The 23 year old New Hampshire native made his intentions clear. “I’m probably a month away from being able to train with the team regularly. Then I need a little more time to get match fit again. I’d say I’m not too far away from being able to play again.” You can watch the full video below.

In the interview, he discusses his timeline for recovery, the extent of his injuries (sounds like a less than pleasant experience), and his desire to return to Sochaux in the very near future. The fact that, by his own admission, in the weeks after his injury he couldn’t walk more than a few week or even stand for very long makes all of this all the more impressive. I can picture the ESPN World Cup producers drooling at the prospect of making the hour long documentary “Charlie Davies: Back From The Brink.”

My favorite bit:
Interview: “What were the reactions of your teammates when you came back into the dressing room?”
Said Davies: “It was a very good feeling to come back here and see all my teammates. They were very happy to see me. And, uh, they made me feel very welcomed, and, uh, I was happy to get a chance to talk with them and let them know that I’ll be back this season.”

The dude doesn’t play around. Welcome back Charlie! Way to be superhuman… Man crush fully engaged…

One of the greatest USMNT kits of all time came in the form of a third jersey. The Nike “Don’t Tread on Me” campaign of 2006 featured a deep red kit, with a black sash down the middle, and a modified US crest on the chest. It was a thing of beauty.

This years versions has taken a bit of that popularity and made it the standard. Now, being a Boca Juniors fan of Argentine fame, I’ve always hated sashes. River Plate sports one – ’nuff said. But club team hatred aside, these kits are beautiful. They are classic, timeless and continue with the teams established color standards – home whites and blue aways. The sash even adds a bit of character and uniqueness to the kits overall.

What do you think? Share your thoughts below.

Yea. I Tweet. Alot.
www.twitter.com/DAVEREDBULLS

- Once these jerseys are officially released, they’ll be for sale on the WorldCupBlog Store USA jersey page. -Daryl

So, in preparation for these matches, Josh, Albert, Daryl, and myself figured it might be prudent to figure out the team’s best possible squad. Thus, we attempted to whittle down the seemingly endless list of US National Team pool players to determine our ideal 23 man squad… All you need to know is that a coin flip is eventually utilized, and the outcome involves Brian Ching.

As always, you can click the big play button below or click here to go directly to the host site. We’re working on getting the feed on iTunes (hopefully next week). But for now, give it a listen and let us know your thoughts. It’s what Uncle Sam would want. Oh, and our final team list looks like this:

Off of the clear successes this team has enjoyed during the Bob Bradley era, the States are expecting to turn in one of the most memorable performances in it’s long and painful soccer history. Never has this national team ridden such a wave of optimism and successes heading into the World’s biggest tournament.. And for once, their group draw doesn’t seem like a one and done affair.

Now tell me, who wouldn’t want to be a part of that?

Here are my top five players who are on the periphery of USMNT World Cup classification.

Feel free to drop your own top five in the comments.

.

1. Eddie Johnson

Count me amongst the few believers left in the EJ experiment. Though he has traveled up and down Europe since his arrival, EJ finally seems to have found a welcome home in Aris of the Greek league, where he tallied a wonderful put in from an Adu feed a few weeks back, and returned the favor for Adu’s first goal.

Eddie still possesses all of those God given talents which have made the youngster a ray of hope in the American youth systems. He is quick on his feat, has a great shot, and can be a threat up top. But he kind of reminds me of a first time snowboarder going down the bunny hill; he has the terrible tendency to put the breaks on his own speed, and look for a safer option. Usually that comes in the form of an offense killing back pass or a pure loss of possession.

Eddie is one good psychologist away from being an explosive player. And quite frankly, the Prem proved not to be the place where he could learn what it means to be an attacking forward. Perhaps Greece will be. With the unfortunate injury of Charlie Davies, and his current form, EJ may very well sneak into the World Cup roster before you know it.

2. Freddy Adu

By age 20, everyone expected Adu to be firmly in place with the USMNT. Unfortunately, that isn’t the case. But unlike many others, I am not down on the 20 year old. He is still suffering from one of the most over hyped publicity machine of all time, from his signing at age 14 to his early comparisons to Pele (of all players!). As such, he could never live up to the expectations on any level. At DC United, his efforts fell short, and after shining brightly in the U-20 World Cup against his peers, he could not live up to the lofty expectations of the European leagues which went after the name and the player they saw in that tournament.

Now, he has found himself at Aris along with EJ, and he has also made the most of his appearances, already tallying a goal and assist. Will a continued streak of good play earn him a spot on the Nat’s? His form would be a definite concern and consideration if he were to ever manage to break his way in.

3. Damarcus Beasley

Beasley has been a mainstay with the National team for years now. An unlikely and unfortunate string of injuries has not only sidelined him from National team action, but has made him an after thought at Rangers. Compound that with the horrendous appearances Beasley has endured with the Nat’s the last few times, and you have a recipe for dismissal.

His size has always been an issue, as he is routinely swatted away by monster attackers and midfielders. But where he is most effective is in the open space, creating quality crosses and passes in the midfield that lead to opportunities. Sure, his talents are definitely of use, but in his current form, and with the glut of midfielders in the US system, Beasley is behind the eight ball. His injuries have opened up opportunities for other players to fill in, and his abysmal performances in both the left wing and left back positions puts him right at the precipice of elimination.

Will he be able to regain form and win a spot back?

4. Brian Ching

Oh Chingy – all that size, skill and power, and what has he delivered? Unless he has Donovan pinpointing crosses to his forehead, Brian Ching proves to be largely ineffective up top. The mere fact that Conor Casey ranks above him on the depth charts speaks volumes (and no, that isn’t a shot at you Casey).

Chingy is up here because he was a mainstay for the Nat’s. Even with a coaching staff, and roster pulling for his success, he has continuously fallen short of expectations. Once heralded as the forward that will supplant Brian McBride up top, Ching would be lucky to crack the bench.

5. Charlie Davies

All I have to say is we are all pulling for ya’ Charlie. The World Cup is all about miracles my friend. And many of us believe you have what it takes to pull one off.

We keep you in our thoughts and prayers big man.

.

Follow me on twitter:
www.twitter.com/DAVEREDBULLS

Plus, a semi-heated debate erupts regarding the merits of Bob Bradley. Is he the ideal coaching candidate? Can the USA win with him? And will Albert’s head explode from even suggesting either of those two questions?

Hopefully, we’ll have the feed available on iTunes in the near future, but for now you can just click the big “play” button below or go here to download it from the host site. Give it a listen and let us know what you think.

Final Point: I suppose I should have done this at the beginning of the post, but my name is Taylor and, in addition to the podcast, I’ll be contributing semi-regularly here on the USA World Cup Blog. Some of you may know me from the Manchester United page and some of you may be slightly familiar with me from the other weekly podcast I do with Daryl. I’m really looking forward to being a part of this blog, especially since it allows me to argue about all things USMNT for the next five/six months. Looking forward to your comments! Cheers!

Thank You Bethany Dempsey (And here is your plug Sports Illustrated!)!

I’m Dave Martinez, and I will be your blogger extraordinaire on these here USMNT pages leading up to the World Cup! Some of you may know me as the Red Bulls blogger, where I have been covering the team for nearly three years, or from other work I have done in this tight knit community as the weekend blogger for The Offside main page, the World Cup Blog main page, the video game blog, the MLS Blog . . . . well, you get the picture.

But I am not here to present a resume folks. I am here to say hello. And present Ms. Bethany Dempsey. And that link to more Bethany Dempsey. And stuff like that.

My aim is to bring you the best coverage possible of the team, sprinkled in with my sense of humor, insights and perhaps a few player interviews. Ya. I do those too.

And that is about all I want to say about myself. Thank you for indulging the intro . . . and I hope you will be joining me on the road to the World Cup and beyond!

(That is, after you have done the important things in life. Like mainly, checking out more Bethany Dempsey)

Fulham ended up losing 3 – 2, but Clint Dempsey’s wonderstrike will still make this a memorable game for most American soccer fans. I’ve pondered the idea that this is actually the best goal ever scored by an American in a top soccer league. Some of you may point to John Harkes’ goal against Derby County, but I’m giving Clint extra points for hitting his shot on the volley. Dempsey continues to stake a claim for Bob Bradley to play him up front as a striker and after performances like last night’s it could turn into a given.

With Beasley rediscovering his form at Rangers a lot of people have become confident about pushing Dempsey up front with Altidore and putting Landon Donovan out on the right. My opinion is a little different. Jozy hasn’t impressed me much this year. I’m much more inclined to put Dempsey and Donovan up top and let Beasley and Holden be my wingers.

What do you guys think about Dempsey’s goal and possible strike partnerships in the upcoming World Cup?

US Soccer has released Bob Bradley’s list of players called into USMNT camp this January. It is an interesting mix of players on breaks from MLS and Scandinavian leagues. MLS Rookie of the Year Omar Gonzalez may get a long look because of injuries in the American backline and forwards Marcus Tracy and Robbie Findley will be looking to prove they can fill the hole left by the recovering Charlie Davies.

U.S. ROSTER BY POSITION
GOALKEEPERS (4): Kevin Hartman (Kansas City), Troy Perkins (Valerenga), Nick Rimando (Real Salt Lake), Zach Thornton (Chivas USA)
DEFENDERS (9): Kevin Alston (New England Revolution), Jonathan Bornstein (Chivas USA), Jimmy Conrad (Kansas City Wizards), Omar Gonzalez (Los Angeles Galaxy), Clarence Goodson (IK Start), Chad Marshall (Columbus Crew), Brandon McDonald (San Jose Earthquakes), Heath Pearce (FC Dallas), Marvell Wynne (Toronto FC)
MIDFIELDERS (12): Kyle Beckerman (Real Salt Lake), Alejandro Bedoya (Örebro), Geoff Cameron (Houston Dynamo), Brad Davis (Houston Dynamo), Brad Evans (Seattle Sounders), Benny Feilhaber (Aarhus), Eddie Gaven (Columbus Crew), Sacha Kljestan (Chivas USA), Jeff Larentowicz (New England Revolution), Dax McCarty (FC Dallas), Chris Pontius (D.C. United), Robbie Rogers (Columbus Crew)
FORWARDS (5): Justin Braun (Chivas USA), Conor Casey (Colorado Rapids), Jeff Cunningham (FC Dallas), Robbie Findley (Real Salt Lake), Marcus Tracy (Aalborg)

As of this writing, Charlie Davies is currently undergoing an unspecified surgery after being a passenger in a one-car accident (that’s the car pictured above) on the George Washington Parkway in Virginia that tragically resulted in a second passenger losing her life, while the condition of the driver is unknown.

The USSF initially said that Davies’ injuries could be career threatening before retracting that statement for lack of information.

More to come on this, but so far Freddy Adu has said it best:

UPDATE: The Washington Post’s Steven Goff has the details on Davies’ injuries:

USA national team forward Charlie Davies suffered a lacerated bladder, fractures to the tibia and femur in his right leg, facial fractures and a left elbow fracture in the one-car accident that killed a female passenger early Tuesday morning.

He will be hospitalized at least a week and additional operations will be required.

“Injuries of this nature usually require a recovery period of six to 12 months and extensive rehabilitation,” team doctor Dan Kalbac said. “Due to Charlie’s fitness level, his prognosis for recovery and his ability to resume high-level competition is substantially improved.”

Obviously this most likely rules Davies out for the World Cup next summer and who knows how long after that, but at this point it sounds like he’s just lucky to be alive so we should all just be thankful for that.

Good luck with your recovery, Charlie, and get well soon.