John O'Brien (soccer)

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John O'Brien
JOB water bottle (cropped1).jpg
O'Brien in 2006
Personal information
Full name Jonathan Patrick O'Brien [1]
Date of birth (1977-08-29) August 29, 1977 (age 47)
Place of birth Los Angeles, California, U.S.
Height 5 ft 8 in (1.73 m)
Position(s) Midfielder, left-back
Youth career
1994–1998 Ajax
Senior career*
YearsTeamApps(Gls)
1998–2005 Ajax 63 (3)
1998–1999 → Utrecht (loan) 19 (2)
2005–2006 ADO Den Haag 3 (0)
2006 Chivas USA 1 (0)
Total86(5)
International career
1998–2006 United States 32 (3)
Medal record
Representing Flag of the United States.svg United States
Winner CONCACAF Gold Cup 2005
Men's Soccer
*Club domestic league appearances and goals

Jonathan Patrick O'Brien (born August 29, 1977) is an American former soccer player. After retiring, he pursued a career in psychology. [2]

Contents

O'Brien was one of the first Americans to earn a starting spot with a major European team, with Ajax Amsterdam in the late 1990s. [nb 1] At the peak of his career, United States national teammate Landon Donovan called O'Brien the "best soccer player in the USA." [3] [4]

Professional career

O'Brien grew up in Playa del Rey, California and attended Brentwood School. After being brought to attention of youth director Co Adriaanse, he had his first trial with Ajax at the age of 14 and signed an amateur contract with the Dutch giants in 1994 as a 17-year-old. After two years on their youth teams, Ajax offered O'Brien a professional contract in 1998. He spent the 1998–99 season on loan to FC Utrecht and made his Ajax debut in 1999. He became a regular for the team, usually playing at left back, winning the Eredivisie in 2002 and 2004.

Unfortunately, chronic injuries limited O'Brien's playing time. He left Ajax for ADO Den Haag in February 2005. After one injury-riddled season, in which he only played three games for the club, O'Brien came to MLS for the first time, to sign with hometown club Chivas USA. O'Brien played only one game with Chivas before suffering an injury with the U.S. national team during the 2006 World Cup, and was released by the club following the 2006 season.

O'Brien stated that he was done playing in an interview on June 11, 2008. [5]

International career

With the United States, O'Brien earned his first cap against Austria on April 22, 1998, but was an alternate for the U.S. squad for the 1998 FIFA World Cup. He played in the 2000 Summer Olympics, helping to lead the U.S. to a fourth-place finish. O'Brien became a regular with the senior team under Bruce Arena, and came into his own at the 2002 FIFA World Cup. Playing in defensive midfield, he scored the opener in the 3–2 win over Portugal, assisted on Clint Mathis' goal against South Korea, and played every minute of every game for the United States.

Four years later, O'Brien was named to the U.S. roster for the 2006 FIFA World Cup in Germany. On June 12, 2006, he played the second half of the U.S.'s opening game against the Czech Republic, albeit with a nagging injury, which kept him out for the duration of the tournament.

Personal life

O’ Brien lives with his wife, son, and daughter near Boulder, Colorado. After retiring from soccer, O’Brien returned to college and completed a doctorate in clinical psychology from Alliant International University. Dr. O’Brien has two separate practices, one providing mental health counseling to the general public and one working as a sports psychologist. [6]

Career statistics

Club

Appearances and goals by club, season and competition [7]
ClubSeasonLeagueNational cup [lower-alpha 1] ContinentalOtherTotal
DivisionAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoals
Utrecht 1998–99 Eredivisie 19200––192
Ajax 1999–2000 Eredivisie15110400 [lower-alpha 2] 0201
2000–01 400000–40
2001–02 2724030–342
2002–03 12020501 [lower-alpha 2] 0200
2003–04 400000–40
2004–05 1000000 [lower-alpha 2] 010
Total6337012010833
ADO Den Haag 2005–06 Eredivisie3010––40
Chivas USA 2006 Major League Soccer 1000––10
Career total86580120101075

International

Appearances and goals by national team and year [8]
National teamYearAppsGoals
United States 199810
199900
200051
200150
200291
200310
200400
200571
200640
Total323
Scores and results list the United States' goal tally first, score column indicates score after each O'Brien goal.
List of international goals scored by John O'Brien
No.DateVenueOpponentScoreResultCompetition
1August 16, 2000 Foxborough, Massachusetts, United StatesFlag of Barbados.svg  Barbados 4–07–0 2002 World Cup qualification
2June 5, 2002 Suwon, South KoreaFlag of Portugal.svg  Portugal 1–03–2 2002 FIFA World Cup
3July 21, 2005 East Rutherford, New Jersey, United StatesFlag of Honduras.svg  Honduras 1–12–1 2005 CONCACAF Gold Cup

Honors

Ajax

United States

Individual

Notes

  1. ↑ O'Brien was the second American ever to play for the 1st team of Ajax, the first being Eddy Hamel who played for the club from 1922 to 1930.

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References

  1. ↑ "2006 FIFA World Cup Germany: List of Players: United States" (PDF). FIFA. March 21, 2014. p. 32. Archived from the original (PDF) on June 10, 2019.
  2. ↑ John O’Brien is hard op weg doctor in de psychologie te worden vice.com
  3. ↑ "Arena names USA squad". FIFAWorldCup.com. May 2, 2006.
  4. ↑ "O'Brien is USA's Dutch treat". USAtoday.com. December 2, 2002.
  5. ↑ "O'Brien retires" Archived 2008-06-14 at the Wayback Machine . MLS Magazine.
  6. ↑ "About Dr. John O'Brien".
  7. ↑ John O'Brien. MLSnet.com. Retrieved August 6, 2012.
  8. ↑ "O'Brien, John". National Football Teams. Benjamin Strack-Zimmermann. Retrieved April 5, 2013.
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