May just have to rewatch that goal another 200 times....bringing my total to over 1,000. That moment stamped Abby and this team onto the hearts of many. She has provided us with so much joy. All-Timer.
Hate doesn't even begin to describe whatever that was. Some one must be really bitter about themselves to write all of that.
Not sure what his agenda is?!? Guess he wanted a column that stood out amoungst the positive articles..... But to me, there is a time and a place, and this was not it.
Who said she was Mia Hamm? I'm super confused and why the need to put her down in this thread? Maybe you should make a thread called the "Ding Dong The Witch Is Dead" and make your negative statements there.
“I don’t want to be someone who just played soccer,” Wambach said. “I want to be somebody who changes the world. I think I have in some small way, but I think there’s bigger things in store for me. ... I want to do whatever I can do to better the world, especially for women.” - Abby Wambach Goodbye, without you in 2011, US Soccer would have totally taken a different trajectory.
On the contrary. I never said I disliked Abby, I just didn't like the flopping on the slightest touch sometimes. I have cheered for her when she scored against Brazil and booed her when I thought she was flopping against my Red Stars. As a matter of fact I have seen Abby Wambach play live too many times to count, all over the country. At times I have been critical but also thought of how good she is a footballer. I have made many trips all over the country to see Abby play over the years. So I have many, many fond memories of watching Abby play and scoring goals. And BTW, this isn't a funeral. She is retiring from soccer, that's all. I think comments of different kind should be welcomed. No one said this should be a thread of just sugar-coated praises. Abby Wambach was good for this game, she was a fantastic goal scorer and will always be remembered as one of our greats and good luck to her. But I do feel it is time to retire and IMO, she made the right decision. Now I am ready to see the next Abby Wambach in young Horan or Hagen or maybe even someone we haven't heard of or seen yet.
Depends on how you look at it. If the Brazilians had won that would have been a HUGE boost for the women's game in their country and maybe to women's soccer world-wide, especially in South/Latin America. Remember, the idea is to grow the women's game all over the World, not just the US.
That was just a quarter final match and they still would have had to play France and Japan. Also, Brazil have clobbered the USA on the world stage before and it still did nothing for the game in that country so I don't know how that one match could have changed that.
I think bringing a Championship or Gold Medal to Brazil will go a long way. Every country likes pride.
I'm not disputing that. Obviously Brazil have started to pay serious attention to their team and a win for them in Rio will go a long way to growing the game in Brazil and hopefully South America. What I am disputing is the fact that Brazil winning the 2011 quarter final would have had a bigger impact in Brazil than it did for the USA. That match was a mere quarter final and most likely would have gone unnoticed in Brazil because unlike majority of teams, beating the USA on the world stage was not a novelty for Brazil so it wouldn't have been a big deal. Who knows, maybe if the situation was reversed and Marta was the one that scored the last minute equalizer than it would have made a splash in Brazil.
Meg Linehan: https://sports.vice.com/en_us/article/abby-wambach-leaves-soccer-enters-pantheon-of-all-time-greats Jeff Kassouf: http://sportsworld.nbcsports.com/ab...ags =srm[sport – soccer,content - text-based]
Wambach was a key component to the team for many years and deserves to be recognized for her play. Some of the hate is obviously misplaced ... I think it stems from some of the absolutely over-the-top articles that have recently come out. There was an article on 538 that declared her as the GOAT. Wambach was a great player ... lead the team for a number of years ... let's just leave it at that.
It's not hate. It's how people see things. No one is saying "mean" things. I am defending people's rights to have an opinion on her career as they saw it. Those of you who are complaining that people are hating on Abby, would you be doing the same if it was Marta retiring? Trust me, when Marta retires there will be American fans who will say some non-flattering things. Would you defend Marta at that time? Hmmm?
For me, yes, I'll give Marta all the respect she deserves the day she retires, the same with Sinclair. Down this line if people want to get into a deeper discussion about their careers, so be it. But to key in on 1-2 years at the tail end of their career, and use that as the basis for my opinion on their retirement seems off. So I'd be there to back any international that has had a stellar career, and give them their time in the sun.....
http://espn.go.com/espn/feature/story/_/id/11655083/us-women-soccer-star-abby-wambach-lives-extreme Then, just when Burleigh was about to speak, Wambach stepped into the middle of the huddle and yelled, "We are not f---ing losing to these bitches!" Long before "living authentically" became a popular catchphrase, Wambach was doing just that, quietly, without the headlines. Back in the early 2000s, she was open with her U.S. teammates about her sexuality. They were cool with it; they had all played with gay athletes before. But she did face a crossroads once the '99ers generation -- Hamm, Foudy, Joy Fawcett -- began retiring. "I was worried that I was the anti-them: short hair, lesbian, freely speaking my mind," Wambach says. "I knew that I couldn't fit their mold, but at the same time I didn't want to reinforce the cliche that exists in women's sports, that it's a lesbian world, because that's just not how it is. And, truthfully, I'm not the kind of person to stand on a podium and say, 'I'm gay. Hear me roar.' In terms of my professional life, it has nothing to do with how I play soccer. Yes, 'authenticity' is the cool new word, and gay men in sports are a huge topic of conversation. But I want to be a predecessor to the movement where it isn't a big topic." Wambach seems absolutely certain about one thing she'll do after she retires: become a stay-at-home mom. She loves the idea of remaining in one place and letting Huffman, who hopes to work at Nike after the NWSL season, be her "sugar mama." One of the first details about Wambach that most of her teammates share is how fantastic she is with kids. A good profile of the on/off switch of Abby. And more insight into the Sarah/Abby relationship.
I guess I need to clarify what I meant but that. There is a somewhat short list of all time really great American women soccer players. From the "99" era there was a bunch. Hamm, Fouty, Lilly and a few others. From the current era there are less truly great players but more overall good players. High on the great list of current players is Abby W. When I think of these all time great players, Mia is most likely top of the list or maybe just behind Michelle Akers. She held the scoring title for many many years without the help of PKs and without the talent around her (except the other short list players) that Abby had. Mia also did a lot more than score. Pass, dribble, shoot, speed... she was more of a total package than Abby. Abby's main skill is scoring. So when I say Abby has the scoring title but will never be a Mia. That is what I meant. The other things Mia brought elevate her to number one or two on the all time great list. Abby is also on that list but was/is far more limited a player .
I don't think this thread needs to turn into a "who's better" thread. But let's not forget Wambach is 3rd all time in assist, so it's not as if she just scored goals.... Also Wambach played a role on defense for set pieces, I'm sure Solo and Scurry will tell you they feel better with her in the box. She also was a huge motivator. And BOTH were surrounded by talent. They both brought something special to the game!