Where will Jozy Altidore end up?

Following up the good news about Cherundolo, we catch up with one of the U.S.' biggest disappointments from the 2010 World Cup: Jozy Altidore.

We all know that Jozy didn't not have one capable partner up front so it's not all his fault that he scored a grand total of zero goals but considering the chance against England that hit the post and the countless other opportunities, that wasn't good enough.

Looking ahead, Altdiore appears likely to transfer from Villarreal after his stint with Hull in the EPL last season.

Ajax, Besiktas and Fenerbahce have shown interest in acquiring him in addition to Premier League clubs, and a loan and permanent transfer both are possibilities for the 20-year-old American forward.

Like all the U.S. national team players, our hope for Altidore is that 1) wherever he goes he plays and 2) he plays against the highest caliber of opponents that he possibly can. Altidore has the potential to be one of the greatest players and top goal-scorers in U.S. history if he properly develops.

He is due to start preseason training with Villarreal on Aug. 3.

"A lot of the top clubs around Europe have been in touch, and we're just looking at what's the best for Jozy's career at this point," his agent, Lyle Yorks, said Tuesday in a telephone interview. "It's important to find a home for himself where he's going to get games, continue to develop and really show his abilities."

The European transfer window remains open through Aug. 31, but the Premier League opens Aug. 14 and La Liga on Aug. 28.

'We're not trying to rush into anything at this point," Yorks said. "There are advantages to getting it done early because you obviously have a longer preseason to get into the team, but it's important to get the right fit."

Yorks said he had had discussions with two Premier League clubs he wouldn't identify. Fulham also has held discussions about Altidore, pending a decision on hiring a manager to replace Roy Hodgson, who left the Cottagers to become Liverpool's manager.

Altidore was acquired by Villarreal from Major League Soccer and the New York Red Bulls in June 2008 for about $10 million. He became the first American to score in La Liga but played just six matches before he was loaned to second-division Xerez at midseason. He didn't get into another game that season, then was loaned to Hull for 2009-10.

"If it's a full transfer, then the transfer would have to be agreeable with Villarreal," Yorks said. "They spent quite a bit to get him. If it's a loan, then the pressure's off a little bit."

Yorks appears to be the Scott Boras or Ari Gold of American soccer players as he also updated the contract situations of Clint Dempsey, Oguchi Onyewu, DaMarcus Beasley, Benny Feilhaber and Clarence Goodson.

Clint Dempsey, another client, reported back to Fulham following the World Cup, where he scored the U.S. goal in the 1-1 tie against England. Fulham said last August it had extended Dempsey's contract through the 2012-13 season but the 27-year-old may have options to consider.

Yorks said since the World Cup there had been inquiries about Dempsey from fairly large clubs in Italy, Germany and France, and from another Premier League team. The interest levels varied.

"He's prepared to start the season with Fulham, and if there's a right scenario that presents itself where it made sense for the club and for Clint, then he would certainly entertain that," Yorks said.

Defender Oguchi Onyewu intends to remain with AC Milan, a team he joined last summer. Onyewu was limited to one competitive game for the club last season because of a knee injury and in May extended his contract for a season until June 2013 at no extra cost.

"At this point, he's definitely set on staying there," Yorks said. "Various clubs have called regarding a loan situation, but because he missed last season, he's obviously keen to start the situation in Milan."

Yorks and his agent group also are trying to find a new club for midfielder DaMarcus Beasley, who left Glasgow Rangers. Yorks said he's exploring the possibility of new deals for midfielder Benny Feilhaber, who is with Denmark's Aarhus, and defender Clarence Goodson, who plays for Norway's IK Start.

Altidore does his best Zidane impression, nobody notices

Pardon my absence for the last few days, I was a groomsman in a wedding so basically I was living on another planet for the weekend.

Catching up with the latest news in the soccer world, there was a lot of injury reports and other assorted incidents.

US striker Jozy Altidore received a red card on Saturday while playing for his club team Hull against Sunderland.

Apparently he headbutted Sunderland defender Alan Hutton, who had thrown the ball at him.

Altidore was suspended for Hull's last two games which probably doesn't even matter since they're a long shot to avoid relegation at this point.

He wrote Sunday on Twitter that he "made a stupid, immature and costly mistake," adding that "I let my emotions get the best of me and lost my composure."

His loan from Villarreal expires at the end of the season.

Altidore says that "playing for Hull was to date the best trip I've ever been on."

Hopefully this was just Altidore blowing off steam during a long and disappointing season. He needs to keep his emotions in check in South Africa if the US hopes to score any goals and pose any threat offensively. Everything will be going through him up front so he has to have his mind right.

Hull appoints Sloth as its new manager

Hull City hired Ian Dowie aka Sloth as its new manager on Tuesday night as they try to avoid relegation in the EPL.

Dowie signed a short-term deal for the remaining nine games of the season and one can only hope he brings some of his Goonies magic.

He was a hot coaching commodity after successful stints with Oldham and Crystal Palace, but then his star started to fade as he failed in Charlton, QPR and Coventry.

Most recently, Dowie was Alan Shearer's right-hand man at Newcastle and that clearly didn't go too well as Newcastle was relegated while he was there.

Dowie's appointment has not been met with universal approval by the fans but he said: "My message is it's about us winning games. I believe I know the training ground, I believe I can get players playing attractive and open football. This needs to be a real cauldron. We'll be working every hour God sends.''

Smell ya later Phil Brown

It's redundant to say but the English Premier League is a high stakes game with billions on the line. Therefore, it should be no surprise that 19th place Hull (3 points below the relegation zone) fired their manager Phil Brown today.

Brown was the manager in 2008 when Hull advanced to the Premier League and now he had to pay the price for an overmatched team that's likely to drop back down (with nine games remaining) in a few months.

From an American's prespective, this is relevant since our prized striker Jozy Altidore is on Hull. Hopefully the next manager will give Altidore plenty of run for the rest of the season and beyond, getting him ready for the 2010 World Cup and what could be a great EPL career.

Altidore's goal for Hull vs. Manchester City

As promised earlier, here is Jozy Altidore's goal vs. Manchester City from Saturday. It was his first EPL goal and what a strike it was as he ran onto a perfect pass and fired it into the corner.

http://ballsession.blogspot.com/2010/02/hull-followed-up-tuesdays-draw-with.html

I apologize that this isn't a YouTube file. This blog was the only place I could find it. Scroll down to the bottom of the page and the goal happens around the 28 second mark.

Jozy Altidore says hello from the UK

It only took 18 games but American Jozy Altidore finally scored his first EPL goal today in Hull's 2-1 upset of Manchester City.

The 20-year-old striker has played 18 games for Hull, starting 11 but before today he had only recorded two assists. He also had a goal for Hull in the Carling Cup but today's goal was particularly special since Hull is near the bottom of the EPL standings and they need every win that they can get.

http://soccernet.espn.go.com/report?id=269894&cc=5901

One of the best parts about the EPL is the concept of relegation. While the top three teams advance to the Champions League (and the fourth is a qualifier that must win its way in), the bottom three squads (18-20) are all fighting to avoid relegation which can mean the difference of obscene amounts of money.

Imagine if American professional sports leagues (namely the NBA, MLB and NHL had this): it ensures that virtually every game has some meaning to it. The same can't be said for that Pirates-Nationals game in September or Islanders-Oilers in April.

A quick YouTube search showed that the goal wasn't up yet but I'll post it when I can find it.