Posts by Noah Davis

  • Meet the Future of the USMNT

    The September following a World Cup is about as far as you can get from the most important tournament in the sporting world. This gives national team coaches maximal flexibility to experiment. United States head coach Jürgen Klinsmann took full advantage of the opportunity when the Americans battled the Czech Republic last Wednesday, inviting six players who had never been capped into the prematch training camp.

  • How the United States Can Win the World Cup

    As the U.S. grows up as a soccer nation, simply emerging from the group won’t be enough. The team will be expected to bring home the trophy or at least have a strong chance to do so entering the tournament. The question is, how can we get to that point?

  • The Problem With Summer Soccer Friendlies in the USA

    Every 90-minute soccer match has its share of dull moments and silly mistakes. One’s opinion of the quality of the match can be dramatically affected by the preconceptions one brings to the proceedings. Tournaments such as the ICC and other Stateside friendlies featuring world powers reinforce partially outdated stereotypes

  • World Cup Players to Know: Argentina Goalkeeper Sergio Romero

    Is Sergio Romero the man you want behind Argentina’s “unimaginative defensive base”? Is he the guy you want charged with securing Lionel Messi’s legacy and, you know, also winning the World Cup? Probably not, but he’s going to be there regardless.

  • USMNT World Cup Winners and Losers

    Six days ago, the United States national team fell 2-1 to Belgium in the Round of 16, bouncing out of the 2014 FIFA World Cup. The Americans managed a single victory across four games, a 2-1 win over Ghana in their opening match, but the squad made it further than Cristiano Ronaldo. So that’s something. Now that we have the benefit of a little perspective, let’s take a look at the USMNT’s 2014 World Cup winners and losers

  • We Went There: In Brazil, the USMNT Loses the Battle But Wins the War or Something

    The stadium had a strange vibe, perhaps nervousness, perhaps energy dampened by the rain, perhaps less partisan because the Brazilians wanted to watch Germany. Regardless, the atmosphere was fun.

  • We Went There: Mexico Qualifies for the Round of 16 in a Green Sea

    The inevitable ebb and flow of a World Cup game becomes even more pronounced when one side has a decided numerical (and/or decibel-level) advantage in an arena. These matches are better, or at least more fun, when the true and passionate supporters of one or both teams outnumber the people from the host country and the corporate interests.

  • Tico-Taka: Costa Rica’s Amazing Run to the World Cup Knockout Stage

    In a World Cup defined by vibrant, attacking soccer, the biggest surprise is a tiny Central American nation featuring one of the best goalkeepers in the Spanish league and an impenetrable five-man back line. Costa Rica is, somehow, very much for real. The run to the round of 16 began with a defeat of Uruguay. […]

  • We Went There: Watching Mexico Hold Brazil From a Bar in Recife

    Little-known rule: When a country shuts down because its national team is taking the field, you find a bar and watch.

  • We Went There: U.S. Somehow Beats Ghana in Natal

    It really did feel like something had changed in Arena das Dunas after Ghana scored. It felt like the U.S. remembered they were supposed to come out and play instead of trying to protect a tenuous one-goal lead for 89 and a half minutes plus stoppage time.

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