American Tragedy

I have to admit, I was pretty distraught when Giuseppe Rossi scored against the USA in the Confederations Cup last summer. But I was pretty disgusted when I saw the cover for the latest ESPN Magazine. No disrespect to Rossi, but WTF ESPN? I don’t mind an article about Rossi, but making him the cover and calling him “America’s Best Hope At The World Cup”, that’s low. Just ignore the exploits of Clint Dempsey. Don’t talk about the progress Michael Bradley (ESPN story could have been the cover instead) has made. It’s not like there are any interesting story lines coming from the National Team. Landon Donovan hasn’t finally proven his worth in Europe, seemingly prepared to step up to the next level. Charlie Davies isn’t literally making one of the most extraordinary comebacks of all time. And it’s not like Stuart Holden came out of nowhere to establish himself as a squad member while making a splash in the EPL after moving to Bolton. Nevermind ESPN, I guess a player who doesn’t play for the stars and stripes is really interesting to an American audience. It’s not like you just slapped all the hard working USA players in the face. Good job ESPN, once again, you continue to really take “soccer” seriously.