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Originally Posted by SuchFriendsAreDangerous
Yes, im glad you are engaging in a conversation. Identity is an "American" sports thing, i used ito describe an American team
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It's not an American thing at all. Lots of football teams have an identity if they're identified with a specific kind of play or a general attitude. There's actually a debate in England going on right now about whether the English team has lost its sense of identity. We used to be known for a very fast, direct, hard style that's been sidelined in recent years as we've tried to adapt to a more sophisticated 'continental' style of play. It's why someone like John Terry is described as a 'classic' English Centre Back. I definitely think the US had an identity under Bradley. They were very well organised, if a bit one-dimensional, probably to compensate for their lack of individual flair players. They were (and to a degree still are) seen as being very fair (ie no diving, etc) and sometimes thought of as being a bit naive as a result. An identity can refer to tactics but also to attitude. Costa Rica are getting a reputation for being really dirty so that becomes part of their identity. Mourinho teams are identified with taking everything to the limit, Fergie's Man U were identified by their never-say-die spirit. Some people might choose to use a different word but they're ultimately talking about the same thing.