A World Cup To Forget For This Lot

[SB]

http://football-talk.co.uk/6211/a-world-cup-to-forget-for-this-lot/

This is an interesting article and a topic that I've thought about a few times also. Who else would you include with this lot. Messi? Huntelaar?

By Paul Downey.

Where there are heroes there are always villains, so here’s a team of players who failed to live up to their reputations during the tournament in South Africa.

Robert Green (England) – First half clanger against USA cost England two points, and was subsequently dropped for the rest of the Three Lions campaign.

Martin Demichelis (Argentina) – Always looked a liability in the Argentinian backline after gifting South Korea in the group stages and was part of the team torn apart by Germany in the Quarter Finals.

Patrice Evra (France) - The Manchester United full-back was central to the player strike and rowed with his manager and coaching staff. Dropped for Frances last group game. Disastrous stint as captain.

Fabio Cannavaro (Italy) – The veteran Italian Captain was the player of the tournament in 2006, but looked anything but in the Azurri’s woeful campaign.

John Terry (England) – Looked very shaky giving the ball away with stray passes throughout England’s four games and was simply awful against Germany in the last 16.

Kaka (Brazil) – After an injury ravaged season with Real Madrid, Kaka looked a yard off the pace in South Africa as Brazil bowed out in the Quarter Finals for the second tournament in a row. Was also red carded against the Ivory Coast.

Yohan Gourcuff (France) – He was hailed as the ‘new Zidane’ by the French media before the tournament, and bowed out as Zizou did in 2006 with a red card.

Franck Ribery (France) – Another player who had a difficult domestic campaign who never showed nowhere near his true ability in the French’s disastrous campaign.

Fernando Torres (Spain) – Despite being part of the triumphant Spanish squad, Torres was hugely disappointing, failing to score a single goal and was dropped for the Semi-Final and Final.

Nicolas Anelka (France) - Did nothing when he played, had a blazing row with his manager and was subsequently sent home in disgrace.

Wayne Rooney (England) – Never looked fully fit and barely had a strike on goal in England’s four games. A tournament to forget for the Manchester United man.

Green (England)

Demichelis (Argentina) – Cannavaro (Italy) – Terry (England) – Evra (France)

Kaka (Brazil) – Gourcuff (France) – Ribery (France)

Rooney (England) – Anelka (France) – Torres (Spain)

[Exiled_red]

There's some big names in there in other circumstances you could have imagine the team of the tournament looking something like that.


...Well aside from Robert Green and John Terry Obviously

[SB]

There's some big names in there in other circumstances you could have imagine the team of the tournament looking something like that.


...Well aside from Robert Green and John Terry Obviously

That's why the WC failed to live up to so many peoples expectations I think.

[Nick77]

I think you could forgive both Torres & Kaka as they had just come back from long injury lay-offs...

[SB]

I think you could forgive both Torres & Kaka as they had just come back from long injury lay-offs...

Yeah absolutely true.

I thought of another name last night.

Van Persie! I think the Dutch made the final despite him, not because of him. Did he score a single goal at the WC? What does Huntelaar have to do to get a game?

[Reece]

Yeah absolutely true.

I thought of another name last night.

Van Persie! I think the Dutch made the final despite him, not because of him. Did he score a single goal at the WC? What does Huntelaar have to do to get a game?

Was thinking similar. The amount of stick Torres got - was Van Persie really any better?

[SB]

Was thinking similar. The amount of stick Torres got - was Van Persie really any better?

No not at all. Maybe he doesn't like their style of play. The mids get more goals and don't look to play him in like Arsenal do maybe?

We knew Torres was coming back from injury so he had his reasons but RVP had no excuses that I know about.

[Fernandinho]

Van Persie had chances but, it wasn't like he was playing as an out and out target man. If you think about it Arsenal and the Dutch play a similar formation. Robben and Kuyt instead of Arshavin and Walcott with Sneijder through the middle instead of Fabregas. He seemed really slow and sluggish on the ball and never really did much. I guess you can justify his showing due to injuries as well but.

[Exiled_red]

Maybe being pedantic here but while Torres didn't have a great World Cup personally he did end up with a winners medal, so I don't think he'll forget it in a hurry

[paulg]

Torres was plainly not fit, Rooney also. Messi always had 3 defenders round him, so was strangled out.

Lampard should be in that list, apart from Germany game, he hardly did anything.
van Bommell - aside from being a dirty *******, did nothing to impress me at all.

[SB]

Torres was plainly not fit, Rooney also. Messi always had 3 defenders round him, so was strangled out.

Lampard should be in that list, apart from Germany game, he hardly did anything.
van Bommell - aside from being a dirty ********, did nothing to impress me at all.

Van Bommell is like Masher to us IMO. He does nothing that really stands out but breaks up play well. Admittedly VB was a dirty player that should have seen Red a few times. Don't know how he stayed on the pitch.

[Exiled_red]

I think that if you accept that van Bommell is in the Dutch side to add that tough tackling steel in midfield, you would have to say that he had a good tournament. You might not like what he did or how he did it (and he may have been lucky to stay on the pitch numerous times) but he was effective in the way he did it, and I doubt the Dutch would have got to the final without him.

[paulg]

Is Masher just lucky to not get as many reds as he should then? I thought he was much better then van Bommell. I am biased, though.

[dww]

I think that if you accept that van Bommell is in the Dutch side to add that tough tackling steel in midfield, you would have to say that he had a good tournament. You might not like what he did or how he did it (and he may have been lucky to stay on the pitch numerous times) but he was effective in the way he did it, and I doubt the Dutch would have got to the final without him.

I'd agree with that; actually he also made a lot of passes which linked the Dutch team together in the many games. However he was very lucky that he was not dealt with more harshly for his repeated cynical and at times dangerous fouling. I guess in his role as a professional fouler manipulating the referee to get the minimum number of cards counts as part of doing your job well.

[SB]

I think that if you accept that van Bommell is in the Dutch side to add that tough tackling steel in midfield, you would have to say that he had a good tournament. You might not like what he did or how he did it (and he may have been lucky to stay on the pitch numerous times) but he was effective in the way he did it, and I doubt the Dutch would have got to the final without him.

I'd agree with that; actually he also made a lot of passes which linked the Dutch team together in the many games. However he was very lucky that he was not dealt with more harshly for his repeated cynical and at times dangerous fouling. I guess in his role as a professional fouler manipulating the referee to get the minimum number of cards counts as part of doing your job well.

I agree with all that.

He's the sort of player the opposition's fans love to hate.