All In All, Howard A Hit In England
Wednesday, April 28, 2004
By IVES GALARCEP
HERALD NEWS
Tim Howard's roller coaster first season with English Premier League power
Manchester United is winding to a close and the former MetroStars keeper sounds
no worse for the wear. A brief stint on the bench last month cast some doubt
about his standing with the club, but a return to the starting lineup and recent
selection as the best goalkeeper in the EPL has reminded many just how far Howard
has come.
"The whole year has been an adventure," said Howard a North Brunswick
native. "There have been ups and downs, but that's just what you have to
go through as a professional. It's still been an amazing experience and I'm
better for having gone through it all."
Howard admitted that fatigue began setting in after the winter break, a product
of having played almost non-stop for a full year. That fatigue led, in large
part, to Howard being benched for a handful of league and FA Cup matches. Howard
has since regained his starting position, having opened the team's past two
matches.
"I think my body was telling me it was struggling, but I'm not going to
go to the coach and tell him to take me off the team," said Howard. "My
way of dealing with it was trying to play through it, just trying to get my
body back to where it was. The manager took it upon himself to give me a rest
and I had no problem with that. It just gave me an opportunity to get the rest
my body desperately needed."
Manchester United manager Alex Ferguson's decision to sit Howard in favor of
Roy Carroll triggered questions among the English media of whether Howard had
fallen out of favor, especially since the move came after a loss to Porto that
eliminated Manchester United from the Champions League. As some waited for Howard
to voice displeasure with the situation, Howard played the good soldier, supporting
Carroll at every opportunity.
"I wasn't going to sit there and ask 'why me'," said Howard. "If
anyone could say that, it was Roy (Carroll) before he got the opportunity. I
wasn't going to sit around and question the manager's decision."
Howard's temporary benching might have made some people forget his sizzling
first-half of the season, during which he posted 15 shutouts, but the other
players in the English League still took notice, voting him the league's best
goalkeeper.
"It's nice to have their respect and also humbling to know that, with
all the talent in the league, I could be voted the top goalkeeper," said
Howard. "Your peers are the ones that you compete against and can really
evaluate you most honestly so it was a special feeling."
Manchester United won't repeat as EPL champions, as Arsenal already clinched
the title, but the club still has plenty to play for, including an automatic
Champions League place next season as well as the FA Cup final against Millwall
on May 22. Howard will return home after that on May 27 to serve as guest speaker
for the Tourette's Syndrome Association of New Jersey's fundraiser dinner at
Robert Wood Johnson Hospital in New Brunswick. Howard, who first revealed that
he had Tourette's in 2001, has continued to deal with the public misperceptions
of Tourette's. Most recently, English tabloid newspapers attempted to link Howard's
Tourette's with his benching.
Tourette's is an inherited neurobehavioral disorder characterized by sudden,
involuntary, repetitive muscle movements and vocalizations.
"It kind of makes you laugh when you hear things like that but it's uneducated
people trying to find a story," said Howard. "That's part of the battle
for organizations like TSANJ and TS (United Kingdom), helping educate the masses
along with helping people with Tourette's."
Howard is looking forward to returning to New Jersey for the first time since
leaving last August. He is also focused on taking part in the U.S. national
team's World Cup qualifying process. Howard is confident that he will be rested
and ready to play if U.S. coach Bruce Arena calls on him this summer.
"Being part of qualifying is something special that I haven't been a part
of yet," said Howard. "It's going to be great to be around the guys
again and hopefully take part in some important games for the national team."
Howard is especially looking forward to Manchester United's return to Giants
Stadium on July 31, when it will take on A.C. Milan as part of the ChampionsWorld
Tour. It was exactly a year ago on that date that Howard made his debut for
Manchester United in front of 79,005 in a friendly against Juventus.
"I'm looking forward to getting back and I'll know it'll be 10 times easier
because last year was just a circus," said Howard. "I had just made
the move from the MetroStars and there was a lot of pressure there for me, not
only to perform for the fans but for my new team. This year I'll be more relaxed
and I'll be able to have fun and really enjoy going back home."
Reach Ives Galarcep at (973) 569-7077 |or galarcep@northjersey.com
Article courtesy NorthJersey.com
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