Americans Abroad
Some Big Performances, Plus One Very Big Miss
John Brooks, Ventura Alvarado, and Rubio Rubin are among the standout Yanks playing outside of the country. Jozy Altidore, however, had a nightmare match for Sunderland.
BY
Brian Sciaretta
Posted
December 15, 2014
9:44 AM
IT WAS ANOTHER very good weekend for Americans abroad as national team regulars John Brooks and Alejandro Bedoya both put on fantastic efforts and youngster Rubio Rubin scored against Ajax. The man of the weekend, however, is Ventura Alvarado who ended 2014 as a champion.
December 15, 2014
9:44 AM
Alvarado wins Mexican title
Still uncapped, still not ranked in the ASN 100, Ventura Alvarado is a champion after an unlikely breakthrough into Club America’s starting lineup in November and playing solid soccer through the Liga MX playoffs. Alvarado, 22, is a Phoenix native who rose through the ranks in Club America’s youth system and even enjoyed a solid loan stint at Necaxa last season. Naturally a central defender, he has been playing out of position at right back in recent weeks for Club America. On Sunday night, Club America defeated Tigres 3-0 in the second leg of the Liga MX final for a 3-1 aggregate victory. Alvarado delivered a solid, if unspectacular, 90 minutes in the win. Club America was by far the best team in Mexico this season and easily among the best non-European teams in the world. As for Alvarado, it's hard to see him not getting a look in the near future. He already said he would accept a call-up from the United States but what happens if Mexico and the United States both call at the same time? My guess is that he goes for the United States.Bedoya firing on all cylinders
After scoring a stunning goal against PSG last weekend, Alejandro Bedoya was the difference-maker for Nantes in a 2-1 win over fifth-place Bordeaux on Saturday. In the 23rd minute Bedoya cut in from the right side and hit an exquisite pass to Jordan Veretout who finished off the chance to give Nantes a 1-0 lead. But that wasn’t all for Bedoya. Late in the game he had two key goal-line clearances to preserve the 2-1 win as Nantes moved into seventh place.Brooks is Truly Back
“The Berlin Wall has a name: John Anthony Brooks” Those are the words of Hertha Berlin’s Twitter feed following the club’s 1-0 win over an underachieving Borussia Dortmund.Brooks was the man of the match and was named to Kicker's team of the week.Die Berliner Mauer hat einen Namen: John Anthony Brooks! Bockstark! #hahohe #bscbvb
— Hertha BSC (@HerthaBSC) December 13, 2014
There is no questioning Brooks’ talent. He has always been seen as having a very high ceiling. The problem has always been his focus and occasionally he has been called out by his coach and demoted to the reserve team. American fans should be hopeful that those days are over and that Brooks can move into the upper echelons of Bundesliga central defenders.
Hertha coach Jos Luhukay was full of praise for Brooks after the game, stating "John had his best game of 2014" and adding this: "That was the Brooks, I always hope. I am really happy for him. I've fought a lot with him. But we handled it correctly and we have been honest with each other. So I'm really happy for him."