Con Posted June 1, 2014 Share Posted June 1, 2014 Pedro and Villa can still score goals plus all those midfielders can chip in too. Pique, Ramos, Alba and Juanfran is a pretty solid defence with a choice of Martinez, Busquet and Alonso to protect them. The World Cup champions and back to back Euro winners will still worry any team. The players who won those competitions are getting on a bit or have already retired. How good is the new generation really vs the new generation of other countries? Barcelona have been well beaten in European competition since the last World Cup playing a style close to the Spanish national team, and it's on that basis I rule them out of one of the final places. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Con Posted June 1, 2014 Share Posted June 1, 2014 How about sending off Heitinga for a fair shoulder barge? Iniesta was shrieking and signalling for a card on his way to the floor. It wasn't a shoulder barge or any other kind of barge. Heitinga grabbed on Iniesta's right shoulder with his left hand. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T--pz-1EIsg Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Voinjama Posted June 1, 2014 Share Posted June 1, 2014 Yeah I was just about to say that, Van Bommel should have been sent off too. Should have been down to 8 men. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sharkyvilla Posted June 1, 2014 Share Posted June 1, 2014 Yeah I think it's one tournament too far for Spain. If the Argies can sort out their defence I fancy them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
villaajax Posted June 1, 2014 Share Posted June 1, 2014 Iniesta also took plenty of dives during that final. Players booked for time wasting. And that's just the final, they cheated their way through the whole tournament. Ramos' dive against Portugal, threw himself to the floor clutching his face when no one was near him, even Ashley Young wouldn't have attempted that one. Got Costa sent off though. Their goal against Portugal was offside. Their penalty against Paraguay should have been retaken for having 3 men in the box. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Voinjama Posted June 1, 2014 Share Posted June 1, 2014 Pedro and Villa can still score goals plus all those midfielders can chip in too. Pique, Ramos, Alba and Juanfran is a pretty solid defence with a choice of Martinez, Busquet and Alonso to protect them. The World Cup champions and back to back Euro winners will still worry any team. The players who won those competitions are getting on a bit or have already retired. How good is the new generation really vs the new generation of other countries? Barcelona have been well beaten in European competition since the last World Cup playing a style close to the Spanish national team, and it's on that basis I rule them out of one of the final places. Remind me who won the Champions League in 2011? 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Amo69 Posted June 1, 2014 Share Posted June 1, 2014 (edited) Pedro and Villa can still score goals plus all those midfielders can chip in too. Pique, Ramos, Alba and Juanfran is a pretty solid defence with a choice of Martinez, Busquet and Alonso to protect them. The World Cup champions and back to back Euro winners will still worry any team. The players who won those competitions are getting on a bit or have already retired. How good is the new generation really vs the new generation of other countries? Barcelona have been well beaten in European competition since the last World Cup playing a style close to the Spanish national team, and it's on that basis I rule them out of one of the final places. Since the last World Cup Barca have won a champions league, got to semi final twice and quarters last season. Although I see where you are coming from I wouldn't call that well beaten in Europe. Yes Bayern smashed them but on that basis you could say Germany won't do well because Real smashed them. As for next generation there are a lot of players who haven't even made the squad that would walk in to a lot of other teams. Edited June 1, 2014 by Amo69 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Voinjama Posted June 1, 2014 Share Posted June 1, 2014 Ghana have released their 23 man squad for the world cup. I think they're sending the strongest team to the world cup out of all the African teams. Ivory Coast are past it. Forget the other 3. Unfortunately for Ghana they're in the strongest group so they will probably be going home early. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Con Posted June 1, 2014 Share Posted June 1, 2014 Pedro and Villa can still score goals plus all those midfielders can chip in too. Pique, Ramos, Alba and Juanfran is a pretty solid defence with a choice of Martinez, Busquet and Alonso to protect them. The World Cup champions and back to back Euro winners will still worry any team. The players who won those competitions are getting on a bit or have already retired. How good is the new generation really vs the new generation of other countries? Barcelona have been well beaten in European competition since the last World Cup playing a style close to the Spanish national team, and it's on that basis I rule them out of one of the final places. Since the last World Cup Barca have won a champions league, got to semi final twice and quarters last season. Although I see where you are coming from I wouldn't call that well beaten in Europe. Yes Bayern smashed them but on that basis you could say Germany won't do well because Real smashed them. As for next generation there are a lot of players who haven't even made the squad that would walk in to a lot of other teams. No, Real Madrid play the German way, and their main attacking players are not Spaniards. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Amo69 Posted June 1, 2014 Share Posted June 1, 2014 So let me get this straight. Real play the German way and smashed the German champions who were playing the Spanish way? So what if Spain play the German way? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Con Posted June 1, 2014 Share Posted June 1, 2014 So let me get this straight. Real play the German way and smashed the German champions who were playing the Spanish way? So what if Spain play the German way? It's funny how the world works! Spain can't play the German way without a lot of immigration, which hasn't happened yet. Spain are Spain. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Amo69 Posted June 1, 2014 Share Posted June 1, 2014 So let me get this straight. Real play the German way and smashed the German champions who were playing the Spanish way? So what if Spain play the German way? It's funny how the world works! Spain can't play the German way without a lot of immigration, which hasn't happened yet. Spain are Spain. But the Spain way has won everything in International football in the last 6 years. If it ain't broke... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Con Posted June 1, 2014 Share Posted June 1, 2014 (edited) So let me get this straight. Real play the German way and smashed the German champions who were playing the Spanish way? So what if Spain play the German way? It's funny how the world works! Spain can't play the German way without a lot of immigration, which hasn't happened yet. Spain are Spain. But the Spain way has won everything in International football in the last 6 years. If it ain't broke... ... using the same players who are now 6 years older and just about past it. Real vs Bayern and before that Bayern vs Barca shows the demise of the Spanish "anarchist" football system. The winner of this World Cup will be playing closer to the German style of Real Madrid. Edit: Argentina does sound like a good bet. Edited June 1, 2014 by Con Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Amo69 Posted June 1, 2014 Share Posted June 1, 2014 (edited) The German style of Real Madrid were 2 minutes away from losing the Champions League. International football is a different game. Teams make Spain look boring because they set up to defend against them. Maybe this year teams will try to beat them instead of trying not to get beat. Could even play in to Spain's hands. Edit: I thought the same about Argentina until I saw their keeper and centre halves. Edited June 1, 2014 by Amo69 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Con Posted June 1, 2014 Share Posted June 1, 2014 The German style of Real Madrid were 2 minutes away from losing the Champions League. Against an Aletico side that were playing a German style under an Argentinian coach! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rovers13 Posted June 1, 2014 Share Posted June 1, 2014 The German style of Real Madrid were 2 minutes away from losing the Champions League. Against an Aletico side that were playing a German style under an Argentinian coach! That wasn't a German style. That was a unique simeone style. Other teams don't play like that Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Con Posted June 1, 2014 Share Posted June 1, 2014 (edited) The German style of Real Madrid were 2 minutes away from losing the Champions League. Against an Aletico side that were playing a German style under an Argentinian coach! That wasn't a German style. That was a unique simeone style. Other teams don't play like that Fair enough. It's not Spanish though... more like Bielsa, so he is the Plato to the Socrates of tackle-goals. The team play with wild-eyed intensity; harrying and chasing in midfield to restrict space and suffocate their opponents’ attacking instincts. Lining his team up in a compact 4-4-2 formation, Simeone demands aggression and commitment from his players, and gets it. ... “We are not a team of individuals,” midfielder Arda Turan tells FFT. “We are a collective group of hard working players who always want the best for the team. We battle for every ball during every minute of each match and you can see even in training matches that nobody wants to lose. We have a great team spirit, like a family. He likened his style to that of a man "holding a knife between his teeth" whenever he took to the field, prepared to battle his way to victory by any means necessary, and his current Atlético side have encapsulated this since his appointment. ... the number of tackles per game has risen from 23 last season to 26.4 this, with that return the highest in La Liga and the most for Atlético over the last 5 domestic campaigns. In his second full season in charge of Madrid’s supposed "second team", the message sent out by Simeone of 'win by any means necessary' is beginning to take effect. Edited June 1, 2014 by Con Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NurembergVillan Posted June 1, 2014 Moderator Share Posted June 1, 2014 Yet you want England to play with no striker to mimic how Spain play? Make yer mind up. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Con Posted June 1, 2014 Share Posted June 1, 2014 Yet you want England to play with no striker to mimic how Spain play? Make yer mind up. No. I played no strikers out of necessity because I didn't think we had good enough ones. (If we had Jay Rodriguez he'd be in the starting XI). Now after seeing him do something out of nothing against Peru I would be prepared to start Sturridge. Not convinced he can "carry" a team like a Benteke or Drogba but I'm warming to the idea he's as good any anything Italy have. I would play fast players who can counter-attack and who are also energetic and work hard. They also need to be skilful enough when we have the possession in the final third to be able to play through the middle - players like Lallana, Sterling, Sturridge, Barkley and Lambert - not Welbeck or Rooney on current form. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AVFCforever1991 Posted June 2, 2014 Share Posted June 2, 2014 Would you play Jay Rodriguez up front or on the left? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts