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MVH

8 Million Stories in the City: USA-Algeria..and Jonathan Bornstein

June 24, 2010 — by AmyChiu

I’ve been recruited by two lovely gentlemen to write this piece because my usual posts on FSM (www.fantasysportsmarket.com …shameless plug) are on hiatus after a heartbreaking Celtics loss in the NBA finals.

I woke up yesterday morning a nervous wreck. A Canadian, who shall remain nameless, taunted me pre the USA v. Slovenia game. Meanie. What happens? We tie. USA v. Algeria this morning. The foreigner better keep his negativity to himself.  Unfortunately, I could not come up with a feasible excuse to skip work to watch the game, so I sucked it up and listened to Spanish radio with my co-worker while sketching on my Wacom tablet.  My Spanish is not that awesome.

Video

Joy in Huskerville

June 23, 2010 — by Tommy4

Video of crowd in Lincoln, Nebraska — ground zero of cornfed football America — watching Landon’s goal. You can tell exactly what’s going on in the sequence of play by the crowd’s reaction. Wonderful.

Commentary

Incredible Win Fills US with Joy

June 23, 2010 — by Sean2

The greatest win in US Soccer history? Absotively. After dominating possession and creating chances all game, our boys finally broke through just when it seemed we’d be going home frustrated. It’s the kind of finish you dream about as a little kid—late in the game, counting down the final seconds in your head as you take that last touch and fire your shot past the imaginary goalkeeper. Incredible stuff.

I can’t even bother breaking down the game with any specifics because I’m too emotionally spent. Every US match I’ve attended has been packed with passionate fans, and today was no different. The bar crowds chanting “USA USA” as if the team can hear them, people around me gasping with every foray into offense, groaning as the ball goes harmless wide after a strike, and a celebration with today’s 91st minute goal that sparked spontaneous hugging and even some tears. Even my great new haircut was overlooked, such an amazing win it was.

We’ll be liveblogging more tomorrow, with special looks at the German/England rivalry to come, and more dispatches from South Africa in the pipe. Stay tuned, kiddos. We love ya!

Group SummariesVideo

Group C Summary – England/USA/Algeria/Slovenia

June 23, 2010 — by Suman

Scenario Analysis:

Here’s who advances in each of the 9 possible outcomes of this morning’s 2 matches:


USA win USA draw USA loss
ENG win USA & ENG ENG & SVN ENG & SVN
ENG draw USA & SVN SVN & ? SVN & ENG
ENG loss USA & SVN SVN & USA SVN & ALG

(?: if both games end as draws, both USA & ENG will finish with 3 points.  The tiebreaker is total GF, so USA has the advantage, having scored 3 so far to ENG’s 1.  It’s possible but unlikely that ENG could advance in this scenario–if they & SVN play to a high-scoring draw, e.g. 3-3, while USA plays to a low-scoring draw, e.g. 0-0.)

Group C fixtures & results:

  • Sat June 12 (Day 2): England 1, USA 1
  • Sun June 13 (Day 3): Slovenia 1, Algeria 0
  • Fri June 18 (Day 8): USA 2, Slovenia 2
  • Fri June 18 (Day 8): England 0, Algeria 0
  • Wed June 23 (Day 13): Slovenia v England
  • Wed June 23 (Day 13): USA v Algeria

Standings:

Team MP W D L GF GA Pts
SloveniaSlovenia 2 1 1 0 3 2 4
USAUSA 2 0 2 0 3 3 2
EnglandEngland 2 0 2 0 1 1 2
AlgeriaAlgeria 2 0 1 1 0 1 1

Video highlights below.