FIFA World Cup 2014

[Jestr]

Being an England fan must be the Worst.

 

Pretty much. After watching this dross for 20 years, it becomes understandable that the lobbying for England to withdraw from international football to focus solely on club competitions is so strong... There is simply not one single reason to have either pride or hope in our national team. They just disappoint us again and again and again. It doesn't even hurt any more, it's just an inevitable feeling of disgust.

 

Oh well. At least I'm not a Spaniard.

What is wrong with English team, why does it under deliver at this level.

I would have expected them to get out of the group and perhaps go as far as quarter finals.....

[Nate]

 

 

Being an England fan must be the Worst.

 

Pretty much. After watching this dross for 20 years, it becomes understandable that the lobbying for England to withdraw from international football to focus solely on club competitions is so strong... There is simply not one single reason to have either pride or hope in our national team. They just disappoint us again and again and again. It doesn't even hurt any more, it's just an inevitable feeling of disgust.

 

Oh well. At least I'm not a Spaniard.

What is wrong with English team, why does it under deliver at this level.

I would have expected them to get out of the group and perhaps go as far as quarter finals.....

 

I think the fact the EPL is filled with so many foreigners may have something to do with it, but even then they had a squad capable of doing a lot better. 

[Begbie]

 

 

Being an England fan must be the Worst.

 

Pretty much. After watching this dross for 20 years, it becomes understandable that the lobbying for England to withdraw from international football to focus solely on club competitions is so strong... There is simply not one single reason to have either pride or hope in our national team. They just disappoint us again and again and again. It doesn't even hurt any more, it's just an inevitable feeling of disgust.

 

Oh well. At least I'm not a Spaniard.

What is wrong with English team, why does it under deliver at this level.

I would have expected them to get out of the group and perhaps go as far as quarter finals.....

 

Mixture of reasons.

Poor coaching of youth across the board, dinosaurs in charge at the FA completely out of touch with the modern game.

The huge influx of money that brings the best players in the world to our shores and blocks the progress of any vaguely talented youth coming through to play at a decent level.

A reluctance to play any younger players in favour of the older 'Golden' generation (although it hasn't been quite as bad this year).

And the team, in particular the better players, under constant media scrutiny for about 6 months before any major tournament.

 

EDIT: Not to mention this is without a doubt the hardest group in the World Cup. 3/4 teams in the top 10 ffs

Edited June 19, 2014 by Begbie

[Falastur]

 

 

Being an England fan must be the Worst.

 

Pretty much. After watching this dross for 20 years, it becomes understandable that the lobbying for England to withdraw from international football to focus solely on club competitions is so strong... There is simply not one single reason to have either pride or hope in our national team. They just disappoint us again and again and again. It doesn't even hurt any more, it's just an inevitable feeling of disgust.

 

Oh well. At least I'm not a Spaniard.

What is wrong with English team, why does it under deliver at this level.

I would have expected them to get out of the group and perhaps go as far as quarter finals.....

 

 

Every person you talk to has a different answer. It's hard to nail it down. It seems to be a combination of some or all of the following:

 

- England struggling to emerge from a legacy of Stone Age coaching techniques, valuing strength and stamina over technical ability, meaning English players are not comfortable on the ball and frequently resort to punting it up-field

- FA leadership who continuously come up with the wrong solutions for solving the above, thus putting us even further behind our rivals

- A national inability (thankfully, as perhaps with the first point, slowly receding) to be able to move away from the outdated 4-4-2 style, meaning England are frequently easy to boss in midfield

- The strength of the national league meaning players are often more focused on when they will return to their clubs than on winning the game, especially in friendly matches

- A national media which both demands perfection and practices character assassination on anyone seen as not living up to expectations, meaning confidence is often shot before a ball has been kicked

- Ludicrously high expectations in general. It's only in the last two tournaments that it has not been the general belief that England are among the top 3-4 favourites to win the tournament

- As natives of a generally cold-weather country, English players frequently suffer in hot countries, forcing them into a slow passing game as they can't last the full 90 if they are playing at pace

- A complete lack of any sign of a Golden Generation. We've had a few players who have been played up as potential world class stars, but honestly we haven't had a true genius on the ball in perhaps two or three decades, unlike most of the top teams who have several of them.

[Baresi]

I think, above all those reasons, the English players just lack the mental strength.
Many international teams have had this issue before (Spain for many years until they won the Euro in 08, for example) and just can't turn talent into results.
On the other hand, teams like Italy, who some would argue haven't had the same talent pool, have been finding ways to win games for a long time.

[Falastur]

Probably also true. Honestly, there are so many reasons for why England are a national disappointment - honestly "disappointment" is not a strong enough word for it - that you could write a book on the subject.

[Jovan]

Oh well can't say you'll get much sympathy from this part of the world. No nation imo has bigger raps on themselves than the English and tbh at the national level achieved squat. Maybe now they'll accept their flaws and humbly build a national team the country deserves.

[Begbie]

Oh well can't say you'll get much sympathy from this part of the world. No nation imo has bigger raps on themselves than the English and tbh at the national level achieved squat. Maybe now they'll accept their flaws and humbly build a national team the country deserves.

 

rofl. I love the weird obsession Australia has with hating England and the national team. You don't even get reported in England

[Jestr]

Liverpool defeats England at WC

[Tesla]

As long as the English use the excuse about too many foreigners in their league, they will never progress.

The foreigners in your league make your NT stronger you muppets.

Stop making up excuses and harden the fuck up, see Baresi's post for what's wrong with England.

[Begbie]

As long as the English use the excuse about too many foreigners in their league, they will never progress.

The foreigners in your league make your NT stronger you muppets.

Stop making up excuses and harden the fuck up, see Baresi's post for what's wrong with England.

 

Explain.. When our would be future NT squad needs to be shipped to the SPL and lower leagues as they cant compete in the top English divison. Jack Rodwell, Scott Sinclair ect.

 

We are mentally weak as fuck as well, have been for years which is why we cant win penalities

[Footballism]

 

EDIT: Not to mention this is without a doubt the hardest group in the World Cup. 3/4 teams in the top 10 ffs

 

lol no way is it the hardest group. Group B is much harder, Netherlands, Chile or Spain would have won that group. Also, FIFA rankings are wank, Elo ranking is more accurate imo and B has 3 of the top 6 teams.

Maybe even group G is harder than England's group.

[Tesla]

As long as the English use the excuse about too many foreigners in their league, they will never progress.

The foreigners in your league make your NT stronger you muppets.

Stop making up excuses and harden the fuck up, see Baresi's post for what's wrong with England.

 

Explain.. When our would be future NT squad needs to be shipped to the SPL and lower leagues as they cant compete in the top English divison. Jack Rodwell, Scott Sinclair ect.

 

We are mentally weak as fuck as well, have been for years which is why we cant win penalities

Because competing makes them better players. Playing in a better quality league makes them better players. Yes, some won't make it, but those that do will become far better players.

So it might hurt the depth a bit, but in terms of quality, it's only a good thing.

Italian & Belgian leagues are just as bad as the English in terms of foreigners, and both NTs are very strong at the moment (Belgium probably lack mental strength as well and experience to do much, but they have quality young players).

Really what England could use, is one star player to just put the team on his back every now and again. Especially since they do lack mental strength, having a guy like that to inspire the team would make a massive difference. Just look at Uruguay with Suarez, made the difference completely for them. If England had a player like that, they'd be a force.

Edited June 20, 2014 by Tesla

[Begbie]

 

 

EDIT: Not to mention this is without a doubt the hardest group in the World Cup. 3/4 teams in the top 10 ffs

 

lol no way is it the hardest group. Group B is much harder, Netherlands, Chile or Spain would have won that group. Also, FIFA rankings are wank, Elo ranking is more accurate imo and B has 3 of the top 6 teams.

Maybe even group G is harder than England's group.

 

Rofl yeah fair enough, on paper it is

[Begbie]

 

 

As long as the English use the excuse about too many foreigners in their league, they will never progress.

The foreigners in your league make your NT stronger you muppets.

Stop making up excuses and harden the fuck up, see Baresi's post for what's wrong with England.

 

Explain.. When our would be future NT squad needs to be shipped to the SPL and lower leagues as they cant compete in the top English divison. Jack Rodwell, Scott Sinclair ect.

 

We are mentally weak as fuck as well, have been for years which is why we cant win penalities

 

Because competing makes them better players. Playing in a better quality league makes them better players. Yes, some won't make it, but those that do will become far better players.

So it might hurt the depth a bit, but in terms of quality, it's only a good thing.

Italian & Belgian leagues are just as bad as the English in terms of foreigners, and both NTs are very strong at the moment (Belgium probably lack mental strength as well and experience to do much, but they have quality young players).

Really what England could use, is one star player to just put his team on the back every now and again. Especially since they do lack mental strength, having a guy like that to inspire the team would make a massive difference. Just look at Uruguay with Suarez, made the difference completly for them. If England had a player like that, they'd be a force.

 

100% missing someone of real quality.

Problem is that only the few playing at the top level have the chance to benefit from the increase of standard.

FWIW England U17 won the European Championship in 2010 (and made it 2 in a row this year), most of them will be early 20's now and SHOULD be making it into the national setup.

Most are now playing for the likes of Doncaster and only Ross Barkly has made a name for himself (maybe Connor Wickham)

 

Obviously the talented imports are good to raise the standard but when you have Newcastle buying all these shit French players instead of paying more and investing in English youth it has to fuck up the system.

[Tesla]

FWIW England U17 won the European Championship in 2010 (and made it 2 in a row this year), most of them will be early 20's now and SHOULD be making it into the national setup.

Most are now playing for the likes of Doncaster and only Ross Barkly has made a name for himself (maybe Connor Wickham)

Actually, this is quite common. If you have time, look at various u20 WC squads over time, and see how many make it to a senior WC squad. You'll be very surprised.

I really dont think half these good youngsters in the English team would be as good as they are if it wasn't for the quality of the premier league, and certainly some of them are contenders to become that star England need before the next WC.

Edited June 20, 2014 by Tesla

[Tesla]

Look at this for example: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2007_FIFA_U-20_World_Cup_squads

Just had a look at Spain, I think only 2 are in the current WC squad, Brazil has 4. Quick look at Argentina, as I beleive they are usually quite good at turning over players from the youth team to the senior NT, not sure how many in the WC squad but only 3 with more than 5 caps and I dont think one of those three is in the WC squad.

Before that I had a look at the 09 u20 WC, and only looked at Brazil, and I believe there were 0 in the current squad, and only 2-3 that had played for Brazil at all (given brazil use about 200 different players a year, that's a big deal). After seeing that I assume it was too early for those guys still and moved to 07, and it's not much better.

[DutchPride]

Being an England fan must be the Worst.

Pretty much. After watching this dross for 20 years, it becomes understandable that the lobbying for England to withdraw from international football to focus solely on club competitions is so strong... There is simply not one single reason to have either pride or hope in our national team. They just disappoint us again and again and again. It doesn't even hurt any more, it's just an inevitable feeling of disgust.

Oh well. At least I'm not a Spaniard.What is wrong with English team, why does it under deliver at this level.

I would have expected them to get out of the group and perhaps go as far as quarter finals.....

Mixture of reasons.

Poor coaching of youth across the board, dinosaurs in charge at the FA completely out of touch with the modern game.

The huge influx of money that brings the best players in the world to our shores and blocks the progress of any vaguely talented youth coming through to play at a decent level.

A reluctance to play any younger players in favour of the older 'Golden' generation (although it hasn't been quite as bad this year).

And the team, in particular the better players, under constant media scrutiny for about 6 months before any major tournament.

EDIT: Not to mention this is without a doubt the hardest group in the World Cup. 3/4 teams in the top 10 ffsDon't worry, the FA have made junior football 5v5 or 7v7 to enhance passing, control and first touch from a young age, like most European nations did 10+ years ago

Edited June 20, 2014 by DutchPride

[jw1739]

IMO we only have to look at Melbourne Heart/Melbourne City to see the problems of developing young players. How many have actually come though our NYL teams to even have a place in our senior squad let alone cement a starting place in the A-League team?

 

Although it is a valid argument that the presence of quality foreign players in a domestic league improves the standard of that league, IMO it is also valid to say that their presence does inhibit the participation of young developing domestic players. In the big prestige leagues in the world there is so much money sloshing around, and so much pressure on clubs to perform in the short term, that at any particular point in time there is a sufficient supply of foreign football talent that the clubs will prefer to import players rather than play their own developing players.

 

So in short, there is no point in having a high-quality domestic league if domestic players don't get the chance to play in it.

 

That said, I doubt that there is a single magic bullet that will improve the performance of any particular team, national or otherwise. In terms of the World Cup IMO it's often forgotten that what we are witnessing now is the World Cup Finals. Those teams in Brazil at this time have had to qualify over the previous years, during which the various squads may have changed significantly. In the case of England, I would have said that the main cause of "disappointment" is the gross over-expectation in the first place. In the cases of the African nations, you only have to look at the socio-economic divisions in those countries to see why it is ridiculous to expect their football teams to perform as coherent units. And so on and so forth.

Edited June 20, 2014 by jw1739

[Begbie]

Look at this for example: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2007_FIFA_U-20_World_Cup_squads

Just had a look at Spain, I think only 2 are in the current WC squad, Brazil has 4. Quick look at Argentina, as I beleive they are usually quite good at turning over players from the youth team to the senior NT, not sure how many in the WC squad but only 3 with more than 5 caps and I dont think one of those three is in the WC squad.

Before that I had a look at the 09 u20 WC, and only looked at Brazil, and I believe there were 0 in the current squad, and only 2-3 that had played for Brazil at all (given brazil use about 200 different players a year, that's a big deal). After seeing that I assume it was too early for those guys still and moved to 07, and it's not much better.

Yeah I had a look at the u17 Euros before, Pogba and Barkly the only really promising one to come through. Wonder where all the current day superstars were at the time. Obviously HULK was out hustling in the favleas

[Tesla]

Look at this for example: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2007_FIFA_U-20_World_Cup_squads

Just had a look at Spain, I think only 2 are in the current WC squad, Brazil has 4. Quick look at Argentina, as I beleive they are usually quite good at turning over players from the youth team to the senior NT, not sure how many in the WC squad but only 3 with more than 5 caps and I dont think one of those three is in the WC squad.

Before that I had a look at the 09 u20 WC, and only looked at Brazil, and I believe there were 0 in the current squad, and only 2-3 that had played for Brazil at all (given brazil use about 200 different players a year, that's a big deal). After seeing that I assume it was too early for those guys still and moved to 07, and it's not much better.

Yeah I had a look at the u17 Euros before, Pogba and Barkly the only really promising one to come through. Wonder where all the current day superstars were at the time. Obviously HULK was out hustling in the favleas

Lol, I think he was actually playing in the Japanese 2nd division. There is more than one pathway to becoming an elite footballer.

[Tesla]

Wonder where all the current day superstars were at the time.

Also worth noting that some are just too good at a young age to play in an u20 WC, I think that was the case with Rooney IIRC.

I really think it just comes down to the fact most the players in u20 (I keep mentioning u20 because u17 is even worse in terms of players going no where afterwards) WC are the ones who have reached or gotten close to their peak at a young age. The real quality earlier peakers don't even play the u20 WC, while the rest are the shit early peakers who go no where, and a few are guys who are good enough at that age but still have potential to develop further, and they are mostly the ones that go on to play for the senior NT.

[HeartFc]

Uruaguy vs England = Liverpool Pre-season.

[Libero]

I would find it hard to blame foreigners in the domestic league for a lack of quality players in the NT

 

The fact is that if these English players WERE good enough, they would be playing in the EPL on a more regular basis ie. Rodwell

 

However, it seems there is a lack of quality coming up from grass roots level which means that these clubs need to look to overseas and to international clubs to find their players.

[HeartFc]

They don't play as a team. Look at Columbia and Chile. Those blokes would die for each other.

[Tesla]

I reckon Uruguay can have a good run as well after this morning. Suarez is fired the fuck up.

[Nate]

Anyone else reckon Costa Rica could snag an upset win here?

[Nate]

Anyone else reckon Costa Rica could snag an upset win here?

Should've put money on it 

 

Costa Rica played out of their skins but Italy were woeful, some very questionable refereeing all throughout as well.

[Nate]

France have activated beast mode against the Swiss, Matuidi and Valbuena are killing it.

 

For those interested too, Ben Williams is refereeing the Honduras vs Ecuador game following this one so good luck to both of those sides.

[Tesla]

It's all just fucked.

[HeartinHobart]

In France for the final. Would love them to be in it.

[DutchPride]

What a shit game I get to watch the first ten minutes of rofl

[bt50]

I was in Italy for the Euro Final in 2012. Not as much fun when they get flogged in the final hah

[hedaik]

Well I woke up at the right time. Goal within 2 seconds of turning the TV on then a second one two mins later.

[TPH1]

Watching Honduras V Ecuador 

Controversial decisions - Players surrounding the ref in amazement - Goals disallowed - Penalty claims missed 

and who is the Referee .......... Ben Williams !!!

 

Ps, the team benefiting from several decisions play in Yellow and Blue ....... Ring any Bells ?

[True Until I die]

I disagree with you on that one TPH1, I actually thought he had a good game, they were both not penalties and Valencia's was a clear handball in the dying minutes. You can hear him blowing his whistle for a good 5 seconds straight but the players ignore it, thus why there is a goal to be disallowed, which shouldn't even need to be disallowed.

[MaliMate]

Costa Rica decent chance of making the QF's now. Amazing.

[carlings]

I don't think the commentator is aware of the handball rule. Thought Ben Williams was pretty spot on tbh.

[kingofhearts]

All the Italy butthurt on facey and shit this morning is hilarious

[Tesla]

I quit. I just want to sleep ffs.

Edited June 21, 2014 by Tesla