 in the WC, but not Sanneh 2006. I do appreciate what Sanneh did for us in the 2002WC. I thought he played outstanding. People here want to nitpick him, but he had the toughest defense assignments, which means your bound to get burned a few times. But he came out on top almost on all occasions. And by the way, Ballack is one of the best players in the world. And also by the way, just because your bigger or taller doesn't mean your going to win in the air. I've seen little guys score a lot of goals in the air because of timing, leaping ability, and great heading technique. Carlos (little fish) Ruiz would be a perfect example. Scores quite often with his head despite his size. Bottom line is, I think replacing Mathis might be a bigger concern. Maybe not so much replacing him, but having another offensive weapon. Hopefully EJ will be the answer. Another concern is, someone replacing Reyna or O'Brien if their injured.
that's probably our biggest concern. where can we possibly find replacements with their experience? even at the goalkeeper position if (God forbid) something happened to Keller, it shouldn't be hard to get Friedel to come out of international retirement to help. but without Reyna and O'Brien we just aren't the same. they probably are our truly irreplaceable players...
You are a moron. I try to refrain from saying that on internet message boards. But in this case, it is highly necessary.