Jump to content

Spain 2008-2012: best team of all time?


Leppard

Recommended Posts

The Spain team wouldn't be so good had physical contact been removed from the game. This is the future of football now. Small quick players who can pass and move. In time all footballers will be 5f tall

Most of them play for Madrid and Barca to which helps, La Liga is a rich version of the SPL so they only have to play at like 60% effort for 36 games, then 100% for 2 games a season, easy to stay fresh when that's the case. Compare it to EPL players who have to play at like 90% for 32 games and 100% for 6 games a season.

Link to post
Share on other sites

Most of them play for Madrid and Barca to which helps, La Liga is a rich version of the SPL so they only have to play at like 60% effort for 36 games, then 100% for 2 games a season, easy to stay fresh when that's the case. Compare it to EPL players who have to play at like 90% for 32 games and 100% for 6 games a season.

60%? :rolleyes:

You can't consistently win games of football playing at only 60%, no matter how good you're (presuming you aren't playing amateur footballers).

Link to post
Share on other sites

Same with capdevila at the last few tournaments if i recall, theres always a weak link but i suppose if youre going to have one then the fullbacks are the best place to have them especially when the other 10 players being on the pitch makes you look like a world beater by default :D

Capdevila was ****ing awesome :(

Link to post
Share on other sites

Most teams go to the Nou Camp or Bernabéu already mentally beaten.

That may be the case but certainly not all of them and they play plenty of games on the road as well...

I'll give you they probably do play a good chunk of their home games after going 1/2-0 up at about 70% but far from 36 out of 38 games.

Link to post
Share on other sites

The Spain team wouldn't be so good had physical contact been removed from the game. This is the future of football now. Small quick players who can pass and move. In time all footballers will be 5f tall

If that happens, Brazil will be in trouble as in general we (and I am included here) prefer taller + stronger players, especially goalies, defenders (bar full-backs) and midfielders. Too short players are often ignored at youth level, hence why we have so few talented short midfielders (most are 1.80m or taller).

You can't really say they aren't the best ever after winning 3 tournaments in a row, though they didn't entertain me for the last two tournaments until the final last night. They're great when they're at their best. Wonder who can stop them?

I think only Germany, but then again, they lost to Italy...

Brazil, as like in the 2006 and 2010, can't even stop France or Holland, so despite home factor, I doubt we can realistically challenge for the title, people expect us to mainly due to historical reputation, but after 2002 our teams have been atrocious, more hype than football.

Link to post
Share on other sites

I expect the support in Brazil to be a massive influence on the team. It'll either carry them to the final or they'll completely crumble and fail to get out the group.

Home support/advantage didn't help host nations in previous WCs (bar France 1998) so probably won't be any different in 2014.

Besides, Brazilian fans are a bit too much glory hunters, if their team don't do well, they tend to turn against the players, boo the team, etc...

I think Brazil's outcome in 2014 would be more or less the same regardless of which nation hosted the competition.

Link to post
Share on other sites

England 66. Italy came 3rd in 1990, South Korea came 4th (iirc?) in 2002, an average Germany went far in 2006, and I bet I'm missing some I can't rememeber. Home advantage is a very real thing and more often than not helps the home side. It's no garunteed victory obviously, but if you need that little extra push or something it's good to have.

Link to post
Share on other sites

England 66. Italy came 3rd in 1990, South Korea came 4th (iirc?) in 2002, an average Germany went far in 2006, and I bet I'm missing some I can't rememeber. Home advantage is a very real thing and more often than not helps the home side. It's no garunteed victory obviously, but if you need that little extra push or something it's good to have.

Yes, but Brazil have to win, anything but a win will be regarded as a failure, if it's to just reach the semis or the quarter-finals, home factor means little.

Since 1982, only France won at home, which is not very encouraging for Brazil's chances as some of the home teams since 1982 were better than Brazil are now.

Link to post
Share on other sites

I think the weather is going to play a big role too. The tournament definitely favours the South American teams, and home advantage, even if it's only a 1% push in your favour is going to help. I'd expect the SA teams to do much better than they did in 2010, and the Euro teams to do slightly worse.

Link to post
Share on other sites

I think the weather is going to play a big role too. The tournament definitely favours the South American teams, and home advantage, even if it's only a 1% push in your favour is going to help. I'd expect the SA teams to do much better than they did in 2010, and the Euro teams to do slightly worse.

The tournament will be played during the winter, so not so hot as some might expect, and besides, Brazil is so big that some parts of the country are cold, others are hot, and Brazilian players come from different parts of the country and many play in Europe, so again, not a huge advantage for them.

Link to post
Share on other sites

Don't think it's any coincidence that whenever the World Cup has been to South America, a South American team has been in the final. Even if you spread that to Central America to include Mexico and a bigger sample size, it's still the same pattern. Fully expect that to continue.

Link to post
Share on other sites

did go out to the winners though, little bit of consolation

Like England's 2002 team to be honest.

That Brazil 2002 team was class. Probably second best behind the current Spanish team in the last 20 years.

Link to post
Share on other sites

Don't think it's any coincidence that whenever the World Cup has been to South America, a South American team has been in the final. Even if you spread that to Central America to include Mexico and a bigger sample size, it's still the same pattern. Fully expect that to continue.

During most of history players used to play in their own continents and football was less globalized, so home factor meant more. In last 2 WCs, 7 out of the 8 semifinalists were European.

The simple fact is that nowadays European national teams, especially Spain and Germany, are clearly better than South American ones. I don't think either European or South American national teams were ever so dominant in relation to the other as it is now.

Link to post
Share on other sites

France 98-00 were better than that Brazil team.

I honestly think the France 2000 team were better than this Spain one, but this Spain have been more consistent over 3 tournaments instead of Frances' two.

Link to post
Share on other sites

France 1998-2000 were great indeed, but I don't think they can be considered better than this Spain exactly because they didn't last as much as this Spain.

Link to post
Share on other sites

no no, I'm not saying they are a greater team, Spain clearly are since they've won 3 tournaments in a row. I just think that 2000 side is slightly better but they couldn't keep that peak for as long as Spain. It would be amazing to see Xavi, Busquets and Alonso vs Deschamps, Viera and Petit. The Spain attack vs Frances' defense (which was amazing) and Zidane and Co vs the Spain defense.

Link to post
Share on other sites

I'm hearing a lot of people call Spain boring (I did too at one point in another thread). Of course Spain are not boring. I think what people mean (and what I meant) are that watching a game of football (as a neutral) it's nice to see two teams go at each other, similar to games like the 4-3 Liverpool/Newcastle to pick one off the top of my head, with lots of goals and the game hanging in the balance with the chance of last minute drama!

What you get with Spain a lot of the time is them suppressing the game i.e. defending whilst in possession (if that makes sense). It can, however, kill a game off as they spend half the time passing side-ways and backwards. Their style is a testament to their technique and pure ability, but I can understand why people think that a game involving Spain can be boring, in the sense that it is going to be so one sided.

As a defence to Spain though, many a time the opponents just sit back (a la Chelsea) without expressing themselves, this is not Spains fault and it’s hard to make an entertaining game out of that situation. So from a football viewing spectacle, for those that want to see end to end goal action I can see why Spain are ‘boring’, although you could go the other way and just be memorised by their short passing, movement and penetration, for those of us that appreciate that sort of thing, the notion that Spain are ‘boring’ is ludicrous.

I think Spain would destroy most other teams from History including Brazil, back then the players were not as fit. Their diet would not have been as good as players of this age. If you watch Brazil from the 70s their players walked around the pitch passing the ball around without being pressed or challenged. The tempo of Spain would be too much for them

Barcelona >>>>> Spain though.

Link to post
Share on other sites

Messi and Daniel Alves must be regretting playing for Argentina and Brazil as both could be playing for Spain's national team if they had wanted to a few years ago.

Link to post
Share on other sites

I think Uruguay will have declined a bit by 2014, but if they do win in 2014, I hope they beat Brazil in the final so we have can a second edition of the Maracanazo. :D

That maybe could also help Brazil retire its ugly yellow kit, like was done in 1950 when the beautiful white kit was retired after the defeat vs Uruguay.

Link to post
Share on other sites

Brazil 1958-1962 was great, but by 1970 it was a very different team (bar Pelé), I don't think that guy should place them all together as if it was the same team.

So he thinks this Spain is not the best ever because it's dull...?

Link to post
Share on other sites

No chance in hell!

Spain are a mediocre side winning trophies as a consequence of declining standards.

The current quality of international football is absolutely abysmal, undoubtedly the worst in living memory .

Yeah but tbf you have got the brain capacity of a goldfish.

Link to post
Share on other sites

Bit of a rubbish argument, isn't it? "Oh, they don't beat their opponents into a bleeding pulp every single time therefore they are not that great." I'm fairly certain even the Brazilian teams of 58/62 and 70 had the occasional tough game.The Dutch team were this close to not even qualifying for the finals in 1974, does that mean they weren't a good side now?

And in 'countering' what a bunch of unnamed 'people' are supposedly saying, he seems to be knocking down a whole army of strawmen. In short, awful article.

Link to post
Share on other sites

Bit of a rubbish argument, isn't it? "Oh, they don't beat their opponents into a bleeding pulp every single time therefore they are not that great." I'm fairly certain even the Brazilian teams of 58/62 and 70 had the occasional tough game.The Dutch team were this close to not even qualifying for the finals in 1974, does that mean they weren't a good side now?

And in 'countering' what a bunch of unnamed 'people' are supposedly saying, he seems to be knocking down a whole army of strawmen. In short, awful article.

In 1958 Brazil beat Wales only 1-0 in Quarter-Finals with a Pelé goal, and Brazil used to play and lose lots of friendlies back in the 1950s/1960s/1970s, even to club teams sometimes (Flamengo for example beat Brazil's national team in the 1970s when Brazil were much better than Flamengo while nowadays the gap is far smaller).

Link to post
Share on other sites

Archived

This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.

  • Recently Browsing   0 members

    • No registered users viewing this page.
×
×
  • Create New...