6.19.14
ASN Morning Read: Everyone Gets a Profile
The new stars of American soccer are getting their names in publications around the globe. That's fun. Portugal's biggest star might have hurt himself. Insert sadface emoticon.
BY
Noah Davis
Posted
June 19, 2014
8:37 AM
Cristiano Ronaldo is hurt. Cristiano Ronaldo might not play against the United States on Sunday. Poor Cristiano Ronaldo.
You really should go create your Starting XI for the match against Portugal. It's cool; we'll wait.
John Brooks profile: "After playing inconsistently in the Bundesliga, Brooks said he did not expect an invitation to the 30-man U.S. training camp. He performed well enough to make the final cut, although many observers concluded, incorrectly, that Klinsmann chose him for grooming purposes ahead of future international competitions. Brooks caught World Cup fever for the first time in 2006, when Germany hosted the tournament. Although he didn’t attend any matches in Berlin, 'it hit me right in the face,' he said. 'It was a good feeling to experience it.'"
ASN took a slightly different take on Brooks, which you may enjoy. Check it out.
Kyle Beckerman profile: "'I got the chills when we were walking out,' he said after the match, a crucial 2-1 victory over Ghana. 'The national anthem—it was just an amazing feeling. I've been working for this my whole life, and to finally get it felt great.'"
Graham Zusi profile: Zusi, an All-Star midfielder from Sporting Kansas City in Major League Soccer, doesn't mind the latter one bit. 'It can be pretty hard to get a word out of Graham at times,' Zusi's father David told Yahoo Sports recently by telephone. 'And he is the last guy in the world who is going to go looking for the spotlight.' Zusi senior is spot-on. When quizzed about his role in the goal that made a nation scream with delight in the U.S.'s 2-1 win over Ghana, Graham wanted no part of the adulation."
Let's talk about dedication. Fourteen members of the American Outlaws traveled to Guyana in route to the U.S. game in Natal. They deserve a medal or something: "The first info we got was that the trip to Natal was going to require some zigzagging: Houston to Miami to Trinidad to Guyana, and finally to Natal. At least that was the first plan." It gets better from there.
Josh Dean watched Mexico-Brazil with Cobi Jones and got the former star to talk about the U.S-Ghana match: "The previous night, Jones had watched the US team's dramatic victory at 'some big theater' as a celebrity guest present to help rile up American fans. He signed autographs, posed for photos, and 'celebrated, like everyone else,' when John Brooks headed in the winning goal. 'It was amazing, just amazing,' Jones said. 'And the thing that stood out was that when Ghana scored, they kept going. They didn't play for a tie.'"
A question we've been wanting to know: Who is the hottest player at the World Cup?
And finally, would you like to watch every World Cup goal?
Michael Janosz/isiphotos.com
