The Other "Horror" Side of Football: Giving Away the Ball

Bleacher Report Senior Writer, Andrew McNair, wrote an article about scoring an open goal—terming it as the "Real Horror" in the game.

I loved that article. I have gone through it myself.

Andrew's been slightly off-color lately. He hasn't been hitting those touchy topics like he used to.

Give the lad a break.

He's on the move!

I'm here to fill Andrew's shoes—although I doubt I'll ever do as good a job as he.

This article is a tribute to our very own Andrew McNair— for his countless contributions towards the World Football Community on Bleacher Report.

Needless to say he deserves it. We need to appreciate our fellow writers for their contributions.

Fittingly enough, this article relates to another "Real Horror" of the game—giving the ball away.

As a holding midfield player, I always thought I never got to be in the spotlight.  It was always the forward who banged in the goal and the defender who made the match saving tackles—taking it all away.

The goal scorer gets his name on the score sheet and the creator gets the thumbs down.

Fair enough, I'm not complaining.

Seriously, is Hargreaves or Carrick more popular than Rooney? Is De Rossi more popular than Totti?

When you make the perfect through ball you get an amazing feeling—regardless of whether anybody notices it.

The lob over the top—perfectly placed into the feet of the forward—who freely strikes it into the top corner. It's all going very well, but what if it goes all wrong?

What if you surrender possession by incorrectly hitting or timing a ball and the opposition gathers it on the counter attack and goes on to score. Heads fall, shoulders drop, pain, agony—you name it.

Over hitting the ball, deserting your own man, and creating the perfect opportunity for the enemy is all but agony.

You're teammates look at you in disappointment and you hope the ground will take you in, but it never does. You tell yourself "I'll make up for it."

Fully blooded and frustrated, you make a disastrous challenge, ensuring the opponent leaves the field on a stretcher and booking yourself an early shower.

All you see at that time is the color "red." I'm not just talking about the Ref's card.

You feel blood dripping from your eyes as you walk off the pitch and you see the gloomy looking face of the manager—who expected so much more from you.

Roy Keane would risk his career by making a “career threatening challenge.”

Gattuso would kill the man.

Wayne Rooney would run 30 yards and make a challenge on the player, knowing it's worth a yellow card, but it just charges the whole team up.

So is it worth it?

It's your call.