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As a monumental international break approaches, ASN's Brian Sciaretta looks ahead to the weekend action abroad with an eye on promotion candidates, relegation fodder, and U.S. national team players.

THE FINAL WEEKEND before the international break has arrived and many Americans are at pivotal moments as the U.S. men's national team prepares for its most important game in years.

Some Yankslike Christian Pulisicare on the ascendancy while others, including Bobby Wood and Emerson Hyndman, could be looking for different clubs soon.

Then, of course, you have the promotion-contenders, including Tim Ream, Julian Green, and DeAndre Yedlin as well as relegation-battlers like Wood, Alfredo Morales, and Aron Johannsson.

Here's what I'll be tracking in the next few days.

The United States national team camp has not even opened but already it might have suffered its first casualty. On Thursday Fabian Johnson was forced out of Borussia Monchengladbachs Europa League knockout game vs. Schalke in just the 16thminute.

Johnson left under his own power but upon first glance it did appear it was a right hamstring injury that forced him out. As of this writing it is not certain how much time, if any, Johnson will miss but hamstring injuries often require a player to miss several weeks. For Monchengladbach, that would force him out of Sundays game vs. Bundesliga leaders Bayern Munich.

For the United States national team, it would be even worse. Already reeling at the fullback position with injuries to DeAndre Yedlin and Eric Lichaj, along with the suspension of Timothy Chandler, U.S. coach Bruch Arena would be further hampered if Johnson missed the two matches.

Without Johnson, one of the top two or three players in the U.S. player pool, the Yanks are going to have to dig even deeper to find a way to win.

Christian Pulisic gave yet another strong outing for Borussia Dortmund in Tuesday's German Cup match, breaking a scoreless deadlock with a 57th-minute goal against Sportfreunde Lotte.

Pulisic now has five goals and eight assists for Dortmund across all competitions this season.

On Friday, Pulisic and Dortmund will have a golden opportunity to enhance its grip on third place in the Bundesliga, and perhaps inch closer to second place Leipzig, when it hosts relegation fodders Ingolstadt and its American midfielder Alfredo Morales.

Under Jurgen Klinsmann, Morales received occasional national team call-ups but never really fit into to the team. Under Arena, his name is rarely mentioned. If Morales wants an international career he has to produce standout performances now because next year he will likely play in Germany's second tier. In central midfield, other American players like Emerson Hyndman, Kellyn Acosta, and Sebastian Lletget are stepping up both domestically and abroad.

Tim Ream has enjoyed a strong 2016-17 season for Fulham and the St. Louis native is now squarely back in the U.S. national team picture. He's got a lot going on at the club level too.

Fulham now sits in seventh place in the English Championship and is desperately trying to claw into the top sixthe last spot for the promotional playoff tournament.

The Cottagers had their chance on Tuesday in a home game against Blackburn but blew it. It was a game that a promotion hopeful has to win and Ream should have registered an assist. In the opening minutes when he got on the end of a free kick and sent a header to Sone Aluko in front of the goal. Unfortunately, the Nigerians shot when just wide.

With Fulham up 2-1 in the fourth minute of stoppage time, Ream lost Lucas Joao in the box and the Blackburn man headed home the equalizer with just second left. For Fulham to squander two points at home to the 21st-place team is a huge disappointment.

On Saturday, Fulham host Wolverhampton and it is another big chance to climb into the top six. A win would likely do the trick as sixth place Sheffield Wednesday and fifth place Reading face off. With one of those two dropping points, the door is once again open for Fulham to get back into the playoff picture.

It will be an important test for Ream.

When the United States national team assembles next week in California ahead of its crucial World Cup qualifier against Honduras, Geoff Cameron will be arriving on the heels of an important match as Stoke City hosts Premier League leaders Chelsea on Saturday.

Cameron should once again be in the starting lineup for the Potters. Since returning from injury he has been playing predominantly in defensive midfield although that is unlikely where he will play for the Yanks.

Under Klinsmann, Cameron was a first-choice central defender despite stints at right back and defensive midfield. But with DeAndre Yedlin and Eric Lichaj injured, the Graham Zusi at right back experiment likely over, and Timothy Chandler not called up due to suspension, dont be surprised if Arena plays Cameron at right back due to his experience and maturity.

Two players heading in opposite directions will be facing off on Saturday when Timothy Chandler and Eintracht Frankfurt host Bobby Wood and Hamburg SV on Saturday.

Eintracht Frankfurt has been in a tailspin the past month, suffering through five consecutive losses. Chandler has not performed well during this difficult span and has dropped in form after beginning the season playing great soccer.

Meanwhile, Wood is playing the best soccer of his career and Hamburg can finally move clear of the relegation zone for the first time this season. Last Sunday, of course, Wood scored a late match winner as HSV upset Borussia Monchengladbach 2-1.

On Wednesday, Wood also received a bit of good news when Hamburg sporting director Jens Todt said that Hamburg are ready to begin talks about a new contract.

Wood, 24, currently earns 1.5 million per year and his contract runs through 2020. The fact that HSV wants to give him a new contract reflects just how highly the clubs front office rates him. Its easy to see why: His numbers are very strong despite Hamburgs 16th-placestanding in the Bundesliga. Across all competitions, Wood has nine goals in 1,637 total minutesone goal every 181 minutes.

Also this week it was reported that Wood hired super-agent Volker Struth to represent him. Struths clients include Mario Gotze, Toni Kroos, Benedikt Howedes, Omer Toprak, Josip Drmic, and Marco Reus. Woods move to Struth is a clear indication that Wood is going to be expensive and clubs bigger than Hamburg might be interested in the near future.

DeAndre Yedlin has had a great season so far for Newcastle United, a club expected to rejoin the Premier League despite stumbling lately. Yedlin has been out for most of March and what was initially reported as a knock was later revealed to be a hamstring pull.

Yedlin was left off the U.S. men's national team roster yesterday and it was revealed he would miss five more weeks with this injuryjeopardizing the rest of his 2016-17 campaign.

Emerson Hyndman is currently in a great run on loan with Rangers. He is starting every week and is heavily involved in goals, assists, and overall offensive production from his central midfield position.

Last week he earned accolades among Rangers faithful for his performance in the final 20 minutes against Celtic when he helped Rangers draw leaders Celtic 1-1 in the Old Firm derby. It was Hyndmans shot that forced a rebound that led to the equalizer.

Rangers supporters are making it known that they desperately want to keep the Texan who is on loan from English Premier League club Bournemouth.

The problem is that last year Hyndman agreed to a four-year deal with Bournemouth so any buyout to make a permanent deal to Rangers is going to be costly. After the financial wreck Rangers have been mired in the past six years, management is unlikely to spend big on any one player.

Either way, Hyndman is in a great spot. The quality in the Scottish Premier League has been on a decline the past decade but Hyndman will attract interest from other clubs should Bournemouth decide to sell or loan him out again. Most likely he will be playing at a higher level but taking a big role at Rangers is not the worst option at the moment either.

On Saturday, Hyndman will look to continue on with his nice run when Rangers host Hamilton Academical FC at Ibrox.

Continued here:
ASN article: Fabian Johnson Injured, Emerson Hyndman Thriving - AmericanSoccerNow.com

It's now seven painful seasons since the Gunners reached the last eight. So who's progressed beyond them in that time?

Arsenal crashed out at the last 16 stage for the seventh season running with their recent 10-2 aggregate defeat to Bayern Munich.

The Bavarians (three times),Barcelona (twice), Milan and Monaco have bested Arsene Wenger's side in that period, leaving Gooners tearing out what little hair they have remaining as they contemplate their annual failure to advance beyond the first knockout game of Europe's premier competition.

This year they're hardly alone of the three English sides that got beyond the group stage, only one has reached the last eight in 2016/17.

But anyway, to the quiz: you've got five minutes to name all the clubs that have reached the quarter-finals since 2009/10, then tell us how you got on @FourFourTwo. If you don't give answers away we'll retweet you to the masses. Oh, and tell us your times too. Deal? Grand.

(Please note: You'll need to turn off your adblockers on our site, else they'll block this quiz too. And nobody wants to see that.)

More time-killing quizzes on FourFourTwo.com

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Quiz! Can you name the teams who've reached a Champions ... - FourFourTwo

Eric Bailly has sent a message to Manchester United fans ahead of their sides second leg clash with FC Rostov in the last 16 of the Europa League on Thursday.

Jose Mourinhos men will head into the game firmly in the driving seat after claiming a 1-1 draw in Russia last week, with Henrikh Mkhitaryan grabbing a vital away goal in the first half.

Bailly was unable to feature against Rostov following his red card against Saint Etienne in the previous round but will be in contention to start at Old Trafford.

And the Ivorian, speaking to MUTV, was quick to emphasise the importance of playing at home ahead of the game against Rostov.

At Old Trafford, the fans are like the 12th player,he said.

They always give everything until they are hoarse to get behind us and give us a lift. Its great that the tie will be decided at home and we can do our utmost to get the victory needed and send the fans home happy.

Its really important that we make the quarter-finals in this very difficult competition. All the players are aware of how much it means to make it through and so, when the day of the match comes around, well be ready and prepared to ensure we start well.

We always aim high in everything we do here. I managed to get to the semi-finals last year but that wasnt enough. We didnt win the cup or even get to the final itself so, for me now, its all about taking things a stage at a time.

As Ive said before, this competition brings plenty of surprises in a season so, first of all, we have to focus on getting through against Rostov and then we can think a little further ahead after that.

Nobody in that Man United squad enjoyed the first leg: the pitch, the physical approach from the home side, the eerie atmosphere it was, by all accounts, incongruous to ones general conception of a European knockout game.

But one suspects that the home tie will possess an entirely different complexion. United will have the chance to get the ball down, move Rostov all over the pitch and exploit space with far more ease, and supporters will just hope that, in a potentially season-defining encounter, Mourinhos men dont draw a blank in front of goal.

Read the rest here:
Eric Bailly sends a message to Manchester United fans - The Peoples Person

The FC panel preview Manchester City's leg two clash against Monaco in the UEFA Champions League. Pep Guardiola is well aware of the dangers that his City side face when travelling to Monaco in the Champions League.

Manchester City must build on last season's run to the Champions League semifinals, Kevin De Bruyne has said.

City reached the last four for the first time in their history before losing to eventual winners Real Madrid.

They had knocked out Dynamo Kiev and Paris Saint-Germain to reach that stage, winning a knockout game in the competition for the first time, and De Bruyne said they could use that belief to reach this year's final.

"I think it was important as a team to make the next step," he said. "City have had a difficult time in Europe, which is new for this club, but last year we did great in the Champions League.

"I think we now have to try to emulate that. We had a really difficult group last year and then we had to play PSG and Real Madrid, but I don't think this year has been any easier.

"I think that when you play at the highest level, you're always playing in big matches whether it's in the Premier League, the cups, the Champions League or at international level."

City head to Monaco on Wednesday for their round-of-16 second leg clash holding a 5-3 advantage after a thrilling first leg.

And De Bruyne said: "I think we can reach the final, but of course the other teams will think the same and that doesn't make it easier.

"It will be very tough against Monaco. They are doing extremely well, but we are very positive and if we beat them we are through to the quarterfinals, after which the final is not that far away.

"That would be fantastic. I think that's what we're here for."

Jonathan is ESPN FC's Manchester City correspondent. Follow him on Twitter: @jonnysmiffy.

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Kevin De Bruyne: Manchester City can draw on last year to get to UCL final - ESPN FC

DETERMINED: Aguero fires an effort at goal but he can't beat Valdes A Wembley appearance is the prize for the victor when Manchester City face Middlesbrough in Saturday's FA Cup quarter-final, but what subplots are also on the pre-match agenda?

Here are four things to consider...

This will be the second of three games in seven days for City, which rightly poses the question, to what extent will Pep Guardiola rotate his squad?

Raheem Sterling was rested for the midweek game against Stoke and given his form, whether or not he returns to the fray is perhaps the most pertinent question of all.

The manager has made it abundantly clear the immediate threat of Middlesbrough is his primary concern, so the appeal of naming the flying winger in his starting XI is obvious.

But there is the finely balanced Champions League tie with Monaco to consider and so Pep may wish to utilise squad depth and bring the likes of Nolito in from the start.

In amongst his selection and tactical considerations, Guardiola must also contend with FA Cup rule changes.

For the first time there will be no quarter-final replay, meaning this game could go to penalties.

The prospect of a shoot-out could possibly impact on Peps substitutes if the game goes to extra-time, when the boss will be afforded an additional fourth sub.

How and whether he uses this is, of course, at his discretion, but it's sure to be an interesting subplot to the weekends fixture.

The home sides defensive record belies their 18th placed Premier League position Boro have the fifth meanest back line in the league, but its their profligacy up front which has been their undoing.

You would expect City to enjoy the lions share of possession on Saturday, but that is dependent on whether the home side maintain their usual approach.

Clean sheets are most definitely the priority for Aitor Karanka.

However, in a knockout game, free of the concerns of preserving Premier League status and with the defensive trio of George Friend, Daniel Ayala and Calum Chambers all unavailable, might the Spaniard throw caution to the win and decide attack is the best form of defence?

With Stewart Downing and Gaston Ramirez supplying Alvaro Negredo and the powerful Rudy Gestede, Boro could certainly prove to be a handful.

Its been four years since City last played at Wembley in the FA Cup and Guardiola is certainly keen to end the wait.

The impact of such a timely boost cannot be underestimated.

The FA Cup can so often be the catalyst for a fine run of form and while City have certainly been impressive of late, fans and players alike would welcome to the opportunity to head into the tough tests against Monaco and Liverpool buoyed by a confidence swelling Wembley appearance.

Find out what new rules you need to be aware of.

Guardiola's injury update ahead of Middlesbrough trip

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Middlesbrough v Man City: Talking points - Manchester City