Noel S. Williams

So how good is the US Men’s National Team? Over the past two years, the US team has fully revealed itself in relation to other teams and this is the report card- • The USMNT is well ensconced in the second tier of international soccer, which is no small feat. Over the past 20 years, […]

I now have a new all-time favorite soccer quote. After the English team drew against the USA and Algeria, barely beat Slovenia and was torn open and summarily dismissed from the World Cup by Germany, BBC commentator Chris Waddle had this observation: “England will never win the World Cup while playing a 4-4-2.” Ah, yes. […]

As the US team prepares to face Ghana in the round of 16, and the rest of us recover from yesterday's game and steel ourselves for Saturday, a few random thoughts: Neven Subotic can now work on his tan. Subotic joins Giuseppe Rossi as potential American soccer players who would have had a far more […]

Well, that may not have been the most elegant game of soccer the US has ever played. It was certainly the bravest. After a game like that, long-form elegant pose are really not part of the agenda. Instead, here are some random thoughts on one of the most dramatic victories in the history of US […]

June 17 2002. Mexico 0 – US 2. That is the last time the US won a game in the World Cup. It is time to do it again. Since that day eight years ago, the US has had a courageous defeat (Germany in 2002), several heroic fight backs (Italy in 2006 and England […]

For a number of months there has been a debate on this site about how good the English team really is. Most have claimed that this version of the Three Lions represented a golden generation of players finally coming to the pinnacle of their skills and ready to challenge for the most valued trophy […]

England fans have traditionally been guilty of the sin of not really looking. Reading the English press, there seems a general sense of shock about how their team performed in their first game yesterday. But to a neutral observer, the result, and England’s sorry, tired performance, was not really all that much of a […]

The World Cup has stopped wars, launched dictators and broken hearts. The month-long quadrennial soccer extravaganza can also reduce a nation’s GDP: neither over-zealous victory parties nor wallowing in defeatism do much for worker productivity. World Cup 2010 begins in South Africa on June 11. Human Resource departments at employers in the 32 participating nations […]

No Donovan. No Buddle. No Beckham. No problem. The L.A. Galaxy continued their astounding early season form this evening with a 4-1 bulldozing of the Houston Dynamo this evening at the Home Depot Center. The Galaxy continued their absolutely torrid pace and are still undefeated with 10 wins and 2 draws for 2010. In the […]

The best American striker – and a guaranteed starter against England on June 12 – was not destined to be Jozy Altidore, Charlie Davies or (certainly) Robbie Findley. The best American striker is New Jersey-born, rap-music loving, Playstation-playing Giuseppe Rossi. Unfortunately, four years ago Rossi turned down the opportunity to play with the US to […]

Since Bob Bradley was named coach of the US National Soccer team shortly after the US crashed out of the 2006 World Cup, he has made it a mission to put his players up against the best the world has to offer. Since 2006, the US team has travelled to Asia, Europe, Africa and South […]

Bob Bradley is a strategic thinker. He has to be. He coaches a mid-level national soccer team whose first game is against one the top ranked teams in the world – England. Bradley knows that the US does not have enough talent to win on talent alone. If the Founding Fathers had failed and America […]

The Los Angeles Galaxy today announced that they are going to host Champions League Cup winners Inter Milan at a friendly at the Home Depot Center on August 7. While only 18,000 people came out to see the Galaxy play Boca Juniors over the weekend, this game could probably sell 75,000 seats if the […]

Many English fans have a schizophrenic sensation going on every fourth May. On the one hand, every four years English fans enthuse how this team is the “best in a generation” with all their great players having their career peaks at just the right time. On the other hand, international tournaments have brought nothing […]

Just in time for the World Cup, Fulham manager Roy Hodgson showed England how to lose with dignity. That’s important because with history as the guide England will flatter to deceive in making the knockout stages, only to be humiliated in a penalty kick shootout. With the World Cup in South Africa looming and England's […]