THREAD CLOSED I call it, 4 pages of soft lads crying into their beer and UIR laughing at you all. Remember how it was always piss funny how Wenger cried when it came to play Bolton, you lot are doing the same thing.
Thats all very well replying to my post which was a reply to another post, your usual out of context reply to something not said to you Missing hte point as usual my Stalin loving friend
Nah. I am going to guess that a few years ago when Arsenal were playing this apparently lovely football but winning **** all that you found it a waste of time. Their tactics, their game plan. Everything. The whole point is to win, however you can within the rules. Stoke are not a fancy team, if they tried passing it around they would be relegated and what does that achieve? The fact is there is only one good kind of football, we can debate all week about passing games, possession football, counter attacks, parking the bus. It doesnt matter. The only thing that matters is winning. I know people have suggested in this thread that they would feel cheated if Liverpool played like Stoke. Maybe they would.... if the results didnt change. However if by playing like Stoke Liverpool suddenly win 10 on the bounce what do you think happens? I dont foresee many complaints if I am honest. Winning football is the best football, be it how Chelsea won the CL or how Barcelona won 6 trophies in one season the other year. It doesnt matter what other teams think, chances are they are pissed off they lost. For Stoke their football has kept them in the PL. How on earth its anti-football I dont know. There is no set pattern, no one definition. Swansea are a good example, last season they had success playing the passing game, this season its not working so they need to change it. Teams dont have time to keep at it as before you know it you are in trouble and battling for your lives. Heres a question. Team A v Team B Team A has 67% possession, 89% passing success rate and creates 23 chances. They score no goals but the football is breath taking. I mean its Barcelona with Messi and Ronaldo. Team B has 33% possession, 2 shots and only 1 on target. They barely string 3 passes together. Team B wins 1-0. Team A complains that they had all the ball and played all the football. Team B celebrates their win. Which would you rather be? I suspect some might say Team A but I cant believe it tbh. Its essentially celebrating failure.
If those two sides played ten times, Team A would win at least seven of those games. This is Rodgers approach, he sees that if you have more possession then you are statistically more likely to win more games.
Noblelox: The problem isn't the physicality. If they want a tough, physical game fair enough. I have no problem with that. Its the fact that anyone in a Stoke shirt is allowed to go in that little bit harder than anyone else before getting a booking. All teams should be judged by the same standard, Stoke shouldn't be given extra freedom to kick lumps out of teams just because they're a "physical side". The other thing is the way they constantly foul opponents and turn football matches into wars of attriton. In Stoke and Tony Pulis' warped world stamping, breaking legs. wrestling opponents and handballing is fine but diving is a cancer on the game. Yes, in Stoke world stamping on someone is allright while diving is despicable. I just feel sorry for the fans really, one of the highest spending clubs over the last 4 years and they've only got mid table mediocrity and a football team that makes Fat Sam's teams look like 1970 Brazil to show for it.
How can you say they would? Chelsea v Barcelona shows this isnt always the case. United v Arsenal. Stoke v Liverpool ( not sure of your 10 game record but they are always good for result it seems ). Possession counts for nothing, some teams willingly give it up as it works for them. United did this v Arsenal to great effect. They had the ball, we won the games, easily in most cases Infact Barcelona are the only example in modern football of a team who you could say quite confidently would beat most teams with possession football 7 times out of 10, probably 9 times out of 10. The rest.... not so confidently.
Ive seen Liverpool and United players make tackles that make Stokes worst offenders look like little girls in pink tutus Lucasss. Players from a whole host of clubs. I dont think Pulis is saying stamping is ok. If thats the case then Rodgers is saying diving is bad because he defends Suarez. I dont think he is really. Both are doing a managers job, protecting their players and team. Like Wenger seeing nothing at all, Fergie pointing the finger at others and defending his own, Mourinho acting a prat to deflect attention.
Possibly, just possibly because you seem to spend most of your time discussing things on the LFC Board, your guys cried just as much as thy all do. Personally i have no problem with how stoke play, good luck to them. No idea when there was a shift that football had to be played a certain way. I have said this before if utd play long ball it is referred to as the fast break if lfc or arsenal were to apply strong arm tactics it would possibly be termed as a physical approach to the game. It is up to the team hat is facing stoke to find a way around it. Lets be honest they do not try anything no one is expecting and it is not illegal. So as much as i dont like the result Stoke did exactly what they wanted to do. What I will say is that it was a cast iron red at start for the stoke lad and had the ref got it right our jb should have been made easier but thems the breaks
Well, the real questions before you assume others choices for them with such arrogance. You support United because they win? I myself in the end want to see good games. I don't watch Stoke and would not even if they won every game in the league this year as I would not want to watch Chelsea's CL semi and final again. Sh!t football is what it is, if you are only in for the win and braggin rights.. ahem cough cough plastic.. cough, you'll fold on your club faster than superman on laundry day and go support City or Chelsea. It is not idealistic to want to see good football over wins, you want both and believe one is a path to the other, in between can be difficult but because we do not support teams that just win, but because there is a magic you feel watching them, players you admire ect ect, many many reasons to support a team, OTHER than winning you manc plastic I am never angry after a loss to united in a fair game, always said, fk it, next time, refs on the other hand. So winning is not what it is ALL about for me. The 90 minutes MATTER
The Nox thinks we should all play like the US women's team Pulis would sign a few of those had he the chance
Here's the point, as one of our best, attacking football teams of the late 80's found out to their cost against Wimbledon: if you winge about it or let it show that it gets to you you'll just get more and more of it. Look at Arsenal during the the latter partof the last decade; the more wenger moaned about it, the more he got it. Do you really think Pulis loses one moment of sleep over his leg-breaking, elbowing, stamping, kneeing hatchet men? as said, not only does he encourage it, he probably does indignant protestations of outrage with his players in training, they're so good at it. All footballing teams need a Souness, an Ince, a Keane, a Case and so forth. You go out to play football but you've got to be able to mix it too. Most of us found that out playing football in the schoolyard, and credit to Brendan for praising his side for standing up to it and not complaining - but in private he's got to to get a plan together for next time to target various Stoke playes for 'treatment' next time we meet. Ronnie Whelan was ace at that - a ****ing sneaky assassin. I think Hendo could be developed into such a player.
**** me you chat some ****. I dont think you understand how insanely stupid your post is. I am not even going to bother explaining to a drunken fool. Absolute utter bollocks. You wouldnt get it in your drunken state.
BBF - The secret Arsenal fan. "oh but we won the possession stats" Have a ****ing trophy for it then lad
Shelvey is a natural! You want that in the middle against Stoke, you need to control the middle of the park, no point having a wing or two, Shawcross and Huth can mop crosses up all day in their sleep, you need players who can get it on the floor and take it into the box and score or pass from within the box. Which we did enough of, we just never had anyone of good enough quality/confidence in the middle to put anything away. Yes Stoke gave us a hard game in the first half, but Pulis dialled them down at half time, and the only problem in the second half, is that we are not good enough in front of goal. No point bitching about Pulis, we were just not good enough to beat a well organised defence. Yes he has double standards, but so does every manager, and crying about it here, after the even is just childish. The other team is out to beat us, what do you think happens when you spend days after the event crying about how you didn't like what they did? What do you think they will do next time? So what good is it to go on like this?
Posession? What? You really are a crazy Ivan. Love arsenal to bits I am quite content when you start saying I talk through this or that or the drink At least then you're really showing what you're about, must kill you to keep th ebile in these days rather than get banned again You obviously hate Liverpool the time you spend here
