I'm pissed about the soccer loss, and this is a rant.

Actually spnited, the sad truth is that in many of these "sophisticated" soccer-loving countries, losing a game does lead to many serious injuries and deaths.

 

I just returned home and I see this thread. For fucks sake.

That was a bad game. People are going to be pissed. They are going to be real pissed. Some people don't understand. Some don't care. Well, we don't care.

When that ball kicked off, I had butterflies in my stomach. I was nervous. I don't give a flying fuck how the Yankees do. I don't give a shit if Boston beats them out. No. This is the World-fucking-Cup.

You show up.

The US didn't today. That disappointed me. As such, I drank more. (Okay, maybe I would have drank more in celebration, no matter, I drank more.) I'm not happy. Fans of US Soccer aren't happy.

This team is so good. They have so much promise. And, for all I said pre-WC, Reyna just slows them the fuck down to a crawl. Off. Go. Now.

Fuck the Czech. Fuck the ref. Fuck the damn Germans. Fuck the Italians (for buying them off).

 

Enjoy your dinner. Seriously.

 

Crass, there's something wrong with your signature. Maybe it's the date.

 

A couple of points:

1. Nothing wrong with starting a new thread on the U.S.' match at the Cup, as opposed to it getting lost in a 30-page monster of a thread.

2. Nothing wrong with being a tad peeved over the loss. I liked Lalas' sentiments after the game. The result itself is nothing to get in a panic about. A loss here was not going to surprising, and honestly, it was expected. The Czechs are THAT good. The effort was incredibly disappointing. The set pieces were terrible. The flow was nonexistant. Keller has every right to be REAL pissed at his backs for leaving him out to dry.

3. This can be forgotten with a win over Italy. The Czech Republic are the best team in this group, by far. Not the Italians. This is a winnable match Saturday. Clearly, some adjustments must be made.

 

Yeah, because in our "sophisticated" soccer-hating country, winning a game does lead to many serious injuries and deaths. :

Asshat.

That's the thing that pisses me off the absolute most.  If you don't like soccer, fine, don't click on the damn thread titled "I'm pissed about the soccer loss, and this is a rant."  I HATE the Not Basketball Association, and you know what?  I haven't clicked on a single fucking thread identifying itself as an NBA thread.

My problem's not with people who don't like soccer.  My problems with you assholes who throw at us every damn stereotype you can think of, even if it's only happened once or twice as excuses why you hate the game.  It's enough to say you don't like it, you don't need to throw out the "losing a game leads to serious deaths and injuries" or, my personal favorite as some socially inept bastard loudly proclaimed today INSIDE A BAR WHERE EVERY PATRON WAS THERE BECAUSE OF THE MATCH, "when do they throw out the bags of urine?"

Spinning, I hope that's the last I hear from you on this thread.  Start up an "I hate soccer" thread if you wish.  You won't find me there.

 

Zizzer, sell some of us that don't enjoy it. I think the thing that turns me off the most is that a two-goal deficit in a high-caliber competition means the game is over, and the fact that a team can play with one fewer man for nearly an entire game and still win, or at least compete. What are the things that you really enjoy about the game? I'm sure if I watched baseball and didn't know much about it I'd be bored silly too. What creates your passion for the game?

 

Common sense has no place on a message board.

 

Engage me in the discussion or don't.

But the Keystone Cop routine, trying to order me off this thread, is petty.

 

I don't need to try to sell you on the game. I've found that that's what soccer-bashers hate the most, is when those who do enjoy the game try to explain why. If you watch the game and find it boring, that's your prerogative. I happen to find baseball, football and basketball extremely boring - baseball is just too slow, there's no flow to the game. Football is similar, where you run a play for 10 seconds or so, then stand around for 35. Basketball - especially at the pro level - has become far too much of an individual game.

I grew up playing the game. As a kid, unless you're one of the two or three best players, you're stuck out in the outfield in little league, and you might get four at-bats a game. Woohoo, a whopping four times to swing the bat, against pitchers who either walk everyone or strike out everyone. And I was a little kid, so football would simply have gotten me crushed. Similarly, I was far too short to play basketball. Soccer was the one sport that it didn't matter your size, because there's always a place for everyone. Tall and strong? You'd make a hell of a center back. Short and shifty? Great at outside midfield. Can run all day? Play in the center of the park and help out on both ends.

And being down 2-0 doesn't mean the game is over. Just ask Liverpool, which in 2005 rallied from a 3-0 halftime deficit to tie the match at three and eventually win the UEFA Champions League Final.

 

I like soccer. I'm very much a soccer fan.

That said, ...

I watched the A's/Yankees baseball game yesterday, then I watched at Mavs/Heat NBA Finals. During the games and afterwards, I couldn't help but think: wow, baseball and basketball are awesome sports to watch. I mean, it really, really, really is a treat for us, U.S. residents, to be able to watch Major League Baseball, NBA basketball and NFL football so regularly.

Hockey, soccer, tennis, and others are really cool sports too, and I'm a fan of all of them, but it just doesn't give you the same effects as our Big 3.

I think that's where a lot of the soccer bashing comes from. Because, every World Cup, we hear all these soccer freaks telling us that soccer is better than baseball, better than basketball, better than football. It really pisses people off. Some people think soccer sucks. Others think it's cool. I'm one of them. But that doesn't matter. What matters is most people here don't think soccer is great, like they think basketball, baseball and football is, and to hear what they think is an inferior game compared over and over and over again to their great sports gets people a little uneasy and sensitive. And they bite back.

 

There was a stat mentioned earlier today that in 77 games in which a team has led by two-or-more goals in WC history, the leader is 73-0-4. It's hard to argue that a 2-0 lead doesn't mean the game is over. I can understand how playing the game may be fun. I just don't find it compelling. I'm glad you enjoy it.