Futbol Friday: Bradley's back, Messi's BACK, Der Hammer's gay and Kaka reaches 100

Here's a look back at the biggest soccer stories from the past week, including  the return of USMNT midfielder Michael Bradley to MLS, Lionel Messi's return from injury at FC Barcelona, retired German international Thomas Hitzlsperger announcing that he's gay and Kaka bagging his 100th and 101st goals with AC Milan.

The Associated Press

1) He's back! Michael Bradley made his professional debut in MLS with the NY/NJ Metrostars before making the jump to Europe where he's worked his way from the Dutch League to Germany to AS Roma — one of the biggest clubs Serie A. The 26-year-old's playing time has suffered in his second year with the Giallorossi after the arrival of coach Rudi Garcia and was likely to be even more limited after with the transfer of Belgian Radja Nainggolan on loan from Cagliari. In a World Cup year, Bradley may be motivated by the guaranteed playing time he will receive at Toronto FC. Also, the reported salary of $6.5 million is probably too sweet to pass up.
Like Clint Dempsey, many fans will question the move of a player in his prime to what's seen as a less competitive league. While I enjoy watching Americans play in Europe's biggest competitions as much as anybody, if Bradley and Dempsey — who have already proved themselves at the highest level overseas — want to take a job in their home country (or close enough in Bradley's case) for more money, they've earned that right. And while we'll never know what type of player Landon Donovan would be if he turned his Everton loans into transfers, a lifetime of playing in MLS hasn't exactly hurt his career. Here's Bradley's club career stats:

Years	Team	Apps	Goals
2004–2005	MetroStars	30	1
2006–2008	Heerenveen	57	16
2008–2011	Borussia Mönchengladbach	76	10
2011	→ Aston Villa (loan)	3	0
2011–2012	Chievo	35	1
2012–2014	Roma	41	2
2014–	Toronto FC	0	0

2) He's BACK! Attention defenders, Lionel Messi has returned to Barcelona after a 59-day layoff due to injury — run for the hills (!) — or at least try to stop him from scoring a highlight-reel goal on his return. Getafe defenders did neither in their 4-0 Copa Del Rey loss Wednesday.

3) Retired German soccer player Thomas Hitzlsperger, who started his career with Aston Villa but played the majority of his career with Stuttgart, became the most high profile ex-player to come out of the closet when he announced he was gay earlier this week. Hitzlsperger had some interesting comments on how homosexuals were treated in the locker room and said the reason for his announcement was to, "further the debate about homosexuality among sports professionals.” Former American international and Leeds United player Robbie Rogers came out over the summer in a statement that seemed to say he was taking a break from soccer, but ultimately signed with the Galaxy in MLS to continue his career.
Despite his announcement, what I'll remember most about "Der Hammer" is his ability to crush the everloving shit out of a soccer ball with his left foot:

 

4) The goal barrier many AC Milan fans didn't think would be broken when Kaka was sold to Real Madrid for €68.5 million in 2009 came down on Monday in the first half of a 3-0 win over Atalanta. It wasn't the prettiest goal Kaka has ever scored for the Rossoneri but with the squad already out of the title race, any goal that guarantees three points is as good as gold. The Brazilian, who returned to the club in the summer transfer window, scored his 101st goal for the club in the second half on a play that proves Robinho has lost his finishing touch:

As a Milan fan, it would have been nice if Kaka hat reached the milestone against Inter — rather than a team that looks like Inter — but who am I to complain? Forza Milan!

Ticked off Ticos: The perfectly legitimate reasons Costa Ricans have for hating the USMNT

I’m not quite sure the United States men’s national soccer team — or the world for that matter — is ready for the type of hatred the Cosa Rican fans are going to bring to their World Cup Qualifier Friday.
The Ticos are pissed and they’ve let the Yanks know it from the second they got off the plane.
The most recent point of contention of course is the Snowmageddon game played March 22 in which the Americans beat Costa Rica 1-0 in the midst of a Denver snowstorm.

The game was on, then off for about 10 minutes in the second half, then back on again, then under protest until finally made official under the eyes of the lord (Sepp Blatter).
The Costa Rican fans are angry about that, and as someone who’s had similar feelings about playing in less than ideal conditions in CONCACAF qualifiers before (see extreme heat, humidity and Mexico City smog) — I sympathize with the Ticos.
But the force of nature ready to meet the Americans at Estadio Saprissa isn’t based solely on one blizzard. That was just the latest time the Americans stabbed the Costa Ricans in the heart. The one that really hurts is not a loss in the snow, but a tie in a rainstorm.
Costa Rica needed just a tie a win at RFK Stadium to clinch an automatic berth in the 2010 World Cup and was more than halfway to South Africa after taking a 2-0 lead into the second half. The berth was snatched away when the already World Cup-bound Americans rallied for no particular reason (besides a rabid home crowd and to show support for recently injured Charlie Davies) behind a nice hustle goal by Michael Bradley and a last-second game-tying header from the most unlikely of sources — Jonathan Bornstein.
The final corner kick sequence set off celebrations in Honduras — who automatically qualified with the result — and grieving in Costa Rica. The Ticos went on to lose a home and home series against Uruguay to be eliminated from WC 2010. They haven't forgotten.

The Monster Mash

Estadio Saprissa is nicknamed “The Monster’s Cave” after the Costa Rican club team that players its home games there and it's an eerie descriptor for what the U.S. team is walking into. If Azteca has been a house of horrors for the U.S. in the past, Saprissa is like the murder shed out back where all the truly gruesome things happen.
Last time on the dreaded field turf in 2009, a listless American squad got hammered 3-1. The time before that in 2005 was even worse — a 3-0 shutout in front of 30,000 raucous fans. Friday's game will be played at Estadio Nacional, which means the game will be played on a grace surface, but even in the pre-field turf days, the U.S. struggled at Saprissa, losing 2-0 in the 2001 Hex and 3-2 in 1997.
Add an even more rabid crowd to a cycle of failure in the stadium and the outlook for a 13th straight win for Klinsmann’s boys is grim.
In fact, I’d go as far as to expect a Yanks loss and be satisfied if it's a close scoreline (and no yellow card suspensions for Tuesday’s Mexico game in Columbus). It will also be a great opportunity to cap-tie promising youths John Anthony Brooks and Aron Johannson who had options to play for Germany and Iceland respectively but chose America.
Although the U.S. is building towards a team that is expected to win every match, Hex away fixtures are still about surviving the elements and playing for a draw. Doing so will put the Yanks in prime position to qualify for Brazil 2014 — possibly even Tuesday vs. Mexico.
Here’s the detailed U.S. roster per @ussoccer.com.