National Teams
The 5 Biggest Surprises On The 40-Man United States Gold Cup Roster
On Saturday, during halftime of the USMNT’s 1-1 draw with Venezuela, the preliminary 40-man roster for the 2017 Gold Cup was revealed. Manager Bruce Arena now has about three weeks to narrow that list down to the final cut of 23 players. The United States will open the tournament on July 8 against Panama.
This 40-player pool came with several surprises. MLS dominates the list with 32 of the selections being domestically-based. Here are a few of the more interesting decisions from Arena for the 2017 Gold Cup.
Xherdan Shaqiri Doesn't Score Often, But When He Does, He Prefers Bangers
In the last 12 months, Xherdan Shaqiri has scored six times. They have all been phenomenal goals. His recent strike against Belarus lives up to the insanely high standard he has set for himself.
A decent hit from Xherdan Shaqiri last night for. There's power in the #SCFC man's calves! pic.twitter.com/yHFfVubsRM
Irish Left With Nothing To Do But Praise A Rampant Mexico
As far as friendlies go, this was about as productive as they come for both Mexico and the Republic of Ireland. El Tri will now return to Mexico City for two key World Cup qualifiers (against Honduras and the United States) at the Azteca brimming with confidence after thrashing Ireland 3-1.
For Ireland, manager Martin O’Neill got a good hard look at his fringe players before a crucial World Cup qualifier against Austria in Dublin — not many of them would’ve passed this difficult litmus test.
U.S. And Mexico U-20s Advance To World Cup Quarterfinals
The United States matched their biggest-ever triumph on the U-20 World Cup stage, and Mexico scored a game-winner in the 89th minute as North America sent two representatives into the 2017 FIFA U-20 World Cup quarterfinals — just as many as South America and one less than Europe.
Javier “Chicharito” Hernandez Becomes Mexico’s All-Time Leading Goal Scorer
Over 62,000 Mexico supporters bore witness to a bit of El Tri history on Saturday night at the Los Angeles Coliseum as Javier “Chicharito” Hernandez moved clear of Jared Borgetti as the national team’s all-time leading goal scorer with 47.
Remarkably, Chicharito and Borgetti share the same strike rate for Mexico. The Santos Laguna legend scored 46 in 89 matches, and the Bayer Leverkusen striker has scored 47 in 91 — both make for an average of 0.52 goals per game.
Jonathan Klinsmann Thinks He's Joe Hart
Jonathan Klinsmann is young and still has a lot of growing up to do. Goalkeepers generally improve with experience more so than other positions and tend to peak in their late 20s and early 30s. So we're not that worried about him yet.
That said, he should stop watching tapes of Joe Hart.
The Goalkeepers With The Most Career Clean Sheets In Soccer History
Goalkeepers, to paraphrase a popular saying, are insane. It’s the forwards that get the glory, and it’s more often than not the goalkeepers that have to shoulder the blame. It’s a thankless, lonely task that hardly ever favors the man or woman between the sticks. However, these individuals have dazzled with their ability to keep the opposing team off the scoreboard. These are the goalkeepers with the most clean sheets in different respective competitions.
The Imminent Arrival Of Jorge Sampaoli Signals A New Dawn For Argentina
Losing a World Cup final in extra time is brutal and tough to come back from. Losing a Copa America final on penalties the subsequent year is a kick to the teeth. Losing yet another Copa America final the following year, to the same team and in the same manner, is practically a kill shot to any footballer’s professional hopes and dreams.
Didier Deschamps Calls Time On Karim Benzema's International Career
Since the 2014 World Cup, Karim Benzema’s output for Real Madrid in La Liga and Champions League matches reads like this: 114 matches played, 64 goals scored, 23 goals assisted. With a record of over a goal per every two matches, the 29-year-old French forward is one of the most feared in Europe.