121514_isi_altidorejozy_bpi_rl_57_sunderland_v_west_ham.3010098 Richard Lee/isiphotos.com
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.

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.

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."

Altidore reaches low point

On Saturday Jozy Altidore earned another surprise start for Sunderland against West Ham United. He also got the nod in last week's scoreless draw against Liverpool.

The game did not go well for Altidore who had a stunning first-half miss that was symptomatic of a striker who has lost all confidence. The problems appear to be mental, as the The Guardian summed it up well with this quote from Sunderland manager Gus Poyet.

“Altidore looked close to tears after apparently freezing at the vital moment. Poyet was nonplussed. ‘I don’t know what happened,’ he said afterward. ‘Jozy was devastated, I’ve never seen him like this. It was the difference between winning and losing.’”

January is coming soon and it looks like the writing is on the wall for Jozy at Sunderland. It's time to leave.

Rubin scores against Ajax

It was a good weekend for sports in Oregon. University of Oregon quarterback Marcus Mariota won the Heisman Trophy, the Portland Trailblazers won again to enhance its grip on first place in the Northwest Division, and on Sunday Beaverton native Rubio Rubin scored for Utrecht against perennial Eredivisie power Ajax on Sunday.

With Utrecht trailing 2-0 in the 35th minute, Rubin took a pass from Edouard Duplan to move behind the Ajax defense and finish from the right side. While Utrecht lost 3-1, Rubin was the most effective player for his team. In addition to the goal, he completed 24 out of 26 passes

Dual National Watch

  • South Carolina-born, Netherlands-raised Desevio Payne inched closer to his Eredivisie debut after making the bench for the second time for FC Groningen in its 1-1 draw against Vitesse on Sunday. I interviewed the 19-year-old right back last year and he acknowledged that he would like to play for the United States U-20 team. Maybe ahead of May’s World Cup he will get a chance by Tab Ramos since the fullback position is not deep on that team.

  • In Portugal’s second tier, Bjorn Maars Johnsen scored two goals for Atletico CP in a 2-1 over Santa Clara. Born in North Carolina, the 23-year-old Maars-Johnsen was raised in Norway and has not represented either country. The Portuguese second tier is pretty poor but Maars-Johnsen’s 13 goals in 18 games should see him move up to the first tier before too long—maybe as soon as January.

    Brian Sciaretta is an American Soccer Now columnist and an ASN 100 panelist. Follow him on Twitter.
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