Know Your Yanks: DaMarcus Beasley

Okay gang, now that the official U.S. roster for the World Cup has been announced, we here on 116th street will be giving away (for free!) a little rundown on each team member, one per day, to get you better acquainted with the squad. Leading off will be speedster, drunken motorist and consummate skinny man, DaMarcus Beasley.

At only 23 (24 when the World Cup begins), DaMarcus Beasley has already become one of the most accomplished American soccer players of all time. A member of back-to-back Dutch champions PSV Eindhoven, "Run DMB" was the first American to ever play in the semifinals of the Champions League, and will be a prominent figure in the U.S. attack.
Beasley, who started his pro career in MLS with the Chicago Fire, is likely to start out wide on the left side of the midfield, where his world-class speed enables him to slip past defenders and create scoring opportunities for his teammates. He also excels in finding open areas around the net, and scores a fair number of goals for a midfielder. He is an above-average dribbler, is improving in his crossing ability and gets back well to defend.
In addition to being notoriously fast, DaMarcus is also notoriously thin, and tends to get knocked around by defenders quite a bit. Needless to say, he's no stranger to injury problems, but at the same time, he is surprisingly resilient.
Beasley is immensely popular both with USA fans and PSV supporters, and has been noted for maintaining a positive outlook in the face of the anti-Americanism and blatant racism that exists in European soccer culture. Look for him to start regularly for the U.S. team in Germany, streaking up and down the left side of the pitch and giving defenders fits.

Career Highlights:

1999: Wins the Silver Ball (2nd best player) at FIFA Under-17 World Cup.

2000: Makes pro debut with Chicago Fire (USA, Major League Soccer). Wins U.S. Open Cup with Chicago.

2001: Makes U.S. Men's National Team debut.

2002: Wins Gold Cup with USA. Advances to World Cup quarterfinals with USA, before losing to Germany.

2003: Named to MLS Best XI. Wins U.S. Open Cup with Chicago.

2004: Joins PSV Eindhoven (Netherlands, Eredivisie) from MLS on a $2.5 million transfer.

2005: Wins Dutch Championship and Dutch Cup with PSV. Becomes first American to play in semifinals of UEFA Champions League with PSV, before being eliminated by AC Milan. Leads PSV in Champions League scoring with 4 goals in 12 games. Wins Gold Cup with USA, receives Golden Boot as top scorer in the tournament.

2006: Wins second straight Dutch Championship with PSV.