Good afternoon everybody. I am a week into my trip to South Africa for the 2010 FIFA World Cup and it is time to have SBI's first World Cup Q&A.
It's time to talk about anything from the World Cup, to other soccer topics, to South Africa, to pop culture. I will try to answer as many questions as I can in the next hour or so.
Please submit your questions below:
4-1 for US to WIN against Slovenia? I sure hope our chances are better than that. Did you mean 1-4?
All respect to Buddle, but that goal you reference happened because the defender decided he’d rather not have possession of the ball and simply let Buddle have it. Give him credit for finishing, but that goal was a gift. And the second he scored was, IMHO, at least equally due to Cherundolo’s perfect cross.
That being said, I found myself wondering if Buddle was the better option against England. I’m a big believer in playing whoever is hot, and Buddle and Findley looked like a great pair against the Aussies. Still, Jozy did have a strong game, cause the England D some trouble, and was only denied by a pretty good save from Green.
Regarding the media referring to Donovan as the captain, he is almost always identified as such by English media (BBC, Sky, and the tabloids like Sun, Daily Mail, etc.) You occasionally see it from American sources like ESPN, but less often.
You’d think that at least some English writers would remember Boca from his time at Fulham, but apparently not.
I want a T-shirt that says something to the effect of,
“US National Soccer Team Bandwagon – Original Member”.
I hope we put 3 past Slovenia and set ourselves up to play on June 26. It’s a 1:30 Saturday kickoff and will shatter the TV ratings.
Do you see N. Korea playing the spoiler for any of the Group G teams?
Understanding that winning the next two matches is more important, if the U.S. has a second half lead do you think Bob Bradley will push to score more goals or defend to secure the victory to try to beat out England in goal differential and avoid a likely match with the Germans?
Oh, and why does it seem more important to have a striker who tracks back on defnse than a striker who actually scores?
Knowing we HAVE to win at Slovakia, do you still expect BB to deploy the ultra defensive posture he usually does with clark in the midfield instead of Torres?
I think Rob Green is going to start. I also feel somewhat sorry for him; England did not play particularly well, but they are trying to place all blame on him. They should look in the mirrow, particularly for their 1st-half play. Hopefully, Green saves a penalty next match (or something), but England still only tie Algeria:)
Altidore missed a perfect goal chance on a cross by Donovan in the first half. I don’t see Buddle missing that. Would Alty have scored Buddle’s first goal against Australia? I’m not sure.
I see Altidore’s skill and strength and speed and ability to beat people, but sometimes you just need a forward who is going to finish an opportunity provided by someone else.
Random thought: Ives said that “even Howard said that Heschke had a right to go for that ball”. Yeah, wwll, Howard also said that Green’s a great keeper. Has he ever said anything bad about anyone ever?
(SBI-He did call Carlos Ruiz an ass once.)
slovenia is horrible at celebrating compared to the US stanky leg so they dont deserve a win
The vuvuzelas may be the best reason to stay home this WC. Are they as annoying as everyone says they are? They are drowning out crowd noise, which is a shame.
Donovan Rooney “1776,1950,2010” poster??/
I would like to see that
I know that people have blamed Clark for the goal, but my college coach broke it down to lamens terms for me and ,my teammates. He called the play an alley oop. He compared Gerrard to a point guard and Rico as the playter guarding him. When the center stepped out, Onyewu followed closely instead of hogging the lane, leaving an open pass to basket or goal in this case
Is this the most boring opening round of matches you’ve ever seen? Is the ball really the issue, or the team’s timidity?
Does the U.S. have the offensive skill to score against Slovenia when they pack it in, waiting for a counter attack?
Ives,
Why doesn’t Uruguay have 2 stars above their badge for their WC wins?
Ives, what changes do you see Bob Bradely making for the upcoming match with Slovenia?