U.S. goalkeeper raises his game.(Chicago Tribune)

Byline: Bonnie DeSimone

CAMBRIDGE, Mass. _ There is no daydreaming in the net in the English Premier League. Blink at your peril _ you might miss something. Blink and you also might lose your job, at least temporarily.

"That's what makes England special," said Tim Howard, whose peers recently voted him the best goalkeeper in the Premier League after a stunning debut season with Manchester United.

"It surprised me that you don't see more 5-4 games because it's just so fast and furious. You might not touch the ball, but you always have to be in the mix because it's coming back down your throat."

Howard, 25, adjusted to the speed and intensity of the game, finishing the season with 14 shutouts in 44 matches and a goals-allowed average of 0.93. He said he learned more in 12 months at Man U than he had in his previous six years in Major League Soccer. He also received a hard education in the political aspects of the game.

The New Jersey native is looking forward to his first real rest in more than a year. He is expected to start in the U.S. team's friendly match against Honduras in Foxboro, Mass., on Wednesday night then will take four or five weeks off.

A scheduling quirk could bring him to Soldier Field twice next month_July 11, when the U.S. team plays Poland in an exhibition, and July 25, when Manchester United plays Bayern Munich on the second leg of its U.S. tour.