World Cup 2018

[Deleted member 15344]

Really enjoyable game - felt a bit sorry for the Japanese who played some lovely football

Belgium will need to change a bit for when they play Brazil

 

[chrisd]

Same for me. Japan were so good,I feel for them

 

[Deleted member 18588]

Those things are very rare in Rugby nowadays.

These little sissy boys shenanigans are constant

The extreme cases are, I agree, becoming rarer but there remain plenty enough cases in the Premiership and internationals.

In addition there is an increasing element of dissent with officials creeping in.

 

[User20205]

The extreme cases are, I agree, becoming rarer but there remain plenty enough cases in the Premiership and internationals.

In addition there is an increasing element of dissent with officials creeping in.

You can’t defend football by saying other sports have issues too, you’re right they have.
Football at its best is brilliant, I really enjoyed the Japan Belgium game, but neymar WTF???
A grown man, a professional sportsman, behaving like toddler, in a sport that legitimises it

 

[Deleted member 18588]

You can’t defend football by saying other sports have issues too, you’re right they have.
Football at its best is brilliant, I really enjoyed the Japan Belgium game, but neymar WTF???
A grown man, a professional sportsman, behaving like toddler, in a sport that legitimises it

I could never for one minute suggest that Neymar's antics are anything but disgusting.

However it is wrong to say that football legitimises those actions.

The difficulty for the authorities and in particular referees is in proving that a player has not been hurt.

One of those situations where it may be "known" but impossible to prove.

Like you I find it more than annoying but these days it would not take long for a club or national side to retrospectively produce evidence of a so called injury if a player was disciplined for feigning.

At times my sympathies lie with the authorities.

 

[GaryK]

World Class = the number of times you can rollover when challenged.

Neymar, for all the skill that he possesses and money earned, is exactly what we're talking about here.
I certainly wouldn't want him to be a member of my team.

Yes, the "afters" today were out of order, but his reaction was probably worse.
Would you want such a self centred wuss on you side in conflict?

Fart near him and he'd be gasping for air!

 

[Slab]

Football is inherently dishonest.

Constant appealing for throw ins when it is clear the ball was put out by your own team, Moving the ball forward for free kicks (when not sprayed by the ref), the wall creeping forward every blooming time, kicking the ball away when the oppo gets a free kick, diving, feigning injury, constantly arguing and swearing at the officials etc

It’s infuriating.

Full agreement
(and how many of these guys then pick up a set of golf clubs on their days off... and I'm supposed to believe they're instantly reformed! I wouldn't fully trust a footballer at any level of the game when on a golf course)



Sorry for OT

 

[Bunkermagnet]

Interesting discussion about Neymar on 5live yesterday before the game. He hasn’t ocme through the “hard way” , and so his defence against other players is the referee. He has always played with histrionics, and is used to being “accommodated”.

Perhpaps if he, and other players who appear to have been shot, should be made to leave the field for assessment by a neutral doctor before being allowed back onto the pitch in a similar way to the way rugby deals with HIA.

 

[Lord Tyrion]

Interesting discussion about Neymar on 5live yesterday before the game. He hasn’t ocme through the “hard way” , and so his defence against other players is the referee. He has always played with histrionics, and is used to being “accommodated”.

Perhpaps if he, and other players who appear to have been shot, should be made to leave the field for assessment by a neutral doctor before being allowed back onto the pitch in a similar way to the way rugby deals with HIA.

I thought this the other day with Suarez faking being hit in the head. Had he had to go for a full concussion assessment then I doubt he would have tried it on.

 

[User62651]

Anyone notice when the Mexican player touched Neymar's ankle with his toes (heel on ground) he was also partly standing on the ref's toes too, ref never blinked. Liked it earlier when the other Mexican pulled Neymar onto his feet. Neymar is winning no friends or respect even though we know he's pretty good. He may be playing a game of attracting attention to deflect from teammates, take all the media stuff on his own shoulders to free up his teammates, no scrutiny on them at all and after the debacle of 2014 maybe that is sensible, taking a grenade for the team. Just a thought.
Thing is it arguably doesn't ruin football at all, it's comedy gold and it makes it more entertaining, creates a range of emotional responses including ridicule, disdain, laughter, endless discussion etc.

 

[Deleted member 15344]

I’m not sure what’s worse - Neymars antics which I expect he isn’t even embarrassed about and has grown up to play like that because he has always been protected OR

The constant “it’s coming home” that’s all over the media , social media - you would think it’s won already , some getting a touch ahead of themselves

 

[Papas1982]

I’m not sure what’s worse - Neymars antics which I expect he isn’t even embarrassed about and has grown up to play like that because he has always been protected OR

The constant “it’s coming home” that’s all over the media , social media - you would think it’s won already , some getting a touch ahead of themselves

The antics of Neymar are far worse imo.

The fans getting ahead ahead of themselves are the same ones who swear blind allegiance to their clubs and see no wrong in whatever they do. All clubs/nations have em.

 

[Orikoru]

Why does Martinez have prob the best attacking midfielder in world football sitting so deep and pretty much playing a holding type roll ? What a waste of talent - he should be higher up the pitch closer to Hazard and Lukaku doing what he does best

I said all along he was a crap manager. Give him credit for the changes he made when both players scored, of course - but it masks the fact that the system he's using is completely inept. He seems determined to use this 3-4-2-1 system, but his left wingback is an attacking winger with no interest in defending - they were carved open down that side time and time again last night. Yet he failed to call him an actual left back / left wing back. KDB is absolutely wasted playing as a deep midfielder in a pair, far too deep to do any damage and he's hardly the most defensively sound midfielder. He left Nainggolan at home claiming that he doesn't fit the tactical shape, yet he would have been much more suited to that midfield role than KDB (note: I don't believe that was the real reason he left him at home, but he made himself look daft for saying that). I think the quality of the players is masking Martinez's tactically ineptitude at the moment, but I'll be surprised if they don't come unstuck against Brazil.

I've got three Belgians in my fantasy team, mini league with my son. I lumped in thinking this was a banker. I'm having a mare 

Yeah same here. Chucked Courtois in, and already had Meunier as I figured they could manage a clean sheet against Japan. Gave Lukaku the captain's armband as well, and the best thing he did all game was actually to dummy the ball for someone else. No points for that. Typical.

 

[User62651]

Noticed Klinsmann coming to defence of Neymar's antics with justification being how many times Neymar gets fouled, think he missed the point about cheating and unsportsmanlike behaviour. Of course Klinsmann was one of the worst for rolling about 'injured' and arguably took that cheating behaviour tactic to the EPL, was the most high profile for it I think at Spurs having done it at Inter and famously for Germany too.

 

[Orikoru]

Noticed Klinsmann coming to defence of Neymar's antics with justification being how many times Neymar gets fouled, think he missed the point about cheating and unsportsmanlike behaviour. Of course Klinsmann was one of the worst for rolling about 'injured' and arguably took that cheating behaviour tactic to the EPL, was the most high profile for it I think at Spurs having done it at Inter and famously for Germany too.

Yeah, really that's a completely separate point. One doesn't justify the other. Yes he gets kicked a lot, that doesn't mean he should fanny about on the floor like a complete flannel.

 

[Deleted member 16999]

Belgium beat Japan 3-2 last night, just in case the experts on here missed the result. Hindsight is a wonderful thing.

Why shouldn’t a nation get behind one of its sports team? We can dream, we can hope, we can speculate, WHY NOT?

Nobody has said England WILL win the WC, some of said we COULD, we also could get beat by Columbia tonight or any other future fixture if we get through.

The constant putting down others and criticising selections even when we win is the sign of very boring miserable people.

I’m positive there are, so called, English football supporters on this thread just waiting for England to lose so they can tell us everything that is wrong with the squad, team selection, formation etc etc.

 

[Deleted member 15344]

The antics of Neymar are far worse imo.

The fans getting ahead ahead of themselves are the same ones who swear blind allegiance to their clubs and see no wrong in whatever they do. All clubs/nations have em.

It’s not just the fans though is it - media are smack bang in the middle of it

As for Neymar I can’t remem who was discussing on the radio but they explained why he is like he is - Neymar didn’t grow playing the same sort of football most kids do - he didn’t play in the street or school yard or playing fields with no refs and pretty much just handball as the main rule so he didn’t get to expirence being fouled growing up , anytime he played there was a ref there who blew up anytime he was touched and went down , it then continues into his life in the Brazilian league where refs even admitted that they pretty much blow up anytime a player falls over claiming a foul.

So Neymar then comes over to Europe and Barce expecting it to be the same but he learns quickly that the ref isn’t going to blow everytime so he has to make sure he reactions are going to suggest he has been fouled and those actions have got worse and worse as he has gone on to the point he is prob the worst player of that sort that anyone has seen - his antics are a disgrace and they do nothing for the sport and his country - god help when he gets tackled properly and hard - he will prob be down for months

 

[rudebhoy]

Felt sorry for Japan last night, they played fantastic football and deserved to win.

Good case to made for this being the best WC in living memory. There have been some absolutely tremendous games.

 

[Deleted member 16999]

Felt sorry for Japan last night, they played fantastic football and deserved to win.

Good case to made for this being the best WC in living memory. There have been some absolutely tremendous games.

:clap: Spot on, unfortunately some struggle to see any positives. :clap:

 

[rudebhoy]

:clap: Spot on, unfortunately some struggle to see any positives. :clap:

Of course, if England do go on and win, it will then be the worst WC in living memory, at least for us Scots!