Cameron debuts successfully for Stoke in 0-0 draw with Arsenal

It has been a whirlwind for Geoff Cameron and by this time I do believe he now knows who Sir Stanley Matthews is in Stoke lore.

So today you saw him in red and white stripes getting the start as a holding midfielder for Stoke manager Tony Pulis against none other than Arsenal in front of 27,072 and a national tv audience.

Cameron and Jermaine Pennant were the two changes to the Stoke City side.

Attelboro. MA to WVU, and on to the University of Rhode Island.
Plucked out of the combine by Dominic Kinnear he became a wonderful servant for the Dynamo in both midfield and at centerback. Tremendous athletic ability, soft feet, good distribution has led him to the U.S. National team and now to the EPL.
A story that dreams are made of and a story that should make those proud from his youth coaches on up. Yes this was a win win.

On to today. Cameron played solid in his first outing and is clearly feeling out the pace and quickness of the EPL. Players like Santi Cazorla and Lukas Podoloski are something different but Cameron played within his limits, earn confidence from the fans for his tackling and ethic.
There is no doubt that if he gets a string of 5-6 games he will adapt quickly to the pace of the league.

He will also have to adapt to the fact that he will be doing a-lot of defending and spending less time as a creator which he relishes. He will be cutting out passing lanes, closing people down, getting in to tackles and providing balance and organization in midfield.
If he embraces this like I believe he will it will benefit his national team career.
He will get his moments to initiate attacks and today he played it safe with the simple pass wisely in his first match.

A great start today for him to be a part of a squad that takes at point off of Arsenal at the Brittania. The sky is the limit as he continues to get games in the EPL.
Lets also not forget the amount of travel this player has endured as of late.

Cameron’s move to EPL is a win for the American player and all involved in his getting to this point in his career.

Something tells me a few people in Houston will be watching Stoke on a regular basis and in the process they might just learn about the great Sir Stanley Matthews.

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Twitter: GlennDavisSoc