We don’t know whether De Bruyne and Guardiola would even be at City if it weren’t for the cheating. If they’d stayed within the rules, they might not have won the FA in 2011, or the league in 2012 and 2014. Their pull would’ve been seriously diminished, meaning big names like Aguero and Silva could’ve turned them down. They may not have qualified for the Champions League as consistently, further impacting their ability to attract top talent.
long ball football wasn’t dominant in 2003
long ball football isn’t ineffective today
It’s hardly a pull. If Akanji’s light contact truly caused him to go down like a sack of shit, then Allison needs to toughen up. But I suspect that if the rules didn’t favour keepers, and there was no chance he’d be awarded a free kick, he would’ve shrugged it off.
Yeah, it should. Big lad like Allison shouldn’t be getting pushed around like that.
Do you mean Dias’ goal?
Not pull, no. But it pisses me off when a keeper (who has the innate advantage of being able to use his hands) goes up for the ball with an attacking player (who can only use his head), and the ref immediately blows his whistle despite there being minimal contact. Basically, all a keeper has to do is drop the ball, and they’re virtually guaranteed to be awarded a free kick.
Outfield players use their feet and legs to control the ball. Should it be a foul every time there’s contact between players’ legs?
Fair enough. But then you get outfield players doing the same to each other all game, so do we stop that too? We’ve already got rid of the tackle from behind (even poking the ball between the player’s legs), a lot of tackles from the side, 2 footed tackles no matter how safe, hard tackles, all but the tamest of shoulder barges…
Every single change is made to benefit attacking players. Not because of any general concern for footballer welfare, but because attacking players are more marketable and profitable for the game. After all, TV deals are sold by the likes of Salah, Haaland and Saka. Most replica shirts don’t have Casemiro, Caicedo and Hojbjerg on the back.
Does this hard-line on physical play make matches more entertaining, though? Not in my opinion. A mix of flair and grit works better for me. The classic Man United vs Arsenal matches – when Keane, Vieira, Stam and Keown kicked the shit out of each other, while Scholes, Henry, Giggs and Pires provided the skills – were peak Premier League.
It’s a contact sport, which has sadly been sanitised beyond recognition. Goalkeepers in particular get a ridiculous amount of protection; they don’t need more.
That’s the keeper’s job, though.
It never used to be a thing, not in England anyway. In the past, very few centre backs were left-footed. Left-footers were traditionally more technically gifted than average, so they would usually be employed in more creative roles.
The one against Leeds was reminiscent of Van Basten vs USSR.
It’s funny how you talk about Bale and Robben as if they’re historical figures like John Charles and Johan Cruyff.
The Eccles Sunday pub league in Greater Manchester, England; I represented The Cock Hotel (real name, honest). On one sunny autumn morn, we arrived at our pitch for a home match versus The Drop Inn. We were just in time to see a burnt out car being towed off the pitch. It left behind a charred rectangle of grass that glittered with chunks of glass. As a result, the area near one of the corner flags was a no-man’s land.
A centre-back by trade, I was brought off the bench with 10 minutes to play. For reasons known only to the co-managers of my team, they put me on the left wing. Which meant I needed to avoid the burnt, spiky patch like the plague. Luckily, I’m right-footed, so was mainly cutting inside in any case.
Having missed a sitter moments earlier, I scored a last minute equaliser. It was a little like Michael Owen’s injury-time winner against City, struck with the outside of my boot from roughly the same distance. Afterwards, I had several drinks bought for me, but the following week I was on the bench again. Then I got shin-splints and missed the rest of the 1999/2000 season.
Halcyon days.
Schmeichel, G. Neville, Stam, Ferdinand, Irwin, Beckham, Keane, Scholes, Giggs, Rooney, Ronaldo
I barely bother with any of it. Of course, I’ll have the odd argument on Reddit to pass the time, and I check fixtures, team news and results on the Sky or BBC apps, but apart from that, I avoid it. Even the commentary and punditry during the games - I miss them because I tend to watch matches a couple of hours after they’re live. Partly due to family commitments, partly because I prefer to watch matches at x2 speed.