World Cup 2018 Round Up (Final)

[tlw content]

I’ll get to the final in due course, but let’s get the losers out of the way first. Belgium and England would rather not have been playing this booby prize game, but clearly they both wanted to win because they fielded stronger sides than they did in the dead rubber group match a few weeks ago. No Adnan Januzaj and Danny Welbeck on show here, no sir. 
 
I had expected Southgate would have just sent out everyone who didn’t play in the semi, but no, most of the starters were out there again, although he did replace his entire midfield and for reasons known only to himself brought Phil Jones in. That went as about as well as everyone other than Southgate expected. Phil Jones - the English Otamendi.
 
There’s been lots of talk that Kane hasn’t been fully fit, but if that’s true why was he playing in this one? Either he’s a selfish prick putting the Golden Boot above the good of the team or there’s no injury and he’s just been playing shit since beating up on Tunisia and Panama. Actually he didn’t even beat up on Panama, he scored two pens and one fluke he knew nothing about. 
 
He didn’t score in this one despite having two chances. I'm confused. I thought that’s all he needed? That's what he told us wasn't it? Clearly he must have just been talking about penalties that day at Anfield, because his finishing has had a touch of the Raheem Sterling’s about him ever since Tunisia. Somehow though he’s the top scorer. What a joke.
 
I feel as though all the other strikers at this competition should be embarrassed by that. Letting this fucking halfwit take home the Golden Boot, it's a poor show by them. It’s the most hollow Golden Boot win I can remember, even worse than the year that Stoichkov and some random Russian fella shared it with five apiece. 
 
And why the fuck was Trippier playing? He couldn’t even walk three days earlier and was injured so bad he left his team with only ten men in the semifinal. Now he’s not only made a miraculous recovery, but he’s playing the full game in what was regarded by many as an inconvenience. If that was one of our lads I’d want Southgate strung up for that. Spurs fans are probably made up though, queen and country and all that. If England had actually won the thing we’d have had to listen to those losers going the full West Ham and giving it “we won the facking World Cup”. 
 
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[DPW]

superb awards

[Arnaud]

I’ve been reading you for almost 20 years Dave, and that might the first time I disagree with you. I don’t like Pogba, but he had a very god tournament. Spot on for the rest. France played like the Juve Deschamps captained in the 90 : strong at the back, brillant in attack and a strong collective unit.

[dave u]

I’ve been reading you for almost 20 years Dave, and that might the first time I disagree with you. I don’t like Pogba, but he had a very god tournament. Spot on for the rest. France played like the Juve Deschamps captained in the 90 : strong at the back, brillant in attack and a strong collective unit.

 

It'll be a cold day in hell before I accept Pogba is a top player. I said he was alright, and even that was difficult for me!

 

Agree with your assessment of France, I just find them to be dull to watch, particularly considering some of the players they have.

[Arnaud]

I did not say he was a top player I said he did play well during this WC.... it’s dull indeed.

[tokyojoe]

Great honour for Evra to be in the Twat of the Tournament top 3 as he wasn't even playing.

[suzy]

Great honour for Evra to be in the Twat of the Tournament top 3 as he wasn't even playing.

Yes I liked that! I also loved that description of Pickford!

[bigal]

Agree with just about everything. Pogba was better than at OT because he didn't have Maureen as manager, simple.

Not the greatest WC but entertaining. Astonished you or the BBC didn't include Cavani's goal where he and Suarez pinged it to and fro, stunner.

 

[buster69]

Good report Dave, there is a lot I agreed with. In particular the Trippier thing. If you're fit enough to play in a glorified friendly on a Saturday, you're fit enough to play the last 10 minutes of the biggest game of your life on a Wednesday. That he didn't do that was a dereliction of duty. Crazy stuff.

 

On the penalty decision Dave, think it was a 50/50. The thing is, everybody is saying it wasn't a penalty because, if they're honest, they wanted Croatia to win. If it was the Champions League final and Sergio Ramos did it, everybody would say it should be a penalty. I think the ref thought he would have got more flack if he hadn't given it and Croatia lost. A tough call, but in a way, I can fully understand why he gave it.

 

To be honest I really liked the tournament. I was disappointed how it ended (nobody wanted to France to win, except the French obviously) but I hate the flack International football gets. "It's not as good as club football" Yeah, I get that. You know why? Because the players have less time together and they don't have billions of pounds (Real, City, PSG) to throw around at their team. At least with international football you get to see new different sides and the possibility (although it didn't actually come to pass) of an underdog winning. I'd take that over Real winning the Champions League every year and Bayern winning the Bundesliga by 30 points any day.

[UnwelcomeinPeru]

Twat of the Tournament 
 
1 Neymar
2 Antoine Griezmann
3 Patrice Evra

 

Griezmann and Evra are fine, fine twats but they must feel like actors did when Daniel Day-Lewis released a film, come awards time there's not much point even showing up. 

[index1000]

The fact that some think the pen should be given and others (most?) think not show it shouldn't have been given.

How is is clear and obvious?

The problem is not VAR though the problem is still shit referees. 

It doesn't matter how good the technology is if you still have some hopeless gobshite with the whistle.

[Josef Svejk]

No comment on the ref's "hair"? Disappointing...

[dave u]

I did not say he was a top player I said he did play well during this WC.... it’s dull indeed.

 

Not from you mate, but all I'm reading is how brilliant he was and how he has come of age and showed this new-found tactical discipline. It's bollocks. He's got Kante alongside him doing all the dirty stuff and Mbappe ahead of him making any ball over the top look like pass of the decade. It would be hard not to look good.

 

The problem with Pogba is anything half decent he does gets blown out of all proprtion. It also works the other way of course, and some of the stick he gets is just because of who he is and how much he cost. He brings a lot of it on himself by the way he acts though.

 

In terms of the French side, I could name at least five who were better than him. 

 

Great honour for Evra to be in the Twat of the Tournament top 3 as he wasn't even playing.

 

Diego wasn't playing either, but he ran away with the 'my boy' award.

 

On reflection, I should have done a best pundit award, so here goes.

 

1 Bilic

2 Keown 

3 Keane

 

Bilic was the best and the most entertaining. The other two were just entertaining, for vastly different reasons.

 

I liked Zabaleta as well.

 

Agree with just about everything. Pogba was better than at OT because he didn't have Maureen as manager, simple. Not the greatest WC but entertaining. Astonished you or the BBC didn't include Cavani's goal where he and Suarez pinged it to and fro, stunner.

 

Cavani lost points because he scored that with his face and not his head. If he'd planted it in with his forehead it would have been a strong contender.

 

 

On the penalty decision Dave, think it was a 50/50. The thing is, everybody is saying it wasn't a penalty because, if they're honest, they wanted Croatia to win. If it was the Champions League final and Sergio Ramos did it, everybody would say it should be a penalty. I think the ref thought he would have got more flack if he hadn't given it and Croatia lost. A tough call, but in a way, I can fully understand why he gave it.

 

 

If Croatia had been given that penalty I'd have been delighted, but I wouldn't have said it was the right decision. I'm fairly consistent with regards to handball decisions. Probably 75% of penalties given for handball I disagree with. The rule itself is spot on, but the regular interpretation of it is bollocks.

 

Hardly any penalty awarded for handball comes as a result of a 'deliberate' action, so most of the time it comes down to whether an arm is in an 'unnatural' position and whether the player could have avoided it.

 

Generally, I disagree with pens that are given for handball, and even more so when the stakes were as high as they were in this game (the highest possible stakes actually) and the game was finely balanced.

 

No comment on the ref's "hair"? Disappointing...

 

I know, but where would I even start? Usually these things come easy to me, but in this case I got nothin'. You'd think Clatts could have helped him out and given him the number of his guy.

[RedHeadedRed]

It's crazy to think France won the world cup without their number nine center forward scoring a goal or having a single shot on target.

[Arnaud]

It's crazy to think France won the world cup without their number nine center forward scoring a goal or having a single shot on target.

Benzema fucked up his WC, no doubt about that

[Arnaud]

Popp

[Trumo]

It's crazy to think France won the world cup without their number nine center forward scoring a goal or having a single shot on target.

 

It's not really. Maybe for future World Cups they need a No9 who doesn't score goals, because in 1998 they won it with a lump called Guivarc'h up front.

[VladimirIlyich]

Not from you mate, but all I'm reading is how brilliant he was and how he has come of age and showed this new-found tactical discipline. It's bollocks. He's got Kante alongside him doing all the dirty stuff and Mbappe ahead of him making any ball over the top look like pass of the decade. It would be hard not to look good.

 

The problem with Pogba is anything half decent he does gets blown out of all proprtion. It also works the other way of course, and some of the stick he gets is just because of who he is and how much he cost. He brings a lot of it on himself by the way he acts though.

 

In terms of the French side, I could name at least five who were better than him.

 

 

Diego wasn't playing either, but he ran away with the 'my boy' award.

 

On reflection, I should have done a best pundit award, so here goes.

 

1 Bilic

2 Keown

3 Keane

 

Bilic was the best and the most entertaining. The other two were just entertaining, for vastly different reasons.

 

I liked Zabaleta as well.

 

 

Cavani lost points because he scored that with his face and not his head. If he'd planted it in with his forehead it would have been a strong contender.

 

 

If Croatia had been given that penalty I'd have been delighted, but I wouldn't have said it was the right decision. I'm fairly consistent with regards to handball decisions. Probably 75% of penalties given for handball I disagree with. The rule itself is spot on, but the regular interpretation of it is bollocks.

 

Hardly any penalty awarded for handball comes as a result of a 'deliberate' action, so most of the time it comes down to whether an arm is in an 'unnatural' position and whether the player could have avoided it.

 

Generally, I disagree with pens that are given for handball, and even more so when the stakes were as high as they were in this game (the highest possible stakes actually) and the game was finely balanced.

 

 

I know, but where would I even start? Usually these things come easy to me, but in this case I got nothin'. You'd think Clatts could have helped him out and given him the number of his guy.

What most cretinous pundits never consider with handballs but referees mostly do is 'Has it stopped a shot at goal or goalscoring opportunity' or 'Prevented an advantage for the attacking team' which basically means the same as my first point. The deliberate/intentional side is quite easy to interpret but the gaining an advantage/goalscoring opportunity part is very difficult. I didn't see the WC final one but judging by the time it took I'd say no due to their being too much doubt in the referee's mind.