hollowrider2 said:I caught a good chunk of that Norway vs. France game, and I’ve gotta say, those Norwegians are obsessed with the fast break. Out of all the national teams out there, they seem the most determined to push the pace; they just refuse to let the defense set up, and man, they execute it beautifully. Even the French were struggling to get back into position, leaving them wide open for the Norwegians to punish them with quick transition goals. Their long-range shooters are lethal, and they really capitalize on that momentum from the fast break to find the back of the net. It’s honestly impressive how clinical they are.
Out of the three non-French teams left in the semifinals, I’d say the Norwegians are going to be the biggest headache for the French side. Between their specific style of play and just how insane their conditioning is, they're definitely the ones to watch out for.
Let's be real for a second—some guy might have the raw talent, but experience is what actually gets in your head, and that’s where we really have them beat.
The same logic applies to today's matchup between the US and Norway. Honestly, it’s almost a given that they’re going to outrun us on the court. They also have that psychological edge that comes with being the "paper" underdogs, which can be dangerous. But look, we have the experience factor on our side. We're more seasoned in general, especially when things get intense during a medal hunt. At this stage of the tournament, that kind of veteran composure really matters.
Just to refresh everyone's memory: we were in a pretty similar spot right before that bronze medal match about a year ago back in Poland. Up to that point in the tournament, the Norwegians had been playing on a completely different level than us. Their semifinal against those absolute powerhouses from Germany was being called the "real final" before the actual final even happened, and they only lost it by a single goal in overtime. Meanwhile, we had beaten them by three earlier in the group stage. Here are a few thoughts I put together before that game:
El Toro said:If the Norwegians show up playing like they did against the Germans yesterday instead of how they played against the French, we’re toast. Their ball movement is just too fast, their defense is suffocating, and their keepers are absolutely dialed in right now. Honestly, they look even sharper than they did during the first round when they took us down—even though I know we're capable of playing a much better game than what we've shown so far.
I’m honestly feeling pretty bummed that we didn't make it to the finals against the Germans, but at this point, I've kind of checked out. I just don't really care anymore.
Gustavo The user said:Our guys just don't have the stamina to hold on for twenty minutes. It’s looking like a light drizzle against Norway at this rate. I'm heading over to place a little something on the 2:40 race.
Cave troll. said:We’re running on fumes here—exhausted, drained, and dealing with enough injuries to fill a hospital wing. Meanwhile, the Norwegians, just like every other opponent we face, have arrived at this European Championship feeling absolutely bulletproof. They're playing at a hundred and twenty percent while we're just trying to keep our heads up.
It’s going to be an uphill battle.
Honestly, everything feels like a repeat of how things looked right before today's game. 🤷
I don't want to sound like I'm just pointing fingers at this forum—because if you listen to the national team itself, they aren't sounding much better either:
pattie_boyd said:Babić and his pre-game comments
fatigue, poor rotation, lack of experience leading right back to more fatigue... 🥱 🥱
And how did that turn out?
Go Team USA. ☕
Still, even though the situation looks objectively similar, I get the feeling that both on the forums and within the team, everyone is being way more optimistic than last time. It’s probably just because we're riding that high after winning the quarterfinals, whereas back then, we were all feeling pretty deflated after losing in the semis.
