Internationals October (Nations League + Euro 2021 play-offs + Friendlies)

[Nicoseth]

It's only 25 days till the next International break. This year is really taking the piss at this stage.

God, they're excruciating. Two week gap between league games this often is too much, and the internationals generally are shit - like watching paint dry while also hoping none of the players get injured or covid.

 

[RedorDead21]

Henderson/Graelish/Some defensive clogger is a good enough midfield to win a tournament if they're set up properly. Agree about CB on paper, and LB as well to an extent, but a better manager can set up the team to cover those deficiencies. From the outside as a neutral that's the way it looks to me anyway. I genuinely think this crop of players can win a tournament with the right manager.

That’s been said afew time’s since 66

 

[Samid]

I like the idea of Nations League but it pisses me off how a remarkably shit team like Northern Ireland who never have even won a single Nations League game can somehow find themselves in a Euro play-off final through the Nations League route. With 20 pre-qualified teams, what's the point in having a further 16 (!) teams in the play-offs? It's farcical how they have to scrape the absolute barrel just to make up the numbers, and those rubbish teams can shithouse their way to a tournament just by winning two games. UEFA need to sort this shit out and find a better method.

 

[FrankDrebin]

Denmark tonight and wales Last week

Jeezus. Is this that seven nations army cup ballcrap ?

 

[Cloud7]

That’s been said afew time’s since 66

I'm not even an England fan mate, I'm just offering my thoughts on what I see as a quality set of players. I would take this group of players over the Gerrard/Terry/Rio/Rooney lot for example.

 

[TheGame]

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[redshaw]

It's only 25 days till the next International break. This year is really taking the piss at this stage.

Christ almighty

It would've been best to not have international matches after a congested end to last season and a late start to this but we've had 3 internationals.

 

[DixieDean]

I'm not even an England fan mate, I'm just offering my thoughts on what I see as a quality set of players. I would take this group of players over the Gerrard/Terry/Rio/Rooney lot for example.

Don't see it myself. This lot are overhyped, big time. Nothing much to be optimistic about. A few decent players, but England have always had a few decent ones.

 

[Maureen-yo]

Better than I thought he would be doesn’t look over awed by international football, could have given a goal away but.

Yeah he looks comfortable, he’s not very expansive or forward thinking but does that DM role really well. Would maybe like to see a 4-3-3 with him playing deepest of the mids but GS is insistent on 3 cbs by the look of it.

 

[Bebestation]

We're stuck with Southgate until we flop at the Euros. He's a the type of Yes man that the FA love. He'll be hard to get rid of.

Yeah I reckon he will be out after the euros too.

It's just a shame because no matter how young players like Greenwood, Sancho, Grealish, Phillips, Rice,Rashford are - they are still talented to be an underdog winner in something like the euros.

Too bad the FA dont see it and wait until the tournament fails to make the adequate changes which just ends up removing 2 years of the players career for shit all.

 

[Maureen-yo]

Don't see it myself. This lot are overhyped, big time. Nothing much to be optimistic about. A few decent players, but England have always had a few decent ones.

Agreed, gerrard and Co would walk into this team.

 

[Berbaclass]

I like the idea of Nations League but it pisses me off how a remarkably shit team like Northern Ireland who never have even won a single Nations League game can somehow find themselves in a Euro play-off final through the Nations League route. With 20 pre-qualified teams, what's the point in having a further 16 (!) teams in the play-offs? It's farcical how they have to scrape the absolute barrel just to make up the numbers, and those rubbish teams can shithouse their way to a tournament just by winning two games. UEFA need to sort this shit out and find a better method.

Would you be still saying this if Norway hadn't been knocked out? You barely scraped past an 'incredibly shit' Nothern Ireland team yourselves tonight.

 

[Lay]

It's only 25 days till the next International break. This year is really taking the piss at this stage.

feck sake.

 

[saivet]

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Bizarre

 

[giggs-beckham]

We're stuck with Southgate until we flop at the Euros. He's a the type of Yes man that the FA love. He'll be hard to get rid of.

This all sounds so much like our Ole situation, if one follows.

 

[bosnian_red]

Don't see it myself. This lot are overhyped, big time. Nothing much to be optimistic about. A few decent players, but England have always had a few decent ones.

The group of players are very good with big potential. Its a complete lack of common sense in set up, but also a lack of tactical nous and being able to implement a good style. Southgate picks the weirdest lineups. 3 right backs, 2 defensive midfielders, 3 shooters with no progressive/creative passers? No left footers at all. Just strange.
A group of players like this, just need the manager who knows what they're doing:

• Pope, Henderson
• TAA, Walker, James
• Maguire, Gomez, Coady, Mings
• Chilwell, Shaw
• Henderson, Rice, Phillips
• Grealish, Maddison, Foden
• Sterling, Greenwood
• Sancho, Rashford
• Kane, DCL

Its enough for 2 very good lineups, with stars/potential stars in attack.

 

[croadyman]

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Bizarre

Oh dear we must have been watching different games then

 

[Ayush_reddevil]

I wonder why United were never in for Jota. We spent all summer looking for an attacker who can also play on the wings and this guy is pretty young already playing in the league

 

[PoTMS]

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Bizarre

Bit like Ole, we'll win absolutely feck all with him in charge.

 

[paraguayo]

Ecuador look like a real menace with their young generation and on altitude. Should have beaten Uruguay like 7-2 yesterday. Think they will qualify

 

[HowYouDoin]

Everton will regret that they didn't gave a chance to Vlasic. Beautiful player to watch

Considering they have James now they will be fine but yeah Vlasic for sure will move to a big club pretty soon.

 

[Sad Chris]

It's only 25 days till the next International break. This year is really taking the piss at this stage.

It‘s ridiculous. This overkill has killed the last bit of my interest for Internationals. I hate the International breaks more than the summer break. Always expect an injury or an incident that will impact our next matches.

 

[Samid]

Would you be still saying this if Norway hadn't been knocked out? You barely scraped past an 'incredibly shit' Nothern Ireland team yourselves tonight.

Yeah I would have. We earned a play-off spot on merit, and then lost our play-off fair and square. Northern Ireland didn't earn their play-off spot on merit. Your other sentence has no relevance to my post. We beat them 5-1 at their place last month. 1-0 is all you need against a team camping in their own box for 90 minutes. My point isn't about their style of play, they're free to play whatever style they want, but rather UEFA gifting play-off spots to teams with absolutely no results to show for.

We won our NL group last time around and got into the play-offs on merit. Northern Ireland lost all their NL games and got into the play-offs simply to make up numbers, because for some reason a whopping 16 teams would get play-offs on top of the 20 already qualified teams. Bosnia got a play-off spot on merit because they finished top of Northern Ireland's NL group (4 games played, Bosnia 10 points, NI 0 points). And Bosnia's reward? Facing Northern Ireland in a one-off play-off game, despite Bosnia winning both games between the teams in the original NL group. There's no other competition in any sport where a team winning their group have to play the team finishing bottom of the same group in a one-off game to see who progresses to the next stage.

It makes a total mockery of the competition when you can lose all your matches but still get a play-off spot. With the current system anyone from League A and B could lose all their NL matches and all the regular qualifying matches but still pretty much be guaranteed a play-off spot because there simply are way too many play-off spots on offer. Shame people are more interested in brushing it off as "oh you're only saying this because you're bitter" than seeing how ridiculous the current system actually is.

 

[Reiver]

I like the idea of Nations League but it pisses me off how a remarkably shit team like Northern Ireland who never have even won a single Nations League game can somehow find themselves in a Euro play-off final through the Nations League route. With 20 pre-qualified teams, what's the point in having a further 16 (!) teams in the play-offs? It's farcical how they have to scrape the absolute barrel just to make up the numbers, and those rubbish teams can shithouse their way to a tournament just by winning two games. UEFA need to sort this shit out and find a better method.

Speaking as a Scot who has supported a remarkably shit - and if anything this is an understatement - national team for over 20 years now, who are only one game away from the Euros, all I can say is God bless the Nations League, however it works.

 

[Samid]

Speaking as a Scot who has supported a remarkably shit - and if anything this is an understatement - national team for over 20 years now, who are only one game away from the Euros, all I can say is God bless the Nations League, however it works.

See my post above yours. Scotland won their NL group and earned the play-off spot on merit, I don't have a problem with that. The issue is that with 16 play-off spots on offer there are bound to be teams that have no real right to be there, teams that may well have lost every single game for the past two years. And then they can shithouse their way to the tournament just by winning the two play-off games.

 

[Dancfc]

God, they're excruciating. Two week gap between league games this often is too much, and the internationals generally are shit - like watching paint dry while also hoping none of the players get injured or covid.

It's not so much one weekend without it that grates me it's 2 midweeks.

 

[Dante]

Wales win 1-0 with a goal by someone called Williams and assisted by somebody else also called Williams. That might be the most Welsh thing ever.

 

[Che Guevara]

You can’t really blame him when you see what Maguire done tonight he can’t trust his defenders, so has to play defensive. Ole will do the exact same come Saturday..

Aw, just seen you’re wan o them..

Sacking Southgate is a very dumb suggestion. But playing Maguire was equally dumb.

 

[RashyForPM]

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Bizarre

Have been Southgate out for a while despite the comeback over Belgium, and this just reaffirms it.

 

[Andycoleno9]

I like the idea of Nations League but it pisses me off how a remarkably shit team like Northern Ireland who never have even won a single Nations League game can somehow find themselves in a Euro play-off final through the Nations League route. With 20 pre-qualified teams, what's the point in having a further 16 (!) teams in the play-offs? It's farcical how they have to scrape the absolute barrel just to make up the numbers, and those rubbish teams can shithouse their way to a tournament just by winning two games. UEFA need to sort this shit out and find a better method.

I agree with you but you did took what you like and brushed aside what you don't.
For me earning place through NL is rubbish at first place. You have EC qualifications and that should be only way to go on Euro. Ok, i understand that UEFA decided to make NL important (with giving EC spots), but it is not ok that A group teams play each other, B group teams play each other etc....
In this way you are awarded for being shit/average team and punished by being good team. It would be more logical and fair that all winning teams went in one pot with A and B group teams as top seeded clubs who play with teams from groups C and D.

It is the same as FIFA did. They gave more additional spots for WC to Africa and Asia instead to Europe and South America. Awarding averageness should not be the way how sport should work. It is not ok that every WC some top teams from Europe miss out while some cannon fodder teams go on WC. Last WC only one team from Africa and Asia reached knock out stage. And now they are awarded with more places on that WC. That is just not fair.

 

[giorno]

You’ve seen Diallo playing in the u18 league. Sancho was probably the best u18 player in the world in that age group and has the awards to prove it. Then he comes and put up numbers only bettered by Neymar, Messi and Mbappe in Europe’s top 5 leagues in his first two years as a senior pro.

You're an optimist if you think Diallo is going to top that.

But sancho is sancho, but diallo could be anything, even sancho! You know how much you wanted sancho...

 

[BrilliantOrange]

God, how much i love watching this guy play football...

 

[BrilliantOrange]

It's only 25 days till the next International break. This year is really taking the piss at this stage.

Mostly annoying as well because they are forcing the f-ing friendlies in between there in stead of only the NL fixtures...

 

[Samid]

I agree with you but you did took what you like and brushed aside what you don't.
For me earning place through NL is rubbish at first place. You have EC qualifications and that should be only way to go on Euro. Ok, i understand that UEFA decided to make NL important (with giving EC spots), but it is not ok that A group teams play each other, B group teams play each other etc....
In this way you are awarded for being shit/average team and punished by being good team. It would be more logical and fair that all winning teams went in one pot with A and B group teams as top seeded clubs who play with teams from groups C and D.

It is the same as FIFA did. They give more additional spots for WC to Africa and Asia instead to Europe and South America. Awarding averageness should not be the way how sport should work. It is not ok that every WC some top teams from Europe miss out while some cannon fodder teams go on WC. Last WC only one team from Africa and Asia reached knock out stage. And now they are awarded with more places on that WC. That is just not fair.

I agree but I have some understanding for why UEFA want to have something riding on the Nations League other than promotion/relegation, otherwise teams would treat it exactly as friendlies, and the point was kind of to get rid of the friendlies. I don’t think they thought this through properly though. The original idea was to give all 16 group winners a playoff spot but in reality most group winners qualify anyway through the regular qualifiers. So with the current system they have to fill up the playoff berths with several teams that don't actually deserve to be there.

I think going forward they need to either go completely back to the previous playoff system or tweak the current system significantly. I don't mind league C and D winners getting playoff spots but then the whole playoff draw should be seeded so those teams don't get an easier path for being in the easiest leagues. The WC qualifying path has 10 playoff spots for the runners up in the regular qualifying plus the two best non-qualified NL group winners. So that seems a lot more balanced and fair. Hopefully they implement something similar for the next Euro qualifiers too.

What FIFA have done with gifting more spots to Asia/Africa is criminal. Their intentions are purely based on greed and power grabbing, and their decisions aren't based on any kind of sporting merit. Whereas I can see sporting merits behind UEFA introducing Nations League with playoffs. Don't get me wrong, UEFA are also opportunistic leeches (the reason why they went from 16 to 24 teams at the Euros) but in this particular instance with NL playoffs I'm willing to cut them some slack.

 

[I_ndlovu]

Embarrassing to have that much creativity at your disposal and only look dangerous from set pieces. Southgate's lucky there's no fans in the stadium to get on his back, reeks of arrogance that man at the moment.

 

[giorno]

Mostly annoying as well because they are forcing the f-ing friendlies in between there in stead of only the NL fixtures...

That's because they're still playing the euro-qualifying playoffs

 

[FootballHQ]

Didn't Northern Ireland get in for finishing 3rd in their euro group?

Nations league is just another chance rather than only route to play offs and indeed winning it anyway will give Norway much better seeding for next qualifiers while given the poor run Norn Iron will probably drop to pot 4 which is near impossible to make a world cup from.

I do agree qualification is ridiculous but that's simply a consequence of 24 teams. In any case Norway could've just got in directly by finishing ahead of Sweden...

Got the delights of 48 team world cup from 2026 so going to get some really poor teams qualifying for that.

 

[1966]

Have been Southgate out for a while despite the comeback over Belgium, and this just reaffirms it.

I didn't realise I was Southgate out until very recently. It seemed like he was doing a good job for ages. And then, suddenly, the last two international breaks have wrenched the scales from a lot of people's eyes, including mine, as we've realised that someone with this group of players should be able to achieve a hell of a lot more.

I now believe that the squad has been carrying Southgate, rather than being elevated by him in any meaningful sense. His performances up until 2020 have been to par for the quality of our squad. In 2020 so far, he's been actively holding our players back. I see now that he's never actually made us better at any point: the results - WC SF consolidated by NL 3rd following a genuinely impressive run of games - simply blinded me to his vast inadequacies.

 

[1966]

Didn't Northern Ireland get in for finishing 3rd in their euro group?

Nations league is just another chance rather than only route to play offs and indeed winning it anyway will give Norway much better seeding for next qualifiers while given the poor run Norn Iron will probably drop to pot 4 which is near impossible to make a world cup from.

I do agree qualification is ridiculous but that's simply a consequence of 24 teams. In any case Norway could've just got in directly by finishing ahead of Sweden...

Got the delights of 48 team world cup from 2026 so going to get some really poor teams qualifying for that.

They didn't have to feck it up quite this badly just because of the expansion to 24 teams, I don't think. Wasn't the expansion originally done by a simple process of picking the least worst losers across all the groups? No extra games needed.

I think it was the addition of the NL combined with its poor implementation that really screwed up qualifying. UEFA wanted a money-spinner to replace pointless friendlies? Fine, fair enough, seems win-win to me. Kept completely separate from every other competition, it even seems like a good idea. But by trying to be too clever and combining the NL with the Euros to incentivise teams to take the NL seriously, they've created a monster: a bizarre and unnecessary monolith of complexity that hurts the purity of both competitions individually.

Edit: anyone know off-hand how many spots UEFA is going to get in a 48 team world cup? Being pragmatic about it, the only way to make it vaguely competitive/interesting with that many teams would be to give UEFA about a third of the spots and then take the best 75% of CONCACAF. But since the idea is to make more money and Europeans and South Americans will all watch anyway, the expansion will mostly be in the direction of lesser confederations.

 

[1966]

It is the same as FIFA did. They gave more additional spots for WC to Africa and Asia instead to Europe and South America. Awarding averageness should not be the way how sport should work. It is not ok that every WC some top teams from Europe miss out while some cannon fodder teams go on WC. Last WC only one team from Africa and Asia reached knock out stage. And now they are awarded with more places on that WC. That is just not fair.

Well, I didn't get the specific answer I was looking for above (see edit to my precious post) but your post did confirm my suspicions that the 48 team WC was just a way to force further anti-competitive expansion into new markets. UEFA and CONCACAF, as the only confederations with any real chance of winning, should make up at least half of the teams.

(Hell, there are teams ranked outside of a top 24 combined UEFA/CONCACAF that would give any country in, say, the Asian confederation a good game. But obviously I'm not in favour of entirely excluding the rest of the world from the World Cup, even if the standard of the teams should be as high as reasonably possible.)