They played soccer for more than 90 minutes, and neither England nor the United States men’s national team was able to advance the ball past the defense and into the goal.
On the other side of the Atlantic, they refer to this as a “nil-nil” draw. For reasons I’ve never quite been able to understand, those who follow the sport here seem compelled to do the same.
Over here, though, such a result often is often called “boring”, as well, and that contention is even more of a mystery.
After the group stage game between England and the USMNT in the 2022 FIFA World Cup, U.S. Congressman Adam Kinzinger of Illinois tweeted, “No wonder I can’t watch soccer. Just forced myself to watch USA vs England. 0-0. I mean.”
No wonder i can’t watch soccer. Just forced myself to watch USA vs England. 0-0. I mean.
— Adam Kinzinger #fella (@AdamKinzinger) November 25, 2022
We know what he meant: dull, boring, snoozefest. He left all of that unsaid, but not unspoken.
A game without scoring, though, is not the same as a game without action.
The performance of the U.S. men in a game in which they were basically a 2-to-1 underdog included so many heroic moments that it’s a challenge to account for them all.
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A draw of any sort represented a triumph for the Americans. Head coach Gregg Berhalter told reporters he was pleased, overall, with the performance of his team but, “Most importantly, the belief of the group, because that never wavered.”
That’s why soccer fans had trending on Twitter, “USA wins 0-0”. It was a nod to a New York Post headline from 2010, the last time the U.S. and England played in the World Cup, and the Americans earned a 1-1 draw. They now have played three times at the World Cup, and the USMNT has yet to lose.
“USA WINS 1-1”
—@nypost headline after wild 2010 World Cup tie with England pic.twitter.com/NAg93kgNws
— Tab City Diary (@TabCityDiary) November 25, 2022
The Americans were dismissed as serious players by many who’ve played for the Three Lions and now work as analysts or coaches. Wayne Rooney, who played two seasons for D.C. United in Major League Soccer and now is their head coach, predicted a 4-0 rout for England. Former defender Micah Richards, now an analyst with CBS Sports, told The Sporting News, “I still think England are way ahead.”
Fighting against that perception and the momentum generated by England’s opening-game victory, the USMNT players were organized, disciplined, precise and — on those few occasions when the opposition still was able to conjure a scoring chance — resolute.
Just 10 minutes into the game, Kane wound up with the ball in the box and a chance to shoot, but U.S. defender Walker Zimmerman positioned himself in front of the shot and allowed it to carom off his body, away from the goal.
Before halftime, England’s Mason Mount got loose to fire a hard shot across the grass that headed directly toward the goal, inside the left post. But American goalkeeper Matt Turner reached out his arm and deflected it out of play.
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And near the end, Kane again had a chance. A free kick awarded to England was sent into the box in a dangerous position, falling directly toward a charging Kane. One can say Kane should have deflected the ball on goal. One also could say U.S. defender Tim Ream forced that shot wide by hanging tight to Kane’s right shoulder and refusing to allow him to turn the ball against his momentum.
When such occasions develop in a sport more widely embraced in America by “Generation X”, they are celebrated: A shot rejected by the NBA star Anthony Davis, or a sack by the NFL’s T.J. Watt, or a slider from Justin Verlander that strikes out an opposing batter.
There were chances, as well, for the U.S. to score: the seven corner kicks attempted, the majority in the second half, close to a large contingent of American fans who could anticipate in person whether that might be the play that would lead to an upset victory.
Sports aren’t just about what happens. They are wonderful because of what might happen. Is this the moment?
On a long touchdown run in football, the act of crossing the goal line is less magical than the instant such a thing becomes possible. Might he get there? Is there anything duller than a baseball runner crossing home plate? But not if there’s some doubt about whether he might get there ahead of a throw that could lead to him being tagged out.
Oh, there absolutely are 0-0 soccer draws that are dull. There have been a few in this World Cup, in which chances were few and both sides seemed content to restrain their effort and let the scoreless draw occur.
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If lots of scoring were all that was required to make a sport entertaining, though, literally no one on the planet would ever watch anything but basketball. There are hundreds more points scored in an NBA game than in any other sport.
A soccer game can turn in the first minute or the last, though, whenever that might arrive.
The American Word Cup team was not content with a goalless draw, but the players understood what they had to achieve to make that stand and what the consequences of that result could be. And some of Kinzinger’s colleagues in the political world understood.
In reply to that tweet, columnist Max Boot of the Washington Post responded, “Exciting match despite the lack of scoring — and an implicit win for the US team.”
One could say he got that opinion just right.
Exciting match despite the lack of scoring—and an implicit win for the US team.
— Max Boot 🇺🇦🇺🇸 (@MaxBoot) November 25, 2022
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