Make fun all you like, but it just wouldn't be the World Cup without the obligatory mentioning of 1966 at least 5 times during a game, regardless of who's playing.
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Make fun all you like, but it just wouldn't be the World Cup without the obligatory mentioning of 1966 at least 5 times during a game, regardless of who's playing.
Well, that was fun!
Being Australian, I no longer have any interest in football now that we're officially out. I feel that we went out on a pretty good note though. We weren't the favourites in any of our group matches, so to come away with a loss, a draw and a win isn't too bad at all.
Off to watch Wimbledon! Gonna check if that Mahut vs. Isner fifth set is STILL going. It was 53-52 when I left it. (edit: play stopped due to bad light. It's going to be a match played over at least 3 days with over 10 hours of on-court time.. wow)
'Football' returns to being 'soccer' in 3...2...1...
Oh there you go. MOTD is showing the 66 win! :)
>>> The Germany vs England match is going to be interesting :), England better watch out of Mesut Özil or else they will get owned..:luca:
That Italy game went crazy in the last 20 minutes or so - great game in the end, but Italy have been very disappointing in this tournament, they only seemed to come to life when it was too late. They really didn't deserve to go through that's for sure. New Zealand can probably be pleased with how they did - unbeaten!
And Japan 2-0 up! Two nice free kicks from them. For a team who was meant to have had an awful build up to the tournament, they haven't looked bad at all here. And poor Sorensen, having a nightmare.
smurf yes Martin Skrtel smurf yes Slovakia, out you go Italy. :D Just a shame the Slovakians tarnished the win a bit by play acting at the end.
Also well smurfing done to New Zealand for going the entire World Cup unbeaten. Major props.
Some sick free kicks from the Japanese.
Worst Dutch game yet. It's so like our country to rock the preliminaries and to cop out on the stuff that matters.
It's pretty much a dead rubber game, aren't you being a little harsh on them? They're going through top of the group probably, a winnable second round game ahead, at least they're not Italy or France.Quote:
Originally Posted by Aerith's Knight
Come on Japan! Also excellent game between Italy and Slovakia!
Yeah, that Italy vs. Slovakia game was pretty mad in the end. Quite exciting actually.Quote:
Originally Posted by charliepanayi
Quote:
Originally Posted by Psychotic
Yup, some pretty sick free kicks. And yeah, I feel pretty sorry for Sřrensen too.Quote:
Originally Posted by charliepanayi
Well, at least Robben shows his worth. If we wouldn't have won this, I'd have been pissed.Quote:
Originally Posted by charliepanayiIt's pretty much a dead rubber game, aren't you being a little harsh on them? They're going through top of the group probably, a winnable second round game ahead, at least they're not Italy or France.Quote:
Originally Posted by Aerith's Knight
Nice goal from Japan!!
Japan are doing a good job. They deserve to go to the next round, and Denmark deserve to go home. Like, really.
Yeah its a shame really. Was kind of rooting for Denmark before the world cup but they didn't play very well and Japan definitely deserve it. Nice to see Tomasson get his goal though.
Yup I wanted Denmark to win at the start of the game, but it looked like only Agger and Rommedahl gave a toss whereas the Japanese fought like, well, Samurai. Will be a tasty game, Paraguay v Japan.
some dive by Agger for the pen.
10 points.
I cant believe we finally get a Germany v England again after 20 years! Its gonna be a match of the decade!
I've waited for a Germany Vs England match for ages. Will definitely make the effort to go to the pub for this (an especially grotty one too, to get the best atmosphere).
We'll lose. But it'll be fun nonetheless.
I don't know if England will lose. Yes, the German side destroyed Australia, but the Aussie defence that day was a shambles. And then they lost to Serbia next. I don't know if England's defence is as solid as Serbia (Ivanovic & Vidic, need anymore be said), but they are classier than the Germans. As long as people track the runs that the Germans make, then they should be able to contain them.
But Portugal - Brazil tomorrow should be a cracker. Then to the knock-out round. The World Cup is warming up.
Word!Quote:
Originally Posted by Breine
Dutch game was allright IMO. A little better than last 2 matches but still, I think there are some serious underdogs to look out for this tournament.
North Korea 0 Ivory Coast 2
Brazil 2 Portugal 1
Spain 1 Chile 1
Honduras 0 Switzerland 0
This game is going to get ugly...
Bit of a :bou::bou::bou::bou:ty game. Which is disappointing, really, all of the final matches I've watched so far have been good.
ALSO smurf YOU IVORY COAST. Seriously it is p. embarassing to have Solomon Kalou score against you...
More acting by players, this time its the ladyboy Torres getting a Chhilean sent off & killing the game.
Truely sick of these pussys destroying my sport.
I don't know, you know, Fernando Torres does have an injury record worse than Darren Anderton. It wouldn't surprise me if a sneeze somehow popped one of his hamstrings.
Still, I do like the kickin' 'em style of Chile. Wish they had France in their group, but we can't have everything I s'pose.
Don't think Torres dived. Torres wasn't aware there was a guy behind him, and then his heels got clipped. It's like people getting ankle-tapped in rugby. If you're not expecting it, you're going to go down like a sack of potatoes.
But wasn't a yellow card either.
I wish I could get into a state over diving etc like everyone else seems to.
Ponce should have gone just before HT for a rather nasty tackle, that was deserving of a red card.
Hey charlie, I reckon Ponce should play for Arsenal. He'd fit right in there. HAR HAR HAR. :hahaha:
(you knew it was coming :aimkiss:)
Laugh all you want, it's your player who's the latest one going down like a sack of spuds ;)
He did'nt dive, he was accidentally tripped. But him staying motionless on the ground for 5 smurfing minutes as if he'd been given heroin was where he was the bitch getting an innocent man sent off.Quote:
Originally Posted by champagne supernova
I think the ref was going to send him off anyway, he'd already let off Estrada once.
I just noticed the world champions Italy were not listed on the poll. That was either amazing foresight or a stupid smurfing oversight.
Probably just because everyone bar me hates Italy =P
They were on the poll. I've been removing teams that had 0 votes for teams that made it through.
Maybe set up a new poll now that we're in the knockout stages?
Sadly each thread can only have one poll attached to it, as far as I know. And polls, once added, can only be closed for voting rather than all out removed. We'll make do.
Torres was down and not moving from the moment it happened, so don't think he was trying to get the guy sent off. Talking about Arsenal players: Fabregas beard = epic fail.
But according to Lord Triessman, Spain have bribed all the refs, so obviously that's why the guy got sent off. I reckon Lord Loudmouth, Sepp Blatter, Max Moseley, Prince Philip & Franz Beckenbauer should form an organisation.
EDIT: Fabregas = epic fail
Fabregas is never epic fail (yes yes he won't be playing for us next season anyway etc)!
So the First Round is complete, and we're down to:
Uruguay v South Korea
USA v Ghana
Netherlands v Slovakia
Brazil v Chile
England v Germany
Argentina v Mexico
Paraguay v Japan
Spain v Portugal
So we could get a Brazil - Argentina final, right? Currently supporting the Portuguese, because I generally end up supporting them come crunch-time at a tournament, so hopefully they can beat the Spanish. Should be quite a good match because Portugal are much more direct than the Spanish.Quote:
Originally Posted by charliepanayi
We could get Brazil v Argentina yeah, I've set it out into the four quarters/two halves of the draw. England could have to face Germany, Argentina and Spain/Portugal if they want to make the final.
Funny that one of the Uruguay-South Korea-Ghana-USA teams will be in semi final.
As for me, I expect the Dutch in the final. They failed in the European Cup in 2008, but now they're more experienced and motivated, and they played the best football during the group stage. I also welcome the Asian teams among the best 16, both South Korea and Japan played very well, although they have no chance against the traditional football nations.
Spain disappointed me a little. They're my second fav team, but they don't find their gamestyle on the field, not to mention Torres's incapacity to score a goal. Villa is in a great form, but he can have a bad play during the finals and that will hurt Spain.
I feel that this weekend could be quite interesting. I'm seeing a german girl at a party full of germans tonight we play tomorrow xD
Uruguay 2 South Korea 0
USA 1 Ghana 1 (Ghana win on penalties)
Im amazed The Sun didn't say anything about Nazi's but rather showed a picture of the german team on safari looking at 3 lions with the heading "germany afraid of 3 lions".
Have they gotten bored? :)
You'll be pleased to know the Daily Mail showed a photo from 38 when England played the Germans and had to deliver a nazi salute. Although that was kind of in an "England v Germany through the ages" piece, so I don't think it really counts.
In other news: YouTube - NIKE FOOTBALL WRITE THE FUTURE - FULL LENGTH VERSION hahaha Nike jinxed everyone. Drogba, Cannavaro and Ribery all out in the group stages, Rooney's had a :bou::bou::bou::bou: World Cup and Ronaldo has hardly set the world alight. And as for Ronaldinho...
Incidentally, click the little football icon on the bottom right of the video for that authentic experience.
I heard about that. So cool.Quote:
Originally Posted by Psychotic
So long, Worst Korea! :)
Uruguay looking increasingly powerful.
The english are confident, the germans are confident, hopefully it will get interesting! :)
I'm confident...that we'll lose.
Although it's a daytime match and England only go out on penalties at night, so I fear we might not get to that point.
I think your underestimating yourself. You could very well win this match. Im hoping not though :pQuote:
Originally Posted by Psychotic
I think its a 50:50
It just depends who's day it is really.
Wow! Where was this Ghana team hiding in the groups? They're all over America.
Koreaaaaaaa!
Uruguay almost paid for trying to sit back and defend their 1-0 lead. Nice winning goal though.
And Ghana looking much improved from the group stages.
In many ways I am glad that's not England out there.
Dear Mick Jagger,
You are aware that you are actually ENGLISH arn't you?
Yours Faithfully,
Cuch
Maybe he assumed they'd win their group and got tickets for this game.
Imagine what the US would be like if they actually gave a smurf about the first half of games too!
Donovan will probably get all the attention but for me, their star man is by far and away Clint Dempsey.
Dempsey hustles but at times it just looks like he's flopping over and over again. He rarely ever converts but shoots like a maniac.Quote:
Originally Posted by Psychotic
This is where we should have gotten. We're from the 9-16 range in world rankings, so going out in the first round of elimination is what was pretty much to be expected. We can still come back, but our guys are pretty much gassed. Defense just does too many stupid things to win at this level of competition.
Bad bag goala given away by America I was rooting for them too. Sick of this condescending pathetiv support for anything African by the TV here. If they're a good team I'll like them through, if they are not & play :bou::bou::bou::bou: football I want em out. Until today Ghana played awful football. Not sure what happened but they were ok. Still would have preferred the US through.
America will be back, they're getting rather good at this sport.
England Vs Germany next. I don't really mind either team but would prefer to see Germany. I think England will win though.
A real shame to see the US go out. I agree with Cuch about the annoying African support by the commentators/pundits. Ghana is not South Africa. This is not Ghana's World Cup.
Tomorrow should be exciting though!
Uruguay will probably slaughter Ghana anyway. Didn't look like they were up to much, and now they have a few suspensions and possibly their best player (Boateng) out injured, they're smurfed.
No way, my prediction of Ghana for the semi-finals will come true, damn you all!
bawww we don't care about sawkker anyway it's a pussy divegrass sport for morons
YOU ESS AY
YOU ESS AY
Might have lost the soccer but we can bomb your :bou::bou::bou::bou: back to the stone age :smug:
Ooh, an englishman supporting Germany. EDGY.
and it's absolutely completely NOT just to get attention.
>>> Poor USA :(. Well, at least they did pass the first thing..:luca:
Uruguay has been my favorite team to watch so far, although Argentina is probably the best team. or should I say "side"?
Too bad about the US losing to Ghana, but it was probably inevitable. Two days rest off the emotional win over Algeria, and our inability to actually finish opportunities was eventually going to cost us. Plus Ghana has the whole Africa thing going for them.
Lol Im so smurfng drunk rigt now i hope the nexrt game is aweome! Goood luckk!
England 2 Germany 0 or England 1 Germany 1 and England win on penalties - stop laughing (followed by wave of over-optimism in the media that is then crushed in the quarters or semis)
Argentina 3 Mexico 1
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v4...s/b875491f.jpgQuote:
Originally Posted by charliepanayi
MILF's actually Irish. Go figure.Quote:
Originally Posted by Old Manus
Anyway England winning on penalties is not so unlikely and here is why. I have been playing the games on PES (it is better than FIFA, no, shut up, anyone who disagrees is 1000000000% wrong forever, the end) and so far as Uruguay I beat the Koreans with a late Suarez goal, and as the Yanks I got jammed by Ghana, so it's been pretty smurfing accurate so far.
So here is a lovely tale of what happened in my exciting football computer game!
(SPOILER)
Fat Wayne takes the lead for England early on after a sick Glen Johnson cross, and England were cruising for the rest of the half. Right up until Mr. Johnson smurfed up with a clearance which fell right to Klose who made it 1-1 on the stroke of half time.
England looked like they didn't know what the smurf after that, with the Germans pressuring hard and David James making a sick save from Schweinsteiger with his fingertips. He was then further called into action when Kiessling (on as a sub) was in a one on one situation with him, and actually rounded Jamo but hit the post. England struck back with Stevie G and Lampard having fierce shots saved, and in the very last minute, Wayne Rooney danced through the German defence and hit the bar, with Heskey spooning the rebound.
Germany stupidly left sub Aaron Lennon in miles of space, and he capitalised by running right into their box and setting up Fat Frank to put England ahead. England carried on hammering the Germans and Emile Heskey had a nice shot saved by Neuer. Unfortunately England were hit on the break, with John Terry hacking down Podolski, and Schweinsteiger nailed the free kick (and I smurfing knew he would) with 3 mins to go. Heskey responds by dicking some guy called Trochowski who is crippled, but can't go off because Germany have made all three subs.
Penalties are happening right now, and I will type up my thoughts as they happen! (yes I had to write this all down on my PC for people who don't care) Emile Heskey hates taking penalties and thus will be last on England's list. He is too beautiful for that.
Rooney - scores
Klose - James got a foot to it but it bounced in.
Terry - puts it coolly to the left.
Trochowski - again, James got a foot to it but it went in. Surprised this dude even took one seeing as how he is injured.
Gerrard - nails it
Podolski - smurf that was a nice pen - no-one has missed so far.
Ashley Cole - thank smurf he scored.
Kiessling - PUTS IT WIDE smurf YEAH
Fat Frank to win the game holy :bou::bou::bou::bou:....he's done it!
Somehow England have beaten Germany on penalties I am smurfing made up. Fat smurfing Lampard scoring a goal AND a penalty, bloody hell.
And that is how the real game will go down. :colbert:
England better win. I hope it goes to penalties too, that's always great nail biting action.
Cheers England. Maybe this German side can beat Argentina.
EDIT: Perhaps I spoke too soon. England are actually stringing some passes together. And that should've been a goal.
Oh dear....yet more woeful officiating.
That ref has no idea what the smurf he has just unleashed. May god have mercy upon his soul!
Dodgy decisions aside, come the smurf on, England, stop with this long ball :bou::bou::bou::bou:. We're playing Rooney and Defoe up front. They are not giants. Play it to feet. How smurfing hard is it? And what the smurf is going on down the left at the back? The Germans are tearing us apart. Was going to suggest Upson off as he is clearly not up to the occasion but hopefully his goal has boosted him. Keep playing like we did after the first goal and we can score, take them to penalties and lose on them! ...provided we stop letting them in at the back, smurfing hell.
I feel so bad for Lampard. Just not his luck today! :(
germany have completely owned england. I mean totally outclassed them.
Damn, I really wanted Messi to destroy Johnson to prove my point. England, I dislike you.
smurf me with a rake.
I knew England would never be able to beat Germany, but I had no idea it would be such a brutal and violent rape.
No hyperbole, worst England team ever.
...at least we did better than the French. :shobon:
http://www.znanje.org/i/i25/05iv03/0...d_flag_300.png
New Zealand
Unbeaten at the 2010 World Cup. How about you?
But seriously, I dunno. Germany were the better team for the majority of the game but England still may have done a lot better if things had gone their way. Momentum is a lovely thing and the goal-that-wasn't would have changed that. Either way, they seem incapable of defending against counterattacks and I think that's what did it. I wonder what England would be like if they switched strategy to become a running counter attacking team instead of a slow playing possession team?
Going for Mexico (I know, it won't happen) and Spain now.
I think England was doing pretty well out there for the first 60 minutes or so, but Germany was relentless. I hope it's gonna be Germany vs. Argentina next round. That would be really interesting.
Huxley predicted you would say exactly that.Quote:
Originally Posted by Psychotic
In the end, the USA and England were just not good enough.
I actually like our chances going into the next World Cup better then England's, whose players looked painfully old and slow, almost Italian-like by the end of the game.
I was very worried that we'd still be on a high from the last game and when Ghana scored early, my fears were realized. However, this cup has given a lot of the players great experience. Mike Bradley looks like he could develop into a very good holding midfielder and if Altidore could just learn to aim better, well, things might be different. Donovan had a great clutch tournament, though I think his influence will be on the downside come the next World Cup. Dempsey was dangerous as always but the man needs to bulk up if he wants to take that next step. He was easily pushed off the ball at times and while he is so clever, that extra bit of strength could go a long way. Howard remains a world class goalkeeper, but we need to find faster, stronger defensive players. We were too easily opened up. I look to this as a learning experience for the USA and expect much better things in the coming years. Winning the group was great, the come from behind victory was nirvana, and now I just hope we continue to take steps forward and not feel like we've accomplished enough.
As for England:
Everyone was so high on Capello, but I wonder if he was the right man in the end. Sports teams tend to thrive on a motivator, not a dictator, and when you have a team that is as high-strung as England, you NEED someone who can ease the pressure, lighten the mood and make the players relax. Capello, arms crossed throughout the tournament, has looked like a principal watching his students in detention and I think the players as a result were scared to make a mistake. In the end, it comes down to this, the defense was too slow, the midfield couldn't hold the ball and the forwards were just not good enough. Rooney had a miserable tournament, not all his fault but, he looked increasingly sulky. Terry really played awful all tournament long. I've never understood the appeal in him frankly. Yes he's vocal, yes he can be brave, but his instincts always seem to let him down and as a center back, you can't do that. England need new youthful blood at center. I'm a bit shocked really that Mike Dawson didn't at least get a look.
Ironically, after all the talk of how he never performs, I thought Gerrard was England's best player this tournament, but he probably won't be around in 2014. Gerrard isn't a winger, he never will be a winger. Lampard isn't a holding player, he never will be a holding player. If Gerrard is still around in 2014 and no other striker has made the leap, play him off Rooney, and play actual wingers and holding midfielders because in the end, the team was basically isolated from itself. The defense was left on its own and couldn't deal with pace. The forwards were starved of service and as has been pointed out, aren't tall, so high crosses in aren't going to work. Trying to put all the "stars" together is the problem. England need to re-embrace a team mentality and not try and just put the best names on the field. Don't worry about egos, seriously. If you want to win, put the best team on the field. If a player bitches about not playing, then they don't deserve to represent their country.
The first half of the England-Germany game was a classic and while the Lampard goal would have changed the tide, in the end, the better team won. This isn't supposed to be Germany's year yet, but you know what, an Argentina - Germany quarter would be EPIC and based on how both teams have looked, I think one of them may be our champion. I'd still enjoy seeing an outsider like Spain or Netherlands win their first Cup, but I think we may have to settle for the old guard, who are anything BUT old.
Take care all.
I think the biggest problem with Cappello is that he found a strategy that worked for England and then he changed it back to the same old strategy for the World Cup that causes them to cock up every tournament.
I agree with that.
I think the team thought they would breeze on through and as such, had no real passion to play, no focus, and let their egos (Including Capello) dictate everything.
Take care all.
What a game!
Referee was a complete dumb ass and it should have been a goal, but Germany still would have won in the end because England were really poor defensively, and those long balls really killed it for England.
I was hoping for a 5-1 or 6-1 as that would have stopped the dumb ass 5-1 comments.
Its still revenge.
English media and commentators are still ridiculously stupid. All that talk about Germany being poor to average at best and them showing all the mistakes the german defense have made and showing all the successes of the english attack while leaving everything else out in the pre-match discussion.
Well, Germany still have Beckenbauer, who is like the biggest dumb-ass of them all.
It does hurt to see England play like that though, I was hoping for a much closer game.
Also, I was watching it in a bar with 5 friends of mine, 3 of which support Germany, 1 doesn't care and the other for England. We were thouroughly outnumbered in support and we were in quite a bit of danger from a few roudy people. One twat kept screaming at the english players to "break those smurfing kraut legs" and "slit their throats!"
He told us to smurf off whenever we celebrated (while we were also happily chatting to some fair open minded england supporters) and he probably would have tried to beat the crap out of me after the game if the bouncers hadnt come and kicked the idiot out.
Ugh, why does football have to be like this here?
I know there are a lot of england supporters who aren't cocks, unfortunately the cocks are always the ones who surface and it really brings me down.
It was quite sad to see all the faces of the people in town today, so I couldn't celebrate cause I felt bad. I need to let off some steam somewhere though, otherwise im gonna implode!
Neuer was the worst german player on the pitch until the last 10 minutes or so.
I was watching it in a Swansea bar, so as you can expect it was full of less-than-intelligent 'Germany' supporters. Both teams' defences were absolute horror shows, it was just that Germany had the cutting edge up front, while England didn't and stupidly relied on Matthew 'missile long ball' Upson to kick horrendous balls forward to the (very lacking in the height department) Defoe and Rooney. This never worked over the entire game.
In summary, Capello got it all wrong in this tournament. Secondly, I'm just going to throw this out there, but HARRY REDKNAPP FOR NEXT ENGLAND MANAGER.
Özil is one of the greatest talents I've seen. I'd love him at Old Trafford.
England - the Newcastle United of international football?
Terrible decision aside for the Lampard goal (and to the BBC's credit after the game they didn't use it as an excuse, even juxtaposing it with England's third goal in 1966 at the end - considering the petulance of the pundits in 2004 and 2006 after England's exits this was a pleasant surprise), England were awful. I think Germany might not get past Argentina if they face them but they were great today, and made a mockery of the ' they're not all that' comments in the English press which Croyles mentioned. Aside from 60 minutes or so against Slovenia England haven't performed yet again, and you wonder if anything will ever get done about it.
I hope Capello stays anyway, the idea of Redknapp ever being England manager is hilarious (and not in a good way).
Okay, now I'm depressed.Quote:
Originally Posted by charliepanayi
Your right about both teams' defensive efforts. Germany was poor in that department too. It is what happens when you take a team that played boring football for 50 years and turn it into flare, you will have great attacking football but your defense usually suffers because of it.Quote:
Originally Posted by Old Manus
Brazil are sometimes in the exception where they can be both extremely good defensively AND on the attack.
I don't think so. Redknapp has done well at every single club he's been at. People accused him of not being able to deal with a big club, but look how well Tottenham are doing.Quote:
Originally Posted by charliepanayi
Not saying that he's the ideal choice, but not a bad one. Him & Hodgson are the best English managers around. I think Hodgson should give it a go. I mean, he's been linked with Liverpool, so England can't be worse.
Almost every club Redknapp has left has been a complete basketcase after he left it. Plus Spurs a big club? Very funny!
Liverpool: Britain's most successful club.Quote:
Originally Posted by champagne supernova
England: Britain's most successful nation.
Both: Have made me want to commit suicide this year.
How can Roy possibly choose?!? It's like DIAMONDS or MORE DIAMONDS!!!
Those Germans sure could run. They had no trouble pacing right past the England players most of the time. I remember people saying the German team being young was a good thing for England before the match. Obviously not.
I meant that people said he could do well at small clubs fighting against relegations, but not a club with high expectations. And he came in, sorted out a team that has under-performed, and got them into the Champions League. So, fairly impressive.Quote:
Originally Posted by charliepanayi
I am both surprised and happy at BBC's reaction to the match. I think someone higher up had a clear hand in saying that they should not put ALL the focus on that disallowed goal, which yes, may have changed the tide of the match but was the least of Englands worries.
Looking forward to the Argentina v Mexico match!
I'll be suprised if Capello is still England manager next week. He has shown in this tournament his extreme stubbornness in changing anything in the team that he hasn't thought of himself, even when both players, previous players, fans and pundits are screaming at him to switch things around after two woeful displays (USA and Algeria) and play 4-4-1-1 with Gerrard just behind Rooney. Instead he continues with the archaic 4-4-2 which has served England so well (!) over the past 40 years and refuses to hear anything against it. Secondly, this guy is Italian. In all honesty he's probably more gutted that Italy crashed out in the first round than England not turning up.
I do think England could do with a manager who actually has a lot of experience managing in England itself - regardless of nationality. Whether that is someone who is a TRUE LION like Spurs's JAMIE REDKNAPP!!!!! or someone like Wenger, just someone who actually knows the English style and what we're capable of and what our weaknesses are would be a good start.
So because he's foreign he doesn't care much when the team he manages goes out? What a load of rubbish.
Psychotic is right though, someone with experience of the English game might help, though it's not like that's helped England before. I sense a Ferguson-Wenger-Mourinho Three Stooges style partnership! :)
Actually, can we bring Rafa in?
He can't smurf it up by signing random :bou::bou::bou::bou: Spaniards for Ł15m, and he isn't actually bad in cup tournaments! Plus he managed to get Djimi Traore a Champions League winners' medal, which is basically the domestic version of getting Gareth Barry a World Cup winners' medal.
Don't forget Italians for 20 mil.Quote:
Originally Posted by Psychotic
Now now, we all know that if Italy had called up stars like Aquilani and Dossena to their squad, they would still be in this tournament.
More controversy!
wow, Argentina is really lucky. But Higuain is impressive.
Based on I don't watch premiership football and have no idea as to what Fabio has done in the past. If this is the best he can get from a squad of England's best footballers when he has pretty much the entire premier league (obviously with the exception of Chelsea because even I know the team is so foreign it might as well be barred from playing in a british league :P) to pick from heck as I think it was New Zealand proved, one of their players doesn't even play professional football he took time off from work to play in the world cup! So the best footballers England has to offer full stop. He deserves to be sacked over that because well we played abysmally and sure we can blame the players yes. But more to the point we need to blame the team managers and coaches first before we move down eventually it goes Captain of the squad because he should have told them what to do, where to be on the field, then it comes down to individual players.
Arsenal are even worse, but then we don't like shelling out for overpriced English players ever since Jeffers and Walcott ;)Quote:
Originally Posted by Iceglow
It's not like the Spanish clubs don't have foreigners in them. But their players are just good enough to get into the teams, unlike the British players. This must come down to the organisation of the respective football associations.
WELP LOOK OUT SEPP BLATTER
What was the deal with that first goal for Argentina? I didnt see it...
Tevez was two feet offside.
And then the stadium big screen showed the replay of it (strictly against the rules!), and the officials saw. But their hands were tied so the goal stood.
It's a shame about these two incidents today, as they're overshadowing the fact that the knockout stage has been great so far, 15 goals in 4 games already, hope this carries on. Without the really big mistakes by officials anyway!
Argentina's keeper sucks, though.
please do explain, One of the few argentinean players i had nothing to say about today,Quote:
Originally Posted by eestlinc
overall this argentina will probably not make it any further, todays matchs, as all before this was terible
Eh? Argentina have been great so far, as has the knockout phase.Quote:
Originally Posted by tailzplease do explain, One of the few argentinean players i had nothing to say about today,Quote:
Originally Posted by eestlinc
overall this argentina will probably not make it any further, todays matchs, as all before this was terible
I'm just ewaiting to August for the English morons to start booing Rooney when he gets the ball the same way they did other scapegoats from past tournaments (Beckham, Ronaldo etc).
Rooney's not fit. Rooney has not been fit since his injury in March. Rooney is England's last hope and if the fans turn on him now it'll be their biggest mistake. He just hasn't been right since that night in Munich when his ankle went.
If English fansa don't want him in the team anymore, I don't mind as he'll be fresher in a Red shirt with a devil on his chest but it'll be a huge mistake.
What on EARTH are you talking about you confused little human? They have been the outstanding team so far. Have a word with yourself.Quote:
Originally Posted by tailzplease do explain, One of the few argentinean players i had nothing to say about today,Quote:
Originally Posted by eestlinc
overall this argentina will probably not make it any further, todays matchs, as all before this was terible
PS: ARGENTINA! ARGENTINA! ARGENTINA!
Goal line tech, any time FIFA?
Heh. :smug:
If you're lucky it'll be introduced for the 2022 World Cup or thereabouts.Quote:
Originally Posted by seiferalmasy2
It won't happen because we bribed Sepp to not introduce it knowing before hand that it will happen during the England match.
Does anyone else feel sorry for Rooney?
He is being made the scapegoat by every english fan i see (Teamtalk Forums) despite there being 22 other members in the squad.
What part of 'recovering from an injury' do these idiots not get? He was crowbarred in by the English as they see him as the great white hope. Not only does he have to play not fully fit but he has to carry the weight of 50 million peoples expectations on his back while doing it.
They couldn't beat USA or Algeria, managed to scrape a win against the smallest nation at the Finals and are SHOCKED at getting beat by a proven class act that is Germany?
Rooney carried United by himself from August to March last season scoring 34. He scored 6 in qualifyers for England, he is usually the biggest heart on that field.
If all the England fanas dont want him picked ever again then smurf them. I'm only too glad to see him rested for United during international week. He's nothing to prove to any moron who would boo him.
Quote:
Originally Posted by CuchulainnI'm just ewaiting to August for the English morons to start booing Rooney when he gets the ball the same way they did other scapegoats from past tournaments (Beckham, Ronaldo etc).
Rooney's not fit. Rooney has not been fit since his injury in March. Rooney is England's last hope and if the fans turn on him now it'll be their biggest mistake. He just hasn't been right since that night in Munich when his ankle went.
If English fansa don't want him in the team anymore, I don't mind as he'll be fresher in a Red shirt with a devil on his chest but it'll be a huge mistake.
What on EARTH are you talking about you confused little human? They have been the outstanding team so far. Have a word with yourself.Quote:
Originally Posted by tailzplease do explain, One of the few argentinean players i had nothing to say about today,Quote:
Originally Posted by eestlinc
overall this argentina will probably not make it any further, todays matchs, as all before this was terible
PS: ARGENTINA! ARGENTINA! ARGENTINA!
no not confused just demanding, as everyone in my country is.
holland as the first team to qualify for the knock out phase have had nothing but terrible games yet. we (the dutch crowd) expect to se great games, football on a high level, championsleague level if you will. so far the only team that has been able to satisfy me with their play was germany, and even they can't hold that level every game.
so no argentina has not been outstanding as of yet, they have had no challenge to prove they are worthy of winning this.
having expected the level of play from '98 i must say so far i am verry dissapointed with this wc
Holland have won all their games so far and might well reach the quarter-finals today, frankly I wouldn't be complaining if I supported them (especially in light of Italy, France and England's demises so far). And if you don't think Argentina have been good so far you're watching a different World Cup.
Holland 1 Slovakia 0
Brazil 3 Chile 1
Finally a good Dutch game, although the goals are lacking.
What the hell was that? The dude hooks himself on a keeper and gets a penalty? What a bunch of prissies. Jeesh, Stekelenburg doesn't deserve that.
Nice going! Holland's through, but I fear the worst for next game. Chances are they're facing Brazil. :choc:
Here's an interesting article for ya:
TheGame - Times Online - WBLG: It's time to appoint Paul Gascoigne as Fabio Capello's successor
Something important to keep in mind with Rooney: United are a much better TEAM then England. The fact of the matter is, England are a collective group of stars, but they have no unifying force on their squad. They barely train together and they look like they're out there because their agents told them they should do it.
Contrast that with Germany, who, and this is another interesting point, allow their young players to cut their teeth in their league games as opposed to the Premiership, where instead of young English talents getting a call up, would rather import talent. Granted, every league is out to do this because it drives TV sales and revenue, but England's prospects moving forward are bleak because they have no young Ozil or Mueller who can be playing first team World Cup matches right out of the gate. Instead, they are blocked from ever getting a chance.
Take care all.
I still think that they lost the moment they decided that SWP was better than Walcott and Johnson. In all honesty, England, while being one of the top teams in the world, still got beaten 2-0 at the height of even Rooney's showings in England colours. But put that aside and they haven't proved themselves yet. They haven't played the best teams in the world. In 2009, they beat Belarus, Croatia, Slovenia, Andorra, Kazakhstan, Ukraine and Slovakia. They couldn't beat Holland, Spain, Ukraine (second game) or Brazil. The last time they beat a top team was Germany (2-1) in 2008. Mexico was a good result - 3-1 - but even then, not an established powerhouse in the world. Until they can beat Germany, France (yes, they lost to them in their last game, too), Argentina, Spain, Italy, Portugal et al on a regular basis, they won't be winning World Cups. They're definitely a good side in that you will expect them to qualify for the knockout stage. But they aren't to the point that you would put money on them winning (unless you read English newspapers/sites and don't gamble often, in which case, I'm sorry for your loss :p).
Why don't they win? To me that doesn't matter, but I don't think it's about the Premier League, personally, I think it's about the decisions of the manager not to pick, motivate and play the correct team. That, and the quality of players. Fabregas is not sitting on the bench like he is for Spain. Nor is Aguero like he is for Argentina. But one would question why Heskey is brought on when they want to score goals. I don't know. Basically I just don't think England are good enough and I don't believe they really get the "do or die" mentality that they have for their clubs.
It might not help being booed by your fans when they should be trying to lift you, nor having the media swamp you and slam you at every opportunity, either, but that's England.
You can't blame Premiership managers from signing sixteen year olds from overseas if they feel that there aren't any sixteen year olds of suitable quality within their academies. The question is: why aren't there any quality English sixteen year olds in the game?
And that comes down to the English FA. Cristiano Ronaldo played amateur football when he was 8, moved to a more prominent team when he was 10 and was in Lisbon's academy at 12. If the English FA isn't promoting football at these young ages, then the top clubs will either import talent at youth or higher level, and the English national team will deteriorate.
By curbing the number of foreigners in the English game, one is only deteriorating the league to a level where English players are good enough to compete, rather than trying to raise the level of English players so they are good enough to compete in the Premier League.
Look at the Spanish team. 6 of the players come from Barcelona. David Villa has obviously just been signed, but the remaining 5 (Busquets, Iniesta, Xavi, Puyol & Pique) all came through the Barcelona academy (yes, Pique went to Manchester United for a few years, but he's still a product of Barca). And in Spain, there are more coaches, the FA is more organised, and there is a focus on identifying and developing young talent. That is the problem with England.
To be fair, the England fans were really and absolutely behind the team until the fourth goal went in. They were fired up and furious about the goal. And then they just started singing "England's going home" rather than booing :lol:
The main reason that PL teams sign young talent from around the world is because they can. What they can't do is sign young talent from around England (or is it the UK? I forget). There is a restriction saying you have to live within a certain distance of your team or something like that, and SAF always goes on about it being the reason all clubs sign overseas talent in masses.
Now, if you consider the geographic locations of the PL clubs at the moment, look at the amount of space there is which is not covered by the top league...
2010–11 Premier League - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Basically, if you don't live close to Newcastle, Manchester, Liverpool, Birmingham or London then you're going to a lower level club. Is this fair? To the clubs, maybe. To the young players, I'm not so sure.
i's the english coaching style from youth to professional. You are discouraged from being a flair player. you are trained in the physical gameway above skills training. Too many cones to run around and not enough ball play.
You look at Portugal, Spain, Brazil, Argentina. Anyone in those teams can take on a player. You even look at South Americas smaller nations, half sometime three quarters the size of England and they pass and move with their eyes closed.
England's problem is its social culture and football culture and until that changes it will be a cold day in hell before they win things.
Regarding their nect coach, the fact remains there is nort an English coach good enough. I'd get in a foreign flair coach to build the essentials and basics with a youngf english coach beside him to learn & then take over.
If you appoint Redknapp or Hodgeson you will end up on the same :bou::bou::bou::bou:heap.
Moving away from teams that aren't complete bollocks, how about them Brazilians then? It's bloody impressive seeing them put down a decent side like Chile like that.
Even pragmatic Brazil have the ability to blow teams away it seems. Will be interesting to see if Holland and Germany can handle Brazil and Argentina.
I think Chile played pretty well today and would have given many teams a run for their money, it just appears Brazil managed to pull their world class form out of the bag this evening. Chile never really looked close to scoring.
I forgot about that rule. And obviously the top clubs have better academies to train the youth, so it's another failure of the system.Quote:
Originally Posted by Loony BoB
Another strange thing about British players is that a lot of the talented ones seem to fade away. Micah Richards for example. Michael Johnson (although, to be fair, he has had a lot of injury problems). Walcott. Lennon. Shaun Wright-Phillips. Whatever happened to them between 18/19 and now?
Listen.
United have TRIED English only players. Our 2004-2006 academy was 80% english with such players as Ritchie Jones, Kieron Lee, Ryan Shawcross, Tom Heaton, Luke Steele, David Jones etc etc. They were bollox.
Our Academy now is probably 70% English, most of whom will be sold to lower league clubs. You can make all the rules you want but the talent is just not there in abundance. You also have this insane rule in England that academy players must live within a certain distance to the ground.
Paraguay 2 Japan 0
Spain 1 Portugal 1 (Portugal win on penalties)
David Jones was a legend haha. He was even a major character in the 2nd & 3rd Pirates of the Caribbean movies ;)Quote:
Originally Posted by Cuchulainn
Phew, internet was broken there for over a week. Missed this thread.
I'll just make a comment on England going out. I agree with Cuchulainn on this. It's both they aren't thought at youth level to beat players and use their skill, & that they aren't born with the anatomy of an elastic band like the Portuguese for example. The English seem so stoic on the ball while the flair players of the big nations seem to have a bag of tricks. Ultimately, England's greatest downfall in the end was that they couldn't hurt teams with their possession in the final third. For what it's worth, I thought they gave everything, albeit they were probably nervous with pressure. Gareth Barry was easily England's worst player of the tournament, but he should never have been playing while carrying a slight injury.
As for Lampard's disallowed goal, it was a disgrace. Germany were the much better team and deserved to go through, but in the end the result is what counts, and it could have been a different game at 2-2. Blatter should be ashamed of himself, and the blame should solely rest on him after the Ireland - France game.
Brazil have to be favorites after last nights game. I just can't see a team left to both break them down and keep their attack at bay for 90 minutes.
Prediction for today. (Japan - Paraguay game is already being played)
Spain 1 - 0 Portugal
lol what now weeaboos
I don't think Wapaneses care about football. Just animes.
What a dire game, fell asleep repeatedly during it and woke up during the shootout.
horrible game. Can't believed I risked an aofficial warning in work to watch it. Even the penalties were shat.
I hope Spain destroy Portugal today!
Me too. :)Quote:
Originally Posted by Psychotic
I liked the nap better, tbh.
It was dull, but there's been worse at this World Cup and previous. I suspect the prospect of a first quarter-finals gave both teams stage fright. And I thought the penalties were pretty good, very well taken for the most part, I think England would have lost to either side in a shootout :D
It's like watching Arsenal (Spain) vs Bolton (Portugal) on a Winter night at the Reebok. smurfing hell. :|
Don't know if Ronaldo or Torres has been a bigger let down in this World Cup. Both have been poor. Well at least Ronaldo is entertaining me with his looks of pure outrage whenever the referee ignores his dives. :D
Casillas looking like the weak link in the Spain side. I say weak link, they have two more world class keepers on the bench. I feel sorry for Reina especially, as he was the only Liverpool player who wasn't pure and utter wank last season (hell, I would rather Torres or Gerrard left Anfield than Reina, that is how highly I rate him!)
I too am a fan of theseQuote:
Originally Posted by Psychotic
Pah, it's nothing like us playing at the Reebok, we actually beat Bolton these days.
Right, sorry. I kind of have this everlasting vision of Bolton as being the permanent manifestation of Sam Allardyce. I keep forgetting he's long gone.
I reserve the right to revoke this opinion if he scores, but for England and Rooney substitute Spain and Torres. He's completely out of it at the moment and they might well be better off replacing him in this game.
Why isn't Torres getting the abuse Rooney got? He's been equally poor, if not worse.
English papers don't really care about how big names on other teams are doing, especially whilst they're still carrying out loud, lengthy post-mortems into England's exit.
did i miss something or was that the biggest dive i've ever seen that got costa sent off?
Can't say a wry smile didn't creep across my face when I saw Ronaldo's face at the end
David Villa...best player on the planet? Possibly!
smurf Capdevila and his little theatrics. Diving for a pen or a free kick in a key area is one thing, but acting like someone decked you to get them sent off is something else.
Also I think this game, Spain specificially, highlights why England are so dire. They always had someone there, in space, ready to support the man in possession. I remember during the Algeria game and there was never any option for the man on the ball but to hoof it down field hopefully. Not that England's players are capable of stringing together accurate passes like that anyway.
Also, yeah, hahaha Ronaldo. Wink at that, mate.
Spain pretty much bossed the game once they went ahead, though they'll probably have to play a similar waiting game against Paraguay now in the quarter-finals. Ronaldo wasn't given any decent service at all.
Spain deserved to go through in the end. My mouth waters at the prospect of a Spain V Argentina semi. :drool:
EDIT: David Villa is a smashing player. The thoughts of him playing with Barcelona scares me next season.
Shame it's not going to be the final, really.Quote:
Originally Posted by Rocket Edge
The Capdevila business was hilarious, I wonder if footballers ever think to themselves 'hang on, people are going to see me go down like a ton of bricks and acting like a pillock, and I might not be too popular as a result'. This incident is even funnier as the replay suggest that maybe Costa did try to clock him but missed (and the referee sent him off for the intent), so if that is the case, he would have gone anyway and Capdevila did his dying swan routine for nothing!
England - World Cup Champions 2014. You heard it here first, THE HYPE STARTS HERE!
I suppose Rooney can take some comfort in the fact that the 'best' players for a number of the other teams haven't been too hot either. That Nike advert about writing the future makes me laugh now.
To be fair, Rooney, Torres and Ronaldo all looked like they were suffering from injury hangovers.
Plus in the case of Ronaldo, being stuck on a team of not that great players. Rooney's been a shadow of his usual self since the Man Utd v Bayern Munich game.
Congratz to whoever just overtook me on the fantasy league by 10 points!
>>> How disappointing, CR7 is going home..:luca:
My (woefully inaccurate) quarter-final predictions:
Holland 1 Brazil 3
It's hard to know what to make of Holland at the moment, and this is their first real test. They'll probably be more comfortable with underdog status anyway. But as one person said, a Brazil side who can defend and who can still score pretty good goals when they feel like it is a bit like a Dalek that can fly - really, really unfair. I tipped Brazil at the start and that's one prediction I feel like sticking with.
Uruguay 2 Ghana 1
Uruguay should have too much for Ghana, unless they make the mistake again of trying to sit back and defend a 1-0 lead.
Germany 3 Argentina 2
Having said they were going out in the last two games they played, I now do an about-face and say that I think Germany can shock Argentina here. I'll also stick my neck out further and say this could be the proverbial Game of the Tournament, with two free-flowing teams with slightly suspect defences.
Paraguay 0 Spain 1
I can see Paraguay trying to play for penalties in this one, especially as they seem to be taking the Ireland 1990 route to success (one win in four games, two goalless draws on the trot). Spain will have to be patient like they were last night, but one moment of magic can win them the game.
Even though I really want the Dutch to progress, I can't shake the feeling we'll indeed get beaten by Brazil =/
But if we get through, I hope the Germans will too. If we lose, Argentina may go on, just for the sake of rival clashes!
If Paraguay manage a shock, they might wind up having to rename this World Cup the Copa America! :)
I am very interested to see how well Spain perform when they are playing against a team that doesn't put ten men between ball and goal at every opportunity. People are lowering their chances of beating Argentina (the predicted semi) on a daily basis, but I think Spain will be a different side when they can actually have the opportunity to do something aside from trying to play through a defensive opposition. Hopefully. I have money riding on them to be in the top three (work sweepstake, money for 1st, 2nd and 3rd).
I can not understand for the life of me why Villa was playing on the far left through 90% of that game. Crazy.
No football on for the first time in 18 days. A bit confused as to what to do. Actually do some work. No, impossible.
Watched the game from the media seats, and playing Villa out wide seemed to work really well, because it stretched the Portuguese defence (as they had to have someone on Villa the whole night). So, don't think it's a poor strategy. Portugal lost the moment they subbed off Almeida (that guy is awesome), because they lost a pivot to hold up the ball. And Llorente played really well. Spain have an easy enough game against Paraguay next round, so Torres might be given one more chance, but if he blows it, Spain will be stupid not to start Llorente.
I think it was a poor strategy because it didn't work. They only started doing well when Torres was taken off, the other dude (Llorente?) replaced him and joined Villa as a striker pairing. Suddenly, Villa had strike after strike on target or close to it. The game opened up alarmingly. They have Silva, why would they need Villa on the left? They could have started Villa up front and put Silva on the left and left out Torres altogether. Villa is arguably the best striker in the world - why you would want to leave your most in-form star striker on the wing is beyond me, and while that system was in place, it didn't work. He can't cross for crap anyway, so stretching the defence meant little because it didn't open the game up for Spain, it merely meant that Portugal's defence was still unpenetratable and they had a quality striker with a poor cross on the win and an out of form striker leading the line. The mind boggles. Spain won Euro 2008 when Villa lead the line, and he did it well. You shouldn't need to stretch the defence with a guy like him on form - he'll do all the work himself (as he showed late in the second half).
I know, right. I feel lost.Quote:
Originally Posted by champagne supernova
Villa has been playing on the left/support striker for most the tournament. Even in the game against Chile, he wasn't playing as an out-and-out striker.
What happened is that Llorente came on and was actually holding up the ball, instead of losing it instantaneously like Torres, allowing players like Villa and Iniesta to support him in and around the box. Villa's position wasn't the problem, Torres was.
PLEASE HOLD WHILE THE WORLD CUP TAKES A SHORT BREAK.
Cue the adverts...
http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_KvDFauTmm3...nny-ad-002.jpg
As expected, the FA has announced that Capello will stay on as England manager. Sensible decision from FA shock! Though one crap result now in qualifying for Euro 2012 and the papers will be insufferable again.
I AM EXCITED
!!!
YES! YES! LOOK AT THE SIG, BITCH!
Well that was definitely a game of two halves. Holland did very well to come back in the second half.
Lot's of missed chances, hopefully due to tiredness, not ineptitude. It should've been 4 - 1, but WE WON BITCHES!
What a second half! I'm happy Holland go through, they're who I started supporting after England went out. And with them facing the mediocrity of Ghana or Uruguay in the semis, I can see the cloggies going all the way here.
I <3 you, manus!
It'd be the first time we'd win, I can really believe we have a chance now.
I hope Argentina don't win. If neither Argentina or Brazil make the final after they were hyped up so much prior to this match, then it would be neat. I like unpredictable winners.
Excellent. Football's Goodie Goodies Brazil are out.
smurf youQuote:
Originally Posted by Loony BoB
Viva La Albiceleste!
I told you man, Germany v Holland final!
Hope not. Then everyone with be blathering on about 1974 and 'revenge'.
Well anyhow, we have the argentina game and maybe the semi final to come.
Haven't been supporting them, but a nice shock win. I didn't expect it.
If it is a Argy v Holland final then I'm with Holland all the way, I don't want to see Argentina winning it.
Is it because you are English and are simply told how to feel about Argentine people and blindly follow party line?Quote:
Originally Posted by Crop
I honestly don't know how anyone, based on footballing reason, cannot want to see Argentina win.
smurfING EDIT: Marcel Desailly annoys the ever living hell out of me. Jumping about for Ghana like an idiot. Jumping on Ghanean joy. He chose to play from France not his home country! you don't deserve to jump up and follow them. You sold that right when you sold your soul to frogs. Sit down.
ermm, hello? LolQuote:
Originally Posted by CuchulainnIs it because you are English and are simply told how to feel about Argentine people and blindly follow party line?Quote:
Originally Posted by Crop
I honestly don't know how anyone, based on footballing reason, cannot want to see Argentina win.
You are permitted as your nation is still there AND they pretty pretty decent football too.
Jesus christ. If any of the BBC pundits and commentators mention the word 'Africa' or continue with their endless, ridiculous favouritism of a distinctly average team, I'm going to shoot somebody.
Or just put the TV on mute.
No. You're well off the mark.Quote:
Originally Posted by Cuchulainn
Isn't the game on ITV? Unless you mean Radio 5. And Uruguay are hardly average. Neither for that matter are Ghana.Quote:
Originally Posted by Old Manus
Oh right. Well I include ITV in my statement. Both teams are still average though.
How are Uruguay average? Suarez has been one of the best players in the tournament so far. And both are surely much better than Paraguay, who have won one game out of four so far.
I could not agree more. It's annoying the hell out of me. Pathetic.Quote:
Originally Posted by Old Manus
HAHAHA YESSSSSSSSSSSSS What a goal.
...Quote:
Originally Posted by charliepanayi
By what standards?
By the standards of him (and Forlan) being very good, you act like I just suggested Rooney as Player of the Tournament.