Philip N Williams

where were the inventors of football?

after the game, i saw the referee give a nod and a wink to her majesty

It is a grand conspiracy, You can't see it, but, haha, one day you will see it when we are ruling you lizards David Icky

You are perfectly correct. I recall reading a manager talking in Shoot! magazine in the 80's, and he said the toughest part was having to tell a young player that he just isn't the required standard, and having the player burst into tears in his office; but the manager said that he would always try to help the player maybe into a lower league team, and explain the reasons for not giving the player a contract to his parents, and even try to help him into another field of employment. Football is even more ruthless now than it was before, these kids are being given expectations above their ability, to use the analogy of the SAS, they'll have 10 apply and only 1 gets through...but that doesn't mean the Army abandons the other 9, the others may need more maturity or physicality, they can always apply again, and the army appreciates you trying and failing rather than just giving up, and encourage you to keep pursuing the dream. Your realism mccaughey85 is far more important to the development of young players, instead of telling them that they are the new Messi, and thinking that just because they have signed for a Spanish club, that they are going to set the world on fire.

Barca under investigation by UEFA...truly these are sad times:( But on a brighter note, ManYoo fans arrested in Gdansk for throwing some plastic chairs around:)

I was watching Scotland v England May 1982...what would both of our teams give for a Terry Butcher or a Joe Jordan

Not Big Ron again?

Maddison Watkins Tomori Trent Bellignham Grealish Cash Trippier should be playing for the MCC

mebbe....I was thinking more Eibar for an apposite analogy....I got carried away with my adoration of Barca (who are still in the ESL scheme; opprobium for them came there none

EPL is overated Sky fanboy league....can he do it on a hot day in July against Barcelona?

You mean Thin Red Line as opposed to Lady Butler's Scots Greys?

"Rod Stewart, this is for all the times I had to listen to "you're in my heart"

The one thing that Southgate seems to possess is that he is a lucky manager. And we recall Napoleon's dictum (although it is probably a bit shrivelled by now).

There seems to be this ideal that now, the young players play for a contract and if you fail in it, then there is nothing. We seem to have lost the point of fitba, that we play and watch a game becauae it is an enjoyment. We have lost our enjoyment of watching clever people do something we ourselves could never do.

Are there any more characters left in the game? Guys who played for the fun of it?

Loved the answers, and the goal....I remember the Shoot edition, if the guy had been Brazilan they would have loved him and got 80 caps