Come for the politics, stay for the snark.

I’d try pessimism, but it probably wouldn’t work.

But frankly mr. cole, I’ll be happier when you get back to telling us to go fuck ourselves.

Our job is not to persuade republicans but to defeat them.

It’s the corruption, stupid.

When do the post office & the dmv weigh in on the wuhan virus?

Republicans don’t want a speaker to lead them; they want a hostage.

Wow, I can’t imagine what it was like to comment in morse code.

Prediction: the GOP will rethink its strategy of boycotting future committees.

Balloon Juice has never been a refuge for the linguistically delicate.

I was promised a recession.

Tick tock motherfuckers!

When someone says they “love freedom”, rest assured they don’t mean yours.

Consistently wrong since 2002

The party of Reagan has become the party of Putin.

Whatever happens next week, the fight doesn’t end.

Authoritarian republicans are opposed to freedom for the rest of us.

A democracy can’t function when people can’t distinguish facts from lies.

I know this must be bad for Joe Biden, I just don’t know how.

When your entire life is steeped in white supremacy, equality feels like discrimination.

Red lights blinking on democracy’s dashboard

They traffic in fear. it is their only currency. if we are fearful, they are winning.

When do we start airlifting the women and children out of Texas?

And now I have baud making fun of me. this day can’t get worse.

Republican obstruction dressed up as bipartisanship. Again.

You are here: Home / Sports / Ghana v USA Open Thread

Reader Interactions

245Comments

  1. 1.

    Zoogz

    Hope that the Americans learned from Portugal that they need to take care of business…

  2. 2.

    ⚽️ Martin

    I’m just glad Tim Howard is on our side. We’re really going to need him to get out of this group.

  4. 4.

    encephalopath

    What would happen if you changed the scoring system to still award 1 point for a tie but nothing for a 0-0 final score?

    Has this ever been considered? And what would be the potential drawbacks of doing this?

    The objective would be to discourage bunkering as a game long strategy to win 1 point.

  7. 7.

    MattR

    They need a solid, confidence building start rather than conceding an early goal, as was their habit 4 years ago.

  21. 21.

    raven

    Temporarily Max McGee (soon enough to be Andy K again) says:
    June 16, 2014 at 4:33 pm

    Getting ready for work. I should have taken the day off…But I didn’t. My nephew is going to call me with updates on the US-Ghana game, but I need someone to stand in for me here (I’m thinking that’s you, raven) to say the following:

    Don’t score too early!

    Don’t hit the ball too well!

  23. 23.

    ⚽️ Martin

    @scav: Yes. The World Cup Goddess of the Scoreless Draw has received her sacrifice. We’re good to go.

  24. 24.

    PaulW

    If soccer instituted a shot clock, you’d have a lot more early scoring like that… maybe get more Americans watching. :)

  26. 26.

    HumboldtBlue

    at 1:30 pm PST I restarted my computer and heard the deadly click-click-click-click-click of a dead hard drive. Dash to Staples, drop 320 bucks on cheapest PC I can find and 36 motherfuckers later I get online to find out US has scored fastest goal in history

  31. 31.

    Elizabelle

    I’m kinda rooting for Ghana. I know so many cool Ghanaians.

    Enjoy the game! I am enjoying the Google doodles.

    Elizabelle the bad

  38. 38.

    mainmata

    So, I get home from work and useless ESPN can’t even broadcast the US game; they are so useless. Apparently, this has been the case all day (not able to watch at work). So, now watching on Univision, which does have its act together and practicing my Espanol and US is in the lead, at least so far.

  39. 39.

    SRW1

    @raven:

    Only until the tournament starts. After that no players can be exchanged any more.

    The US defense needs to cut skying the ball in its own box.

  42. 42.

    MattR

    @raven: Players injured more than 24 hours prior to a team’s first game can be replaced with permission from FIFA’s medical committee.

  44. 44.

    burnspbesq

    This looks like the US circa 1995. No possession and aimlessly banging balls out of trouble. No likee.

  46. 46.

    MattR

    @raven: Beasley is looking shaky. Would like to see a second goal from the US, or at least some solid threatening possessions.

  59. 59.

    mainmata

    We’re going to see some fighting if this injurying continues (hoping not). Also USA can you build up a consistent offense (but our defense is looking pretty good – so far)?

  67. 67.

    SRW1

    When he was playing in the Bundesliga, Jones was known to loose it on occasion, but I think he was entirely innocent in this incident.

    Time for some cooling down.

    ETA: Ghana still looks like the strongest African team.

  68. 68.

    mainmata

    @Steeplejack: Must be random. MD viewers SOL (I live in Silver Spring and have FIOS – usually very good) as are several offices (unofficially) watching in DC today. Glad yours’ is working..

  71. 71.

    Tripod

    My favorite victories are the pyrrhic ones.

    Ghana is pressing them high.There is no counter attacking speed up top for the US if they park the bus.

  72. 72.

    piratedan

    @HumboldtBlue: berets are jaunty and coupled with nasty smelling cigarillos attached to thin stiletto cigarette holders are sure to attract the dames….

  74. 74.

    MattR

    They need a better offensive option on the left side than Jones, but being up a goal they don’t really want to take out a good defensive player (especially now that Besler is out as well).

  75. 75.

    burnspbesq

    The longer it stays 1-0, the more likely a Ghana player will go Pepe.

    Brooks on for Besler (gulp).

  79. 79.

    ⚽️ Martin

    I’m thinking Besler will be okay. A tight hamstring can clear up pretty fast. He was still running on it. Jozy’s looks quite a bit worse. Big gap from ‘tight’ to ‘strained’.

  85. 85.

    HumboldtBlue

    gonna have to endure 40 minutes of chance after chance, US completely rattled

  89. 89.

    SRW1

    The US needs to make one its counter opportunities count. I’m not sure the defense can hold out for another thirty minutes.

  90. 90.

    Punchy

    This is taking on a strong odor of a US collapse. No offense, just getting peppered by the Ghanians. One of these shots is going to find the onion bag. No me gusta.

  92. 92.

    KG

    While I don’t mind Ghana continuing to kick the ball over the crossbar, I’d prefer if our defense didn’t give them so many opportunities to do so

  94. 94.

    piratedan

    so the strategy is to let the Ghanians wear themselves out with too many opportunities?

  98. 98.

    Cacti

    American side being out-shot 14-6.

    Out-cornered 5-1.

    But holding onto a lead. If they can keep it, I’d definitely call this one stealing a win.

  99. 99.

    socraticsilence

    Its like our entire strategy centered on pushing the ball forward to Jozy, he had more decent chances prior to being injured than we’ve had as a team since.

  100. 100.

    MattR

    @HumboldtBlue: I think it was Dempsey’s injury that was the difference, Has he touched the ball in the second half? Kinda tough on a team when you don’t want to hit it in the air to one of your forwards.

  105. 105.

    Steeplejack

    USA like a tired heavyweight leaning on the ropes and covering up. I hope they can last. But there’s way too much time left, I fear.

  106. 106.

    Tissue Thin Pseudonym (JMN)

    Hey, at least we’re playing better than our next opponent did . . .

  109. 109.

    Cacti

    Germany showed to today that they’re a cut above the the rest of Group G, but spot number 2 seems very much up for grabs.

  110. 110.

    Violet

    Parts of this game remind me of the games I played in middle school P.E. class. Ball just rolling around and players chasing it.

  111. 111.

    Violet

    From The Guardian liveblog:

    Bedoya still looking uncomfortable. He’s not the only US player to look that way. Something strange going on with the player’s conditioning it seems.

    Seems really strange they are having so many apparent conditioning problems. Wonder what’s going on with that.

  113. 113.

    HumboldtBlue

    Johnson has the best feet, US hasn’t had too many players with that on the ball skill

  114. 114.

    beltane

    @Violet: Sounds almost like a redux of the US Olympic speed skating team. We do love our quacks and snake oil salesmen.

  116. 116.

    burnspbesq

    For 20 years, we’ve been waiting to see the US figure out how to kill off games like this. Nine minutes to go.

  124. 124.

    scav

    Finally heard a Univision Gooaaaaaallllll call. Forgot how important those are to the whole event.

  131. 131.

    mainmata

    I knew it. Sooner or later they were going to do it and they did a nice job of it. Very nice goal. Probably end up as a tie.

  132. 132.

    Cacti

    At this point, I’d settle for a tie.

    The home side has gotten peppered with shots in the second half.

  133. 133.

    HumboldtBlue

    That goal could be the difference between advancing and going home after three games

  143. 143.

    HumboldtBlue

    Ian Darke need to keep the woe-is-the-US because of Altidore’s injury, just ask Germany about injuries

  150. 150.

    Paula

    >>>>>ffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffuuuucccccccccccccccccckkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkk<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<

  155. 155.

    SRW1

    Well, Klinsi appears to have brought some of that special German knowledge of how to pull games out of the fire in the last minute.

  157. 157.

    MattR

    Johansson was the American who kicked the ball that led to the corner. Zusi took the corner and Brooks scored off of it. That is all three subs.

  159. 159.

    HumboldtBlue

    Two men collapse on Dempsey and leave Brooks alone, wow, both my cats just leaped out the kitchen window

  168. 168.

    SRW1

    Five minutes! I get the five minutes after the first 45 minutes, but not the second.

  170. 170.

    Cacti

    Ghana’s going to walk away from this one wondering how the hell they ended up on the short end.

  177. 177.

    ⚽️ Martin

    Good to know that the most powerful nation on earth can beat Ghana.

    Now, can we get our shit together enough to beat Portugal?

  178. 178.

    Paula

    Yes, please keep fouling, Ghana, it’s going to be so awesome when someone gets a red card.

  180. 180.

    JPL

    Since I have an antenna, I have to watch on univision. Wow they sure do speak fast but it’s the final score that matters.

  184. 184.

    piratedan

    yup, pretty impressive… they certainly showed a doubter like me, even in the face of some serious adversity….

  186. 186.

    justawriter

    Boy is it jarring to go from the British commentators to the US bloviators. I expect them to burst into a chorus of “You gotta have heart” any moment now.

  188. 188.

    Tissue Thin Pseudonym (JMN)

    @raven: Sorry, but the U.S. got outplayed an were lucky to win. That’s not whining; it’s pointing out the blatantly obvious. They need to take these 3 points and figure out how to play better.

  192. 192.

    Cacti

    @⚽️ Martin:

    Now, can we get our shit together enough to beat Portugal?

    Portugal’s in a bad way. Pepe red carded out of the next match + gimpy Ronaldo.

    But they’ll also be in cornered animal mode after being taken to the woodshed by the Teutonic machine.

    Should be an interesting match up.

  193. 193.

    Tissue Thin Pseudonym (JMN)

    @raven: Mostly it means you’re a fucking jackass for calling people names when they point out the blatantly obvious.

  194. 194.

    ⚽️ Martin

    Well, Jozy might be out next game, but it sounds like everyone else should be fine. From here we probably just need a draw to get out of group assuming we don’t get smacked down by Germany as hard as Portugal was.

  195. 195.

    Paula

    @⚽️ Martin:

    Dunno. From the Twitterz, it looks like we’re about as injured as those guys. And Bradley MIA … WTF?

    I kinda don’t care though. I needed Ghana beat and that was done.

  197. 197.

    Cacti

    @Paula:

    I kinda don’t care though. I needed Ghana beat and that was done

    Ghana’s tournament is likely over, as they get Germany next.

  198. 198.

    scav

    @Cacti: Sounds like the US also went through a bit of a physical wringer. Psychologically and physically might be an interesting game, from the perspective of not knowing much beyond what I ‘saw’ today.

  199. 199.

    Tissue Thin Pseudonym (JMN)

    @raven: Now you’re bitching that people at Balloon Juice say the same thing multiple times?

  201. 201.

    Paula

    USA-POR gonna be 19 guys limping around the pitch, and Ronaldo. No high hopes. Still, like in 2002, anything can happen.

  206. 206.

    Violet

    @Tissue Thin Pseudonym (JMN): The US won so they were the better team on the day. They figured out how to win and that corner set piece goal was gorgeous. Finding chances and figuring out how to get it done is a good sign. Sure they have plenty to work on and they fell apart in the middle of the game. But they found how to win and won. That’s what counts. It’s why they play the game.

  207. 207.

    PaulW

    gotta admit our guys need to figure out better goal-scoring celebrations. Running around on the grass in a daze is too bland.

  208. 208.

    Linnaeus

    Judging from some of the folks on my Twitter stream, it’s progressive to cheer against the US team.

  210. 210.

    Tripod

    On the downside, it’s pretty clear Klinsy over-cooked his boys in training. On the upside, they’re back focusing on their set pieces.

  213. 213.

    scav

    @Violet: Better on the day, luckier, not much difference to my mind. People read too much deep meaning into a lot of this. I was amused earlier when, after reading self-praise that the US doesn’t do the dive-and-drama school of football (“did we inherit this pip-pip with our anglo heritage and democratic traditions?”) there was a spot of “Well but they have bad hairstyles and don’t attract babes and moreover have silly French (whoops) accents” catty he-man metrosexual chest-bumping. It was a good game — slow in places, dramatic in others.

  214. 214.

    beltane

    I am looking forward to Brazil vs. Mexico tomorrow and the Netherlands/Australia match on Wednesday. My husband’s Dutch and all I can say is that I wish his team could beat Spain 5-1 every day.

  216. 216.

    Steeplejack

    @raven:

    It’s not giving up on the team to note when they’re flailing and tiring. They held on by their fingernails, kudos to them, but it was a close-run thing.

    I believe I have heard even you say less than supportive things about your Dawgs when they were screwing the pooch. I presume that didn’t mean you were giving up on them.

  217. 217.

    MCA1

    Discussion question: Which website shows more contempt for actual users – MSNBC, or ESPNFC? It’s like they should just have a front page that says “By the way, we don’t give a fuck about this sport, so this will be the worst, most convoluted site with the least amount of actual information and most terrible design you’ll ever see.”

  218. 218.

    Ronnie Pudding

    @PaulW:

    As pleased as I am with Brooks’ goal, I don’t see how he was our best player.

    I thought Bedoya might have been our best.

  220. 220.

    MCA1

    @Tripod: Plus they don’t play again for 6(?) days. Not to mention that Portugal physically wilted today, as well, so we’ll be on even terms at worst.

  223. 223.

    pseudonymous in nc

    Great win for the US: it’s not easy to go from rear-guard defending a lead for most of the match to creating attacking opportunities when level.

    What will the Portuguese be taking from this, after their awful bad no-good day? A lot of knacked and semi-knacked players out there, and the World Cup doesn’t give you much time to rest and test your fitness and rest again, especially this one with such huge distances between venues and variations in local climate.

  224. 224.

    ulee

    When Brooks’ header went into the net I was all fists pumping in the air, jumping up and down, and yelling YEAAAA! The dogs were racing around barking, wondering what papa was so worked up about. There is no other sport that brings this upwelling of emotion. What a blast!

  225. 225.

    Sophist

    You also have to consider that for most of the team this was their first game on the big stage. It’s entirely possible that opening night jitters were responsible for at least a portion of the poor play, and those can be gotten over, especially with a win notched.

  226. 226.

    Stan Gable

    @pseudonymous in nc:

    It looked like Portugal tried to pressure the Germans back line a bunch. They got a couple of decent chances early on but then they got the pk and the red card and that was sort of the end of it. I’d assume they would feel confident that they can generate a bunch of turnovers against the US and thus should be ok.

  227. 227.

    Heliopause

    Maybe I’m raining on the parade, but I don’t quite get how people get so excited about beating a country that most of your fellow countrymen are only 50-50 to locate in the correct hemisphere. Ranked 37th in the world. The NFL equivalent would be if a 5-11-ish team badly outplayed your 7-9-ish team but you barely squeaked out a win anyway, and you’re really stoked because if five other teams in your conference conveniently lose you’ll get in as the last wild card. Jesus, people, this is America. Have some fucking standards.

  228. 228.

    Tripod

    @MCA1:

    It’s lined up for them to get out of group, except game planning around the injury to Jozy may be an intractable problem. Landon or not, finding another striker at this level has been an issue since Charlie Davies got into that SUV with a drunk behind the wheel.

  229. 229.

    ulee

    @Heliopause:We are the underdogs in this World Cup. Any win is a huge victory. Have some fucking fun. Onwards and Upwards to the Portuguese.

  230. 230.

    scav

    @Heliopause:

    Jesus, people, this is America. Have some fucking standards.

    Ok, that combo is amusing.

    Hope over experience. This nation invaded Grenada.

  232. 232.

    scav

    @ulee: They are more worth having a parade about. Handing out bunting and a gazillion medals for stomping on a teeny island of dubious threat when your military budget dwarfs most of the worlds seems a little anxious aggrandizing overkill. fun is fun, and these games can be fun, and can involve a lot of silly flag based face-paint, but sheesh. “We’re” not even exceptional enough to be The Underdog, which would make us The Star in a proper sort of movie, gotta love the movies and the lovely lovely spotlight. We’re not likely to win, but improving. This is more what being a part of a world competition is about, as baffling as this middle to low end of the pack stuff can seem.

  233. 233.

    ulee

    @scav: Well, it’s the WC and people are really enjoying it. Some folks gotta search for a problem, I guess.

  234. 234.

    scav

    @ulee: Not disagreeing with the general glee. But some of it is OTT in a charcteristic way that is well mockable. There’s OTT elsewhere, never fear.

  235. 235.

    Omnes Omnibus (the first of his name)

    @scav: We are a third tier soccer nation. The World Cup should be approached that way.

  236. 236.

    Temporarily Max McGee (soon enough to be Andy K again)

    @scav:

    “We’re” not even exceptional enough to be The Underdog, which would make us The Star in a proper sort of movie, gotta love the movies and the lovely lovely spotlight. We’re not likely to win, but improving. This is more what being a part of a world competition is about, as baffling as this middle to low end of the pack stuff can seem.

    I couldn’t agree more…Which is what I was on about when I was talking about…How’d you paraphrase it….?

    @scav:

    Oh, yeah:

    I was amused earlier when, after reading self-praise that the US doesn’t do the dive-and-drama school of football (“did we inherit this pip-pip with our anglo heritage and democratic traditions?”)

    That wasn’t self-praise, that was admitting that we aren’t alone in minimizing the theatrics. I find it interesting that the other nations with which we share that minimization are those from which ours sprang. That you took that as moralizing is on you, because I didn’t intend it that way. Hell, it isn’t like England, Scotland, Northern Ireland and Wales have had much success in the sphere of international football- maybe our guys should start flopping around to draw cards, free kicks and PKs.

  237. 237.

    Temporarily Max McGee (soon enough to be Andy K again)

    @raven:

    TYVM! Not the most fun watching ’em play to protect the lead for that long, is it?

  238. 238.

    scav

    @Temporarily Max McGee (soon enough to be Andy K again): It’s not uniquely “on me” that I read it the way I did — communication errors usually involve a mismatch between any number of intangible unspokens between emitter and sender, if not other transmission errors I’ll own up to my half if you’ll own up to yours. It seemed to arise about the time there was a bit of a wrastle over the German Müller being “over”-dramatic and I nearly asked about it then because there was the Saxon chunk of the heritage — limited even to WASPyness, which is a over-simplification of the culture — in full display. It’s a style of play, granted, but I doubt more than that. Carved neither in stone nor our genes, nor the colonial ties of a portion of the states. As more of our players acquire international careers and experience, I’d expect we’d start evolving in style based on what works (and is gotten away with) in international practice. I rather see flopping like fights in hockey. Somewhat Inexplicable, but there it is.

    ETA. the Google Doodle with the octpus up now is a good one. There have been interesting ones today. The two Eagles ended up with the appropriate number of eggs for a bit.

  239. 239.

    Temporarily Max McGee (soon enough to be Andy K again)

    @scav:

    Carved neither in stone nor our genes…

    No, but part of an inherited sporting heritage nonetheless.

    I rather see flopping like fights in hockey. Somewhat Inexplicable, but there it is.

    Very different things. Hockey fights were part of an honor code, enforced by players because it was impossible for the single ref who could call penalties to catch events outside of his line of vision. A cheap offense behind the ref could cause a player to lose his job, his ability to walk or the loss of sight from one eye. Fighting has dropped off since a second ref was added and linesmen were given license to inform the refs of major infractions. Embellishment in footy is employed when the play is in the ref’s line of sight.

  240. 240.

    Omnes Omnibus (the first of his name)

    @Temporarily Max McGee (soon enough to be Andy K again): In rugby,with 15 players and a single ref, it is fairly common for players to enforce social norms. If someone cheap-shotted me, I mentioned it to my forwards. During the next ruck or maul, something bad happened to that guy. OTOH, I had a tendency to tackle high. If someone did it to me, I had no cause to complain. It was a part of my game, and I deserved to live with it happening to me.

  241. 241.

    Temporarily Max McGee (soon enough to be Andy K again)

    @Omnes Omnibus (the first of his name):

    And if you go back to the early days of American gridiron football, when there were fewer officials calling penalties, you’ll find the same sort of enforcement of the honor code- which shouldn’t be surprising, seeing that our game evolved from English Rugby. Which brings it all back to the roots of our American sporting heritage, no?

  242. 242.

    Omnes Omnibus (the first of his name)

    @Temporarily Max McGee (soon enough to be Andy K again): I wasn’t there for the original argument. All I can say is that in a sport I played, the rules had a several levels of enforcement: what the refs saw, what was generally accepted by the players (some teams had histories and revenges were needed; it was understood on both sides); and what was accepted by individual players ( some players had histories and revenges were needed,’ it was understood on both sides).

  244. 244.

    LeeM

    @Omnes Omnibus (the first of his name): If FIFA ever evolves and adopts Rugby’s “don’t speak to the ref” rules, a lot of the flopping and theatrics will cease. I played Rugby for 20 years in and out of college (lock & wing forward), so I appreciate your enforcement analogy. For those unfamiliar with the Gentleman’s Game, only the team captain may speak, respectfully, to the ref. Anyone else is gone from the game.

  245. 245.

    Bitter Scribe

    I remember watching an American and a Ghanian player sprawled on the field (sorry, “pitch”). The American accidentally clocked the Ghanian on the skull with one of his shoes (which bracketed the Ghanian’s head). The Ghanian sprang up and looked like he was about to punch him. An official stepped between them and…

    …in a few seconds, the two players were shaking hands and hugging. I was astonished. None of the puerile playground-style attempts at intimidation you see in so many other sports. Damn, it’s almost like they respect their opponents or something.

    (And yes, I’m aware there are plenty of poor sports in soccer, starting with that guy whose name starts with Z who keeps head-butting everybody. I still was impressed. Anyone remember those two guys’ names?)

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