WELCOME HOME LADS

It was a surprising scene at Houston's Bush Intercontinental Airport this afternoon. While awaiting the arrival of Clint Dempsey and Carlos Bocanegra, we crossed paths with a strong contingent of Mexico fans. We can only guess that they were awaiting the arrival of their own European-based players to emerge from Customs. In the meantime, the boys' flight from London's Gatwick Airport had arrived a few minutes late, but we were hoping that our U.S. players would breeze right through the checkpoints. Suddenly, people started pouring out of the "restricted area". Would this be their flight from London or Mexico City?

A few subtle hints later, we knew we wouldn't be waiting much longer. First, we saw a man who might have made a good living as a Paul McCartney look-a-like. Then two businessmen came through the portals and ran straight for the currency exchange. Next, two guys started yelling into their cellphones with British accents so thick we couldn't even comprehend what they were saying. Sure enough, Carlos and Clint strolled out shortly thereafter. They didn't get spotted (thankfully), and while the Mexican fans continued their vigil we headed back to the hotel to meet the team for dinner.