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What American Athletes Would Have Been Great Soccer Players?

MaybeACoordinator

By MaybeACoordinator
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Napoleon

Napoleon 8,682

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Ones that had great balance, foot eye coordination, start-stop-start quickness, but most importantly...

GREW UP IN A SOCCER CULTURE! Were exposed to soccer by the age of 5, if not earlier, had access to a field where they could play for hours on end, and had exposure to knowledgable coaches (preferably from other countries) and players of a high level of skill so that they could watch and learn.

Allen Iverson, Darrell Green, and Spud Webb would have been amazing if they grew up in another country. Perhaps Mugsy Bogues & Michael Vick as well. (Vick would have had to lose 40-50 pounds.)

Barry Sanders would have had to lose about 50 pounds and he still would have towered over Maradona and might have been taller than Pele as well.

Skinny basketball players who were great at defense and could jump over the basket and were in the 6'1" to 6'4" range would have made great goal keepers if they practiced kicking the ball hundreds of times a day. Syracuse's Davy Johnson & Stevie Thompson from the late '80s teams.

But really almost no players you might name could have grown up in the U.S. and been "Great Soccer Players" unless they had been adopted by first generation immigrant parents from a major soccer power country and then moved back to that country as early as possible.

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Huckleberry

Huckleberry 32,878

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Yeah, it's a ton of projection based on having played it their whole lives.

Deion Sanders could have been a ridiculous soccer player. Nobody would have stayed with him in an all-out sprint, and he clearly had elite start-stop quickness as he was the greatest lockdown corner in NFL history. If he had grown up in a soccer country with even nominal ball skills he would have been an outstanding winger or fullback.

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MaybeACoordinator

MaybeACoordinator 8,349

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4 hours ago, Napoleon said:

Ones that had great balance, foot eye coordination, start-stop-start quickness, but most importantly...

GREW UP IN A SOCCER CULTURE! Were exposed to soccer by the age of 5, if not earlier, had access to a field where they could play for hours on end, and had exposure to knowledgable coaches (preferably from other countries) and players of a high level of skill so that they could watch and learn.

Allen Iverson, Darrell Green, and Spud Webb would have been amazing if they grew up in another country. Perhaps Mugsy Bogues & Michael Vick as well. (Vick would have had to lose 40-50 pounds.)

Barry Sanders would have had to lose about 50 pounds and he still would have towered over Maradona and might have been taller than Pele as well.

Skinny basketball players who were great at defense and could jump over the basket and were in the 6'1" to 6'4" range would have made great goal keepers if they practiced kicking the ball hundreds of times a day. Syracuse's Davy Johnson & Stevie Thompson from the late '80s teams.

But really almost no players you might name could have grown up in the U.S. and been "Great Soccer Players" unless they had been adopted by first generation immigrant parents from a major soccer power country and then moved back to that country as early as possible.

I should have specified all that, but that is what I mean -- they needed to grow up in the culture. 

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TXSG8R

TXSG8R 3,362

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Speed and quickness are obvious, but fluid hips are big IMO, so most elite receivers or defensive backs would probably kill in soccer.  I think a lot of basketball 3s and 4s would make elite keepers. Same probably goes for some outside LBers and elite defensive ends. They wouldn’t have to inflate their body weight like they do in the NFL. That same quick reaction and explosion, wingspan, and 6’4”+ frame would be perfect. 

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gsoda3

gsoda3 3,262

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30 minutes ago, InkaUtexas said:

Vince Fucking Young.... 

And I think you could look at some of the very fast Cornerbacks and Safeties.

How about Lebron as a keeper? 

i don't think his skills translate to soccer.  he's not going to be an attacking player.  can you imagine his long strides trying to maintain control of the ball?  physically he's most suited for center back.  

31 minutes ago, Huckleberry said:

Yeah, it's a ton of projection based on having played it their whole lives.

Deion Sanders could have been a ridiculous soccer player. Nobody would have stayed with him in an all-out sprint, and he clearly had elite start-stop quickness as he was the greatest lockdown corner in NFL history. If he had grown up in a soccer country with even nominal ball skills he would have been an outstanding winger or fullback.

i think deion or bo jackson.  they've got the tools.  especially bo, with his vision.  they could've been great.  or they could've been deandre yedlin.  

 

i would love to see how jason kidd would've done as a midfielder.  smarts, vision, athletic enough.  LBJ as destroyer or goalie would be fun to watch.  

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Huckleberry

Huckleberry 32,878

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Exactly, I think we can guess who would have been better in a central role (running backs, linebackers, point guards) and who would have been better in a wide role (cornerbacks, receivers). Obviously that's not 100% accurate but it makes sense based on what they did in their actual sports. Just the vision and sense of where everyone is on the field should theoretically translate.

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Eastwood

Eastwood 4,394

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The weight thing is a product of the weightlifting necessary for American football. It's a game where strength plays as big of a role as speed at almost every position. Barry Sanders would probably walk around at 160 or so had he played soccer his whole life. Same for Vick. Most defensive backs and slot receivers would probably fit the bill pretty well if they had exclusively played soccer their whole lives.

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InkaUtexas

InkaUtexas 25,951

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1 hour ago, gsoda3 said:

i don't think his skills translate to soccer.  he's not going to be an attacking player.  can you imagine his long strides trying to maintain control of the ball?  physically he's most suited for center back.  

 

Where did I say attacker? Shit, make him a sweeper just to pummel people on crosses. 

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Spartan52

Spartan52 151

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We have a similar discussion in Australia re AFL, Rugby League, Union - it is a sad fact that because our elite sportsmen focus on other sports that countries like USA and Aus will probably never make it further than the Rd of 16, but we can dream....

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Napoleon

Napoleon 8,682

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1 hour ago, Spartan52 said:

We have a similar discussion in Australia re AFL, Rugby League, Union - it is a sad fact that because our elite sportsmen focus on other sports that countries like USA and Aus will probably never make it further than the Rd of 16, but we can dream....

The USA has already made it beyond the Round of 16.

PS- You don't need "elite sportsmen" to have a successful soccer team. It helps, but you just need the right players.

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Spartan52

Spartan52 151

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I don't remember you guys ever doing anything remarkable but tbh team USA aren't really on my radar when I think about the world game.
To clarify my elite sportsmen comment, if the talent pool for your soccer team was every male in the country between 18-35 and they had been doing nothing but playing soccer since they could walk, how many of your current team would hold their spots against some of the incredibly naturally gifted athletes that play other sports now?


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MaybeACoordinator

MaybeACoordinator 8,349

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12 minutes ago, Spartan52 said:

I don't remember you guys ever doing anything remarkable but tbh team USA aren't really on my radar when I think about the world game.
To clarify my elite sportsmen comment, if the talent pool for your soccer team was every male in the country between 18-35 and they had been doing nothing but playing soccer since they could walk, how many of your current team would hold their spots against some of the incredibly naturally gifted athletes that play other sports now?


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Not very many. 

As American football wanes in popularity and profitability thanks to CTE and the inevitable deluge of lawsuits that will only intensify over the next few years, we might see a few more truly elite athletes choose soccer over football. It will take a generation or more to make it the national sport, if it ever becomes such...

When I was in England I wondered why basketball wasn't more popular there. England has its fair share of tall people and you can only have so many goalies, and it seems like cricket doesn't favor tall dudes, either. The climate is ideal for basketball in that its miserable. I grew up partially in Tennessee and enjoyed playing basketball even outdoors in the winter, even in drizzly rain, and going indoors was like heading to a wonderland. So why not England as a decent international basketball nation?

While I'm rambling here, I am also puzzled as to why / how India and China and other Asian nations can't make a WC. I know India funnels its best into cricket and they are a cramped nation, but still, there are over a billion of them. Can't they find 11 who can kick a ball into a net? And same goes for China, minus the cricket excuse. And then there are dark horse Asian countries like Vietnam. Seems like they should be close to the top of Asian rankings, given their population and Brazil-like coastline. (I believe beach soccer is great for training.)

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TXSG8R

TXSG8R 3,362

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On 6/29/2018 at 3:41 AM, MaybeACoordinator said:

Not very many. 

As American football wanes in popularity and profitability thanks to CTE and the inevitable deluge of lawsuits that will only intensify over the next few years, we might see a few more truly elite athletes choose soccer over football. It will take a generation or more to make it the national sport, if it ever becomes such...

When I was in England I wondered why basketball wasn't more popular there. England has its fair share of tall people and you can only have so many goalies, and it seems like cricket doesn't favor tall dudes, either. The climate is ideal for basketball in that its miserable. I grew up partially in Tennessee and enjoyed playing basketball even outdoors in the winter, even in drizzly rain, and going indoors was like heading to a wonderland. So why not England as a decent international basketball nation?

While I'm rambling here, I am also puzzled as to why / how India and China and other Asian nations can't make a WC. I know India funnels its best into cricket and they are a cramped nation, but still, there are over a billion of them. Can't they find 11 who can kick a ball into a net? And same goes for China, minus the cricket excuse. And then there are dark horse Asian countries like Vietnam. Seems like they should be close to the top of Asian rankings, given their population and Brazil-like coastline. (I believe beach soccer is great for training.)

Because you need a development system that will develop players and prepare them for that level of competition. All those countries probably have 11 potentially good players, the problem is they don’t grow into the sport. Iron sharpens iron. 

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FondrenRoad

FondrenRoad 4,378

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Cecil Fielder.  John Kruk.  Shaquille O'Neal. Kasey Studdard.

Really though. CBs and small RBs would have a shot. So would point guards. Some freaks of nature like Lebron could dominate too. 

Oh and Michael Dickson, but hes an Aussie. I think hockey players would be good too if they were born with soccer instead of skates. 

One big thing when you talk about football and guys like Deion Sanders is that he is sitting on the bench for the majority of the game and only runs in short spurts. Basketball provides more of the constant running like soccer does.

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Goo Punch

Goo Punch 4,275

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formation: 4-2-3-1

 

GK- Calvin Johnson

RB- Earl Thomas

CB- Kam Chancellor

CB- Aaron Donald

LB- Jalen Ramsey

CM- Russell Wilson

CM- LeSean McCoy

RW- AJ Green

CAM- Antonio Browm

LW- DeAndre Hopkins

ST- Patrick Peterson

 

 

Edited by Goo Punch
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