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Must-See Trailer: American Pharoah

Bob Bradley

By IVES GALARCEP

Bob Bradley’s courageous and inspirational turn as head coach of the Egyptian Men’s National Soccer Team has been well documented, but the latest extended trailer for one of the movies being made about his journey provides one of the most thorough and captivating looks at just what Bradley has faced since taking the Egypt job.

Egypt is currently in first place in its World Cup qualifying group, and on the verge of reaching the final round of  African World Cup qualifying, and as you will see in the trailer, qualifying for the 2014 World Cup means more to Egypt than it does for most countries.

Here is the trailer for American Pharoah:

[vimeo 67937595 w=600 h=337]

Comments

  1. I knwo that this is a piece about Bob but Mrs. Bradley needs to get some serious love. Her commitment to her husband and supporting him in his work is in a word, AMAZING! Any man would do well to have a woman like her on his arm.

    BRAVO to Mrs. Bob Bradley! Bravo indeed.

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  2. I wasn never a big fan of Bob, but he is winning me over.

    If Egypt makes it to the world Cup final, 2014, You can guarantee that FIFA will find a way to place them in the same group as US(A).

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  3. So wait, aren’t there TWO Bob Bradley documentaries? This one feels very different than the first one. Obviously this is the one who Bob is making it “with”; he gives them in-home access and all the important stuff. Obviously I love the story – I’m a major Bob Bradley fan – and its incredibly shot, but I can’t shake the feeling that sometimes it felt a little bit like a reality show. Maybe not intentionally, but I think some of the wife parts and emotional parts feel a little stilted. I also wonder if Bob isn’t giving them too much access you know? As in…is it impacting his job? I can imagine its awkward enough when he is negotiating for things with the Egyptian government (games, league issues, salaries, etc), so I wonder how much more uncomfortable it makes the Egyptians to have a camera rolling the whole time? That being said, those are my only critiques. I wonder if Bob got down with this one because he didn’t like the way the first one was developing, or just wanted to tell his story in his own words. Either way…MAJOR PROPS for those folks who do these films and risk their lives as well. Amazing story.

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    • Actually there might be three… There’s this one: American Pharoah. There’s We Are Pharoahs. And I feel like there is a third. If anyone knows differently please let me know.

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  4. Such a huge Bob Bradley fan. He is making us proud with the dignity, integrity, and passion he is bringing to the Egypt job. One of my favorite moments of the 2010 world cup, on a light note, was when Michael missed a chance and, unable to help himself, but knowing he should, Bob Bradley, yelled, trying to mask his mouth with a piece of paper he was holding: MICHAEL SHEEHAN BRADLEY. Such a funny and universal dad moment.

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  5. This is such a crazy situation. This is comparable to Khartoum, when a British general was solely responsible for the defense of a Sudanese city against a fanatic Muslim invastion. Just him, no other British soldiers. That Bradley is handling such ridiculous obstacles, both in qualifying and in the country itself, speaks to the strength of his character- which no one ever had the right to question.

    That said, I thought Michael looked like his father. I was wrong. He looks a lot more like his mother.

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  6. Bradley’s role in Egypt is far greater than just being a football coach. He is an ambassador; a humanitarian; a patriot; and man who thrives to widen the gap between Egyptian football and politics. Words cannot properly express my admiration for Bob and Lindsey Bradley. There are few people willing to stick their neck out and uproot their whole lives to live in a foreign nation that has historically been littered with political unrest. The Bradley’s are aware of the negatives but focus on the positives by immersing themselves in the culture. That takes special people to do that.

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  7. Right behind USA, Egypt is my second supported country in qualifying. I hope they make it to Brazil, not just for Bob, his family, and the team, but for Egypt. Hopefully it brings them some peace.

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  8. This is such an amazing story, and it only increases the amount of respect I have for Bob Bradley. I love the moment after he’s seen the Egyptian Football Federation burned down when he says “…, but… It will make us stronger…”

    He’s an incredible man. No doubt about that in my mind.

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  9. Wow. What an amazing American representative to Egypt and the Middle East. Stay safe Mr. and Mrs. Bradley.

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  10. One thing I really didn’t like about the trailer is that it seems to put the blame on the Port Said massacre on the police and security forces instead of the real culprits. As an accurate description of the riots says, “Al-Masry fans violently attacked Al-Ahly fans using knives, swords, clubs, stones, bottles, and fireworks as weapons. Al-Masry fans threw bottles and fireworks at the Al-Ahly players, who ran away from their attackers. The Al-Masry fans were armed with knives, swords, clubs, and stones, and subsequently attacked the Al-Ahly fans, who tried to escape by running away”. Instead, in the trailer one of those thugs is widely featured.

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  11. I wonder if Bradley ever publicly chastised and humiliated any of the players? If he ever publicly complained about Egyptian players not having the right mentality, not playing and practicing enough, not being uncomfortable enough, not being willing to hurt people?

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  12. Most compelling story in American sports today. Too bad ESPN just wants to tell us what cereal lebron james ate each morning then have 9 panelists discuss for 5 hours.

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  13. drool…. this is going to be awesome. Thanks for sharing, Ives.

    Have to say, how do you watch that and not smile? Its so inspiring to see how Bob Bradley has taken on such an immense challenge and done so in such a humble and unassuming way.

    Agree with above re: USA vs Egypt friendly. That would be REALLY cool to see.

    Yalla Masr! C’mon Egypt!

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    • I agree with Byron that this is prematurely released, or shall I say I hope it is: Bob Bradley is taking much risk here, and it’s far from over.

      The Bradley family is impressive! They just happen to be Americanos

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    • In another ironic twist, I suspect that Bob Bradley is one of the more secure men in Egypt … I mean, it’d be awfully dangerous to be known to have harmed him … and with that, the Pharoahs’ chances of going to Brazil next year.

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  14. I’ve had the pleasure of being friends with many Marines and meeting many more in Chicago and while in San Diego.

    Every time I see an interview with Bob Bradley. See how he carries himself and how in his subtle but strong way, commands respect…I come away in disbelief he was never a Marine.

    He just has that aura about him. You know it when you see it or meet it. I’ve always thought that about Bradley…just reminded by it watching this video again.

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    • Not to mention, he is a machine. He works out HARD, and he is on the wrong side of 50. Impressive. Come to think of it, he is a robot all the way around, except he is capable of emotion. The line where he says shit caught me off guard, I bet that’s the first time he swore in a long time. Thank you Bob for representing this country and it’s soccer community so well.

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  15. Not unless this will be a series of documentaries, I think it’s way too premature for the film to be released. This is an ongoing saga. The filmmakers should stay with it for the long haul.

    That’s what made “Hoop Dreams” arguably the best documentary ever made. The filmmakers stayed with the two subjects as long as that premise for the whole movie was still alive. It took 5 years and almost a 1,000 hours of film and finally edited down to 3 hours.

    I wish I was a millionaire and could fund this documentary and release it once it’s a retrospective. But I am excited and anxious to watch.

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  16. Here’s a challenge for US Soccer:

    If we are really representatives of the country and our values, a friendly between the USA and Egypt should be in the works for next year.

    Everybody wins, US Soccer, Egyptian Soccer, Nike, ESPN,The United States, FIFA, EVERYBODY.

    Let’s see some strategic thinking Dr. Gulati.

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  17. Good stuff. I can’t imagine what it was like for BB to come from a country that largely doesn’t care about soccer, but expects to make the WC & goal is to emerge from the group, to a country who’s identity and politics are so closely intertwined with the football, and find his office torched by political activists.

    No doubt he’s done well by me. He represented the U.S. as our head coach, and now he represents the U.S. as Egypt’s head coach. Make no mistake he is representing all of America to the Egyptians. Major kudos to him.

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