Thug Life: Nigel De Jong Is Now Fouling Children

Nigel De Jong has a reputation of being something of a thug on the pitch, willing to commit a hard foul with no remorse. Now De Jong, who is with The Netherlands side in Poland for Euro 2012, has extended his attitude to a friendly match against a group of children:

Here's some of De Jong's "Greatest Hits":

Houston Dynamo Memories of Cups Past: Stuart Holden

Since yesterday's post dealt with a former Houston Dynamo player who was a member of the squads that won the 2006 and 2007 MLS Cups, a video, shown below, that I came across made me decide to do a post about another member of those Dynamo championship teams: Stuart Holden.

Holden, who grew up in Sugar Land, Texas, a suburb of Houston, joined the Dynamo in 2006 and made his MLS debut in a 1-1 draw at New England Revolution on May 27th. Over the course of the season, Holden managed to see action in 13 matches. When the 2006 MLS Cup final against New England Revolution came down to penalty kicks, Holden converted the Dynamo's second penalty kick. Houston won that match on penalty kicks.

In 2007, Holden saw increased playing time, primarily as a result of an injury suffered by Brad Davis. Over the course of 17 matches, Holden picked up 3 goals and 5 assists for the Dynamo. Although Holden did not start in the 2007 MLS Cup final, he was substituted on in the 80th minute. In the end, the Dynamo beat New England Revolution, 2-1.

When Dwayne De Rosario departed the Dynamo after the 2008 season, the team looked to Holden to step into the midfield hole that resulted in the Dynamo lineup as a result of De Rosario's departure. Although the Dynamo did not make it back to the MLS Cup Final during the remainder of Holden's tenure, his time and development in Houston landed him a spot on the US National Team in the summer of 2009 and with the Bolton, of the English Premier League, in early 2010.

Currently, Holden is still recovering from an injury sustained in early 2011.

This is the video that set this post into motion, even though it does not cover Holden's time with the Dynamo:

Here's some highlights of Holden from his time with the Dynamo:

The Zygo Soccer Report in the Raw: Dynamo 1-0 Union

Photo by Katy Umaña

The Houston Dynamo beat the Philadelphia Union on Thursday night, 1-0, to advance to the 2011 MLS Cup Eastern Conference Semifinal. This episode of The Zygo Soccer Report features raw post-match audio from Stuart Holden, Chris Canetti, Bobby Boswell, Adam Moffat, Brad Davis, Brian Ching, and Dominic Kinnear.

The Dynamo play Sporting Kansas City in the Eastern Conference Final on Sunday November 6, 2011. The match starts at 4:30 p.m. central time and will be broadcast on Fox Soccer Channel.

I apologize for the quality of my intro audio, had to use different equipment to record that part, the rest of it is the high quality you find on previous podcasts.

Music in this episode from Girl in a Coma, Cage the Elephant, Dum Dum Girls, and The Black Kids.

_____________

Stuart Holden Hanging out With Sons of Ben

On Wednesday night, American midfielder Stuart Holden, who plays for Bolton in the EPL, was in Philadelphia for the Union v. Sporting Kansas City match and spent some time with Sons of Ben.

Stuart Holden on Soccer AM

Last Saturday, Houston's own Stuart Holden was on the British show Soccer AM. Holden, a midfielder for Bolton and the United States National Team, is out for approximately six months after he sustained a knee injury when Johnny Evans tackled him in last month's Bolton - Manchester United match.


Stu Holden on Soccer AM by ivyarchive

Johnny Evans injures Stuart Holden in Manchester United's 1-0 Victory Over Bolton

Stuart Holden was having a good match for Bolton against Manchester United at Old Trafford until the 76th minute when he was the victim of a harsh tackle by Johnny Evans. As you can see in the video, Holden was stretchered off the pitch. Despite going done a man due to Evans receiving a red card for the tackle, Dimitar Berbatov picked up a goal in the 88th minute, giving Manchester United the win.

It was barely a year ago that Stuart Holden suffered a broken leg as a result of a Nigel De Jong tackle during a US friendly with Holland.

As of publishing this post, Holden's status is unknown. Holden, who previously played for the Houston Dynamo in MLS, was recently named to the United States roster for its upcoming friendlies against Argentina and Paraguay.

UPDATE for March 21, 2011:

Stuart Holden will be undergoing knee surgery and he is expected to be out for up to 6 months. The exact nature of Holden's injury has not been disclosed, but it does not appear to be a broken bone.



Same video, just a different source:

Readers of The Guardian pick Stuart Holden as best EPL Player of the Season, so Far

Less than year after leaving the Houston Dynamo and MLS for Europe, Stuart Holden has made a splash not only at his club, middle of the table Bolton, but in the English Premier League itself.

On its website, the British paper The Guardian allows its readers to submit player ratings for each game played in the EPL. The Guardian recently tabulated and analyzed the reader submitted player ratings and determined that its readers have ranked a young American midfielder, Stuart Holden, as the top player in the EPL so far this season.

CLICK HERE to read the story from The Guardian.

Other players who made The Guardian readers top XI include Richard Kingson (Blackpool), Bacary Sagna (Arsenal), Rio Ferdinand (Manchester United), Nemanja Vidic (Manchester United), Leighton Baines (Everton), Samir Nasri (Arsenal), Luka Modric (Tottenham), Rafael van der Vaart (Tottenham), Johan Elmander (Bolton), Andy Carroll (Newcastle).

Since joining Bolton in this past January's transfer window, Holden has become a regular member of the team's starting XI and has picked up two goals this season, including the game winner against Blackburn earlier this month.

Born in Aberdeen, Scotland, Holden grew up in the Sugar Land suburb of Houston. After stints at Clemson University and Sunderland, Holden earned a star role with his hometown Houston Dynamo and with the United States National Team, being part of the 23 man roster at the World Cup finals in South Africa 2010.

Young American players interested in playing in the EPL or elsewhere in Europe can take heart in the recent success of Americans like Clint Dempsey, Landon Donovan, and Stuart Holden in England. It appears that these are the players who are best positioned to pave the way for more American players to get a serious shot from European clubs.

VIDEO: Stuart Holden Scores Game Winner for Bolton

Houston's own Stuart Holden, a former midfielder with the Houston Dynamo, scored today's winning goal for Bolton in its match with Blackburn Rovers. Holden, who was coming off an injury, scored the goal while Bolton was down to 10 men.

The Top Houston Dynamo Stories of 2010

It's December, that time of year when we look back on the year that was and try to sum it up as best we can. In that spirit, here are, in my opinion, the top Houston Dynamo stories of 2010, in chronological order.

Stuart Holden & Ricardo Clark Head to Europe:

Last December, the matter weighing on the minds of Houston Dynamo fans was whether Stuart Holden and Ricardo Clark, who were out of contract and fresh off high profile stints with the U.S. National Team, would sign new contracts with Houston or ply their trade in Europe.

Ricardo Clark, who had been linked with European clubs like Livorno during the summer of 2009, signed with Eintracht Frankfurt in mid-January. A few days later, any notion that Holden would return to the Dynamo was dashed by his signing with Bolton.

The departures of Clark and Holden left holes in the Dynamo midfield that were never completely resolved during the 2010 season.

Geoff Cameron's Knee Injury:

With the departures of Clark and Holden, Geoff Cameron, who was a core part of the Dynamo's 2009 back line, was moved up to midfield with hopes that his speed and versatility could help the Dynamo reach the playoffs for the fifth season in a row. Cameron started the season strong, working well with Jamaican International, Lovel Palmer, who was new to the team, but during a match in Chicago this April, Cameron ruptured his right PCL.

Initial reports indicated that Cameron's injury was season ending; however, he returned to the line-up in August, but by then the team's fate had been all but sealed.

Brian Ching Excluded from 2010 World Cup Finals Squad:

Although Dynamo forward Brian Ching had missed the 2009 Confederations Cup due to injury, Ching was a vital part of the US National team's World Cup qualifying efforts and was one of the few US players to show maturity, experience, and leadership during the team's loss to Mexico during the 2009 Gold Cup final.

This past May, as the US team prepared for South Africa, it appeared that Ching had recovered from a hamstring injury and was a lock for the World Cup squad. But to the shock of Dynamo fans, US Coach Bob Bradley did not include Ching on the final 23 man roster, and Ching's leadership up top was missed by the US team as it failed to get past the knockout stage.

The Departure of Louis Angel Landin:

In late 2009, the Dynamo signed Louis Angel Landin as its first designated player. Landin, who was signed during the off-season in Mexico, was clearly out of shape and never made a huge impact during the tail end of the 2009 season. Dynamo fans were left hoping that Landin would use the MLS off-season to get fit so that he could player a bigger role with the team in 2010.

Unfortunately, Landin never found his groove with the Dynamo or MLS and he was released in July.

Brian Mullan Traded to Colorado Rapids:

As the MLS trade deadline approached, the Dynamo's playoff hopes looked dim and it was time for the front office to start building for 2011. In September, the Dynamo traded Brian Mullan, a fan favorite, to the Colorado Rapids in exchange for an injured Colin Clark and allocation money. As a result of this trade, the Dynamo now have an extra $200,000.00 or so of cap space to play with this off-season and the trade clears the way for Danny Cruz to play a bigger role in midfield.

The Houston Dynamo Fail to Make Playoffs:

Since moving to Houston for the 2006 MLS season, the Houston Dynamo won two MLS Cups, got knocked out of the first round of the 2008 playoffs, and made it to the 2009 MLS Western Conference final, which they lost to the Los Angeles Galaxy. The 2010 MLS season was the first season that the Dynamo failed to make the playoffs. It was a new and uncomfortable feeling for the club and its fans to not be playing in November.

Dynamo Stadium Progress:

While 2010 was not the best year for the Dynamo on the pitch, it was a great year for the Dynamo's efforts to obtain a soccer specific stadium. While the stadium progress has been slow, earlier this month the Harris County-Houston Sports Authority approved construction of the stadium, which will be located on the east end of downtown, and a 30 year lease agreement covering the stadium. Once the Sports Authority's actions are rubber stamped by the city and county, construction on the stadium can proceed.

Houston's Stuart Holden Scores First EPL Goal for Bolton

Former Houston Dynamo midfielder Stuart Holden scored his first goal for Bolton Wanderers in the English Premier League during today's 3-2 victory over Wolverhampton Wolves. In fact, Holden's goal proved to be the game winning goal giving Bolton the always good to have 3 points on the road.

Click here for The Guardian's Match Report.

Here's some video of the goal:

Stu scores his first goal in English football from The Haptonstall Group on Vimeo.

Bob Bradley's Potential 30

On Tuesday May 11, Bob Bradley and USSF have to submit their preliminary 30 man World Cup finals roster to FIFA. While those of us outside the team don't get to see the roster until it becomes public, the players getting called up typically find out several weeks in advance of the roster going public. There have been some hints, if you've looked closely, as to who has been called up, but the entire roster is still a mystery at this point.

So, for the heck of it, I've thrown together my prediction of who will make up the initial 30:

GOALKEEPERS:

Tim Howard, Brad Guzan, & Marcus Hahnemann.

DEFENDERS:

Jonathan Bornsein, Carlos Bocanegra, Jay DeMerit, Heath Pearce, Jonathan Spector, Steve Cherundolo, Clarence Goodson, & Oguchi Onyewu.

MIDFIELDERS:

Landon Donovan, Michael Bradley, Clint Dempsey, Stuart Holden, DaMarcus Beasley, Ricardo Clark, Benny Feilhaber, Maurice Edu, Jose Francisco Torres, Sacha Kljestan, & Alejandro Bedoya.

FORWARDS:

Jozy Altidore, Charlie Davies, Brian Ching, Herculez Gomez, Edson Buddle, Conor Casey, Eddie Johnson, & Robbie Findley.

Who's in your 30?

Stuart Holden scores winning goal for USA

(c) Associated Press

Well, Houston Dynamo midfielder Stuart Holden did the U.S. proud, scoring the only going in the team's victory over Japan, in the 47th minute in their opening match of Olympic group play. Today's win gave the US team an important 3 points, which will be crucial to their desire to advance beyond the group stage. The U.S. are in Group B, which includes, in addition to Japan, the Netherlands and Nigeria, neither of which can be taken lightly.

Thanks goes to the Dynamo organization for making the above picture from the Associated Press available for use. Speaking of the AP, here's their report on the match:

http://ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5iWDMl0HNGL-7EdkuGPeDeH_YQv8gD92DF2CG0

And here are some other reports:

http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/olympics_blog/2008/08/us-mens-socce-1.html

http://afp.google.com/article/ALeqM5g9KypxJ7qOu-1prOnQcLKH22iYKw

I should also note that Italy's Olympic team, which has no players over the age of 23, also won its opening match, beating Honduras 3-0. Among those scoring goals for Italy was Guiseppe Rossi, who was born in New Jersey to Italian parents (he was a topic of the most recent episode of World Soccer Wrap: Serie A).

http://ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5gYd43ndxLLWr_dUWO1aIofgpzbYAD92DDJ502

Dynamo Round-Up

Former MLS defender Steve Jolley is joining the Channel 55 (KTBU - Houston) broadcast team as a color analyst for Houston Dynamo games. Janette Fernandez is also joining the team as a sideline commentator.

http://houston.mlsnet.com/news/team_news.jsp?ymd=20080414&content_id=150602&vkey=news_hou&fext=.jsp&team=t200

http://www.thetube.net/

This past weekend in a 2007 Western Conference Final Rematch, the Houston Dynamo and Kansas City Wizards played to a 0-0 draw. The good news for Dynamo fans is that Caig looked much more comfortable in the box and Stuart Holden came in late in the game.

http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/headline/sports/5696542.html

http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/sports/soc/5700928.html

http://www.kansascity.com/sports/story/573616.html

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2008/04/13/SPCA104NVQ.DTL

http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/scorecard/othernews.asp?articleID=231901

Not Dynamo related, but Houston related, Mexico's National Team will start its 2010 World Cup Qualifying campaign at Reliant Stadium in Houston on June 15, 2008 when they take on Belize.

http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/sports/soc/5702599.html

Several Dynamo going to U.S. Soccer Camp

Coach Bob Bradley is holding a Training Camp for the U.S. Men's National Team this month, and among those invited to attend are the Houston Dynamo's Eddie Robinson, Brad Davis, and Ricardo Clark. Meanwhile Patrick Ianni and Stuart Holden will be with the U23 team.

http://blog.washingtonpost.com/soccerinsider/2007/12/usa_training_camp_roster.html

http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/sports/soc/5413584.html

http://houston.mlsnet.com/news/team_news.jsp?ymd=20071231&content_id=133981&vkey=pr_hou&fext=.jsp&team=t200