+ It was leaked today by Grant Wahl* at SI.com that there's a good chance the US will face Austria in addition to Scotland in November. Another solid addition. It is conditional upon whether or not Austria beats Sweden in October, which if they do they will still be in contention to qualify for the World Cup. If they lose, their schedule just became open. Austria are a young, talented team and a nation who, if they don't make it in 2014, will likely make a strong push for 2018. It's a good move by Klinsmann to set this one up if possible.
*Correction: Steven Goff had it weeks ago. Thanks for bringing that to my attention. Surprised I missed it in the first place...
+ Jermaine Jones has become a curious case. If indeed there is something wrong with his body, wouldn't it be wiser to get it fixed rather than put it off and make it worse? That leaves an interesting decision to be made by JK. He will have all the necessary information to make the correct decision. Jones is on thin ice with his club it seems as well. Schalke have said he won't play in their Champions League match this week due to his poor performance over the weekend against Hoffenheim. Is this the beginning of a rift between player and club? Hopefully not.
+ Fabian Johnson took an ankle injury this weekend. It's not serious, and the hope is he'll recover in time for October. If not then Greg Garza gets my vote (yes, over Beasley and Castillo). In all honesty, that's probably very unlikely, but there's minimal risk in doing it now.
+ USSF scouts were in attendance at several games over the weekend, including the Stoke, Nottingham Forest, and Birmingham City matches. This is good news for Lichaj believers. If he's not there in October I will be quite surprised. Spector has seen consistent minutes for BCFC and could make a surprise appearance as well, but I think Lichaj is more likely. If I had to guess, I'd say Chandler and Lichaj both get invites for October.
+ Speaking of, the roster should be announced at the end of this week. It would be great to get another surprise early release, but that doesn't seem to be how JK operates. Sunday afternoon would be my best guess.
+ Lastly, I want to briefly discuss Michael Bradley. The timing of his injury really couldn't have been worse. He will now face a fight to get into a blazing hot Roma side right now. In a World Cup year, playing time is everything. Will MB be content with sub appearances? Will JK? I find it hard to believe either would be. Bradley works very hard, and my hope is he can prove us wrong and get starts, but I'm not betting on it. For the record, can I just say that Roma are slowly pulling me into fandom. Their coach is a man who's work I've enjoyed at Lille, and he's doing extraordinary things now at Roma. I've always wanted to root for Gervinho, but couldn't do it while he was at Arsenal, and everyone knows MB is a personal favorite. I think I may start following them more closely. Anyway, with their hot start they sit atop the league, but honestly not really having played anyone (Lazio was a fluke, they didn't have their normal back four). The true test starts soon, with games against Inter and Napoli on the horizon. It's a tough pull for a fan like me - on one hand I want Bradley to play, a lot, and therefore would encourage a move if he isn't, but on the other I want him to play in Champions League and Roma look good to make it (again, it's early but still...). What's a guy like me to do??
Let me know your thoughts below or on Twitter.
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