At the World Cup, Spain were by far the best possession based team I saw in the flesh. Jaw dropping ball control in midfield, but that lack of a cutting edge up front is such a massive problem for them.
In fairness they were missing the likes of Pedri, Soler, Thiago, Olmo, Pau Torres, Ferran Torres, Moreno, Fati, Rodrigo. It was nowhere near a full strength Spain side.
Times are clearly hard when Joselu was their best available striker. A guy who scored 4 in 22 for Stoke and 6 in 46 for Newcastle.
I think lesser nations are improving, does it now help that most countries now play football so people aren’t electing to play for countries they have some sort of grandparent link to?.
I think the Ireland match Monday night the only starting English born player was josh Cullen
I think lesser nations are improving, does it now help that most countries now play football so people aren’t electing to play for countries they have some sort of grandparent link to?.
I think the Ireland match Monday night the only starting English born player was josh Cullen
Are they though?
I think once qualifiers are done we'll still see the usual suspects qualifying and the rubbish nations will be bottom two. Yes you might get 1-2 surprises but across 10 groups i think that's normal.
Already the bottom 2 sides in each group are:
Norway (without Haaland) and Cyprus Ireland (only played once) and Gibraltar Ukraine (only played once) and Malta Armenia and Latvia Faroes and Albania Estonia and Azerbaijan Lithuania and Bulgaria NI and San Marino Israel and Belarus Luxembourg and Liechtenstein
brilliant performance and result for Scotland last night.
Ryan Porteous, Grant Hanley and Kieran Tierney were immense along with Andy Robertson and Aaron Hickey, Angus Gunn actually had very little to do in the grand scheme of things.
I think lesser nations are improving, does it now help that most countries now play football so people aren’t electing to play for countries they have some sort of grandparent link to?.
I think the Ireland match Monday night the only starting English born player was josh Cullen
With the smaller home nations and the ROI, it does seem quite cyclical who has a strong core of genuinely home grown players, and who has to go down the parent and grandparent route.
And with immigration patterns changing, fewer British born players in the future will have Irish relatives, and instead will have relatives from other parts of the world.
I think lesser nations are improving, does it now help that most countries now play football so people aren’t electing to play for countries they have some sort of grandparent link to?.
I think the Ireland match Monday night the only starting English born player was josh Cullen
With the smaller home nations and the ROI, it does seem quite cyclical who has a strong core of genuinely home grown players, and who has to go down the parent and grandparent route.
And with immigration patterns changing, fewer British born players in the future will have Irish relatives, and instead will have relatives from other parts of the world.
I think with immigration patterns changing, along with eligibility rules, you'll have more players playing for the home nations with no birth/family ties
brilliant performance and result for Scotland last night.
Ryan Porteous, Grant Hanley and Kieran Tierney were immense along with Andy Robertson and Aaron Hickey, Angus Gunn actually had very little to do in the grand scheme of things.
I was worried about Porteous at this level (especially last night) and whether his temperament might get the better of him but he’s been brilliant in these two matches.
brilliant performance and result for Scotland last night.
Ryan Porteous, Grant Hanley and Kieran Tierney were immense along with Andy Robertson and Aaron Hickey, Angus Gunn actually had very little to do in the grand scheme of things.
I was worried about Porteous at this level (especially last night) and whether his temperament might get the better of him but he’s been brilliant in these two matches.
yeah he's a bit of a nutter but he's doing well at Watford, their fans have really taken to him.
hopefully the step up in football has come with a step up in, not maturity as such but how he conducts himself
I think lesser nations are improving, does it now help that most countries now play football so people aren’t electing to play for countries they have some sort of grandparent link to?.
I think the Ireland match Monday night the only starting English born player was josh Cullen
With the smaller home nations and the ROI, it does seem quite cyclical who has a strong core of genuinely home grown players, and who has to go down the parent and grandparent route.
And with immigration patterns changing, fewer British born players in the future will have Irish relatives, and instead will have relatives from other parts of the world.
I think with immigration patterns changing, along with eligibility rules, you'll have more players playing for the home nations with no birth/family ties
Have eligibility rules changed? I haven't seen that.
The easier routes to qualifying for tournaments might mean top players are more inclined to play for their country of birth than a family link. My perception is that most players prefer to represent the country that means the most to them as individuals though, if they have a choice.
Glad Ireland didn't poach the English born Rice and Grealish from us.
I think lesser nations are improving, does it now help that most countries now play football so people aren’t electing to play for countries they have some sort of grandparent link to?.
I think the Ireland match Monday night the only starting English born player was josh Cullen
With the smaller home nations and the ROI, it does seem quite cyclical who has a strong core of genuinely home grown players, and who has to go down the parent and grandparent route.
And with immigration patterns changing, fewer British born players in the future will have Irish relatives, and instead will have relatives from other parts of the world.
I think with immigration patterns changing, along with eligibility rules, you'll have more players playing for the home nations with no birth/family ties
Have eligibility rules changed? I haven't seen that.
The easier routes to qualifying for tournaments might mean top players are more inclined to play for their country of birth than a family link. My perception is that most players prefer to represent the country that means the most to them as individuals though, if they have a choice.
Glad Ireland didn't poach the English born Rice and Grealish from us.
I meant immigration patterns changing along with the current eligibility rules as they are i.e just living here/going to school makes you eligible
you'll have more Raheem Sterling's (or Islam Feruz if he hadn't been ruined going to Chelsea), people moving here as children and playing for British national teams
I think lesser nations are improving, does it now help that most countries now play football so people aren’t electing to play for countries they have some sort of grandparent link to?.
I think the Ireland match Monday night the only starting English born player was josh Cullen
With the smaller home nations and the ROI, it does seem quite cyclical who has a strong core of genuinely home grown players, and who has to go down the parent and grandparent route.
And with immigration patterns changing, fewer British born players in the future will have Irish relatives, and instead will have relatives from other parts of the world.
I think with immigration patterns changing, along with eligibility rules, you'll have more players playing for the home nations with no birth/family ties
Have eligibility rules changed? I haven't seen that.
The easier routes to qualifying for tournaments might mean top players are more inclined to play for their country of birth than a family link. My perception is that most players prefer to represent the country that means the most to them as individuals though, if they have a choice.
Glad Ireland didn't poach the English born Rice and Grealish from us.
Ireland had “poached” both of them at the youth team age, they played for a number of teams going up in ages. Both decided to leave and go and play for England, Rice after 3 full caps. Which they were entitled to do, as much as Evan Ferguson could have played for England.
I think lesser nations are improving, does it now help that most countries now play football so people aren’t electing to play for countries they have some sort of grandparent link to?.
I think the Ireland match Monday night the only starting English born player was josh Cullen
With the smaller home nations and the ROI, it does seem quite cyclical who has a strong core of genuinely home grown players, and who has to go down the parent and grandparent route.
And with immigration patterns changing, fewer British born players in the future will have Irish relatives, and instead will have relatives from other parts of the world.
I think with immigration patterns changing, along with eligibility rules, you'll have more players playing for the home nations with no birth/family ties
Have eligibility rules changed? I haven't seen that.
The easier routes to qualifying for tournaments might mean top players are more inclined to play for their country of birth than a family link. My perception is that most players prefer to represent the country that means the most to them as individuals though, if they have a choice.
Glad Ireland didn't poach the English born Rice and Grealish from us.
Ireland had “poached” both of them at the youth team age, they played for a number of teams going up in ages. Both decided to leave and go and play for England, Rice after 3 full caps. Which they were entitled to do, as much as Evan Ferguson could have played for England.
Harry Maguire could also be playing for Ireland so, small blessings and all that
I think lesser nations are improving, does it now help that most countries now play football so people aren’t electing to play for countries they have some sort of grandparent link to?.
I think the Ireland match Monday night the only starting English born player was josh Cullen
With the smaller home nations and the ROI, it does seem quite cyclical who has a strong core of genuinely home grown players, and who has to go down the parent and grandparent route.
And with immigration patterns changing, fewer British born players in the future will have Irish relatives, and instead will have relatives from other parts of the world.
I think with immigration patterns changing, along with eligibility rules, you'll have more players playing for the home nations with no birth/family ties
Have eligibility rules changed? I haven't seen that.
The easier routes to qualifying for tournaments might mean top players are more inclined to play for their country of birth than a family link. My perception is that most players prefer to represent the country that means the most to them as individuals though, if they have a choice.
Glad Ireland didn't poach the English born Rice and Grealish from us.
Ireland had “poached” both of them at the youth team age, they played for a number of teams going up in ages. Both decided to leave and go and play for England, Rice after 3 full caps. Which they were entitled to do, as much as Evan Ferguson could have played for England.
I know it’s within the rules, but being able to change national team after you get full caps feels very wrong (excepting USSR/Yugoslavia type political scenarios).
I think lesser nations are improving, does it now help that most countries now play football so people aren’t electing to play for countries they have some sort of grandparent link to?.
I think the Ireland match Monday night the only starting English born player was josh Cullen
With the smaller home nations and the ROI, it does seem quite cyclical who has a strong core of genuinely home grown players, and who has to go down the parent and grandparent route.
And with immigration patterns changing, fewer British born players in the future will have Irish relatives, and instead will have relatives from other parts of the world.
I think with immigration patterns changing, along with eligibility rules, you'll have more players playing for the home nations with no birth/family ties
Have eligibility rules changed? I haven't seen that.
The easier routes to qualifying for tournaments might mean top players are more inclined to play for their country of birth than a family link. My perception is that most players prefer to represent the country that means the most to them as individuals though, if they have a choice.
Glad Ireland didn't poach the English born Rice and Grealish from us.
Ireland had “poached” both of them at the youth team age, they played for a number of teams going up in ages. Both decided to leave and go and play for England, Rice after 3 full caps. Which they were entitled to do, as much as Evan Ferguson could have played for England.
I know it’s within the rules, but being able to change national team after you get full caps feels very wrong (excepting USSR/Yugoslavia type political scenarios).
Remember when Zaha played for England under Hodgson?
I think lesser nations are improving, does it now help that most countries now play football so people aren’t electing to play for countries they have some sort of grandparent link to?.
I think the Ireland match Monday night the only starting English born player was josh Cullen
With the smaller home nations and the ROI, it does seem quite cyclical who has a strong core of genuinely home grown players, and who has to go down the parent and grandparent route.
And with immigration patterns changing, fewer British born players in the future will have Irish relatives, and instead will have relatives from other parts of the world.
I think with immigration patterns changing, along with eligibility rules, you'll have more players playing for the home nations with no birth/family ties
Have eligibility rules changed? I haven't seen that.
The easier routes to qualifying for tournaments might mean top players are more inclined to play for their country of birth than a family link. My perception is that most players prefer to represent the country that means the most to them as individuals though, if they have a choice.
Glad Ireland didn't poach the English born Rice and Grealish from us.
Ireland had “poached” both of them at the youth team age, they played for a number of teams going up in ages. Both decided to leave and go and play for England, Rice after 3 full caps. Which they were entitled to do, as much as Evan Ferguson could have played for England.
I know it’s within the rules, but being able to change national team after you get full caps feels very wrong (excepting USSR/Yugoslavia type political scenarios).
But what is also wrong is countries targeting players in their teens, and giving them a 10 minute appearance from the bench in a Nations League match so that they are now tied to that country forever before they've even broken through for their club sides. Hence you can now change if you've played 3 games before 21, even if they are competitive matches.
I think lesser nations are improving, does it now help that most countries now play football so people aren’t electing to play for countries they have some sort of grandparent link to?.
I think the Ireland match Monday night the only starting English born player was josh Cullen
With the smaller home nations and the ROI, it does seem quite cyclical who has a strong core of genuinely home grown players, and who has to go down the parent and grandparent route.
And with immigration patterns changing, fewer British born players in the future will have Irish relatives, and instead will have relatives from other parts of the world.
I think with immigration patterns changing, along with eligibility rules, you'll have more players playing for the home nations with no birth/family ties
Have eligibility rules changed? I haven't seen that.
The easier routes to qualifying for tournaments might mean top players are more inclined to play for their country of birth than a family link. My perception is that most players prefer to represent the country that means the most to them as individuals though, if they have a choice.
Glad Ireland didn't poach the English born Rice and Grealish from us.
Ireland had “poached” both of them at the youth team age, they played for a number of teams going up in ages. Both decided to leave and go and play for England, Rice after 3 full caps. Which they were entitled to do, as much as Evan Ferguson could have played for England.
I know it’s within the rules, but being able to change national team after you get full caps feels very wrong (excepting USSR/Yugoslavia type political scenarios).
But what is also wrong is countries targeting players in their teens, and giving them a 10 minute appearance from the bench in a Nations League match so that they are now tied to that country forever before they've even broken through for their club sides. Hence you can now change if you've played 3 games before 21, even if they are competitive matches.
Mike Flanagan won a England “B” cap which stopped him playing for Non Iron.
Declan Rice’s father was extremely surprised that his son considered himself English rather than Irish
England are just a bunch of paddys really, Jack Grealish played for all their youth teams and played Gaelic football and apparently Harry Kane's family always embraced their Irishness (his dad moved to london as a boy), holidaying there etc.
Harry Maguire could have played for either ROI or NI and Kalvin Phillips is Irish on his mums side, Jamaican on his dads
Declan Rice’s father was extremely surprised that his son considered himself English rather than Irish
England are just a bunch of paddys really, Jack Grealish played for all their youth teams and played Gaelic football and apparently Harry Kane's family always embraced their Irishness (his dad moved to london as a boy), holidaying there etc.
Harry Maguire could have played for either ROI or NI and Kalvin Phillips is Irish on his mums side, Jamaican on his dads
Comments
Times are clearly hard when Joselu was their best available striker. A guy who scored 4 in 22 for Stoke and 6 in 46 for Newcastle.
I think once qualifiers are done we'll still see the usual suspects qualifying and the rubbish nations will be bottom two. Yes you might get 1-2 surprises but across 10 groups i think that's normal.
Already the bottom 2 sides in each group are:
Norway (without Haaland) and Cyprus
Ireland (only played once) and Gibraltar
Ukraine (only played once) and Malta
Armenia and Latvia
Faroes and Albania
Estonia and Azerbaijan
Lithuania and Bulgaria
NI and San Marino
Israel and Belarus
Luxembourg and Liechtenstein
The vast majority of those will stay there.
Ryan Porteous, Grant Hanley and Kieran Tierney were immense along with Andy Robertson and Aaron Hickey, Angus Gunn actually had very little to do in the grand scheme of things.
And with immigration patterns changing, fewer British born players in the future will have Irish relatives, and instead will have relatives from other parts of the world.
hopefully the step up in football has come with a step up in, not maturity as such but how he conducts himself
The easier routes to qualifying for tournaments might mean top players are more inclined to play for their country of birth than a family link. My perception is that most players prefer to represent the country that means the most to them as individuals though, if they have a choice.
Glad Ireland didn't poach the English born Rice and Grealish from us.
you'll have more Raheem Sterling's (or Islam Feruz if he hadn't been ruined going to Chelsea), people moving here as children and playing for British national teams
I’m looking at you Ryan Johansson…..🤣
Harry Maguire could have played for either ROI or NI and Kalvin Phillips is Irish on his mums side, Jamaican on his dads