by GIANFRANCO PANIZO
After two solid weeks of impressive performances to start the new year, Americans playing
abroad ran into a wall this past weekend.
The majority of Americans Abroad either sat on the bench or did not dress last
weekend, while many of the players who did see time struggled with results and their own
performances.
by GIANFRANCO PANIZO
Tim Howard continues to build his legacy as an American goalkeeper. Howard posted a
shut-out performance in Everton's 3-0 victory against Bolton Wanderers on Saturday. The
American netminder's cleansheet was his ninth of the season and should serve as a huge
confidence-booster as the United States takes on Mexico in World Cup qualifying on Wednesday.
by GIANFRANCO PANIZO
It was a good overall weekend for American defenders in terms of playing time, but no
defenders enjoyed a better weekend than Jonathan Spector and Frank Simek.
The pair of American defenders returned after lengthy injury layoffs and each played a
substantial amount in their respective club's games.
by GIANFRANCO PANIZO
After a few forgettable weekends, the Americans Abroad bounced back with some positive
performances this weekend.
by FRANCO PANIZO
Tim Howard has had enough brilliant moments in his career to fill up an ESPN highlight reel.
From his gutsy performance against Argentina in 2008, to his penalty kick heroics against former
club Manchester United in last season's FA Cup, Howard has made a name for himself with his timely
saves, and his most recent shot block is just the latest evidence of his greatness.
by GIANFRANCO PANIZO
After months of inactivity in the Scottish Premier League, midfielder Maurice Edu was
penned into the Rangers' starting eleven in their 1-0 victory over Hamilton Academical on
Saturday. The former Toronto FC player enjoyed his first start in league play
since September and drew rave-reviews from head coach Walter Smith.
by GIANFRANCO PANIZO
In a weekend that turned out to be a score-fest for Americans Abroad, Clint Dempsey stole the
show as he knocked in a brace to help Fulham defeat Manchester City, 3-1.
Dempsey, who upped his total of goals this season to seven, was not the only American to hit
a brace this weekend however.
by GIANFRANCO PANIZO
Just days after a disappointing 2-1 loss to Mexico in a World Cup qualifier, some of the United
States' top players bounced back with solid weekends abroad.
Clint Dempsey began the new Premier League season on a positive note, going the full 90
minutes in Fulham's season opener against Portsmouth, and playing a part in the game's lone
goal.
by FRANCO PANIZO
The Americans Abroad must have known this was the final weekend before the U.S. national team's
two European friendlies, because there was a plethora of positive performances and five different
goal scorers in one of the most successful weekends in recent memory.
by GIANFRANCO PANIZO
With only a handful of Americans participating in this weekend's soccer
festivities, most fans might assume it was a relatively quiet weekend. It wasn't.
The number of players may seem miniscule but there was plenty to talk about when the
weekend came to a close.
by GIANFRANCO PANIZO
Landon Donovan opened up a solid weekend for the Americans Abroad contingent as he played in his
first Bundesliga match with Bayern Munich. The American attacker came off the bench in
the second half and was active in his 13-minute performance. Donovan's
efforts were not enough though as he and Bayern Munich fell to Hamburg SV 1-0 on Friday.
by GIANFRANCO PANIZO
Just three days after playing his most complete performance in a United States' jersey,
midfielder Michael Bradley followed up his Columbus heroics by playing hero once again. This time
scoring the equalizing goal for his club side Borussia Monchengladbach.
by GIANFRANCO PANIZO
While there were few positives to draw from the U.S. U-20 national team's World Cup opener,
there were reasons for optimism from some of the Americans Abroad this weekend.
Tim Howard once again provided Everton with a solid performance, making three saves en route to
a 1-0 win over Portsmouth.
by FRANCO PANIZO
DaMarcus Beasley has been one of the most criticized players on the U.S. national team this year
due to his lack of sharpness and sporadic minutes at the club level, but the Rangers midfielder
took a positive step towards resurrecting a career that appeared to be in shambles.
by GIANFRANCO PANIZO
The Mexican national team is going to have a tough time beating Tim Howard if the U.S.
goalkeeper's recent hot form is any indication.
Howard delivered one of the best performances of the weekend by posting an eight-save effort in
Everton's 1-1 tie vs.
by GIANFRANCO PANIZO
Starting in back-to-back games at right back for West Ham United after dealing with so many
injuries must have felt special for Jonathan Spector. That feeling went away quickly on Saturday
after Spector suffered a brutal injury that could keep him out of action for a while.
by GIANFRANCO PANIZO
Goals for a pair of national team starters, coupled with a key victory for the team of another
starter, made the past weekend a memorable one for Americans Abroad.
With the Coupe de France up for grabs, Carlos Bocanegra gave Rennes a lead this weekend when he
got on the end of a free kick from the right side in the 70th minute.
Photo by
ISIphotos.com
by GIANFRANCO PANIZO
With more European leagues getting their seasons underway this past weekend, it was no
surprise to see impressive performances from the Americans Abroad.
by FRANCO PANIZO
The scoring drought is over.
After numerous scoreless weekends, the Americans Abroad killed the near month-long streak as
two players found the back of the net this weekend.
Michael Bradley, who scored midweek in the U.S.
by FRANCO PANIZO
It took three months and nine games, but Clint Dempsey finally scored his first goal of the
Premiership season.
Dempsey netted in the 68th minute of Fulham's match against Manchester City, heading home the
equalizer from 10 yards out.
by FRANCO PANIZO
When November began, Hull City and Borussia Moenchengladbach were two European clubs entrenched
in their respective relegation zones after poor starts. The tide has turned for both teams as each
club capped undefeated Novembers with the help of a pair of young Americans.
by GIANFRANCO PANIZO
With the majority of the leagues in Europe still enjoying their "winter
breaks", a myriad list of tournament match-ups were on display. The Americans Abroad
contingent participated in England's FA Cup, the Coupe de France and even the Mexican
InterLiga this past weekend.
by GIANFRANCO PANIZO
If there was an award for the best season had by an American Abroad in 2008-2009, Carlos
Bocanegra would surely be one of the primary candidates. Bocanegra, who has been a fixture with
Rennes since joining the French team last summer, added to his impressive season
by scoring the opener in Sunday's 2-0 win over AJ Auxerre.
by GIANFRANCO PANIZO
Starting in back-to-back games at right back for West Ham United after dealing with so many
injuries must have felt special for Jonathan Spector. That feeling went away quickly on Saturday
after Spector suffered a brutal injury that could keep him out of action for a while.
by GIANFRANCO PANIZO
In the battle for safety from the relegation zone, Michael Bradley and Borussia Moenchengladbach
tied fellow relegation-threatened Arminia Bielefeld on Sunday. Bradley went 69 minutes in the 1-1
draw that saw Arminia leapfrog Moenchengladbach in the standings.
by GIANFRANCO PANIZO
Charlie Davies continued his scoring ways as he net the lone Americans Abroad goal of the
weekend in Hammarby's 1-0 win over Malmo FF. Davies' goal, which came in the 57th minute, was his
fourth of the season and further established him as the team's leading scorer.
by GIANFRANCO PANIZO
It was a relatively light weekend for the Americans Abroad, but there was still plenty to talk
about at despite the
Mike Grella scored the game-winning goal for Leeds United in their 2-0 win over Stockport
County. Grella, who was subbed out in the 72nd minute, netted in the ninth.
by GIANFRANCO PANIZO
It was another weekend to forget for the Americans Abroad contingent as many U.S. national team
players failed to see action.
Oguchi Onyewu and Michael Bradley were just two of the top Americans to miss out on the weekend
festivities, while Freddy Adu also failed to find some playing time in his first official game
with new Portuguese club Belenenses.
by GIANFRANCO PANIZO
Just three days after playing his most complete performance in a United States' jersey,
midfielder Michael Bradley followed up his Columbus heroics by playing hero once again. This time
scoring the equalizing goal for his club side Borussia Monchengladbach.
pa href="http://www.soccerbyives.net/.a/6a00e54ef2975b88330112796c839228a4-pi"
style="DISPLAY: inline"img alt="Clint Dempsey 10 (AP)"
class="at-xid-6a00e54ef2975b88330112796c839228a4 "
src="http://www.soccerbyives.net/.a/6a00e54ef2975b88330112796c839228a4-500wi"/img/a /p
pstrongby GIANFRANCO PANIZO/strong/p pThere are few American players enjoying better
seasons than Clint Dempsey.
by GIANFRANCO PANIZO
In a weekend that turned out to be a score-fest for Americans Abroad, Clint Dempsey stole the
show as he knocked in a brace to help Fulham defeat Manchester City, 3-1.
Dempsey, who upped his total of goals this season to seven, was not the only American to hit
a brace this weekend however.
by GIANFRANCO PANIZO
Oguchi Onyewu became the latest American to net two goals in Europe, heading home the opener and
the final goal in Standard Liege's 3-0 victory over Royal Excelsior Mouscron. The American
international struck in the 14th minute and then capped off Liege's scoring with his second in the
65th.
Photo by ISI photos.com
by GIANFRANCO PANIZO
Michael Orozco scored the lone goal of the Americans Abroad contingent this weekend when he
netted in San Luis' 3-1 loss to Santos.
Photo by ISI photos.com
by GIANFRANCO PANIZO
Michael Orozco scored the lone goal of the Americans Abroad contingent this weekend when he
netted in San Luis' 3-1 loss to Santos.
by GIANFRANCO PANIZO
Charlie Davies continued his scoring ways as he net the lone Americans Abroad goal of the
weekend in Hammarby's 1-0 win over Malmo FF. Davies' goal, which came in the 57th minute, was his
fourth of the season and further established him as the team's leading scorer.
by GIANFRANCO PANIZO
It was an overall positive weekend for the Americans Abroad as three U.S. national team players
won league titles while another scored in a blow-out victory.
Oguchi Onyewu helped Standard Liege keep a cleansheet in the second-leg of the Belgian league
title play-off en route to capturing their second consecutive league title.
by GIANFRANCO PANIZO
Just days after a disappointing 2-1 loss to Mexico in a World Cup qualifier, some of the United
States' top players bounced back with solid weekends abroad.
Clint Dempsey began the new Premier League season on a positive note, going the full 90
minutes in Fulham's season opener against Portsmouth, and playing a part in the game's lone
goal.
by FRANCO PANIZO
Carlos Bocanegra has made a career out of solid defending and timely tackles, and this
weekend he prevented a potential goal with a last-second challenge.
Unfortunately for Stade Rennes, Bocanegra did so with his hands.
by FRANCO PANIZO
If Jozy Altidore is to regain the top form he demonstrated earlier this year, then his
performance in this past weekend's game was a step in the right direction.
Coming off a pair of lackluster performances with the U.S. national team, Altidore responded
by starting and playing 74 minutes in Hull City's 3-3 draw vs.
by GIANFRANCO PANIZO
The Mexican national team is going to have a tough time beating Tim Howard if the U.S.
goalkeeper's recent hot form is any indication.
Howard delivered one of the best performances of the weekend by posting an eight-save effort in
Everton's 1-1 tie vs.
