cyrusr Posted September 8, 2023 VT Supporter Share Posted September 8, 2023 Wasn't aware of the interview until this popped up on my algorithm but from reading this thread, it seems a suitable place to share I do wonder what the reaction will be when he plays for England. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zatman Posted September 8, 2023 Share Posted September 8, 2023 Surely the idea of Saudi teams joining the Champions League has a huge elephant in the room. What if an Israeli team drew a Saudi team? Indonesia already lost the Under 20 tournament for not allowing Israel to travel Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HanoiVillan Posted September 8, 2023 Share Posted September 8, 2023 1 hour ago, Zatman said: Surely the idea of Saudi teams joining the Champions League has a huge elephant in the room. What if an Israeli team drew a Saudi team? Indonesia already lost the Under 20 tournament for not allowing Israel to travel We're talking about pure hypotheticals here, because I don't think there's any immediate or realistic chance of Saudi changing their registration from AFC to UEFA, which would surely be necessary first. But at this high level of abstract hypothetical, it might be worth noting that relations between Israel and Saudi have thawed significantly in recent years. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
villa4europe Posted September 8, 2023 Share Posted September 8, 2023 3 hours ago, cyrusr said: I do wonder what the reaction will be when he plays for England. i would guess that the negativity will be angled more towards him being southgates mate who shouldnt be playing for england given the standard of the saudi league and his playing ability the moral side of him playing there will be a strange mixture of people not caring and pearl clutching Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cyrusr Posted September 8, 2023 VT Supporter Share Posted September 8, 2023 4 minutes ago, villa4europe said: i would guess that the negativity will be angled more towards him being southgates mate who shouldnt be playing for england given the standard of the saudi league and his playing ability the moral side of him playing there will be a strange mixture of people not caring and pearl clutching True, and the game is being played in Poland which is not exactly a pro LGBTQ+ zone... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fightoffyour Posted September 8, 2023 VT Supporter Share Posted September 8, 2023 11 minutes ago, cyrusr said: True, and the game is being played in Poland which is not exactly a pro LGBTQ+ zone... Is it? Right I'm off to call Waistgate a rocket polisher to his nose. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cyrusr Posted September 8, 2023 VT Supporter Share Posted September 8, 2023 9 minutes ago, fightoffyour said: Is it? Right I'm off to call Waistgate a rocket polisher to his nose. I meant more with your delightful government (not that ours is any better) but throw a cabbage for me please! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fightoffyour Posted September 8, 2023 VT Supporter Share Posted September 8, 2023 1 hour ago, cyrusr said: I meant more with your delightful government (not that ours is any better) but throw a cabbage for me please! They'll be calling him Sauergate by the time the match is over! 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zatman Posted September 18, 2023 Share Posted September 18, 2023 Quote “When I received the offer from Al-Hilal, I talked about it with my family, giving up was impossible,' Mitrovic said in an interview with Italian newspaper Gazzetta Dello Sport. “I have no nostalgia for England, I played many years there. “I’m happy to have finally arrived at a top club, Al-Hilal is a bit like Real Madrid in Europe.” suppose its an upgrade on Newcastle https://talksport.com/football/1568784/al-hilal-fans-aleksandar-mitrovic-banner-fulham/ 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Davkaus Posted September 18, 2023 Share Posted September 18, 2023 2 hours ago, Zatman said: “I’m happy to have finally arrived at a top club, Al-Hilal is a bit like Real Madrid in Europe.” Well, they don't play in white, so I'm all out of ideas. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
oishiiniku_uk Posted September 18, 2023 Share Posted September 18, 2023 3 hours ago, Zatman said: suppose its an upgrade on Newcastle https://talksport.com/football/1568784/al-hilal-fans-aleksandar-mitrovic-banner-fulham/ It's already been reported that some players in the SPL are being paid extra to promote the league on social media so I wouldn't be surprised if that quote is just there to earn Mitrovic another dollop of cash. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sne Posted October 11, 2023 Share Posted October 11, 2023 Absolutely no clue if any of this is remotely true (it's the Sun after all) but wouldn't surprise me one bit. Hope it's true and that the league holds them to their contracts. Quote Mega-money stars in Saudi Arabia hating every minute of lucrative transfers and want to go home months after moving SunSport understands a number of stars who moved to Saudi Arabia are massively regretting doing so. Some are hating every minute. The big problem is whether they are able to return before the end of their contracts, which in many cases are two years. And equally, despite Saudi Arabia being a nation of 37million people, attendances for games are not great. Jordan Henderson’s Al-Ettifaq team — managed by Steven Gerrard — played in front of 9,827 when they lost 2-1 to Slaven Bilic’s Al-Fateh last Thursday. Their previous home crowd was 4,867 but last month just 976 fans watched their 3-1 win at Abha Club. https://www.thesun.co.uk/sport/24357986/saudi-arabia-hating-transfers-home/ 1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NeilS Posted October 23, 2023 Share Posted October 23, 2023 On 11/10/2023 at 13:57, sne said: Absolutely no clue if any of this is remotely true (it's the Sun after all) but wouldn't surprise me one bit. Hope it's true and that the league holds them to their contracts. https://www.thesun.co.uk/sport/24357986/saudi-arabia-hating-transfers-home/ It sounds like the Saudi Pro League is not that popular in Saudi, even with bringing in some big name players from around the world. It must be hard to motivate yourself in front of such a small crowd, when you are used to playing in front of thousands. I am sure that the wages will help cushion the blow a little bit. The younger ones like Neves who went out may well be regretting it more than the likes of Henderson and Ronaldo who is in the twilight of their careers, and won their medals etc. Gerrard team watched by less than 700 It proved to be a humiliating weekend for Steven Gerrard and Jordan Henderson's Al-Ettifaq after they suffered a 1-0 defeat against Al-Riyadh in front of fewer than 700 supporters. Khalid Al-Shuwayyi scored the winner in the 16th minute for Odair Hellmann's side as Al-Ettifaq slumped to back-to-back losses for the first time this season. The result leaves Gerrard's men in seventh and already nine points behind first-place Al-Hilal, who are still unbeaten from their opening 10 matches. To make matters worse, Al-Ettifaq's defeat was played with just 696 people in attendance. This is staggeringly low for a top-flight match, though Al-Riyadh aren't one of the most well-backed sides in the Saudi Pro League. It isn't the first time Al-Ettifaq have seen a crowd this low, as just 976 fans turned up for their 3-1 win at Abha in September. In comparison, there were more supporters (702) at Clitheroe's 2-1 victory over Newcastle Town in the eighth tier of English football on Saturday. Almost double (1124) were at Marine's win against Lancaster in the division above, while 2122 fans were in attendance for National League North clash between Hereford and Curzon Ashton. 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HanoiVillan Posted October 23, 2023 Share Posted October 23, 2023 That's pretty funny, but does also reveal another trend that is creeping somewhat under the radar which is that this is a good time for non-league football attendances, which keep going up on average around the country. The sheer depth of interest in football in England is surely close to unique in world football. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zatman Posted October 23, 2023 Share Posted October 23, 2023 Humiliating and Gerrard seems to be a running theme 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
It's Your Round Posted October 23, 2023 Share Posted October 23, 2023 I love how the 696 is staggeringly low even for a top flight Saudi match. It’s like the few fans that do turn up can’t abide Gerrard ball either. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
duke313 Posted November 14, 2023 Share Posted November 14, 2023 And there we go, sooner than I expected to be fair. 1 1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bobzy Posted November 14, 2023 Share Posted November 14, 2023 39 minutes ago, duke313 said: And there we go, sooner than I expected to be fair. Is this a reputable source or something? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Genie Posted November 14, 2023 Share Posted November 14, 2023 (edited) 1 hour ago, duke313 said: And there we go, sooner than I expected to be fair. I don’t believe that for a second. They can’t go “inviting” random teams not even in Europe to the Champions League. The closest they could go would be to award a place in the competition for the Saudi Pro League winners. Edited November 14, 2023 by Genie Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
villa4europe Posted November 14, 2023 Share Posted November 14, 2023 (edited) 20 minutes ago, Genie said: I don’t believe that for a second. They can’t go “inviting” random teams not even in Europe to the Champions League. You mean ceferin, who is elected by the 55 UEFA members can't just invite anyone he likes to his competitions, which are controlled by the UEFA club competitions committee in accordance with the 220 members of the ECA? (the ECA being chaired by the PSG Qatari guy) Said before, villa would get a vote on this Not saying it will never happen but I'd be amazed if it did, who the **** is voting yes to it? Or voting to keep in ceferin if he can bypass everyone and let it happen? He wouldn't survive in 2027 Edited November 14, 2023 by villa4europe Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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