USA's Loss is a Win?

Germany attacked United States early as if they wanted revenge from getting crushed in two World Wars. The Germans should have also won an Oscar for Thursday’s performance. The movie would have been called How to Fake a Shin Injury. The Germans dominated the game so much it looked like they were playing with more men on the field. They got to every ball first and won every challenge. Wherever USA passed it there was a German waiting for it. They made us weak with rapid aerial attacks. It was like a modern day Blitzkrieg. 

Once again Michael Bradley shows how terrible he is. The bald pasty white midfielder for United States has some of the worst first touches out of anybody in the World Cup. While watching a USA match there a few things you can expect: goals, injuries, and Michael Bradley screwing up. He leaves the defense open and vulnerable for attacks. Poor midfield play is what makes the United States defense look worse than it actually is. Even though Germany is one of the fastest teams in the World Cup, both the defenders and the midfielders need to stop watching the ball. Instead of watching the ball they should get back and help their goalkeeper Tim Howard. 

While Bradley is playing poorly, One of the players that came into his own on the national level is Kyle Beckerman. His club team is Real Salt Lake and now plays a pivotal role for USA. Even though he is 32 years old this is his first chance at the national level. Some people believe Beckerman should get a red card for his wild dreadlocks. If he was not wearing the United States uniform you would think he crashes on a different friend’s couch every week without paying rent. No matter what he looks like, he is a player on the American team that should have more of a name than he does. Kyle plays the holding midfield position.  A holding mid-fielder is a mid-fielder who makes the middle of the field stronger while bolstering the defense. He is well disciplined and a sound tackler.

The United States only were playing soft and were unable to get into Germany’s half before it was too late into the game. USA needed a bit more bite to their attacks. Maybe USA could have used Luis Suarez’s assistance to put some teeth into our attack. Their attack would have been more feared and ferocious. But I am sure Suarez took a bite of the Italian player because he was just craving some Italian food. Everybody loves some good Italian food. Part of the reason Suarez was so hungry was because he ate Chinese food before the match. We all know that an hour after eating Chinese food you are starving again. He has had two other instances of biting other players before. Suarez looks like a donkey and thinks he is a zombie (or Vampire). Luis already missed 32 games due suspensions. He is clearly deranged and needs help. But the bizarre part is that the national media in the United States is acting like this is a common occurrence because is soccer and a typical foreigner. 

It does not get any more American than losing and still being a winner. This is like a romantic comedy where a star high school sports athlete loses the championship but gets the girl at the end of it. When you believe you can win, you do. Even when you lose. The tie with Portugal felt like a loss for the United States. However, the loss against Germany feels like a win. The United States believed that they could win. What actually happened was that they won from a mathematical advantage. There are not many times that people can feel this great after losing something in their lives. The United States were shutout on Thursday, but they still advance. The postgame speech by the United States coach, Jurgen Klinsmann, must have been a bit unorthodox. Do you talk about how poorly the team played or about how it does not matter because the team is moving onto the next round?

Coach Klinsmann could not have said, “Great job guys! A few more close losses like this one and then we can win this thing.” Because it is elimination time.  Every game has to end with a winner and a loser. There will also no longer be a game ending in a tie.

Of course the United States did not advance because of a loss. They advanced because they had a 1-1-1 record and 0 goal differential. This is the 2^nd straight World Cup the United States have advanced to the knockout stages, which is the first time it was accomplished. It is also their 3^rd time in the last 4 World Cups. Their only knockout win in those years was 2-0 over Mexico in 2002. When it is a World Cup tournament that Spain, Italy, and England do not advance, it represents how difficult it is to move forward. These nations wish they could be where USA is right now. The United States did not back into the next round with ease. United States will be going against Belgium next. Belgium is just as good, if not better than Germany. It is hard to tell because there has to be a team that tested them yet. Hopefully United States will give them a fight on Tuesday 3:30. Until then it is not okay to eat Belgium waffles.