World Cup 2022

[CKwi88]

No yellows, didn't get embarrassed, at times even looked like the better squad out there.

Win and in versus Iran, and I think this team can do it.

But for love of god the US need to find a true 9. The attack is pitiful.

[HarleyDog]

I watched most of the match but didn’t totally understand it. The ending was weird. It was like, ok games over.

[BengalsLUFC]

Shitshow of epic proportions Southgate is clueless.

Adams looked the best player on the pitch hardly a shock.

[Forever Spinning Vinyl]

Jon Stewart to John Oliver in 2010 after the 1-1 draw and discussing the 1-0 win in 1950.
"No one is better, at not beating America, than England"
Now the USA has 1 win, 2 draws and no losses to England in World Cup play. That's gotta sting.

[*bfine32*]

Good showing by the USA today. They looked the more dangerous of the 2 teams. Of course, any team with Kane at the 9 is more dangerous than most teams in the world.

[Forever Spinning Vinyl]

(11-25-2022, 10:08 AM)CKwi88 Wrote: MLS will never be a very serious league because of the lack of homegrown talent. The best athletes in the US gravitate towards football, baseball and basketball. You can't support a league with imported talent. Until there is some change to that, MLS will be seen as a bottom-teir league where big names come to get one last big paycheck a la Beckham, Zlatan and now, apparently, Messi.

Sorry, but that's a lot of ridiculously tired takes.

1) The NHL does fine with a lack of homegrown talent
Players born in America makeup 24.8% of the players in the NHL during the 2019-2020 season.

2) Three of the greatest soccer players of all time
Pele 5 foot 8
Maradona 5 foot 5
Messi 5 foot 7

What US sport would they have excelled at? Soccer styled NFL kicker and light hitting 2nd basemen? Our "superior athletes" would have crushed them in just about any physical contest that doesn't involve the skills and abilities needed to play soccer at a high level. The athletic Africans love soccer way more than we do and they're not dominating the sport.

As far as MLS goes . . . I'll address most of their issues another day. Knowing where they came from, what they were up against just to get started and where they plan on being will change most people perceptions about MLS, their structure and why they do/don't do certain things. You have to respect their business model. The fact that they contracted two teams twenty years ago to drop from 12 teams down to 10 and, now, next season will see their 29th team debut in St Louis is quite a mind boggling turnaround. I remember reading blogs by soccer writers during the contraction period stating that they expect a fax declaring the death of MLS any day now. It's pretty impressive how they've managed the constant expansion and still maintained a decent level of quality, due mainly due to international signings.

3) In 2011, US players played 53.86% of the entire playing time in MLS. This figure has consistently decreased since then, especially in the last five seasons. In the 2020 season, US players played only 37.96% of all playing time.


For the start of the 2021-22 EPL season, 36.4 per cent of squad players were English.


4) And name one league that wouldn't take a 32 year old Beckham or Zlatan or Messi? After leaving MLS, Zlatan went to AC Milan for the last three years and won the Scudetto last season. He recently signed on for a fourth year. 

[hollodero]

(11-25-2022, 10:04 PM)Forever Spinning Vinyl Wrote: 4) And name one league that wouldn't take a 32 year old Beckham or Zlatan or Messi? After leaving MLS, Zlatan went to AC Milan for the last three years and won the Scudetto last season. He recently signed on for a fourth year. 

There's truth to that, these are exceptional players. MLS limits itself to only a few players of that caliber, though. Overall, I am pretty certain that any European mid-tier team, say teams that are middle of the pack in England, Spain, Italy or Germany, would beat the MLS champion with ease. I'd claim the same thing for the champion of smaller leagues, like my own Austrian one. Imho that's also a reality.

[*bfine32*]

The MLS is not a top-level Soccer team, not due to a lack of homegrown talent; it's due to salary. Erling Haaland (not English) recently signed at Man City this year for about $50 Mil/year. Xherdan Shaquri recently signed at Chicago Fire for around $8 Mil/year

[BengalsLUFC]

(11-26-2022, 12:30 AM)bfine32 Wrote: The MLS is not a top-level Soccer team, not due to a lack of homegrown talent; it's due to salary. Erling Haaland (not English) recently signed at Man City this year for about $50 Mil/year. Xherdan Shaquri recently signed at Chicago Fire for around $8 Mil/year

Not to be pedantic but since Haaland is from my city and is a massive Leeds fan he is English just plays for Norway because of his dad.

He would be lethal for England too, shame.

[Arturo Bandini]

Already in the elimination round !

Allez la France.

[Millhouse]

Yeah France looks really good, even without Benzema up top. I thought Brazil looked unstoppable in their first game, just loaded everywhere on the pitch. So assuming they win their second game, those are my top two teams going into knockout round.

U.S. team looked good defensively, very solid so far. But lack of a threat at striker is hurting the attack. I think the best chance for scoring will be on quick counterattacks similar to how we scored on Wales.

We should beat Iran, but Iran is actually decent in tourney play, and will be a tough gzme, all politics aside. That said, hope we crush em.

[Forever Spinning Vinyl]

American Eric Wynalda on why the football in England is so easy on the eyes.
Because it's 45 degrees(7 C) and you can run all day

Again, take the big boys out of their comfort zone and sometimes they're not so intimidating. Iran is better than they showed against England, they looked star struck more than anything else.

From 2002 by Michael Davies before he met his future pod/soul mate Roger Bennet to form the Men In Blazers.

Quote:The Media Tribune, Nagai Stadium, 3:05 p.m.
Something is bothering me. It is the Nigerian fans. They are dancing. There are only about 100 of them, dressed in the spearmint green shirts of their national team, completely outnumbered by the 40,000 or so red-and-white-clad England fans, half of whom are actually English, rather than Japanese. But the Nigerians are making a real racket; I pick up my binoculars, they're having a great time -- they're already eliminated from the tournament, but they don't care, they've got drums, tambourines, a couple of trumpets, silly wigs, seats right in the sun and it's about 100 degrees outside. It's like any late afternoon in Lagos.

I scan the other end of the stadium where the core of the England support seems to be located. It's like a summer's day on the beach in Lanzarote. The English are burning up in the sun, there is no shade and they don't have the energy to fan themselves, as the Japanese onlookers all seem to be doing, let alone stand up and sing.

The England players come out of the tunnel for a very tame warmup, and most of the crowd hardly has the energy to give them a round of applause. God, I hope they don't wear their red shirts. Way too hot. They have to wear white. Much cooler.

The Media Tribune, observer seats, 3:30 p.m.
The game kicks off and, of course, England is wearing red. Paul Scholes already looks sunburnt, as does Nicky Butt, who goes to the sideline for his first bottle of water about three minutes in. The Nigerians are just strolling around loving it, keeping possession, biding their time, suckering the English midfield into chasing them around the park without the ball.

I feel heat and exhaustion will take out the English before Southgate's tactics or facing superior opposition. Look at Belgium and Morocco.

[WiregrassBenGal]

Back in 1994 when I was newly arrived in the Orlando area and needed work, I worked the concession stand at the World Cup games at the Citrus Bowl. It was pretty much fun and sometimes I even got tips. The Dutch fans and supporters wore ceremonial wooden shoes. Also, it became clear that other countries have different standards for bathing. The most stressful game to work was Mexico versus Ireland, where I was working the beer tap. Those people bled it dry before the start of the final period and we got cussed at in Spanish and Irish brogues.

[*bfine32*]

It also nice to see former Bengal great Chad Johnson being part of the coverage,

[Dill]

(11-28-2022, 12:50 PM)bfine32 Wrote: It also nice to see former Bengal great Chad Johnson being part of the coverage,

Nothing special against Chad, but I found him a lame attempt to draw in football fans. 

"Ocho's Cinqo" not very interesting. 

[Forever Spinning Vinyl]

A half hour before kickoff.

Netherlands tops Group A
Senegal qualifies over Ecuador

England needs a tie to qualify, a win over Wales gives them the group.

Wales needs to win by four to qualify over England. Wales can advance with a 1-0 victory and a US-Iran draw.

Iran mostly needs a draw, but if Wales somehow defeats England, then they need to beat the USA.

If the USA wins, they advance. Anything else, they go home.

I predict an England 2-0 victory and a 1-1 draw as our boys get a tough lesson and go home broken hearted.
Poor coaching and a team that has produced a grand total of two shots on goal through two games doesn't fill me with enthusiasm. Obviously I'm rooting for them to go through but the lack of a scoring threat bothers me. Iran has scored four goals against the same two teams the USA managed two shots on goal against.

[Forever Spinning Vinyl]

1-0 at the half . . . before the goal, Pulisic was both amazing and frustrating at the same time. Terrible crosses again, but held the ball in traffic well. Weah is just a bit off today. Almost every pass and shot is off and when he did have an amazing touch, he was just a bit offsides.

Adams is a flat out beast. Not much to complain about with him. I'm impressed with Sargent's ability to maintain control of the ball in heavy traffic. Dest has been playing very well. Musah and McKinney are playing very well also. Musah has had some hard touches but has been very active. Not a bad 20th birthday so far.

Robinson currently reminds me of a remark made about Didier Drogba when he first played in the EPL. When he has the ball it's like watching a dog chase a balloon.

And we're back . . .

[cinci4life]

USA WINS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[Arturo Bandini]

Congrats guys.

You'll face Netherlands next.

[CKwi88]

Squeaked it out. Way to go. Not easy to get a win on demand.


Unfortunately we will probably get absolutely bopped by the Dutch, but who knows anything can happen.