“Pitch Was Very Difficult”- Lionel Messi Annoyed With Copa America Playing Conditions

[Trotter]

9 minutes ago, TuscanyTile2 said:

@SAR I likes MetLife!

Metlife is underappreciated.

I challenge anyone to find another state where architects sit around a room and design a stadium to be dead spot on to an air conditioner. That takes talent.

Remember the mall next to it used to be painted in checkerboard and assorted colors that was just plain awful. It was so bad people actually wanted it torn down and it had never opened yet. The supposed story behind the exterior design was the lead architect was driving up the turnpike and passed port newark and saw all of the shipping containers.  Light bulb went off and there was the design.

What other state in this nation can give you that type of insight and forward thinking and for the bargain price of 1.5 billion?

[TuscanyTile2]

13 minutes ago, Trotter said:

Metlife is underappreciated.

I challenge anyone to find another state where architects sit around a room and design a stadium to be dead spot on to an air conditioner. That takes talent.

Remember the mall next to it used to be painted in checkerboard and assorted colors that was just plain awful. It was so bad people actually wanted it torn down and it had never opened yet. The supposed story behind the exterior design was the lead architect was driving up the turnpike and passed port newark and saw all of the shipping containers.  Light bulb went off and there was the design.

What other state in this nation can give you that type of insight and forward thinking and for the bargain price of 1.5 billion?

[Jack Straw]

So I'd love to have seen LeBron James or Michael Jordan play Roger Federer in tennis, even if they spend their entire youth trying to develop their skills. Or playing soccer for that matter. The assumption that because someone is tailor made for one sport they could play any sport is ridiculous. Bo Jackson would be a lousy tennis player, a lousy fencer, a lousy soccer player. And I should add that the pool of soccer talent is global, not just US based. You've got kids in Nigeria, Ecuador, practically anywhere on the planet, trying to make it in soccer. But go ahead and wear the usual American blinders. The three most popular sports in the world are soccer, cricket, and tennis. Think about that. No football, no baseball, no basketball. So I guess youre just another provincial fan ranting on his porch.

McDonald’s is the most popular cheeseburger on the planet, yet nobody is arguing it’s because it’s “the greatest burger on the planet.”

Popularity does not equal greatness.

Bo Jackson was a star in track and field, football, and baseball. The idea that he couldn’t excel in tennis, soccer, or fencing is absurd.

Michael Jordan played professional baseball and batted .202 in AA after not picking up a bat since the age of 17.

Lebron James was a star TE in football before turning pro in basketball at 18.

Are you seriously suggesting that Messi, at 5’6 and 148 lbs, is on the same athletic plane as those listed above?

Surely not.

Messi is a great athlete and soccer player but his excellence is specific to a sport that three years old play.

Everyone listed above can do things (like touch a basketball rim) that Messi could never dream of.

Sorry if that’s painful for the soccer crowd who love to think that their sport is levitating above the others.

I’ve watched enough soccer to know that it’s nowhere near as difficult or competitive as basketball, baseball, football, and many other sports.


Sent from my iPhone using JetNation.com mobile app

[Long Island Leprechaun]

30 minutes ago, Jack Straw said:

 

McDonald’s is the most popular cheeseburger on the planet, yet nobody is arguing it’s because it’s “the greatest burger on the planet.”

Popularity does not equal greatness.

Bo Jackson was a star in track and field, football, and baseball. The idea that he couldn’t excel in tennis, soccer, or fencing is absurd.

Michael Jordan played professional baseball and batted .202 in AA after not picking up a bat since the age of 17.

Lebron James was a star TE in football before turning pro in basketball at 18.

Are you seriously suggesting that Messi, at 5’6 and 148 lbs, is on the same athletic plane as those listed above?

Surely not.

Messi is a great athlete and soccer player but his excellence is specific to a sport that three years old play.

Everyone listed above can do things (like touch a basketball rim) that Messi could never dream of.

Sorry if that’s painful for the soccer crowd who love to think that their sport is levitating above the others.

I’ve watched enough soccer to know that it’s nowhere near as difficult or competitive as basketball, baseball, football, and many other sports.


Sent from my iPhone using JetNation.com mobile app

 

You ma y have watched soccer, but you actually haven't observed anything. What Messi can do with a soccer ball includes not only exceptional dexterity and touch but vision and amazing creativity in a maze of defenders trying to dismantle his attack. I'm curious how tall Wayne Gretzky is, or Pele, or Rod Laver, etc. It's pretty stupid to use as a criterion of athletic ability whether someone can touch a basketball rim. Dumb and dumber. You don't appreciate soccer? So be it. But don't keep demonstrating your ignorance with idiotic examples.

[HighPitch]

51 minutes ago, Jack Straw said:

 

McDonald’s is the most popular cheeseburger on the planet, yet nobody is arguing it’s because it’s “the greatest burger on the planet.”

Popularity does not equal greatness.

Bo Jackson was a star in track and field, football, and baseball. The idea that he couldn’t excel in tennis, soccer, or fencing is absurd.

Michael Jordan played professional baseball and batted .202 in AA after not picking up a bat since the age of 17.

Lebron James was a star TE in football before turning pro in basketball at 18.

Are you seriously suggesting that Messi, at 5’6 and 148 lbs, is on the same athletic plane as those listed above?

Surely not.

Messi is a great athlete and soccer player but his excellence is specific to a sport that three years old play.

Everyone listed above can do things (like touch a basketball rim) that Messi could never dream of.

Sorry if that’s painful for the soccer crowd who love to think that their sport is levitating above the others.

I’ve watched enough soccer to know that it’s nowhere near as difficult or competitive as basketball, baseball, football, and many other sports.


Sent from my iPhone using JetNation.com mobile app

 

Your nutty

you havent watched jack s jack straw

 

messi is one of the greatest players of all time easily on par with jordan

so if messi was still messi but 6 ft 3 and 230 it would be different? Thats just dumb

[HighPitch]

15 hours ago, Jack Straw said:

I'm a fan who has watched several hundred games and still regularly watch, so you'll have to guess again.

Ok so now youre a “fan” of soccer. Youve watched hundreds of games? Dude u r so full of s.

Youve done nothing but go out of your way to insult the sport. Youre trolling now

Dont post while on schrooms please.

[Rich Thornburgh]

1 hour ago, Matt39 said:

Who’s a better athlete Novak or Messi? It’s an impossible exercise 

Different sports require different athletic skill sets.  I’m sure Penei Sewell would suck at soccer unless he was the goalie

[Matt39]

2 minutes ago, Rich Thornburgh said:

Different sports require different athletic skill sets.  I’m sure Penei Sewell would suck at soccer unless he was the goalie

I think standard athleticism is measured by big, fast, strong. Running a 4.4 40 at Myles Garrets weight is more impressive than someone who’s 170.

[Sperm Edwards]

1 hour ago, Jack Straw said:

 

McDonald’s is the most popular cheeseburger on the planet, yet nobody is arguing it’s because it’s “the greatest burger on the planet.”

Popularity does not equal greatness.

Bo Jackson was a star in track and field, football, and baseball. The idea that he couldn’t excel in tennis, soccer, or fencing is absurd.

Michael Jordan played professional baseball and batted .202 in AA after not picking up a bat since the age of 17.

Lebron James was a star TE in football before turning pro in basketball at 18.

Are you seriously suggesting that Messi, at 5’6 and 148 lbs, is on the same athletic plane as those listed above?

Surely not.

Messi is a great athlete and soccer player but his excellence is specific to a sport that three years old play.

Everyone listed above can do things (like touch a basketball rim) that Messi could never dream of.

Sorry if that’s painful for soccer crowd who love to think that their sport is levitating above the others.

I’ve watched enough soccer to know that it’s nowhere near as difficult or competitive as basketball, baseball, football, and many other sports.


Sent from my iPhone using JetNation.com mobile app

 

You are crushing it in this thread and the arguments against have been wholly stupid. Don’t let anyone tell you otherwise. Keep it up.

The logic: cricket is more popular worldwide than basketball, therefore the best cricket player is one of the world’s greatest athletes, and by definition a better athlete than any basketball player. Lmao. Know why the current best cricket players are the best at it? Because nobody plays ****ing cricket in the USA, DR, etc. They play baseball.

He doesn’t throw or catch or move a ball with his hands, or with those hands holding a stick or racquet, making it an inherently stupid sport. It’s so popular worldwide because literally all you need is a ball and then you can play it anywhere, the basic rules are simple enough to explain to a 3 year-old in 10 seconds, and it’s been that way for hundreds of years.

Case in point: the USA, on balance, absolutely dominates the summer Olympics every four years (and it’d be the same in winter if not for curling being an event and Norway being champs in cross country skiing because their entire population grows up in or within mere hundreds of miles of the arctic circle). However our country’s best athletes have no desire to play soccer so they never bother playing (let alone working at it to be great), so the ‘best of the rest’ soccer athletes are pretending they’re not being graded on a curve with stunning, blissful ignorance. If USA athletes had limited mens’ sports opportunities outside of soccer, the World Cup for men would look like it does for women, with us winning every other one, and the rest of the planet’s billions of people collectively sharing the other half. 

Soccer spectators think it makes them sound somehow more worldly-cultured to better appreciate the nuance of this 2nd rate sport, and in doing so make claims to such obvious stupidity that the whole package of athletic requirements of a great soccer player at all approaches that of, say, an NBA player. The average NBA 6th man is twice the complete athlete of the very best soccer player.

Also eff MetLife’s turf and everything else about that hideous place.

 

[Jack Straw]

2 hours ago, Long Island Leprechaun said:

You ma y have watched soccer, but you actually haven't observed anything. What Messi can do with a soccer ball includes not only exceptional dexterity and touch but vision and amazing creativity in a maze of defenders trying to dismantle his attack. I'm curious how tall Wayne Gretzky is, or Pele, or Rod Laver, etc. It's pretty stupid to use as a criterion of athletic ability whether someone can touch a basketball rim. Dumb and dumber. You don't appreciate soccer? So be it. But don't keep demonstrating your ignorance with idiotic examples.

I haven't argued against Messi's greatness on the soccer field. My argument is pretty straight forward and that is that he is not one of the greatest athletes on the planet, anymore than Michael Phelps is. Yes, he's amazing at what he does on the soccer field but that greatness wouldn't translate to any other sport. 

As for your Gretzky reference -- he is 6'0 tall and was an excellent baseball player who was offered $150k to turn pro at 16 (he turned it down). He also played lacrosse and several other sports, so not really sure what your point is.

You soccer people are wildly defensive about the sport.

[Long Island Leprechaun]

1 hour ago, Jack Straw said:

I haven't argued against Messi's greatness on the soccer field. My argument is pretty straight forward and that is that he is not one of the greatest athletes on the planet, anymore than Michael Phelps is. Yes, he's amazing at what he does on the soccer field but that greatness wouldn't translate to any other sport. 

As for your Gretzky reference -- he is 6'0 tall and was an excellent baseball player who was offered $150k to turn pro at 16 (he turned it down). He also played lacrosse and several other sports, so not really sure what your point is.

You soccer people are wildly defensive about the sport.

You have a very narrow definition of "athletic." At the same time, soccer is one of the most athletic sports in the world, by most other people's estimation if not yours. So I'll leave it there. 

[Jack Straw]

19 minutes ago, Long Island Leprechaun said:

You have a very narrow definition of "athletic." At the same time, soccer is one of the most athletic sports in the world, by most other people's estimation if not yours. So I'll leave it there. 

I'm watching this and giggling at the 33 best goals in soccer history because, while I've seen a good amount of skill, I can count on one hand how many of the goals required a high level of athleticism beyond the ability to run.

 

[The Crusher]

2 hours ago, Jack Straw said:

I haven't argued against Messi's greatness on the soccer field. My argument is pretty straight forward and that is that he is not one of the greatest athletes on the planet, anymore than Michael Phelps is. Yes, he's amazing at what he does on the soccer field but that greatness wouldn't translate to any other sport. 

As for your Gretzky reference -- he is 6'0 tall and was an excellent baseball player who was offered $150k to turn pro at 16 (he turned it down). He also played lacrosse and several other sports, so not really sure what your point is.

You soccer people are wildly defensive about the sport.

Joey Chestnut greatest athlete ever.

You are welcome. 

[bicketybam]

1 hour ago, The Crusher said:

Joey Chestnut greatest athlete ever.

You are welcome. 

I heard he was a juicer.

[The Crusher]

5 minutes ago, bicketybam said:

I heard he was a juicer.

Boiled hot dog juice baby! Let’s F-ing go!!!!

[Hael]

Its very difficult to argue that prime Messi wasn't an 'athlete'.  If you watch any highlight reel of his, you see a little guy absolutely breaking everyones ankles left and right, and being essentially uncoverable.  He would routinely blow by the entire defense (sometimes 6 or 7 people at once) off sprints that could stretch an entire football field..  There are some soccer players that rely more on skills than athletics, but Messi surely isn't one of those.

If you played a childrens game of 'tag your it' Messi would stand toe to toe with the very best NFL athletes you can imagine.  Not only is he respectable in a 100 meter sprint (and soccer players have guys that are near Olympic caliber), you are looking at absolutely elite short area quickness (both lateral and explosion) as well as the absolute pinnacle of cardiovascular ability (the entire NFL would gas before a soccer player even starts breathing heavy).

I mean is Kipchoge not an athlete (a guy who's marathon pace is equal to most peoples high end sprint speed).

[Ghost]

MetLife stadium can literally burn and I won’t even blink. 

[Jack Straw]

46 minutes ago, Hael said:

Its very difficult to argue that prime Messi wasn't an 'athlete'.  If you watch any highlight reel of his, you see a little guy absolutely breaking everyones ankles left and right, and being essentially uncoverable.  He would routinely blow by the entire defense (sometimes 6 or 7 people at once) off sprints that could stretch an entire football field..  There are some soccer players that rely more on skills than athletics, but Messi surely isn't one of those.

If you played a childrens game of 'tag your it' Messi would stand toe to toe with the very best NFL athletes you can imagine.  Not only is he respectable in a 100 meter sprint (and soccer players have guys that are near Olympic caliber), you are looking at absolutely elite short area quickness (both lateral and explosion) as well as the absolute pinnacle of cardiovascular ability (the entire NFL would gas before a soccer player even starts breathing heavy).

I mean is Kipchoge not an athlete (a guy who's marathon pace is equal to most peoples high end sprint speed).

This is all fair.

Throughout this thread, I've repeatedly noted that Messi is an excellent athlete and soccer player. My only objection is to the idea that he is anywhere near the greatest athlete in the world.

The latter is an extraordinary claim, while the former is not. At the top of every sport, there are great athletes. But that doesn't mean he stacks up to those who sit atop the MLB, NBA, and NFL.

Messi's top speed ever was 20.1 mph, and he's estimated (generously) to have a 41-inch vertical. I'll repeat that he's 5'6" and 150 pounds, which is part of his athletic profile. While this isn't a devastating hindrance in soccer, it certainly is in every other major sport.

By comparison: Breece Hall, who is 6 inches taller and 70 pounds heavier, topped out at 21.5 mph in full pads and has a 40-inch vertical. DK Metcalf, who is 6'3.5" and 228 pounds, topped out at 22.23 mph in full pads and has a 41-inch vertical.

These guys are good athletes and players in the NFL, but they were picked in the second round of the draft.

Every NFL team has players with similar profiles. So, whereas Messi stands alone in soccer for his athletic ability, it's not rare to see much bigger players in the NBA, NFL, and MLB with greater levels of athleticism.

And despite what everyone's wives tell them, size matters.
 

[Trotter]

6 hours ago, Jack Straw said:

 

McDonald’s is the most popular cheeseburger on the planet, yet nobody is arguing it’s because it’s “the greatest burger on the planet.”

Popularity does not equal greatness.

Bo Jackson was a star in track and field, football, and baseball. The idea that he couldn’t excel in tennis, soccer, or fencing is absurd.

Michael Jordan played professional baseball and batted .202 in AA after not picking up a bat since the age of 17.

Lebron James was a star TE in football before turning pro in basketball at 18.

Are you seriously suggesting that Messi, at 5’6 and 148 lbs, is on the same athletic plane as those listed above?

Surely not.

Messi is a great athlete and soccer player but his excellence is specific to a sport that three years old play.

Everyone listed above can do things (like touch a basketball rim) that Messi could never dream of.

Sorry if that’s painful for the soccer crowd who love to think that their sport is levitating above the others.

I’ve watched enough soccer to know that it’s nowhere near as difficult or competitive as basketball, baseball, football, and many other sports.


Sent from my iPhone using JetNation.com mobile app

 

Can any of them sit on top of an 1800 pound horse going 30 miles an hour for a mile and sneak through an opening half the size of a doorway while being safe and not harm themselves, other riders or horses?

point is athletes vary and size, weight or specific ability does not define them

[Matt39]

1 hour ago, Hael said:

Its very difficult to argue that prime Messi wasn't an 'athlete'.  If you watch any highlight reel of his, you see a little guy absolutely breaking everyones ankles left and right, and being essentially uncoverable.  He would routinely blow by the entire defense (sometimes 6 or 7 people at once) off sprints that could stretch an entire football field..  There are some soccer players that rely more on skills than athletics, but Messi surely isn't one of those.

If you played a childrens game of 'tag your it' Messi would stand toe to toe with the very best NFL athletes you can imagine.  Not only is he respectable in a 100 meter sprint (and soccer players have guys that are near Olympic caliber), you are looking at absolutely elite short area quickness (both lateral and explosion) as well as the absolute pinnacle of cardiovascular ability (the entire NFL would gas before a soccer player even starts breathing heavy).

I mean is Kipchoge not an athlete (a guy who's marathon pace is equal to most peoples high end sprint speed).

Messi is at best 160lbs though. If these NFL athletes dropped weight they’d be even quicker and faster than they are. 

[Jack Straw]

Oh yes, how could I ever forget those athletic marvel midgets who stand atop their horses while whipping it?

Those are the true athletes and not the horses!


Sent from my iPhone using JetNation.com mobile app

[Matt39]

2 minutes ago, Jack Straw said:

Oh yes, how could I ever forget those athletic marvel midgets who stand atop their horses while whipping it?

Those are the true athletes and not the horses!


Sent from my iPhone using JetNation.com mobile app

Messi is the goat soccer player and soccer requires endurance so being at a low weight makes sense. But big, fast, strong is generally the way we define best athletes. If you can run a 4.3 at 210 then that’s better than running it at 170.

[Barry McCockinner]

imagine saying something like "the pitch was very difficult". 

[Trotter]

36 minutes ago, Jack Straw said:

Oh yes, how could I ever forget those athletic marvel midgets who stand atop their horses while whipping it?

Those are the true athletes and not the horses!


Sent from my iPhone using JetNation.com mobile app

Your actually making the point

if you think all jockey’s do is sit  atop a horse then you really do not understand the sport

As far as using the whip, I don’t agree with it and many jurisdictions no longer permit it

regarding horses being athletes, that is where you make the point

different sizes, sports, talents and now including animals

athletes are not limited to a few sports or specific talents

[bicketybam]

The best athletes play water polo. BAM!

[Rich Thornburgh]

7 hours ago, Matt39 said:

I think standard athleticism is measured by big, fast, strong. Running a 4.4 40 at Myles Garrets weight is more impressive than someone who’s 170.

Jordan Addison is 170.  He’s not a good athlete?

[Jack Straw]

28 minutes ago, Trotter said:

Your actually making the point

if you think all jockey’s do is sit  atop a horse then you really do not understand the sport

As far as using the whip, I don’t agree with it and many jurisdictions no longer permit it

regarding horses being athletes, that is where you make the point

different sizes, sports, talents and now including animals

athletes are not limited to a few sports or specific talents

I was being facetious about the horses. And to be clear, jockeys are not athletes, just as NASCAR drivers aren't athletes.

I mean this with all due respect, but have you read what I've said in this thread? Nowhere have I suggested that soccer players aren't athletes. The only point I've argued is that Messi is not the greatest athlete on the planet. No professional soccer player is, that I've ever seen.

Imagine you assemble a one-man Olympic event where you lay every sport out on the table, and you let every athlete from any sport participate. It includes everything from basketball, soccer, football, baseball, hockey, tennis, golf, and any other sport. And every player gets to participate: LeBron James, Giannis Antetokounmpo, Aaron Donald, Lamar Jackson, Mike Trout, Shohei Ohtani, Connor McDavid, Lionel Messi -- whoever.

How well could Messi run the point in an NBA game? How well could he hit a baseball? How is he even surviving an NFL game? Is he beating Tyreek Hill in a race? Is he dunking on Giannis? Is he hitting Ohtani? Could he handle the speed and physicality of hockey against McDavid?

The reality is, Messi would struggle significantly in most of these scenarios:

• In the NBA, his height and lack of basketball-specific skills would be major disadvantages against LeBron or Giannis.
• Hitting a pitch from Ohtani would be nearly impossible without years of baseball training.
• He might legitimately die if he were an RB in an NFL game against guys like Aaron Donald.
• He's not outrunning athletes like Tyreek Hill or Lamar Jackson in an NFL game.
• Matching the all-around athleticism of Mike Trout? Not a chance.

On the flip side, athletes like LeBron James, Giannis, Tyreek Hill, and Mike Trout would most definitely have more versatility across multiple sports due to their diverse athletic attributes.

Maybe there are a handful of soccer players who could transfer over to the NHL, MLB, NFL, or become pro tennis players. But there are a billion NFL, NBA, and MLB players who could potentially play professional soccer with proper training.

This disparity in transferable skills highlights why it's impossible to label any soccer player, even one as skilled as Messi, as the "greatest athlete" overall or even a top 3 athlete for that matter.

I am arguing against this claim and this claim only.

[Rich Thornburgh]

The problem isn’t just MetLife it’s the meadowlands itself.  Even by New Jersey standards it’s a dark, dreary depressing place that’s hard to get to without a car and if you have a car the traffic to get there and in and out of the parking lot is insane.  It’s not just jets games, when the nets and devils played there it was an insanely difficult and depressing place to get to.  I used to buy tickets to net playoffs games at the box office day of the game that’s how dead it was.

 

Metlife being an ugly stadium with bad astroturf that looks like a set of a bad Alien sequel is just the icing
 

[Matt39]

11 minutes ago, Rich Thornburgh said:

Jordan Addison is 170.  He’s not a good athlete?

Of course he is. Just not as good as DK Metcalf or Myles Garrett

[bicketybam]

46 minutes ago, Rich Thornburgh said:

The problem isn’t just MetLife it’s the meadowlands itself.  Even by New Jersey standards it’s a dark, dreary depressing place that’s hard to get to without a car and if you have a car the traffic to get there and in and out of the parking lot is insane.  It’s not just jets games, when the nets and devils played there it was an insanely difficult and depressing place to get to.  I used to buy tickets to net playoffs games at the box office day of the game that’s how dead it was.

 

Metlife being an ugly stadium with bad astroturf that looks like a set of a bad Alien sequel is just the icing
 

Is the Meadowlands a swamp or just a large area covered in tears and sh*t? 

[HighPitch]

8 hours ago, Sperm Edwards said:

You are crushing it in this thread and the arguments against have been wholly stupid. Don’t let anyone tell you otherwise. Keep it up.

The logic: cricket is more popular worldwide than basketball, therefore the best cricket player is one of the world’s greatest athletes, and by definition a better athlete than any basketball player. Lmao. Know why the current best cricket players are the best at it? Because nobody plays ****ing cricket in the USA, DR, etc. They play baseball.

He doesn’t throw or catch or move a ball with his hands, or with those hands holding a stick or racquet, making it an inherently stupid sport. It’s so popular worldwide because literally all you need is a ball and then you can play it anywhere, the basic rules are simple enough to explain to a 3 year-old in 10 seconds, and it’s been that way for hundreds of years.

Case in point: the USA, on balance, absolutely dominates the summer Olympics every four years (and it’d be the same in winter if not for curling being an event and Norway being champs in cross country skiing because their entire population grows up in or within mere hundreds of miles of the arctic circle). However our country’s best athletes have no desire to play soccer so they never bother playing (let alone working at it to be great), so the ‘best of the rest’ soccer athletes are pretending they’re not being graded on a curve with stunning, blissful ignorance. If USA athletes had limited mens’ sports opportunities outside of soccer, the World Cup for men would look like it does for women, with us winning every other one, and the rest of the planet’s billions of people collectively sharing the other half. 

Soccer spectators think it makes them sound somehow more worldly-cultured to better appreciate the nuance of this 2nd rate sport, and in doing so make claims to such obvious stupidity that the whole package of athletic requirements of a great soccer player at all approaches that of, say, an NBA player. The average NBA 6th man is twice the complete athlete of the very best soccer player.

Also eff MetLife’s turf and everything else about that hideous place.

 

Youre your own biggest fan. Thats cool.

Clearly another misinformed soccer hater with a soccer hating axe to grind. Thats cool too. But dude dont flatter yourself. Or jack straw

[Sperm Edwards]

2 hours ago, Jack Straw said:

Oh yes, how could I ever forget those athletic marvel midgets who stand atop their horses while whipping it?

Those are the true athletes and not the horses!


Sent from my iPhone using JetNation.com mobile app

Don’t forget the luge. For too many it just takes an announcer with a British accent talking them up: “Look at these world class athletes, leaning to their left. And then, as one, leaning to their right. Brilliant. Just brilliant stuff right there.”

[Sperm Edwards]

18 minutes ago, HighPitch said:

Youre your own biggest fan. Thats cool.

Clearly another misinformed soccer hater with a soccer hating axe to grind. Thats cool too. But dude dont flatter yourself. Or jack straw

Everything I said is a scientific fact.

[bicketybam]

Can we at least agree that golfers are not great athletes?

[Bugg]

10 hours ago, Jack Straw said:

 

McDonald’s is the most popular cheeseburger on the planet, yet nobody is arguing it’s because it’s “the greatest burger on the planet.”

Popularity does not equal greatness.

Bo Jackson was a star in track and field, football, and baseball. The idea that he couldn’t excel in tennis, soccer, or fencing is absurd.

Michael Jordan played professional baseball and batted .202 in AA after not picking up a bat since the age of 17.

Lebron James was a star TE in football before turning pro in basketball at 18.

Are you seriously suggesting that Messi, at 5’6 and 148 lbs, is on the same athletic plane as those listed above?

Surely not.

Messi is a great athlete and soccer player but his excellence is specific to a sport that three years old play.

Everyone listed above can do things (like touch a basketball rim) that Messi could never dream of.

Sorry if that’s painful for the soccer crowd who love to think that their sport is levitating above the others.

I’ve watched enough soccer to know that it’s nowhere near as difficult or competitive as basketball, baseball, football, and many other sports.


Sent from my iPhone using JetNation.com mobile app

 

My only point is size is very important in some sports like basketball and football, and not necessarily as much in others, like baseball, soccer or hockey.Which isn't to say beging a big guy is a detriment in any sport either. Soccer goalies especially are closer to hoops palyers in height because they need to cover a huge net. Seen lots of the same thing in the NHL with huge goalies . Almost all of the goalies are well over 6 foot these days.

Messi is a great athlete. But whether he could play this sport or that, only know he does as well as anyone with the sport he grew up playing. If he was raised in San Pedro  in the DR or Vancouver, who knows? 

As to soccer being a cheap sport, yes. But in the US it's largely a suburban sport re the national team. I do see people playing in NYC, and they're almost all from another country spare little kids chasing the ball  and some high schools. Having played, and  had kids and family play pretty much every sport as a kid, the most casually-coached kiddie sport far and away was soccer. Most intense; ice hockey. Every Russian-American family thinks their little guy is the 2nd coming of Ovechkin and the fact little Sergei is not filling the net is because this volunteer youth coach of 9 year olds is an a-hole.

The USMNT is mostly suburban guys many of who played in NCAA programs. Euro and Latin American countries do it way differently with clubs recruiting and training players since they're little kids. And right now anyway, the USMNT spare Pulisic(and in spurts) looks just happy to be there. No fire, nobody taking over the game and making a play to the net.