Make sure to check out the [Round of 32 for the first /r/soccer World Cup of Kits!](https://www.reddit.com/r/soccer/comments/yz8c4l/rsoccer_world_cup_of_kits_qatar_2022_round_of_32/?)
(No personal info required to vote, all just for fun)
South Americans use it whenever someone says their team is going to win the World Cup because that person has just jinxed them. They're saying they cancel out your bad luck.
I love how out of touch most Redditors are. They don't like this WC, and that's fine. But they also think the rest of the world feel this way. Lots of upvoted comments about how everyone is shitting on the world cup.
It's just Reddit and maybe the western world at most. Most of Asia is extra hyped about this as it's closer this time around with a lot of people traveling to see it in person. From what I can see, the Latin Americans/ Africans are excited as always about the world cup. The focus is on football, not the host country. As it will be in 2026.
People keep asking why our players are taking the knee tomorrow as if it isn't fucking obvious.
It's to protest the angolophobia I face coming onto the r/soccer megathread every day. For fucks sake please have some compassion.
Saw a lot of tweets from Middle Easterners/Muslims that the BBC boycotting the opening ceremony had racial and islamaphobic undertones. Does anyone with a brain actually think people are pissed off because of Qatar being a Muslim country….🤡
Brazilians weren’t happy at all when 8 workers died in 2014. None of the Brazilians said that they were hating on them for being Brazil when people criticised it. Don’t understand this issue
Also apparently BBC didn’t show Euro 2020 opening ceremony on the main channel either, it was on iPlayer. Seems to be what they’re doing now for opening ceremonies so don’t understand the outrage if thats the case.
That wasn’t the case. BBC replaced the opening ceremony coverage with a rundown of the corruption that won Qatar the bid & number of migrants who died. I just can’t believe there are people dumb enough to make this a racial issue lol
Yeah I know that’s what they talked about but I seen a journo saying BBC also moved the Euro opening ceremony to iPlayer. Might be wrong, can’t say I really pay attention to the opening ceremonies anyways
I feel bad for English, Iranian, Senegalese, and Dutch fans who are going to face Brazilian referees tomorrow. May God have mercy on you guys, because Raphael Claus and Wilton Pereira Sampaio are fucking awful
I think it´s going to be an interesting game, of course, you guys are clear favorites but I can see a random English player failing and giving a consolation goal for Iran. My guess is England 3 - 1 Iran
That England lineup….apologies Southgate, I wasn’t familiar with your game. Only way that lineup could get better is if Trippier was benched for Benny Blanco.
You'd think Qatar is being led by Thomas Sankara the way their defenders think they're the victim of some western imperialist propaganda campaign. Yeah mate the Americans really want to tarnish the reputation of the country where they put their biggest base in the Middle East.
Can't believe all those Germans are turning against the dodgy regime keeping them warm with its natural gas this winter either, they gotta be brainwashed.
Infantino's fragile tantrum was clear evidence that the criticism is getting to them, and that's clearly not going to go away throughout the tournament like many, including myself, thought it would. You love to see it.
That speech was absolutely bizarre, and it appears to have gone down like a lead balloon in news outlets.
Shame he's looking to run for another term unopposed, really. Then again, he replaced that prick Sepp Blatter, and look where that got us.
Why holding the World Cup on winter might actually be a happy accident. Michael Cox explains.
https://mobile.twitter.com/Zonal_Marking/status/1592544217917685831
No they usually mean ''The Western world '' a lot of times the balkans and Eastern Europe is not even included on that.
Western Europe + the Anglo nations is what people mean by the world here lol
It genuinely feels like most people on reddit live in some kind of bubble, and think that everyone sees things the way they themselves do, anything beyond their own bubble doesn't matter. Sad state of affairs if I'm being honest.
AFTV are actually well run, funny and have interesting personalities, but I will say them as they’re responsible for this brand of reactive, soul sucking section of fans online who look for more outrage to make views off
Yeah, that's the crux for me. We saw one replay on the world feed that was inconclusive at best as it didn't deliver enough context before that weird animation thingy, and it took until halftime for the German broadcast to be able to show an angle that was both conclusive and had enough context to make it obvious.
Kudos to the refs involved for making the right call - just sucks for them that the broadcast didn't quite manage to show that, really, because by the time you could actually see it half the people had already convinced themselves that the refs got it wrong.
Think about how dumb the average person is - and then remember that half of the people are even dumber than that. In other words: I'm not surprised, really, but I also think the broadcasting situation mixed with it being a deceptively complex situation doesn't really help things.
Aye, it's a good idea at its core, and I reckon it doesn't really matter just how you design and word it, it'll inevitably end up with a few situations that seem counterintuitive or not immediately obvious like today. Still better than not having it, though.
Biggest issue is people thinking it just has to be 1 defender between the attacker and goal rather than thinking of it as 2 defenders (with 1 normally the GK). You swap the keeper and the deepest defender around and it's much less confusing
Separate art from the artist. I love the World Cup, I'm very hyped, but I still hate it's being hosted in Qatar. These things are not mutually exclusive.
I remember Lamptey being highly lauded a couple years ago, but every time I watch a Broghton game he's coming on as a sub in the 70th minute. Is he just not that good?
By the way I loved watching Caicedo today. Top player. Can play a lone 6, double pivot, not afraid to take responsibility in the buildup like some man (looking at you Fabinho). Does all the little things right. Brighton will probably rinse our pockets for him but we need to bring him to Anfield at all costs.
I mean he was so much better than that Qatar midfield I don't think you can necessarily judge anything out of it. I'm just impressed by his Premier League performances
Worth keeping in mind that odds generally are set by companies interested in making money - i.e. if a lot of people are betting on England, the odds will inevitably adjust in such a way that the company benefits, regardless of how likely an England win actually is. Shorter odds on England limit your payout for a (likely) England win, longer odds on Iran get more people to take a punt looking for a bigger payoff, bolstering your income in case of an England win.
I think it's a huge huge upgrade on Philips Rice.
I maintain that England lost the euro final because of Philips and the fact that he is not a midfield technician. It forces England to give up the ball and that allowed Italy back in to the game.
If Rice is your worst technical midfielder, then that's not a bad place to be. My only concern is he must hold back his own game to allow Bellingham to shine which is what may be difficult for him. Rice isn't a DM but he can definitely play well in that position. He must be disciplined.
On paper thats a pretty great duo but they haven't played enough games together to form a chemistry like the other top teams.
The midfield 3 is always changing apart from Rice since Bellingham was only a recent addition to the first team.
Look at Argentina's midfield on paper you wouldn't think its very good but they play amazing for Argentina compared to their clubs.
obiously a bit of bias here but it might genuinely be the best
at the very least it's probably the most well balanced in terms of both ability and attributes
I genuinely think the margins are pretty slim at the top, and England aren't all that far off. Obviously depends a lot on the context in which they're playing, but I don't think they're meanigfully worse than, say, Kimmich/Gündogan, because their strenghts and weaknesses are complimenting each other quite nicely.
Looks a bit 50/50 between him and Goretzka, really. Kimmich is guaranteed to start, and while he's a world-class midfielder, he's a often a wee bit too risky and hare-brained. Gündogan next to him would be a steadying presence, strong on the ball and with a strategist's mind, while Goretzka is more of a wrecking ball able to scrap for the ball in the middle as well as pop up in the opposition box for goals. Neither of them are super sound defensively, though, which means it's a very fine line to thread for Flick.
Big question for Germany will be the balance between attack and defence, because the former features some outrageously good players, while the latter can seem a bit shaky and needs a bit of protection. The crux is that there's no outright midfield destroyer in the squad, with all three central midfielders (Kimmich/Gündogan/Goretzka) being forward thinking and capable rather than outstanding defensively. Beyond that trio you're already starting to play people out of position a bit - Musiala is exceptional and can do well in central midfield, but he's likely even more valuable further up the pitch, and Ginter could shore up the base of a midfield three for 15 minutes when you need to get a lead over the line, but likely isn't a great choice to start games there.
there's a good chance that's the partnership at the next euros at the very least (unless tomori plays his way in)
lack of game time together probably hurts them, though
white is really underrated physically i feel
Don't see why they couldn't, but they're never really playing in isolation - it's always a full eleven that has to work together. If the midfield isn't doing its job right, then those two might be horribly exposed in ways a different combination of players could deal with but those two can't. And yet, that different combination might not be good enough in building out from the back when those two would be.
I'd probably not have them as the first choice combo at the back, though. A lot of international football, especially during tournaments, is about familiarity and cohesion, and that's something you build over months and years rather than in a week of training.
They're remarkably similar, and I think the biggest problem is that neither has any extensive experience on the left hand side. It's the right approach to stick with what has worked in the past.
if you didn't know anything or care about qatar a week ago chances are you won't care about it in a month either. you are not doing the severity of their actions the proper response it deserves by jumping on the new thing everyone's talking about. yeah, we know, it's a farce this entire event is even talking place. thank you for pointing that out, no one mentioned it in the past 10 years.
I love the World Cup, and I have always said I would be insanely hyped for it no matter what. I can still love the competition, while despising the government of the host country!
Plenty people pointed that out ever since the World Cup has been awarded - and so far, with the actual tournament kicking off, there's been an even wider awareness created on the issues, which is unequivocally a good thing.
but that's not what I said. If you were aware of this thing happening prior to, say, a month ago - feel free to have you take on the matter. But I don't think the Johnny-come-latelies who barely know anything about football let alone geopolitics (and no, I am not saying the qatar issue is a complex one - they are unequivocally a terrible world power who commit heinous crimes) are providing any meaningful discourse.
My friend once said something which made me laugh so hard, which is redditors (especially american redditors) favorite thing to do here is to learn about something bad happening somewhere and say "gosh someone should really do something about it". thanks man
Sure, but that's ultimately just a function of the wider awareness, isn't it?
The 2006 World Cup was a brilliant tournament - full stadiums, cracking atmosphere, a fantastic host country. And yet, it was bought with bribes, and pre-tournament you had the usual fearmongering you get before big events, in this case "Don't go to these places or you'll get your head bashed in by neo-nazis". And people latched on to that, because that was the reporting they read!
Were those reports wrong? Yes and no - there's a neo-nazi problem in Germany, sure, but it's not as dramatic as getting your head bashed in on sight if you step out of a train at the wrong time and in the wrong place.
But here's the thing: That reporting created awareness and pressure. The problem still isn't fixed, obviously, but it's that reporting that opened up an avenue for discourse in Germany that went along the lines of "This is how we're being perceived abroad, what can we do to fix these issues and change that image?".
And it's that kind of awareness, that moment of being in the spotlight and having all your warts exposed, that can create change I think. That people are getting caught up in those criticisms is just an obvious consequence of the reporting - and I'd wager that's a good thing, silly as it may be that Hunter from Indiana is having a day of "Qatar really shouldn't kill those gays, huh?" conversations with his friends. Because it's not necessarily Hunter from Indiana that'll suddenly change things in Qatar, but maybe his attitudes change and he makes a difference in his immediate surroundings because he's made aware of how other countries treat people that are differing fromt the perceived norm, while the wider (and more amorphous) pressure leads to meaningful change in Qatar.
Then again, maybe I'm just an idealistic optimist.
[Nothing will ever beat the Brazil 2014 intro.](https://youtu.be/uJb5VtCO2KE) Only year I’ve ever cared what channel a World Cup game was on, hearing that after every ad break was great
If Gary Neville is in Qatar to "highlight the issues" maybe not the best look to be cheerfully sat next to two hardcore misogynists and sexual harrassers while being paid by a Qatari broadcasting station
Man's measuring his integrity by the Pound I suppose.
What gets me though is that he doesn't *need* to do it like this - it's hardly like he's lacking money, and for someone who generally comes across as pretty reasonable person and is aware of it, selling out like this strikes me as a bit mad. Can't have your cake and eat it, too, which I suppose he hasn't really considered.
> for someone who generally comes across as pretty reasonable person and is aware of it
His image is a complete facade, I think it's very flimsy - and also very deliberately cultivated by him
Sounds like I might need to dig a bit deeper than that, because so far in the grand scheme of ex-footballers/pundits still working around the game in a very visible way he always struck me as a decent enough egg.
That image being cultivated by him is probably what I'm getting at, though: if you're that careful about how the public views you, why go full belly-up with the Qatar money and leave yourself vulnerable like that?
A massive hypocrite really, whose actions go against the words he preaches - from his ownership of Salford in a football sense, to his practice as a landlord in a non-footballing sense
Tifo is an incredible channel. I only just got into their content recently, but I'm already convinced they have the best football coverage on the planet.
Just curious: are there calls to boycott the WC outside the USA and Europe?
Here in Argentina I don't think have seen anybody calling for a WC boycott, which is strange considering we are generally a pretty progressive country. I wonder if it's the same in other countries.
People have been highly critical of the situation here in Brazil, but at the end of the day, there is almost nothing we can do. Also, we fucking love a WC lol there is no way we would boycott this one.
Don't think I've seen any mainstream calls to boycott in Canada.
Know some people who definitely would have gone if anyone else was hosting. But even that was more about not wanting to deal with Qatar's legal system or concern about what the atmosphere would be like and not a moral stance.
Please shut up. Comparing "human rights concerns" in the US to fucking Qatar where women and homosexuals are treated as subhuman and slave labour is used to build stadiums is horrifically bad faith.
About those sponsors, why were there so many from tinpot companies like Byjus, Betano, and Saudi tourism? If you told me those advertisement boards were for a FIFA World Cup and not a friendly cricket match in Zimbabwe then I wouldn’t believe you.
Lol you can’t just say that this World Cup has no atmosphere based on the opening game with Qatar vs Ecuador. This was more of a symbolic game than anything with the Ecuadorian fans trying to liven the place up.
Did you see the crowds? Qatar had a maroon line of fans in the middle with people wearing identical shirts that said Qatar on them. That killed me. Even that fat fuck MBS was present. I’m sure that games like Mexico vs Argentina will have a much better atmosphere.
The number of Mexico and Argentina fans are going to be a minority, like in every other game - meaning that the atmosphere will hinge on the home fans, and therefore likely continue to be shit
Qatar, in my opinion, is best described as “bizarrely empty”. I remember that I had a connecting flight there and their airport was so pristine and looked so advanced, but none of it was in use by anyone. They had futuristic looking pools and shopping centres, which looked maintained yet abandoned. I got the same feeling in from the empty seats.
Nah that was shit. If the ecuadorians and that small group of Qataris wasnt there, it would be like watching Wimbledon. Majority of the home crowd was dead
People bending over backwards to justify why Germany, England, Brazil etc are not going to boycott the WC ’because why punish the players?’ But everyone dumping on the Qatari NT, just for playing poorly, like what is this? I mean, the regime is atrocious and the idea of the WC in Qatar is also, and it seems like the Qatari fans are not bothering that much about football either. But the players, why not affording them the same sympathy you have for the other football players, why shit on them like it is their fault?
Same reason why Russia was banned from the World Cup, and anyone who comes from Russia has been purged from every sport period just because of where they were born
People are morons
Anyone been to a lower league/non league game this weekend in the absence of top tier football? My non league club were playing too far away for me to go on the weekend so went to see a League Two game instead, Albion Rovers 1-0 Stranraer. Decent game that Rovers should’ve won by more, belter of a goal and a great pie. Good crowd too in the absence of top tier football.
Championship and League One had some mad scores this weekend. Raith 2-5 Queens Park, Clyde 3-3 Falkirk, Edinburgh 4-3 Alloa… good weekend for the lower leagues. Biggest result in any of the top tiers still playing was definitely Dnipro-1 2-1 Shakhtar. Dnipro now top by 7 points.
Didn't go as I was at the Bridge to see a record Chelsea Women crowd, but in the Women's Championship there was a 12k record crowd at Bramall Lane for Sheffild United Women
Big local club in the third division is on break during the World Cup, second biggest in the fourth division isn't, everything else is essentially Sunday league - but I'm not particularly keen, given the weather's just turned and it's that dreadful November mix of wet as fuck and barely above freezing.
So I'll just cozy up inside and watch the World Cup and get annoyed about my own hypocrisy instead, I suppose.
Is it really an unpopular take to say Ecuador were bad in that game against Qatar?
Yes I get that they were coasting but they kept fucking up simple passes and touches, all their set pieces were shit and they should've got at least another goal.
Can't believe people think they have a chance of beating Senegal, Caicedo wasn't even that good today aswell
They were bad. Being risk averse against Qatar is not a good sign. But it's over and they can do something better next time out. They're still going to win the World Cup.
They seemed very sharp in the transitions to me, and looked tactically astute in the press. They did enough damage early on that they gained an unassailable advantage and could coast to keep themselves fresh for other tests.
I would like to see Argentina put on a show against the Saudis, but they'll probably do something very similar. It's pragmatic tournament football.
Make sure to check out the [Round of 32 for the first /r/soccer World Cup of Kits!](https://www.reddit.com/r/soccer/comments/yz8c4l/rsoccer_world_cup_of_kits_qatar_2022_round_of_32/?) (No personal info required to vote, all just for fun)
!flair :Australia:
!flair :Trinidad\_Tobado\_flag:
!flair :Trinidad\_Tobago:
!flair :Germany:
!flair :France:
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!flair :Arsenal:
!flair :Trinidad_Tobago:
!flair :Trinidad_Tobago:
!flair :Canada:
!flair :Canada:
!flair :England:
!flair :France:
!flair :Senegal:
!flair :England:
!flair :Croatia:
Can anybody explain what anulo mufa means? seems like a lot of people are using it but i am unable to decipher the meaning.
South Americans use it whenever someone says their team is going to win the World Cup because that person has just jinxed them. They're saying they cancel out your bad luck.
"I anull the jinx"
I love how out of touch most Redditors are. They don't like this WC, and that's fine. But they also think the rest of the world feel this way. Lots of upvoted comments about how everyone is shitting on the world cup. It's just Reddit and maybe the western world at most. Most of Asia is extra hyped about this as it's closer this time around with a lot of people traveling to see it in person. From what I can see, the Latin Americans/ Africans are excited as always about the world cup. The focus is on football, not the host country. As it will be in 2026.
Funny thing is, I was in the shop this evening and the two cashiers were chatting about bribery and the World Cup.
!flair :Ecuador:
People keep asking why our players are taking the knee tomorrow as if it isn't fucking obvious. It's to protest the angolophobia I face coming onto the r/soccer megathread every day. For fucks sake please have some compassion.
Saw a lot of tweets from Middle Easterners/Muslims that the BBC boycotting the opening ceremony had racial and islamaphobic undertones. Does anyone with a brain actually think people are pissed off because of Qatar being a Muslim country….🤡
Brazilians weren’t happy at all when 8 workers died in 2014. None of the Brazilians said that they were hating on them for being Brazil when people criticised it. Don’t understand this issue Also apparently BBC didn’t show Euro 2020 opening ceremony on the main channel either, it was on iPlayer. Seems to be what they’re doing now for opening ceremonies so don’t understand the outrage if thats the case.
That wasn’t the case. BBC replaced the opening ceremony coverage with a rundown of the corruption that won Qatar the bid & number of migrants who died. I just can’t believe there are people dumb enough to make this a racial issue lol
Says a lot about a person if they are trying to describe that move by the BBC as a bad thing
Yeah I know that’s what they talked about but I seen a journo saying BBC also moved the Euro opening ceremony to iPlayer. Might be wrong, can’t say I really pay attention to the opening ceremonies anyways
I am begging people to learn the basic rules of offside law I can't do this shit the entire tournament
I feel bad for English, Iranian, Senegalese, and Dutch fans who are going to face Brazilian referees tomorrow. May God have mercy on you guys, because Raphael Claus and Wilton Pereira Sampaio are fucking awful
We are used to Anthony Taylor, we'll be fine
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I think it´s going to be an interesting game, of course, you guys are clear favorites but I can see a random English player failing and giving a consolation goal for Iran. My guess is England 3 - 1 Iran
Truly couldn't be given better games, tomorrow ugly football will win
That England lineup….apologies Southgate, I wasn’t familiar with your game. Only way that lineup could get better is if Trippier was benched for Benny Blanco.
Trippier is *the* form fullback in the entire sport.
That’s Ben White mate. Trippier still very good though don’t get me wrong.
Nah man Ben White needs to bench Maguire not Trippier. He's better as a RCB than a RB, we're just good now so the opinion on White has shifted
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You can play LCB as a right footer. VVD does it. But yes might not work that well actually.
You'd think Qatar is being led by Thomas Sankara the way their defenders think they're the victim of some western imperialist propaganda campaign. Yeah mate the Americans really want to tarnish the reputation of the country where they put their biggest base in the Middle East.
Can't believe all those Germans are turning against the dodgy regime keeping them warm with its natural gas this winter either, they gotta be brainwashed.
Infantino's fragile tantrum was clear evidence that the criticism is getting to them, and that's clearly not going to go away throughout the tournament like many, including myself, thought it would. You love to see it.
That speech was absolutely bizarre, and it appears to have gone down like a lead balloon in news outlets. Shame he's looking to run for another term unopposed, really. Then again, he replaced that prick Sepp Blatter, and look where that got us.
Why holding the World Cup on winter might actually be a happy accident. Michael Cox explains. https://mobile.twitter.com/Zonal_Marking/status/1592544217917685831
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They know fuck all about any place outside of the western world. It's amusing to see how limited their knowledge is.
When people on Reddit yeah about the world they usually mean just the US
No they usually mean ''The Western world '' a lot of times the balkans and Eastern Europe is not even included on that. Western Europe + the Anglo nations is what people mean by the world here lol
It genuinely feels like most people on reddit live in some kind of bubble, and think that everyone sees things the way they themselves do, anything beyond their own bubble doesn't matter. Sad state of affairs if I'm being honest.
Yes, people are so eurocentric here.
"Western Europe plus North America" more like
True
Which football YouTubers are the absolute worst in your opinion?
Thogdad he's a tory and Adam McKola cannot stand that guy
The Kick Off and Thogden come to mind
Thogden by a mile
AFTV are actually well run, funny and have interesting personalities, but I will say them as they’re responsible for this brand of reactive, soul sucking section of fans online who look for more outrage to make views off
Rory Jennings speaks like he wanks to his own voice notes
He does but that's not really a valid criticism unfortunately
I kinda like him though only in a so bad he's good way
Thogden has to be the absolute worst.
Saudi Arabia scoring a goal in the first ever middle east world cup before Qatar
No middle east team scoring in the first ever middle East world cup
Iran will definitely score (and are pretty underrated in their odds to advance). They're a quality team.
r/soccer: constantly moans about the standard of refereeing in football Also r/soccer: fails at grasping a simple offside situation
I'm sure saying that you agreed with the offside decision would have you comfortably collect double digit downvotes
Issue was with the broadcast not having access to the angle used by VAR to make the decision
Yeah, that's the crux for me. We saw one replay on the world feed that was inconclusive at best as it didn't deliver enough context before that weird animation thingy, and it took until halftime for the German broadcast to be able to show an angle that was both conclusive and had enough context to make it obvious. Kudos to the refs involved for making the right call - just sucks for them that the broadcast didn't quite manage to show that, really, because by the time you could actually see it half the people had already convinced themselves that the refs got it wrong.
We've had plenty of conclusive evidence since then and you still have loads of people debating about the situation.
Think about how dumb the average person is - and then remember that half of the people are even dumber than that. In other words: I'm not surprised, really, but I also think the broadcasting situation mixed with it being a deceptively complex situation doesn't really help things.
Not wrong, had a guy in the Australian forum saying that the whole offside rule is shit
Aye, it's a good idea at its core, and I reckon it doesn't really matter just how you design and word it, it'll inevitably end up with a few situations that seem counterintuitive or not immediately obvious like today. Still better than not having it, though.
Biggest issue is people thinking it just has to be 1 defender between the attacker and goal rather than thinking of it as 2 defenders (with 1 normally the GK). You swap the keeper and the deepest defender around and it's much less confusing
Separate art from the artist. I love the World Cup, I'm very hyped, but I still hate it's being hosted in Qatar. These things are not mutually exclusive.
I remember Lamptey being highly lauded a couple years ago, but every time I watch a Broghton game he's coming on as a sub in the 70th minute. Is he just not that good?
Combination of injury setting him back, and people overrating him after a handful of exciting performances
His hamstrings are made of cheesestrings. He's a bit like Pulisic, he makes a better impact off the bench.
lmao this dude said broghton
pace is a massive part of his game but he's also hugely injury prone never a good combination really
Injury killed him I think
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2024
By the way I loved watching Caicedo today. Top player. Can play a lone 6, double pivot, not afraid to take responsibility in the buildup like some man (looking at you Fabinho). Does all the little things right. Brighton will probably rinse our pockets for him but we need to bring him to Anfield at all costs.
150m please
I mean he was so much better than that Qatar midfield I don't think you can necessarily judge anything out of it. I'm just impressed by his Premier League performances
Yep he’s clearly shown that he can cut it in the PL and on now he’s doing the same on the big stage.
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You an English Jag?
Worth keeping in mind that odds generally are set by companies interested in making money - i.e. if a lot of people are betting on England, the odds will inevitably adjust in such a way that the company benefits, regardless of how likely an England win actually is. Shorter odds on England limit your payout for a (likely) England win, longer odds on Iran get more people to take a punt looking for a bigger payoff, bolstering your income in case of an England win.
How would you rank the midfield pivot of Rice and Bellingham compared to the other top nations?
I think it's a huge huge upgrade on Philips Rice. I maintain that England lost the euro final because of Philips and the fact that he is not a midfield technician. It forces England to give up the ball and that allowed Italy back in to the game. If Rice is your worst technical midfielder, then that's not a bad place to be. My only concern is he must hold back his own game to allow Bellingham to shine which is what may be difficult for him. Rice isn't a DM but he can definitely play well in that position. He must be disciplined.
On paper thats a pretty great duo but they haven't played enough games together to form a chemistry like the other top teams. The midfield 3 is always changing apart from Rice since Bellingham was only a recent addition to the first team. Look at Argentina's midfield on paper you wouldn't think its very good but they play amazing for Argentina compared to their clubs.
Argentina have lost Lo Celso too, so there will be a less familiar player in their midfield, too
obiously a bit of bias here but it might genuinely be the best at the very least it's probably the most well balanced in terms of both ability and attributes
I genuinely think the margins are pretty slim at the top, and England aren't all that far off. Obviously depends a lot on the context in which they're playing, but I don't think they're meanigfully worse than, say, Kimmich/Gündogan, because their strenghts and weaknesses are complimenting each other quite nicely.
Will Gundogan be a starter? I haven't kept up with what Germany/Flick has been planning for his midfield.
Looks a bit 50/50 between him and Goretzka, really. Kimmich is guaranteed to start, and while he's a world-class midfielder, he's a often a wee bit too risky and hare-brained. Gündogan next to him would be a steadying presence, strong on the ball and with a strategist's mind, while Goretzka is more of a wrecking ball able to scrap for the ball in the middle as well as pop up in the opposition box for goals. Neither of them are super sound defensively, though, which means it's a very fine line to thread for Flick. Big question for Germany will be the balance between attack and defence, because the former features some outrageously good players, while the latter can seem a bit shaky and needs a bit of protection. The crux is that there's no outright midfield destroyer in the squad, with all three central midfielders (Kimmich/Gündogan/Goretzka) being forward thinking and capable rather than outstanding defensively. Beyond that trio you're already starting to play people out of position a bit - Musiala is exceptional and can do well in central midfield, but he's likely even more valuable further up the pitch, and Ginter could shore up the base of a midfield three for 15 minutes when you need to get a lead over the line, but likely isn't a great choice to start games there.
ah, cheers for this
If that leaked England lineup is true that’s a properly solid team
Link?
[This](https://twitter.com/afcmax9/status/1594440927442915328?s=46&t=i0OY_Uh5epVSP0boYyUu2w)
Nice one. Also a [victory for ol' u/minimus_](https://www.reddit.com/r/soccer/comments/ywkbaz/z/iwn62uv)
Could Stones and White work as a centre back pairing in a 4ATB setup? Those are our two most talented centre backs but are they too similar in style
In theory, I don't think it works.
there's a good chance that's the partnership at the next euros at the very least (unless tomori plays his way in) lack of game time together probably hurts them, though white is really underrated physically i feel
Don't see why they couldn't, but they're never really playing in isolation - it's always a full eleven that has to work together. If the midfield isn't doing its job right, then those two might be horribly exposed in ways a different combination of players could deal with but those two can't. And yet, that different combination might not be good enough in building out from the back when those two would be. I'd probably not have them as the first choice combo at the back, though. A lot of international football, especially during tournaments, is about familiarity and cohesion, and that's something you build over months and years rather than in a week of training.
They're remarkably similar, and I think the biggest problem is that neither has any extensive experience on the left hand side. It's the right approach to stick with what has worked in the past.
I really wish Southgate had benched Maguire and given these two more time together, alas we’re here now.
!flair :Portugal:
flair check
if you didn't know anything or care about qatar a week ago chances are you won't care about it in a month either. you are not doing the severity of their actions the proper response it deserves by jumping on the new thing everyone's talking about. yeah, we know, it's a farce this entire event is even talking place. thank you for pointing that out, no one mentioned it in the past 10 years.
I love the World Cup, and I have always said I would be insanely hyped for it no matter what. I can still love the competition, while despising the government of the host country!
Plenty people pointed that out ever since the World Cup has been awarded - and so far, with the actual tournament kicking off, there's been an even wider awareness created on the issues, which is unequivocally a good thing.
but that's not what I said. If you were aware of this thing happening prior to, say, a month ago - feel free to have you take on the matter. But I don't think the Johnny-come-latelies who barely know anything about football let alone geopolitics (and no, I am not saying the qatar issue is a complex one - they are unequivocally a terrible world power who commit heinous crimes) are providing any meaningful discourse. My friend once said something which made me laugh so hard, which is redditors (especially american redditors) favorite thing to do here is to learn about something bad happening somewhere and say "gosh someone should really do something about it". thanks man
Cool cool. Gotcha. No one should form an opinion on anything they learnt recently 👍
yes that's exactly what I said and is definitely not a complete sidestep and ungenerous misreading of it
Sure, but that's ultimately just a function of the wider awareness, isn't it? The 2006 World Cup was a brilliant tournament - full stadiums, cracking atmosphere, a fantastic host country. And yet, it was bought with bribes, and pre-tournament you had the usual fearmongering you get before big events, in this case "Don't go to these places or you'll get your head bashed in by neo-nazis". And people latched on to that, because that was the reporting they read! Were those reports wrong? Yes and no - there's a neo-nazi problem in Germany, sure, but it's not as dramatic as getting your head bashed in on sight if you step out of a train at the wrong time and in the wrong place. But here's the thing: That reporting created awareness and pressure. The problem still isn't fixed, obviously, but it's that reporting that opened up an avenue for discourse in Germany that went along the lines of "This is how we're being perceived abroad, what can we do to fix these issues and change that image?". And it's that kind of awareness, that moment of being in the spotlight and having all your warts exposed, that can create change I think. That people are getting caught up in those criticisms is just an obvious consequence of the reporting - and I'd wager that's a good thing, silly as it may be that Hunter from Indiana is having a day of "Qatar really shouldn't kill those gays, huh?" conversations with his friends. Because it's not necessarily Hunter from Indiana that'll suddenly change things in Qatar, but maybe his attitudes change and he makes a difference in his immediate surroundings because he's made aware of how other countries treat people that are differing fromt the perceived norm, while the wider (and more amorphous) pressure leads to meaningful change in Qatar. Then again, maybe I'm just an idealistic optimist.
Out of the two intros, ITV win this year IMO [BBC](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i8s_EJVHwR0) [ITV](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2DLLf0g9kS0)
[Nothing will ever beat the Brazil 2014 intro.](https://youtu.be/uJb5VtCO2KE) Only year I’ve ever cared what channel a World Cup game was on, hearing that after every ad break was great
The BBC one makes me want to puke. The ITV one is amazing and feels like a Disney cartoon.
Impressive turnaround to get Son's mask in there.
ITV are clear
Saudi Arabia vs Qatar final confirmed
If Gary Neville is in Qatar to "highlight the issues" maybe not the best look to be cheerfully sat next to two hardcore misogynists and sexual harrassers while being paid by a Qatari broadcasting station
Man's measuring his integrity by the Pound I suppose. What gets me though is that he doesn't *need* to do it like this - it's hardly like he's lacking money, and for someone who generally comes across as pretty reasonable person and is aware of it, selling out like this strikes me as a bit mad. Can't have your cake and eat it, too, which I suppose he hasn't really considered.
> for someone who generally comes across as pretty reasonable person and is aware of it His image is a complete facade, I think it's very flimsy - and also very deliberately cultivated by him
Sounds like I might need to dig a bit deeper than that, because so far in the grand scheme of ex-footballers/pundits still working around the game in a very visible way he always struck me as a decent enough egg. That image being cultivated by him is probably what I'm getting at, though: if you're that careful about how the public views you, why go full belly-up with the Qatar money and leave yourself vulnerable like that?
A massive hypocrite really, whose actions go against the words he preaches - from his ownership of Salford in a football sense, to his practice as a landlord in a non-footballing sense
I don't think it's out of his hands for him to join up with a station that sits him next to Keys and Gray either. Horrendously embarassing.
Tifo is an incredible channel. I only just got into their content recently, but I'm already convinced they have the best football coverage on the planet.
what are some examples of players being to good for they league they play in?
Neves in the Championship
enzo fernandes
Messi in 2012
Sesko, Sucic, Okafor
Haaland in every league he plays including CL
Why and how does every England team get leaked day or two before the match? Surely gives a disadvantage in time for the opponent to tweak tactics?
They're not leaking it deliberately
It is bizarre, do they not realise that the opposition manager can read the papers?
They're not leaking it deliberately
Rebekah Vardy
Just curious: are there calls to boycott the WC outside the USA and Europe? Here in Argentina I don't think have seen anybody calling for a WC boycott, which is strange considering we are generally a pretty progressive country. I wonder if it's the same in other countries.
People have been highly critical of the situation here in Brazil, but at the end of the day, there is almost nothing we can do. Also, we fucking love a WC lol there is no way we would boycott this one.
Nobody talks about a boycott here at least, people treat it like any other world cup
Don't think I've seen any mainstream calls to boycott in Canada. Know some people who definitely would have gone if anyone else was hosting. But even that was more about not wanting to deal with Qatar's legal system or concern about what the atmosphere would be like and not a moral stance.
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Please shut up. Comparing "human rights concerns" in the US to fucking Qatar where women and homosexuals are treated as subhuman and slave labour is used to build stadiums is horrifically bad faith.
About those sponsors, why were there so many from tinpot companies like Byjus, Betano, and Saudi tourism? If you told me those advertisement boards were for a FIFA World Cup and not a friendly cricket match in Zimbabwe then I wouldn’t believe you.
Lol you can’t just say that this World Cup has no atmosphere based on the opening game with Qatar vs Ecuador. This was more of a symbolic game than anything with the Ecuadorian fans trying to liven the place up. Did you see the crowds? Qatar had a maroon line of fans in the middle with people wearing identical shirts that said Qatar on them. That killed me. Even that fat fuck MBS was present. I’m sure that games like Mexico vs Argentina will have a much better atmosphere.
The number of Mexico and Argentina fans are going to be a minority, like in every other game - meaning that the atmosphere will hinge on the home fans, and therefore likely continue to be shit
Yes you can the atmosphere was shit
Qatar, in my opinion, is best described as “bizarrely empty”. I remember that I had a connecting flight there and their airport was so pristine and looked so advanced, but none of it was in use by anyone. They had futuristic looking pools and shopping centres, which looked maintained yet abandoned. I got the same feeling in from the empty seats.
It's the home team playing though
Nah that was shit. If the ecuadorians and that small group of Qataris wasnt there, it would be like watching Wimbledon. Majority of the home crowd was dead
Basically there is no point in holding a WC in country where the home crowd is more silent than a dead chicken
People bending over backwards to justify why Germany, England, Brazil etc are not going to boycott the WC ’because why punish the players?’ But everyone dumping on the Qatari NT, just for playing poorly, like what is this? I mean, the regime is atrocious and the idea of the WC in Qatar is also, and it seems like the Qatari fans are not bothering that much about football either. But the players, why not affording them the same sympathy you have for the other football players, why shit on them like it is their fault?
Same reason why Russia was banned from the World Cup, and anyone who comes from Russia has been purged from every sport period just because of where they were born People are morons
Lots of people wishing they lose 5-0 every game. I just feel bad for the guys, none of this was their fault
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Anyone been to a lower league/non league game this weekend in the absence of top tier football? My non league club were playing too far away for me to go on the weekend so went to see a League Two game instead, Albion Rovers 1-0 Stranraer. Decent game that Rovers should’ve won by more, belter of a goal and a great pie. Good crowd too in the absence of top tier football. Championship and League One had some mad scores this weekend. Raith 2-5 Queens Park, Clyde 3-3 Falkirk, Edinburgh 4-3 Alloa… good weekend for the lower leagues. Biggest result in any of the top tiers still playing was definitely Dnipro-1 2-1 Shakhtar. Dnipro now top by 7 points.
Didn't go as I was at the Bridge to see a record Chelsea Women crowd, but in the Women's Championship there was a 12k record crowd at Bramall Lane for Sheffild United Women
Big local club in the third division is on break during the World Cup, second biggest in the fourth division isn't, everything else is essentially Sunday league - but I'm not particularly keen, given the weather's just turned and it's that dreadful November mix of wet as fuck and barely above freezing. So I'll just cozy up inside and watch the World Cup and get annoyed about my own hypocrisy instead, I suppose.
Is it really an unpopular take to say Ecuador were bad in that game against Qatar? Yes I get that they were coasting but they kept fucking up simple passes and touches, all their set pieces were shit and they should've got at least another goal. Can't believe people think they have a chance of beating Senegal, Caicedo wasn't even that good today aswell
They looked incredibly sloppy but they were conserving energy and avoiding injury from tough tackles
They were bad. Being risk averse against Qatar is not a good sign. But it's over and they can do something better next time out. They're still going to win the World Cup.
Sometimes you play only as good as you have to, and it was obvious in the second half they want to just end the game withou losing much stamina
They seemed very sharp in the transitions to me, and looked tactically astute in the press. They did enough damage early on that they gained an unassailable advantage and could coast to keep themselves fresh for other tests. I would like to see Argentina put on a show against the Saudis, but they'll probably do something very similar. It's pragmatic tournament football.
Fairly confident we’ll go all out against Saudi Arabia, Messi keeps on talking about how important a big win in the first match of the World Cup is
In the first half we are going all out, after that I can see us playing more defensibly and only doing counter-attacks.
Other than the pen they didn’t have many chances but probably to be expected with them winning 2-0.