England

[The College Dropout]

At the moment I reckon England get ko'd at group stage or R16.

 

It's a joke in goal. No faith in Stones & Jones. Over-reliant on Wilshere in midfield. I think we have some nice attacking options but I don't think we've figured out how to get the best of them. Kane & Sterling need to start and we need to get the best out of them. Then we see how we can get Rashford, Lallana, Vardy & Alli involved somehow.

[triggs]

Janmaat didn't start in the knockouts and Gini didn't start the first two games. Wouldn't call either key players

[The College Dropout]

Janmaat is a slight upgrade on Elmohamady. Neither are fullbacks. Lack the pace or trickery to be wingers so make decent wing back options at best. On a good day they can look quality.

 

He can't even get a regular start at Watford under 3 managers. When you have shit managers, sometimes you can over-rate the players when they show glimpses of ability.

 

When we first signed him I was really impressed. He looks a player technically and is fairly big for FB. However, he can't fucking jump, got beaten by smaller men at the back post again and again. And was always sleeping defensively.

[joeyt]

Janmaat is a slight upgrade on Elmohamady. Neither are fullbacks. Lack the pace or trickery to be wingers so make decent wing back options at best. On a good day they can look quality.

 

He can't even get a regular start at Watford under 3 managers. When you have shit managers, sometimes you can over-rate the players when they show glimpses of ability.

 

He's started 13 of the last 15 games for Watford

[triggs]

Janmaat is a decent player and was generally good for us until the last few months

[The College Dropout]

Janmaat is a slight upgrade on Elmohamady. Neither are fullbacks. Lack the pace or trickery to be wingers so make decent wing back options at best. On a good day they can look quality.

 

He can't even get a regular start at Watford under 3 managers. When you have shit managers, sometimes you can over-rate the players when they show glimpses of ability.

 

He's started 13 of the last 15 games for Watford

 

Ok this new one seems to like him.

 

Point remains, he's a bang average footballer all things considered. A poor full back. Wouldn't get in the England squad. ANd was a bad player for us when he was here most importantly.

[joeyt]

Of course he wouldn't get in the England squad, I don't think anyone would argue he is better than Trippier, Clyne or Walker

[The College Dropout]

Bolasie's a good player but I will never forget how he tore Daryl apart in the 5-1 that day. Then I realised, the lad would be sleeping week in week out defensively. When the wind blew, Janmaat would fall.

[The College Dropout]

Genuine question. Are you more interested in just contradicting me or do you actually rate Janmaat - specifically regarding his time at NUFC as a fullback?

 

[Super Duper Branko Strupar]

Shut up, man.

[joeyt]

I thought Janmaat was a good attacker but a poor defender for us. I'd be surprised if anyone thinks he'd get in a fully fit England squad

[George Bailey]

Janmaat is shit. He was shit for us for the most part and has continued his shitness.

 

Anyone arguing different just to be arseholey to TCD is being arseholey themselves.

[triggs]

Janmaat is shit. He was shit for us for the most part and has continued his shitness.

 

Anyone arguing different just to be arseholey to TCD is being arseholey themselves.

He was very good in his first season for us. The second season he was poor defensively but was one of our best players going forward

[Twinport53]

Love a good old TCD lecture. With the inclusion of random stats, teams or players to back up his pointless patter.

[Incognito]

Bolasie's a good player but I will never forget how he tore Daryl apart in the 5-1 that day. Then I realised, the lad would be sleeping week in week out defensively. When the wind blew, Janmaat would fall.

 

Course you'll never forget that 5-1. That will be in the vaults of the old wank bank won't it? You'll be feeling Glad all over

[Heron]

If I had to use one emoji on this forum to describe England and it's away support it would be this one:

 

[Twinport53]

Mine would be :meh:

 

They'll get their heads kicked in by some Russian ultras soon enough.

[Mistle17]

Holland are like England as it stands; a footballing nation not to be taken seriously. They were appalling last night and looking at their pool of players to choose from there is nothing to brag about. Dutch are living off old greats at this stage.

[ponsaelius]

TBF as I've said before on here it's more surprising that a European country like the Netherlands of ~15 million people has been consistently successful than it is shocking that they are finally having a duff generation.

 

They're closer to the likes of Belgium, Czech Republic and Romania (who have had huge peaks and troughs in terms of player production) than they are the likes of England, France and Germany. Population obviously isn't everything, but it's a factor that gives them some leeway. They're long overdue this slump.

[jollof rice and pea]

Kluivert, De Ligt and Frenkie are meant to be huge talents tbf

[Disco]

TBF as I've said before on here it's more surprising that a European country like the Netherlands of ~15 million people has been consistently successful than it is shocking that they are finally having a duff generation.

 

They're closer to the likes of Belgium, Czech Republic and Romania (who have had huge peaks and troughs in terms of player production) than they are the likes of England, France and Germany. Population obviously isn't everything, but it's a factor that gives them some leeway. They're long overdue this slump.

 

Of course, and it’s no surprise it’s coincided with their league turning to utter shite as the CL marches on.

[The College Dropout]

I don’t entirely buy the population thing. Suriname is a nation of half a million with a wider diaspora. For 20 years straight Surinamese (is that right?) descendants have been good footballers as a disproportionate rate.  Now it’s stopped.  The a mean was the previous output imo. This is a slump not a return to the mean.

 

Netherlands overall were a top nation for 30-40 straight years more or less. They can’t be compared to Belgium.  Netherlands have been good for too many generations. 

[ponsaelius]

They were also absolutely shite pre-1974. Smaller nations are always more liable to come a cropper eventually, and their declines are more obvious.

 

When Germany had their slump that caused them to rip apart their whole system there was still enough there to make a World Cup final.

[Interpolic]

Is there a country that has punched above their weight population-wise more than Uruguay historically? Crazy there's only 3.5m live there.

[ponsaelius]

Netherlands didn't enter the WC in 1950, 1954 and didn't qualify for the World Cup in 1958, 1962, 1966, 1970, 1982, 1986, 2002 and now 2018.

 

That's a lot of missed World Cup's for a footballing powerhouse. No they're a smaller country that has massively punched above its weight, and has now regressed slightly after some great success. It's just they have achieved so much, and produced so many fantastic players, that expectations are above and beyond.