International breaks sometimes affect teams as soon as they are over. Especially, if you're a team like Manchester United and boast many international stars such as, say, Rooney or a Vidic and maybe even a Fletcher. Because it was the latter who set the standards in this highly comprehensive victory, with a stunning strike that sent the Stretford End erupting.

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Before yesterday's game against Everton, I wasn't quite sure of what we were going to see. Man United don't tend to be at their best after International games but there was nothing to worry about. Man United eased to a comfortable 3-0 win over Everton and it could have been more than that. Click to continue reading...

Tim Howard faces off against former club Manchester United today in one of the day's marquee match-ups.

The morning EPL matches are already underway, but Everton's showdown against the champions will highlight the afternoon slate of matches.

If you will be watching today's action, or if you watched the early morning action, please feel free to share your thoughts, opinions and some play-by-play in the comments section below.

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It feels like months since United's last outing. I'm not sure whether that's because of the boredom the International break breaks or the need we've felt to bury our last game to the back of our memories. Losing against your title rivals is always going to be painful but to lose how we did, at the hands of poor officiating, is even harder to take.

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It was a triple killing -- three goals in eight minutes that easily saw off the U.S. challenge in Aarhus. Friendlies tend to spawn more overreactions than calm, logical analysis simply because most American soccer fans expect to be better than they really are.

From the distant perspective of a TV screen carrying the international feed, the defensive collapse was a frustrating exercise that you'd rather not see.

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United welcome Everton to Old Trafford in the late kick off on Saturday in what, on paper, should be a fairly easy three points for Sir Alex Ferguson's side.

I mean no disrespect to Everton by this and on their day they're capable of beating anyone in the league but the fact of the matter is their injury list is huge and so many key players are missing.

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The Sin: Gluttony is one of the most digusting sins, and Maradona exemplifies it in the pic at left. By the time this shot was taken, the man who was the best player in the world (maybe ever) had indulged himself to excess on food, wine and drugs. He failed to abide by Proverbs 23:21, which states that "[f]or the drunkard and the glutton shall come to poverty; and drowsiness shall clothe a man with rags.

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Photo by ISIphotos.com

If the starting lineup the U.S. team fielded in Saturday's loss to Slovakia didn't look far enough away from Bob Bradley's first-choice squad, wait until you see the team we are likely to have take the field in Denmark on Wednesday.

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Photo by ISIphotos.com

If the starting lineup the U.S. team fielded in Saturday's loss to Slovakia didn't look far enough away from Bob Bradley's first-choice squad, wait until you see the team we are likely to have take the field in Denmark on Wednesday.

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Slovakia and the United States played in a friendly on Saturday, November 14, 2009. Both teams have qualified for next summer's FIFA 2010 World Cup Final. Here's a recap of the match along with video highlights.

Slovakia beats United States 1-0 Video Highlights

The United States dominated possession, especially in the 2nd half, but struggled to convert any chances as they lost to Slovakia.

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The U.S. national team returns to action for the first time since qualifying for the 2010 World Cup today when it takes on Slovakia in a friendly in Bratislava (10am, FSC).

The Americans are without Landon Donovan and Tim Howard, as well as the injured Oguchi Onyewu and Jay DeMerit, but there are still plenty of starters who will have chances to show they can play without the team's top players.

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The U.S. national team returns to action for the first time since qualifying for the 2010 World Cup today when it takes on Slovakia in a friendly in Bratislava (10am, FSC).

The Americans are without Landon Donovan and Tim Howard, as well as the injured Oguchi Onyewu and Jay DeMerit, but there are still plenty of starters who will have chances to show they can play without the team's top players.

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Photo by ISIphotos.com

Club soccer takes a break around the world (save for the USA and Mexico) which means international fixtures take center stage this weekend.There are crucial World Cup qualifiers and high-profile friendlies headlining this weekend's action.

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The U.S. men's national team takes on Slovakia on Saturday and the match is one of the last remaining opportunities this year for head coach Bob Bradley to take a look at different players and positional pairings before the end of the year.

With standouts Landon Donovan and Tim Howard not called in, and with key injuries to Oguchi Onyewu and Jay Demerit, the squad Bradley will turn to to face the Slovakians will be a much different-looking group than the ones that helped the team qualify for the 2010 World Cup.

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With the World Cup inching ever closer, it's just about time to stop nibbling around the edges of the U.S. depth chart conversations and start biting into the chewy center of that little candy bunny.

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Several Americans were in action in the European leagues on Sunday, November 10, 2009. Clint Dempsey, Jonathan Spector, and Tim Howard were playing in the English Premier League while Carlos Bocanegra was with Stade Rennais in France. Kenny Cooper continues to play for Bundesliga 2 side 1860 Munich and Steve Cherundolo is a regular starter for Hannover 96.

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Yes, that is no typo. Thanks to a striker pool as thin as a wafer due to both injuries and MLS playoffs reaching their peak, Bob Bradley has his hands tied when it comes to available players for Saturday's friendly against Slovakia. Landon Donovan is unavailable because of the Los Angeles Galaxy's playoff triumph, while a fringe player such as Robbie Findley also misses out thanks to success.

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USMNT boss Bob Bradley has selected 22 players to gather in Bratislava to prepare for Saturday's friendly with fellow World Cup qualifier Slovakia.As you can see, I pegged much of the roster, with a few notable exceptions (like Tim Howard and the Mexican-based guys). However, I also expect some changes to the roster before the Denmark match that follows four days later. Click to continue reading...

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by FRANCO PANIZOÂ

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.

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The UEFA Europa League had another full set of matches on Thursday, November 5, 2009. There were a few Americans involved including Clint Dempsey for EPL club Fulham and Tim Howard with EPL club Everton. Both loss as the teams struggled. Here's a recap of Americans Abroad in the Europa League in the Europa League.

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I've lifted the F-bomb ban on Cut of the Day because it's Friday and I wanna...#1 - In the aftermath of last night's Real Salt Lake upset of the champs, James Edward pops the surprise cork and Shawn Mitchell does the Crew autopsy.#2 - After another loss to Benfica at home last night, Everton keeper Tim Howard knows his side is in a real scrap for the Europa League knockouts. Click to continue reading...

Clint Dempsey and Tim Howard will try to guide their teams past midweek Europa League disappointment while Frank Simek hopes to retain his starting spot for Wednesday. Click to continue reading...

Clint Dempsey went the distance for Fulham but was unable to help them to a win in Rome while an evening of stellar play from Tim Howard wasn't enough to keep Everton from falling to Benfica. Click to continue reading...

Everton were unable to turnaround their 5-0 away loss to Benfica, losing again to the Portuguese club 2-0 at Goodison Park on Thursday. Javier Saviola scored in the 63rd and Oscar Rene Cardozo followed in the 76th for the win. Tim Howard made nine saves for Everton, three more than his opposite number Jacobi Julio Cesar who picked up the shutout. Click to continue reading...

The UEFA Europa League had a full set of group stage matches on Thursday, November 5, 2009 including Everton v Benfica. Here's a recap along with video highlights of the match.

Benfica beats Everton 2-0 Video Highlights

Everton hosted Benfica looking to avenge a 5-0 defeat in the last matchday.

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The resumption of the Europa League after a short hiatus meant another important round of games for Everton and Fulham. With those clubs in action, both Clint Dempsey and Tim Howard were in action Thursday afternoon.

Dempsey's Fulham traveled to Rome, and after getting out to a 1-0 lead, were reduced to 10 men early in the second half.

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The resumption of the Europa League after a short hiatus meant another important round of games for Everton and Fulham. With those clubs in action, both Clint Dempsey and Tim Howard were in action Thursday afternoon.

Dempsey's Fulham traveled to Rome, and after getting out to a 1-0 lead, were reduced to 10 men early in the second half.

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With J Hutcherson -- Later today, Tim Howard and Everton get the opportunity to marginalize an earlier result. That would be the 5-0 collapse at Benfica on October 22nd. A home win at Goodison Park takes the gloss off what happened at Estadio da Luz. In the short-term, it even takes out Benfica's goal differential since an Everton win puts them ahead on points in Group I. Click to continue reading...

Clint Dempsey and Fulham will look to ride their unbeaten streak into a result in Rome while Tim Howard and the Toffees are looking for a bit of revenge when Benfica come to Goodison Park. Click to continue reading...

by FRANCO PANIZO

If there was any doubt about Michael Bradley having returned to his top form, he surely killed off that uncertainty this weekend.

Bradley capped off his impressive October on Saturday, starting and going the distance in Borussia Moenchengladbach's 3-2 victory over Hamburg SV.

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Tim Howard: under siege these days at Everton.

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Every Tuesday I go out with some buddies to a local (and soccer-friendly, of course) pub.

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From morning soccer action in England, to evening soccer action in Mexico, Saturday's slate of soccer has something for everybody on this Halloween Day.

Arsenal-Tottenham kicks off today's activities in a highly-anticipated battle on ESPN2 (8:30am). MLS fans will get a taste of playoff soccer later in the day when the Columbus Crew face Real Salt Lake.

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Brad Friedel will become the first player to play 200 successive Premier League games, having passed the previous high of 167 last season, when he faces fellow American Tim Howard at Goodison Park on Saturday. Click to continue reading...

We're great when we're winning. Opponents are forced to push forward, and we duly pick them off on the break, with the clinical precision of a trained sniper (until Keane starts stumbling over his own feet). We have the players, including those on the fringes of the squad, to counter with pace and inventiveness, on top of which it makes for a cracking spectacle.

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Now that we have officially qualified for the World Cup, it is time for the first installment of Bradley's Babes: 23 for 2010 our attempt to answer the question, "Who should we take along?"Â Â But instead of taking the standard approach doing our best to guess who Bob will take to South Africa we decided to focus on who we would like him to take.

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