Netherlands star clowns Charles Barkley after knocking US out of World Cup
November 23, 2018; Las Vegas, NV, USA; Turner Sports sportscaster Charles Barkley before The Match: Tiger vs Phil golf match at Shadow Creek Golf Course. Mandatory Credit: Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports
One Netherlands soccer star was more than happy to be the latest steward of the Charles Barkley curse.
The TNT analyst Barkley got involved with a prediction for the Netherlands-United States World Cup match on Saturday. He forecast a victory for the U.S., saying that the Netherlands were “in trouble” and even stamping it with one of his infamous “guarantees.”
“I GUARANTEE THE NETHERLANDS IN TROUBLE" 🗣⚽️
Charles is all in on the @USMNT pic.twitter.com/QL5Idqydrk
— NBA on TNT (@NBAonTNT) November 30, 2022
Unfortunately for Barkley, his prediction was an airball. The Netherlands cruised to a fairly easy 3-1 win to clinch a spot in the World Cup quarterfinal against Argentina. Meanwhile, the United States was eliminated from World Cup contention with the loss.
After the victory, Dutch forward Memphis Depay, who also plays for Spanish club F.C. Barcelona, clowned Barkley in a tweet. Depay posted a picture of Barkley (and the final score) with the caption, “Lotta bark, no bite.”
Lotta bark, no bite. pic.twitter.com/a43wWacY9v
— Memphis Depay (@Memphis) December 3, 2022
Depay played a crucial role in the victory over the United States. He opened up the scoring in the tenth minute with a powerful strike into the bottom left corner off a cross from teammate Denzel Dumfries. It was the very first non-penalty goal that the U.S. had conceded in this year’s World Cup and set the tone for the rest of the match.
Netherlands takes the lead! 🇳🇱
Memphis Depay gets things started for Oranje pic.twitter.com/qu4cljENCn
— FOX Soccer (@FOXSoccer) December 3, 2022
As for Barkley, USMNT fans will probably be cursing his name. After all, Barkley has jinxed several other teams before with his ill-fated guarantees.
