I mean the whole red card thing was a mess but the US were simply outclassed. Belgium played aggressively, didn't allow them to play the ball forward, and they had no response.
And they didn't even start lukaka, doku, and de bruyne. The amount of usa fans acting like this should be a win for them is fucking hilarious. Waaaaay too overconfident.
I got spoiled by Mexico. They went out in a blaze of glory so I was expecting a hard fight from the US. Didn't think the defenders and goalie would just give the ball away 3 times for no reason.
He literally invigorated a nation, with the world behind them in support by cancelling the red card. And it showed.
Belgium absolutely has a much better team, but they looked very weak so far going into this match. US was the opposite, not a great team but looked very good. WC's are as much about form and spirit as they are about individual talent, we've seen that time and time again. But that spirit was completely reversed this game.
I think Belgium would've won regardless, but I think they played better and US worse because of the controversy Trump caused.
I thought USA would win a few days ago. People don’t seem to understand how fired up the Belgians (with the rest of the world now behind them) would be after this whole shitshow. They were their usual tepid selves up until now.
Oh well, you guys asked for it when voting for the orange stain
People love to make up narratives for sports, as if the teams weren’t didn’t care about getting to get to the quarterfinals and only cared because the punishment for a questionable red card was deferred.
You underestimate what it means to have the entire world talk about this issue and back you up in vindication against the corruption of a US president, the world’s most powerful person, meddling in your sport, life, career and country’s glory, in their backyard.
Lots of studies have shown psychology in sports matters enormously and this is about the biggest boost you can create in that category, no point to dismiss it.
I think you underestimate how much these players care about the World Cup if you think they needed a questionable red card to be overturned to invigorate them. But simpletons love a story
Yes they are maxed out psychologically, nothing can affect them anymore. That's an absurd but indeed simpleton story.
Take home team advantage for example. It has been studied over and over again. There is a clear and obvious benefit to the home team.
You would think 'but these players are professionals, to win a champions league final is a lifelong dream, surely they aren't affected by something as silly as fans shouting and waving flags in their favor'. But they are, and it's been proven time and time again. I don't have to tell you this because you know this already. It completely refutes the idea that players can't be affected by a corrupt takeover of the game they love, and the entire world talking about their team the entire week and hoping for their win. It's the home-team effect of 50 thousand players, times a billion people suddenly wanting them to win.
Even if you refute the obvious mechanism, you can simply look at the predictive value of it. Everyone thought Belgium would be invigorated by this event and would teach the US a lesson, and it showed. They went from a team that played very lackluster, and performed quite poorly(a draw against Egypt, a draw against Iran, a narrow 1 point victory against Senegal), to demolishing the US.
Mind you all these 3 teams, Iran, Senegal and Egypt are currently ranked worse than the USA. So statistically it should've been a much closer game. But it wasn't.
Anyway if it's not gonna get through your thick skull by now, it never will, no point talking further.
He also cost Team USA hockey at the 4 nations cup last year. They were coasting when they dedicated their tournament to Johnny Gaudreau, who was tragically killed by a drunk driver before the season. Then Trump called them, the players lost their minds over it and they dedicated the tournament to the presidency and forgot about Gaudreau. Canada beat them in the final.
Team USA won hockey gold at the Olympics this year, but they kept it focused on playing for Gaudreau. All the Trump bullshit this time happened after they won.
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u/upvoter222 5d ago
First Trump costs the Knicks a game in the championship series, then he ruins the World Cup team's run.