Soccer’s residency program in Bradenton, Florida in 2005 before later being picked by FC Dallas eighth overall in the 2008 MLS SuperDraft. More recently, Josh Lambo was part of U.S. He then went on to have an accomplished 14-year career in the United States playing American football, winning a Super Bowl with the Cowboys in 1972. Fritsch won three Austrian league titles with Rapid Wien from 1963-1971, scoring 15 times as a striker, and he earned nine caps with Austria’s national team. Toni Fritsch was perhaps the most notable soccer-to-kicker success story. American football kickers actually began adopting a soccer-style approach for field goals in the 1960s after previously using a straight-on approach for field goal attempts. Ochoa’s 37 years old now so it’s a little late for a career change, but there’s plenty of precedent for soccer players reaching the NFL. Granted, Ochoa’s not facing a rush or the pressure of a game being on the line, but it’s clear that he has the leg strength to kick on the gridiron. The Texans shared footage from the impressive kicks on their social media channels.įootball □ Fútbol | /Tnzgxi70D3 Ochoa had the leg strength for 60 yards but he hooked his first attempt wide left and then hit the crossbar on his second attempt. “I’m switching my sport,” Ochoa joked after making a 50-yarder. With help from former Texans punter/holder Shane Lechler, El Tri’s goalie nailed field goal attempts from 30, 35, 40, 50 and 55 yards. The NFL team opened up their training facility to América and goalkeeper Guillermo “Memo” Ochoa took advantage of the opportunity to kick on an American football field. This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.Soccer and American football don’t have much in common, but it appears that goal kicks translate well to kicking field goals.Ĭlub América is in Texas this week preparing for Wednesday night’s friendly against Manchester United at NRG Stadium, home of the Houston Texans. And while Martino was happy with the save, the point it earned him and the little bit of momentum it will provide going into Saturday’s match with Lionel Messi and Argentina, he thought his team deserved more. Lewandowski did Tuesday, for the first time in his international career. “Yesterday he trained on penalties and he never missed.” “When he misses there is always the question ‘Why?’“ Michniewicz said. This time Ochoa appeared to deke the Polish captain, faking to his right then diving back hard to his left, smothering the shot. “You watch more than 15, 20 penalties you never know which side to choose.” “It’s always difficult when you watch videos of penalties by Robert Lewandowski,” he said. Ochoa said he’s been working on penalties with goalkeeper Gustavo Piñero but wasn’t sure it had done much good. Referee Chris Beath allowed play to continue but at the next stoppage he took a look at a video replay and quickly awarded the penalty. “In a World Cup, you need to be effective on the scoring chances you have.”Īll that nearly went out the window early in the second half after Moreno grabbed a handful of Lewandowski’s jersey and brought him down as the two battled for possession deep in the box. “We lacked precision on goal, but we had a lot of intensity and control of the match,” Mexican coach Tata Martino said. (Aijaz Rahi / Associated Press)Īnd on it went, with Mexico failing to score in a third straight World Cup game, running its shutout streak to 294 minutes since Javier “Chicharito” Hernández’s goal against South Korea in the second game of the group stage in Russia. Mexico's Hirving "Chucky" Lozano, center, battles for the ball with Poland's Bartosz Bereszynski and Sebastian Szymanski during the World Cup Group C match at Stadium 974 in Doha, Qatar, Tuesday. In the 26th minute it was Vega again, nodding a Héctor Herrera feed inches wide of the post. Seven minutes later Hector Moreno headed a Jesús Gallardo cross from the opposite side over the crossbar. In the fifth minute, Alexis Vega misplayed Hirving "Chucky" Lozano’s cross from the right wing, knocking it wide of the far post. Mexico was on the front foot from the start, playing its best game in at least a year, but it couldn’t finish. It also will need to take advantage of its opportunities and it failed to do that against Poland, holding the ball for 54 of the 90 minutes and taking nearly twice as many shots but getting nothing to show for that domination. If Mexico, which has the second-oldest roster in the tournament, is to go deep in this World Cup, it will need more than just the kind of big plays Ochoa turned in. Mexico wanted to score one too, and for much of the game it seemed just inches away from doing just that. “I know how much he wanted to score a goal in the World Cup,” Michniewicz said.
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