- Jason Davis

Javier Hernandez is a joy to watch.


This fact disturbs me. Both because he's Mexican — meaning my dyed-in-the-wool USMNT supporter soul screams in protest each and every time I give myself over to enjoying his play — and because he has become a worldwide sensation with the eminently unlikeable Manchester United. The soccer-aware portion of my brain, my sense of duty as a USMNT fan, my identity as a member of the no-love-for-United crowd (I don't hate United, because that would imply I care enough about what happens in England to work up such strong emotion, when, in fact, I'm mostly an impartial observer who finds United's shenanigans and constant winning to be incredibly annoying but nothing more): they're all telling me to hate Javier Hernandez. And not just a little bit. There is significant emotional weight behind the effort.