Yanks in Europe: Edu in the Old Firm

The teams of five USMNT players were in action today, but only two saw the field. Here's a brief run-down of how everything went:

Maurice Edu started on the bench today, as Rangers took on Celtic in the Old Firm. It wasn't long, though, before Edu, who had made just one appearance since coming back from knee troubles going into today's match, found himself in the middle of the action. Nacho Novo was forced to leave the game after just 13 minutes due to injury, and manager Walter Smith called on Edu to fill the void for the remainder of the game.

Edu looked like a guy coming off of a long absence, with a few poor touches and mistakes that slowed the Rangers attack and created goal-scoring opportunities for Celtic. With that being said, Edu did not exactly have an awful game, tracking back well, contributing several quality defensive tackles, blocking a couple of shots, and making some good runs forward. Overall, his performance was on par with that of his team, as Rangers turned in a mediocre effort against their Glasgow rivals. After falling behind 1-0 in the 79th minute, though, Rangers were able to find an equalizer just two minutes later and hang on for a fairly undeserved draw. The result maintains Rangers' 7 point lead over Celtic in the SPL table.

Edu's performance is what I would expect out of any player making their first extended appearance after such a long stretch on the sidelines, and hopefully Rangers fans and coaches are patient as he works back to regain the fantastic form he showed at the end of last season. Because of injuries in the Rangers lineup, Edu should be able to earn some playing time in the coming weeks as he makes a late push for a World Cup roster spot.

DaMarcus Beasley, who suffered a thigh injury in training a little over a week ago, was not in the matchday squad. With the injury not believed to be too serious, Beasley could very well return to the Rangers lineup next Sunday in their Scottish Cup clash with Hamilton Academical.

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Elsewhere, Jay DeMerit started and played 90 minutes in Watford's FA Cup match against Chelsea. Unfortunately for Jay, his backline was on the receiving end of an offensive onslaught that eventually ended in a 5-0 defeat for the Hornets.

West Ham was in action, as well, playing host to Arsenal. Jonathan Spector, however, was not in the matchday squad. The Hammers saw their FA Cup campaign come to an early end, losing 2-1 to the Gunners.

Last, Wolverhampton traveled to take on Tranmere Rovers, but Marcus Hahnemann was not in the starting XI. Hahnemann, who has taken over as the starter in league matches, was rested in favor of Wayne Hennessey, and Wolves earned a 1-0 victory to move on to the fourth round.