Adarq.org

i agree with this take: http://screamer.deadspin.com/a-good-shitkicking-is-what-u-s-soccer-needed-1782414458

Quote

But there’s another way to look at this, endorsed by Sports Illustrated’s Grant Wahl, and it’s almost optimistic in its bleakness. The USMNT and their fans needed this wake-up call, the argument goes, not necessarily because the team was bad (they were not good), but because it’s hard to truly appreciate the greatness we aspire to without that greatness having its way with us. This is what a world No. 1-ranked team looks like, and for all the progress U.S. Soccer has made in recent years and decades, for all the pride justifiably taken from evolving into a competent soccer nation, the Argentines looked like they were playing an entirely different sport out there.

the article doesn't take it to the next step, which is: jurgen klinsmann is absolutely right and we need to start flooding european clubs with any talented american kids they'll take. MLS is fine and all, i'm glad it's getting more popular. but it's a B or C league. we have more people than the uk, germany, france, and spain put together. we have metric tons of very athletic children, many of whom like to play soccer. we just don't have anything resembling the technical skill of even the likes of portugal and we are not capable of developing it domestically past a certain point. someone pointed out before the game that argentina has a player, sergio aguero, who would be the greatest american player of all time but COMES OFF THE BENCH for argentina. he joined his local club's youth program at age 9, made his senior team debut at 15, then left for atletico madrid at age 18 and has been in elite european competition ever since. more of that, please.

Barry Petchesky
6/22/16 9:08am
Hot Take incoming: Going off of the list of sports LeBron could excel at from yesterday’s Fun Bag I’m prepared to say that Lebron could have stopped that Messi free kick.