Yanks Abroad

[Scuba Steve]

Here is Steven Goff's quick run down of the Yanks playing abroad..... its not as in depth as Ives', but I am still waiting on his. So this will have to do.
Americans Abroad

GOALKEEPERS
Tim Howard 90 minutes in Everton's 1-1 tie with Middlesbrough
Brad Friedel 90 in Aston Villa's 2-0 victory at Arsenal
Marcus Hahnemann 90 in Reading's 2-0 victory at Sheffield United


DEFENDERS
Carlos Bocanegra 90 in Rennes' 2-1 victory over Monaco
Oguchi Onyewu 90 in Standard Liege's 1-1 tie at Lokeren
Danny Califf 90 in Midtjylland's 3-0 loss to Copenhagen
Michael Orozco 90 in San Luis's 1-0 loss at Toluca
Jay DeMerit 90 in Watford's 2-1 loss at Barnsley
Neven Subotic 90 (two goals) in Dortmund's 4-0 win over Frankfurt
Steve Cherundolo 90 in Hanover's 1-1 tie with Bochum
Gregg Berhalter 90 in 1860 Munich's 1-0 loss at Augsburg


MIDFIELDERS
Clint Dempsey 88 in Fulham's 2-1 win over Spurs
DaMarcus Beasley, Maurice Edu did not play in Rangers' 2-1 win over St. Mirren
Danny Szetela 90 in Brescia's 1-1 tie at Avellino
Michael Bradley 90 (goal) in Moenchengladbach's 2-2 tie with Bayern Munich
Jose Francisco Torres did not play in Pachuca's 1-1 tie with Atlas


FORWARDS
Jozy Altidore did not play in Villarreal's 2-2 tie at Malaga
Freddy Adu 21 in Monaco's 2-1 loss at Rennes
Eddie Johnson 90 in Cardiff City's 2-1 win over Crystal Palace
Jeremiah White did not play in Aarhus's 0-0 tie with Sonderjyske

[Scuba Steve]

Only one Yank playing today.

Heath Pearce and Hansa Rostock are losing 3-0 to Kaiserslautern. And Pearce was just sent off in the 64th minute.

[Weather130]

I like this thread to keep track of the American players playing abroad. Without this I probably wouldn't know anything about any Americans playing lower than the top division of respective countries.

[Jordanjeter7P]

Originally Posted by hokiegooner

Only one Yank playing today.

Heath Pearce and Hansa Rostock are losing 3-0 to Kaiserslautern. And Pearce was just sent off in the 64th minute.

Don't you mean two Yanks?

Luis Robles got a shutout as Kaiserlautern beat Hansa Rostock 6-0

[Scuba Steve]

Aye. Dumb on me. Forgot about that. And it ended at 6-0? Impressive.

[Scuba Steve]

Here is the write up for the Kaiserslautern and Hansa Rostock game in the 2. Bundesliga today. While Pearce got sent off in a 6-0 loss, Robles, had a clean sheet for Kaiserslautern, and saved a penalty in the process.

Originally Posted by Bundesliga - Die offizielle Webseite

Kaiserslautern demolish Rostock


1. lalalaaiserslautern remain in second place thanks to an emphatic 6-0 home win over FC Hansa Rostock.


Juri Schlünz, interim coach after Hansa had parted ways with Frank Pagelsdorf, had a night to forget on the bench as Hansa's winless run was extended to five matches.

Srdjan Lakic (8, 45), Josh Simpson (69, 76) and Erik Jendrisek (54 ,83) all scored a brace each for lalala, who are still unbeaten at home.

Pearce sent off

Hansa also had Heath Pearce sent off for a professional foul after 64 minutes, and Enrico Kern saw a 72nd-minute penalty saved by lalala keeper Luis Robles.

Kaiserslautern celebrated their highest win since May 18th, 1997 (7-0 over VfB Lübeck). Rostock suffered their highest defeat since November 14th, 2004 (0-6 against Hamburger SV).

[Scuba Steve]

Here are two pictures from the weekend's action in the Bundesliga


Subotic celebrates his first goal


Bradley's header leveled the game against Bayern in the 81st minute

[Scuba Steve]

Does anyone have any websites from some of the European countries in English? The article was from the english version of the Bundesliga site, but Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, and French sites in English would be great as well.

[secretcrowds]

wikipedia?

[Scuba Steve]

Wiki does not exactly have write ups of every game though. And no match pictures and such. Also, certain page of wiki can be way out of date, especially those referring to american football players overseas.

[Scuba Steve]

Here is an article with/on Luis Robles:

Originally Posted by soccer365.com

Robles No. 1 With A Bullet

One could say life currently has Luis Robles on the express train. A month ago, the Kaiserslautern keeper was still awaiting his league debut. Now, the 24-year old has a first win, a first shutout and - at least temporarily - Red Devils promotion hopes next to his name. For now, the #35 shirt has the #1 job.

It has all happened rather quickly from the very beginning of this chapter of the Robles story. Nearly two years after signing with the historically strong mountaintop club, now down in the 2.Bundesliga having been a German champ as recently as 1998 and a UEFA Cup semifinalist in 2001, the Arizona native has suddenly been the man in goal for coach Milan Šašić.

His first start was a real surprise job, with regular Tobais Sippel coming down ill just before an October 17th visit from Ahlen.

"I learned that Sippel was sick the day before the game," Robles told Soccer365. "As I came into the locker room, the guys called me '#1'. After a few guys had said this, I finally asked 'what are they talking about?'. I was not aware about Sippel being sick, they all laughed."

"After training that day, we went into the hotel," he recalled. "I sent so many emails and made so many calls. It was a bad day to forget my charger because by the next day, game day, my phone battery died."

Robles picked up his first career victory in a 4-1 home romp, but was quite unhappy with the goal he allowed to deadly Ahlen striker Lars Torborg. Fortunately, says the youngster, his manager responded with a nurturing word about the incident.

"I made a decision to come out for a difficult ball and I just didn't get there in time as the forward deflected the ball," he said. "Though I felt I made a poor decision, it was great to see the coach support me and not cast blame. This was a boost of confidence especially since, two games later, I would be back in goal."

And back he would be when Sippel broke a bone in his arm against Osnabrück. Robles came on at the break to help close out a 2-0 win, then notched his first solo clean sheet in a scoreless draw with 1860 Munich.

"After the game, Sippel was back from the hospital with a cast surrounding his forearm," he said. "He told me that he would be out until Christmas, so that meant I would be in goal until at least the winter break."

Though it was his third appearance, Robles says the 1860 game was the one that gained him respect in the clubhouse.

"Getting the shutout against München was special because it was my first shutout as a professional and it came against a difficult opponent," he explained. "I felt we played well enough to win, but were a little unlucky."

"As far as my performance, there was not much to deal with since our team exhibited a fine defensive performance. Overall, by assisting to get the shutout, I feel it has increased the confidence of my teammates in me as a goalkeeper."

With his career moved into the spotlight so fast, Robles has only once had the honor of treading the line in front of a loved one from the States - and that was mere happenstance.

"Unfortunately, no family members or my girlfriend are going to be able to attend the games before Christmas because there is too much going on back in the States to allow this," sighed Robles. "But a solid group of friends I have made here in Germany through church has been at every game."

"Also by luck of chance, my best friend growing up just happened to be backpacking through Europe, so he had a detour and was able to attend the 1860 game."

Despite the American taking his first loss by a 4-2 count this weekend at Wehen, Kaiserslautern remain second in the table, only point off the top. For a club that has only spent five of the Bundesliga's 46 seasons a league below, the Fritz Walter crew have their fans daring to dream.

Robles and his teammates believe it's too early to begin talking about promotion, an attitude he suggests may help them achieve it.

"I feel one of our strengths as a team is that we are able to maintain focus, whether we are losing at halftime or dealing with a promotion battle," he stated. "The chatter is brief and is mostly brought up by the media."

"Of course, in the back of our minds we realize what we are dealing with, but everyone is very professional and doesn't get caught up by it. We focus on the next opponent and it stops there."

Concedes Robles, "There might be more chatter if we are still in the same position with six games left to go in the season."

Now charged with holding down the fort for a title chaser, the former Portland Pilot could have joined MLS after being drafted 50th overall by D.C. United in January of 2007. Instead, Robles opted to gradually work his way up from the Kaiserslautern second team.

Though his path to the teamsheet in K-town was a long road, the netminder is grateful for every day of the experience because it gave him time to refine his craft in a top-notch environment.

"I feel that my approach to being a professional has evolved," said Robles. "When I first got here, I just left college, and as you can imagine, being a collegiate athlete and a professional is two totally different worlds."

"You start to understand how to prepare your body and mind to perform. Signing a contract by definition can make you a professional, but being a professional is about preparation, consistency, and discipline - things that I never thought much about in college."

"Now, it's about eating the right things, getting enough sleep, maintaining peak physical conditioning, especially since I still had a lot to prove," Robles continues, clearly pleased with how far he's come as a player while cognizant that his soccer education has only just started.

"I began looking for the slightest things that would give me a competitive advantage. I am still learning every day and I feel that is one of my strengths as a player: I am willing to learn constantly."

What Mr. Sippel (four years junior to Robles) is probably learning right now is that keeper injuries give the back-up a chance to shine. While the sudden stand-in is not openly coveting the starting job, he also realizes that chances to be the man don't exactly grow on trees.

"I feel as a professional, every opportunity that comes your way is an opportunity to show what you are capable of doing," says Robles. "I can only control so much. In my case, I can control how I perform and how I prepare for each game."

"Whatever comes afterward will have to wait to be seen. However, I am really excited about my chance to show the fans of lalalaaiserslautern what I am capable of doing."

[Scuba Steve]

Aw, man, someone does not like the thread. Oh well. Who rates these threads anyways?

[Scuba Steve]

Donovan in Munich

Skip ahead to ten minutes, and you can see them focus more on Donovan, still training with Bayern Munich.

[Scuba Steve]

Bit of cool trivia. If Brad Friedel plays the next two games, he will break the record of most consecutive games played, of 2,632. New Iron Man. Well that part is a joke. But if he plays both of the next two games for Aston Villa, he will break the Prem record of most consecutive games played, held currently right now by David James at 166.

[den525player]

Originally Posted by hokiegooner

Donovan in Munich

Skip ahead to ten minutes, and you can see them focus more on Donovan, still training with Bayern Munich.

I used to be a big fan of donovan when he was younger, he had a big future ahead of him, had a good wc 02 and in the squad at Bayern Leverkusen when they were winning things, don't know what went wrong...

remember watching him in the u17 world championship

[Scuba Steve]

Donovan is probably the best technical player to ever come straight from the US. However, his opportunity to become the best US player up to this date, was pretty much squashed when he came back from Leverkusen, both times.

Most think it was his unwillingness to adapt to environment which led him to come back. He could have even gone to Portsmouth, instead of the Galaxy the second time. But he chose the comforts of the states. And there is nothing wrong with that, because that is his personal choice. However, its tough to consider him the best American, despite his success in the MLS.

But, hopefully, he can go to Bayern, and do his thing. I will be rooting for him, despite any previous issues I had with his character.

[den525player]

Donovan went to bayern to keep fit, its NOT a trial.

[Scuba Steve]

That would be incorrect. He has nothing to stay fit for. And if he really wanted to, he could have just stayed here, and gone to the US training camp. However, he went to Bayern, because Klinsmann is a huge fan of him, and probably sees him as the replacement to Podolski, who is likely to leave this January. And if he does not move overseas this year, it is more than likely because the MLS is blocking any such move.

[den525player]

LOL. most of the major footballing news site, has stated that Donovan is only TRAINING with Bayern NOT trailing with Bayern. donovan as a replacement for Podolski? lol

Klinnsman knew Donovan in his time in the US, therefore he is giving him an opportunity to TRAIN with Bayern.

Donovan is staying fit for upcoming tours to NZ etc. and training with Bayern Munich would be 100X better than the US training camp.

[Scuba Steve]

Podolski left out in the cold at Bayern Munich


Bayern insist Podolski will be going nowhere


Fresh attack on Podolski from Hoeness


Podolski Pines for Glory Days at FC Cologne


Cologne longing for 'Prince Poldi' as carnival gets underway

COLOGNE HAVE FIRST OPTION ON PODOLSKI

Donovan impresses Bayern bosses

[den525player]

all but 1 is related to Donovan. Podolski has always been unsettled at Bayern, he hasn't played regularly for the first team since his move! So him leaving in January or whenever has NOTHING to do with Donovan training with Bayern Munich.

It is just media twisting stories. but hey the americans would believe anything that came out of the papers.

[Scuba Steve]

Aha. I get it. So the articles you are getting are 100% fool proof, while mine are back page fodder. Makes perfect sense. Especially since I am an American, and trust anything from any source (like all Americans), and you are an Australian, who only gets the correct news (like all Aussies). Peeeeeeerfect.

[den525player]

Originally Posted by hokiegooner

Aha. I get it. So the articles you are getting are 100% fool proof, while mine are back page fodder. Makes perfect sense. Especially since I am an American, and trust anything from any source (like all Americans), and you are an Australian, who only gets the correct news (like all Aussies). Peeeeeeerfect.

No, it is just a percentage game. Majority of the press and articles have been only about Donovan training with Bayern and not trialing. With a minority of articles about Donovan trailing with them and having a chance to sign for them. So stop twisting everything into American vs Australia.

[Scuba Steve]

Twisting everything into America vs. Australia? Weren't you the one who claimed that Americans would believe anything that came out of the papers? You kind of brought that upon yourself, no?

And again, Donovan has shown before all of the qualities of someone who would rather stay home, and avoid anything to do with going overseas, when possible (ie, missing the England and Spain games earlier this year). If he really wanted to train, he would have stayed with the national team. But by going to Munich, he knows there is more in it than just training. Otherwise he would not have gone. Simple as.

[den525player]

Make up whatever excuses you want about him not liking overseas. The simple FACT is that it he is just training at Bayern, it is not an official trial. Why wouldn't Bayern just say he is trialing at Bayern if he was indeed trialing with them? The facts are there.

Hoeness complementing Donovan is just the same as when Wenger complimented on Beckham last time Becks TRAINED with Arsenal, stories still went around if Becks will sign any contracts with them.