It was a remarkable attempt for Charlie Davies to come back from a litany of injuries suffered in an October car accident.
He’s rehabbed, training and done everything humanly possible to get back on the field in time for June’s World Cup, but according to his club team, he’s set to miss out on the trip to South Africa.
It’s been a fantastic story line, but recovering from a broken leg, multiple facial fractures and a lacerated bladder was always a tall mountain to climb.
What’s interesting is, according to Sports Illustrated’s Grant Wahl, U.S. Soccer is denying the AFP and Sky’s report. A spokesman told Wahl that, “nothing has changed” in Davies’ status.
Could be an interesting few hours.
Stay tuned.
EDIT: Apparently, FC Sochaux is amending its thoughts a bit:
“Charlie’s situation is encouraging,” FC Sochaux athletic trainer Cédric Blomme said. “He makes progress everyday and that’s good. It keeps his hopes alive. We can’t say it’s impossible. It’s important for him and the team. The US Soccer Federation will publish a list with 30 players and maybe he will be on this list. We have to see how far he can come in his progress.
“No one on our medical staff or spokesman of FC Sochaux-Montbéliard have announced other information.”
EDIT No. 2: The New York Times is reporting that Davies himself refutes the story.
What’s going on in Sochaux, anyway?
“Whoever is saying these things is trying to take the confidence out of me and doesn’t want me to succeed,” Davies told the paper by telephone from France on Tuesday. “For me, it’s just more motivation.”
And to answer a question, Sochaux has no say on whether he accepts a call-up. FIFA by-laws require teams to release players for international play.
The rule reads: “The coordinated match calendar enumerates all those occasions (including the World Cup) when a club is compelled to release its players for international duty. As indicated in this circular letter, there is a list of dates reserved for qualifying competitive and for friendly matches, for which players selected to represent their national team must be released by the clubs holding their registrations.”
So, this looks to be far from the last we hear on Davies’ race to be ready for the World Cup.
The French are not to be trusted. C’mon CD9!!!! We need you!
Who to believe…Grant Wahl and US Soccer or some French rumor mill that also reported that Lance Armstrong doped despite having no evidence whatsoever to back that up? NO ONE knows yet if Davies will be ready for the world cup, not even Davies himself. Thanks for the sensational headline, though.
Clayton, Agence France-Presse — the oldest news agency in the world — are reporting that Davies is out of the race to be fit for the World Cup. It’s not a sensational headline. It’s a matter of fact based on what AFP is reporting.
Cheers,
The Gaffer
Looks like it wasn’t
http://www.goal.com/en-us/news/1614/americans-abroad/2010/05/05/1910328/charlie-davies-says-he-hasnt-been-ruled-out-of-anything
Again, why would we listen to anything the French media has to say about an American athlete?
He may not make the squad, but I am getting a little tired of FCSM “saying things” about Davies and then going back and hedging. First we had the owner saying stuff, now this.
By the way, does Bradley have any say in whether or not he calls him in, or does Sochaux have to pronounce him fit to be eligible for a callup?
What would be remarkable is that a player that hasn’t played in the 8 months after nearly killing himself would be good enough to start for the USMNT.
IF he is, we might be in trouble.
We can speculate all we want, but we will know very shortly whether he is part of the camp. Only Bradley and his buddies know that.
Sochaux is a weird club to be doing this (alledgedly). This is their striker. Why try to affect his motivation? If he plays at the WC, his popularity will more than likely sky rocket. If he doesn’t play, he keeps training (proabably in France, too).
Very confusing.
Sad news, just like Beck´s
Not to be a jackass, but he should’ve thought about this before getting in the car drunk as a skunk and with a drunk driver on the night before a game. I hope he makes it, but he probably won’t. And if he’s not match fit, he shouldn’t be given the honor of even making the 30 name list.
You should have seen me get flamed on another blog site for that line of thinking.
He really screwed over his teamates. Very few, if any, think that he would NOT have been starting….therefore the best man for the job. HE, and only HE, threw that away.
What does he get for that ? Hero worshipped. Sends the wrong message to him and anyone in my opinion.
He’s a young man, we’ve all made stupid decisions in our lives. I’m sure 90 percent of people on this blog have gotten into a car with a drunk driver at least once. I know I have, I’m not saying it’s right, pretty stupid actually, but it’s a lapse in judgement that some pay for with their lives. He’s lucky to be alive let alone fighting for a spot on a world cup squad 7 months later. I completely support him in his full recovery whether it was his own stupidity that put him in this spot or not. That being said, if he’s not 90-100 percent for the cup, it’s a wait till 2014 situation for him……god I can’t wait for June 12th….
Well said
Not sure were AFP got their information from, but based on what I’ve seen, Bradley issued the camp call-up over a week ago and Charlie Davies is among the Americans going to the May camp.
Where did you see who he called ? Everyone has been waiting for that. IF you have it please post the link.
Good luck Charlie. Click my name for a downloadable world cup bracket tabulator
If he earns his spot, fine. No favors should be done for him, however. And if he doesn’t make the team, he shouldn’t be allowed to tag along as a mascot. This isn’t a Disney film.
The USNT needs heartlessness more than sentimentality.
Wow! There’s a lot of “feel-good story” hope out there about Charlie Davies, not only from the media but from Team USA fans as well. The objective here is to win the world cup, not to create Cinderella stories, Against-the-odd stories. If Charlie Davies is not 100% right now (a month away from the WC), why are so many fans hoping that he makes the world cup squad? Yes that would be a good story, but would that translate into a better squad for the US? I doubt it!