Brad Friedel’s Best Moments at Tottenham Hotspur

Article submitted by Andy from Spurs for Life, a site dedicated to covering all things Tottenham. Cover photo belongs to PA Photos

In the summer of 2011, Brad Friedel arrived at Tottenham with a wealth of experience, going on to make 50 league appearances for the club over the next five years. The 42-year-old veteran shot-stopper joined Spurs from Aston Villa, keeping up his record of consecutive Premier League appearances. He reached 310 league matches in a row before Hugo Lloris arrived and momentarily knocked him out of the team in October 2012. But the competition between Friedel and Lloris was far from over.

Friedel started the next match in a season where Lloris had to fight to prove his worth against a tried and tested goalkeeper. Eventually, experience gave way to youth; Friedel retired in 2014 as the oldest player to play in the Premier League, with the most appearances in the league from the Americas.

Friedel named “Man of the Match” in a win over the Canaries

A key flashpoint in the Lloris vs Friedel encounter, the American played a blinder in September 2012 against Norwich City. Friedel’s performance outshone what was an awful start to the season for Spurs; the Lilywhites had made their worst start in the Premier League for four years. He may have conceded a late equalizer by Robert Snodgrass, but his saves ensured that Spurs at least came away with a point.

Ex-teammate Seb Bassong was quick to compliment Friedel who he faced on the day. "Uncle Brad was magic, I've never doubted his quality. He is one of the best in the Premier League," he said. "He's a terrific player and there's going to be a tough competition between him and Hugo. They finished fourth last year and [Friedel] played a big part in that."

Friedel in Europe

Friedel eventually took on a supporting role at Tottenham, limited to playing in just the Europa League matches. Again, he set a record for the oldest player in the UEFA Cup or Europa League at 42-years-old but he was still going strong in Europe. In the 2013/14 season he was particularly impressive, with 2.17 PPG in the matches he was between the sticks. This included a clean sheet away at Tromso in late November, in a 2-0 victory that helped Spurs reach the top of Group K.

He made his final Europa league appearance for Spurs against Benfica. The Lilywhites were already chasing an aggregate score of 1-3 and would go on to draw 2-2 at Benfica but it made for one of the most dramatic matches that Friedel was a part of. The American could not keep out a very late penalty from Lima dos Santos on 90+5 minutes and there was little Friedel could do for the first goal conceded in the first half.

Spurs eventually found a response in the 78th minute and it all began with Brad Friedel. He picked out a young Harry Kane, whose flick to Nacer Chadli sent him on his way to fire past Jan Oblak. Sadly Tottenham couldn’t hang on, but it was another historic appearance for the club in Europe in which Friedel starred.

Nicholas Ammeter Interview: Swiss-American Goalkeeper Making Waves Overseas

cover photo from IFM Sport

Nicholas Ammeter is a 20-year-old Swiss-American goalkeeper playing for FC Aarau in Switzerland’s second division. Despite being born in New York City, Ammeter has been involved with the Swiss youth national teams at essentially every level from U16 to U21. Last year Ammeter, in the 2019-20 season, Ammeter was the starter for the club at just 19 years old but this year he’s been the number two goalkeeper for FC Aarau. Ammeter opens up about his journey to FC Aarau, the challenges of regaining the number one spot, and how he views his dual citizenship.

You joined FC Aarau at a young age. What about the club sold you on the idea of joining them?

I joined FC Aarau when I was 5 years old and it is the club of the city where we lived and still live in today. It's the biggest club in the region and all of my friends were playing at the club. So it wasn't competitive, obviously, at that young age but just because of joy and it was an opportunity to play soccer and to spend time with my friends all at once made it a no-brainer for me to play here as well. Because I joined at such a young age there weren't any expectations of how it could be. I just went to practice, spent 90 minutes full of joy, and then went home and that's kind of how it started.

You’re just turned 20 years old this month, so how do you view yourself when establishing a goalkeeping style? For those that haven’t seen you play yet, which modern goalkeeper are you most similar to?

Because I came up in Switzerland I'd describe my style most similar to Roman Bürki from Borussia Dortmund. In Switzerland, the philosophy of goalkeeper training is structured from the national football association and therefore is in every club more or less the same. That's why all the goalkeepers in the competitive youth teams of bigger clubs and in the youth national teams have more or less the same basics, because the focus in practice at a young age everywhere is kind of the same. There's a lot of focus on being comfortable playing out from the back with your feet and pretty much every club, especially at youth team levels, plays out from the back. That’s why, like Roman Bürki, I'd say that's one of my strengths. Another big focus is on reaction saves and 1v1s, another part of the game I'd say is a strength of mine.

From other countries, I love to see Jan Oblak (reactions and long-range shots), Marc-Andre Ter Stegen (playing with his feet), and Dean Henderson (overall body language and how he commands the area at his fairly young age) play. I idolize them and try to replicate their movements and apply it to my game.

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In the 2019-20 season, you played every league match as the club finished 10-11-15 (W-T-L) but this season you’ve started off on the bench. What keeps you motivated to keep developing, knowing you’re at a young point in your career?

Obviously, there are some rough days but to work hard, that's all I do. When I was 15 years old the youth coaches laughed at me when I said I want to be in the youth national team and become a professional because I wasn't a starter in my youth team and every summer I was afraid of whether I would make the cut for the next team or not. So when I told them of my dreams I started to do extra work every day. It paid off really quick and I've never stopped with it since. It's just the belief in myself and in my abilities because even though I had kind of an up and down season last year, I proved that I can play at this level at a young age. I know that even though it's a cliche, hard work eventually pays off and I know it because I've experienced it first hand.

My family is extremely supportive of me but we don't talk soccer a lot at home. My dad was a professional handball player and my siblings also play competitive sports. So when we talk sports, for the longest time it's usually about the mental aspect of the game and that's why I know what I have to do to achieve my goals. I know I have to work extremely hard to reach those goals.

What’s the feedback from the coaching staff at Aarau about where you need to continue to develop? What are your strengths and weaknesses as a young goalkeeper?

They told me I have to develop the physical part of the game, get stronger and work on my explosiveness to have better demand of the 18 yard box, and improve on long-range shot-stopping ability. My strengths are short-range saves (reaction on the line and 1v1) and my ability to play out from the back with my feet (understanding of the situation, when to quickly start a counter-attack, etc).

You’re no stranger to the Swiss youth national teams, playing with them at nearly every level. However, American fans can’t help but notice you were born in New York City. Knowing there’s still a lot of time ahead of you, how are you viewing international play since you have dual citizenship with Switzerland and the US?

Those kinds of questions are not in my head at the time. I believe in taking small steps and then they will lead to wherever you want to go. So that's a discussion for down the road and is obviously depending on my options. I am a proud Swiss and a proud American. So I'd be extremely proud whatever team I'd have the chance to play for but, like I said, that's a discussion for a later date and time.

Are you getting any encouragement to play for one more than the other from family and friends?

No, none whatsoever. My friends and my family never encouraged me to play for one or the other. But like I said, at home and even with my friends, soccer isn't that big of a topic. Obviously, I love the game and watch a lot of games, but they know I like it when I can spend time with them not talking about soccer but a lot of other stuff as well. Soccer is my biggest passion since I was a little kid but I love all kinds of sports and I'm interested in a lot of different things, so I can't talk about soccer 24/7 and maybe that's the reason why nobody has ever encouraged me one or the other way.

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NWSL Art Interview: Reimagining the League's Best Moments

Dariush Ramezani is an award winning cartoonist and graphic artist. This year he’s taken on the task of illustrating every goal from the 2020 NWSL season in a unique minimalistic style. Ramezani talks about his history finding his voice as an artist and how he came about illustrating the NWSL. You can find Ramezani @Artnwsl on Twitter and @nwsl_art on Instagram.

You first started drawing as a kid, emulating Javad Alizadeh’s caricatures of players from the 1986 World Cup. What about drawing was so rewarding and why have you continued it throughout your life?

Well as long as I remember, soccer was always my favorite hobby: memorizing the names of the players, collecting the card, watching the games. So when I saw Javad’s artworks about the “heroes”, it was like a miracle. The best thing ever! I still remember the feeling I had those days. I was drawing, playing soccer, and studying. I went to university for civil engineering and then worked as a full-time engineer for 10 years. During these years, drawing cartoons and illustrations and playing soccer were my favorite ways to spend free time. At day, I was an engineer and at night a freelance illustrator and cartoonist.

I was participating in a cartoon contest around the world, I won some prizes, I draw and wrote some comics, and I never give up on my dream of being an illustrator. I immigrated to Canada with my wife in 2014 and I decided to follow my dream of being a full-time graphic designer and freelance sport illustrator now. I would tell you that I’m so close!

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You have a really interesting style that simultaneously minimizes details but still displays people and actions with a tangible breath of life. How did you settle on your minimalist approach and how do you make them so relatable at the same time?

I love drawing people in the simplest way. Last year I made a challenge for myself of drawing 50 Montreal Expos baseball team players. I live in Montreal and last year, 2019, was the 50th anniversary of the team. The Expos don’t exist anymore but people still love them. I believe working on this personal project helped me a lot to get my minimalist style. I try to find the important lines in the face and at the same time make the portrait recognizable.

 

You’ve done work on a number of leagues but you’ve covered the NWSL a fair bit. As someone who was born in Iran and now lives in Canada, what about the NWSL has pulled you towards illustrating players and memorable plays from the US’s league?

Well I took a graphic design course in Montreal and after finishing the course in 2018, I started working in a licensed sports apparel company. The main part of my job was designing artworks to print on shirts for different leagues (CFL, MLB, MLS, NBA). I had the chance to work on some players too. This gave me an idea to work on some sports illustrations about players. I started drawing more and more players in all leagues and I got my first contract with Montreal Alouettes Football Club to make a small illustrated card pack about the team legends. Once I did a project with a writer who asked me to draw some goals in the Canadian University Sports games. He sent me the video and I tried to draw the goals by watching the moments. It was hard at first but I really like it.

So I decided to do it for a league and I started my big project, all Canadian Premier League (CPL) goals in 2020. After each game, I was drawing the goals and put them on my Twitter and Instagram page. People liked them so much and the CPL called me to have a collaboration to make an illustrated book about the games with all the goals. I think it will be released soon. I started working on NWSL games by starting The Fall Series, the same story. I really enjoy working on the league from beginning to the end!

Tell us a little bit about the NWSL 2020 Moments book you just put out. That doesn’t sound like a project you’d just put together overnight.

The story began when I made new accounts to draw all the goals of the NWSL in 2020 by starting the Fall Series on September 5. After finishing each game, I drew the goals and put them on @Artnwsl on Twitter and @nwsl_art on Instagram. I got many followers and NWSL fans loved the drawings.

I decided to make a book of all these moments. I couldn’t find a sponsor and publisher, so I decided to be a self-publisher and do it with Lulu.com.

(“NWSL2020 moments: Challenge Cup and Fall Series”, a 210-page illustrated book with more than 150 illustrations now is now available!!

 
How can people find your work?

I have an online shop, Curly Fries Design on Etsy. I sell my prints arts there and do commissions. As I mentioned, my Twitter account is @Artnwsl and @nwsl_art on Instagram.

2020 NCAA Men's Goalkeeper Rankings (Winter Break)

cover photo from Duke University

The fall season concludes this November but a number of question marks still loom as we head into the spring season. As to how the MLS draft and final months of the college season will unfold, it’s anyone’s guess. As of now, the top goalkeepers are listed below, as rated by Everybody Soccer, but it should be noted that about half the goalkeepers haven’t played a competitive collegiate game in over a year.

Seniors

1. Will Pulisic (Duke)
2. Chase Vosvick (Loyola Maryland)
3. Tor Saunders (Coastal Carolina)
4. Enrique Facusse (Kentucky, Honduras)
5. Jan Hoffelner (St. John's, Germany)
6. Ben Hale (Furman)
7. Matthew Rosenberg (Xavier)
8. Colin Shutler (Virginia)
9. Jake Gelnovatch (Louisville)
10. Noah Lawrence (Ohio State)
11. Carson Williams (Villanova)
12. Connor Gavigan (Florida Gulf Coast)
13. Will Palmquist (Denver)
14. TJ Bush (James Madison)
15. Drew Romig (Belmont)

One to watch: Tor Saunders. Saunders is a prototypical MLS 1.0 goalkeeper. He’s technically sound, he’s not afraid to leave his line, and he has the needed athleticism to cover both the high and low parts of the net. Despite coming out of the Seattle Sounders’ academy, Saunders had a relatively quiet start to his collegiate tenure. After three years at Akron, two of which he sat, Saunders transferred to Coastal Carolina and led the Chanticleers to a 6-1-1 record, as well as a Sun Belt Championship. If Saunders can carry on the success through the spring season, look for professional sides to try to bring him in for 2021.

Juniors

1. Andrew Thomas (Stanford)
2. Giannis Nikopolidis (Georgetown, Greece)
3. Justin Garces (UCLA)
4. Elian Haddock (Yale)
5. Quantrell Jones (UMBC)
6. George Tasouris (Grand Canyon, Cyprus)
7. Leon Krapf (NC State, Germany)
8. Dane Jacomen (Penn)
9. George Marks (Clemson)
10. Alex Budnik (Dartmouth)

One to watch: Elian Haddock. Talk to anyone who has watched Haddock over the past year and they’ll praise his game on a number of levels: strong hands, fluid movement, and willingness to put his body on the line. As he enters his junior year, the last box Haddock has to check is his ability to improv when plays break down. The 3-1 win over Dartmouth last fall showcased some of the high and low points to Haddock’s game. Multiple times in the game, Haddock showed confident handling and smooth footwork in the box. However, Haddock’s shutout is lost on an unorthodox chance on goal, where Haddock struggled to read the ball quick enough to drop step and push the lob over the bar. If Haddock can show more consistency in dealing with atypical situations, the Ivy Leaguer could make a run at the next level.

Sophomores

1. Kris Shakes (Penn State)
2. Tomas Romero (Georgetown, El Salvador)
3. Michael Collodi (Columbia)
4. Patrick Schulte (Saint Louis)
5. Roman Celentano (Indiana)
6. Sam Fowler (Washington)
7. Matt Zambetti (Virginia Tech)
8. Collin Travasos (California)
9. Ryan Bilichuk (South Carolina)
10. Justin Grady (George Washington)

One to watch: Kris Shakes. Somewhat counter to junior goalkeeper Elian Haddock, Shakes’ difficulties don’t seem to be found in his improvisational skills. Shakes has a great “nose for the ball” and combined with his explosive range, strikers should cherish the rare goal that slips past the Penn State goalkeeper. However, Shakes leans a little too heavily on throwing his body at the ball, often using it as his first and last option in stopping a chance on goal. The controlled chaos approach is reminiscent of Steve Clark and Bill Hamid but the veteran goalkeepers have a clear blueprint they work off, which strengthens their ability to react in a natural and fitting way for themselves. If Shakes can find a similar blueprint for himself, one that gives him more consistency yet doesn’t shackle his approach, MLS could prove to be a springboard for a career overseas.

Freshmen

1. Ryan Schewe (Georgetown)
2. James Lowell (Maryland)
3. Bryan Dowd (Notre Dame)
4. Brant Zulauf (Mercer)
5. Marco Saborio Perez (North Carolina, Costa Rica)
6. Josue Hangi (Akron)
7. John Harms (Duke)
8. Ethan Wood (Michigan)
9. Eliot Jones (Stanford)
10. Alex Rando (Virginia)

One to watch: Bryan Dowd. Dowd was one of four freshmen invited to SKC’s college combine this fall, joining a senior-heavy group to showcase their talent to professional scouts. The Notre Dame backup didn’t see any minutes this fall but the USYNT product will likely take over the starting position next year. Dowd has an interesting blend of power and speed but, as of right now, it’s unforeseen how long he’ll stay with the Fighting Irish.

Past Collegiate Goalkeeper Rankings

2019: Preseason and Final
2018: Preseason and Final
2017: Preseason and Final
2016: Preseason and Final
2015: Preseason and Final
2014: Final