were told that terrible losses can make

No one ever said it was going to be easy for Leicester City following their rags-to-riches story of last season, and the Premier League championship hangover coupled with a deeper division from top to bottom has made for some tough sledding during their title defence.The Foxes hope to jump start their season as they come out of the international break to play Saturday at Vicarage Road against Watford, who have quietly enjoyed life under first-year coach Walter Mazzarri.The infusion of television revenue into the Premier League has been both good and bad for Leicester City (3-3-5). It allowed Claudio Ranieri to keep almost his entire starting XI from last seasons title-winners save NGolo Kante, but it has also given the potential for every opponent to strengthen a roster -- a big team can afford more superstars while a newly promoted side can find quality depth for the right price.Those two factors, coupled with Leicester now lacking the element of surprise of their dynamic counterattacking style which proved to be the linchpin of their title run, have seen the Foxes play uneven throughout their domestic season and enter this match 14th in the table. It goes in stark contrast to having a surprisingly easy time moving to the cusp of qualifying for the knockout round in their first Champions League appearance in franchise history while not conceding in any of their four matches.Leicester City went into the break on the heels of a 2-1 loss to West Bromwich Albion that ended their home unbeaten streak at 20 matches. Islam Slimani had pulled the Foxes level on 55 minutes, but Matt Phillips provided the winning margin for the Baggies in the 72nd minute.It was difficult because the opponent is organised defensively and perhaps we didnt shoot enough, forward Shinji Okazaki told LCFC TV.Ranieri also made note of the defence affecting his offence, saying, We made a plan to go on the flank and make crosses from the flank but we made very few. Also the end we made some long balls and for the central defenders it was too easy. To say something is easy to do it is more difficult.For the Foxes, the big issue is the lack of rapid transition from defence to offence in open space. Kantes ability to thwart any buildup in the middle of the park and then find Riyad Mahrez in lightning-like fashion would trigger the open style of play that made Leicester City so deadly last season.The Foxes have only 13 league goals, with Jamie Vardy scoring two and Mahrez only one. Through the first 11 contests of 2015-16, Leicester had 22 goals -- with Vardy in the middle of his record-setting goal-scoring streak while scoring 10 and Mahrez contributing five.But there is cause for optimism since Vardy returns to the Midlands after scoring for England and drawing the penalty that led to the other goal in their 2-2 draw versus Spain in a friendly Monday. He has as many goals for country as he does club in all competitions as the focal point of every opponent Leicester City and England face.As Leicester City look the role of Jekyll and Hyde with their contrasting domestic and Champions League results, Watford (4-3-4) have quietly found an elevated perch behind the big six and enter this contest eighth in the table.Last seasons FA Cup semifinalists have punched at their weight class save their famous win over Manchester United, but before the break, Liverpool ran riot and administered a 6-1 thrashing on the Hornets at Anfield. Four of the goals came after starting goalkeeper Heurelho Gomes was forced to leave through a leg injury suffered in the buildup of the second goal.Watford had shipped only 13 goals in their first 10 matches before being torn apart by Jurgen Klopps unorthodox arrangement that features seven midfielders all constantly on the lookout for an opportunity to press forward.This game is a lesson for the future, Mazzarri told the teams official website. I understand many things from this game and we will learn from this. I am convinced after the international break we will see a different performance.Gomes right now is questionable for this match, which leaves Costel Pantilimon in line for his first Premier League start of the season. The Romania international played well in a 1-0 loss to Russia in a friendly, making a string of quality saves before being let down by his defence deep in stoppage time.Like Leicester, Watford are missing offence from their dynamic duo of Odion Ighalo and Troy Deeney. The duo, which combined for 28 goals in league play last season, has just four thus far, and Oghalo has found the back of the net just once. The Nigeria international has not scored since tallying against West Ham United on Sept. 10.Leicester City are 3-1-0 all-time in the top flight against Watford and took a pair of one-goal decisions last season. In the corresponding fixture, Mahrez let fly with a long-range strike in the 56th minute that accounted for the lone goal in a 1-0 Foxes victory. Cheap Fake Shoes Online .Y. -- Buffalo Bills coach Doug Marrone has drawn on his Syracuse connections once again by hiring Rob Moore to take over as receivers coach. 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"The car balance is decent, but I think we can still improve," Vettel said. Nobody likes losing. Even the most gracious among us still burns a little inside when she comes up on the wrong side of a final score. But not all losses are the same. Letting your kid beat you in H-O-R-S-E every once in a while only mildly stings. A good, solid clobbering?when you were vastly outplayed can sometimes be easy to brush off. Heck, a moral victory against a heavy favorite might even send you out for some celebratory ice cream post-defeat.But there are some losses that leave a pit in your stomach for days. Losses that feel like theyll stick with you forever. Not your run-of-the-mill buzzer-beaters or the times you came up short on an opponents otherworldly play. Nah, these are the real dark and twisty losses -- not just that you lost, but the way you lost.Take, for instance, the San Francisco Giants loss on Saturday night. With the game tied 6-6 in the 10th inning, San Francisco reliever Santiago Casilla tripped midpitch, stumbling down the front of the mound and giving the Padres a walk-off balk win. An extra-innings contest decided by a spike caught in the dirt? Just brutal. In fact, a walk-off balk is probably the worst possible way to lose a baseball game.Which got me thinking: What are the absolute worst ways to lose? And what are some of the most unfortunate losses weve seen in recent years?I think the most obvious of all crushing losses has to be the Chris Webber game. You all know how it went. With Michigan down 73-71 in the final seconds of the 1993 NCAA title game, Webber attempted to call timeout but his team had none remaining, and the ensuing technical foul clinched the win for UNC. The Tar Heels may have won anyway, but Webber will forever wonder.But lets get to something a little more recent. Just last week, in fact, when the USGA bungled the handling of a penalty in the U.S. Womens Open. Brittany Lang and Anna Nordqvist were tied on the second hole of a three-hole aggregate playoff when Nordqvist disrupted one or two tiny grains of sand, grounding her club in a fairway bunker. USGA officials didnt learn of the infraction until later during the hole -- and only due to super slo-mo, zoomed-in replays shown by high-definition television cameras. Nordqvist wasnt informed of the two-stroke penalty she received until after shed hit her third shot on the final hole, but Lang was told before she hit her third shot.The two were still tied when the penalty strokes were applied, so there are no guarantees that Nordqvist would have come back to win it if she had been alerted sooner. But she would have had the opportunity to play aggressively on the final hole, and Lang likely wouldnt have elected to hit a conservative shot with a sand wedge instead of going for birdie with the lob wedge she had initially grabbed. It was a terribly unfair way for Nordqvist to lose, and likely a somewhat unsatisfying victory for Lang (especially after USGA President Diana Murphy repeatedly called her Bethany, instead of Brittany, duuring the trophy presentation).ddddddddddddLosing because of a rules violation like that might be even worse than a walk-off balk. Ill never forget the story of high school pole vaulter Robin Laird. In 2010, her successful vault in the final event of the night won her team the league championship, but her score was disqualified and the title was lost because she was wearing a friendship bracelet. The opposing teams coach, Mike Knowles, pointed out the tiny string bracelet on Lairds wrist after the winning jump was made, ensuring that the meet would be decided not by merit, but by a technicality.Its unfortunate for the young lady, said Knowles, whose team won after he reported Lairds jewelry infraction. But youve got to teach the kids that rules are rules.Id argue teaching good sportsmanship is even more important.Teams have suffered heartbreaking losses because their fans prematurely celebrated, because a set of replacement refs fouled things up, and because no one really knows what the hell constitutes a catch in the NFL. Teams have ended up on the losing side of things because of a terribly ill-timed face-mask penalty, a lack of discipline, and celebrating before crossing the finish line.All terrible ways to lose a game, to be sure. And the worst part? Theyre all caught on tape, to be replayed over and over again. Most of those unfortunate athletes seemed to take their failures in stride. After all, were told that terrible losses can make for good character building -- you know, learning to lose gracefully and all that.Not all of us are cut out for that losing gracefully stuff, though. After more than 30 years on this earth, Ive sort of given up on it. Some of us are destined to throw bats at rec league softball games, yell at refs making eight bucks an hour, and agonize for years over a late interception that cost your team a playoff win in flag football.All Ill say is, thank goodness my losses never make the Not Top 10.***Ryen Russillo joins this weeks Thats What She Said podcast to talk about the radio balancing act of being interesting but also authentic, opinionated but genuine. I ask him what its like to run into athletes hes been critical of on the air and which pros hes got a beef with. We also chat about his circuitous route to a career in sports media and his continuing search to find work-life balance in an industry that demands so much focus and drive.I also ask him about the transition from years with radio partner Scott Van Pelt to new co-host Danny Kanell. And we trade stories from ESPYS week, our first time meeting in Chicago, and company rooftop parties at Cubs games.Plus, a walk-off grand slam to lose a game, and the worst possible food to bring on an airplane. Thanks as always for listening, check back every Tuesday for a new episode, or -- even better -- subscribe to the podcast! ' ' '