SPOTY and Soccer

[Padge]

A bunch of losers being lauded is if they had won the world cup.

They were an utter and total failure, but slightly better than the previous losers.

[Ullman]

I'm guessing nobody told the producer that Plastic Bertrand is Belgian.

[gingerjon]

54 minutes ago, Padge said:

A bunch of losers being lauded is if they had won the world cup.

They were an utter and total failure, but slightly better than the previous losers.

England Netball getting a thoroughly deserved Team of the Year and Moment of the Year. That'll do for me.

I didn't see any of the rest, so I'm feeling like I've had a pretty good evening.

[Damien]

I just don't bother watching it anymore as I just find the entire show extremely irritating and annoying.

[Niels]

56 minutes ago, Padge said:

A bunch of losers being lauded is if they had won the world cup.

They were an utter and total failure, but slightly better than the previous losers.

I won't disagree with you there

Semi finals would be an achievement for smaller countries. However a nation that has the Premier League ought to be better.

The money they earn is very off putting also. 

 

[DavidM]

How Eric Dier smashing that penalty away to send the country ballistic isn’t the best single moment is completely  mental

[gingerjon]

7 minutes ago, DavidM said:

How Eric Dier smashing that penalty away to send the country ballistic isn’t the best single moment is completely  mental

Sinister voting patterns

[DavidM]

9 minutes ago, gingerjon said:

Sinister voting patterns

And I remember , it was on itv ...

[Gerrumonside ref]

1 hour ago, Padge said:

A bunch of losers being lauded is if they had won the world cup.

They were an utter and total failure, but slightly better than the previous losers.

Rubbish.

The team were not expected to reach the semi finals before the start of the tournament.

[Gerrumonside ref]

27 minutes ago, Niels said:

I won't disagree with you there

Semi finals would be an achievement for smaller countries. However a nation that has the Premier League ought to be better.

The money they earn is very off putting also. 

 

Since the inception of the Premier League, the percentage of English players playing in it has reduced year on year thanks to the influx of foreign talent.

That doesn’t help the England national team and is a fact that is often cited when we fail to meet expectations in tournaments.

I think we do have to give credit to Southgate for the job that he has done.

[Damien]

3 minutes ago, Gerrumonside ref said:

Rubbish.

The team were not expected to reach the semi finals before the start of the tournament.

They did have the easiest possible path to get there and played no one of note until that semi final, when they promptly lost.

[Gerrumonside ref]

1 minute ago, Damien said:

They did have the easiest possible path to get there and played no one of note until that semi final, when they promptly lost.

In your opinion.

 

 

[Exiled Townie]

32 minutes ago, Damien said:

I just don't bother watching it anymore as I just find the entire show extremely irritating and annoying.

I'm assuming it's on now, or just been on?  Like Damo above says, lost all interest in it years ago.

[Damien]

Just now, Gerrumonside ref said:

In your opinion.

 

 

So you don't think it was an easy route? It was a dream path and doesn't get any better.

[Gerrumonside ref]

Just now, Damien said:

So you don't think it was an easy route? It was a dream path and doesn't get any better.

The expectations at the beginning of the tournament were not to reach the semi finals - the betting certainly didn’t reflect that.

Not quite sure why you are trying to deride what was obviously a good achievement?

Do you share the OP’s view that the team should be branded as ‘losers’ then?

 

[Damien]

1 minute ago, Gerrumonside ref said:

The expectations at the beginning of the tournament were not to reach the semi finals - the betting certainly didn’t reflect that.

Not quite sure why you are trying to deride what was obviously a good achievement?

Do you share the OP’s view that the team should be branded as ‘losers’ then?

 

They beat Panama and Tunisia to qualify, two teams they were expected to beat convincingly, and then lost their final group match against Belgium. They then beat Colombia, only on penalties mind you, and Sweden. Again two teams they were expected to win. They then lost against Croatia and again against Belgium in the 3rd place playoff. Any time they played a team of note they lost. I wouldn't brand them as losers but would say they did the bare minimum of what was expected, with the draw that unfolded, it's only the luck of the draw that saw them get to the semi final.

[Niels]

14 minutes ago, Gerrumonside ref said:

Since the inception of the Premier League, the percentage of English players playing in it has reduced year on year thanks to the influx of foreign talent.

That doesn’t help the England national team and is a fact that is often cited when we fail to meet expectations in tournaments.

I think we do have to give credit to Southgate for the job that he has done.

That's fair enough.

I think there are great benefits too. The best managers and coaches are here now. Guardiola has made Sterling into a fantastic player, for City anyway

The English players that do make the team benefit by playing against the best in the world each week also. 

[Gerrumonside ref]

Just now, Damien said:

They beat Panama and Tunisia to qualify, two teams they were expected to beat convincingly, and then lost their final group match against Belgium. They then beat Colombia, only on penalties mind you, and Sweden. Again two teams they were expected to win. They then lost against Croatia and again against Belgium in the 3rd place playoff. Any time they played a team of note they lost. I wouldn't brand them as losers but would say they did the bare minimum of what was expected, with the draw that unfolded, it's only the luck of the draw that saw them get to the semi final.

Did you expect them to make the semi finals before the start of the tournament then?

How do you credit the subsequent performances in the UEFA Nations League?

More luck?

[Damien]

9 minutes ago, Gerrumonside ref said:

Did you expect them to make the semi finals before the start of the tournament then?

How do you credit the subsequent performances in the UEFA Nations League?

More luck?

You seem to have a problem understanding something that really should be simple. With the draw they had the semi finals are the bare minimum of what they should have done. It's as simple as that. I look at the teams they played rather than just be seduced by them getting to the semi final. That really shouldn't be difficult for you to understand. Every team they beat was below them in the FIFA rankings, some quite substantially, and they lost against every team above them. In some ways it's a little like getting all excited about England RL getting to the semi final of a Rugby League World Cup and then losing the moment they play Australia or New Zealand.

The Uefa Nations League is irrelevant to what anyone has mentioned on here so don't see why you even mentioned it.

[Gerrumonside ref]

1 minute ago, Damien said:

You seem to have a problem understanding something that really should be simple. With the draw they had the semi finals are the bare minimum of what they should have done. It's as simple as that. I look at the teams they played rather than just be seduced by them getting to the semi final. That really shouldn't be difficult for you to understand. Every team they beat was below them in the FIFA rankings, some quite substantially, and they lost against every team above them. In some ways it's a little like getting all excited about England RL getting to the semi final of a Rugby League World Cup and then losing the moment they play Australia or New Zealand.

The Uefa Nations League is irrelevant to what anyone has mentioned on here so don't see why you even mentioned it.

Don’t get personal with me because you’ve lost the argument here.

I’m asking a simple question whether or not you expected England to reach the semi finals of the World Cup before the start of the tournament.  It’s pretty obvious what the answer is.

As for the UEFA Nations League performances - are they now struck from the record because they also fail to support your argument?

[Damien]

8 minutes ago, Gerrumonside ref said:

Don’t get personal with me because you’ve lost the argument here.

I’m asking a simple question whether or not you expected England to reach the semi finals of the World Cup before the start of the tournament.  It’s pretty obvious what the answer is.

As for the UEFA Nations League performances - are they now struck from the record because they also fail to support your argument?

No it's you who are completely ignoring what actually happened and ignoring what is wrote. It was also you that derided others posts as rubbish and have now started to try and throw other things into the mix in desperation. All I have done is state facts. You consider the semi final of the World Cup a great achievement. I don't with the path they had and the teams they played plus the fact they only beat teams they were favourites to beat. That is what it boils down to and where I will leave it as there is little point in going round in circles and repeating ourselves.

[Gerrumonside ref]

Just now, Damien said:

No it's you who are completely ignoring what actually happened and ignoring what is wrote. It was also you that derided others posts as rubbish and have now started to try and throw other things into the mix in desperation. All I have done is state facts. You consider the semi final of the World Cup a great achievement. I don't with the path they had and the teams they played plus the fact they only beat teams they were favourites to beat. That is what it boils down to and where I will leave it as there is little point in going round in circles and repeating ourselves.

What it boils down to is you refuse to answer a simple question about whether or not you thought England were going to make the World Cup semi finals before the start of the tournament? 

It’s pretty obvious you didn’t or you would surely answer such a simple question and prove your thesis that it wasn’t much of an achievement.

England’s performances in the UEFA Nations League are obviously relevant to the debate as they have happened in the same calendar year.  Obviously reaching another semi final rather contradicts your view that England are in some way a ‘lucky’ team.

Everything else is just deflection.

[Leeds Wire]

1 hour ago, Gerrumonside ref said:

In your opinion.

 

 

It would be a bit weird to post someone else's opinion. 

[Gerrumonside ref]

4 minutes ago, Leeds Wire said:

It would be a bit weird to post someone else's opinion. 

Don’t people often quote other opinions in debates to support their argument.

It’s quite common.

 

[Lounge Room Lizard]

What Trophy have they won? NONE! They played Small Nations and was the best chance to win a WC - and failed. There was not one fantastic performance in any of the WC games. But lets hype them up as being such a great team. They are still over paid showponies that despite all the money and top facilities have failed to win a WC or Euro Cup in over 50 years. Reach Ing a Semi is hardly that great. Croatia with far less resources and a much smaller Population made the final.