The establishment in Wales is rugby orientated, There was a survey some years ago which showed there were more registered amateur soccer players than rugby players in Wales and Swansea itself has always had a larger following for Soccer. So I would say we are like Costa Rica, attractive to watch but not yet good enough to reach the very top.
I reckon Portsmouth would be Tonga. We are a South sea island, very friendly and the Ladies like the Tongan flag. It's got a plus sign on it.
Decided to resurrect this thread because a similar question was posed on Reddit and someone answered it perfectly: "Arsenal: Sweden - Often admired for their progressive approach, this has not translated into any greater global influence in recent years. Definitely used to be powerful though, and damn it if they aren't pretty to look at. Chelsea: Israel - Great defence, persecution complex, not well liked at the moment. Liverpool: Great Britain - constantly going on about how they used to be the most powerful in the world. Relying on their youngest leader in a long time to take them out of the doldrums. Everton: Scotland - overshadowed by their neighbours but well-liked. Have a reputation for being tight with money. Seeking to create a distinct European identity this year. Manchester United: America - the dominant power for years but recent challenges by resource-rich rivals has seen their status slip a little. Global sphere of influence and power has led to resentment in many quarters. Newcastle: North Korea - Never short of an entertaining news story, no-one is ever sure how seriously to take them. Leadership forbids dissent in the media, owner probably still thinks everyone loves him. Spurs: Cuba - Recent successes undermined by the emigration of talent and the loss of a key individual, probably still best known for what they did in the 60's. Notoriously difficult to trade with. Southampton: Iraq - Used to be high in natural resources but have found most of their assets taken away by more powerful rivals. This led to an internal rebellion by some people. Place is a bit of a mess now and everyone feels sorry for the locals."
England = West Ham. Football, but not from this century. Germany = Arsenal. Been showing loads of promise but just falling short for a while now. But when it all comes together, as it surely must; a class apart. Italy = Chelsea. As said by someone above, bit dirty, bit negative. But always entertaining in a sort of bleak, forbidding way. Republic Of Ireland = Portsmouth. Remember when they qualified for the big time? When they gave their local rivals a good run for their money? Sadly, all their players were English, and only eligible to wear the green due to some threadbare technicalities. Nigeria = Southampton. Will one day make it the top table, because let's face it, life is fair like that, and not at all skewed towards the established nations. Isn't it?
Southampton = England, or could have been:- Forster Clyne Chambers Shaw Walcott Oxlaide-Chamberlain Cork Lallana Rodriguez Lambert
Forster Clyne Lovren Fonte Shaw Wanyama Schneiderlin Walcott/AOC Lallana Bale Lambert/Walcott What could have been
Parallel Universe England XI Tommy Forecast -- Jon Otsemobor Olly Lancashire Aaron Martin Lee Molyneux -- Ryan Smith Simon Gillett Paul Wotton Oscar Gobern -- Jonno Forte Jamie White
And what were the threadbare technicalities in our 1939 FA Cup triumph? Or the multiple FA cup finals before then? Or the league wins in 1949 and 1950? Or even our championship win of 2003? You make it sound like in our entire history, we've only ever had a small period of minor success. Although I suppose Ireland's a cool place, and Dublin's a great city, so you're certainly right in some sense.
Thats because you know nothing about football, are a lousy driver, get drunk on half a shandy and are hopeless in bed In truth though I really can't see why not. I don't see too many Englishmen doing that linking role as good as he does.
Hey...I can handle my drink! Cork fits in at Saints. I don't think he'd be nearly as good at any other Prem team, because actually he doesn't have much going on in terms of technical ability or physicality. He plays a simple passing game well, but don't expect him to do anything particularly intricate. He's a fairly intelligent footballer and that helps him, but despite being consistent and never really having bad games, he doesn't bring enough going forward to be in the middle of a top team's midfield. He doesn't exactly excel at anything.
I hear what you are saying, although I obviously don't agree with it. But even given your opinion, I believe it is a position that the England team don't have covered (but need) and I genuinely don't know any English player who does it better. Sometimes you don't actually need to excel at anything to be a good team player. Lots of teams have players who you often don't notice until they are not playing. Looking at Saints teams of the past, I'd say someone like Nick Holmes who was never a superstar but always one of the first names on the team sheet.
Like the Irish, you are obsessed with history. I would never be too rude about the land of Swift, Wilde, O'Casey, Behan, Yeats, Joyce, Heaney, etc. Not forgetting Roddy Doyle - see, there's still hope, even when most of your heroes have slipped away.
