I'd be fine with a draw, but City has had issues with Liverpool's counterattack. They really need the 3 points, so I don't expect them to play conservatively, which could be their downfall.
USMNT/Soccer Thread
- Thread starter BigBlueSean_rivals178247
- Start date
73 million is WAAAYYY too much for Pulisic. My issue with the move is, if he cant beat out Sancho or even Bruun Larsen out for a spot how is he now all of a sudden going to beat out Willian and Pedro? Pedro is aging but they have Hudson-Odoi a very young, very promising talent that can play both wingers coming up too. This to me is mainly just a Branding signing in the US for Chelsea. Pulisic has kind of lost some of his sparkle, but maybe Sarri's system can get him back to form.
I tell ya what though--- England's pipeline coming through is INSANE:
Harry Kane- 24
Jadon Sancho- 18
Dele Alli - 22
Raheem Sterling - 23
Marcus Rashford - 20
Joe Gomez - 21
Ryan Sessegnon - 18
Trent Alexander Arnold - 19
Phil Foden - 18
Jordan Pickford - 24
John Stones - 24
Calumn Hudson-Odoi - 17
Angel Gomes - 17
Morgan Gibbs White - 18
Ademola Lookman - 20
Reiss Nelson - 18
James Maddison - 21
Ben Chilwell - 21
Alex Oxlade Chamberlain - 24
Ethan Smith Rowe - 17
Ruben Loftus Cheek - 22
Luke Shaw - 22
Tammy Abraham - 20
Harry Winks - 22
Dom Solanke - 20
Marcus Edwards - 19
Tom Davies - 20
Rhian Brewster - 18
Reo Griffiths - 18
Edward Nketiah - 19
Ainsley Maitland Niles - 20
Aron Wan-Bissaka - 20
Jese Lingard - 25
Rob Holding - 22
And If You look closely, you see a commonality coming through with over 80% of those players----- They are mulatto or have african ancestry..... Which if you look at the two top teams right now---- France and Belgium---- you see the same thing. So long as England doesn't **** the bed I think they will compete for 2020 Euro AND 2022 World Cup. They have shown in the UEFA Nations League that the world cup is not a fluke.
The attacking combo of Sancho, Kane, Sterling, Alli is SCARY to think about. Spain found out the hard way.
Harry Kane- 24
Jadon Sancho- 18
Dele Alli - 22
Raheem Sterling - 23
Marcus Rashford - 20
Joe Gomez - 21
Ryan Sessegnon - 18
Trent Alexander Arnold - 19
Phil Foden - 18
Jordan Pickford - 24
John Stones - 24
Calumn Hudson-Odoi - 17
Angel Gomes - 17
Morgan Gibbs White - 18
Ademola Lookman - 20
Reiss Nelson - 18
James Maddison - 21
Ben Chilwell - 21
Alex Oxlade Chamberlain - 24
Ethan Smith Rowe - 17
Ruben Loftus Cheek - 22
Luke Shaw - 22
Tammy Abraham - 20
Harry Winks - 22
Dom Solanke - 20
Marcus Edwards - 19
Tom Davies - 20
Rhian Brewster - 18
Reo Griffiths - 18
Edward Nketiah - 19
Ainsley Maitland Niles - 20
Aron Wan-Bissaka - 20
Jese Lingard - 25
Rob Holding - 22
And If You look closely, you see a commonality coming through with over 80% of those players----- They are mulatto or have african ancestry..... Which if you look at the two top teams right now---- France and Belgium---- you see the same thing. So long as England doesn't **** the bed I think they will compete for 2020 Euro AND 2022 World Cup. They have shown in the UEFA Nations League that the world cup is not a fluke.
The attacking combo of Sancho, Kane, Sterling, Alli is SCARY to think about. Spain found out the hard way.
Yup. It's not hard to see why that there is an elite athleticism that is present in athlete's who are mulatto or of African heritage. But it's very specific to mulatto's as well.
First, you are talking about a group of people who both from natives and colonizing countries have been enslaved for a long period. Slavers often would force women and men who were big and strong to mate with one another to produce physically gifted offspring. You do that for generations and you'll start to influence genetics. But the key to places like England, Belgium and France is 1) Embracing the diversity, 2) the exposure in those countries to academies that enhance their technical ability and 3) socio-economic status of these individuals. A big problem with England for an extended period was the fact that it was mostly middle to upper class white players who always played in academies which cut down the cutting edge of creativity. Basically not enough street soccer. These african/ mulatto players are different, mainly because they come from poor backgrounds. So they have the background of street soccer which brings an added creative element.
You pair that with supreme athleticism and then add the technique and you have a player that has tremendous advantages.
It's the precise reason the MLS wants stadiums and academies located in downtown areas of cities. It's the exact reason Atlanta built those soccer courts on that abandoned train station in the poor, predominantly African American populated areas. Tapping that population is key to the growth of our national team....much as it already has for Belgium and France and will for England too. The countries struggling with it are struggling--- look at Germany and it's issues with Ozil and Gundogan as well as the mess that it was of leaving Leroy Sane out of the world cup .Spain as well. Diverse players equates to a diverse view of the game. Which means you're adaptable. Makes you harder to beat.
Hello, we have seen it just this past World Cup Cycle with France. There just arent many guys like Paul Pogba/Dele Alli--- Both 6'3, tall, strong, physical, pacey, agile, technical players. Englands great run of form as of late is the direct result of the implementation of guys like Rashford, Sterling, Dele Alli, Danny Rose, Kyle Walker etc....
Affirmative Action has no real application here really. Affirmative action is the result of systemic disenfranchisement. And studies have show that Affirmative action isn't enough. Study was just done on how just hiring 1 African american or woman actually isn't good because they have no one to confide in or relate to and often times it results in them being ostracized. In situations multiple were hired they saw far different results and higher levels of production. So really not getting your point in all of this.
Different cultures see and solve problems differently and propose different solutions. The more views you have of a problem and the more options you have to solve said problem - the higher the efficacy of solving said problem becomes. Not a crazy concept. Simple logic.
sorry bro, race doesn't matter... occasionally you'll post something so wrong I'll have to respond, so forgive the correction, but you actually inadvertently stumble on the real answer.
those european countries have to import a lower class to sustain their economies... those shifting demographics coupled with decreasing birth rates are the sole reason you reach the conclusion you do; it has absolutely zero to do with new cultural perspectives increasing the efficiency of problem solving.
here's a few bullet points as I don't like spending too much time on post and have a hand injury.
- belgium is what it is because of two phenomenal once in a generation players, without them they and their golden generation are no better than denmark so their diversity would equal no diversity in comparable countries.
- emergent England has way more to do with other factors like improving and dominant premier league... more international players in league equals greater familiarity with styles of play and internal cohesiveness (English teammates of the past never liked one another due to club rivalries and whatever else, guys sleeping with other players' wives etc)
- the best French players were always foreign descent with their best ever being Algerian, there is nothing new there
- the players of the future, like the past, will show absolutely no correlation with athletic ability other than minimum level needed and general overall improvements in sports science
- save your list and take a look at it 10 years from now
- 30 years from now you will see, the best soccer on average will always be from the real powers Brazil/Germany/Italy and the lower tier others like Holland Argentina Spain France totally irrespective of athletic ability... there is a natural eb and flow to the quality of generations and team chemistry which is way more important than athletic ability and diversity
those european countries have to import a lower class to sustain their economies... those shifting demographics coupled with decreasing birth rates are the sole reason you reach the conclusion you do; it has absolutely zero to do with new cultural perspectives increasing the efficiency of problem solving.
here's a few bullet points as I don't like spending too much time on post and have a hand injury.
- belgium is what it is because of two phenomenal once in a generation players, without them they and their golden generation are no better than denmark so their diversity would equal no diversity in comparable countries.
- emergent England has way more to do with other factors like improving and dominant premier league... more international players in league equals greater familiarity with styles of play and internal cohesiveness (English teammates of the past never liked one another due to club rivalries and whatever else, guys sleeping with other players' wives etc)
- the best French players were always foreign descent with their best ever being Algerian, there is nothing new there
- the players of the future, like the past, will show absolutely no correlation with athletic ability other than minimum level needed and general overall improvements in sports science
- save your list and take a look at it 10 years from now
- 30 years from now you will see, the best soccer on average will always be from the real powers Brazil/Germany/Italy and the lower tier others like Holland Argentina Spain France totally irrespective of athletic ability... there is a natural eb and flow to the quality of generations and team chemistry which is way more important than athletic ability and diversity
That was the most pointless post I've ever read. Sure the best soccer will remain with the powers. Look at Holland when they've been their best. Ruud Gullit. Frank Rijkaard. Clarence Seedorf. Look at what the Netherlands team who missed the world cup but is in the semi's of the UEFA nation's league. Virgil Van Djik, Depay, Wijnaldum, Babel, Promes, Bergjwin, Ake, Vilhena, Tete.
The premier league has always had a high concentration of foreign players and post 1990's has been a top if not the top league. A lot of the big powers have a tendency to over possess. What more are moving towards are a direct approach that utilizes guys like Dembele, Mbappe, Rashford, Sterling, Sane, Sancho. Spain has struggled outside of their run in the early 2000s directly because of this. I've literally seen tons of "experts" in Ian Darke, Gerrard echo the same sentiments. It always cracks me up when folks get triggered when race is referred to as annexplaan exp for something. Brazil is an exception to this but overall it's having an impact on the sport. We can argue how much of it is due to it but it's not "no effect".
Again why you think the MLS is so headstrong about putting facilities and stadiums in predominantly African American heavily populated communities? So stop with your complete denial. Your Croatia's of the like are red herrings.
Ofcourse it's a pointless post to someone who has almost zero understanding of the sport, your excessive name dropping notwithstanding.
The points I listed above were just the first and easiest to express that came to mind, i could literally go on for days about how wrong you are. France for example is not what htey are because of Pogba's athleticism, rather because of the excellent and intelligent play of ngolo kante ad deGreizmann, unremarkable athletes... particularly Kante, his soccer intelligence is of a particularly rare sort very rarely seen in the game. Pogba is a great player in spite of not because of his size.
And my Croatia has nothing to do with it, though incidentally you could field an ex-Yugo and expatriot paper team which could not be matched by any real nation today. Noone is triggered, believe it or not some people don't see the world in terms of groups like you apparently do, but I do find it revealing and illustrative that you pick a sport to be fan of where you can sit from your armchair and freely disagree with experts comfortably and unchallenged.... must be cause they are triggered, give me a break.
The points I listed above were just the first and easiest to express that came to mind, i could literally go on for days about how wrong you are. France for example is not what htey are because of Pogba's athleticism, rather because of the excellent and intelligent play of ngolo kante ad deGreizmann, unremarkable athletes... particularly Kante, his soccer intelligence is of a particularly rare sort very rarely seen in the game. Pogba is a great player in spite of not because of his size.
And my Croatia has nothing to do with it, though incidentally you could field an ex-Yugo and expatriot paper team which could not be matched by any real nation today. Noone is triggered, believe it or not some people don't see the world in terms of groups like you apparently do, but I do find it revealing and illustrative that you pick a sport to be fan of where you can sit from your armchair and freely disagree with experts comfortably and unchallenged.... must be cause they are triggered, give me a break.
Because that's where the poor kids are, there are also obvious market forces at play there like cheaper urban land.
Here's another point, in the rest of the world all kids play street soccer, not just the poor. All kids are playing on concrete basketball courts after school and they aren't all getting loaded up in vans with their soccer mom's who take them to chucky cheese's after the game. Obviously, those aren't the kids who are going to be the future of USA soccer.
it's not just minorities who play in such conditions like you imply...
literally, could go on for days about how wrong you are. player quality will never be correlated with athleticism, that doesn't mean that being faster isn't of some benefit, but there is never and will never be a correlation.
Never said it was solely about athleticism. Spoke specifically about England. It's not just that mulatto of African players are more athletic (which they are)... It's about the duality of the elite athleticism, a physique that's different and offers a pairing of attributes that is rare (i.e. elite speed/agility with way above average size) paired with the technical aspect of the game . It's precisely why Brazil with their Ginga style, which required elite athleticism and creativity, revolutioniore the game. African nation's often have this elite athleticism but lacl the technical and tactical side. My entire point is due to the great dispersion in Africa due to imperialism and colonialism you have far more immogrants in countries like England, Belgium, France etc. That are able to pair the physical gifts of these players with the technical and tactical aspects.
Sure MLS wants poor kids playing in our jacked up pay for play system.. but they also know poverty disproportionately affects minority kids, which largely reside in the south... Which is where a ton of push is being emphasized by both the FA and MLS.
All of that is well and good and all, but you are still 100%flat out do not pass go directly to jail wrong.
Perhaps here I can illustrate this most succinctly.
No amount of or combination of said players is ever going to better than Xavi/Iniesta/Busquets midfield, unremarkable athletes who totally dominated world football both at club and international level at their peak. At no point whatsoever has anybody in Spanish football with any sense muttered to themselves, man if we don't stop overpossessing and find ourselves some quicker and more direct attacking wings we are not going to be able to keep up with England.
Perhaps here I can illustrate this most succinctly.
No amount of or combination of said players is ever going to better than Xavi/Iniesta/Busquets midfield, unremarkable athletes who totally dominated world football both at club and international level at their peak. At no point whatsoever has anybody in Spanish football with any sense muttered to themselves, man if we don't stop overpossessing and find ourselves some quicker and more direct attacking wings we are not going to be able to keep up with England.
not to interject on your guys back and forth but the whole Germany is struggling because they aren’t inclusive is silly.
Germany had the same problem the past 3 or 4 World Cup champs have had: they don’t change up their play after winning. I think it’s 3 straight winners haven’t made it out of the group stage in the next World Cup.
The winners get complacent and trust the old guard who are 4 years older with the same system. This doesn’t have to do with race.
Not going to weigh in on the rest but if you make an argument at least back it up with a better example than Germany.
Germany had the same problem the past 3 or 4 World Cup champs have had: they don’t change up their play after winning. I think it’s 3 straight winners haven’t made it out of the group stage in the next World Cup.
The winners get complacent and trust the old guard who are 4 years older with the same system. This doesn’t have to do with race.
Not going to weigh in on the rest but if you make an argument at least back it up with a better example than Germany.
Part of that playing the same way with Germt leads to the exclhsing of guys like Sane and Gnabry who don't fit that playstyle.
Yes and every other player no matter race. Per your theory Germany should have immediately gotten better with Gnabry, Sané, Kehrer in the lineup. Well Germany did just that in the uefa nations league and finished bottom of their group.
Germany’s downfall in the World Cup and still was/is due to tactics and trusting the previous cycle’s players (regardless of race) and Low instead of changing things up just like Spain in 2014 and Italy in 2010.
Sané should have been in the squad no doubt but on the other side Khedira shouldn’t have been.
Germany’s downfall in the World Cup and still was/is due to tactics and trusting the previous cycle’s players (regardless of race) and Low instead of changing things up just like Spain in 2014 and Italy in 2010.
Sané should have been in the squad no doubt but on the other side Khedira shouldn’t have been.
Those players are also very young and experience is something any coach worth his salt should consider over athleticism.
Not talking Germany, but a coach should play his most skilled players for the position and then design whatever tactics around that, not the other way around. He should shuffle the deck to get players who are complimentary and cohesive to that end, if those players happen to be more athletic then all the better.
Not talking Germany, but a coach should play his most skilled players for the position and then design whatever tactics around that, not the other way around. He should shuffle the deck to get players who are complimentary and cohesive to that end, if those players happen to be more athletic then all the better.
They played them yes, but played the same old possession based style with them. If you are going to play the likes of Gnabry and Sane you need a far more direct approach that allows them to use their pace and athleticism more a la what France did with Mbappe and Griezmann. sure it is part tactics, and part personnell and matching the two together.
Teams like Spain, Brazil, Argentina, Germany, Italy have a tendency to fall in love with themselves and equate possession to goals. How France undid that is by playing far more direct and utilizing the pace and athleticism of Mbappe to its fullest.
Its not really too hard.... Germany has no target forward of quality. Much of their probing and attacking play in the final third is predicated on service into the box in the form of crosses. That does you no good with Timo Werner as your forward who is under 6'foot and 150lbs soaking wet.
Germany should literally just take a page out of France's book:
4-2-3-1
Gnabry
Sane, Reus, Werner/Brandt
Kroos, Kimmich/Goretzka
Another issue for Germany is the lack of quality at left back. Plattenhardt and Hector aren't good enough. Gotta injhect some youth there whether its Kehrer, Henrichs, Itter, Torunarigha. CB's you have some of the best in the world to chose from. Same with Keepers---- but you cant keep playing this possession based style. Gotta go more direct and use your front 3 to press some.
Germany should literally just take a page out of France's book:
4-2-3-1
Gnabry
Sane, Reus, Werner/Brandt
Kroos, Kimmich/Goretzka
Another issue for Germany is the lack of quality at left back. Plattenhardt and Hector aren't good enough. Gotta injhect some youth there whether its Kehrer, Henrichs, Itter, Torunarigha. CB's you have some of the best in the world to chose from. Same with Keepers---- but you cant keep playing this possession based style. Gotta go more direct and use your front 3 to press some.
Same with Spain--- they have some elite youngsters in Asensio, Brahim Diaz, SAul, Inaki Williams, Soler, Oyarzabal, Ferran Torres, Paco Alcacer, Santi Mina and Adama Traore...
Get those guys into the team. Let them lose. Does you no good to have 78% possession and no goals.
Get those guys into the team. Let them lose. Does you no good to have 78% possession and no goals.
Somewhat--- But I think there is some legitimate issues with the German FA and the non-selection of Sane (yes based on race) as well as the inner turmoil with Gundogan as well as Ozil. Germany's true colors were shown.
Think the title race for PL is gonna be fun to watch--- I think Liverpool is gonna choke. Man City playing with fire and still without KDB. Will be interesting to see what Man City does this month transfer wise. Rumors of them buying Chillwell. They're apparently in for Dybala too. Also saw where Quintero is an option for Man City--- still not sold Liverpool is deep enough or can spend enough.
Also saw where Man U could land Coutinho. That could be fun.
Also saw where Man U could land Coutinho. That could be fun.
Here's where you show your lack of fundamental understanding and logic.
France could afford to play negatively because 1-10 (throwaway Giroud just to hold up play and not get in the way) they have the best players and probably the best defense in international play.
You also can't simply equate Mbappe to those other players because he is exceptional and has to be played no matter what team he is on.
France won because of skill, not because they are reinventing the wheel (they are not, there is nothing new here under the sun) and you will not see some sort of French/English dominance over SPanish/Italian in years to come because they equate possession to goals. I don't actually mean to be so harsh in my typing, but you literally have no clue how ridiculous that statement is. I'm sure I probably can't convince you of that, but I'm gonna try to at least so maybe people who happen to read this thread and may not be so familiar with soccer won't be misled.
France won because a unique combination of skill and athleticism and versatility. It enabled them to play a CDM in Blaise Matuidi at LM/LW. Pogba and Kante have elite skill but what makes them so special is that combination of elite skill with insane physical traits that enable them to cover so much ground on defensively while combining it with the skill to initiate the attack as well. Them being of African ancestry plays a part in that. Name me 1, 1 white player that combines the unique technical and physical traits that Paul Pogba does. Sane is every bit a good and capable of being at or near the level of Mbappe so long as you play tactically in a manner that lets him do what he does best. I didn't say they reinvented the wheel. I'm saying the presence of a certain demographic on their team is aiding them in their success.
If anyone is doing the misleading on the thread its you---- boiling it all down to simple skill. The skill on Italy is still top notch---yet they missed the world cup. Same as Netherlands. Skill on Argentina is elite---- they're total *** of recent. Spain is seeing some of this too--- its is not as simple as technique/skill. You obviously have shown that you arent truly paying attention to what I am saying considering how you often mis-represent my position. Its ok though---- Not everyone can process the game holistically----
Wish I could say its been fun--- but it really hasn't. BTW Croatia sucks.
haha, why you mad? that's not my intent in correcting you.
most of what you say is true or true enough, but typing a lot doesn't proove any point especially not the one you think it does.
i understand precisely what you are saying, that athleticism and tactics can supplant skill and form. in the end, that is your position and it is 100% flat out wrong
skill and form are infinitely more important
this is what makes kante kante, not his athleticism which is nothing to write home about anyway...
But it is absolutely that simple. Let's ignore national teams as they can only select from a limited pool of players available to them. The last 3 champions league titles were won by RM. RM has unlimited buying potential; they can and will buy the best players wherever they are, being only limited by market realities. RM buys the most skilled players they can period, not the most skilled athletes they can so as to be more versatile.
Looking at transfer numbers, number for Christian Erickson is over $100 million. He's a nice player but what am I missing?
He is a genius player which illustrates the point I am making, an ounce of said skill is worth a pound of athleticism. It's his soccer intelligence which makes him so noteworthy, same for Kante whose ability to read the opponent's intent is his primary attribute worth its weight in gold.
You don't even have to look as far as one of Pogba's own teammates to find one. Ibrahimovic was every bit as technical and physical in his prime as Pogba is. He had the creativity and vision to play as a playmaker, but the reason you don't play him there is entirely because of his exceptional finishing ability, or you just assume that since he is part Croatian he must suck.
No, those type of players are unicorns for more fundamental reasons you aren't even aware of, namely that as foot size increases, margin for error in striking the ball decreases and these tall players do not get the benefits of a low center of gravity which makes dribbling easier.
Again you are COMPLETELY missing everything. I am not saying I want a pure athlete over a technician. What I am saying if African players and mulatto players offer the duality at a much higher rate. You are talking of these as if they are mutually exclusive. They aren't, and more often than not you find the blend of elite athleticism and elite skill and technical ability in African immigrant players playing for European teams. Pogba is literally elite athleticism infused with everything in Christian Eriksen. I give you Zlatan, but again, thats like the only guy you can really name.
For comparison sake its like looking at the DB position in football in the NFL and power 5 conferences in CFB. You see any white DB's anywhere? No. I can teach technique to anyone. I cant teach pure athleticism. Hense why over 95% of DB's are black..... because elite athleticism is more prominent in that race. Very simple fact.
For comparison sake its like looking at the DB position in football in the NFL and power 5 conferences in CFB. You see any white DB's anywhere? No. I can teach technique to anyone. I cant teach pure athleticism. Hense why over 95% of DB's are black..... because elite athleticism is more prominent in that race. Very simple fact.
I am not misrepresenting or misunderstanding your post, you are still missing my point which would only benefit you to get a better grasp of it.
It's not that the game doesn't evolve, or that there are more athletic players today than there were 30 years ago or that athleticism isn't advantageous, it's that relative to skill, creativity, ingenuity and ability (not some sort of technique you think can just easily train in your NFL example) it means next to absolutely nothing. It is not some tremendous advantage as you stated.
If you want to talk NFL, you look at the QB nod a DB. Does it matter Tom Brady is slow and old? No. Why doesn't it matter and why has he been able to push the limits of his successful career?
Take two players of equal skill and one's a little more athletic, sure all the better. Take two players of similar athletic qualities and you have even a modicum of difference in soccer intelligence than you going to reap tremendous advantages there and in no other manner.
Back to soccer examples, take the best player in the world. If it's not Messi then it's Ronaldo. One's an elite athlete the other isn't. Doesn't matter, Messi is the best player the world will likely ever see.
Sticking with Argentina, they were a totally disheveled unit kicking their coach off the team basically this last world cup. That affects them way more than anything, way more than having no real fast wingers to get in behind the defense (though you need some yes, but relatively speaking not having that and not having Messi play in more comfortable position for him pales in comparison to other factors like team moral and Argentina not having many playmakers capable of creating for messi etc)
But really the Xavi/Iniesta example was best. Spain plays more directly now than they did then, but it's because they don't have that absolutely insane of a combo dominating the game for them is why they aren't what they were, not because Ascencio isn't as fast as Sterling or they have a tendency to overpossess.
It's not that the game doesn't evolve, or that there are more athletic players today than there were 30 years ago or that athleticism isn't advantageous, it's that relative to skill, creativity, ingenuity and ability (not some sort of technique you think can just easily train in your NFL example) it means next to absolutely nothing. It is not some tremendous advantage as you stated.
If you want to talk NFL, you look at the QB nod a DB. Does it matter Tom Brady is slow and old? No. Why doesn't it matter and why has he been able to push the limits of his successful career?
Take two players of equal skill and one's a little more athletic, sure all the better. Take two players of similar athletic qualities and you have even a modicum of difference in soccer intelligence than you going to reap tremendous advantages there and in no other manner.
Back to soccer examples, take the best player in the world. If it's not Messi then it's Ronaldo. One's an elite athlete the other isn't. Doesn't matter, Messi is the best player the world will likely ever see.
Sticking with Argentina, they were a totally disheveled unit kicking their coach off the team basically this last world cup. That affects them way more than anything, way more than having no real fast wingers to get in behind the defense (though you need some yes, but relatively speaking not having that and not having Messi play in more comfortable position for him pales in comparison to other factors like team moral and Argentina not having many playmakers capable of creating for messi etc)
But really the Xavi/Iniesta example was best. Spain plays more directly now than they did then, but it's because they don't have that absolutely insane of a combo dominating the game for them is why they aren't what they were, not because Ascencio isn't as fast as Sterling or they have a tendency to overpossess.
The ha doing of Alexis Sanchez and Aaron Ramsey is mind boggling to me man....
Guys are losing some ground in the epl too after I thought you were really improving. But seems like things will turn around. New coach takes a little time. But damn losing Ramsey and especially for nothing in return is crazy.
We literally did the exact same thing with Alexis. If you are gonna get rid of Alexis sell him the year before. Could've easily gotten 60-70mil. Same with Ramsey except we could have gotten 30-40mil. Speaks to what I have been afraid of this whole time which was as bad as Wenger had gotten, Kroenkie was even worse .Those type thing never happen at Man U, Loverpool or Man City. I've been debating for a while now just abandoning the who arsenal train as a whole. I've always been a huge fan of People and like a lot of their players like KDB, Ederson, Fernandinho, both Silva's and Sane. Hell even Tottenham has demonstrated a better front office. But you gotta think that's coming close to an end. I think Pochettino is headed to Man U and eventually they aren't gonna be able to keep Kane, Eriksen and Alli all together .
Fair point but stay with your team man! Emre can allowed to leave for zero. Pogba left for pennies. In the epl they make so much money. Point remains though 35 m for ramsey. Thats 35 million ! Get yourself a difference maker for a player. Just seems to long now arsenal okay with being 5 or 6 in the epl.
OK I am officially done lol. Listen I loved the Club in the early 2000s. They introduced me to the game. Robert Pires, Dennis Bergkamp, Thierry Henry, Sol Campbell..... But this Arsenal is a shadow of what it used to be under the leadership of Stan Kroenke. First it was Arsene Wenger, which i did not have a problem with. Then went president Ivan Gazidis to join far worse off AC Milan. Now, Sven Mislintat, director of player personnel and head of recruitment is gone due to differences in transfer strategy because the club refused to give money and said any deal had to be a loan deal to do anything in January. Its been fun, but this current leadership is ***. They have no desire to win. And with that I now take my allegiance to Man City due mainly to Pep Guardiola and his tactical an aesthetic way his teams play.
#FromGunnertoCityzen
#F%^#Arsenal