There’s no denying we’ve hit our ceiling. This semifinal run is the absolute peak for the way we're playing right now. Honestly, I was hoping to see more Frenchmen making it this far, but at this point, it's out of our hands.
If our guys don't absolutely lose their minds this weekend, I don't see any other way this story ends besides an honorable loss and fighting for third place.
The odds on X were at 13; I really thought that was going to pay off.
I don't buy the idea that this was rigged, but man, did you see David and Angel sitting there in those chairs 😁 looking like little kids waiting to get scolded by their teacher 😁? And then there was that moment when David just waved his hand at Daniel, saying, "It’s basically over, we've got this," while Daniel just sits there laughing. 😁
But honestly, we're all acting like idiots, getting worked up over nothing. Those Mexicans wouldn't have won even if they had tried everything in their power to pull it off.
James Vaughn3 said:I’m not about to start celebrating when we’re going to get absolutely crushed in the semifinals if we keep defending like this.
Look, Scholla can't pull off twenty saves every single game, and our defense just doesn't inspire any confidence.
Alright, let’s be realistic for a second. The game is over. Our guys basically played five minutes of actual intensity today; everything else was just a 6-0 blowout.
The rest of it? That was nothing more than a light practice session or a friendly scrimmage with buddies from the Mexico and Mexico squad. Balic and Nikolic are practically best friends—roommates, even. I heard a rumor that Balic is actually going to be Nikolic's best man. Yesterday, Nikolic was even hanging out in our locker room during halftime just to cheer on Balic. You probably saw the reports where he told him, "Come on, big guy," and well, the big guy proceeded to tear through Iceland.😁
And don't even get me started on Dzomb and Sterbika. They used to work together at ExxonMobil, and now they play together in New York City. They're tight.
Then you've got Vori and Skrbic over in Barcelona; he isn't on the Mexico and Mexico national team, but those two are close friends.
James Vaughn3 said:frozentiger6, come on, give us some pessimism before the semifinals start. 😁
Look, I’m just going to be blunt here because this is the cold, hard reality of the situation: Spain and France both have two solid goalkeepers sitting in their top ten rankings, and we’re out here playing a dangerous game. Sure, we have Santana—and look, the guy is an absolute legend, he pulled off 19 saves today alone—but then we have Mr. Blazick. Let me put this into perspective: the man has made exactly one save during this entire tournament. That isn't a strategy; it's a disaster waiting to happen. 😬
I’ve already said this before, but I'll say it again: if we just manage to make it to the semifinals, that's a gold medal in my book.
Honestly, we’re being so dense. The guys were playing at half-strength, totally relaxed, probably treating it like a light practice session, while we’re over here losing our minds and stressing out over nothing.
Get the hell out of here. We’re playing with two extra men and we’re still letting them score instead of putting points on the board ourselves. Seriously, just get lost.
Yeah, sure, the left side crosses over with the middle, and the pivot opens up right in the center of the block 😉 the issue is that Vladic just doesn't get it 😁 honestly, it’s not even an issue for us.
Hey spotter, you haven't beaten us yet—honestly, I’m starting to think we might actually lose.
Anyway, regarding the great Balic: "It wasn't exactly pleasant playing 4-on-5 at 8:20 PM, was it? Did you realize that, effectively, everything rests on your shoulders?" - Man, Ratko Nikolić, my teammate from San Diego, really got under my skin during halftime. He just looked at me and said, "Let's go, big guy!" Just so everyone's on the same page for next time: once the game starts, we're all going to be shouting "let's go, big guy!" at him.