Transatlantic glove affair

By Greg Demetriou

Stallone saves
Famously in a movie featuring the talents of Pelé and Bobby Moore, the hero of the hour turns out to be the American goalkeeper played by Sylvester Stallone. His character Robert Hatch shocks everyone in the stadium by superbly saving a penalty in the last minute.

Terrific trio
More than two decades on from the film's release, the moment when potential goalkeeper Hatch is dismissed as "the American?", seems particularly ironic. Shot-stoppers from across the Atlantic are now all the rage, particularly in England where the United States' three finest have found a home.

On the up
The most recent arrival is the 24-year-old prodigy Tim Howard, signed by Manchester United FC earlier this week. A New Jersey-native, Howard has enjoyed a meteoric rise in the last two years and has every chance of becoming the English champions' No1.

Good education
Prior to his breakthrough for the New York/New Jersey MetroStars in 2001, Howard was able to watch and learn from former No1s Tony Meola, who shone for the United States at the 1994 FIFA World Cup, and Mike Ammann, voted to the league's all-star team in 1999 and 2000.

Coach impressed
Howard certainly caught the eye of United goalkeeping coach Tony Coton, and the club's manager Sir Alex Ferguson had no hesitation in acting on his advice. "Tony Coton was in the States a couple of years ago and saw Tim play then," Sir Alex said.

Video trial
"Tony was impressed from very early on but decided to just keep tabs on him and see how he got on, but he kept in touch with some people over in America," added Sir Alex. "Eventually they sent him a video of Tim in action. Tony showed it to me and it really was outstanding. It was marvellous so I told Tony to go to America again and have another look at Tim in a couple of internationals.

Danish legacy
"When he returned he simply said 'you've got to sign him', in fact Tony believes he has the potential to get to the Peter Schmeichel level here." The comparison with United legend Schmeichel is natural. At 1.87m tall and weighing 86kg, Howard has all the physical attributes on which to build a successful career.

Friedel form
The road has certainly been made easier by the recent form of the Premiership's two other American goalkeepers. Blackburn Rovers FC's Brad Friedel and Tottenham Hotspur FC's Kasey Keller. Friedel was a sensation at the 2002 FIFA World Cup and voted as England's goalkeeper of the year by his fellow professionals last season. Also in the 2002/03 campaign, Keller kept Scotland's Neil Sullivan out of the Spurs lineup and played all of their 38 league matches.

More waiting
The trio are all involved with the US national team. It is a wealth of riches but even more talents are waiting. The MetroStars moved swiftly to replace Howard with 25-year-old prospect Jonny Walker, a revelation in Chile with CSD Colo Colo, while UEFA Cup contenders Blackburn, mindful of Friedel's success, have signed 21-year-old David Yelldell as a back-up. Talking about Yelldell this week to the club's website, Blackburn manager Graeme Souness said: "He's a young goalkeeper with a future, you may find out more about him next season."

American dream
Likewise, we may well learn more about Howard in the UEFA Champions League campaign to come. Europe's strikers should dismiss this American shot-stopper at their peril.