Hoping the Tangerines win the play-off final.
Well we don't want a foreign team in the Premier league do we.
The all-in-one consolidatory football thread Page 116
I can't get over Paul Scholes turning down the chance to play in the World Cup. Just imagine getting the chance to make history like that, at 35, without having to play any part in qualifying, and turning it down. I'd have expected him to take advantage the offer while he was fit, considering how he missed the 2002 tournament due to injury.
I hear Spurs are looking at German international, Bastian Schweinsteiger.
I like his surname and if you translate the first part from German and the second part in Dutch you get...
Bastian PigScaffold 
Haha - watch the pitch invasion... the funniest thing is the kid in the wheelchair.
Poor wee chap, getting a whack round the head!
All he wanted to do was enjoy the pitch invasion! 
Quote: catskillz @ May 13 2010, 2:47 AM BSTI can't get over Paul Scholes turning down the chance to play in the World Cup. Just imagine getting the chance to make history like that, at 35, without having to play any part in qualifying, and turning it down. I'd have expected him to take advantage the offer while he was fit, considering how he missed the 2002 tournament due to injury.
I can't get over Fabio going deown on his bended knee begging Scholes and Carragher to come back. Not only are they both past it, they made their beds so they should lie in them. Especially Carragher, who threw his toys out of the pram because somebody had the audacity to think he wasn't one of the best two central defenders in the country. And by the way, he never has been.
If I'm being honest, Carragher was much better back then. Now he just seems to give the fast players a big hug on their way goalwards. He's certainly worse than he was when he was complaining.
That said, if John Terry stopped squinting 100% of the time, he'd probably be a lot better too.
Dan
A thread from last year on the A-Z of Strikers...
https://www.comedy.co.uk/forums/thread/13947/
...started a discussion on the merits of Michael Owen.
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Quote: Jack Massey @ July 8 2009, 12:22 PM BST
Name me the fifteen strikers on my list you think he is better than and I will tell you how he isn't.
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Quote: Tuumble @ July 10, 2009, 5:54 PM BST
Ha! Well, that would be a pointless exercise as you've already decided I will be wrong. 
Football is all about opinion anyway but I still can't see how Owen is worse than all 64 players you listed. He'll get double figures for you I'm sure - I reckon you'll be pleasantly surprised so I look forward to ressurecting this thread next year.
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Well, a year has passed and I thought I'd check back to see how Michael Owen did at United.
Michael Owen 2009/10 stats
11 starts (20 substitute appearances) in all competitions
League - 5+14 as sub - 3 goals
FA Cup - 0+1 as sub - 0 goals
League Cup - 3+1 as sub - 2 goals
Other - 3+4 as sub - 4 goals
Assuming he played for 30 minutes for his substitute appearances that would suggest he would've played a maximum of 1590 minutes. This would means that he played 177 minutes inbetween goals or more simply, he scored a goal every other game.
Strikes me a very reasonable return for a crocked free transfer.
Quote: Splodge @ May 10 2010, 7:14 PM BST
Why am I unsurprised to find Dogbra is the only one lying on the floor in that picture?
Quote: Badge @ May 13 2010, 2:48 PM BSTEspecially Carragher, who threw his toys out of the pram because somebody had the audacity to think he wasn't one of the best two central defenders in the country. And by the way, he never has been.
He also gets very upset about being marked out of 10 in the papers.
Just watching a rerun of the 1981 FA Cup Final between Tottenham Hotspur and Manchester City on ESPN Classic. Brian Moore is the commentator and he said as it looked like the first game was going to a replay...
"What a festival football we have next week. England play Brazil at Wembley on Tuesday, it's the European Cup Winners Cup on Wednesday, the FA Cup Final replay on Thursday and Northern Ireland against England on Saturday."
There's no doubt the replay was dramatic as Spurs won 3-2 but the rest of the week was just plain bizarre.
1. England lost 0-1 to Brazil, the second of four consecutive games at Wembley where England failed to score
2. The European Cup Winners Cup Final was played between FC Dinamo Tbilisi of the Soviet Union and FC Carl Zeiss Jena of East Germany. It was held at the 76,000 capacity Rheinstadion in Düsseldorf in front of just 4,750 people. For the record Tiblisi won 2-1
3. The Northern Ireland v England match never even took place after unrest in country following the death of hunger striker Bobby Sands. In fact the entire Home international championship was abandoned that year.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1981_British_Home_Championship
As my grandad would've said: "There's never been such times."
I'm a bit worried that Fabio thought he needed Scholes in the squad, a 35 year old Scholes that is. A great midfielder in his day but often a liability too with his rash tackling. Not sure if that will be a confidence boost to the rest of the midfielders, thinking they were nearly ousted by a player on his last legs?
The Carragher one I understand more, but don't know why he left it so late to ask him! Players like Micah Richards, Wes Brown, and Lescott will be annoyed why a man who rejected England and had no part at all in their qualifying campaign can suddenly find himself in the squad. And from what I've seen and heard, he's not as good as he was.
If the coach was so desperate to pick players who had done well for England in the past, then why not persuade that fool Bridge to come, or even consider Owen in the qualifying games?? I am a bit suspicious of him because he clearly has his favourites and he seems to have an indifference to others, who many think are great, Like Joe Cole, Ashley Young and Paul Robinson.
Quote: Alfred J Kipper @ May 14 2010, 8:16 AM BSTI'm a bit worried that Fabio thought he needed Scholes in the squad, a 35 year old Scholes that is. A great midfielder in his day but often a liability too with his rash tackling. Not sure if that will be a confidence boost to the rest of the midfielders, thinking they were nearly ousted by a player on his last legs?
The Carragher one I understand more, but don't know why he left it so late to ask him! Players like Micah Richards, Wes Brown, and Lescott will be annoyed why a man who rejected England and had no part at all in their qualifying campaign can suddenly find himself in the squad. And from what I've seen and heard, he's not as good as he was.
If the coach was so desperate to pick players who had done well for England in the past, then why not persuade that fool Bridge to come, or even consider Owen in the qualifying games?? I am a bit suspicious of him because he clearly has his favourites and he seems to have an indifference to others, who many think are great, Like Joe Cole, Ashley Young and Paul Robinson.
Scholes surprised me and the fact he turned it down makes me wonder if he lacked confidence in his ability at his age. You barely hear the guy speak so it's hard to say.
Carragher...meh, understandable but his form hasn't been that good. He's adaptable which is good but I don't expect to see him play in his strongest position. I also feel a bit uncomfortable to him walking in without playing in the qualifiers.
I like Micah Richards but he hasn't been playing that well, Lescott is an arse who I've never rated and don't even get me started on Wes Brown.
Joe Cole and Paul Robinson should definitely be going in my view. Robinson for his experience and current form and Cole has that skill of being able to turn a game in an instant. We don't have many of those.
I hear that Fabio is also considering a 3 centre backs formation which is a bit of a worry because you can't be sure how they'll adapt. Having said that, England implemented a sweeper system for the first time at Italia '90 after that dour 1-1 draw with the Republic of Ireland in the first group match and look what happened then.
I imagine that's why King is in the squad, he's a very good sweeper. Or even use Ferdinand as one. I like the sweeper system personally, it comes into its own at international level for some reason. Holland, Italy, Argentina and especially Germany have always done well with the sweeper system, it tends to keep the midfield much more fluid and supplied with the ball more easily from defence.
With 4-4-2, your midfield is sometimes too static and detatched, just waiting for your block defence to get the ball up to you. 5-3-2 or 1-1 works more like a supply chain all linked together. Don't know why we haven't just adopted it for good, especially with an Italian coach in charge. I think it will be used at some point though, if our wingers don't get results then I see the 5-3-1-1 being used, it's harder to attack against as well.
Remember the celebrations on here from a certain couple when Chelsea got knocked out of the Champions League by Inter?
Quote: Spagett @ March 16 2010, 11:17 PM BSTWahey
Bye Bye Chelsea
Quote: Spagett @ March 18 2010, 12:59 PM BSTNot going great for Chelsea at the moment is it?
What a shame...
Quote: Mike T @ March 16 2010, 11:11 PM BSTLooks like a utd, Barca final with utd winning
Whatever did happen to Manchester Utd this season?
Quote: Splodge @ March 17 2010, 9:30 PM BSTI think it's a blessing in disguise. Last night we were well and truly Mourinhoed, but without Essien, Cole and Bosingwa for the next few weeks, possibly the rest of the season, I think that challenging on both fronts would have only ended in us coming second best in the League and Champions League again. We can now concentrate on doing the double.
Couldn't have gone any better.