2023-11-18, 02:44 PM - Word count:
CAPE TOWN, South Africa -- With his rookie season in the Simulation Soccer League rapidly drawing to a close, Jude Greer says he’s been doing his best to tune out the noise.
“It turns out, when you’re a pro athlete, there’s a lot of eyes on you,” Greer said Saturday following Cairo City’s dramatic 2-1 victory over FC Kaapstad. “Hardly nobody was watching me back at Sewanee, but now everyone’s tuning in. It isn’t always easy to tune that out.”
It’s safe to say that Greer hasn’t exactly set the SSL on fire so far in his rookie season. Compared to draft classmates such as Inter London’s Jay Cue or Red Star Laos’ Ivica Knezevic, Greer has struggled to find consistency, seemingly switching between reasonable shifts and catastrophic outings nearly at random. While much of this can be attributed to a combination of general rookie struggles and the recent shakeup of the SSL’s format, this hasn’t stopped some pundits from labeling Greer a “bust.”
“I ain’t a bust,” Greer is quick to protest. “Sure, it’s been rough, but I haven’t even finished my first season yet. That’s like saying a rookie quarterback you picked number 1 is a bust just because his first couple games weren’t great,” he adds, casting a knowing glance across the fourth wall.
In particular, Paul Merson appears to have made it his personal mission to bring up Greer’s struggles essentially every time he appears on air, be it an offhand jab as part of a larger point or, as was the case following Cairo’s recent defeat against Laos, an entire segment focused solely on Greer’s positioning issues during the match. Said segment culminated in Merson semi-facetiously comparing the gap between Greer and Laos’ K Clamence on the opening goal to the distance between Pluto and the Sun.
“I think Merse is just mad I turned Arsenal down,” shrugs Greer. “They wanted to sign me back in the summer, but compared to playing for the third-best team in London, I figured the SSL was the better option.”
(340 words)
“It turns out, when you’re a pro athlete, there’s a lot of eyes on you,” Greer said Saturday following Cairo City’s dramatic 2-1 victory over FC Kaapstad. “Hardly nobody was watching me back at Sewanee, but now everyone’s tuning in. It isn’t always easy to tune that out.”
It’s safe to say that Greer hasn’t exactly set the SSL on fire so far in his rookie season. Compared to draft classmates such as Inter London’s Jay Cue or Red Star Laos’ Ivica Knezevic, Greer has struggled to find consistency, seemingly switching between reasonable shifts and catastrophic outings nearly at random. While much of this can be attributed to a combination of general rookie struggles and the recent shakeup of the SSL’s format, this hasn’t stopped some pundits from labeling Greer a “bust.”
“I ain’t a bust,” Greer is quick to protest. “Sure, it’s been rough, but I haven’t even finished my first season yet. That’s like saying a rookie quarterback you picked number 1 is a bust just because his first couple games weren’t great,” he adds, casting a knowing glance across the fourth wall.
In particular, Paul Merson appears to have made it his personal mission to bring up Greer’s struggles essentially every time he appears on air, be it an offhand jab as part of a larger point or, as was the case following Cairo’s recent defeat against Laos, an entire segment focused solely on Greer’s positioning issues during the match. Said segment culminated in Merson semi-facetiously comparing the gap between Greer and Laos’ K Clamence on the opening goal to the distance between Pluto and the Sun.
“I think Merse is just mad I turned Arsenal down,” shrugs Greer. “They wanted to sign me back in the summer, but compared to playing for the third-best team in London, I figured the SSL was the better option.”
(340 words)
![[Image: f3PLeZn.png]](https://i.imgur.com/f3PLeZn.png)
