I have played soccer competitively since I was 5 years old, and have always loved the game. Both playing and watching. Long ago I stopped trying to convince people that were not interested, that they should watch and give the game a chance. I was just tired of all of the typical dimwit responses about the game being too slow, and not “American” enough, or what have you. Either people are into it or they are not, and those that are not, are really missing out. And they have no idea. I’d venture a guess that most soccer haters have never sat through an entire match, because after watching some of the games this weekend in Euro2008, I can’t even imagine someone calling soccer boring.
Croatia vs Turkey was unreal, and then Netherlands vs Russia nearly topped it. Incredible games full of drama, speed, intensity, passion, elation and heartbreak. Last minute heroics, and guys leaving everything they had on the field. The highlights don’t do it justice, but there is a little compilation from the Croatia/Turkey game below.
In a nutshell, 90 minutes were played scoreless (BORING! say the soccer haters), as were the first 29 minutes of overtime, when Croatia scored in the final moments, and looked to seal the game. Unbelievably, Turkey equalized the game in the next and final minute of the match, sending the game to penalty kicks where Turkey prevailed. Absolutely unreal match end to end.
If you haven’t caught any games so far in the tournament, I’d suggest trying to see at least one of the three remaining (two semifinals and one final). Sit through one from start to finish and see how it goes. If it isn’t your thing, so be it, but if you claim to be a fan of sports in general, I can’t imagine these games not striking a chord with you.
June 24th, 2008 at 5:19 pm
Agreed. I watched Italy v. Spain. It was equally exciting and was also decided by penalty shots.