US Loses To Germany 1-0, But Shows The World USA Soccer Is For Real

ESPN ^ | June 20,2002 | Self

[Illbay]

Nothing much to add. I saw only the last fifteen minutes of the game.

Germany went ahead on a header that'd have been nearly impossible for any keeper to ward off, and the US nearly came back and tied it--it was literally a matter of inches.

At the end of the game the German keeper collapsed to the ground.

This was a case of fighting one of THE premier teams in the world to a near standstill.

We come away from this tournament with elevated stature in international soccer.

Thank you, Team USA, you did your country proud!

USA! USA! USA!

[BMCDA]

Yeah, they should do that more often. I mean fining ;->

[katana]

Spoken like a true Steeler fan.

PS: That's not a compliment.

[Dales]

If Brazil plays like they did today, they might not make the finals. I was unimpressed with both England and Brazil today.

[oc-flyfish]

I agree. We played one of the very best teams and did very well.

[GodBlessRonaldReagan]

Congrats to the US for a great showing....but don't forget....

SIX WEEKS TO TRAINING CAMP!!!!

[Dales]

I'll be rooting for SK until they bow out. If they hadn't saved our butts when we tried to choke (by getting spanked by Poland), we wouldn't have even made the elimination round.

We have come a long, long way. But we still need to be more consistent, and we still need to develop a world class finisher. Donovan is showing flashes though.

What a great tourney for us though.

[Chi-townChief]

ACH DU LIEBER !!!

[E Rocc]

Soccer season is over (I'm sure ESPN is disappointed). Bring on real football.

Too bad we couldn't take care of Germany after the French left us the task again.

-Eric

[TomB]

And soccer fans wonder why we who don't like the game call the players a bunch of panty waist drama queens.

In all honesty there are those in every sport.

[anka]

amen...
now that the u.s. is out i'm cheering for brazil.
definately one of the most entertaining teams to watch.

[E Rocc]

HERE WE GO STEELERS HERE WE GO!!!!!!!!!!!

Not where you want to go though. >:)

-Woof Woof!

-Eric

[segis]

USA Bump. They played really well. It is unfortunate.

[j_accuse]

This World Cup reminds me of the recent NBA Finals between the Lakers and the New Jersey Nets. Newspaper and television reporters went all over northern New Jersey looking to interview Nets fans about their team's improbable run to the finals, and all they found were a bunch of disinterested people and some very interested basketball fans, most of whom were rooting for the Lakers. 34 posted on 6/21/02 7:14 AM Pacific by Alberta's Child

People belittling this team because it did not win the World Cup are clueless about soccer. The US has come a long way in only 10 years, when countries with soccer tradition in Europe have taken longer to advance to Quarter-finals. It took England 30 years to win - and only when hosting the event and being jumped into the final 16.

So for all those butt-touching NFL fans, and those more than 40 years old that have no idea about soccer:
These are the new guys in big sports!

USA team players pose before their World Cup quarter-finals match against Germany in Ulsan, June 21, 2002. Players are, top row, from L-R - Brad Friedel, Brian Mc Bride, Eddie Pope, Tony Sanneh, Gregg Berhalter, Frankie Hejduk, and bottom row, from L-R: John O'Brien, Claudio Reyna, Landon Donovan, Eddie Lewis, Pablo Mastroeni. REUTERS/Jason Reed

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[The Shootist]

Who cares? After all its just soccer. Another stupid game to keep the masses occupied. Bread and circuses.

[fhillary2]

The lads did well to advance as far as they did. They are indeed FOR REAL! Well Done Bruce Arena and the US Soccer Team!

[HoustonCurmudgeon]

I loved how Jehremies (sp?) was rolling around on the ground like he got kicked in the groin by Reyna. Reyna didn't even touch him and it was a pure farce. I just hate when Euroweenies fake injuries.

RIGHT, no one in American Football ever faked an injury to get an extra timeout!

R O F L M A O

[Texaggie79]

They can go back into hiding. If they can't make the finals.... pooh on them. Perhaps they can win my affection in 06.

[connectthedots]

A shot by Eddie Lewis bounced off Kahn and hit off the left hand of defender Torsten Frings, who was standing on the goal line. Scottish referee Hugh Dallas didn't call a penalty, awarding Germany a goal kick.

I did not see the match, but from the article, it appears to have been an inadvertant/unintentional handball. If so, it is not illegal and the referee was correct in not awarding a penalty kick. Just one of the breaks of the game.

[lavaroise]

America played world class and better than Germany. It was a fluke that we did not score at least once. Let the Germans go in finals with the Turks, and they will turn the whole place into a big mess.

[lavaroise]

A shot by Eddie Lewis bounced off Kahn and hit off the left hand of defender Torsten Frings, who was standing on the goal line. Scottish referee Hugh Dallas didn't call a penalty, awarding Germany a goal kick.

I guess it was not so much a fluke that we lost, it was a worshiped referee that denied the penalty.