World Cup Moaning Thread

[Common Villager]

Another dubious VAR decision.

 

[Concretebob]

Another dubious VAR decision.

That one was unfair I thought

 

[Common Villager]

That one was unfair I thought

Just wasn't a penalty as far as I'm concerned. How in any way was that deliberate? His hand was in a natural position and he was looking away from the ball.

 

[Concretebob]

Just wasn't a penalty as far as I'm concerned. How in any way was that deliberate? His hand was in a natural position and he was looking away from the ball.

Totally agree there. Sometimes I think the VAR referees like the attention. Can't remember which game it was but they were high diving each other in the room after they gave one decision.

 

[Sarge]

Totally agree there. Sometimes I think the VAR referees like the attention. Can't remember which game it was but they were high diving each other in the room after they gave one decision.

was anyone from FIFA manning/ policing VAR for the VAR operators high diving ?

 

[Berliner]

His hand shouldn't really have been up there, but the referee called it and there should have been too many mitigating factors to award it (very close range, facing away from the ball). Find it very odd that the decision was reversed when the first one on Kane wasn't, for example.

 

[Grumpy Git]

The player was in mid air, the ball goes over his head, the Aussie heads back onto his arm. Ball to hand. Awful decision.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/44563919

 

[chuckbert]

Another lucky goal for france

 

[Berliner]

OK, in an attempt to get Sarge psyched up, let's turn this from a moaning into a predictions thread
(because I have been planning which games to watch.....including getting up at 6am on Saturday for France/Australia.....and have my wallchart at the ready!)

Group A (Russia, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Uruguay)
Yeash....the worst of the groups by far. If Salah's not himself, there's probably three of the worst teams in the tournament right here. Uruguay will walk it; Russia will probably finish second virtue of some friendly refereeing decisions

Group B (Spain, Portugal, Morocco, Iran)
Hmmm.....not much better. Morocco & Iran will be tight and organised but offensively challenged. Not many goals here, but Spain win group comfortably and Portugal do just enough.

Group C (France, Australia, Denmark, Peru)
More like it! France are a good side, and should win it but expect a battle royale between the other three for second place, and plenty of goals. Peru takes it.

Group D (Argentina, Iceland, Croatia, Nigeria)
Now we're talking! Argentina face three competent teams, and I reckon they'll be found wanting. Croatia with the upset, with Argentina just scraping through in second on goal difference

Group E (Brazil, Switzerland, Serbia, Costa Rica)
Not the best. Comfortable for Brazil, with the other three sides evenly matched, but not that special. It says here that Serbia fight their way through

Group F (Germany, Mexico, Sweden, South Korea)
Das Gruppe of Death for the Germans! They're German so they'll still win it, but not easily with lots of good, close games here. I've no idea if Mexico are any good this year, but tradition dictates that they'll be decent before going out in the Last 16.

Group G (Belgium, Panama, Tunisia, England)
Not a tight one for the neutral. Two comfortable wins each for the European sides, before they draw the group decider but the Belgians take the group on goal difference (after absolutely clobbering Panama to open)

Group H (Poland, Senegal, Colombia, Japan)
The shuffle them up and deal group. No idea what order they'll finish, but there's usually a good African team in the World Cup, so I'm fancying it's Senegal. James Rodriguez then just comes out on top of Lewandowski for second.

Last Sixteen
Uruguay beat Portugal on penalties after bore draw
Spain clobber Russia (who are content to have just made it that far)
France squeak past Argentina in a five goal thriller
Peru shock Croatia in extra time
Brazil routine vs. Mexico
Germany likewise vs. Serbia
Belgium look outstanding in thumping Colombia
England put us through the ringer, but wind up beating Senegal in extra time

Quarters
France beat Uruguay on pens
Belgium bottle it and get thrashed by Brazil
Peru shock the world again by winning a smash and grab against Spain
England shock the world even more by taking the Germans to pens.....and then beating them

Semis
Brazil get better of France in World Cup classic
Harry Kane brace against tournament's biggest surprise team, Peru, sends England into wonderland!

Third place playoff
Nobody cares

Final
Back to earth as Brazil thump England in final; Southgate still gets knighted, we then wait another 28 years to be relevant again......

How's that Peru tip working out?

 

[Malc]

IMHO the standard ofmost of the matches has been low and very defensive. Portugal- Spain so far the best game.
VAR is a laugh, if it wasn't so serious for the effected teams.
But what is of a high standard is the acting ability of some of the players. They must spend more time at acting school than on the training ground. Now that is something that FIFA couls use VAR for. Instant red in my opinion.

 

[Gary Baldi]

I see the Danish assistant manager had a very polite moan about VAR. It's a mess as it's encouraging players to fall over in the hope of getting a VAR decision without any hope of being punished.

FIFA are also undermining officials by nit picking marginal decisions over more obvious ones that maybe more complicated

 

[tonyw]

How's that Peru tip working out?

Peru bad. Croatia and Senegal OK though!

 

[tonto]

I like the way the referees are trying to keep the game flowing and are not giving quite a few decisions and letting quite strong and marginally legal tackles happen. Watching players collapsing to the ground in agony and then getting ignored even by their own teams sometimes has been one of the highlights so far.

 

[Berliner]

I like the way the referees are trying to keep the game flowing and are not giving quite a few decisions and letting quite strong and marginally legal tackles happen. Watching players collapsing to the ground in agony and then getting ignored even by their own teams sometimes has been one of the highlights so far.

I broadly agree, and seeing Spaniards and Argies rolling around before looking up and seeing the game continuing is funny in the extreme. That said, some games including the Croatia game yesterday needed a stronger hand from the referee earlier. Have a lot of time for the ref himself (the record-holder for the number of WC games reffed, no less) but he was a bit too easy going yesterday in my mind...there's good hard play and then there's just fouling.

 

[ZeroTheHero]

Since this is the moaning thread...
I have found the majority of games to be dull in the extreme (with about four exceptions) so far. Too much aimless passing, too little pace or urgency. And the quality of some of that passing has been frankly laughable. Add the two together and you end up with teams gradually (very gradually) passing their way forward and then losing the ball by not being able to reliably move the ball five yards to a team mate. And so little ambition! Peru knew they had to win last night, and were arsing around sideways with the ball in the last 15 minutes when you'd have thought they would be really busting a gut.
I am hoping that once the weaker teams have gone, the knock out stages will provide some more quality and excitement. As yet, it hasn't really taken off for me.

 

[Gary Baldi]

Iceland provided a template in the Euros that similar teams are using. The issue they then have is chasing the game and not having the right mindset to attack nor the setup to do it.

 

[Concretebob]

Neymar really is a pile of crap.

 

[Sarge]

Neymar really is a pile of crap.

.....and has a crap haircut


edit : he's a blatant cheat too

 

[Concretebob]

I bet Neymar is really pissed off he didn't score that goal

 

[Gary Baldi]

Neymar really is a pile of crap.

He's really not a nice person when he isn't allowed to referee the game. The fall in the box was a disgrace and should have been a yellow card for being so utterly brazen.