Yuku free message boards

epl on espn - you do realize thats only in England, right? I don't know why, but ESPN in the US will not be showing the EPL games for us...just overseas.

irishfury, i wish i would have posted here before the game. i definitely was giving them a chance. AND i'm a big Spain fan as well (lots of Liverpool players on the squad.) but i dont ever think you can completely rule a team out of a soccer match like this. especially knowing the way the US would attack (read: not attack) the match.

with this 10 behind the ball, italian-esque defense, they could certainly have the opportunity to pull off sufficient defending and occasionally push forward a few times for their own chance at goals. still not the best approach by most standards, but it is certainly one that works sometimes, and was their best realistic shot at a win. with this in mind, surely they cant be ruled out.

did they flawlessly execute this plan and that is the reason they won? certainly not. the 2nd goal was the most pathetic defense of the Cup, and the first goal wasnt far behind. on their defensive end, they slid in on plenty of shots and deflected them away from the goal, preventing some that may have gone in or created rebound chances. other times, they had so many guys behind the ball, that it was so hard to create shot opportunities. the flick over the wall could have easily resulted in a goal, or any of the set pieces and corners, and this is where i give the US the most credit - because Spain is not an easy team to beat in those situations (the situations that represent actually having to play real defense.) they certainly got lucky overall, and neither team played great football...nobody is going to dispute that. but of course, a win is a win no matter how you get it, and i'm glad they could pull it off.

if anyone seriously thinks that the US doesnt have a long way to go, or that they are going to beat Spain every time they play now, then you're nuts. probably the biggest reason that Spain was not able to create many opportunities is being without their playmaker. I dont see how the US can beat a full squad complete with Iniesta and a defense that makes sense. Why was Capdevila at left back? And where is Senna? Iniesta and Xavi together in the midfield is such a playmaking threat though...thats they key to their incredible winning and lossless streaks.