I'm just as excited as everbody else over today's result, but could we please curtail this irrational over-exuberance? It's very patronizing and insulting to our rivals. Are we capable of winning these games? Sure...but we're going to have to be even sharper in all facets of our game if we expect to win. Ghana's going to be a 'mean' test. Let's give them(South Korea and Uruguay too) the respect they deserve.
You said yourself that we can win the games to get there, I don't see a single reason why we can't be realistic but excited and hopeful at the same time. I don't think anybody is saying we're favorites to make it to the semi's, but there's reason to hope that we can.
I don't see the problem with it. I mean someone saying we WILL do it, or that we are heavily favored to do it, is a bit silly, but we are totally CAPABLE of doing it, and wouldn't want to put money on any of the games because they are going to tough for both sides!
No one's saying it's going to be easy, but you have to be happy with the quadrant we ended up in. I bet the other three teams are too, and I'm sure us being there is part of the reason why.
If people want to speculate about quarterfinals, or semifinals ..... or....Finals ..........well, more power to them. The fact is, of course, that once the round of 16 starts each match is our final match, has to be played as such, for it is in fact the final one if we do not win. It is brutally unforgiving, and I hope to heck the players and Bradley's staff are focussed on nothing but "that final coming up". That said, if fans can't have fun with all this now, then there is no time they can have fun with it.
We will beat New Zealand by a score of 7 to 5 to win the World Cup final - mark it down. Seriously, who cares if fans on a message board are "looking ahead"? Do we need to be extra focused on Ghana's left back situation so we don't get burned on an overlapping run? Hell no. One of the great things about being a sports fan is dreaming about the impossible, and I think we've all got some reason to dare to dream of something great after such a special win today.
Can we stop talking about stopping people from talking about the quarterfinals / semifinals? Seriously we are fans and if we want to talk about potential future match-ups then so be it. If it were Bob Bradley or Landon Donovan talking about future rounds of the WC that would be one thing, but we are not part of the internal process that will advance the team. If the national team from Ghana is surfing Big Soccer and using general postings from fans as motivation against the US instead of studying film, I welcome them to Big Soccer and encourage them to spend as many sleepless nights as possible between now and Saturday looking for some.
Essienless Ghana can't score except on gift penalties!! AMERICA, Yes we claim the whole ficken north and south continents bitches!!!!!!!!! South Korea needs to stick to speed skatin imatations! You haven't won the cup in 60 years, Uruguay!!!
You're avatar. I've seen some players wear that emblem. Is it the US's new emblem? If so, thank God we got rid of the old one.
Not the new emblem. Nike commissioned Mr. Cartoons to create an alternative logo that they are using on some of their different merchandise. I think the collection is called Nike True Colors. I have seen some of the players wearing it also and I prefer it to the regular crest at this point too.
I've been pretty harsh on those who were dissing (or seemed to be dissing) Slovenia and Algeria in the run up to those games. I thought they deserved more respect. I thought we were basically even with them in terms of talent, and not big favorites in any way. I think the games reflected that (Slovenia a bit more so). Still, when you look at the quadrant of the draw we are in (Uruguay, South Korea, Ghana, USA) vs. the one we could have been in (Argentina, Germany, Mexico, England), it's hard not to feel like we got the better end of the deal. While I wouldn't say we are big favorites to beat any team in our quarter, I would say we aren't underdogs in any game, either. What were the chances we could make it to the semis without having to beat a big team (Brazil, Spain, Netherlands, England, Germany, Argentina, Italy, Portugal) OR even another European team of note. It is FANTASTIC! And I'm sure in Uruguay, South Korea, and Ghana they are all thinking the same thing without disrespecting us.
Ghana South Korea Uruguay United States One of those teams IS going to the semifinals... (...and I guarantee you will be called something like "the outsider" or the "shock semi-finalist") Why not us? OT: My goodness, look at the other side of the A-B-C-D bracket: Argentina England Germany Mexico Can you say "loaded"?