Handball 2010 EP: America vs. Denmark 27:23

Jeffrey Ramos84 said:...yeah, but even Peter Metličić went public before Červar even finalized the roster—I was reading on Yahoo that he volunteered himself for the national team....that should have been the end of it, his retirement story right there. He should’ve been over in Austria leading us toward another medal; I mean, he’s our captain and basically the beard of this squad... none of this is anyone's fault but Zoran Gobac's... honestly, it probably should have been obvious to all of you a long time ago... how else do you explain the fact that Gobac—who isn't the coach, isn't one of the trainers, isn't the GM, isn't the doctor, isn't the physio, and certainly isn't the President of the Federation—suddenly shows up in the locker room before kickoff, at halftime, and after the game??? What is he even doing there??? That’s where it all clicks for me... which is why, despite a disastrous performance, the coaching staff keeps resetting from scratch every single match while Gojun gets touted as the anchor of our new defense... it's nonsense... and Zoran Gobac is the one solely responsible for it...

Peter was quietly approached a few days before the start of the Euro, but he politely declined and just kept training back home in the States...

And what about pipa as head coach? That would have ended poorly...

How good do you guys think the American players actually are? Honestly, anyone on this forum could probably coach them and sweep up every gold medal available

Jeffrey Ramos84 said:...true, but even Peter spoke up publicly before the roster was finalized, saying he'd read on Yahoo that he was making himself available for the national team....that should have been the end of his retirement story. He belongs in the States leading us toward another medal; after all, he's our captain and the soul of this squad...this whole mess is Zoran Gobac's fault...that really should have been obvious to all of you a long time ago...how else do you explain why Gobac—who isn't the head coach, one of the trainers, the director, the doctor, the physio, or even the President of the Federation—shows up in the locker room before the game, at halftime, and after the whistle??? What is he doing there??? That’s when everything becomes clear...which is why, despite the disastrous performance, the coaching staff restarts from scratch every single game while Gojun gets touted as the anchor of our new defense...it's pure nonsense...and Zoran Gobac is solely to blame for it all...

I was just about to write this exact thing regarding Peter.👍

Betty King6 said:And sure, why not hire some total amateur to coach the team? Just toss them in there and hope for the best.

🤦

slybadger99 said:What do you mean Buntić isn't performing on the court? Give me a break. This amateur coach keeps pushing the goalkeeper regardless of what happens, though I honestly don't see the logic. The kid is a liability, constantly throwing the ball right into the keeper's lap. But no, we just keep forcing him in. And my favorite line from the press: "We're significantly weakened because Lac and Valčić aren't playing." Are you kidding me? Vuković is playing brilliantly. As for Lac, he’s been a spent force for the last three years. He hits low shots straight into the corner, and the keeper saves every single one—mostly because all the keepers seem to dive low for no apparent reason (and I'm a goalkeeper myself).

Buntić played perfectly fine. Sure, it might be individual effort, but he's scoring. The goalkeeper can forget about scoring; hell, he should just dream about actually catching the ball. Our wing players are phenomenal, but the plays aren't being set up for them at all, which is the fault of either Ivano Balić or Dule when he's on the floor. And the coach? He doesn't even know how to lead a team, let alone give them instructions when nobody gives a damn about what he says. Just some political errand boy. And Šola is my goalkeeper coach now? Seriously, what? He was a great player, but I highly doubt he can actually teach anything. All in all, it's a disaster. Handball is a team sport, yet we play like individuals. The Americans will crush us tomorrow. Unless, of course, the refs decide to bail us out again.

I doubt it... I watched the Americans against the Norwegians... the Norwegians are technically a class above the Americans... they're slightly slower, but barely.

They have Hvidt, who relies more on luck than actual skill... late in a game, an American attack throws a pass for a fast break and the Norwegian keeper intercepts it... someone shoots and the ball bounces off the bar for Hvidt, and then instead of just grabbing it, he starts kicking at it.

He saved a penalty to put the Norwegians ahead, and then the American player calmly lobbed the Norwegian keeper in the final second—totally ice cold. Even Džomba wouldn't have had the nerve to pull that off in his prime.

Tomorrow, karma is going to catch up with them.

You hit the nail on the head there...just a few days before the Euro Championship!!!I mean, Peter isn't some pushover who deserves to be treated like that... preparations kicked off a month before the tournament and the roster was already set. Then, right after Peter stepped up and said he was ready to give it his all, you have Gobac coming out and basically saying, "Oh, so Peter's suddenly showing interest in joining the national team now? That's not how we play things." It’s pretty clear the door was slammed in Peter's face back then... and yet they still have the nerve to call it A FEW DAYS BEFORE THE EURO CHAMPIONSHIP... Honestly, if I were him, I wouldn't even take the call. Peter has given so much to this national team to be treated with such disrespect. And then, to top it all off, you read somewhere a few days later that the real reason Peter missed the Euro was because he wouldn't fly into New York this summer just because Gobac asked him to. Give me a break. Truthfully, 90% of people in America could probably coach a team at this level, but here we are, just sharing our honest opinions, which I think is perfectly fine...

Peter is the ultimate warrior and the greatest legend in American handball history; Červar and Gobac are absolute losers

Pipa is just incredible... honestly, one of the greatest right wings to ever step onto a court, if not quite the best in history. Even Jackson Richardson once said as much. He’s accomplished so much over his career, both as a player and now as a coach. He did an amazing job leading our youth programs and was one of the key figures—if not the most important person—behind our gold medals at the World Cup 2003 and the Olympics 2004. For me, that alone is more than enough reason to pick him.

Look, I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again—if Ivano Balić and pipa actually showed up to the first practice, they’d probably look ten years younger just from the sheer shock of being there...

The truth is, there isn't even enough room in the gym for those two personalities...

I’ve been away from the States for over a year—so maybe I've lost my touch—but this team just doesn't feel like itself anymore... that hunger, that effortless flow we used to see? It's gone.
Even Ivano Balić looks isolated out there—he doesn't even have anyone to share a laugh with... honestly, they just look like a bunch of disconnected individuals to me.
And man, Dominikovic is missed... he really is... and Peter too.

And please, don't bring up Goluz... he's pretty much the only one who hasn't trashed them in the press lately.

Adam Collins4 said:Peter was being quietly approached by people just a few days before the European Championship kicked off, but he handled it with real class—just gave them a polite thanks and went right back to his training sessions here in the States.

What if Lino took over as head coach? I don't know, maybe, but honestly, I have a feeling that wouldn't end particularly well...

I’ve noticed you aren't exactly thrilled with how Lino is managing the squad, and honestly, I can't say I disagree with you there.😁
If you're asking me who I think is the best coaching option for the US national team right now, I guess it’s a bit of a toss-up, honestly. There isn't really one obvious answer, which makes it kind of tricky, I suppose. It really depends on what direction you want the program to head in, because there are a few different ways you could play this. Maybe we need someone with a strict, tactical approach to tighten things up, or maybe someone more charismatic who can just get everyone on the same page emotionally. It’s a tough call, and I don't think there's a single "correct" choice that everyone will agree on, but I've been thinking about it quite a bit lately.🙂

Edit: I think you actually already tackled this question in that other thread.😁

Look, I have to disagree with the idea that Peter is what we’re missing here. Honestly, both him and Lac haven't brought much to the table over the last two years. They’ve spent way too many possessions just wasting the ball for very little scoring return. That's just the reality of it—they're both pretty predictable players at this point. If there's any gap, it might be in the defense where you could use someone like Peter, but more than anything, we really need Dominiković and Špolja. But then again, what else would you expect from them? Is Dominiković dealing with an injury or something? Is that why he wasn't called up?

slybadger99 said:I honestly can't get behind this idea that Peter is the one missing. Neither he nor Lac have brought much to the table over the last two years; they’ve just burned through possessions for very little scoring output. That's just the reality. They're both predictable players at this point. If anything, we're missing someone in the defense... specifically Dominiković and Špolja. But then again, what else would you expect from them? Is Dominiković even healthy enough to be called up, or is that why he isn't here?

Of course the perimeter players are going to burn through some possessions—just look at everything else, from their assist numbers to how they step up when it actually matters. Saying they haven't contributed anything is just plain stupid.

slybadger99 said:Look, I’m not buying this whole "Peter is the missing piece" argument. Honestly, both him and Lac have been pretty much useless over the last two years—just burning through possessions for next to no payoff. It's just facts. They've become easy to read. If anything, we're missing presence in the defense... though we're really feeling the absence of Dominiković and Špolja. But then again, what good does it do to complain? Is Dominiković sidelined with an injury or something? That's probably why he isn't on the roster.

Back in the World Cup 2009, Peter racked up 24 assists while Ivano Balić only had 14...☕

How many assists did anyone actually see from the wings in today's Championship?

It’s hard to deny that Metličić hasn't really stepped up offensively in the last three or four major tournaments we've seen.

As his performance started to slip, it felt like the entire US national team went down right along with him.

Adam Collins4 said:Peter had 24 assists during the 2009 World Cup, while Ivano Balić managed 14...☕

How many assists did the wing players actually rack up in today's championship game?

It’s hardly the pivot's fault when he delivers a perfect pass and the shooters just miss an open layup, right?

Adam Collins4 said:Peter had 24 assists during the 2009 World Cup, while Ivano Balić had 14...☕

How many assists did today's World Championship leaders manage for their wings?

And you too... he isn't some high-voltage power line meant for handing out assists; he's just there to boost the scoring average.🙄

Samuel Baker3 said:It’s not the playmaker's fault if he makes the pass and then the shooters miss an open shot.

Is that happening before he fails to catch a pass from Ivano Balić, or right after he trips over his own feet?

Or maybe just during those moments when he's dribbling and the defender strips him clean without even committing a foul?

Honestly, I'm completely lost by this guy's "handling" skills—do me a favor and explain exactly what you meant by that...☕

And while we're at it, why is it that whenever Buntić is on the court, the ball barely seems to reach the wings?

Samuel Baker3 said:it’s a fact that Metličić hasn't shown any offensive spark in the last three or four major tournaments

basically, as Metličić's game went downhill, the whole US national team followed suit right along with him.

Look, if you take Metličić during the 2009 World Cup, his average shooting percentage from beyond the arc was hovering around 50%...

And once again, you're dead wrong...

Oh sure, let the Czech people judge us... while we've got Spaniards officiating the 4 PM game...

And now you've got Mexicans refereeing games for Poles and Frenchmen...