[Archived] European Championship France 2016

[joey_big_nose]

He may have been quicker, but never quick. Certainly not the pace required in Europe and international football IMO..

Hmm, let's compare gullits playing achievements to shearers.. No contest mate..

Hmm. Go back and look at videos of him playing Pre 96. Very fast.

Shearer was an outstanding all round player who could have played at any top European club.

Also pace is hardly a necessity for international football - it depends on your style. Bergkamp, imbrahimovich and Sheringham were/are all successful international players and none of them are quick.

[AllRoverAsia]

He may have been quicker, but never quick. Certainly not the pace required in Europe and international football IMO..

Hmm, let's compare gullits playing achievements to shearers.. No contest mate..

Gullit was a fantastic player and I was not commenting on that. He was a plank for thinking he could mess around with Shearer on his home turf.

[TeamGB-11]

I just remember being at ewood against trelleborgs and realising shearer(and Sutton for that matter) just didn't work against the clearly superior quality of European defending. We looked so static against it. Same again the next season at ewood in champs league against legia Warsaw(I think it were)

[arbitro]

Hmm. Go back and look at videos of him playing Pre 96. Very fast.

Shearer was an outstanding all round player who could have played at any top European club.

Also pace is hardly a necessity for international football - it depends on your style. Bergkamp, imbrahimovich and Sheringham were/are all successful international players and none of them are quick.

No doubt that raw pace is an asset but you are correct about the above. I also think that clever players can play at any level. I would put the likes of Messi, Prosinecki, Hagi and Platini in the bracket of not being quick too. The players you mention were clever and it was/is their speed of thought that makes/made them top players.

[TeamGB-11]

No doubt that raw pace is an asset but you are correct about the above. I also think that clever players can play at any level. I would put the likes of Messi, Prosinecki, Hagi and Platini in the bracket of not being quick too. The players you mention were clever and it was/is their speed of thought that makes/made them top players.

A fair point. Benni McCarthy probably rovers most successful European player..

Have to say though, only platini out of those names has even won anything representing their countries..

[joey_big_nose]

A fair point. Benni McCarthy probably rovers most successful European player..

Have to say though, only platini out of those names has even won anything representing their countries..

I would say judging who the best international players based on what they have won internationally is a bit difficult. Is Stelios Giannakopoulos a better player than Cristino Ronaldo because he won Euro 2004 with Greece?

[TeamGB-11]

I would say judging who the best international players based on what they have won internationally is a bit difficult. Is Stelios Giannakopoulos a better player than Cristino Ronaldo because he won Euro 2004 with Greece?

He's more successful..

[TeamGB-11]

Maradona will always be considered to be the better over messi as long as messi continues to fail to win things with the national team, regardless of his club form and medals..

[Mattyblue]

Maradona will always be considered to be the better over messi as long as messi continues to fail to win things with the national team, regardless of his club form and medals..

By who?

[K-Hod]

Maradona will always be considered to be the better over messi as long as messi continues to fail to win things with the national team, regardless of his club form and medals..

Really?? Messi has already won far more medals than Maradona and he's not even 30 yet....

Are you also saying that Stelios is more decorated than Cristiano Ronaldo? I'm all for alternative points of view, but you've got to be on the wind up with that comment, I'm sorry!

[AllRoverAsia]

It started when Shearer was said to have fallen short at International level.

[TeamGB-11]

By who?

By Argentinians of course. Messi still to be taken fully to their hearts due to his club performances massively outshining his national team displays..

[K-Hod]

By Argentinians of course. Messi still to be taken fully to their hearts due to his club performances massively outshining his national team displays..

As Mark Hughes once said to Cesc Fabregas 'show us your medals'. Messi would win that hands down.

[TeamGB-11]

The shearer comment was my opinion, the messi comment is fact..

As Mark Hughes once said to Cesc Fabregas 'show us your medals'. Messi would win that hands down.

And if stelios said to Ronaldo , show us your national team medals? 1-0 stelios.. Same with maradona to messi..

[K-Hod]

That's probably the only time Stelios would win in any contest against Cristiano Ronaldo. Ronaldo is pretty much carrying an otherwise very poor Portugal team, Greece won a tournament in their own country somewhat fortuitiously by playing some of the dullest football I've ever seen.

In any case, I'm sure Cristiano will be remembered far more in the history of football as one of the greats than Stelios. Well, unless you're a Bolton fan perhaps....

[JBiz]

You mean in Portugal?

They beat the host in the finals and deserved the tournament regardless of some imbecilic comparison between those two players!

[TeamGB-11]

Much harder to win with national team than with club..

Maradona carried an average Argentina side to world cup success virtually single handed. Messi hasn't been able to do likewise with a far more talented modern day Argentina..

[Gav]

Hmmm... I feel like people do look at the past with ridiculously rose tinted glasses... Remember England failed to even qualify for '94, while Cole, Wright and Fowler all had numerous chances for England and all of them struggled to make any impression. Les Ferdinand, while an effective premier league striker, was equivalent to a battering ram. People would be up in arms if he was selected today as not technically good enough. Sutton was good for us, but a fringe player for Chelsea and had success in the Scottish Premier League whose standard was dire.

Ps. Gav - regarding JonJo Shelvey. Do you remember Des Walker, Carlton Palmer, Nick Barmby, Nicky Butt, Nick Barmby, Steve Stone... Players of average pedigree have always played for every team. And Shelvey is actually worth his call up as he's had an excellent start to the season for Swansea. And has played pretty well for England. Not sure why you would single him out.

No rose tinted spectacles here, just a better memory clearly!

The 1994 England side would have wiped the floor with the current side, and any from the past 15yrs, they failed to qualify because it was a very tough group, look at the squad:

Woods, Dixon, Walker, Adams, Pearce Stuart©, Ince Paul, Batty, Gascoigne, Platt, Shearer, Wright, Ferdinand, Merson, Keown.

Des Walker was average

As for Shelvey, well he might have had a decent start to the season but if he and a few others are England class so is Tris!

[TeamGB-11]

No easy games in international football, 10wins out of 10 is some achievement by hodgsons england.. Yet still people moan.. Unbelievable. Then again I believe folk moaned about Alf Ramsey back in the day too..

[arbitro]

No easy games in international football, 10wins out of 10 is some achievement by hodgsons england.. Yet still people moan.. Unbelievable. Then again I believe folk moaned about Alf Ramsey back in the day too..

No easy games in International football? The Euros and World Cup qualifiers are littered with the likes of San Marino, Gibraltar and Andorra and every continent has the equivalent of these teams which wholly devalues the competitions. I suspect the majority of football fans will tell you that international football is one big turn off.

[oldjamfan1]

No easy games in International football? The Euros and World Cup qualifiers are littered with the likes of San Marino, Gibraltar and Andorra and every continent has the equivalent of these teams which wholly devalues the competitions. I suspect the majority of football fans will tell you that international football is one big turn off.

You missed Scotland off that list Tony lol.

The international breaks irritate the Hell out of me tbh.

[Gav]

No easy games in international football, 10wins out of 10 is some achievement by hodgsons england.. Yet still people moan.. Unbelievable. Then again I believe folk moaned about Alf Ramsey back in the day too..

Everyone said the same about the world cup, never lost a game in qualification them humiliated in the finals, its been the same for years thats why people moan.

As for no easy games, San Marino and Lithuania are league 1 sides at best but we'll see how good England are next summer, think I'll book my holidays during the tournament to save the embarrassment.

[joey_big_nose]

No rose tinted spectacles here, just a better memory clearly!

The 1994 England side would have wiped the floor with the current side, and any from the past 15yrs, they failed to qualify because it was a very tough group, look at the squad:

Woods, Dixon, Walker, Adams, Pearce Stuart©, Ince Paul, Batty, Gascoigne, Platt, Shearer, Wright, Ferdinand, Merson, Keown.

Des Walker was average

As for Shelvey, well he might have had a decent start to the season but if he and a few others are England class so is Tris!

I guss we will have to agree to disagree! I'd say the current team is better than the England sqaud you mentioned except for Shearer, Adams and Gascoigne.

To be honest that was a pretty poor side in my opinion. Things improved markedly in 96 when the likes of Scholes, Gary Neville, McMananman, Sheringham etc turned up in 96. Merson, Wright, Ferdinand, Dixon, Woods, Batty were all pretty average international players.

Platt, Pearce, Ince were all okay but I wouldn't say any better than the Wilshire, Lallanas, Leighton Baines of this world.

[Gav]

I guss we will have to agree to disagree! I'd say the current team is better than the England sqaud you mentioned except for Shearer, Adams and Gascoigne.

To be honest that was a pretty poor side in my opinion. Things improved markedly in 96 when the likes of Scholes, Gary Neville, McMananman, Sheringham etc turned up in 96. Merson, Wright, Ferdinand, Dixon, Woods, Batty were all pretty average international players.

Platt, Pearce, Ince were all okay but I wouldn't say any better than the Wilshire, Lallanas, Leighton Baines of this world.

First of all you brought up 94 not me, that wasn't our best side but it was still better than our current crop, the 96 squad was better and 98/2000'ish was the last very good side.

Stuart Pearce was ok? Paul Ince was ok? Des Walker was average? David Platt ok?

Sorry Joey but you're talking bunkum pal, in my opinion of course.

[Mattyblue]

By Argentinians of course. Messi still to be taken fully to their hearts due to his club performances massively outshining his national team displays..

Ahh well that's a different point than I thought you were making.

Argentina fans obviously want the best for the national team and Maradonna did it time and time again for them.

However, generally speaking the fact that Argentina haven't won World Cups in Messi's time doen't belittle him as a player.