...::[The Footy Desk]::... (Part 2)

[Jason]

35 minutes ago, Tchuck said:

And lol Germany. What happened? World Champions in 2014, kept the same base, completely atrocious 2018.

All that talk about how the 2014 winning team was young as well. You can't say they've wasted a generation cause they did win a World Cup but yea, they probably should have done better since then.

[Tchuck]

That was the biggest prediction, wasn't it? "This team is so young, they'll become a force to be reckoned with as they mature". Yet... Knocked out on the Euro 16, destroyed in the World Cup 18, now relegated on the Nations League after a pitiful campaign...

[Guest]

And now Germany is in the pot 2 of the EURO 2020 qualifiers draw (that will be on 2nd December)... I have a bad feeling about this, fortunately the 2 top teams in each group go through.

Anyway we've already drew Spain in the WC qualifiers and you all see how it went, this time isn't our turn (at least I hope) 

[Crokey]

What's happened with Germany is nothing new; England 1970 were absolute bobbins, despite winning it in 66, same for 94 when they didn't even qualify despite 90 being one of the best squads England's had.  It's merely a case of "tick, your turn".

[Eutyphro]

I think it has a lot to do with Löw not innovating enough, and for instance leaving Sané at home, which was ridiculous. It was clear from the last few matches that Sané is Germany's most creative and dangerous player. Germany has a great squad and if they choose to innovate their team they can be a great force again.

I'm really happy to see the Dutch national team playing so well again. It's great to see Memphis flourish like this, to see fantastic talents like Frenkie de Jong coming up. We also have a strong defence. Hopefully more great talent develops and we can be a real force again.

[Guest]

Germany is having the same crise that other WC winners have had. Italy is struggling since 2006, in the last years we've achieved good results only in EURO (final in 2012 and defeated by Germany at penalties in 2016). Spain had the same issue after the 2010 WC and EURO 2012. When a manager such a big trophy like the WC IMO he should leave, at the end he reached his goal. If you look at the winners of the past editions of the WC you can notice that only 2 nations have been able to win 2 times in a row, but these 2 episodes happened in the '30 (Italy) and in the '50-'60 (Brazil).

Germany, Spain and Italy won their last WC with an old team full of excellent players who had a lot of experience, but all these nations played with an even older team in the following edition. France managed to win with a young team and, for this reason, I think they won't have the same issue. Anyway I'm happy for Netherlands, after all these awful years the've deserved to reach the final four of the Nations League.

[Laker23]

Absolute dross today. Pathetic performance.

 

Be lucky to make the top 6 at this rate.

[Tchuck]

Real Madrid got absolutely trounced by Eibar. Could have easily been 4-0 or 5-0. Absolutely toothless team without Ronaldo. 

[Guest]

I didn't see Eibar - Real Madrid, in Italy the matches of LaLiga are broadcasted only in streaming and, with my awful connection, I can barely watch a video on YouTube at 720p (ADSL 4Mbit/s powa! ).

IMO with Ronaldo and Zidane they'd be more or less in the same position, a team that has won so many titles in the recent months at a certain point has some problems. Even last year I remember a bad Real in LaLiga, but Ronaldo and Zidane were in. Also Barcelona is having some issues, they've already lost 2 matches and drawn 4... At the moment Sevilla is beating Valladolid, so Real would only be at 6 points from the 1st place (currently Sevilla).

The next match in UCL will be very important. Roma is also having more or less the same problems in Serie A (7th place, but if Torino wins tomorrow they'll go down in 8th), but normally in the UCL they become stronger for some bizarre reasons. If Real loses to Roma, they really risk to fight for the 2nd place against CSKA on the last matchday. 

[Jason]

 walking in a Fellaini wonderland 

[Guest]

Damn Fellaini, I was already celebrating the 1st place 

We've suffered again until the 90th minute, fortunately for us it didn't go as the last time. I was happy for the win and for the qualification, then I changed channel for seeing the last minutes of Man UTD - Young Boys and I saw Fellaini celebrating... TV turned off immediately 

So I guess we'll have to beat Young Boys too... The Old Lady in the Young Boys' home, can't wait for that!

 

[Laker23]

Only thing I enjoyed about that game was Mourinho destroying the drinks crate.Just one time I'd like to see a comfortable win for the love of god.

 

I don't know who Pereira hurt but he shouldn't be sitting on the bench while Matic needlessly plays again. I'd be surprised if he could walk by the end of the season at this rate 

[Eutyphro]

I've been seeing more people say that, that Matic should be benched for Herrera. It might be the right move. Another move which would be right is playing Lingard in midfield. That way Lingard and Rashford can both make the first team, Rashford on the right wing, and Lingard as a midfielder. Some of these players have been shockingly terrible lately though, and something has to change. Pay a 100 million for an aged Modric, buy Frenkie de Jong, but please, do something about the midfield, and play an offensive tactic. Under Mourinho's tactics they seem more defensively vulnerable than if they'd actually play with offensive confidence.

Edited November 28, 2018 by Eutyphro

[Tchuck]

Klopp has a lot of charisma.

 

 

 

[Rykjeklut]

On 11/28/2018 at 3:19 PM, Eutyphro said:

Pay a 100 million for an aged Modric, buy Frenkie de Jong, but please, do something about the midfield, and play an offensive tactic. Under Mourinho's tactics they seem more defensively vulnerable than if they'd actually play with offensive confidence.

Can't see it changing under Jose at all. Sadly he won't get sacked until CL is impossible to reach.

[AndyGanteks]

Thoughts?

https://www.bbc.com/sport/football/46421656

 

---As part of Uefa's 2021-2024 cycle, the Europa League will be halved in size to 32 teams with an extra play-off round between the group stage and last 16

---Every country's champions will still enter the Champions League, but only teams from the 15 top-ranked countries will go into the Europa League group stages or qualifiers. That means teams from leagues below that level - which at the moment would include Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland, excluding their champions - would go straight into 'UEL2' qualifying rounds.

 

I mean sure, add a 3rd competition so weaker teams or the few big ones who get upset every year play in, but if everyone gets to play in CL and EL 2, why is EL1 exclusive to top 15 nations only. Kind of silly, they'll qualify anyway because they're stronger, but give all nations a chance.

Edited December 2, 2018 by AndyGanteks

[Crokey]

They just couldn't be bothered to show some humility and bring back the Cup Winners Cup, which what the teams most likely to be in this new league would have been in anyway. 

 

It'll just end up causing more congestion in domestic leagues when you're going to have that many teams being involved in European competition and then delaying midweek games, or causing fixture congestion on Sunday's to account for the midweek games where long distance travel is going tire out the players.  Which was pretty much the reason for cutting back on the CWC in the first place.

[Tchuck]

Great comeback by Arsenal last night! They really need Ramsey to renew, dude was pulling some major strings. Aubameyang was a godsend too.

 

Also Eutyphro was right with that Guendouzi kid. He has a lot of vision, can barely believe he's still only 19.

[Jason]

I think I'm just gonna find another sport cause us United fans are f*cked. Clueless and spineless board, manager who's ran out of thread and a team who can't be arsed half the time.

 

Worse still, I don't see an available manager who could turn it around. Jardim, maybe, but he's of to the Middle East I hear, which is mad given that the United job will probably be open in 6 months or less.

 

At this point I'm game for giving the job to a young British manager like Howe or f*ck it, Giggs.

[Tchuck]

Give it to me. I've probably poured hundreds and hundreds of hours managing United in the premier league in Football Manager 

 Always going over on the offensive, usually with a 4-3-3- or a 4-2-3-1. 

 

It's a sin they are underperforming the way they are. With the talent on board, man.... 

[Eutyphro]

9 hours ago, Jason said:

At this point I'm game for giving the job to a young British manager like Howe or f*ck it, Giggs.

Yep. Moronho should f*ck off to Italy or Atletico or some other place where he can play catenaccio.

 

12 hours ago, Tchuck said:

Also Eutyphro was right with that Guendouzi kid. He has a lot of vision, can barely believe he's still only 19.

I was a bit early calling him the future best dm in the world after Busquets declines, but I was also completely on point. As it turns out I'm actually always right.  lol

[Jason]

7 hours ago, Tchuck said:

Give it to me. I've probably poured hundreds and hundreds of hours managing United in the premier league in Football Manager 

 Always going over on the offensive, usually with a 4-3-3- or a 4-2-3-1. 

 

It's a sin they are underperforming the way they are. With the talent on board, man.... 

I have several thousand! 4-3-3 and 3-5-2 all day erryday for me.

 

But yea, I backed him for the first two years, I sympathised with him this season cause the board are clueless but now, uh. It just isn't working and unfortunately the board won't sack him till we mathematically can't get top four so they can save a few pennies.

[Tchuck]

Ooo I do enjoy a good 3-5-2 if I have some good wingbacks. I tend to play with either a lone striker upfront or accompanied by two inside forwards down the wings. 

 

On United, I think it was a mistake to bring Pogba. They spent a whole bunch of money on a position they had enough depth. What they really needed was a solid defender or two. And Sanchez! What the hell were they thinking?

[Jason]

Nah Pogba was the perfect signing for us. We'd been lacking midfield creativity since Scholes retired. He was the right player and still could be the right player for us.

 

The mistake was bringing in Mourinho. He's won us trophies and got us back competing and deserves credit for that, but his style of play was always gonna become a huge problem when results stopped coming in and they've stopped coming in. The Newcastle comeback probably saved his job and then the Juventus comeback probably gave him self a bit of a cushion. Question is when do the board get fed up again, cause there were mad leaks and paper talk coming out seemingly from the board before that Newcastle game when results were awful.

[Rykjeklut]

The players at Jose's disposal are much better than what he's getting out of them, no doubt. Maybe with the exception of Sanchez, because f*ck that guy.

 

A midfield built around a Pogba that isn't pissed off, with some speedy wingers and a better striker wouldn't be lamenting in mid-table.

 

Can't wait to get demolished by Arsenal today.

[SeanAlgerian]

I would like to do a LaLiga Standard Predictions 2018/2019, just need people to accept.

Spoiler

Try not to steal idea please.

 

[Crokey]

Go ahead, try it.  If you want a copy of the spreadsheet I use for the Premier League version let me know.

[Guest]

Fiuuu... Thanks Valencia, you saved us tonight! What an awful match we played... Lots of wasted occasions, Ronaldo could have easilly scored 4 goals, only the last 15 minutes played decently against a good Young Boys that had nothing to lose. Dybala turned up the match, probably his wonderful goal was regular (Ronaldo couldn't do much on that shot) and maybe we could at least take a point at home. But thankfully we've kept our 1st place.

Now we could be drawn against Atletico Madrid, Liverpool, Tottenham, Schalke 04, Ajax and Lyon... I'd like to don't face the first 3, but if you want to win the UCL you must beat everyone... Even against Young Boys. 

[Jason]

With all due respect to Valencia, that result had nothing to do with them lol. Mourinho's team selection and tactics were completely wrong, we had a chance for first in the group and should have taken it but instead played our B team which is full of players who have barely kicked a ball this season. It's getting to the point that while I'd never wish for my team to lose, if Liverpool batter us this weekend I won't even be mad cause hopefully it means Mou's one step closer out the door. It's almost a win-win situation...

[Eutyphro]

It seems he pretty much wants to be sacked at this point tbh.