Originally posted by Richie I would have given her an appreciation fu_k. I always liked oriental women, and they seem to like me as well. -------------------------------------------------- It did cross my mind, but I didn't want to ruin her work clothes
I love this thread. Sure, we'll probably be talking about that Cup run in 20 years, but it just seems strange to start a thread more than a year removed and say "man that was a great run, remember that?" Kinda reminds me of SNL when Chris Farley asked Paul McCartney, "Remember...when you were with The Beatles? Man...that was awesome." Hey, it IS a boring time right now for the national team so why not? I just re-discovered the South Korea match in a pile of tapes today and can say that despite what anyone might say against Friedel in the tourney, his save on Seol just after halftime was one of the best I've ever seen, and one I'd sort of forgot about. (Him saving the PK will do that, I guess) Oh, and what about that gem from Jack Edwards? "Flick-on header...Seol...save by Friedel! Agoos clears it out of the six-yard box! Friedel is from Mars! He certainly isn't from this planet!" *sniff* Miss that guy!
I cann't believe you guys are forgeting John O'brian. He was a solid midfielder throughout the world cup campaign. I believe if O'brian didnt score off the deflection to put the U.S. up by one, the US wouldnt have beaten Portugal and they would have seen another early dismissal from the world cup.
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So what you're saying is that in reality, the US was lucky... "if" is one heck of a luxury. Many believe that S. Korea **should** have won that match. They controlled that match more than the US did, Friedel saved a PK, and when they scored, I believe the US players were reported to have claimed that they were very pleased and fortunate for the draw. The final match, to my knowledge, took place at the same time. The US dug themselves in a terrible hole in the first half against Poland. Meanwhile, it was all tied up in the S. Korea and Portugal match. If they draw, the US is SOL my friend. Simple as that. I understand if it hurts the pride, but that is the reality. The US got some good results in the first two matches, but it was S. Korea's goal in the end that saw them through. Otherwise, it was S. Korea and Portugal. Don't believe me? Fair enough. But this link will give you a snapshot of how most look at the result: http://worldcup.espnsoccernet.com/group?id=groupd&lang=en
That's absolutely correct - we owe South Korea a great thanks for having played hard enough to win when a simple draw was enough for them. But a little luck is always important in big tournaments, as in life.
"should have"s and "if"s get a big BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO Hissssssss from me. Haven't even clicked on the link, and don't care how most saw the match. The thing is there are THREE matches in group play for a reason. The two teams with the most points advance, and the U.S. had the 2nd most points. End - of - story.
..... after S. Korea beat Portugal. I think you should click on the link - I'm not actually making this up or doing it for a wind-up. It's the fact. The US/S. Korea result sticks, regardless. But the US was down 2-0 at the half, S. Korea and Portugal were tied at 0-0. The US was out of it already on goal differencial - since Portugal pummeled Poland, the team that was pummeling the US. The only thing the US could hope for was either a miraculous come-back on their part (but that was dashed when the score became 3-0), or a S. Korea victory - when S. Korea was known to have said before the tournament that they expected/hoped for a draw with Portugal. Portugal's idiot players were red-carded (Pinto in the first half), and a few minutes after the next guy was carded, S. Korea took the lead. The other poster was saying that S. Korea was lucky, I disagree based on the flow of that match. That is why I said "should have". He was also incorrect, assuming the same result happens and South Korea would have also been in at 6 points - with a better goal differential, hence still winning the group. They were fortunate that Rui Costa was injured, and that Portugal showed once again that they have a problem maintaining composure in big matches. That doesn't take away from the US run. I think the US did well and simply capitalized - nothign wrong with a little (in this case, a LOT) of luck. They capitalized against Portugal, were IMO fortunate against S. Korea, and were soundly beaten by Poland. They then met Mexico and deserved the win IMO. But the road to the eventual match against Germany isn't as simple as it looks on paper.