The USA announced their roster for the Cuba match, to be played at RFK Stadium on 10/11/08.  With advancement to the next round close to a sure thing, Bradley has taken a few more risks (well...I'd be happy to debate anyone on how "risky" they actually are) and called in some younger players.  I, for [. Click to continue reading...

Big, bad Brad Friedel posted another victory last weekend as he and Aston Villa kept on rolling.

Friedel was one of few bright spots for Americans Abroad last weekend. How bad were things? Consider this linep of Americans:

------------------------------Jozy Altidore-----------------------------

DaMarcus Beasley-----------Freddy Adu-------------Clint Dempsey

---------------------Michael Bradley---Maurice Edu------------------

Heath Pearce------Jay DeMerit----Jonathan Spector---Frank Simek

-------------------------------Brad Guzan------------------------------

Like that team?

Click to continue reading...

Big college games, MLS East showdown and a couple of big traditional derbies. All times ET; home teams listed first

TOP FIVE GAMES

- 8 p.m. Fri., Maryland-Wake Forest, Fox Soccer Channel: Consensus top two men's teams in an ACC clash.

- 8 p.m. Fri.

Click to continue reading...

QPR wins!

How do you like the centerpiece treatment A? You can see the goal being scored against American 'keeper Brad Guzan as the Championship side beat Aston Villa 1-0.

Here are the other scores: Brighton 2-2 Man City (Brighton wins shootout, 5-3), Aston Villa 0-1 QPR, Ipswich 1-4 Wigan, Newcastle 1-2 Tottenham, Portsmouth 0-4 Chelsea, Blackburn 1-0 Everton. Click to continue reading...

It took a while, but Freddy Adu finally made his first start for AS Monaco. The U.S. Olympic midfielder made the starting XI in Monaco's French Cup match against Paris St. Germain. It could be Adu's last start for a while after a goal from one-time Chicago Fire target Fabrice Pancrate gave PSG the win, thus ending Adu's potential source for major playing time.

Click to continue reading...

-
QPR move into the Fourth Round!


QPR Official Site: Aston Villa 0 QPR 1

Damion Stewart's second half header booked Rangers' place in the Fourth Round of the Carling Cup, on a night to remember for Iain Dowie's side.

The Jamaican international leapt to head home Daniel Parejo's pin-point cross, as the R's - backed by 2,500 fanatical fans - claimed the notable scalp of a Villa side currently sitting pretty in fourth spot in the Premiership. Click to continue reading...

Everton drew, Forest drew and Landon Donovan demolished D.C. But the weird one was over in England, where Reading got a goal even though the ball went well wide. Manager Steve Coppell has offered to replay the game; U.S. keeper Marcus Hahnemann isn't so sure. (BBC)

And a milestone on the U.

Click to continue reading...

Trying a new format this week that hopefully won't take me so long next week. Feedback welcome. All times ET; home teams listed first

TOP FIVE GAMES

- Friday, 7 p.m.: Notre Dame-St. John's, CSTV XXL: Top-five men's teams clash in the Big East.

- Friday, 8 p.

Click to continue reading...

We are mid-way through September, with about six weeks left in the season, and there is a very real chance that neither Los Angeles team will make the MLS playoffs. That's a sad statement considering MLS Cup will be held at Home Depot Center this year.

Though neither team is eliminated from playoff contention yet, neither team is looking all that dangerous.

Click to continue reading...

We are mid-way through September, with about six weeks left in the season, and there is a very real chance that neither Los Angeles team will make the MLS playoffs. That's a sad statement considering MLS Cup will be held at Home Depot Center this year.

Though neither team is eliminated from playoff contention yet, neither team is looking all that dangerous.

Click to continue reading...

This weekend was a memorable one for Americans Abroad as two recent MLS transfers made their European club debuts, while a few other Americans found the net.

Maurice Edu (pictured) made his debut for Glasgow Rangers on Saturday in a 2-1 win over Kilmarnock while U.S. Olympic teammate Jozy Altidore impressed in his La Liga debut for Villarreal.

Click to continue reading...

I owe, I owe, it's back to my club I go ...

OUR TEAMS

Everton (1-2-0, 17th in Premier League): Away to Stoke (8:30 a.m. ET Sunday; 11 a.m. on Fox Soccer Channel). Marouane Fellaini should be in the lineup, but new defender Lars Jacobsen is out for a while.

Click to continue reading...

This post is only tangentially related to the Galaxy, because of the presence of Landon Donovan in the US Men's National Team Player Pool. But I thought it would be fun to go through the candidates for player of the year and see what Galaxy fans thought about the choices. (I totally stole this idea from Luis Bueno over at Sideline Views who actually gets to cast a vote that counts in his capacity as a member of the media.

Click to continue reading...

Sporadic commentary will follow ...

USA lineup: GK Tim Howard, D Carlos Bocanegra, D Oguchi Onyewu, D Steve Cherundolo, D Heath Pearce, M Clint Dempsey, M DaMarcus Beasley, M Michael Bradley, M Sacha Kljestan, F Landon Donovan, F Brian Ching.

On the bench: GK Brad Guzan, D Frankie Hejduk, D Dan Califf, M Ricardo Clark, M Eddie Lewis, M Maurice Edu, F Eddie Johnson

Not playing: D Michael Orozco, D Marvell Wynne

Not called in: M/F Freddy Adu, F Jozy Altidore, D Jimmy Conrad, etc.

Click to continue reading...

Well Bruce is gone on some sort of bus trip so I'm here to give you a short USA vs. Trinidad and Tobago World Cup 2010 Qualifier Preview. The USA come off a 1-0 win over Cuba that could have been 2 or 3 to nothing, but at the same time could have been 1-1 if not for Howard's heroics. Home Crowd, Stats in our Favor The "workman like effort" the media saw in Cuba should surface again today at Toyota Park. Click to continue reading...

It's your call, you get to be Bob Bradley for a day, what would you do?  Who would you start?  What lineup would be most effective in getting the 3 points, and in the process hopefully more than one goal. Here's the Roster you can choose from: GOALKEEPERS (2): Brad Guzan (Aston Villa: 2/2 SO), Tim Howard (Everton [. Click to continue reading...

Good afternoon folks. As we hit a bit of a lull before tomorrow's jam-packed slate of World Cup qualifiers it is time to take a closer look at things here at SBI.

I am pleased to report that the site surpassed the 1 million pageview mark for August, making it the first month SBI has reached the seven-figure mark.

Click to continue reading...

I just finished the new DVD from Major League Soccer and A&E Home Video titled, Game Breakers: The Stars of Major League Soccer and I've got to tell ya, I was quite impressed.

The DVD was just released on August 26th and so – like Kramer in Seinfeld – that practically makes me the premier! Click to continue reading...

Notable arrivals: James Milner (Newcastle United), Carlos Cuellar (Rangers), Luke Young, (Middlesbrough), Nickey Shorey (Reading), Brad Friedel (Blackburn), Steve Sidwell (Chelsea), Curtis Davies (West Brom), Brad Guzan (Chivas USA). Notable departures: Shaun Maloney (Celtic), Patrik Berger (Sparta Prague), Olof Mellberg. Click to continue reading...

Notable arrivals: James Milner (Newcastle United), Carlos Cuellar (Rangers), Luke Young, (Middlesbrough), Nickey Shorey (Reading), Brad Friedel (Blackburn), Steve Sidwell (Chelsea), Curtis Davies (West Brom), Brad Guzan (Chivas USA). Notable departures: Shaun Maloney (Celtic), Patrik Berger (Sparta Prague), Olof Mellberg. Click to continue reading...

Notable arrivals: James Milner (Newcastle United), Carlos Cuellar (Rangers), Luke Young, (Middlesbrough), Nickey Shorey (Reading), Brad Friedel (Blackburn), Steve Sidwell (Chelsea), Curtis Davies (West Brom), Brad Guzan (Chivas USA). Notable departures: Shaun Maloney (Celtic), Patrik Berger (Sparta Prague), Olof Mellberg. Click to continue reading...

20 lucky folk were selected for World Cup qualifying beatdowns of Cuba and Trinidad and Tobago.

Enjoy:

Goalkeepers: Brad Guzan, Tim Howard.

Defenders: Carlos Bocanegra, Danny Califf, Steve Cherundolo, Frankie Hejduk, Oguchi Onyewu, Michael Orozco, Heath Pearce, Marvell Wynne.

Click to continue reading...

Sorry for this post coming a few hours after the official announcement.  I had some things to take care of, but now, here is the roster for the USA's upcoming match vs. Cuba.  The roster is after the jump. Here is the roster Bob Bradley has chosen: U.S. ROSTER BY POSITION  GOALKEEPERS (2): Brad Guzan (Aston Villa: 2/2 SO), [. Click to continue reading...

U.S. Coach Bob Bradley has just announced a 20-man roster for the pair of upcoming World Cup Qualifying games against Cuba Sept. 6 in Havana and Trinidad & Tobago on Sept. 10 in Chicago.

There are just two changes and two additions to the squad Bradley selected for the recent qualifier in Guatemala.

Click to continue reading...

Sir Bob has released his 20-man roster for next week's World Cup qualifier in Cuba (Sept. 6) and for the home match in Bridgeview, Ill., against Trinidad and Tobago (Sept. 10). GOALKEEPERS: Tim Howard, Brad Guzan. DEFENDERS: Carlos Bocanegra, Oguchi Onyewu, Heath Pearce, Frankie Hejduk, Danny Califf, Steve Cherundolo*, Michael Orozco, Marvell Wynne. Click to continue reading...

GOALKEEPERS: Tim Howard, Brad Guzan. DEFENDERS: Carlos Bocanegra, Oguchi Onyewu, Heath Pearce, Frankie Hejduk, Danny Califf, Steve Cherundolo, Michael Orozco, Marvell Wynne. MIDFIELDERS: DaMarcus Beasley, Michael Bradley, Ricardo Clark, Maurice Edu, Eddie Lewis, Sacha Kljestan. FORWARDS: Brian Ching, Landon Donovan, Clint Dempsey, Eddie Johnson. Click to continue reading...

Photo by ISIphotos.com

With three points in the bag after last week's 1-0 road win against Guatemala, the U.S. men's national team heads into the next set of World Cup qualifiers knowing that two wins could all but lock up advancement into the Hexagonal round.

Click to continue reading...

I had a chance to watch Game Breakers: The Stars of Major League Soccer this evening. The A&E DVD about several of the stars of Major League Soccer was just released today.

The description of the DVD lists 12 players that they profile but you will see so much more than just 12 player profiles.

Click to continue reading...

Like many American soccer fans, I appreciate college soccer for what it really is - unwatchable slop. But, occasionally great players come out of said slop including guys like Brian McBride, Maurice Edu, Taylor Twellman, and Brad Guzan. This fall, I am going to attend a few college matches to take a look at some [. Click to continue reading...

Photo by ISIphotos.com

U.S. national team midfielder Maurice Edu received his UK work permit on Friday, clearing the way for his $5 million transfer to Glasgow Rangers.

Edu will join U.S. national team teammate DaMarcus Beasley at Rangers, where he is expected to challenge for a starting central midfield role.

Click to continue reading...

Notable arrivals: Carlos Cuellar (Rangers), Luke Young, (Middlesbrough), Nickey Shorey (Reading), Brad Friedel (Blackburn), Steve Sidwell (Chelsea), Curtis Davies (West Brom), Brad Guzan (Chivas USA). Notable departures: Patrik Berger (Sparta Prague), Olof Mellberg (Juventus), Scott Carson (Liverpool), Luke Moore (West. Click to continue reading...

TRADER MO HAS STRUCK AGAIN !!!!!!!!!!

Every year, you can always expect certain things to happen in the MLS

1. There is an Older European player who, underestimated the level of play in the MLS.

This year, we have had a number of examples to add to the growing list of euro washouts.

Click to continue reading...

What is undoubtedly the world's richest soccer league, arguably the best soccer league, (let's here it from the Serie A and La Liga fans now) but certainly the most-widely watched soccer league in the world begins in a few short hours: the English Premier League.

What's the connection to soccer in Los Angeles?

Click to continue reading...

The match will air live in the United States at 10 pm ET/7pm PT on ESPN2 Wednesday August 20th. (club/qualifying appearances/goals) GOALKEEPERS (2): Brad Guzan (Aston Villa: 2/2 SO), Tim Howard (Everton FC: 3/2 SO) DEFENDERS (6): Carlos Bocanegra (Rennes:... Click to continue reading...

Everyone out there is upset that Kenny Cooper wasn't called up. Considering he's scored like 82 goals a game for FC Dallas this season, I'm upset too.

Goalkeepers: Brad Guzan (Aston Villa, England), Tim Howard (Everton, England).

Defenders: Carlos Bocanegra (Rennes, France), Steve Cherundolo (Hannover, Germany), Jay DeMerit (Watford, England), Frankie Hejduk (Columbus), Oguchi Onyewu (Standard Liege, Belgium), Heath Pearce (Hansa Rostock, Germany)

Midfielders: Michael Bradley (Heerenveen, Netherlands), Maurice Edu (Toronto), Sacha Kljestan (Chivas USA), Eddie Lewis (Derby County, England), Pablo Mastroeni (Colorado)

Forwards: Brian Ching (Houston), Landon Donovan (Los Angeles), Clint Dempsey (Fulham, England), Eddie Johnson (Fulham, England)

Young midfielders rule. Click to continue reading...