"That's the part that people fail to understand. Nobody suffers, nobody loses more than the players. Look, I get fans, they put a lot into it, and we're nothing without our fans. But at the end of it,
the biggest losers are the players and the program, not being able to further so much good work that we've done over the past 10 years. I get it. They're frustrated. I have no problem with that. I
understand, but like I said, I just thought at some points it was a little bit classless in a place I gave a lot to. And they gave a lot to me and had some good memories, but it is what it is. There's
no loyalty anymore, so all bets are off."
--
Jozy Altidore after he and
Michael Bradley, teammates on Toronto FC and the U.S. national team and both former New York Red Bull
players, were subjected to jeers and f-bombs during Monday's MLS playoff game from New York Red Bull fans unhappy the USA failed to qualify for the World Cup. (
Goal.com)
I hope Jozy is describing his assessment of the fans' loyalty in that last statement, not his own. He should remember that not all US fans are booing him and Bradley (or other USMNT members). I also agree that the impact on the guys on the team is probably much more significant than on most fans. I think the effort these guys have put into the program over the years earns them the benefit of the doubt as to the effort they put out in the qualifying campaign. While it is often easy to see in retrospect what should have been done differently, these guys had to perform in the moment, and I'm guessing they did their best. I'm sure they're tough enough to ignore some of the boos, and maybe it shows that we've come far enough along in our development that a lot of people now care deeply about our success, but I don't think it helps anything, so I don't think it's appropriate.