Friedel redeems himself against Chelsea

Talk about an eventful past few weeks for Americans in Europe. Brad Friedel's error almost cost Aston Villa, while injuries have mowed down some key members of the national team. Over in Denmark, playing time is becoming rare for a certain trio.

Here's a brief roundup.

England

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Aston Villa's Brad Friedel, right, pulled off several top-notch saves to deny Chelsea.

Brad Friedel, Aston Villa: Friedel rarely blunders in goal, but he did so against then-league leader Chelsea on Saturday -- he allowed Didier Drogba's long-range effort to get past him in the first half.

However, Friedel more than made up for it, stopping Deco from close range, another Drogba effort and Florent Malouda's well-struck shot in the second half. Villa took advantage of Chelsea's susceptibility on set plays to rally for an uplifting 2-1 win at Villa Park.

"[Friedel] didn't get an opportunity straight away to rectify it, so that would be playing on his mind still, and at halftime, he would be angry with himself," Aston Villa manager Martin O'Neill told reporters. "Then he comes out and makes two or three magnificent saves. That was an immense second half from him."

Friedel, now approaching 200 consecutive Premier League starts, continues to keep Brad Guzan on the bench. After a slow start, Villa sits sixth.

Season: 8 games played (0 substitute appearances): 0 goals

Tim Howard, Everton: The mid-table Toffees are disappointed after failing to win at home for the second straight league game. On Saturday, Howard and Everton were held to a 1-1 draw by the promoted Wolves.

Howard kept it scoreless in the second half by thwarting striker Sylvan Ebanks-Blake, although the visitors eventually took the lead.

Goalkeeper Wayne Hennessey's long ball wasn't cleared by the defense, and Kevin Doyle slotted the ball past a stranded Howard in the 75th minute. Everton equalized in the dying minutes, and then Howard got into an altercation with giant Austrian Stefan Maierhofer.

Howard didn't like Maierhofer's challenge and smacked him in the head, leading to a yellow card. A second yellow for a stunned Maierhofer produced a red.

A mainstay in goal, Howard's highlights from the past month and a half include making five stops in a 2-1 loss at Fulham on Sept. 13.

Season: 13 (0): 0

Clint Dempsey, Fulham: Surprisingly, Dempsey hasn't scored a league goal this season.

He's due, since Dempsey, who skipped international duty thanks to a shoulder injury, is up there in Premier League shots. He fired eight against Everton, seven versus Arsenal on Sept. 26 and six against Aston Villa on Aug. 30.

Two more came against Hull City on Monday, with one a free header in the second half.

Fulham topped the struggling Tigers 2-0 to slide out of relegation danger and into mid-table.

Season: 10 (0): 1

Brad Guzan, Aston Villa: Villa's European adventure ended all too early, disposed of by Rapid Vienna, and that wasn't good news for Guzan. The competition figured to be his best shot at prolonged playing time.

Guzan was beaten late in the second leg at Villa Park on Aug. 27, and the home team fell on away goals.

Guzan's only other appearance came in a 1-0 Carling Cup win over Cardiff City in late September. He wasn't severely tested, comfortably denying Peter Whittingham and Gavin Rae.

"We're taking it very seriously," Guzan told BBC Radio. "It was obviously disappointing when we came out of Europe, so we want to do well" in the second-tier competition.

Season: 3 (0): 0

Jonathan Spector, West Ham: West Ham's horrible start might not be a bad thing for Spector, since the right back has been an unused sub the past four Premier League games. Boss Gianfranco Zola needs to shake things up.

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Take into consideration, too, that starting right back Julien Faubert gave away a penalty in Saturday's 2-1 loss at Stoke City.

Season: 4 (1): 0

Eddie Johnson, Fulham: The improved play of Diomansy Kamara and Bobby Zamora, secondary strikers behind Andy Johnson, hinders Eddie Johnson's chances of game time.

The Floridian didn't make the squad Monday.

He played the final nine minutes against West Ham on Oct. 4 and started in Fulham's Carling Cup defeat to Manchester City on Sept. 23.

Season: 1 (2): 0

Jozy Altidore, Hull (loan from Villarreal): Altidore got the call midway in the second half against Fulham and almost scored, outmuscling a Fulham defender and firing a shot just wide from inside the box. He, like Hull's two other forwards, didn't get much service.

It was the 19-year-old's first appearance since coming on for eight minutes in Hull's 6-1 loss to Liverpool on Sept. 26.

Hull manager Phil Brown, speaking before the game, said competing in the Premier League will be good for Altidore's World Cup preparations.

"He'll be stronger for playing in the Premier League, and with 20 or 25 games in England, that experience will put him in good stead," Brown told the Hull Daily Mail.

Season: 2 (5): 1

Marcus Hahnemann, Wolves: Hahnemann, a backup to Hennessey in the league, made his first two appearances for Wolves in the Carling Cup.

Following a scoreless 120 minutes, Wolves edged lower division Swindon 6-5 on penalties in late August. Swindon hit the post twice during normal time, and the only missed penalty in the shootout smacked the bar. Relief for Hahnemann.

There was a much stiffer test a month later -- at Old Trafford against defending champ Manchester United. Despite United playing with 10 men for an hour, Hahnemann and Wolves lost 1-0 on a classy Danny Welbeck goal. Hahnemann had no chance.

Season: 2 (0): 0

Championship

Jay DeMerit, Watford: DeMerit underwent surgery Saturday in London for his bizarre eye injury, having the cornea in his left eye replaced.

In mid-September, the eye became swollen when some grit got stuck underneath his contact lens. Eventually, despite taking antibiotics, the Watford captain's vision became blurry.

"The surgeon managed to get a machine into Britain which we feel will allow Jay to get back quicker than the normal operation for that injury, so we await developments," Watford manager Malky Mackay told the Watford Observer.

Before the operation, DeMerit, recently recovered from a groin injury, suggested he'd be sidelined for up to two months.

Watford is doing better than expected early on, sitting 12th, two points adrift of a playoff spot.

Season: 5 (0): 0

Frankie Simek, Sheffield Wednesday: Simek, a fan favorite at Wednesday, can't crack the lineup after injuries derailed most of the previous two seasons. He's been an unused sub the past six games, last seeing action in a 2-0 Carling Cup loss to Port Vale on Aug. 25.

The right back could be loaned out in the next transfer window.

"Hopefully I can get a chance to prove everybody that I'm back to my best," Simek told the Sheffield Star in early October. "I feel that my problem is getting a run of games. It's not going to be one game here or there. It's probably going to be a run of games either here or elsewhere so I can get back to where I was."

Season: 2 (0): 0

League One

Jemal Johnson, MK Dons: Johnson played the final 15 minutes of the Dons' 2-0 win over Gillingham on Saturday, a result that sent the team to third, one point behind an automatic promotion spot.

The winger opened his goal tally in a 3-2 loss to Huddersfield on Sept. 5, sending a 20-yard shot into the top corner.

Season: 13 (2): 1

Mike Grella, Leeds: Grella, a striker, was an unused substitute in Leeds' last-gasp 2-1 win over Norwich at Elland Road on Monday.

He scored his first goal for Leeds on Sept. 5 against Stockport County, in place of the absent Jermaine Beckford. Grella curled a shot into the corner in the ninth minute.

Season: 5 (5): 1

Italy, Serie A

Oguchi Onyewu, A.C. Milan: Another injury for a key U.S. defender. Onyewu, still settling in at A.C. Milan (aka, it's been a tough start in Italy), badly hurt his left knee against Costa Rica on international duty last week.

A.C. Milan speculated he ruptured a tendon, with initial reports suggesting he's out for four months.

"It is a big blow for me," Onyewu told skysports.com. "I am devastated."

Milan chief executive Adriano Galliani was understandably peeved, and he wants compensation from the U.S. governing body. (It won't happen.)

"I'm very angry because once again the national teams take our players and we have to pay the consequences of injuries," Galliani was quoted by Italian media as saying last week. "We demand compensation from the American Federation because we cannot pay the salary of a player who cannot play for six months."

Onyewu made his debut for Milan -- and his only appearance -- in the Rossoneri's embarrassing 1-0 home loss to FC Zurich in the Champions League, replacing Alessandro Nesta in the 60th minute Sept. 30.

Season: 0 (1): 0

Germany, Bundesliga

Steve Cherundolo, Hannover 96: Hannover, unable to string back-to-back wins together all season, dropped a 2-1 decision to Eintracht Frankfurt on Saturday -- Frankfurt previously hadn't won at home this season. Cherundolo, the regular at right back once again after a hip injury curtailed his 2008-09 season, contested all 90 minutes.

In the game prior to the international break, Cherundolo and company thrashed SC Freiburg 5-2 for their first home victory.

Season: 11 (1): 0

Michael Bradley, Borussia Moenchengladbach: The season started so well for Moenchengladbach, going 2-1-1 in the top division. It's been downhill ever since, and it looks like another relegation scrap is in the cards.

Moenchengladbach suffered a sixth straight loss in all competitions, beaten 2-1 by defending champion Wolfsburg on Sunday. At least Bradley scored his first goal of the season, netting from 18 yards in the 90th minute.

The midfielder was part of the team that exited to first-division Duisburg 1-0 -- in front of more than 45,000 fans at home -- in the German Cup on Sept. 22.

Season: 6 (1): 1

Sal Zizzo, Hannover 96: Zizzo's tough time at Hannover persists.

Just when it looked like the 22-year-old midfielder would become a regular on the subs bench (an upgrade) under new manager Andreas Bergmann, Zizzo tore cruciate and collateral ligaments in his left knee in training last week and won't be back for roughly six months. Surgery is planned for the end of October.

Season: 0 (1): 0

France, Ligue 1

Charlie Davies, Sochaux: A car accident nearWashington, D.C., last week left Davies with a lacerated bladder and serious facial, leg and elbow injuries, meaning the striker might be sidelined for as long as a year, essentially ruling him out of the World Cup. His season at Sochaux, which began with so much promise, also is over.

While fans saluted Davies in the game against Costa Rica, Sochaux was still coming to terms with the incident and vowed to give its all against league leader Lyon on Saturday in tribute.

Sure enough, Sochaux prevailed 2-0 away to move up to mid-table.

"We definitely wanted to win for our player who is in the United States and is suffering a lot," manager Francis Gillot told Canal Plus television. "We did it for him."

Season: 6 (2): 2

Carlos Bocanegra, Rennes: The left back missed Rennes' 0-0 draw against Lille over the weekend due to a suspension.

Two weeks earlier, he received a red card in the 16th minute for pulling back Auxerre's Dennis Oliech as he broke toward the goal.

Two losses and a draw in its past three -- with no goals scored -- saw Rennes slip to mid-table.

Season: 7 (1): 0

Portugal, Liga

Freddy Adu, Belenenses (loan from Benfica): As Adu's world turns.

Adu, going nowhere at Benfica after an unsuccessful loan spell at Monaco, promptly got shipped off to relegation contenders Belenenses.

The quick forward made a lively start, setting up three chances as a second-half sub in a 1-0 Cup loss to Rio Ave in late September. Following another sub appearance in the second half against Sporting, Adu made his first start last week in a 1-0 loss to Nacional.

He lasted 45 minutes, courtesy of an ankle injury.

Season: 1 (2): 0

Kamani Hill, Vitoria Guimaraes: His preseason injury woes behind him, the 23-year-old striker -- formerly of Wolfsburg -- got a spot on the bench Sept. 28 against Uniao de Leiria and a week later versus Nacional.

He'll be hoping for some action soon.

Season: No appearances

Scotland, Premier League

DaMarcus Beasley, Rangers:Beasley probably can't wait for the January transfer window. He's yet to make an appearance for Rangers this season, last featuring on the bench Sept. 26 against Aberdeen.

Season: No appearances

Maurice Edu, Rangers: Rangers boss Walter Smith told the club Web site thatEdu, who impressed the second half of last season, could be back in training by the end of the month. He's been sidelined since picking up a knee injury as Rangers clinched last season's title.

Edu can't wait to return.

"It has been a really difficult time for me,"Edu told the Web site. "I've never had anything like this before, and the most I'd been out of action for previously was about four weeks. That was hard enough to deal with, but not being able to play for as long as I have this time has been a whole new experience."

Season: No appearances

Denmark, Superligaen

Danny Califf, FC Midtjylland: A season of promise is turning into a nightmare for Midtjylland. Things aren't much better for Califf.

Once the leader of the defense, Califf hasn't played since the end of August. He was an unused substitute in Sunday's 1-1 tie against Brondby.

Midtjylland sits 10th of 12 teams in the top division.

League: 4 (1): 0

Jeremiah White, Aarhus: Aarhus blew a chance to move within four points of leader Odense on Monday, losing 1-0 at Sonderjyske.

White, a forward, dressed but didn't make an appearance.

League: 4 (5): 0

Benny Feilhaber, Aarhus: Feilhaber put in 90 minutes against Sonderjyske and now is a regular at Aarhus after recovering from a knee injury sustained last campaign.

League: 10 (1): 1

Michael Parkhurst, Nordsjaelland: Nordsjaelland is ahead of Midtjylland only on goal difference after losing a fourth straight, 2-0 to Odense on Saturday.

The defender didn't get off the subs bench and hasn't seen action in the league since Sept. 20.

League: 8 (0): 0

Marcus Tracy, Aalborg: The striker hasn't been able to build on last season's form, making only two league appearances in 2009-10.

One came in July, and the other happened in mid-September, when Tracy played for six minutes against Silkeborg.

League: 0 (2): 0

Ravi Ubha is a London-based freelance journalist covering Americans abroad for ESPNsoccernet. He also covers tennis for ESPN.com.