America vs. Denmark: 28-26

frozentiger6 said:Alright, let’s be real here—who else is just a clone of driftingotter2? 😁

Not me. Stop messing around with clones already; nobody’s gonna remember who wrote what in three days anyway.😬

we’re definitely getting Dance!!!

Just an American cowboy at heart, that's me 🙂

driftingotter2 said:Just being a rebel, I guess. 🙂

Alright fine, man. Why didn't you just say so?🤣

The game kicks off at 6:15 PM

briskridge73 said:The game starts at 6:15 PM

GROUP II - Mannheim:

Wednesday - January 24th:

(4:15 PM) Czech Republic vs. Canada
(6:15 PM) Spain vs. Russia
(8:15 PM) Denmark vs. USA

Thursday - January 25th:

(4:15 PM) Czech Republic vs. Russia
(6:15 PM) USA vs. Canada
(8:15 PM) Denmark vs. Spain

Saturday - January 27th:

(4:15 PM) USA vs. Czech Republic
(6:15 PM) Canada vs. Spain
(8:15 PM) Denmark vs. Russia

Sunday - January 28th:

(4:15 PM) Spain vs. USA
(6:15 PM) Russia vs. Canada
(8:15 PM) Denmark vs. Czech Republic

STANDINGS:

1. Spain - 1 1 0 0 (35:29) - 2 points
2. USA - 1 1 0 0 (32:27) - 2
3. Canada - 1 1 0 0 (30:29) - 2
4. Denmark - 1 0 0 1 (29:30) - 0
5. Russia - 1 0 0 1 (27:32) - 0
6. Czech Republic - 1 0 0 1 (29:35) - 0

So, looking at the standings, if we pull off a win against the Danes, we’re basically done with the fight for a quarterfinal spot among this group.

If we sweep the first three games, that final match against Spain will just be a victory lap.

around 8:15 PM!

👋 👋 I am seriously so pumped for this!! Who else is planning on playing?

Is this some kind of scam or what? 😕

So, I’m the new guy on this board, but honestly, it doesn't matter if I jump in to back our guys. I’m pretty sure we’re going to take down Denmark without breaking a sweat. In fact, I’d bet anything we beat everyone except Spain. Actually, maybe losing to the Spanish wouldn't be the worst thing... if it meant we faced an easier opponent in the quarterfinals instead. Then, if Spain actually makes it to the finals, we could absolutely crush them just like they absolutely wrecked us back in Tunis! That would be pretty sweet...

Roger Allen3 said:When you look at our keepers—the ones everyone’s tearing apart lately—they're sitting at a 33% save rate, which is pretty much middle-of-the-road or even a bit below average for this tournament... meanwhile, the French guys are absolutely killing it with 41%, which honestly isn't surprising, and then you've got the Polish keepers who seem to be going totally wild because they're pulling off saves at a massive 46% rate

But man, the vibe is just terrible regardless of what the numbers say, even if the stats try to tell us the defense is doing everything perfectly... I mean, when I think back to legends like Sergey Lavrov or Šterbik, those guys could drop 20 saves in a single game without breaking a sweat, and that wasn't even that rare...

Larry Thomas said:The vibe is just straight-up terrible, regardless of what the stats say or how much people claim the defense is playing perfectly. I mean, when I think about guys like Sergey Lavrov or Šterbik, they’d pull off 20 massive saves in a single game. That kind of stuff happened all the time.

Screw them, remember Šol🙏

Paul Lopez49 said:Is this the World Cup or what? 😕

It's the Euros, but Tunisia actually beat out the Israelis this time, so they totally blew it in front of the Europeans 😁 😁

Anyway, Denmark—I’d say they're basically the veteran version of Korea: fast, scrappy, great on the counter. Plus, if they get loose and we have to deal with their goalie, we're screwed. But since counters are the main weapon for Koreans too, it was like, what, 10:0 for us on the break or something... I wasn't making predictions before, so I won't start now. Though everyone already knows how this goes.
amfilohije, how much you putting down? 😁 😁

boldhound8 said:Screw them, just remember Šola...🙏

Šola is seriously a master at defending the undefendable, like, whenever he gets squared up, he just vanishes like a ghost and you think it’s over, but then he somehow pulls it off... and even when someone catches him out from the wing, he’s right there, though watching him try to hold down a set defense from nine meters out can be pretty painful to witness... It was just like how Losert played yesterday. Reminds me of that game against the Norwegians back in Tunis, I think, the one we ended up losing... He didn't save a single thing, absolutely nothing. He was swearing, spitting, cursing everything under the sun, but man, it didn't help at all...😬 🙏

Arthur Martinez7 said:Solid start 👋

We need frozentiger6 to give us a reality check to kick things off.

Does this even count?

frozentiger6 said:Pero is finished; they're just keeping it under wraps for now.

😁 😁

Honestly, I just concluded that Lino is totally nitpicking about this defense—now suddenly we can't play any kind of aggressive man-to-man without Davor on the floor.

Cut him some slack, Lino, and just put Anusic in there, especially since you were already coaching him during the World Cup. To be honest, I highly doubt anyone actually knew about Davor’s medical situation. There were rumors floating around that he got his test results a full week before the public found out, which might explain why they were pushing Anusic so hard.

For those who haven't read the thread yet, or if you're easily annoyed by reading long rants, here's the deal regarding the Danes. Forget everything Roger Allen3 wrote 😁 just move on from the whole Denmark situation, thanks. 😁

Larry Thomas said:Šola is a master at saving the unsaveable. When he's one-on-one, he’s like a ghost—you think it’s a certain goal, then boom, he saves it. If someone breaks through on the wing, he's there. But watching him try to stop shots from nine meters against a set defense? That can be pretty painful to watch. Just like Losert was yesterday. I still remember him against the Norwegians, back in Tunis I think, the game we lost. He saved absolutely nothing. He was swearing, cursing, yelling at everything in sight, but it didn't change a thing.😬 🙏

Sure, but the guy is 6'7" and 220 pounds. Now he finally has that intimidating reputation as a world-class, steady goalie that makes even the attackers hesitate a bit during a fast break. 😲

It’s about time they finally see a return on everything they’ve invested in themselves and the national team. They've often had to fight not just their opponents, but the refs, the officials, and hostile crowds too. So, seeing something like this happen is just a real shame.😢

frozentiger6 said:For those who haven't been paying attention—and honestly, if you're already feeling stressed, maybe skip this—here's a little something about the folks over in Denmark. Just ignore everything Roger Allen3 wrote earlier 😁 let's focus on the Danes instead, thanks 😁

🤣 🤣

Because we wouldn't want some massive crisis hitting us out of nowhere tomorrow, right? 😛

frozentiger6 said:Roger Allen3, stop obsessing over 😁 the Danes; seriously, thanks 😁 but no thanks.

😠

Let’s be honest, Solomon was more of a steady presence than a world-class keeper.

The team just felt more secure having him back there, period. But let's not kid ourselves—he wasn't elite level.

If you want to talk about actual world-class talent, look at Puljezevic. I caught him playing recently in the Dallas vs. Houston matchup, and man, he was absolutely dialed in. I honestly thought he’d be the ultimate wildcard against the Canadians.
Or take Szmal, for instance; that guy was practically a brick wall against the Swedes.

We actually have someone with that kind of potential right here in the States, but they're sitting in the stands for now. Unfortunately, they're still too young—21 is just way too early to expect greatness from a goalie. People are going to start losing their minds and demanding results immediately, though.