**Official USMNT Soccer Thread**

Originally Posted by NikeTalker23

Quick question..I know there's hatred between fans of USNT and the MNT..With that said, will you guys support Mexico in the WC?
Click to expand...


   As a supporter of the united states mens national team i hate mexico with a passion and i am half mexican.

so no i will never support mexico.

and i say mexico is going to lose or tie on the opener.
 
New Home Kits unveiled


100429-wynalda-bradley-420soc.jpg

NEW YORK -- Nike unveiled the new U.S. Men's National Team's home jerseys that the team will wear in the 2010 World Cup during a press event Thursday morning.

The debut of the home whites (which will be complemented by away blues) featured appearances by USMNT coach Bob Bradley (middle), and captain of the 1950 U.S. squad Walter Bahr (right). Former American star Eric Wynalda hosted the proceedings, which took place at Niketown in Manhattan.

Nike heavily touted two things about the uniforms: that the design was modeled after the kits worn by the 1950 squad that upset England, and that the uniforms are made entirely from recycled polyester found in water bottles.

But it was Bahr who brought up the best point about the significance of uniforms, claiming that England wore blue jerseys during the historic 1950 upset to the U.S. and has never worn the color blue since.

American fans are hoping that America's new home whites will help history repeat itself on June 12.

Photos of the kits below.


http://soccer.fanhouse.co...ew-u-s-soccer-home-kits/



100429-us-uniform-300soc.jpg


100429-uniform-jacket-560soc.jpg
Click to expand...
 
Originally Posted by Michaelfoooo

Originally Posted by NikeTalker23

Quick question..I know there's hatred between fans of USNT and the MNT..With that said, will you guys support Mexico in the WC?
Click to expand...


   As a supporter of the united states mens national team i hate mexico with a passion and i am half mexican.

so no i will never support mexico.

and i say mexico is going to lose or tie on the opener.
Click to expand...
Co-sign. I half mexican as well, but the hate that I have for Mexican National team runs deep. Dont get me wrong I love Mexico as a country, but when it comes to their national soccer team, I will always have that hate. I been supporting the USMNT since I was 12. I always remember Mexico beating 3-0 4-1 and saying, ** Mexico. Especially that Herb Rafa Marquez. Dude is always going to be on my hit list. One day I am going to run into this guy in Mexico, and its going to be on
mad.gif


On a side note. Went down to TJ to a Mosley/Mayweather fight party, and ran into this little guy and his pops. Mad props for rocking the kit in Mexico. Dad tells me that he used to root for the MNT, but since 02 when the US best El tri in the WC, he has been a USA fan. Respect.
 
Originally Posted by Michaelfoooo

does anyone here have the espn insider for the bubble players for the usmnt?
Click to expand...


Link? I got an Insider account, just dunno which one.

Five reasons to feel fortunate
May, 4, 2010
MAY 4
12:47
PM ET
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By Luke Cyphers and Doug McIntyre
As much as national team fans have been cursing their luck at a virtual Sam's Army of walking wounded since the U.S. clinched a World Cup berth last October (the list includes Maurice Edu, Oguchi Onyewu, Clint Dempsey, Jay DeMerit, Stuart Holden, DaMarcus Beasley, Jermaine Jones, Steve Cherundolo, Carlos Bocanegra, Ricardo Clark and, of course, Charlie Davies), things could actually be a lot worse. And if timing is indeed everything, Yank backers should feel fortunate. Why? Compared to other World Cup-bound squads (Spain, for instance) the U.S. heads into its pre-Cup training camp relatively healthy.

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"When you dig inside the [other] teams -- players that go through long seasons, little injuries and everything else -- I think that everybody has their issues," coach Bob Bradley says.

So while Davies' participation remains a question mark, there are at least five reasons that should have die-hards counting their blessings:

1. DeMerit can still play soccer. The Wisconsin product could be the squad's best pure defender, and his tenacity was invaluable in last June's epic upset of Spain. But DeMerit's World Cup dream, not to mention his professional career, almost ended earlier this year before a superstar eye surgeon stepped in. DeMerit's availability is crucial to Bradley, especially with Onyewu saying he'll "hopefully" be ready for AC Milan's last two games. If and when Gooch gets healthy, DeMerit gives Bradley the option of moving Bocanegra -- who has reclaimed his starting job with Rennes following an adductor injury -- to the troublesome left back spot.

2. Dempsey's scare. When the Fulham attacker went down with a knee injury in January, the U.S. looked truly snake-bit. Fortunately, initial fears of a long-term layoff were overblown. The most indispensible Yank this side of Landon Donovan returned with aplomb, scoring the goal of his career to eliminate Juventus in Europa Cup play in March, beginning a run that has carried the Cottagers all the way to the May 12 final against Atletico Madrid in Hamburg.

3. Edu's return. The 2007 MLS ROY is finally 100 percent, and he has been a fixture in Glasgow Rangers' lineup during their sprint to the Scottish title. He has even chipped in a pair of vital goals -- one against auld enemy Celtic -- along the way. The Californian's return couldn't come at a better time, with Clark just coming off a long injury layoff in Germany and Jones still on the shelf.

4. Beasley's late push. Bradley noted that Beasley has had a tough year with Rangers, where his playing time has been wildly inconsistent. After sitting early and often at Ibrox, the vet, who is not yet 28, was lights out for the Gers in December and looked sharp (setting up a goal) in his U.S. return in March. He hasn't played much since then for his club, but got 62 valuable minutes last weekend at Dundee United. A few more club run-outs before camp starts could put Beasley in position to make the team.

5. Chemistry. Bradley often talks about team spirit and camaraderie, and while those things are important to every squad, they are absolutely vital to the Yanks. For the U.S. to be successful, it must be greater than the sum of its parts. Need proof? Internal strife helped torpedo the American effort in France in 1998; few American teams have been as tight as the overachieving 2002 version. Fortunately, it seems Bradley has everyone pulling together heading down the stretch, no matter who that "everyone" is. "We feel good about the depth we've built up," says Bradley, who has used 90 players in just over three years in charge, "[and] the fact that a lot of guys have experience, have gotten good games along the way."

Notes
• Here's the official takeaway from today's minor media maelstrom over Davies' condition. A French wire service quoted an unnamed source saying Davies wouldn't be ready for the World Cup. Davies' club, Sochaux, said the story was untrue, telling The Shin Guardian blog: "Charlie's situation is encouraging. He makes progress every day and that's good. It keeps his hopes alive. We can't say it's impossible." And U.S. Soccer spokesman Michael Kammarman told Insider that Davies' status is unchanged, with the coaching and training staff closely monitoring his progress. He has not been ruled out of the World Cup training camp.
• Brian Ching is the latest Yank on the mend at the right time. A strong camp could help Ching ward off the late challenge from on-fire Galaxy striker Edson Buddle, who Monday was named MLS player of the week for the second time this season.
• Mexico is another team in a world of hurt right now: Miguel Sabah will miss the World Cup with a torn leg tendon; Javier Hernandez, Andres Guardado and Efrain Juarez all remain injured; and Cuauhtemoc Blanco is trying to overcome a "weight problem." And you thought the U.S. training room was busy?
• Donovan is in good company, and his undies, in the latest issue of Vanity Fair. The U.S. star is part of a photo spread that includes Samuel Eto'o, Kaka, Alexandre Pato and Sulley Muntari. Cristiano Ronaldo and Didier Drogba adorn VF's cover.
• Herculez Gomez is doing everything he can to stay in shape before the camp roster is named. Might his experience playing at high altitude in Mexico help his chances of making the final 23?
• For all you newbies out there, make sure check out this brief history of the USMNT between now and June 12.
• Wanna win Boca's boots? Here's your chance to own the pair worn by the U.S. captain during last summer's Confederations Cup.
• In case you missed it last weekend, here's a video of Dempsey's goal against Jonathan Spector and West Ham.
 
^Nah. This one....

http://insider.espn.go.co...al_soccer%26id%3d5151199





Chuck D. update

http://soccernet.espn.go....e-england?cc=5901&ver=us


France, Ligue 1

Charlie Davies, F, Sochaux: Davies didn't feature in Sochaux's loss against Boulogne and win versus Rennes, but like Onyewu, he's getting closer to a return. Davies resumed full training last week, scoring his first goal and receiving his first tackle.

"Haven't felt this good in a long time!" he tweeted. "Working extremely hard & extremely confident after seeing the results. Watch out!!!!!!!!!!"
 
Bradley weighs bubble players
April, 30, 2010
APR 30
12:07
PM ET
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By Luke Cyphers and Doug McIntyre
Bob Bradley's epic press roundtable Thursday teased out some details about the current status of particular national team players -- Charlie Davies and Jermaine Jones, for example.

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More revealing, though, was the overall tenor of the session. The national team coach seemed surprisingly relaxed heading into his toughest set of decisions before practices begin May 17 in Princeton, N.J., and confident in the core group he's assembled, confident enough to take some chances in the month leading up to South Africa.


And that bodes well for a handful of players, particularly red-hot Galaxy striker Edson Buddle, who was not in the conversation -- at least not the media conversation -- for the national team two months ago.

Bradley said he'll take as many as 28 players into camp, where they'll compete for 23 roster spots. That's likely to include players who haven't been with the national team -- at all -- through the past two years. He doesn't seem worried about any lack of chemistry, based on what the team's been through the past four years.

"Whenever we come together, our greatest strength is the camaraderie," Bradley said. "You can see that; you can feel it. But it doesn't work if you never say anything to your friend that he doesn't want to hear."

Bradley said he and his staff have tried to instill in the team "an ability to have some harder conversations. That's important."

The coach painted a picture of a team that can adjust, quickly, to fresh faces. "When somebody new comes in, the players who have been there do an excellent job of making them feel comfortable," he said. "I don't think that is ever a concern."

The camp might provide an opportunity for "somebody who hasn't always gotten it, but you think in a short window he can. Maybe you think the strength of the leadership now is good enough now that they can take care of somebody who needs taken care of."

While Bradley praised Buddle's goal-scoring ability, he made another point that should have the striker, who last played for the Yanks in 2003, feeling pretty good right now.

Bradley said in Buddle's case, "a lot of maturing has taken place." Beyond scoring, "in less obvious ways he's doing a lot of little things on the field that's helping his team."

On difficult to handle balls put forward, for instance, Buddle is staying with them and doing work that may not lead to goals, but leads to throw-ins and pressure on defenders. "If you do that over the course of 90 minutes, you start to gain an advantage," Bradley said. "That's something that has, I think, come around."

The question the staff has to answer now is, Bradley said, "Will that still be the case in international play? If he's doing things that will translate well to international games, and can handle that type of jump, then you go for it."

The bet here is that Buddle will get the shot. In addition to the praise from the coach, Buddle has two other advantages. He's playing for Bruce Arena, the 2006 national team coach, and playing alongside Landon Donovan, who's lauded Buddle's play with the Galaxy. And remember that in 2006, when it came down to a decision between Taylor Twellman and Brian Ching for a World Cup spot, Ching, teammate of Donovan's in MLS, got the nod. (Here's a video of the panel discussion this blog participated in with Bradley.)

Beyond Buddle, here's a list of other players who could take some positives from Bradley's media session:

Herculez Gomez: After becoming the first American to lead a foreign league in goals, tying for the Mexican scoring crown, Gomez was a big topic of conversation Thursday. Bradley praised his scoring knack but asked the same question he asked about Buddle. Can he do it against international competition? If Bradley indeed invites 28 players to camp, odds are that Gomez will get a chance to show whether he can.

Ricardo Clark: The midfielder finally got on the field last week for his new club, Eintracht Frankfurt, and seemed to allay any concerns over his health. With Jones all but out of the picture, Clark has a great shot at the starting spot he held most of last year. Said Bradley: "It's great to see him get 90 minutes, I watched the game online, and I thought he did a good job."

Maurice Edu: Bradley emphasized the importance of versatility on the squad and said Edu's experience on the back line in the Olympics was a good example of that. And his presence in camp will set up an interesting position battle with Clark, Jose Francisco Torres and Benny Feilhaber in the central midfield alongside Michael Bradley.

DaMarcus Beasley: The two-time World Cup vet hasn't played for Rangers of late. But asked specifically whether he was on Bradley's radar, the coach said yes, giving a brief discourse on Beasley's "tricky" year, talking about how well the midfielder played in December and how he fell off afterward. "It may be a factor of late that his contract's up at the end of the year," Bradley said. "If you go back a few years ago with Carlos Bocanegra at Fulham, in the second half of the year when it was pretty apparent he wasn't going back to Fulham, it impacted his playing time."

Then he added, "Yes, DaMarcus is on the radar screen, and with it there are clearly some questions."

But it sounds like Beasley will have a chance to answer those questions in Princeton.

Jonathan Spector: Another player who's in a tough spot, sometimes ending up on the wrong end of highlight reels at West Ham. But Bradley praised his versatility, reminding the scribes that he played as a center back against Slovakia and Denmark, and mentioned his time playing left back for his club, as well as his customary right-back spot.

Jonathan Bornstein: Despite giving up a penalty that led to a goal in the 2-1 friendly loss to the Dutch in March, Bradley brought up Bornstein when talking about the back line. "Jonny Bornstein has played some tough games along the way, has come up against some very good players," Bradley said. "When you see a little bit of what Arjen Robben has done, I think you give a little bit of credit on the night to Jonny. … He's been tested against some pretty good players."

Charlie Davies: He shouldn't be in the conversation, and yet he's still the center of it. That doesn't mean Bradley is guaranteeing him a spot in camp. He has to earn it. And he won't be invited to Princeton merely as a mascot. But that's a good thing. Despite what he's been through, he hasn't been ruled out.

And some players who may not be feeling at ease:

Jermaine Jones: Bradley didn't completely rule out his chances, which was a surprise, given that Jones' own agent basically has, but the coach said the former German national and Schalke player may face another round of surgery on his injured shin.

Brian Ching: His recent hamstring injury has kept him out of regular training with Houston, and Bradley said he'll be assessed over the next two weeks. Can't make the club in the tub.

Brad Guzan: Tim Howard's backup at keeper is on the plane, but Bradley said he's not guaranteed the No. 2 spot ahead of the red-hot Marcus Hahnemann. The Wolverhampton goalie has the best saves-to-shots ratio, 80 percent, of any regular in the Premier League.

Sacha Kljestan: This may be more of a media concern, rather than a decision that's actually weighing on Bradley's mind. But nobody asked about Kljestan, who's been hot in MLS lately, and Bradley never brought his name up independently during the hour and a half talk -- unlike other bubble players Heath Pearce and Robbie Findley.

Notes
• Following Fulham's thrilling comeback win over Hamburg SV in a Europa Cup semifinal second-leg tilt in London on Thursday, Clint Dempsey could become the first American to play in a major European final when the Cottagers meet Atletico Madrid, which eliminated Liverpool, on May 12 in (coincidentally) Hamburg. Beasley played in a Champions League semifinal with PSV in 2005.
• Oguchi Onyewu says he's returned to full training with AC Milan. With three games left this season and Rossoneri out of the Serie A title race, will coach Leonardo give Gooch some playing time? Bradley was skeptical, and Leo certainly won't do it with a view to next season, as the Brazilian apparently won't be back on the San Siro sideline in 2010-11.
• Gooch has at least one fan, though: AC Milan star Clarence Seedorf. Here's what Seedorf had to say about Gooch:

"We have become good friends. I think he has potential as a great defender for AC Milan in the long term, and I really wish for him to have a great World Cup where he can set the tone for his next season with us. He is on a mission. I told him he is on a mission. He can be one of the first American player to really make it at the highest level with a big team, a big club like AC Milan."

• Most pundits have written off Eddie Johnson's chances of making the World Cup team or even of being called into camp. But that was before Johnson scored twice in Aris' Greek league playoff victory over Olympiakos on Wednesday (check out the video). EJ's first goal was set up by fellow American Freddy Adu, who also drew a penalty in the match. Might the experienced Johnson get a training camp invite along with the similarly in-form Gomez, Mexico's co-scoring champ, and Buddle, who is the newly minted MLS Player of the Month?
• A few days after midfielder Jose Francisco Torres booked a trip to his second career FIFA Club World Cup by helping Pachuca beat fellow Mexican club Cruz Azul in the CONCACAF Champions League finale, Torres is eyeing another title.
• As you might know, Nike released its new USA home jersey in New York City on Thursday. Outside of the event at Niketown was a giant mural of Deuce. Nike's laying a big marker down on Dempsey. At the unveiling, a collage with 21 photos of Yanks in action featured seven shots of Dempsey, and just four featuring Donovan. Plus, there's this billboard on 34th Street.
• If midfielder Stuart Holden doesn't play this weekend against Tottenham, he could be involved in Bolton's game against Birmingham next week. Whenever he returns, Holden will be doing everything possible not to reinjure his no-longer-broken leg.
 
A great piece on Giuseppe Rossi. As a Korean American, I can somewhat relate.


This article appears in the May 17 issue of ESPN The Magazine.

They called him America.

But coming from the boys at the settore giovanile, Parma FC's youth academy in Parma, Italy, it sounded like "Ah-MAY-dee-cah." Giuseppe Rossi was just 12 years old and painfully shy, and even though he had an authentic Italian name and grew up speaking the language with his parents and grandparents in Clifton, N.J., as far as his young teammates were concerned he might as well have been named Billy Bob.

"Passare la palla, Ah-MAY-dee-cah," they would shout. "Pass the ball, America."

Exported Goods
Doug McIntyre explains that Neven Subotic is a skilled young defender who also got away from the U.S. team. READ
Advance the story one decade to the summer of 2009. It's early in the second half of a Confederations Cup match between the U.S. and Italy, and the U.S. is leading 1-0. A win against the defending world champions would be a triumph for the Americans, if only they can hold on for the next 45 minutes or so. Eight minutes into the second frame, the sideline official holds aloft an electric sign signaling a substitution. Giuseppe Rossi is coming in at striker. For Italy.

"I saw him warming up," recalls U.S. Soccer president Sunil Gulati, who was in Loftus Versfeld Stadium in Pretoria, South Africa, that night."I was sitting next to Jérôme Valcke, secretary general of FIFA, so I quickly told him Rossi's story, and how the worst thing that could happen from our perspective is that he scores a cracking goal."

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Inside his first two minutes on the field, Rossi does just that, stripping the ball from U.S. midfielder Benny Feilhaber near the center circle, taking two perfect getaway touches into space and letting fly with his left foot from 30 yards. The blast knuckles in the air, dips and slices a bit, then kisses the inside of the left post on its way into the net. A wonder strike. To salt the wound, Rossi scores a game-icing goal in stoppage time as Italy prevails 3-1. The boy once known as America jumps into the arms of his Italian teammates and later dedicates the goals to his family back in New Jersey, watching on TV.

But to many other U.S. fans tuning in that day, this was the moment when Giuseppe Rossi became a villain. T-shirts emblazoned with his mug and the words "JUDAS, Giuseppe Rossi" popped up for sale online, and the Facebook page "Giuseppe Rossi is a traitor" was created. Make no mistake, his two-goal performance -- especially the jaw-dropping equalizer, Rossi's second international tally for Italy's senior team -- was a dagger, the bitter end to a story U.S. fans had been following for nearly five years, when word first started to spread that a Jersey-born striker had signed with Manchester United and had been playing in Italian national team youth camps. Suddenly, everyone wanted to know just one thing: How did Giuseppe Rossi get away?

As soccer fans know, many players on international rosters were not born in the countries they represent. U.S. national-teamers Feilhaber (Brazil) and Stuart Holden (Scotland) come to mind, as do Polish-born strikers Lukas Podolski and Miroslav Klose, who starred for Germany in 2006. But what makes Rossi's story so remarkable is the fact that no American has ever cracked the ranks of a foreign soccer power like Italy.


Olugbenro Ogunsemore for ESPN The Magazine
Rossi grew up watching Italian soccer and playing in Italy.
Rossi will tell you that Italian soccer wasn't all that foreign to a kid growing up in northern New Jersey surrounded by Italian-American families like his own. The walls in local pizza joints were plastered with photos of the Azzurri, the Italian national team, and Sunday football wasn't the NFL on CBS but rather Serie A on RAI Italia.

Giuseppe's father, Fernando, who died earlier this year at age 60, moved to New Jersey from Italy with his parents when he was a teenager. He worked for 23 years teaching Italian and Spanish and coaching the varsity soccer team at Clifton High, a perennial New Jersey power and Division I college-feeder program. Giuseppe has vivid memories of waking up early to watch the Sunday games on RAI involving clubs like AC Milan and Inter Milan, Juventus and Fiorentina. And, of course, the Azzurri.

In 1994, when the U.S. hosted the World Cup, 7-year-old Giuseppe joined his dad at a sold-out Giants Stadium to watch Italy play Ireland. The boy was starstruck at seeing the likes of Paolo Maldini, Gianfranco Zola and Roberto Baggio sporting their brilliant blue shirts. "They were my team," Giuseppe says. "My childhood heroes."

Over the next few years, as Giuseppe showed signs of his own star potential, Fernando began to plot an unusual course for his son. For three straight summers, beginning when he was 9, Giuseppe went to a soccer camp in Tabiano Terme, near Parma, getting a taste of just how different things were in Italy. No longer was he the kid looking for a game, trying to persuade other kids to play. The game Italians call calcio ("kick") was everywhere.

A month shy of his 13th birthday, Giuseppe boarded a plane with his father and headed for a tryout with the youth academy of Parma FC. "I had no idea if I was good enough," Giuseppe says."But I wanted to try. When I found out I'd made it, I left everything behind, moved to Italy, and my soccer career began."

"IF I COULD HAVE PICKED ANY TEAM IN THE WORLD TO SCORE AGAINST, THE UNITED STATES WOULD HAVE BEEN MY LAST CHOICE."
To help with the transition, Fernando took a leave of absence from teaching to live with Giuseppe in Parma. But the boy was still a nervous wreck. While he was used to speaking Italian with his family, he was unsure of himself around his peers. So he barely spoke in school or on the field. That was when the other boys started calling him America. And, truth be told, Rossi longed for all things red, white and blue. "I was in seventh grade, and I missed stuff like Nickelodeon and Rugrats," he says. He missed his mother, Cleonilde, even more. On the day she made her first visit, after Giuseppe had been in Italy for a couple of months, Fernando had her hide behind a tree to surprise their son; when she appeared, Giuseppe cried in her arms. Over the next four years, Mom and Dad did split duty tending to their teen in Parma.

"The only times I felt comfortable those first few months was playing," Giuseppe says. "The ball is the same everywhere, and you play with your feet, not your mouth. On the field, I was okay."

Actually, he was better than okay. Rossi was exceptional, a shifty dribbler with great instincts in the box and a left foot to die for. In 2001, he was home in New Jersey for the summer when he was invited to a weeklong U.S. under-14 camp in Concord, Mass., where he met and played with future national teamers Michael Bradley and Freddy Adu. It would turn out to be the only time Rossi would ever wear a uniform emblazoned with the U.S. crest.

That fall he returned to Parma, and within two years he got an invite to Italy's under-16 training camp, the youngest youth program in the Italian system. What followed was a chain of events that Giuseppe and his father could only have dreamed about. The next year, Rossi made the U17 team; then he made the U18s. Suddenly, alarm bells started ringing through the halls of U.S. Soccer.

In November 2005, Bruce Arena, the national team coach at the time, invited Rossi to join the Americans for a friendly match in Glasgow. Rossi, who had signed with Man U the year before and was mainly playing on the reserve squad, declined, stating his desire to continue in the Italian program. Never mind that suiting up for the Yanks at that point wouldn't have interfered with that plan, just as playing for the Italian youth squads didn't nullify his U.S. eligibility; players aren't bound to a particular nation until they've been capped at the senior level in an official FIFA match. "We tried to make it as easy as possible for him, and in no way jeopardize his eligibility," Arena says. "But it was pretty clear his dream was to play for Italy. He didn't mislead us for a second."


Michael Regan/Fifa/Getty Images
Rossi's two goals against the U.S. had some fans calling him a traitor.
Of course, for a 5'8", 160-pound kid from New Jersey to think he could someday play for the mighty Azzurri was audacious, to say the least. But Rossi's chances of making the World Cup roster for the U.S. team heading to Germany in 2006 would have been excellent. "We needed help on the left side or maybe a second striker," Arena says. "He could've been a good fit."

The U.S. went three-and-out in Germany, and recruiting Rossi for South Africa 2010 became an immediate priority. When Bob Bradley took over as coach, in May 2007, time was running out. Rossi would turn 21 in February, and that meant his days as a youth player were coming to an end. Once he was capped for Italy's senior squad, it would be ciao, Giuseppe.

"I knew Fernando because I'd recruited some players out of Clifton High when I was coaching at Princeton," says Bradley, a Jersey native (and the older brother of this article's author). "He told me that Giuseppe had all the respect in the world for the U.S. program, but that his goal was to make the Italian team. Basically, that was that."

All that was left from a U.S. perspective was to wait and see how Rossi's Italian dream played out. He didn't make a single misstep. In the summer of 2007, Rossi was called in to play for Italy's U21 team at the European championship. In the summer of 2008, he was called in to play for Italy in the Olympics and ended up the leading scorer in that under-23 competition. By October, it was official. Named to the senior Italian team for a World Cup qualifier against Bulgaria, Giuseppe Rossi became a member of the Azzurri. He would never be allowed to play for the USA.

Whatever people might say about his patriotism, Rossi's achievement can't be overstated. Not only is he one of only two players on the Italian squad who weren't born in Italy, but by playing for Villarreal, in Spain's La Liga, he's also one of only two players who don't earn their living with an Italian club. (That could change soon, as it's hotly rumored that Rossi is headed back to Serie A this summer.) He has broken into one of the most exclusive clubs in sports, against very serious odds. "Rossi is a little champion," Italy manager Marcello Lippi said last summer. "He can play with his left foot or right foot. He can play anywhere on the front line, the way Lionel Messi plays for Barcelona."

High praise, to be sure. But while a spot for Rossi on Italy's 23-man World Cup roster seems likely, there are no guarantees. Plus, with talented strikers like Antonio Di Natale and Alberto Gilardino ahead of him on Lippi's depth chart, any minutes he sees in South Africa will likely come off the bench. That might not have been the case had he chosen a different, safer path. Even before the car accident that severely injured U.S. striker Charlie Davies, a forward of Rossi's quality would have been getting serious minutes for the U.S. "He's a talented young player," says Bradley, choosing his words carefully so as not to disparage any of the strikers in his player pool. But Arena can be more blunt. "He's certainly good enough to play for the U.S.," says the former coach. "I don't think there's any question about that."

When asked to recall the goal that made him the player American fans love to hate, Rossi gets flustered. He grew up admiring Derek Jeter, and like the Yankees captain, Rossi is a perfectly polite interview who loathes talking about himself. "It was great to score, of course, but if I could have picked any team in the world to score against, the United States would have been my last choice," he says. "I root hard for America -- against anyone but Italy."

"HOW CAN I EXPLAIN IT? OFF THE FIELD, I HAVE ALWAYS FELT AMERICAN. ON THE FIELD, I'VE ALWAYS FELT ITALIAN."
As it happens, Rossi got a chance to cheer on his home country as the rest of the Confederations Cup played out last summer. Thanks to the U.S. beating Egypt 3-0 and the Azzurri falling to Brazil by the same margin in the final leg of group play, the Americans advanced while the Italians went home. Upon returning to Spain, Rossi escaped to a resort with his girlfriend. "We were shopping one day along the beach, and I looked up at a TV and saw the U.S. was beating Spain," he says. "We kept walking, and I kept looking for TVs to keep up with the game. When they won, I told my girlfriend to do whatever she wanted the day of the final because I was going to watch. When Brazil came back from 2-0 down, I was truly disappointed."

So what about all those U.S. fans he himself has disappointed, the ones who would love nothing more than to see him starring atop the U.S. attack instead of coming off the bench for Italy?

"How can I explain it?" Rossi says. "The TV I watch, the websites I visit, the music I like -- it's all from America. But Italian soccer is what I grew up watching, and Italy is where I grew up as a player. Off the field, I have always felt American. On the field, I've always felt Italian."

On the streets of Villarreal, Spain, outside Estadio El Madrigal before a late December La Liga match, no one has a clue that the young striker for the home side speaks with a Jersey accent, can call out Garden State Parkway exit numbers when he hears the name of a town and was known as America as a kid. What they do know is that Rossi is a rising star with the Azzurri, the world champions. To the fans of Villarreal, Rossi is simply El Italiano.

The Italian.
Click to expand...
 
Originally Posted by Michaelfoooo

Originally Posted by NikeTalker23

Quick question..I know there's hatred between fans of USNT and the MNT..With that said, will you guys support Mexico in the WC?
Click to expand...


   As a supporter of the united states mens national team i hate mexico with a passion and i am half mexican.

so no i will never support mexico.

and i say mexico is going to lose or tie on the opener.
Click to expand...
 no youre not..
 
In regards to Rossi.....no need to cry over spilt milk.


In regards to the USMNT.....Alls I know is A. Bedoya BETTER be on that plane.
 
34 days left. Can't wait.

I will root for all the Concacaf squads. I will always root for El Tri except when they play the Yanks.

Krisp, you have to experience Azteca.

June 11th and 12th will be epic. I think El Tri and the Yanks tie.
 
anyone down for a vegas trip june 11 and 12th? me and my boys are planning on going out there for first 2-3 days.
 
Originally Posted by NikeTalker23

Originally Posted by Michaelfoooo

Originally Posted by NikeTalker23

Quick question..I know there's hatred between fans of USNT and the MNT..With that said, will you guys support Mexico in the WC?
Click to expand...


   As a supporter of the united states mens national team i hate mexico with a passion and i am half mexican.

so no i will never support mexico.

and i say mexico is going to lose or tie on the opener.
Click to expand...
 no youre not..
Click to expand...


yes i am
 
to be honest with i think that mexico wont win the 1st game.

they will either tie or lose 

and thanks shabooyah

i just hope buddle and gomez make it in

and i also hope they leave out ching
sick.gif
 
Originally Posted by deepinthajeep

I think SA can upset Mexico
Click to expand...
The atmosphere is gonna be crazy. If the South Africans can channel the energy properly they could upset Mexico and even win the group. I support Bafana Bafana. 
pimp.gif
 
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