The Official Soccer/Football/Futbol/Calcio thread

I absolutely LOVED liverpools dismanteling of the "best team in Europe(Inter Milan) " last year... it was priceless. Though now they have "the Special One" we'll see... I love me some football. Hot Reds I dig the 16 picture.. where'd ya get it... you're not constantly "in" an airshow are ya?

[aldukes]

Originally Posted by Don Fernando

the macho behaviour

hahahahah good one.

Originally Posted by theycallmedan'lboone

I absolutely LOVED liverpools dismanteling of the "best team in Europe(Inter Milan) " last year... it was priceless. Though now they have "the Special One" we'll see... I love me some football. Hot Reds I dig the 16 picture.. where'd ya get it... you're not constantly "in" an airshow are ya?

I thought the best team in Europe at the end of the year was United... I mean call me crazy, but that's what I thought.

[Don Fernando]

I love United, Van der Sar is the best keeper in the world.

[aldukes]

Originally Posted by funnymantrip

I thought the best team in Europe at the end of the year was United... I mean call me crazy, but that's what I thought.

good point funnyman. very good point.

Originally Posted by Don Fernando

I love United, Van der Sar is the best keeper in the world.

Thats only because he's from where you are...

and yes last year, Manchester United was the best in Europe... I was referring to the commentators before the first leg of the Liverpool-Inter match when all they could talk about was 'how good' Inter was....

[Don Fernando]

Originally Posted by theycallmedan'lboone

Thats only because he's from where you are...

like he didn't win the CL and the premiership last year. Tell me, who's better then Van der Sar.

[Jason]

Inter are sh*t. Always have been, always will be. The last few years are the closest they've come to climbing out of the evil spell they seem to be under (nothing to do with the titles they were given). How a gentleman of the caliber of Javier Zanneti ever came to play there I'll never know but I give him the credit for maknig the team credible to me.

It's funny to listen to you guys bash the Italian game while you love the English, I don't agree with your points much at all, it's totally a matter of perspective. I realize this, it's why I haven't bothered to offer my critique of the English game.

However I do find it dripping with irony that you will bemoan the Italian cultural and mentality type aspects of the Italian game while the Italian Boss that personifies it best perhaps has England looking more credible than any boss of the modern era.

I've gotta throw a wink in on that one!

[Don Fernando]

I don't care about national teams Jason, and the guys that make the premier league worth watching are mostly non English players anyway (not bashing players like Ferdinand, Rooney, Walcutt, Lampard etc)

Originally Posted by Don Fernando

like he didn't win the CL and the premiership last year. Tell me, who's better then Van der Sar.

Pepe Reina is a better goal keeper than Van Der Sar. and I pull for the US more than I pull for england... (tells you something about my sanity right) but Fabio Capello is certainly a good coach. The Italian style of football is certainly a very finesse style, in all honesty the only problem I have with the Italians is the diving. I feel they play a little dirty, but ok whatever. It's really the diving that bothers me.

[Don Fernando]

I disagree with Reina being the better goalie.

I disagree with Van Der Sar being a better goalie. ( we should see how long we can do this )

speaking of diving... riot

I say, most recently, last year Pepe Reina was the better goalkeeper. I believe it was 2 years before E Van Der Sar was the best keeper...

Gold Glove award anyways..

[md4958]

Originally Posted by theycallmedan'lboone

The Italian style of football is certainly a very finesse style, in all honesty the only problem I have with the Italians is the diving. I feel they play a little dirty, but ok whatever. It's really the diving that bothers me.

I have to agree with you here.. The Italians have really turned diving into an artform. It bothers me because I have always played with a different attitude. The Italians are all about the free-kicks and, like you mentioned, finesse.

Originally Posted by md4958

I have to agree with you here.. The Italians have really turned diving into an artform. It bothers me because I have always played with a different attitude. The Italians are all about the free-kicks and, like you mentioned, finesse.

I think the Portuguese will give the Itailians a good run for the money in Diving any day...

[Jason]

Originally Posted by funnymantrip

I think the Portuguese will give the Itailians a good run for the money in Diving any day...

yup yup yup and let us not even go anywhere near S America.

I've gotta say Van Der Sar has been a goalkeeping hero of mine since his days at Ajax, he was prone to some very strange moments now and then (Reina's mental game is, for now, better than VDS' has ever been) but I distinctly recall an uncanny knack for guessing the correct way to dive on penalty kicks every time for a while. Not just a lot of times, every time. It was bizarre. My brother and I noticed it in a PK shootout tiebreaker and consulted video from previous matches, it was like the Twilight Zone.

speaking of video, anyone want 100lbs of VHS soccer games?! I can't bear to throw them out but I have most of my collection on disks now.

[hotreds]

Originally Posted by theycallmedan'lboone

I absolutely LOVED liverpools dismanteling of the "best team in Europe(Inter Milan) " last year... it was priceless. Though now they have "the Special One" we'll see... I love me some football. Hot Reds I dig the 16 picture.. where'd ya get it... you're not constantly "in" an airshow are ya?

I googled for it. Alas, I'm not "in" any airshows- just at them photographing. However, I've hitched some neat rides- with the Golden Knights and on a KC-135 refueling an F-22.

[Jdbwolverines]

Wow Dirk Kuyt. Way to come out of that dry spell with a vengeance.

[Jdbwolverines]

Originally Posted by theycallmedan'lboone

I say, most recently, last year Pepe Reina was the better goalkeeper. I believe it was 2 years before E Van Der Sar was the best keeper...

Gold Glove award anyways..

As much as I love both of those guys, I think I would have to say that Petr Cech is probably the best keeper in the world right now.