Re: The Football Thread - 10/11 (II)

by beamer Wed 15 Jun 2011, 21:28

Well, if this tournament is meaningless then whether or not the England side look any good is meaningless. If it does mean anything then we've done better than most of the European powers in actually getting there, although it's fair enough to say that any exceptional players aged 18-21 will already be in the senior side.

It's fair enough that our players need to develop ball retention and technical ability better than they currently do - but equally so, the way to beat Spain, Barcelona etc. isn't necessarily to play them at their own game. Teams have to come up with something new, so far the only tactic that has almost worked is the Mourinho/Van Marwijk method of "kick the crap out of them". Anyway, I still think we should leave FIFA and set up our own code like the Yanks and Aussies have, give the rest of the world a couple of decades to be able to beat us at it!

by LeFromage Wed 15 Jun 2011, 21:35

Phil Jones really is the spit of John Terry in the way he plays.

Wonder if he'll be such a despicable qunt off the field?

by beamer Wed 15 Jun 2011, 21:39

Most modern day English players are fairly unpleasant characters (make that British perhaps, as the "model professional" Giggs has turned out to be the Tiger Woods of football) but to be as much of a twat as Terry would take some doing.

by Brass Monkey Wed 15 Jun 2011, 22:00

We lacked any sort of industriousness, it was pretty dire to watch. Have you ever got steamed with a group of mates and then gone to play footy? It's all shin kicks and hospital balls. That's exactly what that performance was like. I can't understand it, in some ways. Pearce lacks quite a few things required for this job. So did Peter Taylor too, though. It's endemic throughout the youth system, as some of you have alluded to already. Saying all of this, how gash were the Ukraine? I mean, we lacked finish - they lacked pretty much everything. Sheesh.

by JKLever Wed 15 Jun 2011, 22:05

It was so bad I watched Direbyshire instead...

by DJ_Smerk Sat 18 Jun 2011, 00:35

Luka Modric has stated he wants to go to Chelski.

Interesting....

by beamer Sat 18 Jun 2011, 12:29

Well, the fixture lists are out and for all the spending on young English talent for the future, I don't think any of the "big" teams have yet made a signing that will improve their first XI immediately. And they all have some holes to fill.

The evening up of standards is good for the Premier League as a spectacle (Man Utd won the title by 9 points but with a points total that usually wouldn't have got them in the top two) but the English game seems to be finding it harder to attract the top players than a few years ago. The fact there's only one outstanding team in Europe means they can get away with it to an extent as well through having decent squads.

by LeFromage Sat 18 Jun 2011, 13:26

Newcastle have been burning through their Andy Carroll money. And they're a big team.

Just ask them...

by beamer Sat 18 Jun 2011, 14:09

They've let Nolan go though which is a strange one, he's too good to drop down a division at this stage in his career. A few others perhaps heading for the exit door as well. They will need the new signings to click quickly or they could have a difficult season. There's always one from the mid-table pack who capitulates and it could be them, Sunderland or Villa next season.

by LeFromage Sat 18 Jun 2011, 15:42

I always thought Pardew was a crap manager. The Saints did well do sack him off "early doors" last season - saved their promotion campaign.

He's let Nolan go, he's letting Barton - their best player - leave, he's transfer listed their best youngster Nile Ranger just because he's a bit of a dildo and posted a picture of himself on the internet hamming it up with a plastic gun.

And he's just signed Marveaux the day after he failed a medical at Liverpool. Good business? No-one to blame but himself if the player sits out most of the season crocked.

by beamer Sat 18 Jun 2011, 16:25

Not sure Nile Ranger has a lot going for him really, couldn't hit a barn door with a banjo, as Chris Kamara might say. I'd like to see him join Celtic for comedy value though...

by LeFromage Sat 18 Jun 2011, 16:57

He was a Saint - rated there, among the class of whenever it was with Walcott, Bale, Dyer and company, before Newcastle stole him. And turned him into a dildo.

by LeFromage Sun 19 Jun 2011, 21:39

England under 21s blow a 1-0 lead to go out of the Euro Champs 2-1.

Who could have foreseen that...?

by LeFromage Sun 19 Jun 2011, 21:40

Just noticed Pearce's number two is Steve Wigley. No-one the team is appalling. A more muppety coach you will never find.

by DJ_Smerk Sun 19 Jun 2011, 21:41

Is Phil Jones still worth £20m?

Or was he ever?

by LeFromage Sun 19 Jun 2011, 21:56

He's worth a sh!t load more than Jordan Henderson who isn't even a poor man's Michael Carrick's brother's collection of congealed skin in a jar.

by DJ_Smerk Sun 19 Jun 2011, 22:12

Who knows how he'll turn out for Liverpool. He might enjoy getting decent service and a crowd who will never let him walk alone.

He's still overpriced, I agree. First I heard of him last season was when he scored a few against Wigan.

WIGAN FFS.

by LeFromage Sun 19 Jun 2011, 22:20

Service? He's midfield. He's the server. Except he can't serve even a basic pass to the guy standing nearest him without shinning it out of play like a spastic.

by JKLever Sun 19 Jun 2011, 22:21

Dello wrote:England under 21s blow a 1-0 lead to go out of the Euro Champs 2-1.

Who could have foreseen that...?

Sadly they play just like the senior team. Slow, cumbersome, control the ball like its made of jelly etc....

by beamer Sun 19 Jun 2011, 23:41

Dello wrote:Just noticed Pearce's number two is Steve Wigley. No-one the team is appalling. A more muppety coach you will never find.

He was David Platt's yes-man number two at Forest. Then bizarrely got the Southampton manager's job, which I guess your muppet reference relates to... It's remarkable how some of these people keep finding their way into these kind of jobs. Platt himself got the U21 job (at least we got rid of him thanks to the FA) and now earns millions no doubt for doing very little at City.

by LeFromage Sun 19 Jun 2011, 23:49

He's the translator at City, isn't he? Chief scarf wrapper-arounder. Egg-headed arm flapper.

Something like that.

Yes, Wigley was a disaster at Saints. Got them relegated, pretty much.

by PeterCS Sun 19 Jun 2011, 23:55

They should have got Shteve.

by JKLever Fri 24 Jun 2011, 00:44

This may have been posted before here but its hella funny.

The first pen hits the bar. The penalty taker does a dying 'oh no.....' act whilst the goalie runs off in celebration. Meanwhile the ball hadn't gone out of play from hitting the cross bar and has just enough backspin..... Laughing

by LeFromage Fri 24 Jun 2011, 00:49

I saw that the other day. It's a tad comical - but I thought the rule was that a penalty in a shoot-out is considered "complete" once the ball is no longer travelling in the direction of the goal (something that came about after a goal was erroneously awarded in a WC shoot-out where the ball hit the post and came out, hit the keeper on the back and rolled into the net).

by PeterCS Fri 24 Jun 2011, 00:53

Kcu' ... Dells getting all technical on us now ...

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