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July 10, 2014
World Cup nears end; analyzing state of USA’s relationship with soccer
Sports Commentary
BY DANIEL CERNERO
Sentinel Sports Editor
And then there were two.
After a month filled with day after
day of soccer action, it all comes to an
end Sunday
when Germany takes
on the winner
of Wednesday’s game
between
A r g e n tina and the
Netherlands
(completed
after press
deadline Wednesday afternoon).
Heading into the semifinals, four
powerhouse programs remained, and
the style of play figured to continue
on, resulting in close, low-scoring
contests that have become commonplace in this World Cup’s knockout
round.
Well, “low scoring” and “close” are
two phrases most would not use to
accurately describe what happened
when Germany tangled with the host unrelatable to the American sports
nation absent its top star, Neymar.
fan.
Germany proceeded to beat down
This country’s identity, for the
Brazil – and I feel like I deserve at most part, is wrapped up in this
least some credit for avoiding any one sport. Their players are seen as
Germany “blitzed”
national heroes, and
puns.
for the first time in
Miroslav
Klose
decades, Brazil was
netted Germany’s
able to become the
second goal, putting
sport’s mecca by hosthim on top of the alling the World Cup.
time World Cup goal The meaning
To go out in this fashscoring list and openion, ultimately losing
ing the floodgates of this loss
7-1, is an utter embarfor the team wearrassment the country
to Brazil fans
ing black and red.
won’t soon forget. To
In fact, Klose’s goal is something
add some perspective,
was the first of four
this World Cup was
in six minutes real completely
supposed to offer some
time, because remem- unrelatable to
sort of reconciliation
ber, the soccer clock
for Brazil’s devastating
doesn’t stop ticking the American
loss to Uruguay in the
– or in Brazil’s case, sports fan.
1950 World Cup on
the clock couldn’t tick
their home soil – that
fast enough.
was 64 years ago!
The 5-0 halftime
And poor Brazil, the
score left little doubt
players, when all they
of the eventual winwant to do is deflect
ner.
some attention and
All that was left to do was watch hide from the spotlight for awhile,
as Brazil’s fans coped with the fact they still have to show up for a thirdthat they were witnessing an instantly place game Saturday. That should go
infamous game in their nation’s his- well.
tory. And I don’t use “infamous”
On the flip side, I’m delighted to
lightly. The meaning of this loss to see the United States’ growing interest
Brazil fans is something completely in the sport – look at the TV ratings,
Don’t be ‘That Guy’
If you need help for alcohol
and drug abuse, call
the Army Substance
Abuse Program at
287-1583 or stop by
Bldgs. 36040, 36041,
36044 and 36045
which are located
near CRDAMC
hospital.
For information
about the That Guy
campaign, visit the That Guy
Web site at www.thatguy.com.
look at the watch-parties organized in
nearly every major city or any other
measure and it’s clear to see a spike
in popularity this time around. And
a specific shoutout to the fans in Chicago, where the demand was so high
they had to use Soldier Field as the
venue for a watch-party.
That said, there’s still a good possibility that the World Cup got a
heavy dose of what Americans do
for the Olympics every four years –
care about it when it’s happening,
everyone rallying behind the flag,
before those sports fade to the back
in non-Olympic years. Basically, I’m
not ready to jump feet first into the
deep end of soccer, convinced that
the sport is going to catapult itself
into the mainstream on a yearly basis.
When it comes to any game involving the U.S. Men’s National Team,
however, I think there will be an
undeniable surge of interest moving forward, even when playing an
international friendly or a qualifying
match for the World Cup or a different tournament.
The key topic becomes how Americans fill their newfound soccer interest in the absence of the USMNT.
I, for one, am willing to give one
of the European leagues a try – be
it the English Premier League or the
Italian Serie A. Although, admittedly,
looking for where to start when it
comes to a rooting interest is a pretty
intimidating task.
If there’s one thing that’s for sure,
it’s that I’ll be coming at this with a
bias toward USMNT players, wanting to see them play for their club
teams and watch how they develop.
So maybe I flip on an MLS game
between the Seattle Sounders FC to
see USMNT captain Clint Dempsey
and one of the team’s budding stars
DeAndre Yedlin. Or maybe it’s
Sporting Kansas City, the home of
defender Matt Besler and midfielder
Graham Zusi.
That’s just what my wife wants to
hear: that I’m thinking about welcoming another sport into the fold,
to go along with hockey, college football and basketball, professional football and basketball, and baseball. You
can see why an ESPN.com tab is open
on my browser nearly 24/7.
Heck, I even got sucked into the
Wimbledon finals Sunday morning
between Roger Federer and Novak
Djokovic. I guess my sports-watching
has no bounds.
Lastly, as you can surmise by the
following topic’s allotted space, I’m
bored with NBA free agency. Wake
me up when there’s concrete news of
players switching teams, because so
far all we’ve heard is a lot of hype and
smoke screens from “sources.”
No thanks.
PRO GOLF TIP
From Chuck McPhilomy, assistant golf professional
at the Courses of Clear Creek.
Stand up to those slices
If you slice the ball all the time, try standing a little more upright so that your shoulders are over your feet. Avoid the sitting
down position in which your backside sticks
out so much it restricts your leg movement.
QUOTE OF THE WEEK:
“I would much rather be hitting the driver and a
nine-iron out of the rough than hitting a driver and
a four-iron out of the fairway.”
– Jack Nicklaus
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