GUZAN ALMOST WITH ASTON VILLA CHIVAS USA: GOALIE APPEARS HEADED TO THE ENGLISH PREMIER LEAGUE.Byline: Billy Witz Staff Writer After a trial and weeks of courting by Celtic FC, Chivas USA goalkeeper Brad Guzan Brad Guzan (born September 9, 1984 in Evergreen Park, Illinois) is an American soccer goalkeeper of Polish descent, who currently plays for C.D. Chivas USA of Major League Soccer. appears headed instead to Aston Villa for more than $4 million when the winter transfer window closes today. The offer, double what Celtic had been offering, is contingent on Adj. 1. contingent on - determined by conditions or circumstances that follow; "arms sales contingent on the approval of congress" contingent upon, dependant on, dependant upon, dependent on, dependent upon, depending on, contingent Guzan gaining a work permit, for which he will have a hearing today. Guzan, the 2007 MLS See multilevel security. Goalkeeper of the Year after helping lead Chivas to the best record in the Western Conference, left training camp with the United States United States, officially United States of America, republic (2005 est. pop. 295,734,000), 3,539,227 sq mi (9,166,598 sq km), North America. The United States is the world's third largest country in population and the fourth largest country in area. national team on Tuesday to head to Birmingham, England. Guzan, 23, had been tight-lipped tight·lipped also tight-lipped adj. 1. Having the lips pressed together. 2. Loath to speak; close-mouthed. See Synonyms at silent. about transfer possibilities while he'd been in training camp with the national team this month. But Monday, when asked if reports from England linking him to Aston Villa were true, he said, "That would be great." If the transfer goes through, Guzan will become the fifth American goalkeeper in the English Premier League, joining Blackburn's Brad Friedel Bradley ("Brad") Howard Friedel (born May 18, 1971 in Lakewood, Ohio) is an American international football (soccer) goalkeeper who plays for Blackburn Rovers in the English Premier League. , Fulham's Kasey Keller Kasey C Keller, (born November 29 1969 in Lacey, Washington, United States) is a football goalkeeper, who plays for Fulham of the English Premier League. He is a four time World Cup participant and one of the first American goalkeepers to become a regular in the English Premier , Reading's Marcus Hahneman and Everton's Tim Howard. United States coach Bob Bradley, who coached Guzan with Chivas in 2006, said Guzan's development after a shell-shocked rookie season in 2005 should be a strong indicator that he's ready to move up. "His mentally is really strong," said Bradley, who expects Guzan to return for the United States' game against Mexico on Wednesday in Houston. "He got thrown into a difficult situation his first year with Chivas. As a young goalkeeper that's hard. I would say that not all young goalkeepers would have survived that year. Brad's got a competitive side to him. He's got a real mentality that holds up under pressure." The move might have caught Chivas unguarded after it allowed veteran backup Preston Burpo to leave. There are currently no goalkeepers on the roster for the team, which opens training camp next week. However, Chivas will be well compensated being allowed to keep two-thirds of the transfer fee, the remaining portion going to MLS. Guzan wasn't the only Chivas member Wednesday to make a big leap across the pond. Assistant coach Martin Vasquez was hired by new Bayern Munich coach Jurgen Klinsmann, and will join the club when Klinsmann takes over in July. billy.witz@dailynews.com |
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