Mad Brit Diary: A few moments devoted to thought and reflection.

If American forward Brian McBride had stayed with Everton in the English Premier League would the Toffees, now third from the bottom of the table, be in such dire straits? Now Blackburn Rovers are taking a look at the big striker and hoping get him on loan from Major League Soccer. . . Is Freddy Adu really 14-years-old? A writer to the Mad Brit says he met Freddy three years ago in Florida and he was told that Freddy was 14 back then. . . . One has to wonder how well England would have done at the under-20 FIFA World Youth Championship if stars Wayne Rooney, James Milner, Jermaine Jenas and Jermaine Pennart had participated. Milner scored a lovely goal for Leeds United last week. Predictably, England made an early exit. The English don't give a damn about youth sports.

How did Bahrain Sheik Abdulrahman bin Mubarak Al-Khalifa (Sheik for short) end up being a crazy Leeds fan? The Sheik wants to save the club from bankruptcy. Is this the same Leeds United that won the title just 13 years ago? Now the club is over $100 million in the red. . . So was it Ray Hudson's thick accent and flowery language that upset the suits at D.C. United, who booted out the Geordie this week. Didn't this guy get the team to into the playoffs?. . . When France faces England in the Euro 2004 opening round, it will be just like Arsenal going up against Manchester United won't it?

Maybe American Clint Mathis didn't get a contract with Glasgow Rangers because he looked real bad wearing a kilt and he hates haggis. Is Mathis paying Kasey Keller to be his spokesman: "If Rangers are looking for a real out-and-out goal-getter, then Clint could be their man," Keller saidthis week. "He has scored a lot of important goals for (the United States) and was linked with a number of big-money moves before the last World Cup, but nothing materialized for him.". . . So when Jovan Kirovski's contract runs out at Birmingham City this summer, will he hop over the pond and play in Major League Soccer?

Now that Manchester United hs won the race to sign Chinese star striker striker Dong Fangzhuo, 18, from top club Dalian Shide, will the Red Devils tour China in 2005 to tap into that nation's giant market?. . . So what happened to Rivaldo who helped the Brazil win the 2002 World Cup? The Brazilian star, famous for his dramatic acting, was released from his $7.2-million-a-year contract by Italian giant A.C. Milan. So will 31-year-old be heading to a club in the EPL? Liverpool and Chelsea have shown interest in the 2000 "World Player of the Year." Come on lad, join us in Merry England.

Could this be the comeback for former Nottingham Forest midfielder Ben Olsen? The D.C. United midfielder has been invited into the U.S. training camp by coach Bruce Arena. Go. Benny go. . . Was the Mad Brit dreaming or did Portuguese big-dollar signing, star Helder Postiga finally score his first goal for Tottenham Hotspur in the 3-1 win over Manchester City in the Carling Cup this week? One might expect a few more goals for the $10 million Spurs doled out. As for City, Claudio Reyna was clearly the best player on the field.

OK, so Reading lost the game, but Yankee goalkeeper Marcus Hahnemann made a five top-class saves for the First Division outfit in a 1-0 loss to Premier League leader Chelsea, with its $100 million lineup, in the Carling Cup this week. . . Get this, England will play Wales in World Cup qualifying. David Beckham up against his old pal Ryan Giggs. The two teams haven't met since 1984. Wales coach Mark Hughes scored the game-winner in the 1-0 game at the age of 20 in his international debut. . .And finally: Talk about an embarrassing loss. South Korea, which reached the semifinals of the 2002 World Cup, lost 1-0 to Ulsan University on last Tuesday. Korea coach Humberto Coelho is hanging on to his job after the humiliating loss to the university team.

That's all for now.

The mailbox

David King writes: "Didn't Johann Cruyff debut for Ajax at the age of 12? If not, who is the youngest player to play for his country's top fight league? Could the US actually produce a "first" in the history of the game with Adu? (Cruyff debuted at 19)

Michael Thompson writes: "Why isn't there a more vocal opposition to the possible entrance of Chivas into MLS. The action is extremely polarizing. Chivas is a great team, but should not be copied and pasted into MLS. Chivas will not move the league in a progressive manner. The Latino community plays an extremely important role in the United States, but no individual group should be pandered to or it will leave all other groups with a bad taste in their mouth. Importing a soccer culture to create a soccer culture will do nothing for MLS except reinforce the mainstream idea that soccer is an ethnic game.

"To build culture, the MLS needs to have a good product which, in turn, will bring in more investment and more fans. The issue in regards to a Latino-based organization is heated as well. Although MLS indicates Chivas will follow MLS conventions, the point of segregation has already occurred. Latino players, Latino coach, Latino management who all speak Spanish. I am guessing that Garber doesn't live in California. Political issues over the past several years within California show how segregated the Latinos and Americans have become."

Anonymous writes: "Good Morning, MB. Adu this and Adu that; yeah, he is a nice kid, down to earth and charming you say. I agree. A very quick player with good speed as well, he is strong and has good size, skillful, talented -- at the end of the day a nice win for MLS. It seems as if everyone across the board agrees on these points. The question is, where does he develop the best?

"However, there is one other point that may help put things in perspective that seems to be misleading. A minor detail that is, MB, is he really 14-years-old? How do you know --because someone said he is? I met Adu three years ago at Bradenton, Fla., when he was introduced to me. I was told he was 14 (and) that I needed to watch this kid play and keep an eye on him for the future. Hmmm, he is still 14 today, how does that work?

"Sometimes I wonder if it is not the American Spin Machine driven by the All Mighty Dollar working. Oh well. My son has played with Adu and knows him -- he is not 14-years-old. Think of it this way, watch his interviews and then some other professional athletes of the same age (most are females) and tell me what you think. Furthermore, the females mature earlier than the males and when you look at golf and tennis, these kids are groomed with the complete overall package from Day One.

"U.S. Soccer doesn't have that infrastructure and education to tap into for its budding athletes. He is a cool kid, but I don't believe he is 14.

Daniel Sullivan says: "Hey, MB I heard Freddy will be 17 during the next World Cup, not 16. About him living up to his potential, all we can do is hope. Anyone can see his fantastic touch and creativity on the ball. I just hope he develops enough to withstand the physical play he will encounter in full internationals. The kid has world class skill. The question is will he be able to withstand the punishment he'll get from world-class defenders.

Mike Hollenbach writes: "I liked your article about Adu and thought you raised many good points. Here is possibly a more relevant comparison to Adu that you overlooked in your article. Current D.C. United (and sometimes U.S. national team midfielder Bobby Convey broke into the MLS and D.C. United first team at the age of16. Granted, that's a little bit older than Adu, but Convey is developing into a pretty decent player and now, at age 20, has played four years in the league.

"I think D.C. United did a nice job of breaking in Convey, using him initially as a substitute his first year and then gradually increasing his minutes. Hopefully they can do the same with Adu without ruining him, but I think they have a good example in place to follow and Adu has a role model to help him develop.

Anthony F says: "I want to echo the sentiments of others who've mentioned that MLS should convert to a single-table format. I think 'Randall' has the perfect idea: Single table format, A-League as a second division with promotion\relegation, and showcase the U.S. Open Cup as a high profile tourney. If you could just encourage everyone in the U.S. soccer community (especially those with a little clout) to get behind this idea. I've felt that all these little attempts to customize soccer for the U.S. market haven't helped the domestic game.

"For the record, I'm a regular native-born U.S. citizen. I grew up playing baseball, gridiron football and hoops (as well as the occasional sandlot soccer game), just like most American kids. I'm just a fan\spectator, never been a player in the organized sense. I only got into it about five years ago when cable TV offered the oppurtunity to see the EPL and a lot of World Cup games. It took a little while to get acquainted with the finer points of the game, but it was obvious from the beginning that this was quality sports entertainment. Now, I would really like to see it become more accessible and successful here."

David Latane writes: "In any other league in the world, a coach would have an option about playing a 14-year-old. Professional clubs in Europe have bulging competitive youth teams, where talented youngsters -- trainees -- develop in challenging league play before graduating to the reserve team and then hopefully on to the first team. Not so in America. . . I believe the U.S. is over-exaggerating Freddie Adu. Sure, he's pretty awesome and has great skill for his age, but there are kids his age that are just as good, if not better, but don't receive enough recognition. I believe once Adu starts playing, both in the US and overseas, he'll just be another face in the crowd."

Kevin Lindstrom writes: "Is MLS the Premiership? No. But it is better than the Premiership reserves and Adu will in fact be playing against players who want to see him succeed. Do you think he would be in an 'empowering environment' in England?

Terry Gould writes: "Until it makes sense, I, for one, will not get excited over MLS. I'm as big a supporter of the sport as there is but, I don't believe in reinventing the wheel. MLS should use a single-table format and the champion would come from the long haul, not a short little end-of-the-season tournament. If the two-table system stays, make the tournament mean something! Top two in each division with an aggregate semifinal and a one-match final. Taking the third and fourth teams in each table detracts from the whole affair."

Heard a rumor, have a gripe or a tip? Feeling lonely? E-mail the Mad Brit at themadbrit3@aol.com.