Ghana 2 - 1 USA

Sorry guys. Better luck in four years, eh?

I didn't see the match, but reading between the lines of the report from AP, which describes the Ghanans as "stronger and faster", you got a lesson in the African style from some experts. At its best, African football has the beauty of Brazilian play and the guts of European play with a little Carribean pazzazz thrown in for good measure - it often comes as a shock to large nations with a superiority complex about playing the Third World. Still, it also sounds like the USA fought bravely. Good on ya.

Also reading between the lines, I have to say Oguchi Onyewu is a liability to your squad. He thinks he's playing highschool basketball. In the Italy game he did a lot to rack up the level of nastiness with constant fouls for pulling and holding - here he gave away a penalty that cost you the match. Football isn't a game where you can beat the best by being physical and sailing close to the rules. They will samba or waltz around you and when that fails will bend freekicks into your net instead.

Somewhere, there's a potential Newshog post in which American antipathy for football as being not confrontational and aggressive, of being for wimps, is a reflection of an American preference for military options and the grinding idiocy of frontal assault. Maybe - maybe not. For those Americans who think football is for wimps...try rugby. 80 minutes of crunching tackles and flat-out running with no stops for breathers and no body armor. THAT's a man's game! There's actually a pretty good team down here in San Antonio.

Anyhow...

Maybe Scotland will pull their abysmal act together by 2010 and actually qualify and maybe our two nations will get to play a match which can be an example of fine sportmanship and skill. That'd be nice. Most Americans will now lose what little interest they had in the beautiful game and the World Cup for another four years so I will cease to bug y'all by writing about it.