Bring on Portugal!

The great thing about having two teams to root for in the World Cup is when one team gets knocked out, you can always support the other. What happens when that team gets knocked out?

Don't even think about it.

What can you say about the U.S. performance this time 'round that hasn't already been said? We played like crap some of the time, played with some heart a little bit, but mostly we looked and played like we had just pooped in our shorts and didn't want the rest of the world to know. For the first time, the U.S. entered this World Cup with some expectation of success from the folks back home. Don't laugh, this is new for us. So we wilted under the pressure of having to get good results from our group games. Oh, and while I'm thinking about it - we don't have big-high-pressure type games between World Cups. So when we get into big games, out come the "ooops-I-really-should-have-gone-before-the-game" faces from our players.

Still - there's England. Showed up at the Sport Depot (great sports bar with 80 TV's!) to watch the game with a buddy. He's a coach with the men's team at BU. You'd think he'd watch the game with a cold analytical coaching mind, but no - and this is what I love about being a fan - 15 minutes in and he's telling me we got no shot, no shot, at winning this game.

If you read the British press, you might think this is the worst England performance in decades. And they got a point. But somehow, England has found ways to get results despite playing well below their ability - it's not sexy, but very efficient, almost German-like in their efficiency, in doing just enough to get the result.