U.S. men's national team vs. Egypt friendly canceled (for obvious reasons)

If you've turned on the news lately, opened a newspaper or logged onto the Internet, odds are you've noticed Egypt is a complete mess right now.

With that in mind, the U.S. men's national team has made the correct decision to cancel its friendly vs. Egypt scheduled for next Wednesday in Cairo.

All politics aside, it's too bad that the U.S. won't get to play a top-class opponent, on its home turf no less, but soccer is a global game and this terrible situation in Egypt illustrates it.

The game against the Egyptian national team had been announced Dec. 13. In the last week, street protests aiming for the ouster of President Hosni Mubarak have caused disruption in Cairo and Alexandria.

"We were excited about the opportunity to play against Egypt, but due to the current situation all parties agreed it was best to cancel the match,'' U.S. Soccer Federation President Sunil Gulati said Monday. "We appreciate the efforts of the Egyptian Football Association and the U.S. State Department as we worked through this situation.''

The U.S. State Department has recommended American citizens avoid travel to Egypt "due to ongoing political and social unrest.'' On Sunday, the State Department authorized the voluntary departure of dependents and non emergency employees, saying "U.S. citizens currently in Egypt should consider leaving as soon as they can safely do so.''

The U.S., ranked 18th in the world, had planned to fly a top roster to the game, including Americans based with European clubs, to face 10th-ranked Egypt. The two nations met in the first round of the 2009 Confederations Cup, with the U.S. winning 3-0.

The next game for the U.S. team will be March 26 against Argentina at East Rutherford, N.J. The Americans play Paraguay three days later at Nashville, Tenn.

Altidore scores for Villareal

Sometimes you have to step back and remember that Jozy Altidore is still only 20 years old (born Nov. 6, 1989).

He has all the potential to be one of the greatest players in U.S. men's national team history when it's all said and done so long as he continues to develop and gets meaningful minutes for good clubs.

The sunny news out of Spain today was that Altidore scored for Villareal in their 2-2 exhibition tie vs. Besiktas (a Turkish club).

Altidore scored with a right-footed volley from six yards out off a cross. It was in the 79th minute and it was the tying strike.

He'll be in the lineup for the U.S. on Tuesday when they play Brazil in the highly-anticipated friendly at the New Meadowlands Stadium in East Rutherford, N.J.

I think we can all agree that we'd like nothing more than to see this be the beginning of a beast mode season for Jozy with Villareal and the U.S.

Brazil announces new coach, no-name squad set to take on U.S. Aug. 10

As a public service announcement, Shimer and I have been charging our batteries since the 2010 World Cup ended but we'll be back in full force over the next few weeks as we get ready for the European leagues to start up in mid to late August.

Brazil named a replacement for Dunga on Saturday, Mano Menezes. Today, the newly appointed coach named the 24-man roster he'll take with him to the New Meadowlands in East Rutherford, N.J. to take on the U.S. August 10th.

For international soccer as a whole, there won't be many more fascinating story lines than how Brazil (the team) prepares itself for the 2014 World Cup on its home soil. As we all know, they are the most famous team in soccer but they have bowed out in the quarterfinals during the last two World Cups. The pressure on Menezes (assuming he lasts that long) and his team will be immense as the Samba Boys try to get back to the top of the mountain.

"There are several ways of winning and I respect all of them," Menezes said. "I will try to choose the way that gives us the best chance of winning. If that can be done with the 'beautiful game' that everyone likes, it would be the best. We will try to get as close as possible to that."

Only four of the players picked were on Brazil's 23-man World Cup roster: Barcelona defender Daniel Alves, Benfica midfielder Ramires, AC Milan defender Thiago Silva and Santos forward Robinho, who is on loan from Manchester City.

Eleven players were summoned for the first time, and seven young enough to play in the 2012 Olympic under-23 tournament, a competition Brazil has never won.

Kaka, Luis Fabiano and goalkeeper Julio Cesar were not selected.

"It's the beginning of a renovation, with the goal being the 2014 World Cup and the (2012) London Olympics," Menezes said.

He accepted the Brazil job on Saturday, a day after Fluminense would not release Muricy Ramalho from his contract.

Menezes replaced Dunga, fired after Brazil's 2-1 loss to Netherlands in the World Cup quarterfinals.

"It's always difficult when Brazil loses, especially because we tend to think we are better than everybody else," Menezes said. "In the last two World Cup we were not, and we need to regain this form again. We still have the technical quality to do it."

Dunga's team achieved significant results ahead of the World Cup, but his defense-oriented tactics failed to gain his nation's sixth world title.

"Dunga's team was disciplined tactically and that was positive," Menezes said. "That's what I want for Brazil, to be well-organized tactically. Because with the talented players that we have, we will always have the capacity to win."

The roster:

Goalkeepers: Jefferson (Botafogo), Renan (Avai), Victor (Gremio)

Defenders: Andre Santos (Fenerbahce, Turkey), Daniel Alves (Barcelona, Spain), David Luiz (Benfica, Portugal), Henrique (Racing Santander, Spain), Marcelo (Real Madrid, Spain), Rafael da Silva (Manchester United, England), Rever (Atletico Mineiro), Thiago Silva (AC Milan, Italy)

Midfielders: Carlos Eduardo (Hoffenheim, Germany), Ederson (Lyon, France), Hernanes (Sao Paulo), Jucilei (Corinthians), Lucas Leiva (Liverpool, England), Paulo Henrique Ganso (Santos), Ramires (Benfica, Portugal), Sandro (Internacional)

Forwards: Andre (Santos), Neymar (Santos), Alexandre Pato (AC Milan, Italy), Robinho (Santos), Diego Tardelli (Atletico Mineiro)

If these matches hold.......

England (5 points) would finish in first place, Slovenia (4 points) would be second and the U.S. (3 points) and Algeria (2 points) would be left out.

0-0 U.S.-Algeria in the 27th minute.

1-0 England in the 27th minute.

Still can't get over that another U.S. goal has been incorrectly called off.

Big Bill in the house

Forget vice president Joe Biden, we have former president Bill Clinton in the house today so you know it's a big match.

0-0 U.S.-Algeria in the 18th minute. Gomez hit a side volley over and Donovan hit a screamer over the crossbar.

0-0 England-Slovenia in the 18th minute.

The Desert Foxes (Algeria) have yet to score in the 2010 World Cup.

Algeria loves getting cards

Apparently in one of the African Nations Cup, Algeria ended a game with eight players on the field. Haha, that's pretty hard to do.

0-0 U.S.-Algeria in the 14th minute.

0-0 England-Slovenia in the 14th minute.

Algeria hits crossbar, Gomez tests M'Bolhi

It only took six minutes but Algeria nearly went ahead 1-0 in the sixth minute as a longball (from beyond midfield) was played ahead to forward Rafik Djebbour.

He was wide open and his tricky volley hit the crossbar and bounced away. On the other end, Herculez Gomez nearly caught Algeria goalkeeper Rais M'Bolhi with a shot from outside the box. The goalie dove and put it out for a corner.

0-0 U.S.-Algeria in the 10th minute.

0-0 England-Slovenia in the 10th minute.

Clint Dempsey had the first decent opportunity on a free kick but he put it over.

Jozy Altidore (20 years old) is the youngest striker to start at the 2010 World Cup.

U.S. changes

Robbie Findley is out with yellow cards so Herculez Gomez starts. Jose Torres begins the day on the bench with Maurice Edu getting the nod and finally Oguchi Onyewu sits down as well with Jonathan Bornstein (gulp) starting in this pivotal match.

0-0 U.S.-Algeria in the fourth minute.

0-0 England-Slovenia in the fourth minute.

There is no tomorrow, Group C live blog

Today is the last match day for Group C and you know it's a big one because I'm getting emotional watching the national anthems, haha yikes.

England vs. Slovenia and U.S. vs. Algeria. All four teams can make it through and all four can get eliminated today.

United States Lineup
G
1Tim Howard
CD-L
3Carlos Bocanegra
CD-R
15Jay DeMerit
LB
12Jonathan Bornstein
RB
6Steve Cherundolo
CM-R
4Michael Bradley
CM-L
19Maurice Edu
LM
8Clint Dempsey
RM
10Landon Donovan
CF-L
9Herculez Gomez
CF-R
17Jozy Altidore

Algeria Lineup
G
23Rais M'Bolhi
CD-L
4Antar Yahia
CD-R
5Rafik Halliche
LB
3Nadir Belhadj
RB
2Madjid Bougherra
CM-L
8Medhi Lacen
CM-R
19Hassan Yebda
AM
11Rafik Djebbour
LM
15Karim Ziani
RM
21Foued Kadir
F
13Karim Matmour

Slovenia Lineup
G
1Samir Handanovic
CD-L
5Bostjan Cesar
CD-R
4Marko Suler
LB
13Bojan Jokic
RB
2Miso Brecko
CM-L
18Aleksandar Radosavljevic
CM-R
8Robert Koren
LM
17Andraz Kirm
RM
10Valter Birsa
CF-L
11Milivoje Novakovic
CF-R
9Zlatan Ljubijankic

England Lineup
G
1David James
CD-L
15Matthew Upson
CD-R
6John Terry
CM-R
14Gareth Barry
LB
3Ashley Cole
RB
2Glen Johnson
RM
4Steven Gerrard
CM-L
8Frank Lampard
LM
16James Milner
CF-L
19Jermain Defoe
CF-R
10Wayne Rooney

Gomez tosses his sombrero into the U.S. striker race

U.S. captain Landon Donovan appears to be a fortune teller in addition to his many other talents as just the other day, he suggested that Galaxy teammate Edson Buddle and Puebla striker Heruclez Gomez deserve an invite to the U.S. training camp.

Los Angeles and Buddle are both off to a hot start: the team is 4-0-0 and Buddle leads MLS with a whopping seven goals.

It looks like Gomez has got some game too (despite going scoreless last season in Kansas City) as he scored two goals today in Puebla's 4-1 Mexican league win over Cruz Azul. The Las Vegas native is now tied for the scoring lead with 10 goals.

I'm just going off of what I read but it sounds like Gomez had a nice little afternoon: a goal in the third minute, another goal in the 37th minute off a header and he was red-carded near the end of the match.

Gomez has the chance of being the first American to lead the Mexican league in scoring. Just for that reason alone, he needs to be at the U.S. training camp in a few weeks.

GOOD NEWS: Davies back in France

U.S. men's national team forward Charlie Davies finally has returned to France with his club team Sochaux and said he is one month away from training with his club team to help him get fully fit for a possible return to international play. This is just another big step forward in the 23-year-old's huge come-back.

http://soccernet.espn.go.com/world-cup/story/_/id/4924871/ce/us/us-team-forward-charlie-davies-back-french-club-sochaux?cc=5901&ver=us

Czech yourself before you wreck yourself

The U.S.'s schedule of friendlies is now fully stocked as they will play the Czech Republic on May 25 (location TBA, although rumors of Hartford, CT) and Turkey at Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia on May 29.

Those are the last two warmup matches for the United States before they leave for South Africa and the World Cup.

The Czech Republic and Turkey are two quality opponents, that although they didn't advance to the World Cup through the ultra-competitive European group stages, will present some good challenges for the U.S.

As Shimer has already noted, the U.S. plays El Salvador February 24 with an All-MLS squad and then the Netherlands on March 3. I haven't heard yet if Bob Bradley will bring the MLS'ers or the big boys to face the Dutch but we'll let you know when we hear it.

If you are anywhere near the Czech Republic or Turkey games, you should definitely check them out as they'll be a great opportunity to send the United States to South Africa in style. I know I'm already thinking about trying to go to one or both. Plus, it'll be the start of summer and the tailgating scene should be very appealing.

http://soccernet.espn.go.com/world-cup/story/_/id/4921663/ce/us/united-states-adds-friendly-vs-czech-republic-world-cup-warmup-slate?cc=5901&ver=us

Players to watch in the U.S. midfield

Great piece from Andrea Canales about the midfield pool for the U.S. Michael Bradley, as pictured above, will be a main stay in the men's national team plans this coming summer. Yes he is the coach's son, and no his place virtually guaranteed in the center of the midfield is not due to nepotism. If you didn't catch his act during the Confederation's Cup or throughout much of the U.S. qualifying campaign then you missed one of the brightest up-and-coming national team players make a name for himself. Bradley also starts for German Bundesliga side Borussia Moenchengladbach.

Another name Canales mentions prominently at the top of the article is Jose Francisco Torres, a Texas-born American, whose parents are Mexican, but has decided the Red White and Blue is where his heart lies - or at least his best chance to make a World Cup roster this coming summer. Torres plays for Mexican League team Pachuca and as such is a some-what unknown commodity in the states. However, as an attacking player, Torres someone to keep an eye in upcoming qualifiers especially due to the fact the U.S. has so many injury issues to that area of their team for the time being.

Two players Canales said are slipping are Benny Feilhaber and Jermaine Jones. In Feilhaber, Canales sees a young player too talented to keep off the roster. I disagree. I have seen little from the 25-year-old to make me think he should earn a place on the U.S. team and most recently was terrible against Honduras. Jones, who plays for Bundesliga power Schalke, also appears to be falling off the radar, which I think makes little to no sense. A player of his caliber and experience should at least be called into camp at some point before the world cup, unless his current shin issues continue to debilitate. The guy was good enough to get 3 call-ups from Germany before switching his allegiances to the U.S., which makes him good enough to fight for a place on this roster at a camp.

http://goal.com/en-us/news/1679/us-national-team/2010/02/16/1794296/end-to-end-the-midfielders-edition

The Resident Expert Part 1: OWU coach Jay Martin on the U.S.

NOTE: See Jay Martin's biography below. Also this is the first of a two-part series in what will be a weekly feature.

1. It seems to me the U.S. gained little if any real information of value in the Honduras game other than it's not a good idea to get a red card in the 17th minute with your second-team squad against a first-team squad with perhaps the exception of a solid performance by Jon Bornstein.

With so many big injury issues to the U.S. squad, how important do you feel the upcoming friendly with El Salvador will be for the completely MLS-based 23-man U.S. roster and who do you feel of those players will make a push to earn a World Cup roster spot?

Here is the list of Players Jeff Cunningham; Omar Gonzalez; Robbie Rogers; Chris Pontius; Sacha Kljestan; Geoff Cameron; Brad Evans; Heath Pearce; Marvell Wynne; Conor Casey; Jonathan Bornstein; Eddie Gaven; Troy Perkins; Michael Orozco; Kevin Alston; Brian Ching; Brad Davis; Zach Thornton; Nick Rimando; Dax McCarty; Kyle Beckerman

I don't think the Honduras game was worthless. When selecting a team it is just as important to eliminate players as it is to add players. The game gave Bob Bradley a chance to eliminate some of the guys who were on the bubble. Jeff Cunningham, Jimmy Conrad, Sacha Kljestan all played poorly and probably played themselves out of the picture. The red card should have caused some of these players to pick up the work rate and intensity - they didn't. So even though the game was a disaster, it was not meaningless and afforded Bradley with a look at some people.

The El Salvador game is huge. It is important for the players you listed, important for Bradley and important for the final WC squad. It is hard to predict which of these players have a chance. There is so much that goes into putting a team together and much of it is known only by the coach. What style will he play? What formation will he play? Who are we playing (we already know this and it is big)? These questions will impact the choices. My guess? Rogers, Cameron, Bornstein, Evans, Perkins, Ching, Davis and McCarty have a chance and this game will be huge for them.

2. What do you believe Bob Bradley will be emphasizing, concentrating on, focusing his interest in this game?

He will focus on the "bubble players." He will watch their preparation, professionalism and work rate. He will watch them off the field to determine how they interact with teammates. He will watch poise and how they handle problems. He will use this game to make some crucial decisions. This is a relatively weak team. I expect no more than 4 or 5 making the WC team. One thing a coach has to do is "give players a chance to make the team." You don't want to have a player tell you "I had no chance." BB is giving these guys a chance. The end.

3. What signs should the common fan look for?

Work rate, combining with teammates, energy, confidence, effort. That's what BB will look for.

4. Reportedly Clint Dempsey has a torn post cruciate ligament (PCL) and will be out until May. Charlie Davies is recovering at an unbelievable pace from his horrific car crash, but is still a doubt despite his comment that he can "easily be ready by the World Cup," and should be ready to play for his club in France by April. Oguchi Onyewu will be out until at least April with his torn patella tendon and may see little playing time with his club AC Milan when he returns. Jay Demeritt appears as if he is back from his injury issues with Watford in England, but has missed significant time since bursting onto the scene in the Confederations Cup last summer.

Of these players, who do you think will be have the most difficult chance of earning a World Cup roster spot? What type of effect/impact would their absence have on the U.S. team? And how would their absence affect the chances of the U.S. getting out of the group stage into the knock-out round?

The question is: will they be "game ready?"

Oguchi will have a huge problem making the team. His was a bad injury and the rehab is brutal.

Even if he is fit - the injury is healed - he will not be game fit. His absence will be a problem. He is not the best soccer player on the team, but he is a physical presence in the middle of the field and will be missed. He is intimidating for forwards. He will be missed.

Davies has multiple injuries - not just one. I would be surprised if he plays. His speed and creativity will be missed. He brings great energy to the team. That energy was missing vs. Honduras.

Dempsey should play. The PCL is NOT like the ACL. The rehab is shorter and not as extensive. He should be ready to go. If he isn't, the US will miss the second of only two "well rated" attacking players. Dempsey has shown steady improvement since his arrival at Fulham. He is a true threat - as is Donovan. Without Dempsey opponents can and will key on Donovan and that will make it more difficult to score goals.

If both Onyewu and Dempsey are out, it will be VERY hard to get through....

Ohio Wesleyan University coach Jay Martin biography

As promised Red White and Blue Army is here to give you up to date information based on the links we are reading ourselves, provide you with our own opinions, and give you inside information from the experts here in the states that you cannot read anywhere else.

One such expert that will begin a weekly question-and-answer series with our site is Ohio Wesleyan University soccer coach Jay Martin.

Jay is a legendary coach in the college ranks and is currently the active men's Division III winningiest coach with a 548-109-45 record. Amongst his many accomplishments, Jay's teams have won one national title (1998), been to the final four seven times, and been national runner's up twice.

His 548 wins rank fourth all-time in men's college soccer. Jay was also the seventh college coach to reach the 500-win mark, according to records of the National Soccer Coaches Association of America and the National Collegiate Athletics Association. Of the six coaches who preceded him to 500 wins, none did so faster than Jay, who reached that milestone in his 29th season at Ohio Wesleyan.

In addition to his remarkable coaching career, Jay served as the Columbus Crew radio "color analyst" for the team's first 11 years. The summer that Greg Andrulis replaced Tom Fitzgerald, Jay also trained the team every day at practice and helped Greg in games. Retiring recently from those posts, Jay has not had any contact with the Crew the last two years.

Two more impressive features on Jay's incredible resume, he has also served soccer with a term as president of the National Soccer Coaches Association of America as well as a 6-year stint on the NCAA Division III selection committee, including 4 years as committee chair. And he took over as editor of the NSCAA's The Soccer Journal in January, 2003, becoming the publication's third editor since its establishment in 1950.

Later tonight I will post the first of my two-part interview with Jay, which deals with the U.S. national team. Tomorrow I will post the second part, which deals the MLS.

For more information on Jay Martin's illustrious career in the game of soccer check out the link below:

http://bishops.owu.edu/martin.html

The next Charlie Davies?

Alejandro Bedoya is drawing a lot of comparisons to injured U.S. forward and former Boston College striker Charlie Davies. Like Davies, Bedoya rose to prominence in Chestnut Hill and also like Davies began his European playing career in Sweeden.

Bedoya, who plays for Orebro, had a breakthrough performance late last July coming off the bench and scoring two goals to help his team come back from a 2-0 deficit to earn a point.

After primarily being held to a subbing role, Bedoya finally did enough to earn a place in the starting lineup and started 11 of the final 14 games for his team, which only lost one game in the stretch.

Bedoya did feature in the recent Honduras friendly, again as a subbing role. Much like the familiar theme in the U.S. play, Bedoya did not have a memorable appearance, but it was not nearly as disastrous as some other MNT players.

http://soccernet.espn.go.com/world-cup/story/_/id/4876989/ce/us/another-former-eagle-flies-high-sweden?cc=5901&ver=us

Speaking of which, here is an update on Charlie Davis recovery, who just recently had elbow surgery.

http://soccernet.espn.go.com/news/story?id=735832&sec=us&cc=5901

Although the previous article states Davies is not expected to be ready for the World Cup after suffering a broken elbow, broken right femur and tibia, fractured bones in the face and a lacerated bladder, don't tell Davies that. But the fact he did not suffer any significant ligament damage was perhaps biggest break (no pun intended).

He recently proclaimed he wants to be back for his French side Sochauxm, which come as early as April, and can easily be back for the World Cup. And he is not looking to be on the bench, he expects to be good and ready to score goals.

Read Ives Galarcep terrific in depth article for all the specifics on Davies amazing recovery to date.

http://soccernet.espn.go.com/world-cup/story/_/id/4856256/ce/us/davies-remarkable-path-recovery?cc=5901&ver=us

And the hits keep on coming

Although Ricardo Clark probably would not have been called into duty for the U.S. in the upcoming El Salvador friendly, a muscle pull in his leg may not all for the defensive center midfielder to play in the far more important friendly with the Netherlands on May 3.

Signing with Eintracht Frankfurt in January, Clark has not feature in the starting rotation for the Bundesliga team and his first start may be delayed for some time.

http://soccernet.espn.go.com/world-cup/story/_/id/4883601/ce/us/injured-american-midfielder-ricardo-clark-doubt-exhibition-game-vs-netherlands?cc=5901&ver=us

Joining a lengthy list of injury concerns that includes Charlie Davies, Clint Dempsey, and Oguchi Onyewu - Clark is expected to take several weeks to get back in top shape. A relatively fresh name in the U.S. player pool, Clark emerged in qualifying as legitimate first-team player. If his injury turned serious and miss significant time it would be a serious blow to the MNT.

Check out his goal vs. Trinidad and Tobago that earned his much deserved recognition:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nKEzE1R_i-c