Nigeria's Jon Obi Mikel joined a growing list of star players ruled out of the World Cup or on the ropes. Recovery from knee surgery did not proceed quickly enough and he has been dropped from the roster.
Teams are busy making last minute adjustments to tactics and plans as key cogs in the machine have been dropping like flies over the last few weeks. On top of that players' dreams are being shattered. Many players only get one chance to play in a World Cup, certainly only one chance during the "peak years" of their career. Some of the big names include
Didier Drogba (Ivory Coast - not officially ruled out but needs elbow surgery)
Rio Ferdinand (England's captain)
Michael Essien (Ghana, ruled out a month ago)
Andrea Pirlo (Italy, not ruled out but currently back in Italy resting a fresh calf injury)
Jozy Altidore (USA, day to day with an ankle sprain)
Bradley tips his hand?
A lot of speculators have either Maurice Edu or Jose Torres ahead of Ricardo Clark on the depth chart for central midfield. However it was Clark who started and went (almost) the distance in today's tune-up against Australia.
The team on the field was presumably the starters against England with the exception of resting Altidore (see above). In addition, Bradley is nothing if not predictable and he knows what he is going to get from Clark (even if the fans don't agree). The only thing that may keep him from starting June 12th is the knock he limped off with around the 90th minute today.
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