I don't think I ever said they were plucked from obscurity, just that non-league players were currently playing in the PL. My comment about coming from 'anywhere' meant any football league.
If anything happens to my better half I will return to Hull ASAP. She will stay here in Aus if I go first as she could not stand the UK weather. We have no kids.
The standard of football here in the Australian A League maybe low by comparison but this is because when players reach above average standards they are invariably picked up by European Clubs (it's all about MONEY y'know). The A League Clubs have "Marquee Players" (paid outside the salary cap - Robbie Koren was a recent one) who are "Swan Songing" and are in the autumn of their years. Remember, most Australian Players have European ancestry and move on to make a name for themselves overseas. Players like Viduka (Croatian Descent), Schwartzer (German Descent), Kewell (English), Bosnich (Croatian), Slater (English), Cahill (English/Samoan) Lucas Neill (Northern Ireland) and the current Captain Jedinak (Croatian) all left Australia to make a name for themselves in the English Premier League. This makes it difficult to get some cohesion into an international team when they are scattered all over the world especially when it comes to training as more than often they are 'unavailable'. The crowds are pretty good here considering but nowhere near enough to sustain our best players at wages comparable to the European Leagues.
My knickers are in no part knotted. You do seem to make it up as you go along though, if only in a flaccid attempt to substantiate your made up points. Brian doesn't refer, at any point, to Angela's club record. Angela won two League & one Club Championships (Mickey Mouse Leagues) with South Melbourne. Participated in the 2000 World Club Championship & lost all three games (Not a Mickey Mouse league). He was replaced as Australian Youth coach after he failed in getting the youngsters to qualify for the U20s World Cup Finals. He managed Greek third division (Mickey Mouse League) side Panachaiki because nobody in the A League was willing to give him a go. He fell out with the board & left after 9 months, they failed to get promoted. His record at International level is At International level he has beaten some of the world beaters in football - Kyrgystan (Home & Away), Tajikistan (Home & Away), Bangladesh (Home & Away), Jordan (Home), South Korea (Home), UAE (Home), Oman (Home), Kuwait (Home), China (Home), Saudi Arabia (Neutral) & Costa Rica. (Home). He's only won 3 proper away games at International level. He's snatched draws against - UAE (Away), Germany (away), Macedonia (away) & South Africa (Home) He has lost a few, admittedly against proper footballing nations - Ecuador (neutral), Croatia (Neutral), Chile (Neutral), Holland (Neutral), Spain (Neutral), Belgium (away), Qatar (away), Japan (away), South Korea (Home), Jordan (away). He'd be fine for us so long as we play every game at home against teams from the Conference North & below. In words you're likely to understand, he's not a manager's arsehole.
Maybe this lad's the next big thing from non-league... please log in to view this image Warren Bentley is 25, he went through Southampton's academy and currently plays for Winchester City in the Southern Counties League, he's scored 41 goals so far this season, the highest of any player in any league.
He'll be setting his sights higher than the last time he strayed from safe shores of Aus, maybe the Greek 2nd Division.
Australia have only ever beaten England once, the score wasn't 3-0. Maybe this is why you all think Angela is an excellent manager, you never look at the other team's score & think you win every game 'cos the other team always gets nil.
They all beat him. Hardly a good stat on his CV. "Have managed teams against the likes of Chile, Holland & Japan, lost them all but I was there."
Plenty of managers have come from nowhere and been a success. You've conveniently forgotten his records at Brisbane and Melbourne and currently with Australia where he won the Asian Cup - our Euros.
He actually beat Japan and South Korea to win the Asian Cup, and led Holland 2-1 with a side made up of youngsters and an aging Tim Cahill.
It's Asia's Euros that Australia gatecrash because it benefits both parties. You were hardly up against Germany, Italy, Spain & Holland. It was held in Australia, all games were at home. You beat China, UAE, Oman, Kuwait & South Korea as well as losing to South Korea to lift the trophy. How did he do at the World Cup - played 3, lost three.
Japan? Are you sure? Is that another Australian made up result, like beating England 30? You didn't mention South Korea, although, despite beating SK in the final they did also lose to them in the same competition.
We've beaten Japan under Ange, I thought it was at the Asian Cup, I stand corrected. I'm not sure why you're so insistent on putting him down, did he run over your dog? I think he is a very smart, tactically sound manager who has a very attractive and enjoyable philosophy about football.
I didn't forget them I just couldn't be arsed to point out further that despite relative success in a very poor league, he has also mastered failure whenever he's managed outside of Australia. the point of the OP was that he plays attacking football. Any manager would if he's playing against sides that are absolute ****. On the whole he's failed playing sides that have challenged him.
He played attacking football against Chile, the Netherlands and Spain which was my point in mentioning them. Yes he lost but that was with inferior cattle. We also led the Netherlands 2-1 and could well have won that game. My context for discussing Ange has been in terms of his philosophy and the way he has transformed the sides he's managed. You clearly don't like him and that's entirely fine.
I've nowt against him, he's just done nothing to suggest he'd be a success at Championship level. Just because he's battered a few teams doesn't mean he'll be a success somewhere else, he proved this in Greece. His stats are pants, despite his success. Japan, just before the Asian Cup, they beat you 2-1. I have to pop off now to the great British institution that is IKEA now. I really wish I could stay longer, I really do, maybe if he'd ran over my dog she wouldn't be glaring at me now & telling me to get my shoes on because she's waiting.
I haven't cited his battering of sides because I agree with you that they're inferior sides who we should be beating by that margin. Going to be very interesting to see how we go in the next round of qualifying against two of Japan/South Korea/China! Enjoy IKEA and try not to get lost! Drives me mad that you can't just leave, you have to go the whole way round.
