Bob's Board: N Macedonia V England - Bob's Board

Anyone who's ever played football, or watched more than a handful of matches, could not possibly be in any doubt whatsoever that this VAR garbage just has to be binned immediately. It is completely destroying the game, as I've said since it was first introduced by a committee of gibbering idiots. The ref, by the way, is, unbelievably, well below the standard we experience in the NL.

This post has been edited by sophocles: 20 November 2023 - 09:24 PM

The officials have been absolutely pathetic. As have England.

hilly81, on 20 November 2023 - 09:26 PM, said:

It’s been terrible, obviously he doesn’t like Maguire.

Is it me or has Pickford put on a bit of timber?

Ref making it up as he goes along. Never a pen, some pathetic falling over by home team given as fouls.

We been rubbish all game



Southgate’s a fraud. Blessed with talent an international manager would dream of, but hasn’t the gumption to change a game tactically



Croatia was crying out for 4-4–2


Italy final we had them on the ropes - midfield change from them was t acted on


Despite of Southgate not because of Southgate

Wooden Spoon, on 20 November 2023 - 10:01 PM, said:

Nonsense, Southgate is the best manager England have ever had, by a mile. They have qualified unbeaten and finished clearly ahead of everyone else. In the last two games, a lot of his players were coasting, knowing they'd already qualified, and conscious of important games coming up for their clubs. It might not have been what people wanted to see, but the job of winning the group had already been done, so they were never going to knacker themselves, and it didn't matter. Having said that, they were only robbed of victory by undoubtedly the most atrocious refereeing performance I've seen in 70 years of watching football.

sophocles, on 20 November 2023 - 11:23 PM, said:

I agree with WS, he’s out of his depth, always has been. He’s no idea what to do, or how to change it. It will always appear sour grapes with the “success” he’s had but it could have been so different. A safe pair of hands will only ever get you so far. Here comes another tournament we’re we will flatter to deceive.

Am I the only one who couldn’t give a rat’s anus about England?

Zigsuk, on 21 November 2023 - 01:22 AM, said:

Yes I think you are

calvin plummers socks, on 21 November 2023 - 02:17 AM, said:

No he's not

Not interested in England team, qualified for a tournament again despite Southgate who no doubt will go ultra defensive in the finals and waste the attacking talent he has at his disposal

fishini, on 21 November 2023 - 04:18 AM, said:

Why would anyone not want the National team to do well?
Traitors

calvin plummers socks, on 21 November 2023 - 07:14 AM, said:

He might if they were playing Germany

Because Chesterfield belong to me and a few thousand others . England belong to millions including the B****Y media.
I used to be interested in England probably until this century but then I got fed up of the hype and the ridiculously overpaid managers. Sven Goran Ericsson said precisely nothing worth listening to in interview after interview. I remember being out on the town one night during a tournament in the early part of the century having deliberately avoided pubs were it was being shown as I can’t be doing with how it dominates. Later in the evening I came across my mates who were gushing after an England win. They couldn’t believe I had refused their invitation to watch it with them. They said you’re not really interested in England are you? It was at this point I thought no I’m not. This feeling has only grown more profound.
I will watch them in finals but that’s about it. Can’t be doing with the endless friendlies and qualifying games against dog and duck teams.
As the presenters said on Radio Sheffield last night there is too much international football these days.
I remember when an England game was special. Now they are two a penny. And frequently boring.

Zigsuk, on 21 November 2023 - 07:52 AM, said:

If you’re not English fair enough I guess

I actually fell asleep for 15-20 mins part way through the game, var not good but the players have just not cared during these past couple of games. Maybe southgate has ran his course but is there anyone out there that could do a better job, looks at some of the duff managers before southgate

Last two games have meant nothing really, we'd qualified and pretty much nailed on to be in the top pot for the draw for the finals. We've played two teams just bothered about not losing too heavily and had VAR get involved against us in ridiculous manners in both games. The ref last night was awful borderline biased towards the home time with some of his decision making, the pitch was crap and it just made for a bad spectacle.

As for Southgate yes he got a bit lucky with the route in the World Cup getting to the Semi final but you dont get to where we have in tournaments in spite of the manager, he has played a part. If nothing else he has managed to get players bothered about playing international football again. We've had numerous supposed big name managers with successful club careers who havent done as well and been hounded out of the job.

I guess I'm the only England fan then. I enjoy watching England and I think we have come on leaps and bounds over the last ten years. When we lived in Colchester I used to get free tickets to all the England games at Wembley so I think thats where my enthusiam came from. I get that its fashionable to not like them or Southgate and it can be seen as a stick to poke fun at those who do follow England but I can live with that.

We have some fantastic players and a great squad, I find it a bit exciting that we may well win something in the very near future.

I think people have just got used to these days slating England as the thing to do. I dont always watch qualifiers etc because these days there are too many and half of them are pointless. There is no need for the likes of San Marino, Faroe Islands, Gibraltar etc to be playing and getting spanked and seeing losing 6-0 as a success, it does nothing to develop them. Then you have the Nations League which is just a drab attempt to make the endless friendlies relevant. There is too much international football and we seem to have an international break with no football higher up far too often these days. Championship clubs who have to play 46 league games plus likely to last longer in the League and FA Cups must have great fun getting games played when they lose numerous weeks to international breaks.

I do make the effort to go out and watch games in tournaments as a rule, just all the other stuff that is normally a drag to watch.

sophocles, on 20 November 2023 - 09:23 PM, said:

More and more it seems VAR officials are actually starting to referee games on their monitors and look fir every tiny “missed” decision rather than the “clear and obvious” errors from the ref.
In last nights game how on earth can they not give a pen for Maguires stupidly clumsy lunge in yet give one for Lewis’s hand movement?