I am with you on this. When I read elite dribbling I literally thought WTF!! The first match he played, his tactical naivete was a truly laughable sight for all but Brek Shea and USMNT fans. After that he was involved in a pigs head incident, and social media pics of him holding a couple of pretty bad ass weapons which didn't help when underperforming. He got sent back to Stoke while on loan at Burnley(?) if IIRC it was for flipping supporters of the loaned team off at the end of a match. He gave the impression art was a bigger concern than football. All that might have been okay if he had ever shown the slightest hint that he wanted to be a genuine premiership footballer. I think it is fair to say his superior athleticism allowed the game to come easy for him until he reached the highest levels, at which point he completely failed at having the heart and passion the game requires when there are lots of other equally athletic players who do have that heart. Fortunately the game here is advancing to the point players of that ilk will often get found out and exposed in MLS.
Well, at least he looks like a footballer. He could play one in a movie. I suspect had he got that pig's head on his shoulders for good, his soccer IQ would have improved a tad.
I rated him our best prospect from the 1990 /1991 birth years. Sadly I wasn't all that wrong. Not counting Nagbe who wasn't in the pool at the time his competition is Matt Hedges, who's way better but still not good by USNT standards. Kellyn Rowe and Bill Hamid who I'd say are easily better. Then Joe Corona, Gyasi Zardes, Ethan Finley and Mix Diskerud...... And we wonder why we couldn't qualify.
Well technically 'we' don't. But Sunil and Arena do. We were a few inches away apparently. I thought he was going to be something 4-5 years ago too. Another soft suburban American soccer athlete?
I mean, all you need to know is last night during the playoff game Taylor Twellman said on national tv, something like "Brek Shea doesn't want to think. He wants to get the ball and run forward. He can't think."
I don't know what it is about American sports announcers but across multiple sports it's amazing how little they actually talk about the game.
They must be told by marketing types to do that. There is no other way that ex-athletes across the sports spectrum would all do that otherwise. For that reason I don't get that angry at the announcer because if he/she wasn't there doing that someone else would. I like Twellman because I think he played one of my drums when he was a U17. I need to verify that because if it wasn't him I don't have to like him anymore.
It has to be that. It can't be so consistent across all sports. The worst is in hockey because you can get the Canadian feed and see how glaringly obvious the difference is. English soccer announcers tend to skew towards the Dick Vitale be loud but say anything meme.
it could be that the HR process selects people who are naturally like that and "interference" or "guidance" from marketing types isn't necessary.. how many people "tryout" for these roles???
It is apparently not what’s asked. On the NFL the best x an o men are rarely on the top broadcast team.
It's gotta be a cushy gig. I mean you get paid a lot and have a steady career as a former athlete. Seems they try out plenty of guys because you always see freshly retired players on tv for at least a little bit
I seem to remember it started back in the late '70's early '80's with Olympics. They seemed to think women needed all these human interest stories and less actual sports. It evolved to all sports over the years.
That is a function of "brand recognition" and the perceived marketing value of said brand. If there was ever a phrase that came from the Hell where the lovers of money end up, it would be "value of brand recogntion!" That value has a direct correlation to immediacy and relevance. Immediacy and relevance are also correlated but that relationship is dependent upon relevance, as in the more relevance( perceived level of superstar) the less immediacy matters. Talent is a lesser consideration, orders of magnitude lower than Q score.
Remember when Atletico Madrid wanted to buy him and convert him to a centerback? Still think he could've been a good wingback if he played there at a younger age. Tactically poor, one-dimensional. Didn't Schellas try him at second striker? Rather take Ethan Finlay over him tbh. He couldn't handle Europe and didn't want to fight for a place. Soccer is how he makes a living but not his first love or priority. I think that's clear.