Ricardo Clark has completed a move to German Bundesliga side Eintracht Frankfurt, at least for the remainder of the season.
The move could prove to be highly beneficial to the US national team regular as the current crop of US central midfielders continues to deepen. Clark faces competition for playing time from players like Michael Bradley, Maurice Edu, Benny Feilhaber, and Jermaine Jones (at least expected to be in contention for a starting spot once injuries heal).
Clint Dempsey suffered “moderate ligament damage” to his knee according to Fulham’s website.
Demspey injured the knee during a January 17 match vs Blackburn. He should return to action in the Premier League prior to season’s end.
This is a huge relief for American soccer fans, as Dempsey consistently proves to be one of the more dangerous attacking players in Bob Bradley’s arsenal. Considering the significant injuries to Oguchi Oneywu and Charlie Davies, the US National team could hardly afford to see another one of their starting 11 go down.
Here’s hoping for a quick recovery.
The U.S. got burned in their game against Italy by a young striker born in New Jersey. A lot has been said about Giuseppe Rossi after Monday’s Confederations Cup game, some good, some bad, and some just downright hateful and despicable.
There are plenty of facts: Rossi was born in Teaneck, NJ to Italian immigrant parents. He left the states to go play in the in Parma of the Italian league’s youth system. He was asked to participate in a training camp with U.S. just prior to the 2006 World Cup, but declined; prompting then coach Bruce Arena to publicly state the U.S. would not chase players who didn’t want to play for the U.S.
Let’s face it, we’d all be better off today if the powers that be had at least attempted to chase this gifted player. The fact of the matter is the U.S is sorely lacking in player development and scouting. Rossi never should have been off the U.S. radar after he went to train with Parma’s youth academy, and he should have been on the U.S. radar well before that.
I don’t have any special inner knowledge of U.S. player scouting and multi-national player courting, but I do know that every effort should be made to every single player that has potential to be just a contributor to the national team, let alone a starter or potential world superstar as in the case of Rossi.
While it is widely believed, and Rossi has even said himself, that his heart was always in it to play for Italy, it should not have stopped U.S. soccer from fighting for his services.
Case in point: Following the 2002 World Cup, the U.S. National Team was riding high. A quarterfinal appearance led to a homecoming for a team and sport that was never the topic of national conversation. After their return, members of the team were seen EVERYWHERE, from “Good Morning America” to the cover of Sports Illustrated. I can’t think of a better time to reach out to the top young players, especially those with dual citizenship’s. In fact, the U.S. showing at the 2002 World Cup was better than that of the Italians, who crashed out in the round of 16. You can argue pedigree for the Italians, but in that moment, the U.S. was actually the more attractive choice.
Meanwhile, Freddy Adu, the tween phenom, was being touted as the Michael Jordan of soccer, and Rossi was spending his time playing day in and day out, working and getting better and better. Imagine if the U.S. team had reached out to Rossi when he was 12 years old, much like they did with Freddy Adu. Not with the hype and expectations, but something, some form of appreciation and guidance. Build a relationship, a good one, not one that ends with being called out to the press. Maybe then, when Rossi was approaching his 21st birthday he would have had a real decision to make, maybe he still would have chosen Italy. Honestly, he most likely still would have chosen Italy, but I guarantee that he would have at least given the U.S. serious thought.
Regardless, the Giuseppe Rossi situation only highlights a massive problem facing the United States Soccer Federation. A decade of abrasive and arrogant treatment of young athletes, from utter dismissal to even worse, humiliation to the public by calling a player out to the press (as happened with both Rossi and another dual citizenship player, Serbian defender, and former U.S. Youth National Team product Neven Subotic). I’m sorry, but coaches should never, EVER single out an individual player to the public. Unless that player is named Kobe Bryant or Cristiano Ronaldo and has already established themselves as a world great/team leader and they need a little fire lit under their asses. Not to a 16, 17, 18 year old kid.
So we lost Rossi (and Subotic). A player that could have been a real difference maker for the U.S. against a team like Italy. Let’s hope this is a wake-up call to those in power at U.S. Soccer. A realization that we aren’t a world power in this sport, to lose the abrasiveness and arrogance they have displayed at times, and to reform their development and scouting methods in order to producer better quality players and to ensure those players don’t fly under the radar.
Until then, let’s just call Giuseppe Rossi a failed U.S. experiment.
As we all know, American Brian McBride has decided to leave Fulham and Europe behind to return home, though he has yet to sign with an MLS team, but that should most certainly happen.
Fulham made this video and posted it on their website. A fitting tribute to a true class act.
Better, but not great. Spain comes out victorious 1-0.
Spain played well, at times showing the class that makes this team one of the best in the world. The US played fairly well also…at least in the first half.
The US started the game will a little bit more swagger than they showed in the game against England. The moved off the ball and did the best they could to create space in the middle of the field while also getting the ball out wide to the outside players. Defensively they kept things tighter and didn’t allow players like Torres or Fabregas much time or space on the ball. The insertion of Freddy Adu in the starting lineup helped tremendously. The second half was a little different, the US looked tired, they were dragging their feet, which in large part was due to the fact that Spain had the majority of the possession. I watched, helplessly, as the US defense continued to struggle. Less and less the ball would get over into the Spanish half. I knew what was coming, a goal for Spain. Xavi took care of that with a brilliant display of individual skill, burning past 3 US defenders and slotting the ball past Brad Guzan. It was lights out, there would be no coming back. But I’m not disappointed this time around; now on to some player analysis.
Tim Howard started in goal for the US, he made a couple of big saves early on in the game, but did have one moment of when he came out for a long cross that stayed up on him and went over his out reached hands. He hustled back to it and helped avert a potential disaster, but other than that a fairly solid half for Howard. Guzan came in for the second half and he too made some crucial saves that kept the US in the game longer than they actually should have been. I can’t fault him on the Xavi goal, but I would have liked to have seen him take that a little better, maybe be more instinctual in that situation rather than trying to rely on technique, which it seemed he was doing. Regardless, I won’t blame him for it, and a pretty good all around performance.
The back line was exactly the same as we saw against England, Steve Cherundolo, Carlos Bocanegra, Oguchi Onyewu, and Heath Pearce. I really liked the play of Pearce and Cherundolo on the outsides today. I felt they were pretty solid in marking and defending. Pearce got into the attack a little more than Cherundolo did, and I would like to see Cherundolo getting more involved in that regard, but a fairly solid outing for both of them. Frankie Hejduk replaced Cherundolo for the second half, and while Hejduk was better in the game against England, he was a little out of his element in this game. Spain’s skill was a little too much for Hejduk and he was beat a few times too many, and committed a few needless fouls. Yes, the entire team was weaker in the second half, but Hejduk had fresh legs and in my opinion should have offered a bit more than what we saw.
Carlos Bocanegra really rebounded from the England loss in this game. His defensive effort was much improved as he helped keep the Spainish forwards from doing any damage. He got caught ball watching one or two times but quickly recovered. The only real fatal blemish was his lack in closing down the space on Xavi’s goal. Had he stepped up sooner Xavi might not have had enough time to make him look him so bad. The only player who ended up looking worse on the Xavi goal was Bocanegra’s center back partner Onyewu. Gooch was really put to shame and was made to look silly by Xavi’s blistering run. It’s unfortunate too, because for the most part, Onyewu had done a pretty good job as well, his play kept Fernando Torres from causing any problems and he showed a good work rate to get back on recovery runs.
The midfield was shaken up a bit by coach Bob Bradley as we saw Clint Dempsey on the right and Eddie Lewis get the start on the left. Dempsey, again, was non existent. I am beginning to wonder if Dempsey cares more about looking cool than getting his job done. With his flashy orange/red shoes, his insistence on making virtually every pass a flick with the outside of his foot, and his lack of wanting to run at players with pace, I have a hard time seeing him be useful against quality teams like England and Spain. I’m starting to feel I like him better up top, where he doesn’t have as much responsibility to be a playmaker, instead just doing whatever it takes to get the ball in the back of the net, and he has proven he has a better touch for goal than Eddie Johnson (more on that to come). Eddie Lewis, again, was bright spot. He was forced to defend more than I would have liked to see but when he got forward he often was doing good things. Dare I say this, I’m gonna go ahead and compare Eddie Lewis to David Beckham. What?! No, he doesn’t make as much money, and no ladies, he’s not as good looking; but what is he? He is true professional who fights hard on both the offensive and defensive side of the ball, he’s not going to the player to beat defenders one on one, but he will be there to take corners (which he did well), take a dangerous free kick (which he was just a few inches off with one against Spain), and provide quality service into the box (which if Eddie Johnson could show any class, would have buried Lewis’ beautiful, pinpoint cross in the 47th minute).
Michael Bradley and Maurice Edu started in the center of midfield. Bradley had a much better game this time around. He was more intelligent in his positioning and tackling, and he was passing the ball much better. He still needs to improve, but he certainly has plenty of time to do that. By the 75th minute, he was dragging hard and starting to make some stupid fouls. With Pablo Mastroeni on the bench, I don’t know why a sub wasn’t made, because it should have been before Bradley was beat out of position on Xavi’s goal. Overall though, this young talent is one of the best we’ve got for the center of the park. Maurice Edu in for Ricardo Clark; what does this mean? It means we didn’t see a constant supply of needless and reckless fouls in the center of the field, and we didn’t see possession being given up as easily. I don’t want to knock Clark too hard, cause I think he is a good player, he just isn’t the calibre needed against top quality opposition. Edu was very solid in the first half, and he proved he can hack it with the best of them. His tackling and positioning was good, his passing was simple but effective. Again, in the second half he was dragging and probably should have subbed too, but I think Edu is almost ready for the big stage, and a transfer to Europe is on the horizon.
Eddie Johnson. I know I have this before, but Eddie Johnson is the player who teases you. He doesn’t do much, but every now and then he shows a glimpse of something special and you get your hopes up. He just doesn’t have it though. How long can a player be labeled as promising? How many years of not living up to the potential, of not finding a bit of breakout success are needed before he stops getting chances. I know forwards are limited, but there’s Jozy Altidore, Kenny Cooper is finding some great success. Young Robbie Rogers is having a breakout year with the Columbus Crew. Robbie Findley is showing he might have what it takes. I’m not saying any of these players are the solution, but they at least should get a shot.
And then there was Freddy Adu. Adu really caused problems for the Spanish defense, he was creative with the ball, he was able to get himself into open space, he played quality balls forward and out wide. He did the things needed to create attacking chances. He was true spark in the middle of the field. A playmaker, and the only American who looked as though his play might be able to change the game. He forced the Spanish midfield to stay at home a little bit for fear of the damage he might cause. He helped open up the wings, and let Michael Bradley and Maurice Edu have more space and time to operate. He’s a player that needs to be on the field for the national team. Adu was subbed out at halftime with what appeared to be a foot injury that occurred from a nasty challenge just before half. DaMarcus Beasley came on in place of Adu and the team was weaker for it. Beasley is fresh off a very long absence due to a knee injury, so I’m not going to throw up any warning flags yet, but he is playing a bit timid and has yet to replicate his best form in either of the two friendlies, He is still a threat on the field and deserves to be out there, but he just wasn’t as effect as Adu was.
Josh Wolff saw some more action, but again was pretty much non existent, save for one run through the middle of the field, unfortunately the team was gassed by this point and no help was offered to him. I’m not going to write Wolff off completely just yet, He’s certainly not the best option for the future of the team, but I still think he can help out until some of the younger players have the experience to step it up a bit. That being said, I don’t see him as starter, just a utility player to come on for 20 minutes and help finish out a game. Unless, of course, he can really step it up soon.
Pablo Mastroeni saw 5 minutes, he came all the way from Colorado for that. He should have been introduced in the 65th-70th minute for Michael Bradley in my opinion.
In the end, a better performance. I’m more hopeful for the upcoming game against Argentina now.
So? Your Thoughts?
Josmer “Jozy” Altidore has transfered from MLS side New York Red Bulls to Spain’s Villarreal.
It has been reported that Altidore commanded an $8 million transfer fee, which would make him the highest player sold from MLS to Europe, breaking previous record holder Clint Dempsey .
There is no doubt that Altidore is true prospect at forward. He has size, speed, technical ability, and even a finishing touch. Most of these attributes are still very raw, however, and I think that Spain’s La Liga is a perfect place for Altidore to grow as a player and a professional. His skill set fits very well in the Spanish league, and I think he has a chance to really star at Villarreal. But don’t get your hopes up for an immediate impact. Villarreal is quality team, and Jozy breaking into the starting line up immediately is quite a stretch. Give him a few years to develop and then I think we’ll see him in a starting role. I have also heard rumors that Villarreal will loan Altidore to a smaller club in Spain’s La Liga. This may sound strange, a team acquiring a player and immediately loaning him to another team, but in effect this could potential provide Altidore an opportunity to be starting for a team in one of Europe’s top leagues. In doing so, he could develop faster and Villarreal could reap the benefits. No matter what happens, it will be interesting to see how it all comes together for Altidore in the coming months.
The transfer will not be official until July 1st, when the international transfer opens for business, but the deal has been made and agreed to. Expect Jozy to play out his days at New York, and then expect NY to be making some big mid season moves to fill some gaps.
In the end, I think Spain is perfect for Jozy, and I really hope to see him develop into a true world class player.
Thoughts?
This news is a real bummer to US national team fans. Jonathan Spector will undergo surgery to repair his hip. He will be out for 3-6 months, and will certainly miss the Olympics.
Spector is one of the best young American players. At 22 he has already become a mainstay in the English Premier League where he currently plays for West Ham United.
He was expected to be a rock in the back line for the US in the Olympics. Perhaps even to captain the Olympic team. Now, coach Peter Nowak must look for a central back to fill this gap with one of his overage players. The first choice would obviously be Carlos Bocanegra, as he was currently just released by Fulham and could use the Olympic stage to find another buyer.
Other ideas would be Oguchi Onyewu or even Jimmy Conrad. Currently the U-23’s has Michael Orozco, who had a good showing during Olympic qualification. Patrick Ianni and Nathan Sturgis are also potential candidates to fill the void.
We shall see how this all plays out. Hopes for a quick recovery for Spector, hope he gets back to the field soon.
US head coach Bob Bradley released his roster for the upcoming June 4th friendly in Spain.
GOALKEEPERS (3): Dominic Cervi (out of contract), Brad Guzan (Chivas USA), Tim Howard (Everton FC)
DEFENDERS (9): Carlos Bocanegra (out of contract), Dan Califf (FC Midtjylland), Steve Cherundolo (Hannover 96), Jay DeMerit (Watford FC), Frankie Hejduk (Columbus Crew), Oguchi Onyewu (Standard de Liege), Michael Orozco (San Luis), Heath Pearce (Hansa Rostock), Jonathan Spector (West Ham United)
MIDFIELDERS (7): Freddy Adu (SL Benfica), DaMarcus Beasley (Glasgow Rangers), Michael Bradley (SC Heerenveen), Ricardo Clark (Houston Dynamo), Maurice Edu (Toronto FC), Eddie Lewis (Derby County), Pablo Mastroeni (Colorado Rapids)
FORWARDS (5): Clint Dempsey (Fulham FC), Landon Donovan (Los Angeles Galaxy), Nate Jaqua (out of contract), Eddie Johnson (Fulham FC), Josh Wolff (out of contract)
Here is my assumption on what the starting line up will look like.
——–Dempsey——Johnson———
-Lewis——Bradley—-Edu——Beasley-
Pearce—Onyewu—Bocanegra—Cherundolo
——————–Howard——————
Noticing that Donovan is not there? I don’t think he will be ready. I think his groin injury is worse than previously thought, and since the Galaxy will be without Beckham this weekend, I see Donovan playing despite not being ready. This will prolong the injury and thus sideline him for the game against Spain.
I’m not sure I like that line up though. Again we see two defensive mid players in the center of the park. With that tandem, and no Donovan, I see it being very difficult for the US to transition into attack. Here is what I would like to see as the starting line up:
——–Dempsey——Johnson———-
-Lewis———Adu–——Beasley-
——–Bradley———-Edu———-
Pearce—–—Bocanegra——Cherundolo
——————–Howard——————–
I think this roster gives us at a least a chance in attack, but does leave us more exposed on defense. The only thing is, I would rather lose 4-2 or 5-2 and show that we can at least be dangerous against a top quality team than lose 2-0 or 3-0 and never have a quality chance on goal.
What about you? Thoughts?
UPDATE!!!! CLICK HERE FOR USA vs. ENGLAND WORLD CUP REVIEW
Where do I begin? Disappointed. 2-0 loss to England.
England played well. The Americans played bad. I hate to say this, but it seems that England is still in a class above the US. Which isn’t that great considering even though England played well, they themselves haven’t been that great lately, and this performance hardly merits a discussion as to being one of the best in the world. Good yes, but their string of quarterfinal exits in recent World Cups seems about right. They played well enough to suggest maybe they did deserve a spot in Euro 2008, but not good enough to contend, and maybe not even good enough to get out of the group phase. In the end, England didn’t qualify for Euro 2008, and we still got outclassed; what does that say about the US?
The US showed no passion, no heart, no will. I’ll totally negate the first 15 minutes in this analysis considering both teams came out expecting the other to show some real signs of danger and both played quite tentatively; then England realized they could run circles around the Americans, and the game could have been called right at that moment. I’m hard pressed to find something good to say about their performance. Wait, Goalkeepers Tim Howard and Brad Guzan had fairly strong games, both allowing one goal each; both goals of which were virtually unstoppable.
Well, since I started at the back, I might as well just keep going. The outside backs, Cherundolo and Pierce, tried. They each had some moments that show why they play for teams in German Bundesliga, but they also had moments where they weren’t just beat, they were sent to school, and it was a little embarrassing. The center back tandem of Oneywu and Bocanegra was not even close to as solid as we have seen it in the past. Against a team with players that have some individual skill and speed, they were beaten, time and again. I had such high hopes for the Rooney-Onyewu match, and for the first 15 minutes it looked like it could be a good one, with Onyewu getting some early shots in, and then seeing Rooney shoulder Onyewu to the ground on a hard run in which the ball just got away from him for a goal kick. But by the time England scored their first goal, Onyewu was in panic mode, making stupid tackles and poor decisions, instead of being a lock down center back. Speaking of the first goal, I’m going to put a lot of blame on center midfielder Ricardo Clark, but that can wait. Bocanegra’s complete lack of marking on John Terry left the England captain with a clear header from a perfect David Beckham cross and he fired a bullet just inside the near post. Bocanegra looked a bit lost and timid almost the whole game, and he and Oneywu both got caught on England’s second goal.
The outside midfielders. Dempsey and Beasley. Where was the creativity we know these players have? I think they got the ball at their feet and ran at defenders only twice each. Without Donovan in the line up, these two have to be our go to guys for creating a spark on offense. Unfortunately no spark was created. Dempsey went to ground too easily. Beasley looked like he never wanted to get stuck in to match, perhaps timid about his recent return from a devastating knee injury. The center mids – Bradley and Clark. Ricardo Clark, the only starter who plays in MLS, is a complete liability on the field against quality opponents. The majority of his tackles are needless and reckless. One of his dumbest tackles gave the free kick that Beckham placed on Terry’s head for the first goal. There was absolutely no need to foul in that position, no need to even challenge, Clark needs to learn how to stand up players defensively and force the mistake. As a youth soccer coach, I ALWAYS teach my players that defense isn’t about winning the ball outright, it’s about forcing the other player to make the mistake. Clark MUST learn this if he is to be the regular starter for national team. Bradley was supposed to have an English coming out party in this game, and while he was one of the best players on the field for the US, a coming out party he did not have. I say he was one of the best, and that’s because he was unnoticeable. He made little impact on the game at all. He broke up some plays and made some decent passes, but Bradley is in a position where he must be a creative force in the midfield, he must make passes that jump start the attack, find the strikers’ feet, be able to play to wide players in space, force defenders to move out of position; Bradley accomplished none of these things.
I like Josh Wolff, I really do. He hasn’t scored for the red, white, and blue in a long time, but every time he has been on the field I have seen a tireless work rate, a willingness to try and take on defenders, good movement off the ball, a touch of pace, and a player who can win some free kicks in dangerous areas. Against England, Wolff showed none of that, period. Eddie Johnson was Eddie Johnson, the same thing we have been seeing for over 2 years now. He gets on the field and doesn’t do much, he doesn’t show the speed or strength that some people keep saying he has. And then! All of a sudden! He makes a play…he gets open in space and takes a defender on one v. one, or he cracks a great one touch strike that just goes wide or over the crossbar (hmm, I wonder which of those he did in this game – anyone remember his one touch left footed strike to start the 2nd half?). If he faded out of games completely and then had one moment of flash that regularly found the back of the net, I would love Eddie Johnson, but it just doesn’t happen. More and more I wonder why he keeps getting chances, but then I remember that we don’t have many other options at forward currently.
The subs. Frankie Hejduk showed his experience and some moxie in attack when he came on for Cherundolo in the back. Eddie Lewis came on and showed why he definitely shouldn’t be written off the national team because he is aging. Maurice Edu showed his inexperience, but performed adequately. Nate Jaqua wasn’t on the field long enough to do much of anything. And Freddy Adu, well I think he keeps making a case to get a start. I think he is far from a complete player, but he does bring an X-factor to the game, even at his young age; and to a team that severely lacks attacking creativity and kind of X-factor is good.
And so I am harsh on this young team USA, but I feel that I have to be. The US sports media won’t report on this, it won’t be in the faces of the players when they arrive back in the states. Tomorrow, or maybe the next day the American players will shrug this off, and go on to World Cup qualifying and easily push on through. Complacency will set in, and we will have a repeat of 2006. You might here the same, tired excuses: “we are a young team” “it’s a great learning experience for us” – I say, half our starters are veterans that should have already learned from World Cup 2006. Yes, our young players will continue to get better, and so too should our veterans. Yes, I think it is great that we finally are playing top quality opponents away from home, we must continue to do this to grow, to keep from becoming complacent.
The US will have two chances for redemption, away to Spain on June 4th and home to Argentina on June 8th. I don’t need the US to win, but if we are to lose, let’s lose with some class, some fight in our hearts, and some true soccer passion.
I definitely want to hear what everyone thought about this game! So Comment!
COACHES CORNER
I want to touch on two things of note from a coaching standpoint.
First off, Bob Bradley can not keep relying on Michael Bradley, Ricardo Clark, and Maurice Edu. Each are good, quality, young players who can contribute. But essentially by using 2 of the 3 in any combination Bob Bradley is sticking two defensive/holding mids on the field. These are players that are there to win the ball, to be that player that aids in the transition from the back line to forward line. In the England game, that player was Owen Hargreaves and he was subbed for Gareth Barry. Meanwhile the attacking force in the center of the park was left to Frank Lampard in the first half and Steven Gerrard in the second, and I think we all saw how dangerous Gerrard was in the 2nd half. Either one of these players must transition to be that attacking force in the center of the field. Bradley is the youngest and his skills are most suited for this transition; but until Bradley takes it upon himself to be that creative attacker in the center, the US team will be wasting a spot in midfield by playing essentially two of the exact same type of players. Other options would be to have Dempsey in that role, or Donovan, or maybe even Freddy Adu.
Second, if I watched England left back Ashley Cole show more creativity, flair, and skill on the ball while making our forwards and midfield players look like amateurs I was going to scream. If I remember correctly he faked out at least 2 of our players badly enough they slipped to the ground. Ashley Cole may very well be the best outside back in the world, yet it seemed that the only time our players were willing to take a defender on the dribble that defender was Ashley Cole, and he stuffed it out every time. While going over game tape, coaches must make players aware of individual player strengths, and the players must remember this and play accordingly. My advice for taking Ashley Cole one on one is to only try if you have and advantage, such as the high ground, or if Cole has dislocated his knee, or if you have players around you make quality off the ball runs that force Cole to give the space needed to attempt a one on one. I’m done.
Brian McBride will be leaving EPL team Fulham. McBride is another American who will no longer be at the London club. He will soon be 36 years old, and I have to believe that his soon to be retirement is a deciding factor on this decision.
It’s been known that McBride has always had the desire to return home in the states. Not that he has been unhappy with life in England, quite the opposite really. He has enjoyed perhaps the most successful overseas career of an American field player. He is well respected and well liked by managers and players alike.
The thing is, McBride is still a top quality forward. In fact, I’d say he’s only gotten better since choosing to retire from international play. If he were still playing for the US National team, I have no doubt that he would still be the number 1 player at forward, and could, this very minute, call Bob Bradley and get a place on the team.
It has been speculated that McBride wants to play for the US in the Olympics. If that is true, there is no way that U-23 coach Peter Nowak could not take McBride as one of the three overage players. With McBride on the field there is always strong presence in attack, something the U-23 team needs. I certainly hope those rumors are true and that we see McBride in a US jersey come Olympics time.
So where does McBride end up? it’s obvious he is coming back to the United States, and he can still play at the highest level. His hometown is Chicago, the best team in MLS right now, the Chicago Fire would have a major coup should McBride play out his career there. It will take some shrewed transfers and allocation moving for Chicago to make this happen. His old MLS team, the Columbus Crew, could use a player like McBride, but again for the Crew to land McBride would also take some miraculous moves by the Crew front office. Right now, Toronto FC has the first chance of McBride, and he would be a huge asset to that team. But I don’t see McBride going to Toronto, he’s coming back to be back in his home country. Regardless, it will certainly be interesting to see how this shakes out.
Where do you want to see McBride end up? Where do you think he could help a team the most?
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