Perhaps the most memorable moment of Marcelo Balboa’s soccer career came on a miss.
It was the 1994 World Cup, and the Americans were leading heavily favored Columbia when Balboa attempted a bicycle kick — an amazing feat of athleticism that saw the ball sail just wide of the near post.
“If that kick would have gone in, it would have changed our life,” said Nick Balboa, the oldest of Marcelo’s two sons.
“I think I just shocked the (crud) out of people,” Marcelo laughed. “An American doing a bicycle kick at a World Cup, let alone a defender doing a bicycle and it coming that close… It’s kind of funny.