NSC pal Bryan Zygo was using pretty good logic when he guessed that Stuart Holden's impending New Year's Day appearance on Good Morning America meant that the U.S. midfielder would re-sign with the Houston Dynamo.However, it appears that Holden will be making a different announcement, delaying his decision while he auditions for Burnley manager Owan Coyle.

Everton loan item Landon Donovan has just scored his first goal in England to put the home side up 2-0 near the half hour. I'll get this clip up ASAP. The U.S. star fired home a Tim Cahill flick lefty with help from a deflection.- Greg Seltzer

Photo by ISIphotos.com

With the winter transfer period in full swing, we are starting to see plenty of movement involving MLS players as well as Americans making moves to and around Europe.

Here are a few updates on MLS and Americans Abroad player moves:

Chicago Fire defender Gonzalo Segares has long been counted as a player on the move from MLS, now a destination has been identified.

With injury woes plaguing the U.S. national team, fans will be relieved to hear some good news about one of the walking wounded.

U.S. defender Oguchi Onyewu was in Philadelphia this past weekend for the NSCAA Convention and spoke with the MLS Insider Blog about his rehab and the progress he has made in recent weeks and months.

By FRANCO PANIZO

Jozy Altidore had not seen the field for Hull City since Jan. 2, but that didn't stop him from making a major impact in Hull's 2-2 draw against Wolves.

Returning from compassionate leave due having family members affected by the tragedy in Haiti, Altidore made an immediate impact on Saturday, latching onto a long ball, shielding it with his body and delivering an assist to Jan Vennegoor for the opener in the 11th minute.

Happy New Year to all of you who are effectively beginning your 2010 today as you head back to work after the long weekend. There should be non-stop soccer to discuss from now until next winter so get ready for a great ride.

Today's first topic is the MLS labor talks, which sources tell me aren't going so well.

We have story/audio from the man himself, some quotes from manager Davie Moyes and the Match of the Day reel from last night's game...Everton v Sunderlandvon brezmexri- Greg Seltzer

by FRANCO PANIZO

When Maurice Edu was in the midst of recovering from his lengthy knee injury, he targeted to return in Rangers' first match of the new year, the Old Firm showdown. Edu made his season debut earlier than expected, playing briefly last week, but he saw his most significant playing time since last season vs.

Landon Donovan isn't waiting long to take his chance during his new loan with Everton.

The U.S. national team star is starting for the Toffees today in their match against Arsenal. Donovan just joined Everton but has apparently made enough of an impression to get the start.

Everton-Arsenal is just one of the matches you can watch today.

American defender Michael Orozco has been off the U.S. national team radar for some time, but he may be set for a move to help him get back into Bob Bradley's sights.

Reports from Mexico have linked Orozco to a move to Major League Soccer. Record is reporting that Orozco has left San Luis and will be signing with the Philadelphia Union.

Photo by ISIphotos.com
By FRANCO PANIZO

Landon Donovan has had a fine club career full of highlights and milestones, but Donovan accomplished something on Tuesday that he had never done before.

by FRANCO PANIZO

It is the first weekend of 2010 and despite there being only two different countries with Americans Abroad in action, there is still a plethora of quality matches on tap.

The third round of the FA Cup kicks off this weekend, and for a pair of U.

Its a very busy time in English football as the Football Association (FA) Cup started its 3rd round this past weekend and there were a few midweek EPL fixtures. American goalkeeper Braz Guzan who has been a back-up to Brad Friedel got a start on Saturday as Aston Villa took on Blackburn Rovers. Other Americans in action were Tim Howard for Everton, Clint Dempsey for Fulham (in two matches), Jozy Altidore for Hull Cit and Jay DeMerit for Watford.

Photo by ISIphotos.com

The much-rumored Freddy Adu move to Greece is now official. An 18-month loan deal has been agreed upon between Aris FC and Benfica, and Adu will join fellow American Eddie Johnson at the Greek club.

According to the club's official site (and Adu's Twitter page), Adu will join up through June 2011, with the club retaining an option to buy the attacker from Benfica.

photo by ISIphotos.com

If you were closely following Wednesday's proceedings of the upcoming MLS Draft, you may have missed two former MLS standouts seeing the field for their clubs.

Photo by ISIphotos.com

Stuart Holden's trial with Bolton is going well, and manager Owen Coyle has revealed that he is considering offering Holden a contract.

Coyle wouldn't say anything definite about a contract, but he did state that Holden was doing well during his trial.

Bet you didn't know Landon Donovan was so popular at Everton, did you?

Okay, so the picture isn't of English Everton fans who have already fallen in love with Donovan, but actually of some American fans who made the trip (along with the Liverpool-born, Everton-loving father of one of them) to Goodison Park to see Donovan make his Everton home debut in the 2-0 win vs.

Photo by ISIphotos.com

Clint Dempsey is expected to return to action for Fulham before the end of the English Premier League season after scans injured knee have revealed "moderate damage to a ligament in his right knee", Fulham revealed on its website on Tuesday evening.

By FRANCO PANIZO

It has been hard for Carlos Bocanegra to see the field for Stade Rennes over the past two months, but the U.S. national team captain took another positive step towards reclaiming his left back spot this weekend.

Bocanegra started Rennes' round of 32 Coupe de France game against Saumar, and helped Rennes post a 4-0 victory over the fifth-division club.

Stuart Holden is undoubtedly an up-and-coming player for the U.S. national team, but that apparently has not convinced English Premier League club Burnley enough to sign the now-free agent midfielder.

According to reports, Holden will go on trial with Burnley, although when the trial begins and for how long has not been revealed.

With Freddy Adu set to join Eddie Johnson at Greek club Aris FC, and several other Americans preparing for loans and transfers to Europe from MLS, I wrote a piece on the subject of winter moves by American players for ESPN.com today.

While it is clear that many fans like the idea of Johnson and Adu heading to Greece to jumpstart their careers, it was interesting to hear Chicago Fire technical director and Greek League veteran Frank Klopas talk positively about the moves.

By FRANCO PANIZO

If Landon Donovan is to silence his critics once and for all, now is the time.

After a week of adjusting to life in England and training with Everton, Donovan has a chance to make his much-awaited Premiership debut when the Toffees visit Arsenal and Emirates Stadium this weekend.

Ladies and gentleman, we have two American starters blue.Howard; Neville, Baines, Heitinga, Neill, Osman, Fellaini, Cahill, Pienaar, Donovan, Saha Bench: Nash, Bilyaltedinov, Vaughan, Coleman, Duffy, Baxter, MustafiAlmunia; Sagna, Gallas, Vermaelen, Traore, Denilson, Ramsey, Nasri, Diaby, Arshavin, Eduardo Bench: Fabianski, Silvestre, Eastmond, Merida, Emmanuel-Thomas, Rosicky, VelaIf my eyes and

Stuart Holden went to England with the hopes of landing a contract. It looks as though he will have to move elsewhere in Europe to find a deal.

According to the UK-based Mirror, Bolton has passed on signing Holden, and now the U.S. national team midfielder is heading to Portugal to sign with Sporting Braga.

With no winter break for the English Premier League, there were several midweek matches. On Monday December 28, 2009, Jonathon Spector played for West Ham United, Clint Dempsey started for Fulham, Tim Howard started for Everton, and Marcus Hahnemann started for Wolverhampton Wanderers. On Tuesday, December 29, 2009, Brad Friedel was in action for Aston Villa while Jozy Altidore was playing for Hull City.

With 2009 in the rearview mirror, the new year brings with it great promise and new challenges for the world's best teams and players.

FC Barcelona will look to take on those new challenges after winning every trophy it could in 2009. The quest for new hardware begins today when Barcelona takes on Villarreal.

by FRANCO PANIZO

When Maurice Edu was in the midst of recovering from his lengthy knee injury, he targeted to return in Rangers' first match of the new year, the Old Firm showdown. Edu made his season debut earlier than expected, playing briefly last week, but he saw his most significant playing time since last season vs.

It wasn't a good day for Fulham on Tuesday, what with a first-half beatdown at the hands of Stoke City. The Cottagers nearly fought all the way back from a 3-0 deficit though thanks to a ridiculous goal from U.S. national team star Clint Dempsey.

Here is the goal:

Fulham went on to lose 3-2.

It wasn't enough in the end, but... shazam!- Greg Seltzer

Freddy Adu and Eddie Johnson are two Americans who have had trouble finding regular playing time with their current clubs (Benfica and Fulham). Adu has been on a few loan deals since his time at Benfica and yet to earn regular playing time in any of them. Johnson, has only played a limited number of matches for Fulham and on his loan to Cardiff City last season.

Let's start this on off early and see how much I can add before closing time. I feel like this could be a fruitful day.Let's begin with Jeremiah White, who seems to have been switched over to Saudi team Al-Ettifaq. The club owner also owns Qatari outfit Al-Sailiya, but has apparently decided that the American would be better suited for his Saudi crew.

This won't be heavy reading, but there's just stuff goin' on...#1 - Okay, this is the best Arsenal v Everton extended reel for now - but I will come back here first thing in the morning to switch it over to the Match of the Day version. Hopefully, they will also upload the analysis segment after the highlights.

By FRANCO PANIZO

Landon Donovan's much-anticipated English Premier League debut came with less than a week's worth of training, and even though he was unfamiliar with his new teammates and the English style of play, he did not disappoint.

Donovan made his presence felt 13 minutes into Everton's match vs.

How do I know this? Because one can plainly see Mr. Stu in the 2.19 freeze frame of this Sky Sports News clip.- Greg Seltzer

By FRANCO PANIZO

The Bundesliga winter break is over, and for Michael Bradley and Borussia Moenchengladbach, that means it's time to pick up where they left off in their continuous battle against relegation.

Moenchengladbach currently sits five points above the drop zone, and will be hoping to build on that advantage as it takes on relegation-threatened VfL Bochum.

By FRANCO PANIZO

Landon Donovan made his home debut for Everton this weekend, and in it he helped Everton hand Manchester City something the Citizens had not received in a month: A loss.

Donovan enjoyed his second consecutive solid outing in the Toffees' 2-0 win, constantly threatening Manchester City's back line with his darting runs down the flank and deadly crosses, two of which almost resulted in goals.

If you were waiting for an update on Clint Dempsey's health status, it appears as though you will have to wait until Tuesday for an official verdict.

Dempsey underwent scans on Monday on the right knee he injured during Fulham's 3-0 loss to Blackburn on Sunday and while the early prognosis was a PCL injury, Yanks Abroad is reporting that official word on Dempsey's injury won't come until Tuesday.

Hey, guess who dozed off at around 10 o'clock and didn't post this last night? Sorry, folks, I was exhausted...#1 - As you probably already know by, Fulham expect injured ace Clint Dempsey to be back before season's end, which means he should be ready to go come World Cup. In short, he won't be going under the knife.

And here it is: we can report that Preston Zimmerman has signed on with Mainz II for the rest of the season, with a club option to extend his stay. I'll file a proper report at S365 once I talk to the newest 0-Fiver.- Greg Seltzer

The New York Red Bulls, Houston Dynamo, FC Dallas and Toronto FC will compete in the inaugural Walt Disney World Pro Soccer Classic on Feb. 25-27 at the ESPN Wide World of Sport complex outside Orlando.

The Red Bulls will face the Houston Dynamo in one semifinal, with TFC and FC Dallas playing in the other semifinal, both on Feb.