Tottenham Hotspur face the MLS All-Stars this Wednesday in an exhibition match that is expected to be viewed by over one million people in the US and back home in the UK.
Ahead of the fixture, we speak to philly.com writer Jonathan Tannenwald about all things related to the game, and what viewers can expect from the epic yearly event:
Thanks for your time Jonathan. We’ll start off with Steven Gerrard and Frank Lampard. Their selections have been quite controversial due to the fact that neither have made their MLS debuts yet. The latter has since been ruled out of the game due to injury, but what’s your stance on their inclusion in the roster?
Personally, for as much controversy as the selections have caused, I don’t really care. It’s an All-Star game, and it’s meant to have the biggest names in the league. Don Garber’s role in this is to make sure that the big names are in the game for TV ratings and marketing purposes, and that’s what he did. If fans wanted other people in the game, they should have voted for them.
The controversy lasted maybe a day. And now that Lampard is out of the game due to injury it’ll calm down even more. If he had been in the game without having ever played at all for NYCFC, I wouldn’t have liked it, but it really isn’t that big a deal.
Interesting view. So other than Gerrard, which players should Spurs fans look out for on Wednesday?
Sebastian Giovinco of Toronto FC is the best player in the league this year. He’s on the team, but he now might not play becaue he picked up a foot injury Saturday in Columbus. Other notable attackers are Columbus forward Kei Kamara, who was at Norwich and Middlesbrough for a while; Kansas City midfielder Benny Feilhaber; and two strikers I’m sure your readers will know, Los Angeles’ Robbie Keane and New York City FC’s David Villa.
Dax McCarty, who replaced Lampard, is a savvy defensive midfielder who won’t treat the game lightly just because it’s an exhibition. Behind him will be very underrated Belgian central defender Laurent Ciman of Montreal. There are two good veteran goalkeepers on the squad, Salt Lake’s Nick Rimando and Vancouver’s David Ousted. I’d expect each to play a half.
Sounds like the side is as impressive as it ever has been. Other than the ‘superstars’, who’s likely to be the most threatening player?
I wouldn’t be surprised at all if it’s Kamara. He’s leading the league in goals this season with 15.
Interesting choice. You mentioned Robbie Keane – how’s he doing over there?
He’s fantastic. One of the best “Designated Player” signings in league history. Maybe the best.
Big claim. What about Clint Dempsey?
When he’s not suspended, he’s doing as well as you’d expect. That suspension earlier this year was a big deal though – he tore up a referee’s notebook in a U.S. Open Cup game while he was arguing a call.
Sounds like the player we all know and remember. What can you tell us about DeAndre Yedlin? With many players making the move from England to the US, he remains one of the few to have gone in the opposite direction. Is he really as fast as computer games make him out to be? Will he make it at White Hart Lane?
Ha! I don’t know because I don’t play as him in the games very often, but he is quite fast. He might be better served as a wing midfielder instead of an outside back. As for whether he makes it in England, a lot will depend on what coach he plays for at Spurs and how much confidence that coach has in him. Many people, myself included, would have liked to see him at AS Roma instead, both in terms of style of play in Serie A and the likelihood that he’d have gotten more first team minutes.
I found it noteworthy at the time that Yedlin said Jurgen Klinsmann helped engineer the move to Spurs. And by the way, Klinsmann has said publicly he wants his players playing at UEFA Champions League clubs. Spurs, well… I know I don’t have to say anything about that to you.
He may be the catalyst to fire Spurs back into the top four once more, who knows!? Away from Wednesday’s game, with more and more world-class players making the move to the MLS, do you think the All-Star game might soon revert back to the East vs West format, as we see in the NFL and NBA?
I don’t know, but I hope not. Playing against a foreign opponent makes MLS’ All-Star game stand out compared to the bigger American sports.
That’s true. It also gives invaluable coverage to teams like Spurs who perhaps don’t have as much of a global fanbase as Manchester United or Liverpool. Do you think there will ever be a day when Spurs can match them in terms of reputation stateside?
Sure, especially once that new stadium gets built. But more than anything else, they have to win trophies. The biggest clubs in terms of name recognition here are United, Chelsea, Arsenal and City, probably in that order. Why? Because they win trophies. Liverpool were big around the time they won the Champions League, but the newly-made fans of the Premier League haven’t necessarily latched on to them because it’s been a while. I’d rank Spurs after those five right now, then Everton after Spurs because of their history signing Americans such as Tim Howard and Landon Donovan.
Music to the ears of Spurs fans im sure. And finally, what’s your prediction for the game?
I think the MLS All-Stars will win, because historically they have taken the game more seriously than the clubs they play against. Not always – Manchester United and Roma won in blowouts – but something tells me Spurs will play the game in a lighter spirit. Which is fine for a lot of reasons, but don’t be surprised if the All-Stars put more energy into it.
For our readers’ sake – I hope you’re wrong! Thanks for your time, Jonathan.
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