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Spotlight on the Globe trotters
by Gunnar Berndt

With the 2002 campaign widely considered a banner year for American soccer, MLS will now focus on increasing its attendance average for the third consecutive season in 2003. Nationwide, the number of hardcore supporters continues to increase and so does the demand for new idols to look up to. Already featuring some of the world's upcoming stars, teams are yet keeping their eyes out for more quality acquisitions to demonstrate their appreciation to the fans and add depth to their rosters. The following will be a look at American players, National Team members as well as young hopefuls, earning their money elsewhere around the globe, particularly in Europe. All of them play in one of the respective country's two highest divisions.

Who can be expected to soon be running the fields of MLS and make an impact?

You‚ll see that the future might hold some very prominent names. Please welcome the first ... candidates...


Conor Casey (Hannover 96, German Bundesliga 1)

A standout for the Borussia Dortmund reserves, the striker was loaned to Hannover 96 last season to play an impressive Bundesliga 2 campaign, including 7 goals in 19 appearances. Hannover was promoted to the first division and most everybody expected Casey's rising status to continue. Yet, bad luck put a sudden stop to it when a knee injury pulled the 21- year old out of the picture. And just when Casey thought he had finally recovered, a collision in a friendly match made the knee pains return. As a result, the American has rarely seen any playing time at all this season. But even after regaining full physical strength, it should be difficult for Conor to earn a Hannover starting spot, as only a scoring drout by one of the club's dominant forwards Daniel Stendel and Fredi Bobic could offer him any kind of opportunity.

Conor Casey's loan deal with 96 expires at the end of the season. If he isn't a regular by then he will likely be returned to Dortmund which owns the rights to him until the end of the 2003/04 campaign. And that could be the perfect time for MLS to step up, as the German champions would probably not start him anyway and might accept a Donovan- type of deal. Casey could then be loaned again, but this time to a team in the United States. With Colorado being the striker's home state, the Rapids should be tracking this story closely...

Steve Cherundolo (Hannover 96, German Bundesliga 1)

Don't count on this talented World Cup player to come home anytime soon. Not only did Cherundolo use the offseason to sign a brandnew contract with Hannover running until the summer of 2005, he even had another attractive offer by powerhouse FC Schalke 04. So far this season, Steve has consistently started and finished all of Hannover's matches except for a few while recovering from a toe injury. Several factors should exclude the American from any considerations. They include his position as a starter, other European clubsΠinterests in him and most importantly MLS's salary restrictions. At this point, there's no way Cherundolo would make the kind of money he's making overseas. Too bad not everyone's like Landon...

Ja ja!
Ich sollte nicht so spät noch posten... *gääääääääähn*

Muß man wirklich alles kommentieren wie der Papst ?