World Cup 2018

[Husky]

17 hours ago, RevidgeBlue said:

Know someone who flew out this morning who is an England member and who has paid £215 and £270 for the semi final and final respectively.

If he needs an extra ticket for his wife for the final and they decide they want to pay that much he anticipates it will be about £400.

Seems a bit like pot-luck. Occasionally a ticket might come up here and there, but the internet is full of pikeys scalping for 1500USD+ (final more like 2500USD+).

I don't expect there to be too much pot luck for the final though. Word is the scalpers are hoping an England win tonight will make the prices sky rocket even further.

[LeftWinger]

11 hours ago, RevidgeBlue said:

Errr......3 times, the first time in 1958 at age 17 and was kicked out of a 4th World Cup in 1966.

Plus scored 1000 goals at domestic level which seems to get sniffed at these days because it was only the Brazilian League but you can only beat what's in front of you, there was no Champions League in those days, and no-one seems to  particularly mind the fact that Messi and Ronaldo scored most of their goals against far weaker sides.

By far the greatest player of all time for me.

This 1000 domestic goals is somewhat controversial. More than 500 of those were in friendlies or unofficial matches. He's basically counted goals he scored in his back garden.

[Giant]

13 hours ago, Audax said:

Neymar has two World Cups under his belt. I don't think there is anything extraordinary with either.

Pele helped Brazil win the World Cup and.....

 

Pele won 3 world cups, the first as a 17 year old. It would probably have been 4 had he not had a hatchet job done on him in 1966. No player has ever been as good as him, nor is ever likely to be.

[J*B]

1 hour ago, Husky said:

Seems a bit like pot-luck. Occasionally a ticket might come up here and there, but the internet is full of pikeys scalping for 1500USD+ (final more like 2500USD+).

I don't expect there to be too much pot luck for the final though. Word is the scalpers are hoping an England win tonight will make the prices sky rocket even further.

The touts outside the stadium are pricing them at double your money. £550 for a £285 ticket. Plenty for sale if you're willing to pay. Then there's option B and wait to the very last moment trying to call their bluff. 

[Tyrone Shoelaces]

3 hours ago, roverandout said:

I also believe if rashford had been coached properly and given more time in his proper position he could have been as good as mbappe

Technically maybe he could. Where Mbappe stands out is his imagination and ability to see passes and moves were nobody else can. That's why he reminds me of Pele.

[Tyrone Shoelaces]

9 minutes ago, LeftWinger said:

This 1000 domestic goals is somewhat controversial. More than 500 of those were in friendlies or unofficial matches. He's basically counted goals he scored in his back garden.

In those  " friendlies " everybody was busting a gut to beat Santos and keep Pele quiet. Not many did.

[Tyrone Shoelaces]

11 hours ago, Mike E said:

And with money not being No#1 in football back then, the 'lesser' Brazilian league was most likely the equivalent of Second Division at the time at worst.

Those same 'lesser' Brazilian league's produced 3 WC winning sides out of 4 comps. No doubt Pele was fricking phenomenal.

Santos were beating the best European teams easily in the play off games where the South American champions played the European Cup winners back in the day.

[Tyrone Shoelaces]

2 hours ago, Audax said:

Giroud was all over the pitch, helped the French team immeasurably and in all of their matches. Unfortunately, they seem like they will be in the favourites for the silverware now.  I was hoping for a Belgium win, they totally shut them down. It's a bit sad it went that way. Sometimes, it is the teams  that don't come out all flashy but perform consistently that win. When did we last see Jogo Bonito? At least, the Argentines did some of that in 2010.

Perhaps Giroud should look like he came from some colonised land, then, he might get positive reviews.

 

Perhaps Giroud should look like an international class footballer, then he might get positive reviews. He sticks out like a sore thumb in that team. How he gets in past Benzema I'll never know.

[Mattyblue]

Remember they won WC 1998 with the  much maligned Stephane Guivarc'h up front on his own...

[joey_big_nose]

2 hours ago, AllRoverAsia said:

In a very defensive French set up Giroud did a decent job. He could have done better maybe with the very few scoring chances he had. He put a lot of miles in, as did Greasman, most of which is unappreciated from a sofa.

The French also rely on set pieces or and outlet down the right using Mpabbe. Not much else on offer attack wise but Greasman does need watching.

They will play the same way in the Final.

The thing France have is options. If for whatever reason plan A isn't working they can switch up. Strong on set plays, counter attack, can score from range, can get the ball in the box, can control the ball and play a possession game. Every single player in their team has goals in them and they defend as a tight unit.

It's hard to see how any team can manage that.

The main hope for whoever gets to the final is that the weight of expectation will trip them up like it did in Euro 2016. Their fans are quick to get on their back so if they are frustrated or concede early it could be possible to get the psychological upper hand.

And ultimately it's only XI against XI so there's always a chance.

[Tom]

Confident about tonight but less so about Sunday - footballs a funny old game though.

The focus tonight seems to be on stopping Modric primarily but they have a couple of others that could do some damage.

Both teams won penalty shootouts, 2 in their case and they may be happy to aim for them tonight.

[joey_big_nose]

3 hours ago, roverandout said:

Everyone said rooney was the new pele after euro 04 so i will hold off my judgement on mbappe for another couple of years

I don't think anyone really saw Rooney as anything other than a very promising player outside of the English press. He, like Beckham, was someone who was picked up and ability was estimated above their performances merited in this country. He had a great Euro 2004, but in the same way Owen had a great WC 1998 or Villa a great WC 2010. A top player but not the highest grade.

Mbappe conversely is absolutely first rate and will certainly join Neymar, Messi and Ronaldo at the top table. He's got a ruthlessness that Rooney just didn't have at any stage.

What's I find interesting is Kane is kind of an anti Rooney/Beckham. His allround quality gets consistently under estimated despite already being a better player than both those mentioned. Its something about the unspectacular way he plays the game. He always looks less effective than he actually is. He's a very unusual player in that regard.

[joey_big_nose]

Just now, Tom said:

Confident about tonight but less so about Sunday - footballs a funny old game though.

The focus tonight seems to be on stopping Modric primarily but they have a couple of others that could do some damage.

Both teams won penalty shootouts, 2 in their case and they may be happy to aim for them tonight.

Nah, theyd be daft to sit back as our main threat is set plays and crosses. They'll fancy on the front foot Persic and Rebic will batter us down the channels and they can get Modric and Rakitic to dictate centrally with the space in midfield.

I reckon both sides will come out hammer and tongs. Neither side likes defending. It'll be frantic I think.

[JacknOry]

Nerves starting to kick in - have not been so excited for an England match in decades!

 

[roverandout]

This might sound concieted but we deserve to be in the final more than croatia. How many times have we been cheated in quarter finals, second round ties..been so close in semi finals..a post's worth away.  Croatia havent been anywhere near that..granted they have only exsisted for 20 odd years but we have had to suffer heartache for more than 50 odd years.  We deserve this.

[K-Hod]

Whatever happens tonight, as much as I'll be gutted we haven't reached the final if we lose, I'm so happy that pride in the shirt has been restored and that there has been such a feeling of strength and unity behind the lads for the first time in years. I'm as proud as punch of what these lads have achieved by reaching the Semi-Finals. I didn't for a minute think we'd get this far before the tournament started.

No off the pitch nonsense, no talk of players being bored, no player criticising the fans to the camera after a pathetic performance, just strictly positive vibes only.

And long may that continue.

 

Edited July 11, 2018 by K-Hod

[Kamy100]

Same here K-Hod.  This tournament has already been a success for us regardless of the result tonight because finally we have a team which is actually playing with a defined style and seems to have it's own identity.  It is about the collective rather than the individual which bodes well for the future.

That said I bloody hope we do win tonight and carry on with this brilliant adventure.

[Ewood Ace]

5 hours ago, jim mk2 said:

 

Neymar is too high on that list, and (apart from his goalscoring record) possibly shouldn't be on it at all.

Can't hold a handle to the likes of Gerson and Rivellino

I wouldn't have Neymar in the top 30 Brazilian players that I have seen. I just don't see what the hype is all about with him, so overrated. 

[AAK]

Looks like it's going to rain, how ironic, Rain and England out of a tournament, everything would feel like it's back to normal.

[Admiral Nelsen]

23 minutes ago, Ewood Ace said:

I wouldn't have Neymar in the top 30 Brazilian players that I have seen. I just don't see what the hype is all about with him, so overrated. 

Definitely! Clearly a very good player, but you could make an argument that in 2002, he wouldn't even get in the team in front of Ronaldinho, Rivaldo & Fat Ronaldo. 

Was the big superstar in 2014 because it was the worst Brazilian team in memory. Simple as that for me. 

[roversfan99]

2 hours ago, roverandout said:

This might sound concieted but we deserve to be in the final more than croatia. How many times have we been cheated in quarter finals, second round ties..been so close in semi finals..a post's worth away.  Croatia havent been anywhere near that..granted they have only exsisted for 20 odd years but we have had to suffer heartache for more than 50 odd years.  We deserve this.

I get your angle, the fans are due some happiness, but whoever goes through deserves to. Hopefully us.

[Tom]

Still confident of a win but starting to feel nervous.

For the first time the added complexity of expectation is starting to creep in.

[speeeeeeedie]

4 hours ago, Tyrone Shoelaces said:

Perhaps Giroud should look like an international class footballer, then he might get positive reviews. He sticks out like a sore thumb in that team. How he gets in past Benzema I'll never know.

I think Benzema is not under consideration for his part in a blackmail plot against former France team mate Valbuena.

Anyway, come on England! Same 11 as last time out.

[roverandout]

Nerves are really kicking in...huge doubts in my mind..its miserable outside and the game is on our bogey channel...itv.....but we can do it.

[Stuart]

4 hours ago, JacknOry said:

Nerves starting to kick in - have not been so excited for an England match in decades!

 

Weird isn’t it. Feel like I’m 15 again!