2018 FIFA World Cup qualification (UEFA)

[El Turco]

tbh you can move goal posts and adjusts rosters all you want but you know south america has no chance in such game. they are just not disciplined enough and tactically shrewd enough to win at highest levels. this is why conmebol teams outside of brazil and argentina are paper tigers and do not medal in world cups. heck even argentina should have won multiple world cups last two decades with the talent they had to work with.

[ATL Boy]

... So Bosnia had a wonderful performance against Estonia. Pjanic looked spectacular (2 assists, involved in all 5 goals, should've had at least 4 assists if not for poor finishing). Hopefully he can keep up that form for both club and country going forward.


Sent from my iPhone using RealGM Forums

[HIF]

Ronaldo grew up in an island off the coast of Africa and Bale is from the British isles which no long considers it apart of Europe so technically speaking the European team is actually weaker.

you don't quite understand the difference between brexit and Europe. Are you American?

[cgf]

It depends on the coaching/cohesion/chemistry; but it'd be hard for team SA to see much of the ball against the kind of midfield and backline that team Europe could put out there:

Bale - Lewandowski - Ronaldo - Griezmann
Modric - Kroos
Busquets
Alaba - Bonucci - Boateng
Neuer

[NYCLaker]

tbh you can move goal posts and adjusts rosters all you want but you know south america has no chance in such game. they are just not disciplined enough and tactically shrewd enough to win at highest levels. this is why conmebol teams outside of brazil and argentina are paper tigers and do not medal in world cups. heck even argentina should have won multiple world cups last two decades with the talent they had to work with.

You mean how Loew is known by German fans for **** tactics....

Or how Del Bosque took Spain from winning 2 euros and a world cup to losing the confed cup, not making knockoutstages in world cup and losing to italy in the first round in the Euros.

Sometimes, I can imagine Europeans thinking good tactics, is playing uber conservative parking the bus ala Zidane and Santos of Portugal. Why don't we hire RDM as our brilliant tactical manager so we can win... HAHAHAHA

[NYCLaker]

It depends on the coaching/cohesion/chemistry; but it'd be hard for team SA to see much of the ball against the kind of midfield and backline that team Europe could put out there:

Bale - Lewandowski - Ronaldo - Griezmann
Modric - Kroos
Busquets
Alaba - Bonucci - Boateng
Neuer

South Americans are usually better technical players all across the board.

When Spain played Brazil in 2013 confed cup, the poss stats with Iniesta, busquets and xavi vs brazil was like 53 to 47, Spain. If anything, South America has significant better ball skills and tenacity/stamina in their players vs Europe, outside of Neuer/gk.

So, the argument you stated would really be against Europe than SA.

[Baphomet]

It depends on the coaching/cohesion/chemistry; but it'd be hard for team SA to see much of the ball against the kind of midfield and backline that team Europe could put out there:

Bale - Lewandowski - Ronaldo - Griezmann
Modric - Kroos
Busquets
Alaba - Bonucci - Boateng
Neuer

Now look what you guys did, your argument brought cgf out of hiding

[J-Mezzy]

Defense is pretty even, but Uefa gets the nod due to neuer

Midfield Eufa hasva huge advantage

Attack easily South America

Overall the midfield battle is won by Uefa and that would win the game.

They used to have these games but the players treat it as an all star game. Pretty boring stuff to watch

[NYCLaker]

Defense is pretty even, but Uefa gets the nod due to neuer

Midfield Eufa hasva huge advantage

Attack easily South America

Overall the midfield battle is won by Uefa and that would win the game.

They used to have these games but the players treat it as an all star game. Pretty boring stuff to watch

Defense is nowhere near even. The argument for Neuer I can understand.

However, the backfour I wouldn't.

Thiago Silva and Godin are the best CBs in the world and guys like Ramos, Pique or Boateng would get turned inside out by MSN + Sanchez. Than, you have Alves, who has always matched up very well vs Cristiano and even made Real madrid switch him to the other side many times.

I'll give Europe midfield, just because I rate Verratti and Modric as number 1 and 2 in the world. However, both are small and combining them together might not work because of their height, especially since Team Europe's attackers are primarily counter attackers. Also, both are kind of similar players, so, ideally one would get dropped for someone else potentially.

[cgf]

It depends on the coaching/cohesion/chemistry; but it'd be hard for team SA to see much of the ball against the kind of midfield and backline that team Europe could put out there:

Bale - Lewandowski - Ronaldo - Griezmann
Modric - Kroos
Busquets
Alaba - Bonucci - Boateng
Neuer

Now look what you guys did, your argument brought cgf out of hiding

Well I remembered my password a few days and figured I'd post eventually...lol...

It depends on the coaching/cohesion/chemistry; but it'd be hard for team SA to see much of the ball against the kind of midfield and backline that team Europe could put out there:

Bale - Lewandowski - Ronaldo - Griezmann
Modric - Kroos
Busquets
Alaba - Bonucci - Boateng
Neuer

South Americans are usually better technical players all across the board.

When Spain played Brazil in 2013 confed cup, the poss stats with Iniesta, busquets and xavi vs brazil was like 53 to 47, Spain. If anything, South America has significant better ball skills and tenacity/stamina in their players vs Europe, outside of Neuer/gk.

So, the argument you stated would really be against Europe than SA.

Try putting together a team SA that'd be able to win the midfield battle against that European team, cause I can't. The best I can come up with is:

Neymar - Suarez - Alexis
Hamez - Messi
Mascherano - Vidal
Silva - Godin - Luiz/Marquinhos

or

Neymar - Suarez - Messi/Alexis
Messi/Hamez
Luiz - Vidal
Mascherano
Silva - Godin - Marquinhos

And those lineup would still struggle against that european midfield+backline. The attacking talent is strongest in SA, but europe has a lot more class in the midfield; and between Thiago Silva's aging & Boateng's rise, europe holds a significant advantage at the back as well. With Biscuits to play through that European backline could pick apart the first two waves of SA pressing consistently, and give their attackers more opportunities to decide the match; which would erase the advantage SA has up front.

And I'm just gunna give you the benefit of the doubt and assume that you just aren't aware that the Confed cup is a friendly tourney, or that taking too much from friendlies in this sport is a great way to mislead yourself...

Defense is nowhere near even. The argument for Neuer I can understand.

However, the backfour I wouldn't.

Thiago Silva and Godin are the best CBs in the world and guys like Ramos, Pique or Boateng would get turned inside out by MSN + Sanchez. Than, you have Alves, who has always matched up very well vs Cristiano and even made Real madrid switch him to the other side many times.

I'll give Europe midfield, just because I rate Verratti and Modric as number 1 and 2 in the world. However, both are small and combining them together might not work because of their height, especially since Team Europe's attackers are primarily counter attackers. Also, both are kind of similar players, so, ideally one would get dropped for someone else potentially.

You are massively under-rating Boateng and Bonucci. With Silva's aging Europe has a sizeable advantage in back as well as in the middle. MSN would never see the ball against Bonucci, Boa & Biscuits, whereas the european press could isolate Godin in the SA build up.

Europe wouldn't be the team playing on the counter if these two squads were assembled and drilled by competent coaching staffs.

[Andi Obst]

cgf is baaaaaaaaaaack!

[El Turco]

tbh you can move goal posts and adjusts rosters all you want but you know south america has no chance in such game. they are just not disciplined enough and tactically shrewd enough to win at highest levels. this is why conmebol teams outside of brazil and argentina are paper tigers and do not medal in world cups. heck even argentina should have won multiple world cups last two decades with the talent they had to work with.

You mean how Loew is known by German fans for **** tactics....

Or how Del Bosque took Spain from winning 2 euros and a world cup to losing the confed cup, not making knockoutstages in world cup and losing to italy in the first round in the Euros.

Sometimes, I can imagine Europeans thinking good tactics, is playing uber conservative parking the bus ala Zidane and Santos of Portugal. Why don't we hire RDM as our brilliant tactical manager so we can win... HAHAHAHA

well they gotta do something, what south americans are doing obviously not working very well.

[CalamityX12]

man, there are some legits points and then there are some str8 homer/biased posts being made lol....

it is a good topic afterall, maybe we should create a thread for it?(didn't think it would take away from the WC qualification, sorry about that)

[NYCLaker]

Bayern Munich broke the record for least amount of goals scored against last season (17)

Boateng started half of the games and Martinez did 11, Rafinha started 18, Alonso started 23 games as DM, Kimmich played CB/RB, Alaba played cb/lb.... Also, Boateng has always had problems vs quick players, not so much fast players.

You make me laugh. South America would hardly see the ball vs slow europeans? I can understand Verratti/Modric able to shield the ball, however, South America have better pressing team by a huge margin.

Sanchez, Vidal, Mascherano, and Suarez. You think little Griezzman is going to press that well, hahaha or I am slower than a turtle busquets/kroos? Let's say Team Europe plays possession football? Who play poss football out of your attackers?

NOT Cristiano. Not Griezman. Not Bale. Not Lewandowski. Verratti, Modric, Busquets all can, attackers, probably none of them.

Isn't it Funny that the best defender from the Euros was a south american.

[Det the Threat]

Isn't it Funny that the best defender from the Euros was a south american.

And I thought Bonucci was Italian through and through.
But what the hell do I know...

Anyways, it's a pretty useles discussion, IMO, but at least there's something going on here and cgf was brought out of (semi)retirement or something like that.

[No_20]

Ronaldo grew up in an island off the coast of Africa and Bale is from the British isles which no long considers it apart of Europe so technically speaking the European team is actually weaker.

Messi was made in Spain. He received his football education there.

[Matty]

Ronaldo grew up in an island off the coast of Africa and Bale is from the British isles which no long considers it apart of Europe so technically speaking the European team is actually weaker.

Messi was made in Spain. He received his football education there.

That's like saying Dirk was made in the USA.

Messi is Argentinian born and bred, anybody who speaks a lick of Spanish will tell you his version of Cabello is Cabe[sho] not Cabe[yo].

[Matty]

Ronaldo grew up in an island off the coast of Africa and Bale is from the British isles which no long considers it apart of Europe so technically speaking the European team is actually weaker.

Leaving the European Union doesn't mean that Britain isn't part of the continent of Europe, which has of course existed long before the EU, and will most likely still be around when the EU is gone. That's like saying Swiss, Ukrainian and Norwegian players aren't European because they aren't part of the EU.

By any geographical standards Britain fits the bill as it's own region and the British don't really consider themselves European, or at least that's the feeling you get when you read the Dailymail news and it's comment sections.
Besides the continent of Europe is an arbitrary concept. Borderlines change depending on the century and the mood.

http://www.businessinsider.com/british-dont-think-they-are-european-2016-4

HIF, how many American Raptors fans have you seen in your lifetime? They don't exist.

[Baphomet]

By any geographical standards Britain fits the bill as it's own region and the British don't really consider themselves European, or at least that's the feeling you get when you read the Dailymail news and it's comment sections.
Besides the continent of Europe is an arbitrary concept. Borderlines change depending on the century and the mood.

http://www.businessinsider.com/british-dont-think-they-are-european-2016-4

Valid points about Europe being an arbitrary concept, but it's still irrelevant to this particular discussion, and it doesn't matter in the least what the British prefer to identify as. I could say I'm Des Lynam's tea cosy from Neptune and it doesn't change fact. Gareth Bale is a European footballer who plays for a European national team in European competition. If for whatever reason Britain does declare itself an entirely separate region then I'll gladly omit Bale and others from a European XI.

Also, dailymail isn't really a great place to gauge opinion. Its readers are more conservative and tend to eschew links to Europe.

[J-Mezzy]

How about all time? Who wins

Maradona, pele, zico, messi, garrincha, Ronaldo, Roberto carlos, etc.

That's a better debate