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The 2017-2018 Football Thread
- Thread starter Lord Blackadder
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Why?
What is your issue, or problem with the official?
His name? So what?
From what I have read, he is an accomplished and very experienced Dutch referee.
The name Björn is quite common in Sweden/nordic countries.
Used in The Netherlands too,normally spelled Bjorn.
I agree that he is a very good referee.
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Yes, I am aware that the Christian (or first) name Bjorn (with or without an umlaut) is common in Scandinavia, and is not unknown in Germany or the Netherlands.
However, I fail to see why the first name of an official who is a perfectly competent (and impartial) referee should be an issue for some posters on this thread.
I agree ,this should not be an issue whatsoever.
Croatia - Russia was a far more interesting match than I thought it would be.
Croatia are a great team but they have blown hot and cold this tournament. But you can't say that haven't stepped up when necessary, since they have now won 2 penalty shootouts. Making it to a semifinal is a huge achievement - and they are certainly capable of going further.
Croatia are a great team but they have blown hot and cold this tournament. But you can't say that haven't stepped up when necessary, since they have now won 2 penalty shootouts. Making it to a semifinal is a huge achievement - and they are certainly capable of going further.
Lighten up. It was an obvious joke and your overreaction to it was Neymaresque.
I thought the standard of both games (and the refereeing) was much improved over some of the earlier games.
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Congratulations. And commiserations for WednesdayHi, Croat here, again...
I can't even begin to explain what it's like in Croatia this evening... I guess we are gonna have a baby boom in 9 months or so
But we played extra time, again. And we have a lot of injured players, but in positions where we simply have no real substitutes
Now I'm off, going to get wasted. Again.
More analysis tomorrow, or probably the next day. Need to recover first
Hi, Croat here, again...
I can't even begin to explain what it's like in Croatia this evening... I guess we are gonna have a baby boom in 9 months or so
But we played extra time, again. And we have a lot of injured players, but in positions where we simply have no real substitutes
Now I'm off, going to get wasted. Again.
More analysis tomorrow, or probably the next day. Need to recover first
That team though. They scrap and kick and don't quit. I became a believer in the Group Stages. best of luck!
[doublepost=1531045516][/doublepost]SWFC home:
SWFC away:
I don't recall if I posted these or not...
No, it wasn't an obvious joke; perhaps an emoji to give a signpost to those of us who might struggle with your opaque sense of humour?
Actually, I thought it a silly post, and possibly a narrow-minded one.
As a joke, it fell flat, and was a poor joke.
Indeed, until you drew attention to it, I hadn't even noticed the ref's name, just that he was a highly competent official.
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Russia's header was graceful. Their first goal was a beautiful zinger. Sad to see them out, but them getting this far should improve the general morale and hopefully encourage their youth to give up drink and drugs and perhaps follow sport.
Biting my tongue at some of the comments here, particularly yours. I shall endeavour to dumb down with an abundance of emojis in future as you wish.
Arsenal seem to be on a mission. I feel as if we’ve signed more players in a short period of time, than Wenger did over X years.
The start of the season will be particularly interesting.
The start of the season will be particularly interesting.
Bite away.
And apply some salve afterwards.
And, it is clarity I seek, not dumbing down.
Your "joke" was neither funny nor a clear joke, but was in poor taste. I took it at face value, as did anyone else who commented on it.
Now, do you wish to contribute anything interesting or intelligent on the subject matter of football?
[doublepost=1531058597][/doublepost]At this stage, I do hope that the weight of expectation does not have a negative impact on the England team.
To date, Gareth Southgate has been superb at managing and downplaying expectations, - and thus, defusing pressure - but, given that this will only be the third time in their history that England have qualified for a World Cup semi-final, the pressure (and stress) is bound to mount.
That's a tough one, I am very impressed by Belgium this time out - as well as Croatia and England. I don't really have a sense of France as I think they have not faced mostly dangerous opponents except Argentina who they only beat by one point. Belgium have a good chance I think.
I feel we are going to have an Belgium vs. England final. This could be very interesting.
I'd be happy with that! But I wouldn't write off Croatia just yet.
Touché. That game might just go to penalties. Not fond of penalties. To me penalties are more about pressure and luck, versus ‘skill’.
In terms of 'skill' and 'ability', or possible potential, I think Belgium are probably the best of the teams remaining in the competition. They have some star players and they play exceptionally well as a team.
But, they still have to deliver.
Croatia have skill, and a very good and committed team - this team does care about outcomes - but may be carrying too many injuries of key players; that don't mean that they won't give England a serious game, but, as Southgate himself admitted, England will probably never have a better chance of reaching a world cup final, notwithstanding Gareth Southgate's apt observation that the English players would probably be better - and close to their peak - in two years time.
France have pedigree - they have done well in recent memory - and have a very good team, and they have already beaten Uruguay and Argentina.
Up to now, Southgate has not just shown excellent judgment, but he has also managed his resources very well, and has lasted three weeks without incurring series injuries (or major suspensions).
But, they still have to deliver.
Croatia have skill, and a very good and committed team - this team does care about outcomes - but may be carrying too many injuries of key players; that don't mean that they won't give England a serious game, but, as Southgate himself admitted, England will probably never have a better chance of reaching a world cup final, notwithstanding Gareth Southgate's apt observation that the English players would probably be better - and close to their peak - in two years time.
France have pedigree - they have done well in recent memory - and have a very good team, and they have already beaten Uruguay and Argentina.
Up to now, Southgate has not just shown excellent judgment, but he has also managed his resources very well, and has lasted three weeks without incurring series injuries (or major suspensions).
So hoping for a Belgium v England final.
Belgium have been my pick (as well as Germany!) since the start.
KDB was the best player in the Premier League this season imo. They also have other quality players.
The only one I don't like is Fellini. He's a thug.
Does anyone think it's weird the Champions League kicks off this week when the WC is on?
[doublepost=1531075241][/doublepost]Meanwhile at West Ham
Brazilian side Corinthians say they have a deal to sell defender Fabian Balbuena to West Ham.
Corinthians released a statement on Saturday saying West Ham met their valuation for the highly-rated Paraguay international. The club have said the 23-year-old centre-back will now travel to London to carry out his medical.
Balbuena has made 136 appearances for Corinthians, scoring 11 goals in his three years at the Sao Paulo-based club, and helped them win the Brazilian championship in 2017.
And
West Ham are closing in on a double deal to sign Andriy Yarmolenko and Jack Wilshere.
It is understood the Hammers have agreed a £17.5m fee with Borussia Dortmund for Yarmolenko, with the 28-year-old winger expected to undergo a medical at the club's pre-season training base in Switzerland.
Yarmolenko, who only joined Dortmund from Dynamo Kiev last August, struggled to find his best form in Germany, netting just six goals in 26 appearances.
Finally
Wilshere is expected to complete the formalities on a switch to West Ham in the coming days.
The 26-year-old midfielder is available on a free transfer after he officially left Arsenal following the expiration of his contract.
Wilshere had previously attracted interest from Turkish side Fenerbahce.
Belgium have been my pick (as well as Germany!) since the start.
KDB was the best player in the Premier League this season imo. They also have other quality players.
The only one I don't like is Fellini. He's a thug.
Does anyone think it's weird the Champions League kicks off this week when the WC is on?
[doublepost=1531075241][/doublepost]Meanwhile at West Ham
Brazilian side Corinthians say they have a deal to sell defender Fabian Balbuena to West Ham.
Corinthians released a statement on Saturday saying West Ham met their valuation for the highly-rated Paraguay international. The club have said the 23-year-old centre-back will now travel to London to carry out his medical.
Balbuena has made 136 appearances for Corinthians, scoring 11 goals in his three years at the Sao Paulo-based club, and helped them win the Brazilian championship in 2017.
And
West Ham are closing in on a double deal to sign Andriy Yarmolenko and Jack Wilshere.
It is understood the Hammers have agreed a £17.5m fee with Borussia Dortmund for Yarmolenko, with the 28-year-old winger expected to undergo a medical at the club's pre-season training base in Switzerland.
Yarmolenko, who only joined Dortmund from Dynamo Kiev last August, struggled to find his best form in Germany, netting just six goals in 26 appearances.
Finally
Wilshere is expected to complete the formalities on a switch to West Ham in the coming days.
The 26-year-old midfielder is available on a free transfer after he officially left Arsenal following the expiration of his contract.
Wilshere had previously attracted interest from Turkish side Fenerbahce.
Congratulations. And commiserations for Wednesday
Thank you for 'congratulations' part, but for the 'commiserations' part.... Well, let's leave it at that, shall we?
I really have to disagree with penalties part. My team won 2 penalty shootouts this tournament, but vs Denmark Croatia didn't shoot very good, but Denmark was even worse. Vs Russia much better shots, but still not good (IMHO of course).
Only one time before this WC did we shoot penalties, and that was in 1/4 finals of EC vs Turkey. We lost easily.
So I really don't consider Croatia to be good at penalties, at all.
But if you look at football history, best teams tend to win on penalties. Brazil, Germany, Argentina and Italy as the biggest winners. And out of all those teams, Brazil won 5 times WC, Germany and Italy 4 times, Argentina 2 times.
So it's not just luck. It's team (or should I say national?) mentality, and skill. Because it takes a lot of skill to shoot penalties in WC final game (Brazil in 1994 for example), and even more mental strength. England has lost most of their penalty shootouts, and that says a lot. Players change, manager changes, but outcome of penalties didn't change for English team.
And I have a very strong hunch that it will be the same for us Croats as well in the future.
But to announce Eng vs Cro semifinal game...
I believe England is the big favourite here. We have a lot of injuries in key places (Vrsaljko for example), and no real substitutes for injured players. We are a small nation after all (about 4mil people), more people play football in England then there are total of Croats.
But I wouldn't count us out just yet, because Croatia players are gonna kick their a**es off to go thru to final game. If we manage to outplay and outscore England in first 60 minutes, then we have a chance. If not, our chances are diminishing because of 2 extra times, and 2x penalties. Those things take their toll, because vs Russia in second half of overtime, most of our players couldn't even move, some had injuries, others were simply too tired.
Except Modric of course. He made a 30m sprint for no mans ball, and of course, made it.
P.S.
Watch out for Ivan Perisic. He was our best player for last 5 years, and this tournament he isn't nearly as good as he used to be. I have a hunch that he will finally do something
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