2020-2021 English Football Thread

[Krebstar]

Quote: Originally Posted by KG

That’s never a red Kreb and most times it shouldn’t eve be a yellow. You have to allow for some physicality in the game. PEA’s just off-balance from running at pace, plus he’s rail thin. Stones doesn’t have to lean in on him but with all the diving and gesturing attacking players get away with, defenders need to be allowed to make contact. What Luiz did on Ruben Dias was much worse. Same with Cancelo on Tierney. Guys are in mid-air and they back/lean into guys who have no way to protect themselves. Aka the “Harry Kane” scenario or what should be the “Harry Kane” rule.

Lowering your shoulder and throwing your weight into an off-balance player is acceptable? To me it's all the same—it has no purpose other than to put a player on their ***, throw them off mentally by possibly physically harming them, and makes no attempt to play the ball. Stones can shepherd the ball into touch without doing what he did—that's my issue.

I think football has an increasing issue with tolerated, unnecessary physicality to make up for the fact that the game doesn't need to be as physical as other sports. Let me explain.

In other 'codes' of football, rugby, AFL, etc. the games are naturally more physical due to how they're played. Physically putting someone on the ground is a core element of the game. A tackle in those sports requires a higher level of physicality, as you're playing the person, not only the ball.

In football, contact happens as a result of playing the ball and going for the ball. You do not need to take out a man, or make dangerous contact. It can happen, but it can be avoided often times when it's not.

There seems to be an insistence on allowing or encouraging physicality where frankly, it's just not needed. The game doesn't need it, it doesn't require it. You don't need to push players into touch, upend them, etc. None of it. If you're not making an attempt on the ball itself, you're basically playing a different sport entirely.

Making contact isn't the issue—it's how and when you make contact, and what the purpose of the contact is.

Unsurprisingly, this all seems to exist far more in England. Shocking.

[Krebstar]

Also, I know I'm again using rugby as a comparison, but in rugby if a player did what Stones did to Auba, it's a foul if not a caution because it's a move that basically exists outside the game.

Football's faux physicality is stupid.

Help defenders by fixing ridiculous handball decisions, stop punishing them for incidental contact, and punish blatant simulation with cautions instead of allowing them equal leeway for something else that shouldn't be allowed.

[KG]

Stones can def Sheppard it out but footy is still a contact sport and with attackers going down with even the slightest contact it’s good to see them let them go “shoulder to shoulder” for once. Plus it’s above the waist yet below the next contact while the attacker isn’t in the air. It’s a strong challenge but it’s play on 100% in my book.

I don’t want a return to the Roy Keane/Viera days but defenders need a way of balancing out all the theatrics attacking players do these days. I’m not saying Auba embellished anything. He’s just a rail thin dude that was off balance and came out worse in the shoulder to shoulder contact.


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[Krebstar]

Quote: Originally Posted by KG

Stones can def Sheppard it out but footy is still a contact sport and with attackers going down with even the slightest contact it’s good to see them let them go “shoulder to shoulder” for once. Plus it’s above the waist yet below the next contact while the attacker isn’t in the air. It’s a strong challenge but it’s play on 100% in my book. I don’t want a return to the Roy Keane/Viera days but defenders need a way of balancing out all the theatrics attacking players do these days. I’m not saying Auba embellished anything. He’s just a rail thin dude that was off balance and came out worse in the shoulder to shoulder contact.

The problem is I'm too much of an idealist, so I think the way to balance out the embellishment is to punish it. If you allow one side to do something that shouldn't be allowed, so you then must start allowing the opposite side to do something equally to balance, you don't really have balance because you're moving further away from, well, the ideal.

Plus, it wasn't shoulder to shoulder—it was shoulder into chest. That's why it stood out. Stones basically lined him up, threw his weight into him, knowing he'd send him into touch. It wasn't two players running side by side and one was stronger, it was one attempting to make a play on the ball, the other attempting to make a play on the man—which is pretty much any other sport is not allowed.

[Brahvocado]

Tbh that City/Arsenal game was probably City's worst game in months and they only played about 30 minutes of actual football beyond 1st gear. Looked like they were conserving energy for 3/4th of the game.

Arsenal didn't look like they could score a goal even if you gave them 500 more minutes.

[Krebstar]

Quote: Originally Posted by Brahvocado

Tbh that City/Arsenal game was probably City's worst game in months and they only played about 30 minutes of actual football beyond 1st gear. Looked like they were conserving energy for 3/4th of the game. Arsenal didn't look like they could score a goal even if you gave them 500 more minutes.

Bingo. My conclusion was that both teams played poorly, except the difference is that if both played any better, Arsenal lose by more than one, if that makes sense.

[Suntan Superman]

WBA v BHA hasn't been awful surprisingly, but Lee Mason with an absolute howler so far though.

[Suntan Superman]

Brighton should be up 4-1 at this point, jesus.