I give in! We'll just see how it pans out over the next few months. If England were any good at all, I'd expect them to thrash everyone. After all, if England struggle in this group, they are hardly going to convince in the Euro finals, are they? If Switzerland are any good, I'd expect them to at least win most of their games. No one expects them to convince in the Euro finals - least of all the Swiss.
Ah. Good stuff Glid. Much like the Swiss team themselves. England will never be anything other than marginally better than the Swiss team regardless of their better league. I had expected a Swiss victory myself and was surprised that you sat back at home. Had you chucked everything at them in the 1st 20mins they would have beaten England, but you let them settle.
I know. It's all my fault. I think that had this match been further along in the competition, it might have looked different. The Swiss were tentative, but then so were England for many of the same reasons. It was much better in the 2nd half when they had settled down. I think Sterling is the real deal, but he can't finish. Well, he's still young and has time to learn. But that's what these teams need - a sort of Müller character or a Suarez who can be relied on to put the ball in the net more often than not.
Müller? You mean, a full-time, unsportsmanlike cheat who does so much to bring the game into disrepute? Someone like that, you mean?
I'm completely with you on the Müller is a cheat front. Can't stand him. Can't stand Suarez either. But then I wasn't a fan of Inzaghi - he's another one. But yes. A bloke that scores, even if in unspectacular fashion, who is often in the right place at the right time. I don't think you have to be a cheat to do that (though it is true that it is particularly cheats who come to mind).
Suarez didnt really cheat much. He just bit people. His falling over was no worse than many others in football. Ronaldo for one. Drogba etc. Muller is a nasty one too. But then look a Behrami, hes a cheat. As is Rodriguez. But so many players are these days. Horrible isnt it. Suarez on his day can terrify defenses and was often unplayable. But I am glad LFC sold him as he kept putting LFC on the front pages rather than the back pages. I had a love/hate thing with him. Sometimes just watching him he was mesmerising and at other times shameful. But thats Barcelonas problem now.
The recent Germany-Scotland match had a moment that sickened me. The Scots (Scottish ) were breaking into an attack and Müller pulled the guy with the ball back in what used to be called (inexplicably) a "professional foul". The commentary team remarked that yes, it was a foul, and yes, a bookable one, but "he had to do it, no choice really" or some such guff. I had to switch over to something else to watch then, for a while. I felt incensed. Moronic commentary I can deal with but one that is in collusion with players who ruin the game by cheating is something I really cannot stand. Disgusting.
"... sickened ... incensed ... ruin ... disgusting ..."? Come on for fuck's sake, get a grip will you, this is just a game. It really, really doesn't matter. Not in the real world.
Well, that is what is interesting. It's an entire debate. If football is just a game, and an entertainment, then there can be no room for the professional foul. If the outcome of matches is vitally important, then you can see that players need to do "what it takes to win". Roy Keane was in no doubt on this score. The problem is that football is being treated as the latter, when it is in fact the former. That is because football, like all sport (but especially football) has ceased to be a game and has become a business. As such, the business tries to survive by using whatever tactics are necessary to maximise profits. In the case of banking, this means cheating and general dishonesty. In the case of football, ditto. The difference is that football has a governing body which could impose the rules far more effectively than the government can in the case of the banks. Witness F1, which has a stewards' enquiry immediately following every little racing incident. Consequently, it seems to me that there is very little real cheating in F1 despite the money being colossal. Football needs to get its house in order. It's a classic case of the "smart for one, dumb for all" scenario. Cheating makes sense if you are the only team doing it, as it confers an unfair advantage. But if everyone is doing it, you are back to square one in the competitive sense whereas the spectacle is made far worse for the paying public. Without professional fouls, there would be far more goals and the game would be a lot better to watch. People like to see goals. You'll have a much more entertaining afternoon if your team wins 7-5 than if it wins 2-nil. The problem is that FIFA are all cheats too.
I've just been sent this by Eurosport France. FIFA 15: les notes des 50 meilleurs joueurs dévoilées | Le Mag How interesting is that? Only one English player in the top 50 players (Rooney at number 23). That seems to explain quite a lot about the English team's fortunes.
Rooney in the Top 50? That's disgusting, I am utterly sickened. Every time that buffoon is picked for England, I become incensed. He ruins the game for everyone.
