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The 2020-2021 Football Thread

Lord Blackadder said:
Glad they could help. ;)



There are no easy answers to the broader question of how to level the playing field. The most simplified answer I can give is we need independent governance that is not answerable to any club. The Premier League is the biggest problem, and that includes the smaller clubs in the league even if the biggest ones have the most control and resources, and bear the lion's share of the blame. Power needs to be stripped from this league and given to a third party (a reborn FA) that is independently funded and staffed.

In other words, club football should not be run by the clubs.

Virgil's injury was not a fatigue-related one, but all the other absences a Liverpool can be linked to either the compressed schedule or COVID. And those issues are simply not being adequately addressed, at any level of the pyramid. There needs to be more COVID testing and players need to be given more opportunities to rest.
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And less opportunities to attend weddings!
 
Nice to see Chris Wood get a goal for NZ at Burnley (yes, we are the same when Steven Adams has a good game in the NBA).
Burnley really did need that win to start and get themselves on track to avoid relegation this season...
 
Saints vs Wolves now...two of the more exciting teams to watch in the Premier League this season.
Both play very attacking football and have an abundance of skillful players on the ball.
Here's hoping the mighty Saints can take another win and go 3rd in the league.
 
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HandsomeDanNZ said:
Nice to see Chris Wood get a goal for NZ at Burnley (yes, we are the same when Steven Adams has a good game in the NBA).
Burnley really did need that win to start and get themselves on track to avoid relegation this season...
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Indeed. It was a massive result for them. Already looking like 3 from 4 teams for relegation. But a long way to go yet.
 
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Well the first 10 min has lived up to expectations! 1000 shots on goal at both ends, great saves, goal-saving tackles, one-touch football all over the park.
Would be great to watch as a neutral. I just have my heart in my mouth constantly.
 
Actually, as it happens, I quite like both Wolves and Southampton; two decent, well run clubs that seem to inspire loyalty from those who play for them, as much as from those who support them; clubs that manage to bring talented young players along well, and who also play attractive football.
 
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Scepticalscribe said:
Actually, as it happens, I quite like both Wolves and Southampton; two decent, well run clubs that seem to inspire loyalty from those who play for them, as much as from those who support them; clubs that manage to bring talented young players along well, and who also play attractive football.
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Agreed. Just Wolves have done more than Southampton in recent years, so it would be good for them to have a good run.
 
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The Crew are up next for us... @Lord Blackadder
 
JamesMike said:
I see that Diego Maradona has passed away, certainly one of the great players of modern times.
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SactoGuy18 said:
Sadly, he has not been in good healthy in recent years. He was just released from the hospital after surgery back on November 11, 2020.
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I have just been reading about this; 60 years of age, brain surgery and cardiac issues.

However, while I have never been a fan of Argentina, this is a country where football provided a route out of poverty for exceptionally gifted players, and - at his best - Maradona was one of the most outrageously gifted of all.
 
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The-Real-Deal82 said:
Very sad to hear about Maradona but unfortunately it’s not really a shock either. When I saw the video of him snorting cocaine onboard a private jet at the last World Cup, I think it confirmed to many of us he was still on a path to destruction.

One of the greats of the game and gone far too soon, RIP.
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Exactly. It's a minor miracle that he lived this long.

Truly a larger than life figure, and not just as a footballer. In an era when the world's best players are corporate brands largely bereft of personality, Maradona stands out perhaps even more now than he did in his heyday. We won't see his kind again.
 
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I'm stunned that Maradona was only 60.

He's lived enough lifetimes' worth of adventures for anyone aged 90+!!

Gifted, flawed, hated, loved.

There'll be much raging debate now over his legacy...was he the greatest of all time? Was he simply a cheat with great skill? Do we overlook his obvious flaws and terrible life choices?
I find him hard to love, as an England fan...the Hand of God lives long in the memory.
 
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As an 80’s kid one of my first pairs of boots were Puma Maradona’s. As an Englishman he’s the foe you loathed in the spirit of national competition but had huge admiration for his iconic footballing abilities at the same time.

He was one of my secret idols really and I doubt there were many kids my age who weren’t imagining themselves as Diego Maradona when controlling a football. His place in the game is secure despite his controversial struggles.
 
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HandsomeDanNZ said:
I'm stunned that Maradona was only 60.

He's lived enough lifetimes' worth of adventures for anyone aged 90+!!

Gifted, flawed, hated, loved.

There'll be much raging debate now over his legacy...was the greatest of all time? Was he simply a cheat with great skill? Do we overlook his obvious flaws and terrible life choices?
I find him hard to love, as an England fan...the Hand of God lives long in the memory.
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No not the greatest of all time. That would be Pele in my opinion.
 
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Apple fanboy said:
No not the greatest of all time. That would be Pele in my opinion.
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I completely agree.

I don't believe you'll ever see something like this written about Pele:

"He was a racist, he cheated, he used heavy amounts of drugs and alcohol, and he was violent and abusive. No amount of talent on a football pitch should make us overlook the kind of person he was off the pitch."
 
HandsomeDanNZ said:
I find him hard to love, as an England fan...the Hand of God lives long in the memory.
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Maradona was emblematic of fútbol criollo, the unique style of football developed in South America that emphasized individual artistry and dash - and was not above cheating when opportunities presented themselves.

The creative, subversive nature of fútbol criollo was a cultural counterpunch against The Man as represented by the European colonial footballing powers' staid and industrialized ideas of teamwork and 'fair play'.

While Europe had its creative players from the very beginning, South American football elevated the role and character of the gifted individual into a key facet of the game, without which football today would be unrecognizable.

If one man ever captured all of the qualities we associate with fútbol criollo, that man was Diego Maradona.

Apple fanboy said:
No not the greatest of all time. That would be Pele in my opinion.
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I think claims for the "best" player are really impossible to evaluate, because players played in different eras and prior to the latter half of the 20th century there is little to no footage to compare. For example, many credible observiers who watched both Garrincha and Pele play claim the former was a better player. The only record we have of Matthias Sindelar on the pitch are a few newsreel scraps. In contrast, modern players' entire careers are documented on video.

The closest I think we can get to an evaluation is to declare a player "one of the best players ever" and Maradona certainly qualifies for that.
 
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