Mad Brit Diary

McBride's charmed stay with Everton is nearing its end.

(Friday, February 28, 2003) -- It's unlikely that American forward Brian McBride will stay at Premier League club Everton when his three-month loan period expires at the end of March.

McBride is under no illusions as the Premier League club's forward line returns to normalcy, with high-salaried players returning from injury. The American knows there are many younger players waiting in the wings ready to take the stage. But in his short time at Everton, McBride has become a fan favorite and it hasn't gone unnoticed that Canadian striker Tomasz Radzinski's form suddenly took off with the arrival of his North American counterpart.

Still, it appears Everton coach David Moyes, who McBride played with at Preston North End a few years back, wants younger players on the roster. And if Everton does win a spot in next season's European competition, Moyes will no doubt go on a spending spree, with Chelsea's Icelandic striker Eidur Gudjohnsen as his prime target.

So McBride will probably head back to Columbus, Ohio, and say goodbye to Liverpool, a city just two hours on the train from the glowing lights of London and home to the Beatles, as well as Gerry and the Pacemakers (circ. 1964-66). Which begs the question. Do Gerry and his aging band members wear pacemakers?

The Mad Brit would love McBride, one of the nicest and bravest players in the game, to prolong his stay in England. But it seems like the game at Highbury against champions Arsenal on March 23 could be his last game for the Toffees. And wouldn't it be great if the big Yank could put one into the Gunners net. Now that would be something to tell the grandchildren, along with the goals he scored at two World Cups.

The Mad Brit has never been to Columbus, but I'm sure McBride won't find cooler places than Liverpool and London these days. Moyes made it clear to McBride when he arrived that he was looking for younger players. After four goals in six games, however, McBride certainly made it clear that he was fighting for a job. Still, the 30-year-old target man, who has still a few more United States team games left in him, will jet back to Columbus Crew in time for the start of Major League Soccer's eight season in April, a wiser and better player.

McBride understands clearly his situation. "I just need to concentrate on the three months and be ready to go back to Columbus and help out the Crew," he told the Liverpool Echo last week. "If something were to come about, then of course I'd have to take a different view of things, but right now I look at it as three months here and after that I will be back in Columbus."

McBride came to Everton to cover for the injured Duncan Ferguson and Kevin Campbell. He scored on his debut game, a 4-3 loss to Tottenham Hotspur. Ferguson is now with the reserves and ready to return to first-team play and Campbell is starting to look good again. "When I came over here I didn't want to ruffle any feathers. I just wanted to do anything to help out and that is still the case," McBride said. "It is important that Everton keep doing well, because it would be great to see them in Europe next year. Whatever the coach decides is best for the team is the decision I will take."

McBride told the Echo he was eager to come to England when he heard that Moyes was asking about him. His time with Moyes at Preston was cut short when he came down with a life-threatening blood-clot in his arm. Moyes "didn't have to persuade me. As soon as I found out about the possibility of a loan, I called the general manager of Columbus Crew and told him I'd be interested," McBride said. "I just thought it would be a great opportunity for a few months that would benefit the Crew, me and hopefully Everton too."

The Mad Brit never dreamed he'd see gridiron lines disfiguring the luscious green of an English Premier League pitch. Only American fans have to put up with that insult. But there they were last week when Bolton Wanderers hosted Manchester United. Long white lines, left over from the Rugby League final, crisscrossed the field at the spanking Reebok Stadium.

According to American TKnapp there's no hope for English soccer. This is what he e-mailed recently, which nearly made the Mad Brit choke on his steak n' kidney pudding: "Also, you are mad if you put Owen and Beckham high up on the world pecking order. Yes, they are well known, but that is because of the insane delusional hype delivered in England. Beckham could never get a starting spot for Inter, AC, Real and other top teams in Italy and Spain. Then again, that's the problem of English football over the last 30 to 40 years. Hype over quality. Delusion over reality. Stars coming out of the pipeline. What pipeline? For a country that has so much money, passion, players and teams (second to none) to pour into the game it is an embarrassment to have produced such few players. Zero tactical vision or creative ball skills. Too many plodding, hard working soldiers."

TKnapp makes many good points, but Beckham not making it in Italy? Please! Was that Manchester United nailing Juventus 3-0 on the road recently or was the Mad Brit dreaming?

A fluke? Brazil star Ronaldinho admitted the goal that knocked England out of the World Cup last year was a fluke. The Brazilian midfielder lobbed goalkeeper David Seaman from 35 yards out. Yeah, the Mad Brit knew that. Seaman was sleeping as usual. Ronaldinho told his buddy Juninho he had been trying to put his free kick into the opposite corner. But The Independent newspaper on Tuesday revealed that Ronaldinho confessed after the match the goal was a fluke. "He said he tried to put the ball in the opposite angle to where it went, the other corner," said World Cup teammate Juninho, who plays for English Premiership side Middlesbrough. "He miss-hit it. In the end it was lucky. In football you have to be lucky sometimes."