OMG JK! Onyewu Staying At Standard Liege. (Yeah Right, Pierre)

Despite all the “near done” rumors about Gooch’s move to France, Pierre Francois has THIS to say (in delicious broken/translated english):

“The director general director of Standard Liege, Pierre François said, about the situation of Oguchi Onyewu BigSoccer Topi, considered a target of Marseille: “His contract expires in June next year and it will be difficult to extend, however the player will not leave in January. We know that we will be losing money, but right now the technical issue we want more than economic “

Yea right. Talk about an unsettled Oguchi. He’s been dreaming of moving on from Belgium ever since he tasted Newcastle (however bitter that might’ve been) and it would be criminal if he had to wait until summer. Or would it? Liege is enjoying a terrific run in the Uefa Cup and it’s only half a season…right? Plus since he’d be leaving on a free transfer he could sign wherever he wanted.

I still think that Gooch will move in January. Francois can say all he wants about money not being important, but at the end of the day, the difference between 4 million and zero is…well..4 million. And that’s a lot of dollar bills.

You think Francois is just playing the game to see if he can squeeze some more money out of potential offers? Or do you think he’s got the balls to deny Gooch his transfer request?

Chime in.

-psc

Nous Voulons Onyewu!

Despite rumors that Paris St Germain was also in hot pursuit of The Gooch, it appears that Marseille has all but closed the deal. Sports Illustrated tells us:

Oguchi Onyewu’s move from Standard Liege to Olympique de Marseille could be just a matter of formalities.

According to French soccer news Web site Mercato365.com, the towering central defender has already agreed to a deal lasting 3½ years.

Now all that remains is for the two clubs to reach an agreement on the price, which is expected to be around $4 million.

I know that I would rather see Onyewu in the EPL, but I also would be sad to see him end up at a struggling club like Wigan or Blackburn (he just isn’t gonna end up at a strong English club right now).  In Ligue 1, Onyewu will go to a solid club that gets to play in Europe and I expect him to be a first team regular.  If he isn’t, it’ll be a nightmare.  This is a good move for him, as he’s familiar with the French league after spending time at Metz earlier in his career.

what do you think about Gooch seemingly locked in at Marseille? Happy? Think it’ll be a good fit?

–psc

Saturday: The Ups And Downs

Michael Bradley is sadly back to the bench today for BMG as they face Bayer Leverkusen.  After 45 minutes, BMG are down 2 – nil.  God Moenchengladbach is a mess.  They currently sit second to last in the league table.  If they get relegated, the team is only gonna get worse, as you have to figure Marin (at least) will be sold.  Hopefully Bradley is just getting a rest this weekend, as earlier in the week the BMG manager expressed some disappointment in the young American’s fitness.

UPDATE: Match finished 3-1 and Bradley came on in the 63rd minute.

Clint Dempsey went the full 90 today in Fulham’s 1-1 draw with Manchester City at Craven Cottage.  A good result from Fulham, who is starting to remind me of their Coleman-era squad.  They are getting gritty draws and in a good mid table position.  Dempsey looked good today, staying active and positive in attack, although he did have a few chances at goal that he could have executed better (a few stray headers and at least one stray shot).

If anyone cares, Eddie Johnson isn’t part of the squad today for CFC’s match against Preston North End.  Sad stuff.  Who smells a move back to MLS for EJ?  I brought him back to FC Dallas in my Fifa 09 Manager Mode, and he’s done quite well for me. Har har.

Over in dreary Scotland, Damarcus Beasley is back in the first XI for Rangers as they battle Hamilton.  Maurice Edu (where the hell has he been?) is on the bench for the ‘Gers. The Beas has looked strong so far, playing some dangerous balls into the box from the wing. Hopefully he can grab an assist or goal, that’d be nice.

UPDATE: Wow. Rangers went on to win 7-1 behind a Boyd Hat Trick.  No assists or goals for Beas, and Edu STILL didn’t see the pitch. yikes.

Sheffield Wednesday returned Frank Simek to the starting lineup today in their 1-1 draw with Southampton.  Simek might’ve been a bit accountable for Southampton’s goal, but by all accounts played very well in his first full 90 minutes with the first team since injury.  He came forward and delivered dangerous crosses on multiple occassions. Great news for Simek and USMNT fans, hopefully he can stay in the squad and get back on Bob’s radar.

PREGAME: as we await the start of the Villarreal game, rumor is floating around that Jozy Altidore will start again this match with Rossi.  Apparently Pelligrini was very happy with Jozy’s play last week. Check out the deets here

More to come as the day wears on, Villarreal take on Getafe, blah blah. Go team.

What games are you watching?

–psc

The Gooch Rockin’ The Mic

Onyewu showed up in today’s UEFA Cup match and scored the first goal of the game for Standard Liege.  Looks like the little American has some fire in him and wants to be taken seriously in this transfer window.  Hey, Marseille might have to pay 7 million to secure the big man. Jokes aside, a great showing from Gooch as Liege romped to a 3-0 victory over Sampdoria. You can check out the hightlights over at Yanks Abroad Highlights and see Gooch’s goal in clip number one.

My Thoughts: This is awesome for Onyewu and continued strong showings through December will up his value going into the transfer window.  Who knows, a few more goals and clean sheets and an EPL team might come calling.  Arsenal, you hear that? Replace Gallassssss…… har har.

You think Gooch’s stock has increased enough to garner some Premier League attention?

–psc

Moves Being Made For Onyewu

Rumors Abound! It’s only December 2nd, but we can already smell the January transfer window and our first whiff comes courtesy of Oguchi Onyewu.  Seems like Marseille and Borussia Moenchengladbach are battling it out for the America centre back.  Goal.com tells us:

“The offer from Marseille is reportedly around $6.5 million U.S. with the added bonus of Argentine defender Renato Ceville heading to Liege.

While the offer from Marseille may be the to much for Liege to pass up with Onyewu slated to be out of contract at seasons end, another suitor has arisen. According to Belgiumsoccer.be, Borussia Monchengladbach is now offering Liege close to $4 million U.S. for Onyewu.”

Dear god, please don’t let Gooch go to BMG.  Seriously, If Gladbach gets relegated, the last thing any American wants is two USMNT starters playing for a Bundesliga 2 team.  Marseille would be a great place for Gooch to land and I think he would do very well in the French League.  6.5 million is a pretty hefty number for Onyewu and I don’t think Standard Liege will see a larger bid than that, so I’d be surprised if Gooch didn’t land at Marseille (That is, if the rumor is TRUE).

Another American with some buzz is Kenny Cooper, but more on that LATER.

–psc

Michael Denmarkhurst

Word out of the Washington Post is that Michael Parkhurst has reached a tentative agreement with a Danish club and will be moving in January. Goff writes:

The buzz around MLS circles is that Michael Parkhurst, the Revolution’s standout defender who is out of contract this winter, has reached agreement with a Danish club. Barring last-minute complications, a formal announcement is expected soon.

Looks like more information should be available later today and probably tomorrow as well.  Parkhurst leaves on a free transfer, as his contract is up with MLS.  I’m not too excited about him being in Denmark, I much would’ve preferred the Netherlands.  But we’ll see, maybe he’ll join up with Feilhaber and Jeremiah and AGF Aarhus will become the new Fulham. Wah wah wahhhhh.

What do you think?

–psc

Weekend Stuff: The Important Junk

Wow.  Jozy Altidore started today for Villarreal against Recreativo Huelva and that is the nail in the potential-loan coffin.  Josmer is now unable to go on loan to another club this year and that means he will stick around with the Yellow Submarines for the rest of the season. Hopefully their striker injury woes can continue so Jozy can keep sniping minutes.

Freddy Adu. Once again, Adu did not get off the bench for Monaco.  At this point, you have to wonder, will anything happen in January?  It truly seems that Gomes does not plan to give Adu a chance in the lineup and it seems like poor Freddy can’t catch a break.  Will he ever be able to sign with a team who ACTUALLY intends on playing him (as opposed to just using him for marketing purposes?)  Sure, Adu isn’t the savior of soccer, but he is more than capable of playing football in Europe.  When is someone going to take him seriously?

And then there’s Michael Bradley. Just as it seemed he was settling in at BMG, he scores an own goal.  Yes that’s right, Bradley scored the first goal of the match in the 17th minute. Unfortunately it went into his own net.  It was more of a bad deflection than anything so I don’t think it will haunt him too much, but nonetheless, Bradley didn’t play his best.  By all accounts, the BMG defense was horrid as usual and so they once again drop points.

Over in London, Clint Dempsey went 90 minutes for Fulham in a 0-0 draw with Aston Villa on Saturday.  Dempsey battled the whole game and had some strong efforts in the attacking third.  Friedel made some excellent saves off a few Dempsey shots and hopefully Hodgson is liking what he sees from the Texan.

And finally, poor Eddie Johnson. He didn’t even make the bench today against Swansea in a match that saw Ross McCormack return from injury and score.  Things look bleak in Cardiff for the Grown Ass Man.

What did you think this weekend? TELL US!

Thanksgiving Week: Waiting For Happenings

It’s been a slow holiday week, but in the spirit of posting SOMETHING, this is what’s rumbling:

Kenny Cooper: Increasing rumors about a connection with Eintracht Frankfurt have heated up the transfer talk for this FC Dallas striker.  Pair that with the fact that Dallas doesn’t seem to be willing to pay DP money for KCoop and it looks like he’ll be gone in January.  Now the only question is WHERE.  Expect suitors to come out of the woodwork over the next few weeks.  Perhaps Rosenborg and Cardiff are still interested?

Eddie Johnson: After a kind and encouraging newsweek for EJ, he played like crap against Plymouth.  To make matters worse, two Cardiff strikers are coming back from injury.  Looks like Edward will be dropped back to the bench and stuck as 4th choice striker. Lame, but can any of us actually be surprised?

Freddy Adu: Still can’t buy a game for Monaco.  After scoring for the USMNT last midweek, Freddy didn’t get of the bench in his next club game.  You could argue that ‘oh he needed to rest,’ but that’s BS in my book because he’s an 19 year old who has hardly played all year; he can handle a double gameweek.  We’ll see what happens this weekend.

Jozy Altidore: With Nihat back from injury, US fans are still holding their breath to see if Jozy is used for Villarreal in the next month.  If not, we can expect Josmer to go on loan where hopefully he will find some first team minutes.  That’s something everybody wants.

Oguchi Onyewu: As we approach the January window, it’s time to turn our focus back to Gooch.  Where might he end up?  His contract with Liege expires this year, so it seems they must sell him (if he does in fact wish to leave).  Marseille have reportedly been sniffing around the US Centre Back, and recently Anderlecht has also shown some interest (although Liege would never allow that).  Word has it that Onyewu wants to make it back to the EPL, but I’m not sure any clubs there care.  Hey…Arsenal could use a centre back…Muahha.

Landon Donovan: While it seems his move to Bayern is all but set, we still haven’t heard much from Don Garber and the MLS.  I don’t expect them to prevent the move, but I wouldn’t be surprised if they make a few more stupid comments and get a little bit dirty.  Landon must be counting the days until January.

Chad Marshall: The young Columbus Crew defender has had an outstanding year in the MLS, capping it off with a goal in the cup final.  Now, it seems he has ambitions to play abroad and there is plenty of interest.  Crew wouldn’t be able to pay him the money he wants, so look for Marshall to head oversees in January.

What else is going on people? Still stuffed full of Turkey?

-psc

Eddie Johnson: Staying After School

Some encouraging news out of Wales yesterday, as we learn that Eddie Johnson is working one on one with forward coach Paul Wilkinson in some extra training sessions.  Wales Online tells us:

“The pair are staying out on the training ground at Vale of Glamorgan Hotel and Resort working on Johnson’s touch, finishing and more.

Florida-born Johnson works through team training each day and then stays for a one-on-one session with Bluebirds coach and former England Under-21 forward Wilkinson.”

This is very positive stuff to hear from Eddie Johnson, as USMNT fans have always questioned his work ethic and hunger for improvement.  It makes me happy that Eddie is putting in extra work to try and hone and focus his skill and physical talent.  I mentioned a long time ago in an entry that I didn’t think Eddie ever truly trained and developed his fundamental skills enough.  Instead he relied on his blistering speed and physical strength to get to the MLS and once he became a “star” he coasted, so to speak.  I think this kind of intricate training is just what he needs, and hopefully it’ll start showing in his matches.

We’ll have a chance to see as Cardiff take on Plymouth this weekend.  Eddie is expected to start up top again with Michael Chopra.

Huzzah.

What do you think?

–psc

Landy Dandy Loaned To Bayern

Well there you have it.  Just as Donovan completed his 10 day training stint in Germany, Bayern has reported that he will join them on loan from January to March. Klinsmann had some positive things to say about Landon’s impression, as posted on the Bayern website (forgive the translation):

“Klinsmann has reported that Donovan in the last days of training a lasting impression did. That is what he also in talks with some experienced players. “He is an incredibly fast player who constantly one-against-one situations examined. He is a completely different Stürmertyp than those who are here as “the Bayern coach is convinced.”

I couldn’t agree more! Landon is such a different Sturmertyp!  Don’t you think so? All kidding aside, this is good news for Landon (obviously) but it also is another big test.  Bayern has stated that the loan will have an option to buy, so Donovan will need to work hard in the spring to make an impact with the German giants.  It will not be pretty if Donovan has to come back with his head low after not winning a contract.

Another article out of England has some more details:

“Donovan has spent a week and a half training at Bayern and scored both goals when the first team, minus players away on international duty, beat the club’s B team 2-1 in a practice match on Wednesday. His performances and attitude in training have impressed Klinsmann, who said he needed a fourth striker in his squad to help cover for any injuries that might hit Luca Toni, Miroslav Klose or Lukas Podolski.”

Fourth striker makes me a little nervous, but it just means that Landon will need to take every chance he gets for Bayern if he wants to stay in Europe. It is exciting though, Donovan is finally gonna need to put his money where his mouth is, and I’m pumped to see that.

What do you all think? Happy? A little nervous? Spit it out!

–psc