Thread to discuss the football itself.
This is not a thread to discuss the hosting of the competition in Quatar.
You can discuss the hosting in the relevant thread.
I found a list of the average amount of goals scored per WC. Italia 90 stands out as the worst by a good bit. USA 94 - France 98, and Brazil 2014, all had more goals than Russia 2018.
But I think another poster said the problem on the pitch is not really goals. The problem with this WC is a lot of teams play the same style globally. And cancel each other out. It does not make for great viewing at times.
I don’t know about other posters, but I find when there is a contrast of styles that makes for a more entertaining match. It is less likely to happen in world football today due to the globalisation of football- foreign coaches etc.
Akanji missed a sitter for Switzerland, free header from 5 yards out, dead centre of the goal.
Breel Embolo scoring against the country of his birth sounds like a good trivia question.
Uruguay with a combined age of 71 covering Heung Min Son's wing this afternoon
Swiss should have won by a couple more
You'de want to have very good shin guards going up against those 2 auld lads.
Pleased to see Hwang Ui-jo start for South Korea. He was impressive in a really dire Bordeaux team last season.
One thing that definitely isn't as impressive anymore now that the world has opened up is centurian international players.
Used to be quite rare, and you'd name the bulk of them from a given nation as a result, now it seems every country in the World Cup has at least one current player with at least 100 caps.
Allure is gone. As Keane said 'everyone plays international nowadays'
This Korea v Uruguay match is fairly lively, not many chances yet though - plenty of energy. I am not sure who I should shout for though? I like Son. However, I like Godin, Valverde. But Suarez is a bit of prick, great player though.
Plus Uruguay remind me of the Dubs with the colours and style of play - good technically, high work-rate but can have a bit of edge at times. I see Godin as Jonny Cooper!
There are 600+ players now.
The first, Billy Wright, took 12 years to get to his tally. Mohammed al Khilaiwi of Saudi Arabia got 163 in less than 9 years - averaging 17 a year.
Ronaldo will be in line for his 192nd cap tonight - he's a month into his 20th season as a full international.
Was that sort of Roy Keane's attitude all the time? Slagging off Shay Given for getting loads of caps etc.
I think how players look after themselves mean that the 100 cap thing is more common, especially if that player is a talisman.
Keane would have had a lot more if he bothered to show up.
Hows Nunez playing?
Kim Min-jae on top so far but he did just get by Kim after the CB lost his footing. Kim looked to have picked up an injury but he's going to play on. Suarez has been subbed off after an ineffective game and Cavani now on.
Hard to say, game has a lot of huff and puff, and cagey bits, Nunez not getting much chance to do much. Not many shots on goal. According to sofascore time of writing - 70 minutes Uruguay only have had one shot on target out of 7 shots. Korea have had 3 shots with none on target.
Nunez just hit a shot wide at 80 min - Cavani seems the live wire for Uruguay though,
Andy Carroll ish
Surprised Kang-in Lee didn't start. He's been good in La Liga with Mallorca. Noticed Kwon Chang-hoon is on the bench as well. I loved watching him at Dijon a few years ago and thought he was ready for bigger things. Then he went to Freiburg and it didn't work out, so he returned to Korea. Looks an even game heading to the final stages.
One factor here is that there are far more international football teams now than there were in the past. In Uefa alone, you had the disintegration of the Soviet Union and Yugoslavia and the emergence of a series of micro-state teams. At the time of the World Cup qualifiers in 1986 Uefa had 33 members. Now it has 55. All of that means more games in qualifiers. CONCACAF, the OFC and the AFC have seen similar explosions in team numbers.
The above doesn't apply to Brazil and Argentina (only 10 teams in CONMEBOL) but they seem to always be flying around the world playing friendly matches as it's a big money earner for their football federations.
How is pellistri still on the pitch?? Young player offering nothing
The likes of Wright, Charlton and Moore getting 100+ is far more of an achievement considering there were far less countries to play, nevermind more international 'breaks' in general, not to mention air travel wasn't as ubiquitous as it is today. Travelling for an away game actually meant something back then.
It's been a poor game overall tbf, very scrappy and no real quality in the final third from either side. There's only been 1 shot on target the whole game I think
A draw is probably a fair result, neither team deserve to win this
That wasn't a yellow card offence for the South Korean player.
I want to see a highlight reel of Kim Min-jae's performance in that match because that looked one of the best defensive displays of the tournament. What a signing by Napoli. That price valuation continuing to rise.
That's 4 0-0s in the last 3 days now
Portugal be happy with that result. Highlight of that match was Valverde going berzerk celebrating a straight forward tackle he won.
Kevin Doyle "Suarez looked like he was carrying a bag of spuds out there"
Doyle is gas in his analysis no filter whatsoever, he had forgotten about the Swiss v Cameroon match because it was so dull - 'Ah Jayus he said to Joanne. ''That match, I had forgotten, thank God'
That Steven Gerrard car ad is really annoying, he couldn't sound more wooden, was that the best take?
By the end to the WC it will likely make me hate Gerrard, and not think of buying that car, ever.
That Ghana side looks quite good. Lamptey on the bench as well. Wouldn't put it past them causing some scary moments for Portugal.
Tony O'Donoghue..oh no!
That Cavani sub for Suarez should of come alot sooner, he looked every bit his age in his performance. Sad to see but time stops for no man, one of the best strikers of his generation.
Nunez wasted out wide and surely they have someone better than Pellestri to play on the right?
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