Welcome again to Twitter Wars, where we meticulously chronicle sports media arguments on social media like it’s a heavyweight title fight because we have nothing else better to do with our lives!
Fox Sports soccer analyst Eric Wynalda has been known for his provocative comments both on and off the air, and one he made on Twitter Wednesday started quite a personal Twitter war with current U.S. men’s national team midfielder Alejandro Bedoya. This all began after the USMNT’s 4-0 win over Trinidad and Tobago Tuesday night (which gave them first place in Group C and ensured their passage to the final Hex stage of World Cup qualifying). A Twitter user queried Wynalda about why Bedoya kept earning starting spots, and Wynalda’s initial response was critical, but not all that strong:
@EricWynalda Granted I never played at the MNT level, but how does Bedoya merit a spot in the starting 11? What does JK see in him?
— Dan Fenster (@dan_fenster) September 7, 2016
My only answer to that is I don't know- there are many that rate him- I believe there are many who are better https://t.co/IrmRDpozq6
— Eric Wynalda (@EricWynalda) September 7, 2016
Bedoya wasn’t tagged in this tweet, but the number of retweets it received likely brought it across his path, and he responded with a since-deleted tweet (screencapped by Deadspin’s Billy Haisley) criticizing Wynalda’s career and even referencing former teammate (and former ESPN analyst, and current FC Cincinnati head coach) John Harkes’ affair with Wynalda’s then-wife (which Wynalda has since publicly confirmed, and which led to Harkes being dropped from the U.S. team ahead of the 1998 World Cup):
While Bedoya deleted that tweet, he followed up with several others accusing Wynalda of having an agenda against him and criticizing his attempts “to remain relevant”:
I can take criticism. Last night I was off my game & not good enough but this dude has a well documented dislike for me that I don't get.
— Alejandro Bedoya (@AleBedoya17) September 7, 2016
Never seen someone try so hard to remain relevant. Begs for coaching jobs, TV commentator, analyst & a random radio show. You're a #HasBeen.
— Alejandro Bedoya (@AleBedoya17) September 7, 2016
As per his part, Wynalda tried to keep this about Bedoya’s on-the-field play:
Focus on "better" not bitter. I had my opinions of your play- I did not know that you had zero class- @ussoccer https://t.co/S40RsViUUv
— Eric Wynalda (@EricWynalda) September 7, 2016
Bedoya wasn’t buying it:
You're dislike for me for is no secret. I sacrifice a lot to strive for better. I've earned everything. #LifeGoesOn https://t.co/CkT8BVtWy0
— Alejandro Bedoya (@AleBedoya17) September 7, 2016
And Wynalda ended with a “I really don’t have time for this”:
@AleBedoya17 call me a coward – I dare you lol – just play better please – I really don't have time for this today
— Eric Wynalda (@EricWynalda) September 7, 2016
This is a hard one to judge, as Bedoya threw some strong punches, but they didn’t appear to make much of an impact on Wynalda, who tried to keep the argument to Bedoya’s professional merits. Wynalda didn’t really throw many shots of his own, though. Bedoya does lose marks for deleting the tweet referencing Harkes; if you’re going to throw that shot, you should stick to it (and you should know that everything lives on on the Internet). So, we’ll give Wynalda a narrow win in a split decision here. What about you?
[Deadspin]
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