Wild American Gooner

When Sports Are More Than Just Sports


by 1 Comment

Belgium Must Abandon the Hope of Becoming a Team

Belgium has six points from two games and has safely progressed into the knockout round. Two games and two wins would satisfy most, but the Red Devils have not lived up to their potential. Both wins have come late on, after long periods of uninspired play. With all the hype about Belgium being this World Cup’s dark horse, they are playing much more like an old, underperforming favorite than an inspiring upstart. And maybe that’s not a bad thing.

Being an underdog has its perks. There is little to no pressure, and everyone will be happy with you if you just put in the effort. The result won’t matter so much as whether or not you competed. Belgium has been that underdog for much of the country’s sporting history. But now, they have reached the stage where they must face the pressure. Tipped by so many to be dark-horses, they in turn became overrated in many people’s eyes, with a ton to prove. The consensus among their critics was that they had not earned the status people were giving them. They hadn’t even qualified for the European Championships in 2012.

Belgium is a squad of Premier League stars. It’s a squad that many casual fans won’t be familiar with because of their inexperience on the international level, but any week in-week out fan of club soccer will know them all. There’s an abundance of talent everywhere. Because of their individual talent, they became a “great” team overnight, without ever actually becoming a team.

Now they are out to prove that they are a team rather than merely a group of individual stars. But their first two contests have not settled that debate in any favorable way. They look uncomfortable playing together, afraid to step outside the system to show off their own skill. Creative players like Eden Hazard have been uncharacteristically unadventurous in their first two games. It hasn’t been until the substitutes have come in the field in both matches that Belgium has shown any signs of their talent. Only when they are allowed to be themselves do they look a team.

The age old question is whether a team with a bunch of individual stars is better than one that will play like a team. In this World Cup, the two teams that will aim to settle this debate are Belgium and Costa Rica. With both being relative newcomers to big-time soccer success, they have advanced in completely different ways. Belgium, as I said above, has needed their individuals to carry them when their system has failed to produce any results, while Costa Rica, a team whose unheralded players have been around each other for years, has commanded matches from the start with their tactics and spirit as a team. Both have six points, but wouldn’t you have to say Costa Rica has been more impressive so far?

Belgium certainly have the talent to go far in this tournament. But where they are as a team right now does not meet the necessary level to progress in the knockout stages. This talented group of individuals needs a lot more time over the next few years to become comfortable playing with one another. For now, they might be better off abandoning hope that they’ll become a true team in Brazil. Releasing the individual talent will be their savior, as few teams possess Belgium’s individual talent. However, if they try to play as a team at this point in their development, it won’t be enough.

Not many teams can be more successful if they abandon the team mentality. But if Marc Wilmots wants his squad to advance in the World Cup, he needs to unleash the individuals, because in this case, the stars are bigger than the team.

Do you think my unorthodox suggestion is preposterous? Please comment below and tell me what you think.


by Leave a comment

Wimbledon and Joel Embiid – Two Non-World Cup Related Stories

It is amazing how much the rest of the sports world has been tuned out over the last two weeks while focusing on the World Cup. I’ve avoided ESPN for the most part, in the hope of writing original content. But there’s actually a ton going on. While I nervously await the USA-Portugal match, I want to share my thoughts on a couple sports stories outside of soccer.

Who knew Wimbledon was starting tomorrow? I am a big tennis fan, but I’d completely forgotten about one of the best events of the summer until quite recently. Haven’t there been more advertisements for the U.S. Open in September than for Wimbledon? Anyway, the tennis should be full of intrigue this year, and will be well worth some attention. There are so many interesting story lines at the All-England Club this go around.  We have Rafael Nadal coming off of yet another incredible run at the French Open, having struggled mightily on grass recently. Then there’s top-seeded Novak Djokovic, who despite a great year of tennis, has not won a major in nearly 18 months, something that would have seemed unthinkable not that long ago. I was not a fan of Djokovic’s decision to switch coaches this past winter, so for me he has a lot to prove in these next two weeks.

Don’t forget about Roger Federer. I believe he’s got two runs left in him at major tournaments, and one might very well come here. He knows his time at the top is running out quickly, and crowing his career with a final Wimbledon victory would be the ultimate reward. And how could we not mention Andy Murray? Since he won Wimbledon last year, getting the monkey off Britain’s proverbial back, he has sometimes lacked the same intensity. A few weeks playing in front of his home crowd might get him going again. There are many other names who could succeed this tournament, as the men’s tennis world has opened up in recent months, but I think the winner comes from these well-known four. I tip Djokovic to take home the crown.

Another major story line this week has been the Joel Embiid injury. While it is obviously a devastating blow for the young big-man, it may be incredible news for Celtics fans like me. Having seen our hopes for landing Kevin Love fade in recent days, with some reports suggesting the team might go in the completely opposite direction and trade Rajon Rondo, the injury offers a glimmer of hope. That Embiid might slip into our hands is tantalizing. I don’t think he’ll slide all the way to the sixth pick, but he could. Should he be there, the Celtics have to take a chance on him. His upside is tremendous obviously, and given that the Celtics probably are at least a year away, they are in no hurry to see him produce immediately, and could wait for him to be healthy, however long that may take.

The question is, if Orlando is picking at four, and Embiid is still on the board, would the Celtics want to trade up for him there? Given the riskiness of the pick, how much would you give up to trade up two spots? I think I’d be willing to trade up for him, but only if the cost was reasonable – maybe the 6 pick and a future first. Otherwise, call their bluff and hope Embiid is still there at six. If we don’t get Love, Embiid would be a nice consolation. I’ll have a post about my ideal Celtics’ picks on Wednesday. Stay tuned.

Now, back to the soccer. Brutal to see Arsenal captain Thomas Vermaelen pick up an injury in his big chance. Let’s hope this isn’t the last chance he gets.

I believe.


by Leave a comment

How the U.S. Beats Portugal

Good morning, everyone. Luckily for you, I’ve gotten over Bosnia’s tragic loss last night and elected not to write about how sad I was. For the record, I don’t think Nigeria’s goal was preceded by a foul. In the EPL, that would never be called. But I digress. Now to today’s main event – I don’t know how I’m going to wait. I’ll probably end up working out this morning to get the nerves out. The Belgium-Russia game at noon will keep me occupied and happy after, but the South Korea-Algeria game won’t be one that can keep the negative thoughts away. I’ll end up thinking about how scary Cristiano Ronaldo is for roughly four hours straight before kickoff. That can’t be healthy.

Despite how scary Cristiano Ronaldo is, the USA has a good chance of winning this game and sealing a place in the knockout round before having to face Germany, something that going in, none of us expected would be a possibility. With Germany not yet safe, I won’t want to go into the game with the Germans needing anything from it, and I would guess Jürgen Klinsmann would agree. The USA’s chance to advance is now. A tie or a loss today wouldn’t be fatal, but we need to play for the win. Thursday would be awfully nervy if we were to drop points in this game. However, the notion that I would be saying that anything but three points would be considered dropped points shows how high American hopes are. We believe.

The most important aspect of tonight’s game is stopping Cristiano Ronaldo. It seems obvious, but he cannot be the one to beat the U.S. We are smarter than that. Follow the model that Germany laid out and make everyone else beat you. If Ronaldo gets even a yard of space, the U.S. could regret it instantly, but with everyone else on that team lacking confidence right now, they might be vulnerable on the big stage. We all know Ronaldo will show up, but will his teammates be able to keep their cool in front of the net if a chance arises? Recent play suggests not.

As far as stopping Ronaldo, I would give Kyle Beckerman the task of essentially man-marking Ronaldo anytime the ball is in Portugal’s attacking half. Klinsmann should tell him to leave the rest of the defensive midfield duties to Jermaine Jones, so that he can prevent Ronaldo from receiving the ball easily. Second, Fabian Johnson can never be left alone against Ronaldo. Alejandro Bedoya will have to be especially disciplined. He might be the key to this match. If he doesn’t get caught too far upfield, he should be able to provide cover for Johnson, who quite simply cannot defend Ronaldo on his own. Someone always has to be watching him, communicating his runs to the rest of the back four. Shutting him down entirely won’t be possible, but bottling him up is.

With so much defensive discipline needed to stop Ronaldo, the U.S. might find it hard to send extra runners into the box when we are on the front foot. As a result, I would not like to see Clint Dempsey up top alone as some people are suggesting. I’d start Chris Wondolowski and prepare Aaron Johannsson to come on late in the second half to run at defenders with tired legs. While Wondolowski is no Jozy Altidore, he does a lot of things well, and will be able to hold up play more effectively than Johannsson would. He also has better instincts inside the six, and might have a better shot at grabbing an ugly goal in a scrum in front of the net.

The biggest challenge offensively will be creating chances without many men upfield. Michael Bradley will need to be at his best if the U.S. hopes to score, as he is one of very few players on this team that can take on defenders on his own and find the perfect ball. He was pretty quiet against Ghana, so I expect him to bounce back nicely today. If the U.S. scores, the goal will be set up by Bradley. But while the U.S. might be tempted to bring a lot of men forward for set pieces to snag another goal like John Brooks’s, they’ll need at least three men back as opposed to the normal one or two when they take them. Counter attacks off set pieces might be when Ronaldo beats us.

My final point before my prediction is this: Portugal’s defense without Pepe and Fabio Coentrao isn’t as bad as American fans are believing it is. Bruno Alves is a beast in the middle, and his fellow defenders are no slouches. Underestimating the Portuguese after seeing only the Germans play them would not be smart. Allow yourself to believe, but don’t think for one second that this match will be easy even if Ronaldo is somehow contained.

I think the final score will be United States 1 Portugal 1. If Klinsmann stresses defensive discipline, there won’t be many chances for the Americans. But I think Chris Wondolowski converts one if he starts. It will be a particularly ugly goal scored by a body part other than his feet or his head, but it will be worth its weight in gold. However, I think Ronaldo has a moment of brilliance in the second half to put his team on his back. There will be nothing the U.S. can do. Tim Howard will make a few spectacular saves, but won’t have quite enough to deny Ronaldo a goal in the end. It will be a valuable point, but we’ll still have a long way to go to qualify for the knockout stage after this game.

Belgium 2 Russia 0

After struggling for much of the match against Algeria, Belgium found their stride in a big way towards the end of that game. Today will be more like that. I like Eden Hazard to dazzle in this one after a relatively quiet first match. I don’t think he’ll score, but he’ll be the best player on the pitch. Romelu Lukaku will redeem himself as well against Russia, heading in a first half corner. The second goal will come from Kevin De Bruyne on a break. Russia won’t have much going for them and Fabio Capello will be left looking for answers.

South Korea 1 Algeria 1

Algeria will be the better team for most of the match, but South Korea will score first through Park Chu-Young. He’s been an Arsenal striker for three years now and I’ve never watched him score. So he has to do it today. His goal will be well taken too, confusing every Gooner around the world. Sofiane Feghouli scored from the spot for Algeria against Russia, and this time he’ll score from open play. Both goalies will be called into action a lot today. But ultimately, neither side will be able to find the winner, and Group H will remain a mess going into the final day.

Despite my pick of a draw for the U.S., I’m quietly optimistic. I do believe. Let’s do this.


by 3 Comments

Die Beste Halbe von Fußball Bisher (The Best Half of Soccer So Far)

Hoffentlich Die Mannschaft spielt viele mehr Spielen in Brazil weil mehr Deutsch muss ich schreiben! After a full twenty-three hours without watching a World Cup match (it felt strange, believe me), I was able to tune in to the Germay-Ghana game, hoping to see some German delight. But instead, I was treated to one the most enthralling half of soccer the World Cup has offered thus far. As a U.S. supporter first and foremost, this game was agonizing to watch at times, not to mention that Germany would be my obvious team given my familial roots and second language choice. ESPN’s Jon Champion called the scoreless first half a “game for the purists,” but the second half was for everyone.

Before I get to everything else, I have to question Jogi Löw’s decision to bring on the inexperienced Shkodran Mustafi at right back at half for Jerome Boateng. While Philipp Lahm may be his ideal holding midfielder at this point in the German captain’s career, there comes a come when the best right back in the world should be playing right back. I am fine with Boateng on the right, because he is sound defensively and certainly capable of sending in the odd cross. But when Boateng is not on the field, Lahm needs to shift to defense. Germany’s options for holding midfielders off the bench are far better than their secondary options in the back. Mustafi messed up today, allowing Andrew Ayew to get in front of him for a game-tying header. Another mistake could cost the Germans tremendously down the line.

Aside from that, I felt like Germany were a step slow tonight. They were adventurous going forward for much of the match, but remain a few causes for concern. With all the fluid movement up top, they leave their defenders very exposed at times. The backline is more than capable of holding down the fort, but Löw’s tactics put a lot of pressure on his back four. Should there be a giveaway in midfield, like there was on Asomoah Gyan’s goal, there’s not much the defense can do without cover from any wide areas.

The highlight of this game for me was Miroslav Klose’s goal. That it came so soon after his arrival on the pitch provided a further testament to his goalscoring prowess at the World Cup. While the public might be in love with posterboy Mario Götze, Klose is simply ruthless. When Germany needs a goal, he needs to be on the field. Götze should start in my opinion, but don’t forget about Klose. He’s got a little more left.

For me, Mesut Özil had another decent game, but again a keener desire to score himself could have been the difference. Many might be dissatisfied again with his perceived lack of interest, but I feel it’s wrong to judge him for his resting facial expression, though you can fault him for not sprinting back after giving the ball way. Özil made a lot of intelligent runs to get into wonderful spaces, and two or three times you had to wonder if he had a shot in him. Maybe it’s a lost cause to want him to shoot more, but he has a strong shot in him when he decides to let one go. But alas, you know what you’re going to get from Özil these days. He certainly has more to give, but we’re only going to see it if we allow him to be himself. Germany needs him badly, and would be unwise to give up on him right now.

Lastly, Ghana is a heck of a team. In most every group, they would likely be going through. They were woefully unlucky against the U.S., and today they certainly were on par with the Germans. While they will probably be going home, it would be wrong to say they underperformed. Some teams just get unlucky. And no, I don’t mean England.

It sounds like I missed a good one in Argentina and Iran earlier today. But it looks as if we might see a lot more of Lionel Messi.

 

 


by 1 Comment

Another Exciting Day of Action

Good morning, all. My ability to watch most every World Cup match is about to end. Ecuador-Honduras was the first full match I had missed in a while. But today, I have orientation for my summer job that starts Monday. I’ll certainly miss the Argentina game, but I might try and watch the Germany-Ghana game on delay, pushing back my watching of the Bosnia game. Sunday will be the last time I’ll be able to watch all the games live except on weekends. That shouldn’t mean much for content other than when I can post things. I’ll still have something in the morning, but further posts won’t come until nighttime. I’ll make the time to write if I need to.

Now to my picks.

Argentina 5 Iran 1

With Argentina hopefully now settled on their preferred formation, Lionel Messi can find a rhythm with his talented teammates. If they settle in, Iran won’t stand a chance. I like Messi to score a brace in this one, while setting up another. One will be scored by Gonzalo Higuain, and Sergio Agüero will add the last two. Iran’s consolation will be a late goal, one that should be celebrated. Reza Ghoochannejhad will be the goal scorer. Argentina will surely command this game from the opening whistle.

Germany 3 Ghana 1 

Germany will have a little more trouble this time out than they did against Portugal, but Ghana won’t see their efforts pay off once again. Likely without Mats Hummels, Germany should shift Philipp Lahm into defense, giving them added security in the back. But Lahm’s biggest impact will come early on down the right, setting up Thomas Müller for the opener. Ghana won’t go away though, getting a goal back through Kevin Prince Boateng, a player who will be aching to impress against his brother’s nation. The game will remain tied for much of the match before Toni Kroos will put Germany in the lead with a curling effort from the edge of the box. Miroslav Klose will add to his World Cup tally in stoppage time, and Germany will seal the three points.

Bosnia & Herzegovina 2 Nigeria 0

With both sides needing the win, this game will be an entertaining one. Nigeria has had a very hard time finding the net in big games, not scoring from open play at the World Cup since 2002. Today won’t see that change, as they will once again lack the necessary creativity. Edin Džeko will score Bosnia’s opener early on, settling his team into the game nicely. From there, he and his strike partner Vedad Ibišević, who I tip to start alongside Džeko, will take command. Bosnia will deservedly get a second goal midway through the second half through Ibišević. The Nigerians won’t have a response, and there will be partying in Sarajevo tonight, celebrating their nation’s first ever World Cup victory.

Let’s hope we’re in for a great day of action. Check back this evening for more content. Have a great weekend.