Hey, Nigel. What's your problem, man?
That challenge you put on Stu Holden was just not cool. Honestly, you should have been sent off for it, and how you didn't destroy our young midfielder's leg is difficult to comprehend. Have you watched the replays? Stu's leg flexed in a place it's not supposed to flex, and I can only imagine he's in a lot of pain today.
Do you know how lucky you are that it's just a fracture and not a compound break like Aaron Ramsey suffered this past weekend?
Holden is a player on the rise, and though we Americans worried over his move to Bolton this winter, things were starting to come together for the kid. Hell, he'd even been nicknamed "Holdenballs" because of his sweet right foot (yes, we realize it's derivative and the Mail was just being clever), and had a very good chance of locking down a starting spot in the World Cup if things progressed well.
And you ruined it, you bastard.
Your challenge wasn't just clumsy, the way Ryan Shawcross' was, it was malicious. Late, high, and with intent, you slid in on a vulnerable player and came a whisker away from ruining his chances to play in June. A six week prognosis is just about the best we could have hoped for, so even as we exhale deeply (the Americans are swimming in injuries, we don't need anymore, dammit), there might be a segment of country planning retribution.
Fair warning, though I don't know why I should give it to you: be on the lookout for packs of young girls wearing orange. They just might cut ya.
The just thing, Nigel, would have been a sending off for you. You were cautioned, which I guess is something, but clearly came short of proper punishment. If you Dutch side had gone down to ten men, perhaps the Yanks could have done a little better, broken through a little earlier, and pulled a draw or win out of the match. Not that it really matters. The game was a friendly, and while so many of us would have loved to win in Amsterdam, the value of the game really lied in testing our players against a fully functional Oranje.
At least that's what I'm telling myself.
Karma is a bitch, Nigel, and I'm truly hoping you feel its wrath for your reckless tackle. There's no defense for what you did.
Meanwhile, the Americans move forward towards the World Cup with one more injury concern on the list. You and your clog-wearing teammates bested the Yanks pretty good yesterday, though it's not as bad as it seems. Bob Bradley knows what he has, and knows that it will always be tough to dictate much against a passing team as good as yours. The approach will continue to be about defending and taking their chances where they can; our best attacking player was a non-entity yesterday, our daffy left back gifted you two goals, and somehow we managed to stay in the game. Forgive me if I take that as a good sign.
There's a lot of work to be done before June, and obviously with the lack of depth, the Americans need every possible contributor healthy and playing for their club to maximize their readiness. Unfortunately, Stu Holden won't be doing that until at least April because you're a dirty hack of a player, Nigel.
You suck, Nigel. Real bad.
