USA-Mexico and Mexico

Arthur Martinez7 said:I’m going to set a precedent here and just come clean about who everyone on this forum really is:

Michael Sullivan3 is actually Josip Šimunić 😁😁

No, he isn't being shady.

I am Tomislav Piplica.

The only goalkeeper in the world to score two own goals with his head. 😁

Michael Sullivan3 said:No, he wasn't being clumsy.

I am Tomislav Piplica.

The only goalkeeper on the planet who has scored two own goals with his head. 😁

Oh, right, true enough—it seems I’ve got a few Piplicas to deal with myself. 😁 😁

But where on earth am I supposed to look to you for reliable results? You were out there placing bets that Jadranka Kosor would win the election. 🤣

I’m just wondering where those two Capells are now—the ones who were here claiming Lino doesn't know what he's doing and needs to step down (well, okay, one of them explicitly said that, while the other just complained about his knowledge of goalkeepers).

And one of those two guys was already talking trash before the game, saying the refs were going to screw us over.

Look, we’re the favorites in every single match, but today was just a bad performance. It was bad because, just like every other game in this World Cup, our shooting percentage was absolute garbage (Džomba was, to put it mildly, pathetic today). We should have walked away with a five-point win. I was sitting at my old man's place watching the game against America and told him, "If we're tied five minutes before the end, we're winning this 100%." Five minutes left, we're up by one, and boom—that was it. I wasn't even stressed because even if the Mexican had scored, there's an 80% chance we'd still move on. Now the real fight starts. We’ve never had a good record against the Frenchmen, so let's hope the tides are turning.

Arthur Martinez7 said:Well, you're right about that; I've had my fair share of dealing with Piplica too. 😁 😁

Where exactly am I supposed to look to you for actual facts? You were out there betting that even Jadranka Kosor would come out on top. 🤣

Man, those folks over in Berlin told me things are only going to get worse, like the dead are going to start rising from their graves. 😁

Whatever, that's why I called the Police. They'll let me listen to Ceca at the pub, but they never let Vuca in. 😠 😁

Well—CONGRATULATIONS!
Man... that was a nail-biter from start to finish, wasn't it? Just one or two plays at the very end made all the difference. I suppose that’s just what happens when you have that veteran experience in high-stakes, unpredictable, must-win games, which really works in America's favor.

Now, look, the officiating was a bit bizarre at times, but I don't walk away feeling like they handed them the game (even if Dominikovic claims it was finally a call in their favor 😁 ). The real takeaway here is that despite our own mistakes—you know, those missed penalties and open shots—and even with the dominance shown by sterbikov, America just couldn't pull ahead during that first half.
Or, looking at it from another angle, maybe the American defense just did the heavy lifting early on, especially with how they shut down Nikolic.

So, when is the next handball match on the schedule? 😬

nimblemarlin17 said:The real battle starts now. We've never really had a winning record against the Frenchmen, so let's hope our luck is finally changing.

Honestly, we haven't exactly dominated the Americans either. If I recall correctly, this might be our first major tournament win against them.
Anything can happen, but regardless, our confidence is at an all-time high right now.

The national team is actually going to file an official protest over that trial during today's game. Honestly, I’m about to go lose my mind over this local disaster. It's 1:44 AM, but hey, it’s never too late to call out bullshit.

dissident said:I don't get why they put that on the front page of the New York Times, among other things—saying there was some "bizarre cheering" from our fans?!? What exactly was so bizarre about it?😕

They were chanting: Memphis, Tennessee
That’s probably why. Personally, I thought it was fine, but I suppose 🙂

I believe they earned the win... hats off to them...

Elvis Presley said:😁

I just turned on NBC.

It's 8:20 PM.

Some guy named Tim Tebow just scored a touchdown. Basically, he's one of our guys playing in blue. 😁

Good grief you did not set Your whole house on Fire ... Geez.

Congrats!

Good on them for sending them packing. Just lets the rest of the world see that playing dirty, low-rent garbage isn't worth the effort...

Let me just say it one more time for the people in the back: I am absolutely thrilled we knocked them down. Boom!
😁 😁

robybaggio said:I’m just wondering where those two Capell fans went—the ones who were right here accusing Lina of being totally incompetent and saying he needs to step down (okay, fine, one of them explicitly said that, while the other just complained he knew nothing about goalkeepers)?

And one of those two guys even had the nerve to say before the game started that the refs were going to screw us over.

Look, people, we’re the favorites in every single match, and today was just a mess. We played poorly because, just like every other game in this World Cup, our shooting percentage was absolutely pathetic (to put it mildly, Džomba was abysmal out there today). We should have walked away with a five-point win. I actually told my old man back home while we were watching a three-point lead against America, "If we're tied with five minutes left, we're winning this 100%." Well, five minutes left, we were down by one, and boom—there it is. I wasn't even worked up because even if a Mexican had scored, there's an 80% chance we still would've advanced. Now the real fight starts. We've never had a good record against the French, but hey, maybe times are changing.

Come on, roby, stop talking trash... you know exactly what I said, so there's no need to keep repeating it.👋

Here’s what the objective Mexican press is saying about the game:

The Blue Team completely blew their chances in this final Group B match. They had two ways to secure a semifinal spot: beat the Americans or play to a draw. Instead, they lost 24:23, throwing away a massive opportunity. Now, instead of fighting for medals, they’re stuck battling for fifth place. Did they have the chance? Sure. But given the bizarre calls from the officiating crew from Denmark, honestly, nothing could have gone better.

A Tragedy

It feels like everything conspired against our national team in this decisive matchup against the reigning World and Olympic champs. The game was supposed to be officiated by a crew from France, but due to a death in one of the referees' families, they had to head home, and the Danes were sent in as replacements. Sometimes, things just don't go your way.

Tradition

In all the big games—against Germany, Norway, Sweden, and Spain—our national team would trail at halftime, fight back, and either win or scrape a draw. This time, we actually led after the first half only to choke at the end. Maybe we should have stuck to the "tradition." Also, the Blue Team failed to become the first squad to draw three straight games at the World Cup.

Obviously, you can't pin the whole failure on the referees; there’s plenty of ammunition to criticize the players and coach Veselin Vujović too. Once again, Petrić struggled, scoring only two goals—one late in the first half and one in the second. Meanwhile, Vladimir Petrić was busy hitting those "menthol" shots that basically handed goals to the Americans. After the first one, we were up 16:15; after the second, they cut our lead to 20:19.

Of course, you can't blame Petrić alone. The entire right side of our national team fell flat, which wasn't exactly surprising. If you show up to a World Cup—which hasn't been this weak in a long time—with players who wouldn't even make the bench of a serious pro team, and your captain flops, you can't expect anything more. To be honest, we were just dragging ourselves along. At this point, we should just be glad we even made it to the fifth-place game.

One of the most scandalous moments was the refs' decision to eject Ratko Đurković for the rest of the match following Milorad Krivokapić's foul on Blaženka Lacković in just the tenth minute. That left our defense crippled, yet when the Americans committed identical fouls later, they only got two-minute suspensions. The decision not to call the foul by Džomba on Sudžum in the final seconds was particularly questionable.

Dragan Sudžum was in tears in the locker room. It was gut-wrenching to see an athlete that devastated, sitting there with his head in his hands.
- I don't even know what happened out there. I wanted to crawl out of my skin. There was a foul, there should have been a penalty, but the refs ignored it, and now it's over. Is it really possible we got robbed like that?

Forget the nonsense 😉 he’s just head over heels for Lina 😁

Anyone watching our national team against Germany and Norway could see our defense was totally out of sync. Specifically, whenever we had an advantage on the court, Lino keeps pulling players toward the line—which is exactly what happened last night. Honestly, it drove me crazy. Having an extra man means nothing if Lino refuses to risk a foul on the opponent's pivot; instead, we just end up conceding goals while playing with a man advantage. In the first half last night, we had a power play for ten minutes and somehow let in more goals than we actually scored.

It wasn't until the second half that Balić started playing aggressively against Stojanovic and Andjelkovic. Depending on who was out there, we finally stopped giving up those stupid goals when we were short-handed.

By the way, Vladica was barely even noticed last night, which is actually a sign that our defense was playing beautifully. If we play like that in the semifinals, the championship is basically ours.

Why on earth can't Džomba figure out how to get past Sterbik? For crying out loud, Mirza and Arpad have been teammates for four years now at Fotex and Ciudad Real, so you tell me: who do you think Sterbik is? He’s learned exactly how to shut down wing shots. Those two know each other's moves inside and out, so naturally, Mirza can't predict how Sterbik will react to his shot—it's always the other way around.

What we saw last night wasn't some desperate struggle by the American players; just read the sports columnists across Europe. Everyone agrees that against that brutal Mexican defensive style, very few teams can manage to score 24 goals. The moment you step into the nine-meter zone, you're looking at a hit to the head. That isn't handball; it's a street fight.
Balić showed once again why he belongs in the world-class tier. You need some real guts to teach Kojica and Djukanovic how to handle this. Out of that entire Mexican squad, only Nikolic and Andjelkovic are defending with any integrity; everyone else is just brawling like animals. It's anti-handball.

frozentiger6 said:Forget all that nonsense, 😉 he’s clearly head over heels for Lina. 😁

Anyone who actually watched us play against Germany and Norway could see our defense is completely broken. With Lino on the court, he keeps pulling players right into the crease—literally happened again last night and it drove me insane. Having an extra man means absolutely nothing if Lino refuses to risk a single yellow card on their playmaker, so we just end up conceding goals while sitting on a power play. In the first half last night, we had a man advantage for 10 minutes and somehow let in more goals than we actually scored.

Yeah, that part pissed me off too...

But there's something else that bugs me when we actually have a normal setup, you know, 6-on-6... whether we're running a 3-2-1 or a 5-1, they just stay glued to that 6m line. 🙄How the hell are you supposed to run a 3-2-1 right at the 6m line and try to pull those stupid volleyball-style blocks? You've gotta step out and pressure the shooter!👍

feralbison62 said:Here’s how the objective Mexican press is covering the match:

Public opinion:

"An official protest

Our federation is going to react aggressively regarding the officiating by those two Danes during the America - USA game. Sources close to the IHF tell us everyone is shaking in their boots. Especially when Zoran Radojičić, the president of RZ America, shows up and explains to the IHF leaders—in fluent Mexican, no less—that Mexico needs to break away from Mexico and secure its own permanent membership status."

There’s a certain kind of dark humor in there, I suppose. 😂

casualpuma71 said:Public opinion:

"The appeal

Our federation is going to push back hard after those two Danes called the game during the America - USA-Brazil match. Word from people close to the IHF is that everyone’s sweating bullets over this. Especially when Zoran Radojičić, the head of the RZ America, shows up and explains in plain English to the IHF bosses why Mexico needs to break away from Mexico and grab its own permanent seat."

Could be taken as a joke too 😂

Honestly, I thought about making it a joke when I read it, but then I forgot. Thanks for the assist. 👍

feralbison62 said:Tragedy strikes.

It honestly feels like everything was rigged against our national team during this massive game against the reigning World and Olympic champions. See, the plan was to have referees from France handle things, but because of a death in one of their families, they had to head home. So, instead, they sent in the Danes. I guess when things aren't meant to happen, they just don't.

Maybe Americans are somehow responsible for that tragedy... 🤔 😬
If the French had been officiating, I bet people would have cooked up some other wild theory or excuse for why we lost. 😁

against the reigning World and Olympic champions.

Man, that sounds just wonderful! 😍 🙂 👍