That said, good for them! US Men's usually does ok but they haven't been a top contender for a while.
Posted on 07/27/2017 3:14:19 AM PDT by Berlin_Freeper
The U.S. men's national team entered Wednesday night's Gold Cup final undefeated under Bruce Arena. It's still undefeated, and now it's Gold Cup champion.
(Excerpt) Read more at cbssports.com ...
Hmmm, I am always intrigued by those who impugn a sport as well as denigrate it as less-than-manly. I will go on a limb and guess you have never played soccer or as the rest of the world calls it football. By comparison to the NFL kind, soccer requires greater stamina, finesse and patience than the NFL kind.
— In soccer, participants are always playing “both ways” and take no time-outs (T.V. commercial, huddle, or others) not to mention there are only three substitutions allowed in regular time (90 minutes).
— In soccer, skill with the ball (dribbling, passing, etc.) takes a long time to master. Only a few NFL players ever get to touch the ball and even those whose livelihood depends on it need a helmet to aid them every now and then. And yes, handling an egg shaped “ball” is not easy, particularly when inflated to the proper pressure.
— In soccer, scoring evolves over sequences of plays which require patience on the players to compose and in the audience to appreciate. In the NFL a score takes from the snap to the score; at its longest, the time it takes a running back to get a hand-off behind his own end zone to the goal line on the opposite side of the field. Truly an event made for those with the attention span of a retriever easily distracted by squirrels.
While not denigrating NFL style football, I understand both sports are different and require different skill sets. NFL style football lends itself for quick gratification from the audience point of view with the downs and the play clock determining the pace of the game while soccer requires the audience to have patience and greater appreciation for the skill of the players. To me, both are very entertaining to watch and designed for different kinds of players. Not to get into social/sexual appeal discussion, yet in general terms, just about any body size can excel at soccer with practice while NFL style football favors tall and large (not necessarily fit judging by the size of some linemens’ guts) individuals. And in a woman’s case, an affinity for guys with broad artificial shoulders, tight pants with small groin bulges, and the star player reaching from behind into another player’s derriere.
Yes, I have played both soccer as wing and American football as a wide receiver/safety in college/community/base intramurals and community leagues. As such I have respect for both. If you have not, give soccer a try in a local league wherever you live. I am convinced your moniker of soccer players as faeries will surely (not calling you Shirley) change.
Regards.
Actually the skill is knowing what to do when you don't have the ball. A lot of very skilled players never make it, because they aren't good when they don't have the ball.
You are correct, I forgot to mention the importance of a player’s self awareness away from the ball.
It was nice to actually see the US dominate possession for once.
Tough break for Jamaica losing Blake, though. I have a feeling he would have gotten to that Altidore goal.
Do not if I am crazy but the U.S. team seemed to be challenging on defense sooner than midfield, something I had not seen in previous games. They were after the ball well into Jamaica’s end of the field. It looked to me as if the U.S. pressure on the ball contributed to many bad passes from Jamaica leading to greater possession time and goal attempts for the U.S. I liked that much better than playing the basketball equivalent of a half court game.
Klinsi was good at building a program, I give him credit for that. But he was a terrible game manager. Arena is much better at getting the most out of his players.
Agreed, I think he also has a greater affinity for noticing and properly reacting to the fine tactical evolution of the game at hand. I hope this portends wins against top tier world class teams as the Germans, Brazilians and the like.
Berlin Freeper, thanks for your threads and posts. My opinion is that Acosta may not be able to play at this level. I have read glowing reports about him that say he is going to be great. Nothing against him, and the staff must see something in him. But to me, any number of young players could have done all that he did in this tournament and more. My opinion is that he plays with a lack of urgency on defense and goes forward on offense with more enthusiasm than soccer smarts. He certainly doesn’t make use of space. His service and through passes are, to be charitable, just below average. His hustle on Blake’s injury was typical of his play in this Cup. He was a bit late to the loose ball, but went hard when he recognized it. (Certainly, this was a clean play on his part and rightly, he received no criticism from players or announcers.)
Anyway, I’d be interested in your thoughts as well as other Freepers here.
Oldplayer
I have thought of this as well. I think one reason soccer has not taken off as other sports have in the U.S. is marketing/commercialization. For example, football, baseball, and basketball have natural (game flow induced) and team initiated pauses which perfectly lend the game for marketing goods. Soccer has no time outs and commercial adds are relinquished to announcer input, screen corner images, player uniform appliques, and on the field sideline signage. Many of these can be easily ignored by the audience who has to continually watch the field or risk missing an extraordinary play or a hard earned goal. So, why should businesses spend money advertising through a sport not designed to give them the intended audience’s undivided attention? I think, the business aspect of professional sports has something to do in both the income of the players and the popularity of the sport. And yes, European soccer stars make millions of Euros endorsing products yet the advertisement benefit to the business happens off the field and not during the game (i.e. marketing exploits the popularity of the player not the sporting event itself). Counter example, exorbitant cost of Super Bowl add time.
One more thing, soccer is a sport that just about any able bodied individual can learn and be good. Contrast that with basketball or football where short and small do not make the varsity team or at best get chosen last in the school yard. Additionally, you only need something to kick and some sort of ‘gate’ to play soccer. In my travels, I have seen kids make soccer balls from tree roots, rags, and even rocks. They marveled when we gave them real soccer balls sent from the States. The field can be anything from a street, roof, dirt field, etc. Not so easily done with other sports. The rules are very simple as well. This I think, also helps explains the huge appeal of soccer worldwide. And with a larger pool of participants there is a larger probability of genuine stars to emerge.
I think that any U.S. National team that eventually wins a World Cup (from my keyboard to the Lord’s eyes) will be made of players with predominantly African and Latin surnames either (legal immigrants or first/second generation from legal immigrants) with the occasional European surname (multi-generational U.S. family name) in the mix.
The irony is that in the US, it costs a lot of money for a parent to get their kid into a good academy.
Imagine if in the inner cities, soccer caught on with those who are too short to be basketball players. I think that will eventually happen, and that’s when the US will become an elite team. Unfortunately, it will bring the “thug” element to it, that is for the most part refreshingly missing.
You have something in there. Imagine, an inner city program to bring soccer to the huge numbers of boys and girls who miss out on organized basketball and regular football. Teach the kids discipline, desire for self-improvement, how to work together and respect for others instead of showboating and self-aggrandizement.
This I can get in front of and support. Better if it leads for some young stars to represent the U.S. and hear the National Anthem for them in a filled at capacity stadium.
What would it take?
You are very welcome oldplayer. There is definitely room for Acosta to develop. I read he is soft-spoken (maybe gets that from his Japanese father? cultural thing?) but has a very strong mentality/determination. Getting on the ball and making strong passes are fundamentals that can easily be coached. But also in the midfield, on the attack, a lot is knowing the tendencies of runners and I think with more play time and a strong mentality he will come of age. This was his first tournament for USA and since we took it he must be on a high and hungry for more success. This experience will help him imo.
Klinsi was good at building a program, I give him credit for that.Very true. Bayern Munich and the German National Team did very well just after Klinsmann left. Now too, USMNT.
Slow posting burns. It BURNS!
Sorry, couldn’t help but join the discussion re: the further development of US players.
All of you make valid points and I would just add that one of the biggest problems with US players is - THEY ARE OVER COACHED! (and I say this as someone who has coached both sons and my daughter).
More specifically, a huge portion of the kids that play soccer in this country only play it during practices and games for organized teams.
I believe one of the main reasons American athletes excel at the sports we excel in is what they learn playing the game in non-organized, “neighborhood” games, with only limited rules and an emphasis on individual, instinctual play.
This is one of the big differences between our players and the South American and European guys.
Good coaching is important, don’t get me wrong, but so is the non-structured type of play.
Perhaps I should have placed greater emphasis on “teach.” Outcomes are entirely a different thing in some regards dictated by the coach’s and parent’s (and to some extent the kid’s) desire to win.
I think back to the story of Freddie Adu, everybody thought this kid was going to be a superstar. He had the raw skills, certainly. Why didn’t he make it. Because eventually, you’ll come up against competition where your skills alone won’t work.
Soccer is the closest thing to Jazz music. It’s an improvisational game. You can be the most talented musician in the world, but if you can’t play with the guys around you, you’re worthless.
Sorry, meant to address my last post (#37) to you also.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.