LGP Futbol Thread - (CL, EPL, Serie A, Liga, 2016 Euros)

[JoseCuervo]

agreed that uruguay can definitely battle mexico. south africa also isn't awful. Definitely a cupcake team of the top seeds, though.

I think they're awful. I don't think they have much of a chance to advance.

They're awful compared to the rest of the top seeds. They managed to advance out of group play in the confederations cup this year and even played brazil hard. I don't see them advancing, but I could see them shaking things up in the group. Plus, they have the home crowd behind them.

[zamboniman]

Pretty favorable result for the US national team. I would have said this is a cake walk but I remember vividly the Ghana side from 2006 the US failed to get points from. I might be the only one who actually likes the chances against England more than Slovenia and Algeria.

[Rocco]

And Draftnik, I'll make the next joke for you- maybe the US can get an unfriendly DJ into South Africa that will refuse to play Lady GaGa for Gerrard so Stevie breaks his foot stomping a mudhole into the poor DJ and can't play. They can then use pies behind the net to make Lampard's shooting wayward. (Okay, that's a Chelsea joke, but Chelski-bashing is always acceptable.)

[Draftnik]

Maybe we can get Conor Casey to grow his hair like Fernando Torres in an attempt to confuse Ferdinand. It's worth a shot.

Maybe we can stuff Fabio Capello with pastries so he expands to zeppelin proportions and weighs 300 pounds. Then he can pretend to be Rafa Benitez and lower his players and supporters expectations to the point they think a 4th place finish is a great result.

Maybe they can find a good cocktail waitress and all-you-can-eat buffet to throw Rooney off his game. Although cocktail waitresses are a little classier than Shrek's standard fare, since Wayne likes the street walkers.

At least Rooney (despite his Scouse brain) is smart enough to keep his extracurricular encounters to the street walking variety as opposed to having actual "relationships" with cocktail waitresses like the world's most famous athlete. I'm sure that was a lot easier for Collen to take since it was kind of like Rooney going to the chiro or physio to tune up his body and relieve stress. The relationship thing seems to bother women more than a monetary exchange for services rendered. Rooney is obviously an expert on marital harmony. SAF's infinite wisdom must be overriding some of the inbred Scouse imbecility.

I thought of a Liverpool ethnic slur so I'll throw that one in here. I'd criticize them for signing the Italian Aquilani because normally I would expect an Italian to be a vicious cheating hooligan thug like Gattuso, Materazzi, etc but somehow Rafa in his infinite wisdom managed to overspend on the world's most infirm and gentlemanly Italian footballer.

[Draftnik]

And Draftnik, I'll make the next joke for you- maybe the US can get an unfriendly DJ into South Africa that will refuse to play Lady GaGa for Gerrard so Stevie breaks his foot stomping a mudhole into the poor DJ and can't play. They can then use pies behind the net to make Lampard's shooting wayward. (Okay, that's a Chelsea joke, but Chelski-bashing is always acceptable.)

Chelski bashing is always acceptable


Maybe John Terry will park in a handicapped spot and the South African police will shoot him dead on the spot

OK, maybe just break both his legs and sever all his ligaments and both hamstrings and achilles tendons

[Draftnik]

South Africa blows. They qualified for the knockout round of the Confed Cup because they had Iraq and New Zealand in their group.

Scouting report on Slovenia:

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/sport/ ... 945444.ece

I watched some of the match they played in Russia. They piled a lot of pressure on Akinfeev. The 2-1 scoreline flattered Russia IMO.

Scouting report on Algeria:

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/sport/ ... 945436.ece

I have never seen them play. They will have better team preparation compared to most WC national teams since they play in the African Cup of Nations in January.

Times scouting report on US:

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/sport/ ... 945455.ece

[Gaucho]

Pretty favorable result for the US national team. I would have said this is a cake walk but I remember vividly the Ghana side from 2006 the US failed to get points from. I might be the only one who actually likes the chances against England more than Slovenia and Algeria.

I'm sorry, but I fail to see how any group would be a "cakewalk" for the US team. England is the favorite in that group, the rest is anyone's guess.

[GaryRissling]

Not quite on topic, but I didn't feel like it deserved its own thread:

Donovan looks to be going to Everton next month on loan. I think it's a great move as Everton are depleted through injury, and he should see a bit of playing time. Can't wait to see how he does in the Prem, and it should be great preparation for the WC.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/football/2009 ... on-donovan" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[Draftnik]

I agree that would be a good move for Donovan. Especially if he is with the Blue side of Merseyside and scores a winner at Anfield.

Since the thread was bumped, I'll throw in my favorite bit from the English papers:

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/sport/ ... 949240.ece

Benitez' mastery of lowering expectations (and not being challenged by press or supporters) set a new low yesterday IMO:

Benítez added: “We understand the feelings of the fans because the staff are also frustrated. We wanted to give him a chance, we wanted to give him minutes on the pitch, but it has been very difficult. In the last games when the team was not doing well, it was the worst time to try and bring him into the team. If, for example, you have a young player from the academy, would you play him against difficult teams like Everton or Blackburn?

“Normally it would be very difficult for him so when you talk about a foreign player who has not played for a long time because of injury, if you were then to ask him to play in these kind of games, sometimes it can make things worse for him.

“Now we have an opportunity, so he will play and we will see. It doesn’t matter the quality or the value of the player, you have to manage little by little. We have been watching him in training, seeing the challenges he has made with other players, so we know that still he will need some time.”

Aquilani has been limited to a little more than 20 minutes in three appearances as a substitute. Despite the brevity of his involvement, he has produced tantalising glimpses of the quality that persuaded Benítez to sign him despite knowing at the time that he would be out for an extended period. “On Monday he scored an amazing goal in training,” Benítez said. “It was a chip with his left foot over Pepe Reina and it went into the top corner. It was very, very good and he showed other touches of quality.

“In terms of his movements on the pitch, he is very clever. But in terms of his tackling, he needs to improve. We need to use him as much as we can and we will start now. I think he will do well this season and he will play even better in the next season and the one after that. He will need time.”

What other Manager would talk about a 25 year old £17 to £20 signing and say "he will be good 3 years from now"

What other Manager would talk about a 25 year old £17 to £20 signing and say "he had a great goal in training"



I can't wait for a reporter to ask him why he kept Bosman signing Voronin instead of signing Owen on a Bosman and somehow Rafa will rationalize that Voronin is a better signing than Owen because he clocks more KM on the pitch.

[slappybrown]

I don't know what your actual opinion of Aquilani is beyond your making fun of him with intent to poke fun a Benitez, but he's a very good player. Unfortunate start at Anfield though, no doubt.

[GaryRissling]

Rafa's got to go. The Times had a piece today where they comment that too much credit was given to Rafa for the Isanbul '05 victory; but they didn't mention a key point, which is that Rafa inexplicably started Harry Kewell in that game. The game didn't start to turn around until Hammann came on and Kewell went off through injury (big surprise, that). This is yet another illustration of Rafa's remarkable ability to implode regularly in every season in every competition. In the Istanbul victory, it was only through a near-miraculous effort by the players that saw them through in direct spite of Rafa's decisions. I don't know if he is afraid of success, or if he over-thinks personnel decisions to the point of false-rationality; but he does seem to have a neural disorder that will always force him to rotate the wrong players at the wrong time, or sign the wrong players, or let the wrong players leave. Aquillani is just another example of this - either as an example of a wrong signing (if he isn't ready to help the team), or improper handling (if he is ready to help the team).

[Draftnik]

I don't know what your actual opinion of Aquilani is beyond your making fun of him with intent to poke fun a Benitez, but he's a very good player. Unfortunate start at Anfield though, no doubt.

United played Roma 6 times over the past few years and I watched those matches very intently. I honestly don't recall seeing him play. Spaletti (sp?) liked to interchange his midfielders and forwards, so maybe that made it hard for 1 guy to stand out. I remember Totti of course, although he always seemed injured. DeRossi is a thug extraordinaire. The Montenegrin striker (Vukinic sp?) was also impressive IMO. I watched the 30+ minutes of extra time Roma played vs. Arsenal in the Euro Cup knockout round last year. I watch random Serie A games. I watched Euro 08 and WC 06. Odds are I probably have seen him play several times but he hasn't done anything that stood out while I was watching.

The comments Rafa made about a young player are absurd. AA is 25 years old coming from one of the top leagues in Europe and he played on a perennial Euro Cup qualifier. He isn't an academy graduate. Furthermore, who would be afraid to play anybody against Blackburn? Maybe they will kick opponents all over the park, but that is a great time to blood in new players because Blackburn generally sucks. If you lose possession to them it doesn't matter. The statement is ridiculous.

If AA is so great, why is Rafa boasting about some allegedly great goal in training? That sounds like something a manager would say about a young player on trial or perhaps an academy player that doesn't regularly train with the 1st team. If AA was great vs Inter, Juve, Milan, various Euro Cup opponents, various International opponents for the Azzurri, etc why would Rafa brag about some goal in training? Again it is absurd.

AA was going to be some kind of attacking missing link to not necessarily replace Alonso, but add some kind of allegedly needed attacking element. Now the expectation is he will struggle, especially with tackling and against "difficult" teams like Blackburn, but he will be much better in a few seasons. That is balmy (how many times can I use absurd in 1 post).

[slappybrown]

I don't know what your actual opinion of Aquilani is beyond your making fun of him with intent to poke fun a Benitez, but he's a very good player. Unfortunate start at Anfield though, no doubt.

United played Roma 6 times over the past few years and I watched those matches very intently. I honestly don't recall seeing him play. Spaletti (sp?) liked to interchange his midfielders and forwards, so maybe that made it hard for 1 guy to stand out. I remember Totti of course, although he always seemed injured. DeRossi is a thug extraordinaire. The Montenegrin striker (Vukinic sp?) was also impressive IMO. I watched the 30+ minutes of extra time Roma played vs. Arsenal in the Euro Cup knockout round last year. I watch random Serie A games. I watched Euro 08 and WC 06. Odds are I probably have seen him play several times but he hasn't done anything that stood out while I was watching.

The comments Rafa made about a young player are absurd. AA is 25 years old coming from one of the top leagues in Europe and he played on a perennial Euro Cup qualifier. He isn't an academy graduate. Furthermore, who would be afraid to play anybody against Blackburn? Maybe they will kick opponents all over the park, but that is a great time to blood in new players because Blackburn generally sucks. If you lose possession to them it doesn't matter. The statement is ridiculous.

If AA is so great, why is Rafa boasting about some allegedly great goal in training? That sounds like something a manager would say about a young player on trial or perhaps an academy player that doesn't regularly train with the 1st team. If AA was great vs Inter, Juve, Milan, various Euro Cup opponents, various International opponents for the Azzurri, etc why would Rafa brag about some goal in training? Again it is absurd.

AA was going to be some kind of attacking missing link to not necessarily replace Alonso, but add some kind of allegedly needed attacking element. Now the expectation is he will struggle, especially with tackling and against "difficult" teams like Blackburn, but he will be much better in a few seasons. That is balmy (how many times can I use absurd in 1 post).

Well, a couple of those matches were complete debacles, with no one from Roma acquitting themselves well. It's unsurprising that you didn't notice him (or anyone for that matter) in those games. I think you will be surprised by his abilities once he gets fit, albeit for a team you despise. He didnt make the trip to Germany in 06. He went to Euro 08, and was constantly called for in the Italian press in the group stages. Donadoni handed him a start in the quarters against Spain due to Pirlo/Gattuso being out, but he was fairly poor in that match, not unlike the rest of the team. Overall, he isn't going to fully replace Alonso (not many could in that role), but I think he will acquit himself well having seen him progress at Roma.

I don't disagree with you with respect to Rafa/Pool, as I am a Milan fan and hardly have a soft spot for the Reds, though 2007 took some of the pain away. I rather enjoy your constant Rafa bashing.

But, I disagree with you on DeRossi. He's a Roy Keane type with more skill and class, only without the ManU hype machine behind him . Vucinic is an impressive player, and there were rumblings he was possibly headed to England this past summer, with ManU quoted as a possible landing spot.

[Draftnik]

But, I disagree with you on DeRossi. He's a Roy Keane type with more skill and class, only without the ManU hype machine behind him . Vucinic is an impressive player, and there were rumblings he was possibly headed to England this past summer, with ManU quoted as a possible landing spot.

I'd love for DeRossi to play for United. If he played for United he would be one of my favorite players. He is a thug however for his elbow to McBride's face. He also managed to cut Ronaldo's face as well. I'm not necessarily condemning his tactics as much for the fact that my National and Club teams have been on the receiving end of his thug tactics. I also think Vucinic would do well in the EPL, but I think United need a pure target man type predator and Vucinic seems to be kind of like Berbatov and Rooney from the POV that he can operate in wide or deeper positions and is a decent passer/creator instead of being a true #9 IMO.

[slappybrown]

But, I disagree with you on DeRossi. He's a Roy Keane type with more skill and class, only without the ManU hype machine behind him . Vucinic is an impressive player, and there were rumblings he was possibly headed to England this past summer, with ManU quoted as a possible landing spot.

I'd love for DeRossi to play for United. If he played for United he would be one of my favorite players. He is a thug however for his elbow to McBride's face. He also managed to cut Ronaldo's face as well. I'm not necessarily condemning his tactics as much for the fact that my National and Club teams have been on the receiving end of his thug tactics. I also think Vucinic would do well in the EPL, but I think United need a pure target man type predator and Vucinic seems to be kind of like Berbatov and Rooney from the POV that he can operate in wide or deeper positions and is a decent passer/creator instead of being a true #9 IMO.

Fair enough on DeRossi. I am no Roma fan, but I love his game and aggression. No question if I were USMNT fan I'd harbor ill will towards him.

Thats an accurate description of Vucinic. He worked very well in the fluid system Spalletti installed at Roma because of his abilities both on the ball and as a finisher.

[Draftnik]

United & Milan could be drawn for the knockout round:

United (Bayern, Milan, Porto, Lyon, Inter, Stuttgart, Olympiakos) That doesn't seem like much of a reward for winning the group.

Milan (Bordeaux, United, Chelsea, Barcelona, Sevilla, Arsenal).

[slappybrown]

United & Milan could be drawn for the knockout round:

United (Bayern, Milan, Porto, Lyon, Inter, Stuttgart, Olympiakos) That doesn't seem like much of a reward for winning the group.

Milan (Bordeaux, United, Chelsea, Barcelona, Sevilla, Arsenal).

Inasmuch as I would certainly would be hoping otherwise, I wouldnt be all that concerned with the prospect of drawing Milan if I were United. Galliani has never really decided what direction he wanted to take the team knowing that the most recent Milan golden era that ended with the 2007 CL title would require serious transition. The rumours surrounding their financial condition haven't helped. I kind of wish they would have sold Kaka to Citeh for the (alleged) extra 40 million pounds compared to what RM ponied up 6 months later.

Speaking of Kaka and United, his performance at Old Trafford in 07 is the best performance I have ever seen from a visiting player at OT:

[youtube][/youtube]

(Any excuse to re-watch that )

As much as it pains me to say it, the only one of United's possible opponents that I could see winning the CL is Inter. I could see Mourinho grinding out 0-0 away and 1-0 wins at home to the finals.

[Draftnik]

Milan definitely got the better of United over both legs of that tie, but the home leg did end in spectacular fashion:

[youtube][/youtube]

If United draw Inter it will be a very open match IMO. Mourinho was very conservative vs. United at San Siro and also in the 1st half of the return leg at OT. He opened things up in the 2nd half when he had to chase the tie and Inter created several excellent chances they didn't finish. It provided the blueprint that Rafa copied to beat United at OT a few weeks later.

Its kind of hard to tell what United will look like by the knockout phase. They are in their usual slow start mode, but despite that they are through to the knockout phase with ease, 2 points off the top of the League table, and in the semi-finals of the League Cup while using a lot of kids. Fletcher's emergence coupled with Hargreaves likely return should give United a destructive midfield combination that can prevent some of the disastrous results they suffered down the stretch last season. United have an amazingly deep squad and have achieved excellent results IMO despite a ton of injuries so far this season.

[Gaucho]

I would NEVER want de Rossi on my team. He is beyond dirty and a despisable POS. I don't mind aggression, but the guy throws elbows, is kicking and hitting you at every opportunity, and worst of all: he spits. The guy will never get a job in the EPL.

[Tomas]

Since this has turned into the generic "football thread", here is something to make you smile:

Lehman macht pipi:

[youtube][/youtube]

[slappybrown]

Did he do that during live play?

[Tomas]

Did he do that during live play?

Yep. Just as the opponent started their attack. And all of that happened during the super-important Champions League game that Stuttgart had to win in order to advance.

[Draftnik]

Lehman has always seemed like a strange guy but that is too weird...

[Tomas]

A little different goalie magic:
Standard Liege vs. AZ Alkmaar. 95th minute, Liege 1 goal down, and only a tie would advance them to the European League in the spring. Last free kick of the game.

[youtube][/youtube]

[Draftnik]

My favorite goal from yesterday's Euro Cup matches. The buildup starts around the 23 second mark:

[youtube][/youtube]