Marcus rashford

horden · **Posted:** Tue Sep 05, 2017 3:53 pm

In a nutshell, a technical footballer is a player who has incredible ball control. who can make the ball do what he really wants it to do. Think of Ronaldo, Messi, Xavi, and Ibrahimovic. England players are just good footballers but not technically gifted , no game changers , just methodical plodders.

PoolieTom · **Joined:** Tue Aug 31, 2010 2:30 am **Posts:** 779

Yep, the three posts above sum it up, and are the reasons why Lallana, and to a lesser extent Dele Alli, are head and shoulders above the rest of the England team. They are the only two who would get anywhere near the Spain team

Mr Ripper · **Posted:** Tue Sep 05, 2017 5:18 pm

The Colonel wrote:

I always see the players as shapes. English players are square, Good foreign players are circles.

English players can do the basic well, and are match hardened.

The foreign players seem to be able to control the ball whilst on the half turn and control it and pass it in one movement. Our players take two touches, and never seem to have that peripheral vision.

Someone like Frank Lampard was a top player in this country, but was rubbish when faced with the best foreigners. If you watch him closely the ball always went up in the air when he controlled it.

Foreigners rarely panic on the ball.

And there must be a reason why they rarely just lump the ball forward, giving it to the other team. Whereas English players love a long diagonal ball.

Of course there are reasons.

When I go over to Spain and Portugal the kids are playing football in the town square. And they have lots of hard court pitches. And even when they do sometimes have grass pitches they're hard too. So they need to learn to keep the ball close and how to weight a pass.

Over here most teams play on muddy pitches. If the first touch goes up in the air or bounces off it invariably doesn't go as far away from the player. Or the conditions are such that somebody can pile in with a slide tackle.

I've just finished reading a book called "Up There" about NE football and its decline over the years. Although the book doesn't say it the decline coincides nicely with kids stopping playing football in the front and back streets where they learnt that control of the ball.

The Colonel · **Joined:** Mon Aug 21, 2006 8:49 am **Posts:** 4891

phil wrote:

I used to play in the back alley and I'm bad at football. Another interesting element of that though, is we always used to play on the floor. If the ball went over head height it usually went over a wall and someone had to go and ask for it back or climb over the wall.

I would disagree with people saying England have no technical players. Ox and Sterling are both technically good players, they just have no idea what to do with it. Both have been shifted across numerous different positions in their short careers and never given any protection to grow or develop. As such, they never really know what to do with the ball.

I think sterling and chamberlain are good players, but they are not technically gifted.

They are both quick and have quick feet, but have you ever seen them receive the ball on the move and pass it in a different direction without taking two touches?

Thats what technically gifted world class players can do. Our players are flat footed in comparison.

Lord_of_Stranton · **Joined:** Sun Mar 13, 2011 4:48 pm **Posts:** 1852

PoolieTom wrote:

Yep, the three posts above sum it up, and are the reasons why Lallana, and to a lesser extent Dele Alli, are head and shoulders above the rest of the England team. They are the only two who would get anywhere near the Spain team

Put Harry Kane in with them and you're spot on.

PoolieTom · **Joined:** Tue Aug 31, 2010 2:30 am **Posts:** 779

Lord_of_Stranton wrote:

PoolieTom wrote:

Yep, the three posts above sum it up, and are the reasons why Lallana, and to a lesser extent Dele Alli, are head and shoulders above the rest of the England team. They are the only two who would get anywhere near the Spain team

Put Harry Kane in with them and you're spot on.

Not even sure I could add Kane to that to be honest. He probably is third on the list, though. I would say he doesn't fit the Spain way of playing, but they've never really had a striker who has fit their style. Costa, Torres both not great technically. Pedro they've tried, not great technically. Villa, possibly. It's no surprise that they've played Fabregas as lone striker at times. So Kane could probably get in the team on that basis, but still not in the same category as Lallana

TalbotAvenger · **Posted:** Wed Sep 06, 2017 3:44 pm

The prospect of that England brassband getting the mother of all shoeing's from the Russian hooligan armies is what I'm most looking forward to at this next World Cup.

The Colonel · **Joined:** Mon Aug 21, 2006 8:49 am **Posts:** 4891

TalbotAvenger wrote:

The prospect of that England brassband getting the mother of all shoeing's from the Russian hooligan armies is what I'm most looking forward to at this next World Cup.

This I DO concur with.

tREE_wiTH_hAMStER · **Joined:** Sat May 19, 2007 11:00 am **Posts:** 20758

They do help drown out the drunken morons singing German bomber songs etc.

The Colonel · **Joined:** Mon Aug 21, 2006 8:49 am **Posts:** 4891

Do living human beings actually sing that?

Marcus rashford

Gadgies online