Time to focus on Seattle, US game 3/29

Seattle has a rich soccer history from associations with professional teams like the NASL Seattle Sounders to the University of Puget Sound where U.S. National Team head coach Bruce Arena had his first coaching job.

The city has also been a potent breeding ground of U.S. talent like goalkeeper Kasey Keller and Chris and Sean Henderson

“Anytime the U.S. plays in Seattle, male or female, there is a true American feel to the crowd, very patriotic. It actually feels like a home game against the CONCACAF opponents,” said Sean. As U.S. international Chris Henderson recently told USSoccerPlayers, "many of the Sounders players of the NASL have stayed in town and are coaching youth soccer. I think that is why Washington continues to put players in the pros."

The Sounders name and tradition is kept alive by the city’s A-League club the primary soccer tenants of Seahawks Stadium where the U.S. National Team will take on Venezuela this Saturday at 4pm eastern time. The game will be shown live on ESPN2.

Seahawks Stadium:
Capacity: 67,000 – opened in 2002
Directions: Accessible by car, trolley, Amtrak, bus, and it is only 12 miles from Sea-Tac Airport.
Seating guide: An interactive feature that allows you to see exactly how the field will appear from your seat – (note prices are for Seahawks games)
Tickets: Tickets ranging in price levels from $20 to $70 are on sale at all Ticketmaster outlets throughout Washington, Oregon and British Columbia, at the Seahawks Stadium ticket office, by phone (Seattle 206-628-0888; Tacoma 253-627-8497), and on-line at www.ussoccer.com. Groups of 20 or more can order through U.S. Soccer at 312-528-1290.

http://www.ussoccerplayers.com/exclusives/348954.html
http://www.ussoccerplayers.com/exclusives/346839.html

 

The United States and Venezuela have met only once before, with the teams battling to a 3-3 draw in the Copa America in 1993

"We’re excited that Venezuela has accepted the invitation to play us,” said U.S. Manager Bruce Arena. “Over the past two or three years, the Venezuelan national team has made great strides, and I think they are perhaps the most improved team in South America. We are certainly looking forward to the challenge.”
www.ussoccer.com

my line-up

Keller, Kasey - G

Cherundolo, Steve - D
Pope, Eddie - D
Hejduk, Frankie - D
Bocanegra, Carlos - D

Mastroeni, Pablo - D/M
O’Brien, John - M
Stewart, Earnie - M/F
Beasley, DaMarcus - M

McBride, Brian - F
Kirovski, Jovan - F

Attd: 24,000

 

Tickets for the U.S.-Japan game will be valid for the Venezuela match. However, tickets can also be refunded through Friday by returning them to their original point of purchase. Fans who ordered online or by phone should contact Ticketmaster or look to ticketmaster.com for more details. Refunds will be issued using the same form of payment used by the purchaser.

Chenault said about 17,000 tickets had been sold for the U.S.-Japan match.

"We came out of the gate selling pretty well, but then the uncertainty over Japan actually playing the match kind of hurt the flow," he said. "We originally were thinking we could get 25,000-30,000, considering we had (38,534 for a match against Honduras at Safeco Field on March 2, 2002)."

Chenault said he estimates 1,000-2,000 fans might ask for ticket refunds.

"We know there were a good chunk of tickets bought by fans of Japan and the Asian community in Seattle," he said.

Still, officials are hoping the game might still draw 15,000-20,000.

http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/sounders/134658842_soccer22.html

 

Anyone know if the game will be played on FieldTurf, ?

"The playing surface will be the far more soccer-friendly FieldTurf, and will lack the graffiti circus of football striping."

http://www.tribnet.com/sports/story/2832298p-2869524c.html

 

Actualy this line-up is what I think Bruce will play, not my own. I figure he will start all foreign based players.

 

U.S. Men's National Team Opens Training Camp, Gets Ready for Venezuela on Saturday


from www.ussoccer.com


NEW Jerseys ?

"SNEAK PEEK: Training on the Nike campus certainly has its advantages. In addition to practicing at an excellent facility, the players and staff will get the chance to view Nike's specially-designed Retro Jersey which will be worn in a U.S. MNT match later this year. The Retro Jersey is part of a year-long series of events designed to commemorate the 90th anniversary of the United States Soccer Federation. "

REUNIONS

Earnie Stewart, Brian McBride, Frankie Hedjuk, John O'Brien, Kasey Keller and Eddie Pope look to play their first match for the MNT since Korea. Meanwhile, the player returning from the longest absence is Birmingham City-based forward Jovan Kirovski, who has not appeared for the senior team since the 4-2 loss to Germany on March 27, 2002.

 

Re: Marketing..

organizers only expect 15-20 k in attendance, not very good showing I'm affraid

Carlos Bocanegra seems to be on his way to become an integral part of the USA defense

"Bocanegra becomes an integral member of the National Team"

“It’s going to be a long year. Over in Europe, they do that so I have to condition my body for it and be mentally tough. It’s not unheard of. I don’t know if there are any national team games in December but hopefully we will get a break,” the Alta Loma, Calif. native saidIt’s definitely an honor with 10 guys from the World Cup team. I have to come in and make my mark and play with the them which I am confident I can,” he said.

Bocanegra had a breakout year with the Fire winning the 2002 MLS Defender of the Year, but as his thoughts turn to the 2003 season, he wants to improve simply by maintaining the high standard he has set

to read more go to http://www.ussoccerplayers.com/latest_soccer_news/349322.html

 

players arriving late into camp :

Keller is one of many players who took a long flight to get into the Pacific Northwest for this training camp. He and Jovan Kirovski (Birmingham) flew in from England although Keller will not arrive there until late Tuesday due to his playing in Tottenham’s 1-0 loss to Bolton on Monday in the English Premier League. John O’Brien (Holland) arrived on Monday night and did not train yesterday. Cherundolo (Germany) also flew in from Europe after Hannover 96's game on Saturday. Brian McBride will arrive later on Tuesday.

They were all challenged for the long distance award as Eddie Pope and Tim Howard were training with the MetroStars in Argentina before linking up with their National Team teammates.

The shortest drive had to be for Chicago’s Carlos Bocanegra and DaMarcus Beasley who were already in Portland training with the Fire.

Landon Donovan will arrive in camp on Thursday since the San Jose Earthquakes play CSD Municipal in the CONCACAF Champions Cup at Spartan Stadium on Wednesday night

http://www.ussoccerplayers.com/latest_soccer_news/349267.html

 

Venezuela without key players for U.S. clash

Venezuela without key players for U.S. clash

Three foreign-based players -- Alejandro Cichero (Cerro/Uruguay), Juan Arango (Pachuca/Mexico), Hector Gonzalez (Olimpo/Argentina) -- will not travel to Seattle
Also not in the squad is Ruberth Moran, Venezuela's leading scoring during its unsuccessful qualifying campaign for the 2002 World Cup with four goals.

The four foreign-based players on the roster are defenders Jose Manuel Rey and Jorge Rojas of Emelec (Ecuador), goalkeeper Manuel Sanhouse (Club Espoli/Ecuador) and Gabriel Urdaneta (Lugano/Switzerland).

http://www.socceramerica.com/article.asp?Art_ID=562133042

 

One-on-One With Earnie Stewart

some quotes from what he said, and I wonder if he might be around for the next WC ..if not how long do you think he will be playing for the Nat. ?

Earnie Stewart - the all-time leader in U.S. history for appearances in both World Cup and World Cup qualifying.

" I was pleasantly surprised that my name was still up there to be called in. I'm still very honored. "

"In every one of the 84 times I've played for the national team, when they play the Star Spangled Banner I get goose bumps."

"I played against Kyle Martino during preseason, and I was impressed with him already"

" I had thought about retiring, which is an easy thing to say beforehand, but then the first time the national team comes together and you're not there it's a very weird feeling"


www.ussoccer.com

 

Mc Bride has a home in Chicago, he's been playing in Columbus all his MLS career, find this strange he would keep his home in Chicago for so many years.
He finaly decided to move, is it Columbus ?

http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/sports/134662957_soccer27.html

"He flew from Manchester, England, to Chicago on Friday. He then drove to Columbus on Saturday to play a game for the Crew, then drove back to Chicago on Sunday to begin packing up his house, then flew to Portland on Tuesday to begin preparing for Saturday's game. "

The U.S. Team will practice in Beaverton, Ore., one more time this afternoon before bussing up to Seattle. The team will practice tomorrow afternoon at Seahawks Stadium, a workout that is closed to the public.

 

Coach looks forward to test in Seattle

Venezuelan coach looks forward to test in Seattle "Our goal is to test ourselves and see if Venezuela has the confidence to play at the world level. It's essential that we play friendlies with teams that have FIFA's best rankings,'' Paez said.

Venezuela, ranked 69th by FIFA, soccer's world governing body,USA is number 10. It's Venezuela's first match since a 1-0 win over Uruguay in November.
In their last meeting, Venezuela rallied from a 3-0 deficit to tie the Americans 3-3 in the 1993 Copa America

http://soccernet.espn.go.com/headlinenews?id=262260&cc=5901

 

National-team success is beyond Klein's wildest dreams

In three international matches so far this year, Klein has been one of the best, if not the best, player on the field for the Americans.

He scored his first goal in international play in a 4-0 U.S. victory over Canada on Jan. 18.
But it was on Feb. 12 in Jamaica that Klein really stood out, scoring the game-winning goal while playing only the first half of a 2-1 U.S. victory.

http://www.kansascity.com/mld/kansascity/sports/soccer/mls/kansas_city_wizards/5489745.htm

Does he have a chance to start vs Venezuela ?

 

Re: Re: Coach looks forward to test in Seattle

Yes was so proud to read that,

Today :

O'BRIEN TO CHAT LIVE AT 2 P.M. ET TODAY ON ESPN.COM:

The U.S. enters Saturday’s match virtually injury free, with Columbus Crew midfielder Kyle Martino the only possible exception.

Fans of Seahawks Stadium will notice a different look for the venue’s first international soccer match, as a blanket of newly laid sod now covers the artificial surface. The California-based firm West Coast Turf installed the grass field last Wednesday, at a total cost of $100,000.
Venezuela has gone 436 minutes without surrendering a goal, dating back to a 2-0 loss to Morocco on March 3, 2002. Unbeaten and unscored upon in their last four matches,

 

Some questions


Venezuela has a current streak of 436 minutes without surrendering a goal, will this match resemble USA's 4-0 win over Canada in January or than the 1-0 loss to Argentina in February.?



Which Jovan Kirovski will show up?
Kirovski has a good right foot and a nose for the goal, who can play both with his back to the net or as a withdrawn striker but he slows down the attack and often is responsible for the opposition's counterattacks. This is a chance for him to prove he belongs in hopes of staying on Arena's radar screen for this summer's Confederations Cup in France and CONCACAF Gold Cup

Which of the youngsters will be paired up with the veterans ?..
we have Kyle Martino, Edson Buddle, Bobby Convey , Nick Garcia ,Carlos Bocanegra ,Landon Donovan and DaMarcus Beasley