Swedish newspaper Aftonbladet tells that Pia Sundhage has been asked and accepted to stay as USWNT head coach over the 2012 London Olympics. Sunil Gulati says to the paper that ussoccer had initially planned to make a review of the performance before deciding on Sundhage's future, but "We made up our minds already before the prize ceremony". Fun fact: Gulati popped the question during the gold medal party last night, on his knees. Source (some partypics included)
Pia towers over the evil dwarf to begin with. That must have been a really funny sight. Congrats to Pia. She is a coach who gets the most out of her players and the players want to give more to play for her.
Copy the text into google translate. The sportbladet website restricts remote access. I wonder what song Pia sang. I hope, "It's only just begun."
I thought of that after I'd posted. Thanks, though. I'm glad to get the report from sportbladet but I'd love it if we could get some American news reports (or even just pics from stalkers) about the after party. I haven't seen other reports of Sunil's proposal. Surely sportbladet wasn't the only one to ask him questions about it.
On the "source", keep scrolling down until you see TV: Pia..... You can see the "proposal." He's actually very funny. Pia seems quite shocked and pleased.
Link to the video-recorded "event", song and all ("You are my sunshine..."): http://www.aftonbladet.se/webbtv/sport/os2008/article3156133.ab
The NY Times quotes Gulati as ..."After every Olympics we hold a major review. That review is now over".
Thanks for the tip. I missed it, too. While you could hear what Sunil said, they voiced over Rampone's speech. Anyone catch what she said? Lots of happy people and lots of frothy adult beverages
I love the fact that these players love playing for Pia. What other team at this level you can say their coach has that effect on his/her players? Not only does she bring the european tactical game (which we still have major tweaking to do) but she brings passion into the team who use to play soley for past generations. Hopefully this is a sign that the future players will be given a chance to explore their creative game as opposed to grooming them into strictly fit athletes.
Well, Sven-Göran Eriksson tend to have the same effect on his players but unlike Pia who's only passion is Soccer he has two passions, soccer and women (in that order).
OK, so you like a musical challenge? Here's your beloved national team coach featuring in a particularly scary episode in Swedish musical history: the Swedish women's team's "Vi är tjejer, vi är bäst" ("We are girls, we're the best") from 1987. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7Cte78J0ayE
great video. i hope they gave her a raise. it's an illusion that pia is unique in terms of coaches that national team players love to play for. there are many other coaches who their players love to play for. but they didn't win a gold medal. closeness, love, and camaraderie always get heightened when the team is winning. i really don't care whether the team "loves" the coach or not. as long as they can be coached into a winning team. one can also predict with some degree of certainty that the lovy dovy feelings can disappear very quickly if adversity sets in, and as most coaches have to be, she is fired. its just the natural cycle of the coaching wheel. ?????? i'm beginning to think that regardless of who the coach is, we'll always be the german team of the new world. incredibly fit and well organized athletes who never have the best skills but who win because they defend, they never say die and they always find a way to get the ball in the back of the net. that's what the win over brazil seemed to confirm in my mind. it's just a feeling.
Actually you know your Soccer... every word you stated I have made a few months ago and was insulted very meanly/ check all postes by Noorwell for prove...