I think something that annoys me about the year that Messi had in the league actually stems from last year — he got the MVP award last year, when there were other players in the league (Benteke, Evander, Etc.) that were much more deserving. So, anything he does now its just like “sure, whatever”, because he’ll just win MVP every year he’s here just because of who he is.

The wins and losses are nice but not a big deal for me with regard to the USWNT at this point. The larger issues that really stood out in my mind from the first game and they persisted somewhat (though to a lesser extent) in came two were: (1) when other sides (even if less talented) outnumber us in midfield we struggle. The midfield of LaValle, Heaps and Coffey in a 433 doesn’t do well against a side that decides to play with 4 there. We don’t adjust and LaValle and Heapsthend up in roles they’re not good at. Since other (better) sides will look at what Portugal did and then copy it, that means that the USWNT needs to be very comfortable playing something other than a 4-3-3. Or the makeup of our midfield needs to change. And (2) problem solving–especially in the final third. We were no good at this in the last WC. The first Portugal match we just let individuals try to come up with a spot of brilliance. Better this match (and Yohannes makes a big difference). But still, I see this as an issue.