General Modern Football: Is It Just Boring?

[Wandering Yellow]

One thing I'll probably never understand is fans who often laud how better it was "back in the day" on the London Road terrace, but will now prefer to have allocated seats on season tickets to reserve their exact seat every game. The modern practice of reserved seats prevents larger groups of friends (singers!) grouping together to improve the atmosphere, like you can do on a terrace.

If you used to have your favourite spot on the LR terrace, I presume you entered the stand within reasonable time and stood *roughly* in the same spot each week? If the East Stand was made entirely unallocated seating, nothing is preventing those who have a favourite seat entering at a reasonable time and sitting / standing in their preferred spot. But that would allow larger groups to congregate together and improve the atmosphere each game, and allow it to grow.

The only end result is more people in the stand earlier to make sure they get their favoured seats, surely improving the atmosphere yet more?

Allocated seats, keep it to the North and South Stands and leave the East Stand unallocated! The club can still change it to allocated seating for those sell out FA Cup draws, how many times does the East Stand sell out for a regular league game? That, for me, would be the easiest thing the club could do to improve atmosphere at the Kastad and they'll hopefully consider it at the new stadium.

Unallocated seating would be a major improvement. How many young lads are coming through? Lot of older heads at the back of the East these days, used to be a lot of younger chaps up there in the Ultra days.

Ps everything was better back in my day

 

[WuTang]

I get the logic but how many people would actually turn up early? I reckon you'd have a core group that would, but you'd just get what you get now which is an influx just before kick off of those who want to be stood with said core group. You'd be relying on a considerable number of people being dedicated enough to make it worth it and make a difference and I'm not sure there's the 'market' for that at Oxford.

I don't think it really matters if people turn up early. Other than a display I'm not too fussed on pre-match atmosphere as most clubs pump music in till kick-off regardless. The turning up early was more a point for those that were passionate about the exact seat they like to sit in. The stand is pretty much empty till the last 10-20 minutes and even with unallocated seats I think that would still be similar, but means a few more may turn up a little earlier to be sure of securing their favourite seat. They will always have the opportunity to sit in their original season ticket seat every game, and if that means those fans are in the ground a little earlier that can only help somewhat.

One thing it would do is cement the potential for something to grow into something special. As an example, I could make a big "Ultras Return" and try and rally 50-100 original members to congregate together and get things going again, then new younger fans might want to join us but as things stand it would be pointless trying. They can't congregate together and never can, meaning the atmosphere will forever sit at the current status quo. That's something the club needs to consider.

 

[spmox]

I don't think it helps every game at every level is played in the same style. 99% of teams try (being the key word) to play the same way. It leads to most games being 80% just taking it in turns passing around the back. For example, in 2019 there were 67 Premier League games where one team had 70% possession or more. In 2004 there was just 1. It's changed so much.

Football should ultimately be fun. Watching one team have 70% of the ball while the other just sits 11 men behind the ball without any real intention of winning the game most definitely is not fun.

The Chelsea Man U game last night was what football should be. 2 teams going at it, trying to win the game.

I agree.

I don't disagree that the standard is higher, in that an average Premier league or League 1 team now would beat a Division 1 or Division 3 team from years back.

But what happened to the old PMO (Position of Maximum Opportunity) idea? I.e. What positions do you need to get into maximise your chances of scoring.

Now it seems the instinct of a player getting the ball wide on the edge of the box is to recycle it backwards to a centre back near the halfway line!

Surely if you put 12 crosses into the box rather than 6 you increase your chances of scoring??

But maybe current stats would prove me wrong.

 

[spmox]

I agree.

I don't disagree that the standard is higher, in that an average Premier league or League 1 team now would beat a Division 1 or Division 3 team from years back.

But what happened to the old PMO (Position of Maximum Opportunity) idea? I.e. What positions do you need to get into maximise your chances of scoring.

Now it seems the instinct of a player getting the ball wide on the edge of the box is to recycle it backwards to a centre back near the halfway line!

Surely if you put 12 crosses into the box rather than 6 you increase your chances of scoring??

But maybe current stats would prove me wrong.

To counter my own view above, I think modern coaches are thinking more about limiting the opposition's opportunity for scoring. So if they only have possession for 30% of the time then there is less likelihood of them scoring.

 

[holdsteady]

I agree.

I don't disagree that the standard is higher, in that an average Premier league or League 1 team now would beat a Division 1 or Division 3 team from years back.

But what happened to the old PMO (Position of Maximum Opportunity) idea? I.e. What positions do you need to get into maximise your chances of scoring.

Now it seems the instinct of a player getting the ball wide on the edge of the box is to recycle it backwards to a centre back near the halfway line!

Surely if you put 12 crosses into the box rather than 6 you increase your chances of scoring??

But maybe current stats would prove me wrong.

I think POMO got proved to be flawed in theory and has been shown to be in reality.

 

[spmox]

I think POMO got proved to be flawed in theory and has been shown to be in reality.

I guessed it must have been.
And yes POMO!

 

[MustardYellow]

To counter my own view above, I think modern coaches are thinking more about limiting the opposition's opportunity for scoring. So if they only have possession for 30% of the time then there is less likelihood of them scoring.

This is true, and is very visible in the way lots of teams play.

I remember Liverpool in the 2013/14 season. Didn't win the league but seemed to just try to win by outscoring the opposition rather than focusing on preventing them from scoring. Very entertaining to watch.

 

[MustardYellow]

Depends where you go, Weatherspoons is probably cheaper than what I paid when I was young. Relatively speaking pubs are not really more expensive than what I was paying 30 years ago, £40 for a night out back then must be comparable to now. Youngsters would rather spend that money on something else now, their choice, I don't regret enjoying myself back then but it was a different time,, no smart phones etc so you had to go out to meet up with people.

My generations equivalent of meeting at the pub is a whatsapp group chat

 

[chuckbert]

As an example, I could make a big "Ultras Return" and try and rally 50-100 original members to congregate together and get things going again, then new younger fans might want to join us but as things stand it would be pointless trying. They can't congregate together and never can, meaning the atmosphere will forever sit at the current status quo. That's something the club needs to consider.

That would be epic. Hope the club considers that issue, and you can make a big Ultras Return!

 

[holdsteady]

My generations equivalent of meeting at the pub is a whatsapp group chat

I have whatsapp chat groups about meeting up in pubs, we just used to go to the same pub at the same time on usual days so things have changed.

 

[MustardYellow]

I have whatsapp chat groups about meeting up in pubs, we just used to go to the same pub at the same time on usual days so things have changed.

We just have the whatsapp groups without the meeting up . It's crazy how phones and social media have not just changed behaviours, but also the way people perceive the world.

 

[holdsteady]

We just have the whatsapp groups without the meeting up . It's crazy how phones and social media have not just changed behaviours, but also the way people perceive the world.

That’s all foreplay no f*****g, you need to tell your mates you want to get to the penetration stage every now and then.

 

[Wandering Yellow]

I think POMO got proved to be flawed in theory and has been shown to be in reality.

Wasn't one of the biggest advocates of POMO... Gareth Ainsworth

 

[holdsteady]

Wasn't one of the biggest advocates of POMO... Gareth Ainsworth

Worked well for him as soon as he left his safe space.

 

[Marked Ox]

More boring modern football like the Chelsea V Man Utd game last night will be the end of football.

The VAR review of the Chelsea penalty was ridiculous, it was unnecessarily long for such a simple decision.

 

[QR]

The VAR review of the Chelsea penalty was ridiculous, it was unnecessarily long for such a simple decision.

Given it was the 90+9 minute I think they stretched it out for extra tension.

 

[Wandering Yellow]

The VAR review of the Chelsea penalty was ridiculous, it was unnecessarily long for such a simple decision.

VAR is sh!t.

 

[Paul Cannell]

It's just people getting old.

Everything, EVERYTHING was better in the day.

Yeah. No.

Eating out was far worse. Availability of decent veg, meat and herbs was far worse (inc local stuff). You couldn't go to a restaurant without some knob waiter telling you 'chef seasoned it before it left the kitchen', brown windsor soup. ffs.

Standing (and rolling down) terraces was far better, weed was better. FFS all the rest was better. All of it.

 

[QR]

Be warned there's another of those boring modern football games going on in Glasgow right now.

 

[holdsteady]

Be warned there's another of those boring modern football games going on in Glasgow right now.

The old firm is modern?