Championship Finals: USA vs. Spain

Roger Ward3 said:He’s done. He burned his bridges with Team USA.😢

Or maybe—and hear me out here—did age just finally catch up to him?

nimbledriver81 said:Or did he just get too old for this?

Exactly. It’s not even about getting old; any smart guy knows when it's time to walk away...

Americans, you really messed this one up... You forgot exactly how you managed to clinch those previous gold medals and let your guard down—even though there was absolutely no reason to relax (and honestly, no need to either).

I don't think the Spaniards necessarily leveled up their game significantly (though they were playing incredibly poorly before this); it’s more that they simply approached the match with that essential sense of responsibility and anticipation—something you guys assumed would just happen naturally during the game (which probably would have worked out fine, too, if this hadn't been the championship).

It's also worth noting that these kinds of results in major handball matches—where the underdog completely dismantles the favorite on paper—are actually pretty common. Just look back at that final where the Swedes took down the Russians in what was essentially an upset (I can't quite recall the year); or even when you guys pulled off a similar surprise against the Swedes in the semifinals during the World Cup in Iceland.

You honestly have no idea how much I enjoy reading these jealous little comments from our dear neighbors...🙂

Hey guys, suck it👋

Dennis Price58 said:You honestly have no idea how much I love seeing these jealous comments from our dear little neighbors...🙂

Listen, everyone, just get lost. 👋

But really, would they have even had the slightest chance at playing in the championship game if they had actually 😁won
?

Dennis Price58 said:I honestly can't tell you how much I love reading these jealous comments from our dear neighbors...🙂

Guys, just suck it up. 👋

Well, looks like you guys were the ones sucking it up today. 🙂 😉

Actually, I was trying to be objective here—I didn't mean to troll...

Jeffrey Williams2 said:Honestly, you guys were the ones who got cleaned out today.🙂 😉

In all fairness, my intention was to provide an objective observation rather than just being a troll...

Objective observation:

"Americans, you really messed this one up... You forgot the exact strategy that brought you those previous gold medals."

And what exactly is that... strategy? 😁

Actually, don't even bother responding to the critics. We have our silver and we are perfectly content with it, so let me offer my sincere congratulations to you on finishing in 🙂 fifth place. 🙂

Michael Sullivan3 said:An objective take:

"Americans, you messed up... You forgot the exact strategy that got you those previous gold medals."

So... what's the strategy? 😁

🙂

Well, I guess the move the Spaniards played was: 'Damn, we actually made it to the finals—let's not give up just yet, let's just act like fools and go for it.'
Didn't you guys use that same tactic during the finals in Portugal?

Jeffrey Williams2 said:So this team playing against Spain was basically like: 'Holy crap, we actually made it to the finals, let's just play stupid and hope for the best.'
Didn't you guys pull that same stunt during the finals in Portugal?

Give me a break. Someone can be a total jerk and say
"And you guys just showed up ready to play dirty—just throw a heavy punch right in their face, and while the medics are busy patching them up, we'll grab the lead!!"

We’ve already seen what the big-shot experts in the European Union—who clearly know way more about handball than I ever will—think about your style of play. But sure, go ahead and claim "the whole world is out to get you!"

Anyway, if you want to try playing fair in the future, be my guest. Honestly, I don't care one bit, believe me...

Ronald Jones26 said:We took the L
but whatever, I’m not even mad at our guys. They needed serious guts just to make it to the finals in the first place.
Man, Spain absolutely flattened us... respect to them though.
We beat them so many times over the last few years, now they finally settled the score. I just hope this squad still has enough fight and hunger left in them to grab one more win so this isn't the end of the line.
It stung, but hey, that’s just sports for you.

Don't be so dramatic, man. We had Slobodan Milošević running things for 13 years and we're still breathing... we should just be grateful for every single day and every sunrise we get after everything that went down back in '99.👋

Daniel Bishop said:Don't be so serious, man! We survived thirteen years under Slobodan Milošević in our government, didn't we? We should just be grateful for every single day and every sunrise that follows that nightmare from 1999. 👋

Daniel Bishop, please stop with the political topics and provocations so we don't have to resort to a ban. There is a dedicated politics subforum—go over there and bother the moderators instead. Consider this a warning.

WE GOT KNOCKED OUT.

And don't even get me started with that "silver is still a win" or "at least we made the finals" nonsense over the next few days. Just remember what everyone was shouting after the last tournament in France—how "Spain doesn't stand a chance."

It’s not the end of the world, but they absolutely crushed our spirit. I just hope our guys actually learn something from this mess.

nimblemarlin17 said:It’s not the end of the world, but they’ve managed to kill the God within us.

Give me a break with the Nietzsche act...

Nick Cave said:Look, someone can be a jerk just because they want to be. I mean, you could easily say,
"Oh, sure, those guys figured out the secret—just play dirty, throw massive haymakers, and while the trainers are busy patching up their players, we'll just run up the score!!"

We’ve already seen what the big-shot experts in the European Union—who clearly know way more about handball than I ever will—think about how you guys play. But hey, of course, "the whole world is against you!"

Anyway, you have the chance to play a clean game in the future if you actually want to. Honestly, it doesn't matter to me one way or the other...

😕

Why am I being a jerk? What are you guys even tripping over? 😁?

Talking about "tricks" is actually a totally positive thing, okay? 😁 In my context, I'm not talking about cheap shots (even if that's how you took it), but rather the sheer mentality and psychology of the team.

If you really want to know, it would have been much cooler if you guys had taken this championship—mostly because you have the talent and the experience, and honestly, I couldn't care less about the Spanx.