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Soccer talk eg. prem league, champ league, serie a etc (2 Viewers)
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Group D Czech Rep; Latvia; Germany; Holland
- The so-called Group of Death. Let's have a look, no Latvia ain't big. Czech without Nedved isn't really a class side. As for Germany, we all remembered their World Cup performance (albeit they made it to the finals). They had a nice draw and without Ballack would've been out ages ago. I don't care how good Khan was, you can't win by not scoring goals. As for Holland, they didn't even make it to the World Cup, and almost didn't make Euro 2004. However, they can pull through.
Group C Sweden; Bulgaria; Denmark; Italy
Yes, we all expect Italy to qualify and they do have the quality, so long as they play as a team and don't choke *Cough* World Cup.
Group A Portugal; Greece; Spain; Russia
This group is much tougher than people might think. Portugal don't have such a shabby side, with or without Figo. Greece, they topped their Qualifying group. Spain, need I say more. Russia, who knows.
Group B France; England; Switzerland; Croatia
We all know the quality of the French (also known as Arsenal) side plus Zidane and Trez. They should go far since they're back in Europe. England it should be noted haven't lost a professional match under Sven except for quarters to Brazil the eventual winners. This group isn't as bad as it might look.
I'm done.
- The so-called Group of Death. Let's have a look, no Latvia ain't big. Czech without Nedved isn't really a class side. As for Germany, we all remembered their World Cup performance (albeit they made it to the finals). They had a nice draw and without Ballack would've been out ages ago. I don't care how good Khan was, you can't win by not scoring goals. As for Holland, they didn't even make it to the World Cup, and almost didn't make Euro 2004. However, they can pull through.
Group C Sweden; Bulgaria; Denmark; Italy
Yes, we all expect Italy to qualify and they do have the quality, so long as they play as a team and don't choke *Cough* World Cup.
Group A Portugal; Greece; Spain; Russia
This group is much tougher than people might think. Portugal don't have such a shabby side, with or without Figo. Greece, they topped their Qualifying group. Spain, need I say more. Russia, who knows.
Group B France; England; Switzerland; Croatia
We all know the quality of the French (also known as Arsenal) side plus Zidane and Trez. They should go far since they're back in Europe. England it should be noted haven't lost a professional match under Sven except for quarters to Brazil the eventual winners. This group isn't as bad as it might look.
I'm done.
hmm.. Czech without Nedved.. sure would be a big loss, but they do have some good players like Koller, Baros and especially Rosicky. Watch out for Kuranyi (Germany). Hes Brasilian born, which means hes bound to have plenty of technical ability, and he spearheads the Stuttgart attack, which recently defeated Man Utd and finished 2nd in the bundesliga last season.
Hollands form puzzles me the most. They have the best talent in Europe, some of the best strikers in Europe, and overall an incredibly strong lineup. As you saw for Fulham vs Arsenal, their keeper is not bad either. Against Scotland (second leg), their junior players were the best on the field. If Holland play van der Vaart, van der Meyde, Ooijer etc. in the finals next year they will be a far more dynamic team than the current ageing side with mountainous ego's which includes Kluivert, Davids, Seedorf etc..
Italy will be my pick for the crown. They are solid in every aspect, and as long as they dont repeat last year they should pose an immense challenge to the French, English and so on.
In fact, if the Dutch manager fielded half his side from Ajax, they'd do pretty well purely because they'd have a team and understanding. And they have the best strike force around - they should just get rid of Kluivert who clearly isn't doing well domestically, and there are better alternatives. (And although Rooney ain't doing too well, England has no alternatives.) Yes, they have a team of egos: especially from the divisions at PSV and Ajax.
Constip8edSkunk
Joga Bonito
they should actually start with ruud... see the difference between the 2 scotland games lol
yeah the moral of the story is dun listen 2 kluivert
yeah the moral of the story is dun listen 2 kluivert
on the topic of Kluivert, i read today somewhere that he describes himself as the "complete footballer" 
looks like he hasn't lost the 'Zlatan Ibrahimovic' type of arrogance that made him so popular/controversial when he first burst onto the scene with Ajax.
looks like he hasn't lost the 'Zlatan Ibrahimovic' type of arrogance that made him so popular/controversial when he first burst onto the scene with Ajax.
dirty dave
Banned
like half the ppl in the teamOriginally posted by reynaldo
on the topic of Kluivert, i read today somewhere that he describes himself as the "complete footballer"
looks like he hasn't lost the 'Zlatan Ibrahimovic' type of arrogance that made him so popular/controversial when he first burst onto the scene with Ajax.
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WC qualifying draw for england (cos i am an england fan )
England
Wales
Northen Ireland
Poland
Austria
Azerbaijan
Any money england is gonna chock on home games against n.ireland
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but yea, obivious winner of the group should be England and second should be a nail biting...Wales, Poland, or Austria??
but u never know what happens in FOOTBALL!!
)England
Wales
Northen Ireland
Poland
Austria
Azerbaijan
Any money england is gonna chock on home games against n.ireland
-_-"
but yea, obivious winner of the group should be England and second should be a nail biting...Wales, Poland, or Austria??
but u never know what happens in FOOTBALL!!
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yea, its predicted a england france final, which i believe is a possibility(from my conditonal probability maths learnt in acturial )
but Portugal is good too..esp at home and with players like Figo, Rui Costa, Deco and Noumes...
Also, Italy is a threat cos of their 3 up front (totti behind either vieri, f.inzaghu, di vaio, cassano and montella)
)but Portugal is good too..esp at home and with players like Figo, Rui Costa, Deco and Noumes...
Also, Italy is a threat cos of their 3 up front (totti behind either vieri, f.inzaghu, di vaio, cassano and montella)
But Italy, we all remember Vieri and de Piero... and what they can do. As well as Totti. Or should I say, what they fail to do.
Inzahgi is perhaps the most capable of providing them goals, except he's a bench warmer.
Portugal: overrated, even if they are at home. And lack of competitive matches.
Inzahgi is perhaps the most capable of providing them goals, except he's a bench warmer.
Portugal: overrated, even if they are at home. And lack of competitive matches.
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blah..portugal is not over-rated..trust me...even though they played shit in WC, they have some of the best players in the world...home crowd advantage is a big big factor esp in european football...also, remember last euro..no, or the one b4..portugal vs england, england was leading 2-0 at half time and portugal came back winning 3-2..thats how good they are...
italy, i dun think they will choke this time with how shit they went in WC..i mean, just look at how they played in the the qualifiers...even though they played crap first half, they eventually topped the group..and now they are kinda playing an attacking tactic which along with their solid back 4..italy is a big threat...
the biggest interest from me would be how France would fair..surely ppl will go France will be shit without Zidane..but they played exceptionally well without him in the qualifiers and in terms of replacing Zidane, France seems to have the right player..forgot that youngster name though...so i'll love to see some idiot hack Zidane's leg off in the tournment
italy, i dun think they will choke this time with how shit they went in WC..i mean, just look at how they played in the the qualifiers...even though they played crap first half, they eventually topped the group..and now they are kinda playing an attacking tactic which along with their solid back 4..italy is a big threat...
the biggest interest from me would be how France would fair..surely ppl will go France will be shit without Zidane..but they played exceptionally well without him in the qualifiers and in terms of replacing Zidane, France seems to have the right player..forgot that youngster name though...so i'll love to see some idiot hack Zidane's leg off in the tournment
Constip8edSkunk
Joga Bonito
doubt england will make it. they are always world beaters...until the tournament actually kicks off, when they realised...
portugal... lets face it, they only came back cuz they were playing ENGLAND kinda like spain cept they never got hyped up enough to actually choke as bad (though in last world cup they came close) home ground will mean alot, either in favour as crowd in support, or as a negative, with even more pressure...
france and italy are teh favourites and deserved to be, though some of italy's 'stars' would be getting on a bit... and del piero has never performed on the big stage... inzaghi would be a better bet.
Holland has lotsa potential and will depend how they wake up and what they eat...and whether any teammates starts fighting over media spaces. Germany will always lurk around as they do as well.
portugal... lets face it, they only came back cuz they were playing ENGLAND
kinda like spain cept they never got hyped up enough to actually choke as bad (though in last world cup they came close) home ground will mean alot, either in favour as crowd in support, or as a negative, with even more pressure...france and italy are teh favourites and deserved to be, though some of italy's 'stars' would be getting on a bit... and del piero has never performed on the big stage... inzaghi would be a better bet.
Holland has lotsa potential and will depend how they wake up and what they eat...and whether any teammates starts fighting over media spaces. Germany will always lurk around as they do as well.
6 main players:
Portugal - combination of excellent home-based players (Costinha, Paulo Ferreira, Jorge Costa) and Euro-stars (Rui, Figo, Sergio Conceio, Pedro Pauleta, Hlder) should make them a formidable force, especially at home. My favourite international team.
France - IMO most formidable team on paper, one of most consistent (in qualifiers for Euro 2004) and exciting to watch.
Italy - Their turn for another major trophy. Have alot of young talent to showcase (Cassano, Gilardino, Miccoli, Bonera, de Rossi etc.) and are strong in every department; defence (Nesta-Canna), holding midfield (Perrotta, Gattuso, Zanetti), attacking midfield (del Piero, Totti, Fiore), width (Zambro, Camoranesi) and striking (Pippo Inzaghi, Bobo Vieri, Di Vaio, Bazzani). Virtually flawless, although Trap could be their liability.
Holland - a team perhaps too skilled for their own good. Defence is only problem, IMO Stam being the only really reliable defender. Usual midfield (Seedorf, Davids, Overmars .. ) and forwards (Makaay, Hasselbaink, v.Nistelrooy, Kluivert) will have a tough time keeping their places while youngsters like van der Vaart, van der Meyde, van Persie, Ooijer, Sneijder .. continue to emerge from the youth academies in Amsterdam and Eindhoven.
England - have Lampard, Cole, Terry, and the Jermaines to name a few young players to mature recently and become regulars for the first team. However i dont think they have the firepower to trouble the continental sides.
Spain - their style of football mirrors that of La Liga - out and out attacking. Puyol probably the only defender of note, otherwise their strenth is in the midfield (Valeron, Mendieta, Gerard, Xavi, Albelda, Baraja, Joaquin.. and youngster Reyes (wing)) and up front, Raul and Tristan should be first choice 2, with Morientes and Luque backing up.
Portugal - combination of excellent home-based players (Costinha, Paulo Ferreira, Jorge Costa) and Euro-stars (Rui, Figo, Sergio Conceio, Pedro Pauleta, Hlder) should make them a formidable force, especially at home. My favourite international team.
France - IMO most formidable team on paper, one of most consistent (in qualifiers for Euro 2004) and exciting to watch.
Italy - Their turn for another major trophy. Have alot of young talent to showcase (Cassano, Gilardino, Miccoli, Bonera, de Rossi etc.) and are strong in every department; defence (Nesta-Canna), holding midfield (Perrotta, Gattuso, Zanetti), attacking midfield (del Piero, Totti, Fiore), width (Zambro, Camoranesi) and striking (Pippo Inzaghi, Bobo Vieri, Di Vaio, Bazzani). Virtually flawless, although Trap could be their liability.
Holland - a team perhaps too skilled for their own good. Defence is only problem, IMO Stam being the only really reliable defender. Usual midfield (Seedorf, Davids, Overmars .. ) and forwards (Makaay, Hasselbaink, v.Nistelrooy, Kluivert) will have a tough time keeping their places while youngsters like van der Vaart, van der Meyde, van Persie, Ooijer, Sneijder .. continue to emerge from the youth academies in Amsterdam and Eindhoven.
England - have Lampard, Cole, Terry, and the Jermaines to name a few young players to mature recently and become regulars for the first team. However i dont think they have the firepower to trouble the continental sides.
Spain - their style of football mirrors that of La Liga - out and out attacking. Puyol probably the only defender of note, otherwise their strenth is in the midfield (Valeron, Mendieta, Gerard, Xavi, Albelda, Baraja, Joaquin.. and youngster Reyes (wing)) and up front, Raul and Tristan should be first choice 2, with Morientes and Luque backing up.
Constip8edSkunk
Joga Bonito
hahaha
from the telegraph:
from the telegraph:
In other Arsenal news, cole received another red card.
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