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The 2013-2014 Football Thread
- Thread starter Jaffa Cake
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Although I'd rather see a more defensive player at Arsenal.
There are rumours of Vidal >>> Man U, which is horrible if true.
Although I'd rather see a more defensive player at Arsenal.
There are rumours of Vidal >>> Man U, which is horrible if true.
I think Arsenal still have the edge provided they're willing to spend (quickly). Khedira is interested in the Emirates primarily because of Ozil, and he's almost guaranteed first team football as long as he's fit. Whereas Mou's midfield is already getting overcrowded.
But you never know...
Speaking of United rumours, Di Maria to United is another one picking up steam.
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After seeing Liverpool's '13-'14 league campaign, Man Utd have to feel they have a good shot at breaking back into the top four. Liverpool and Arsenal remain vulnerable.
Yep. I think they were the only two German Muslims in the whole of Spain, and a beautiful man love inevitably blossomed.
Indeed. But i think LFC and AFC still have the edge overall.
Di Maria, Herrera, Mata, Vidal and even Kagawa means that midfield is looking better than last season.
But defensively they're still weak in my opinion. Carrick is getting leggier with each game. Jones has a mistake or two in him, Shaw whilst talented is still inexperienced, Smalling belongs in a mid-table team and Evans needs a Kompany or Vidic to play alongside him.
Offensively i'm also starting to wonder; Can Rooney still deliver 20 goals in a season. Can RVP still score 30 goals in one season.
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Not sure if anyone's posted this already but I thought it was pretty cool and funny. It's a Lego highlight reel of Brazil v Columbia. Other games are at the site too.
David Luiz free kick & Neymar injured | Brazil vs Colombia World Cup 2014 | Brick-by-brick
David Luiz free kick & Neymar injured | Brazil vs Colombia World Cup 2014 | Brick-by-brick
Brazil picking up where they left off and leaving huge holes at the back -
But that was a big flop from Robben. Shame on you, Arjen.
EDIT: Netherlands are on track to potentially hand Brazil more humiliation. Brazil are getting forward a bit more than they did against Germany but their final ball is still poor and their defending, even with Silva, is atrocious.
David Luiz is still in headless chicken mode. He looks awful, running around wildly and booting the ball into outer space.
But that was a big flop from Robben. Shame on you, Arjen.
EDIT: Netherlands are on track to potentially hand Brazil more humiliation. Brazil are getting forward a bit more than they did against Germany but their final ball is still poor and their defending, even with Silva, is atrocious.
David Luiz is still in headless chicken mode. He looks awful, running around wildly and booting the ball into outer space.
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I agree, though I'm surprised at just how bad the defense still was. Brazil are just glad it's over now.
Congrats to Happybunny on a third place finish!!!
Real Madrid is run by a bunch of populist madmen with access to obscene amounts of money. Harry Redknapp multiplied by 1000. They are always looking for the next big signing above all else - even if that means getting rid of perfectly good players.
^
Yup.
So today is the penultimate day of world football.
Will it be Messi magic or German efficiency that prevails...
EDIT What a gift and Higuain fails to take it. Haven't been impressed by him this tournament. Disappointing.
Argentinian forwards have all of a sudden forgotten how to score. Well maybe not all of a sudden.
EDIT2: German efficiency it is. Exquisite goal to wrap up the tournament.
Yup.
So today is the penultimate day of world football.
Will it be Messi magic or German efficiency that prevails...
EDIT What a gift and Higuain fails to take it. Haven't been impressed by him this tournament. Disappointing.
Argentinian forwards have all of a sudden forgotten how to score. Well maybe not all of a sudden.
EDIT2: German efficiency it is. Exquisite goal to wrap up the tournament.
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Many congrats to the Germans. Tight game that could've gone either way. ARG had many chances, and majority of them fell to the right people, but they failed to convert.
But still many will agree GER were deserved winners. Kept quiet and went about their business on the pitch with efficacy throughout the tournament.
The coach made some masterstroke decisions as well but LVG arguably edges it for working some magic with a less talented squad.
The Gotze goal was a beauty worthy of deciding and capping the tournament.
Three WC winners in the Arsenal squad now, hopefully that gives them a good confidence boost.
Will Messi get another chance i wonder, he'll be 31 at the next WC. Meanwhile this GER side are young and look set to dominate.
But still many will agree GER were deserved winners. Kept quiet and went about their business on the pitch with efficacy throughout the tournament.
The coach made some masterstroke decisions as well but LVG arguably edges it for working some magic with a less talented squad.
The Gotze goal was a beauty worthy of deciding and capping the tournament.
Three WC winners in the Arsenal squad now, hopefully that gives them a good confidence boost.
Will Messi get another chance i wonder, he'll be 31 at the next WC. Meanwhile this GER side are young and look set to dominate.
Congrats to Germany and our German members here!
I think it's fair to say that Germany were the best team in the tournament and the most deserving champion.
All credit to Argentina though, they had a great tournament. If only Higuain and Aguero were fit and in form, things might have been quite different. The agonizing reality is that Argentina could very easily have won this match but their finishing let them down.
The ref was quite lenient - that's been a feature of the tournament and this performance reinforced it.
Finally, more head injury issues. FIFA needs to take the concussion issue seriously and introduce a standard protocol for dealing with them. Unfortunatley, I doubt anything will be done.
I think it's fair to say that Germany were the best team in the tournament and the most deserving champion.
All credit to Argentina though, they had a great tournament. If only Higuain and Aguero were fit and in form, things might have been quite different. The agonizing reality is that Argentina could very easily have won this match but their finishing let them down.
The ref was quite lenient - that's been a feature of the tournament and this performance reinforced it.
Finally, more head injury issues. FIFA needs to take the concussion issue seriously and introduce a standard protocol for dealing with them. Unfortunatley, I doubt anything will be done.
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No-one got to wear black shorts
Germany look all wrong in all white, but that's their strip at present. I know that Argentina have worn white shorts/socks in this tournament but couldn't they have changed into black for the final?
They played a friendly against Bos+Herz in November. I don't believe the referee made one team change their kit during the game because of a clash of colours...
Heh at the 'Arry analogy. Khedira's pre-match breakdown makes me think he's a nailed-on Wenger signing. Halfway through the match I was hoping the deal had already been done, because at that point he was the only German midfielder whose price was rising.
God knows Ö could do with it, although he must be absolutely knackered after nearly eleven hours' football. I can't imagine that Per does crises of confidence. Poor old Poldi is a lost cause at Arsenal, I think.
I think both he and the then 33 year old Ronaldo will be back (subject to Portugal qualifying) but neither of them will get a sniff at the World Cup. Alan Hansen chose to sign off his illustrious TV punditry career in typically clichéd fashion, trotting out the old 'Messi can't be mentioned in the same breath as Pelé and Maradona until he's won the World Cup' line. Bloody ridiculous.
The Neuer/Higuain one is tricky. Nasty collision horrible in fact, see http://i.imgur.com/uk3ok0a.jpg but I don't think a referee would have called it as a penalty or a card had in happened in the six yard box. It's just 'goalkeeping', isn't it?
The Aguero/Pigsticker incident was weird. Did Aguero rake him under the eye with his left hand? Did he then punch him with the right? It was crying out for a straight red had the referee been able to see it.
Re concussion: the number of head to head/shoulder incidents has been absolutely freakish. Kramer didn't look fit to continue, and although I didn't notice him in the fifteen minutes or so he played on, it looked as though he was seriously confused when they finally dragged him off the pitch. There were at least two incidents in the tournament where players appeared to hit the ground unconscious before continuing.
The only sensible thing to do is for the referee to have the power to order a player off the pitch for independent medical assessment, and for that player's team to have a temporary substitute while the assessment is conducted. At the moment the player's desire to continue seems to override everything else, and team doctors are unwilling to make the hard decisions.
The athleticism and speed of professional footballers has risen markedly over the last decade or so, meaning the collisions get bigger. The days of team physios armed with a bucket of iced water and a 'magic sponge' should be over.
I also winced, in hindsight, at the sight of Neymar being thrown on a stretcher and then being bounced about as the bearers jogged around the perimeter.
Thank you!
I couldn't agree more. I was very surprised that Webb didn't ref the final, maybe because he already did the last one, but IMHO the best ref of the tournament should ref the final as well, weird decision by FIFA in that and in other regards.
I don't think he'd have prevented the result, but perhaps the scoreline
No, the Dalglish that signed Andy Carroll for £35m
one could really see how the argentinian attack fell apart after Higuain and Lavezzi (who did run his socks off) were replaced by Aguero and Palacio ... there was definitely a huge difference from the players coming of the bench between the two teams.
it's not surprise that in the end the assist and the goal came from substitute players.
Looking at the injury list the german squad had(reus, gündogan,2x bender, Gomez, Badstuber ... and Schweinsteiger and Khedira a few months earlier), the injuries they picked up in the tournament (the flu, boateng,mustafi, hummels, kramer, khedira just prior to the final) their squad depth sure proved to be essential
on the individual trophies:
Golden Ball: Messi
Silver Ball: Müller
Bronze Ball: Robben
Golden Boot: James Rodriguez
Silver Boot: Müller
Bronze Boot: Neymar
Golden Glove: Neuer (Runner ups were Romero and Navas)
Best young player: Pogba
Fair play award: Colombia (after breaking Neymar's back i appreciate the irony)
That was inevitable
Some might argue that he'd retired before the Word Cup
What a wonderful World Cup - best one since '86? I've only really watched from 94 on, and I think this beats all of those.
The group stage was sensational. The knockout stages less so, but each game still produced some big moments.
And oh my goodness, that 7-1 thrashing of Brazil was simply unbelievable. Tragedy for the Brazilians, but it was definitely one of those "Where were you when _____ happened?" moments.
I actually feel sorry for Fred. It's not his fault he isn't quite good enough, nor is it his fault he was picked to play. He tried his best, I'm sure. The defenders bear far more blame IMO. They leaked like a sieve. But scapegoating isn't going to help, it was a collective failure.
The group stage was sensational. The knockout stages less so, but each game still produced some big moments.
And oh my goodness, that 7-1 thrashing of Brazil was simply unbelievable. Tragedy for the Brazilians, but it was definitely one of those "Where were you when _____ happened?" moments.
I actually feel sorry for Fred. It's not his fault he isn't quite good enough, nor is it his fault he was picked to play. He tried his best, I'm sure. The defenders bear far more blame IMO. They leaked like a sieve. But scapegoating isn't going to help, it was a collective failure.
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