U.S. midfielder Benny Feilhaber, the man who’s spectacular volley downed Mexico and brought the U.S. its second consecutive Gold Cup trophy, admits he won’t be starting tonight’s Gold Cup final rematch against Mexico in Houston. “Just from intuition and what’s been going on, I don’t expect to be playing,” Feilhaber told the New York Times’ Jack Bell, in an interview. The Derby County midfielder hasn’t played much competitive soccer this season-in fact, he’s often struggled to make the bench for Derby’s Premier League matches.
So what’s next for Feilhaber? Surely, he wants to get out of a hopeless situation? During the recent transfer window, Maccabi Tel-Aviv came calling, and while both clubs came to an agreement about a price, Feilhaber opted against the transfer. Now, his only other options, Bell says, are a move to MLS or a Scandinavian league.
But Feilhaber maintains he’s willing to stay at Derby. “It looks like the team is going down, not for sure, and its already planning for next season. Maybe it would be better for me next year,” he says. “Yes, it would be a step back from the Prem, but it would also be a way to get back in to getting regular time.” In that case, it looks like Feilhaber will have to surrender his starting spot with the national team for some time.