(26-03-2010 16:30 )Mister Gummidge Wrote:  David Healy has a phenomenal record of scoring goals at international level. It doesn't make him the best player around, not by a long chalk, just a reasonable quality striker who's spent some time playing in a side perfectly set up to accommodate his style of play. David Villa is a very good striker (I'm not trying to imply he's only as good as Healy, that would be stupid), but he's not significantly better than half a dozen other goal poachers playing football right now (Torres, Klose, Rooney, Defoe, Eto'o, Ibrahimovic...). He simply benefits from being part of a pair of sides which set themselves up to feed a single striker. I've watched him play quite a bit, for both Valencia and Spain and feel very comfortable in my assertion that he's a far better than average striker, but no more and certainly no less than that. Putting ball into net is a very valuable ability indeed, but it's helped significantly by being in a team that focuses itself entirely on feeding a single player. Looking at Ibrahimovic's records at Inter and Barcelona shows that difference to a player's goal scoring ratio quite starkly. For Valencia, their only attacking concern is geting the ball to Villa, then hoping that if Silva didn't lay it on, he's the one backing up. For Spain, he always looks far better as the solitary attacking prong ahead of a five man midfield, than he does as part of a three or two man attack.

The central midfield is very pretty indeed, but it's lightweight and can be closed down effectively by any reasonable quality side willing to put in a good shift of pressing. Of the three players in there, only Xabi Alonso has the footballing nous to play well when everything else is being effectively closed down, something he learned he playing against the the physically strong and aggressively defensive (Yes, it's a real approach. Close down quickly, tackle hard and start the defence in the opposition's half of the pitch) mentality of sides like Blackburn and Stoke. Rubin Kazan made made Xavi and Iniesta look like the show ponies they really are. In the Euros two years ago, Spain only got past Italy and Germany by the skin of their teeth. They aren't the invincible and untouchable side people gull themselves into thinking they are, unless you sit back to stare in awe at the pretty little triangles they pass the ball in.

You state that my opinions are based on ignorance. Not true, I love football and watch matches from as many leagues as I possibly can. I watch Spanish football and enjoy it immensely, but I don't trick myself into thinking that foreign and exotic equals intrinsically better. I would argue that your opinion is based on watching a league with 2 real teams & 2 pretty good teams in it, plus 14 bunny rabbits who park the bus and pray for an off day from the big boys, then think that that watching swaggering bullies dominate psychologically pathetic sides with no real belief in their own ability to beat them constitutes the totality of worthy football. People who do that with the EPL (Also a two team league) are labelled as myopic, nationalistic partisans, yet no-one bothers to question those who do it with Spain, or those who did it with Italy in the 90's.

Spain and are not invincible or inherently superior to England. Both national sides are very good, but both are only one of a pair of sides out of 6 or 7 who have a genuine shout of winning the world cup. Holland, Argentina, Brazil, Germany and Italy are all equally capable of winning the tournament, as well as England and Spain. Anyone who thinks England have no chance at all is as blinkered and tunnel-visioned as those who claim England are the favourites. The same applies to Spain. It's a seven game winning streak to win it, and Spain's defensive frailties and unwillingness to do the necessary and ugly is just as likely to cost them the tournament as England's lack of creative flair. Big tournaments are rarely won by flair alone. Just ask Italy, the dullest and least talented national side to win multiple world cups.

(25-03-2010 23:20 )jimbo5030 Wrote:  As most of you already know, I'm a chelsea fan and today i read in the paper that Frank Ribery has ruled out a move to England with any club because he will only leave Bayern for Real Madrid.

How many more, 'world class' players are going to throw there career away by joining Real Madrid?!! It's so frustrating. The club as a whole has proved time and time again that you can't win anything with a club full of egos like that. I know it was unlikely he would have joined chelsea anyway but why don't these great players want to come here. I know our weather is shit but our league is easily the best in the world. I just don't get it. Our fans, stadiums are better. Fans in Spain don't have proper songs, their league is nowhere near as competetive as ours. Are they scared? When will we start seeing the worlds biggest names in English football!!

(13-04-2022 10:15 )SecretAgent Wrote:  ^ Ooh well played sir to find this!

(26-06-2022 16:39 )Jamies Knight Wrote:  Champions of Spain and Europe again.