Sunday, June 21, 2009

See It All: Highlights from ESPN

First with USA vs. Egypt:

And then Brazil vs. Italy:


16 comments:

AdamTheRed said...

I think the US played well and with heart. HOWEVER, tactically, there was much left to be desired. We should not let this victory shroud the SERIOUS ISSUES that we uncovered in recent losses with Costa Rica and Brasil.

There are still HUGE issues going into WC 2010.

Keep up pressure everyone.

ronald james davis said...

dozens of better highlights already on youtube. as if the inexplicable omission of dempsey's clinching goal wasn't enough, neither of the espn "commentators" even understood the rules which allowed the USA to advance. embarrassing, yet again, from the "worldwide leader in sports".

ronald james davis said...

and i now realized i double posted due to the need for approval before comments are visible. but you should swap it out with the bbc highlights. notice how much better it is when the commentators actually get excited about the game compared to the never-ending snoozefest we get with dellcamera/harkes.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6lCcVzm5CSI

BJames said...

Agreed, ESPN commentators can't hang with the authentic excitement of Brits who actually understand what a crazy turn of events happened today.

Love The Smell Of Burning Vuvuzela said...

I actually like JP and Harkes, but I did find it odd today how little they built up the drama as the match progressed. They should have had viewers hanging on the edge of their seats as we sought a third goal.

(It did sound like they were distracted by some weird audio difficulty that cropped up in the second half. Odd buzzing sound and dropped mics for a good stretch.)

mtgrizzlyfan said...

@ronald james davis

NICE!!! thanks for the link. I completely agree I can't stand ESPN coverage of the USMNT. John Harkes just irritates me to no end the way he contradicts himself. Constantly talking like he always did the right thing. "Donovan needs to be more selfish there...Davies needs to be selfish and shoot there...Davies needs to be unselfish and lay it off to Altidore there... Great unselfish pass by Donovan to Bradley there..." I'm not saying that his hindsight isn't 20/20 but I mean for goodness sakes he just doesn't stop with that nonsense. It's ridiculous.

Jared said...

congrats to the boys - but what people are saying about the ESPN commentators is true. This obviously isn't directly the fault of the USSF, but while English is my first language, if there are ever SAP broadcasts, or a Spanish language channel covers the MNT, I gladly switch over, to avoid the atrocity that is listening to any of ESPN's Eng language commentators.

davidm said...

Yes, please replace these ESPN highlights with anything! A couple of announcers who probably know nothing about the game trying to sound cute and funny.

soccerfan said...

& Adam: there are always issues to improve but come on! Clearly, staying organized on defense, moving the ball well, making great runs (that comes from coaching and practice!) and generating a ton of great scoring opportunities and 3 goals is a tactical nightmare. & subbing the overly popular Altiadore and moving Dempsey up top to score the winning goal was a bad idea too. (or subbing in a strong holding forward to help kill the clock for that matter). Pay attention and give credit where it’s due!

Soccermgr said...

Hold forward? You have to be kdding me. Everytime Conner Casey got the ball, he didn't hold on to anything!

Unknown said...

I just read an article on ESPN of Michael basically telling the fans who were critical of the team to F off.

Just in case any of the fellas happen to read the blogs regularly--although I suppose they've tried NOT to recently--let me just say, as fans, we meant the criticisms in the best possible way.

The team looked noticeably nervous against Italy and Brazil, which is a bit odd. I've never seen a US men team looked more scared. Against Italy in the 06 world cup, those guys played right up there with the Italians and made us proud. There was no fear in that team, because they had LEADERS.

Understand that when we criticize you guys on not playing with heart, we do so because we BELIEVE in you. Would you rather us accept it as the norm?

It got under your skin, as it was supposed to. We are emotionally invested in this team. You are our heroes. And as such, we look to you to make us proud.

What we saw against Italy and Brazil was garbage. But it's water under the bridge now. Your chance at redemption comes in the semifinals. We don't expect a win, we don't expect a loss. All we expect is a good, hard-fought game. You've EARNED the right to face Spain. Make us proud, fellas. NO FEAR.

byrankoehaler said...

yeah no joke, who the f*ck is that dumb cluck of a sports news anchor...god, this is why soccer will never catch on in america...so embarrassing.

davidm said...

Rolnand: Very well said! Exactly how I feel too.

Krill said...

Well done fellas! I can't believe Egypt would arrogantly come into this game thinking they could give a half hearted effort and get a result. In addition, fantastic work ethic out of everyone, especially Clark and Bradley in the middle of the pitch...winning 50/50 balls, getting up and winning most headers, etc. And Donovan, that's what we need...him running around freely, finding pockets where he can run like mad at the defense causing all sorts of trouble. A great game to watch. And who would of ever thought we'd land a spot in the Semis?!?

Never give up...the American way.

We get a collective effort like this one and we'll destroy anyone in the CONCACAF and enter South Africa 2010 with a ton of confidence.

Yet, the task doesn't get any easier with Spain up next. Come out strong and make all us Americans proud!

Norm said...

And Bratsil wins 3–0!

manutd said...

TAKE THE SHOT DONOVAN!!!! I'm sick and tired of seeing Donovan passing the ball off. I don't think we will ever see him being that attacking type of player like he once was (early 2000s). He is set in his ways now and I have lost hope of him ever being that attacking one on one player. He is wasting so much potential. It's truly disappointing!