Sven picking this Walcott kid isn't bad luck...seems downright idiotic if you ask me. I agree with the Rooney/Owen assessment being bad luck though. I think Robbie Fowler with his recent form at Liverpool would have made a great choice. As for the US being garbage, you guys haven't paid attention to our players and matches very closely. We have held our own in most games (with the exception of the last couple when our Europe players were not yet available). The US are a force in the world of football now and there are a lot of people who don't want to admit it. Do I think they're fourth in the world? No. They are a legitimate top 10 team however and stand a decent chance of moving on to the elimination round. And if we can get a little bit lucky and win our group then our bracket to the quarterfinals isn't very strong (assuming Brazil win their group also).
Ricardo - no one said they were garbage - they're clearly not - but I don't agree that they're the fourth best team in the world, in fact I don't even agree that they're a top ten team. Brazil, England, Germany, Argentina, Italy, Holland, France, Spain, Portugal, Czech Republic, Sweden. There's a dozen I'd put up there as better - with the likes of Mexico, Croatia and Ukraine also possibly better. But, as you say, they have a decent draw that could see them progress - and it's the World Cup, so anything can happen! They're much improved, and far from the plucky outsiders they once were, but they're not a top tier team yet.
The US will need to be more than a "little bit lucky" to win a group including the Czechs and Italians. Especially as everyone knows that if you finish second in the group, you're almost certainly up against Brazil in the first knockout stage. It's not just a bad group for the US, it's a bad pairing, (runner up probably faces Brazil) and even the order of games conspire against the US, as I've mentioned previously. There's no doubt that the US has improved in the 12 years since they hosted the World Cup, but I'll be interested to see what happens to the support when the very solid performance of '02 is followed by a likely early exit in '06.
"Maybe Sven needed another "youth hero" to replace Rooney. Except that, if Walcott can get picked for the World Cup, then Freddy Adu should be a first-teamer for the US World Cup team." Well they do say "if you're good enough, you're old enough". So I'd give them both a couple more years ... but then I'm not a talent scout. It's a big gamble and if it pays off Sven will be lauded as a genius, but if it fails then he was losing the job anyway. The cynic in me says that Walcott's selection is all about Sven and not at all about Walcott, whose confidence will take a huge knock if he's selected and then bombs.
they have a decent draw that could see them progress In light of Bismark's comment - where the hell did I get that from? They'll need a miracle to get out of that group, and if they do, they'll need another to get past Brazil.
I have 50 bucks that says the USA won't beat Ghana. Any takers?
I'd say player wise, most of those teams are better than the US, but when you factor in coaching, I think we have a soccer genius in Bruce Arena who hopefully will be at the helm of US soccer for many years to come.
but when you factor in coaching, I think we have a soccer genius in Bruce Arena Good God, Ricardo, what are you on?
Are those Aussie bucks you're throwing around there owlhouse? Even if they are, I'm not taking that bet.
I suspect a few people in England would rather Arena in charge than Steve McClaren. But I'll take some of Ricardo's cakes nonetheless.
Are those Aussie bucks you're throwing around there owlhouse I'm happy to offer 50 Pacific Pesos, USD, Swiss Francs, Tongan Pa'anga or cans of Kilkenny.
