The Soccer Thread (Version 12) — Revenge of the Backup GK

Azzurri threatening to go 2 straight WC misses, sandwiching winning the Euros.

 

Canada posting a deux a zed on Mexico is awesome.

 

So what we think about the US match today? Is it ok because it's the standard any point on the road is good and the field sucked and Jamaica has been at least sort of competitive this year. Or is it a letdown coming off the last game and it was Jamaica?

I was kind of the latter at first but have moved toward the middle. It wasn't Trinidad and Tobago but still kind of disappointing. Seems to be the ebb and flow of this team.

 

If I have it right, USMNT still hasn’t played a WCQ with all of its top players, right? Particularly short-handed today without McKennie, Pulisic (from the starting XI), Reyna, Dest. Not going to get too worked up over the draw. Halfway through qualifying, pretty much guaranteed no worse than the intercontinental playoff and really just have to outperform Panama to get top three. Fine with that given the circumstances.

 

Including a maximally Canadian celebration:

 

¡Aye que lastima! El gorr de Los EEUU está primero

 

It's fine -- not great, but fine. An emotional ebb was almost inevitable given the heights of the Mexico game and the youth of the side. The US is still ahead of the 1.5 points-per-game pace needed to qualify, and winning the final three home games (El Salvador, Honduras, Panama) should be enough to get over the line.

The away games do concern me -- Canada is red hot right now, Azteca is still Azteca, and Costa Rica is not the place I'd want to go if I needed points for some reason. There aren't many easy points floating out there to paper over a slip-up at home.

 

USMNT looked great for about a 20 minute stretch in the first half and we should have put more pressure on the Jamaica defense. 1 point is ok, but we really want some cushion from 4th. Pretty soon there are going to be matches where teams with zero to play for and cam lead to strange results.

 

Starting to get some clarity on what Qatar 2022 will look like.

Sides in: Qatar, Germany, Denmark, Brazil, France, Belgium, Croatia, Spain, Serbia, England, Switzerland, Netherlands, Argentina

UEFA playoff sides (three advance): Portugal, Sweden, Italy, Ukraine, Wales, Czechia (nod to Sporcle), Scotland, Austria, Turkey, Russia, Poland, North Macedonia

CONCACAF: Canada, USA, Mexico currently top three in qualifying; Panama in the intercontinental playoff spot; all four at least five points clear of the bottom four

CONMEBOL: Two spots up for grabs. Ecuador looks likely to qualify. There will be a dogfight between Colombia, Peru, Chile, Uruguay, Bolivia, and Paraguay for the fourth spot and the spot in the intercontinental playoff.

OFC: Eh, it's probably going to be New Zealand but there is no plan yet in place for actual qualifying. May take place in Qatar in the spring.

AFC: Still think the Chiefs will get their shit together and run away with it. ... I mean, wait. ... Ah, Iran and South Korea are in very good shape and are likely in. Saudi Arabia as well. Japan and Australia will battle for the fourth spot, with the loser playing someone for the right to play someone else in an intercontinental playoff.

CAF: Home-and-away ties featuring a draw of these 10 countries: Algeria, Tunisia, Nigeria, Cameroon, Mali, Egypt, Ghana, Senegal, Morocco and DR Congo (it will always be Zaire to me.)

Not a lot of new blood in there, though it would be cool to see Canada, North Macedonia, Mali or the DRC sneak through to give us some new faces in the event.

 

Those UEFA playoffs are going to be great TV. As I understand it, there are 3 groups of 4 who play one legged semifinals and finals in the March window. Each group has 2 “seeded” teams who will host their semis against the “unseeded” teams and then there is a draw to determine who hosts the final. There is a chance that could have Italy and Portugal in the same group.

 

In the absence of a cricket thread, I'll post this here. Get ready to relive the 1994 World Cup experience as befuddled American sports talkers dust off their "what's this weird foreign sport darkening our shores?" takes. Who will be our generation's Frank DeFord, the brave soul who uses their platform to openly and fervently cheer against a sport becoming popular in the US?

USA to stage T20 World Cup: 2024-2031 ICC Men's tournament hosts confirmed

 

Looks like EPL staying on NBC properties for the next 6 years. They do a great job with it.