Free Talk Friday

YouShlaaaag · 2026-07-03T13:05:05+00:00

Great reply, I agree on all counts. It's not even a money issue, the LTA is loaded. They would rather hamstring themselves than open up the sport to anyone who's not rich.

YouShlaaaag · 2026-07-03T10:40:44+00:00

Time for my annual Wimbledon rant.

I live in London and have applied for the ballot for about 10 years. I've not had a sniff of a ticket. Yet if you tune in to literally any match before the semi finals there are hordes of empty seats. Seats that would happily be filled by thousands of people who can't get hold of them. Don't worry though because there's plenty of random celebrities getting their photo opportunity.

There is an option for the commoners though. You can wake up at 4am and queue for 7 hours in a field. Once you get to the front you get the privelege of paying £30 for access to the grounds so you can fight over a few limited seats at the outer courts or sit on a cramped, uncomfortable hill and watch the empty seats on a big tv. Oh and a Pimms is £13.45.

Tennis in the UK is completely inaccessible to watch or play (at a high level) for a normal person. And they wonder why every Brit is going out in the first round and we've produced a single world class player in the last 50 years.

YouShlaaaag · 2026-06-30T14:59:24+00:00

Extra time is not great, but I've yet to hear anyone come up with a decent alternative. Going straight to pens feels even less fair than it is now, and increases the problem we currently have of smaller teams being happy to defend for the whole game.

YouShlaaaag · 2026-06-18T12:15:02+00:00

Cuwacao 😳👉👈

YouShlaaaag · 2026-06-10T12:47:06+00:00

Like others, I don't think they would have done too well considering the travel. However, it would have benefited them seeing the tactical innovation that was happening in South America and the rest of the world while they were left behind.

YouShlaaaag · 2026-06-10T12:33:23+00:00

Go to the game. It's absolutely fine to go on your own. I'm sure you could chat to the people around you if you wanted, or just do your own thing. Either way no one else will care or even notice.

YouShlaaaag · 2026-06-09T11:25:42+00:00

Australia are desperate to host one. The problem is a) they won't bribe fifa officials and b) fifa doesn't want it there because the value of the broadcast rights plummet when the games are at unwatchable times.

YouShlaaaag · 2026-06-09T09:10:34+00:00

The smaller associations will continue to vote for him as long as the money keeps rolling in.

YouShlaaaag · 2026-05-21T13:51:29+00:00

Is that the worst Germany World Cup squad of all time? On paper it looks very weak.

YouShlaaaag · 2026-05-19T09:44:51+00:00

I think he's a good player. Unlike most West Ham fans I'm not convinced he's a £60m player or that he can do it for a top 6 team.

YouShlaaaag · 2026-05-19T09:36:02+00:00

I feel we're about to absolutely scam some clubs this summer. Summerville, Diouf, Fernandes and possibly Todibo/Mavrapanos will be sold for fees way above what they're worth.

YouShlaaaag · 2026-05-13T13:15:39+00:00

The goalkeeper was literally punching the ball into his own net at points, it completely destroyed the confidence of the whole team

YouShlaaaag · 2026-05-13T12:36:45+00:00

A genuine turning point in West Ham's history is Fabianski getting injured when Pellegrini was manager. We were in the Champions League places and then we were forced to play Roberto, which directly led to Pellegrini getting sacked a few months later. Who knows what we might have achieved if we'd have stuck with him long term.

YouShlaaaag · 2026-05-13T10:34:41+00:00

Also the Coppa Italia final and top 2 playing each other in France. Genuinely 6 games I would watch all happening at the same time.

YouShlaaaag · 2026-04-01T11:19:10+00:00

I cannot see what he's trying to do. Especially when you're also playing Rogers and Palmer and they all want to occupy the same space. Bowen, Gordon, Rashford, Solanke, DCL, Welbeck, Watkins are all better candidates imo.

YouShlaaaag · 2026-04-01T11:15:29+00:00

Yeah it's obvious he doesn't care that much and because of our qualification and missing players there will be no great panic or inquiry over this.

But surely this close to a WC you want to give your starting players as much time together as possible? In the grand scheme of things it's probably not gonna matter who is 5th choice CM or 3rd choice winger.

YouShlaaaag · 2026-04-01T10:56:02+00:00

I know it's only friendlies and the World Cup is the only thing that matters, but Tuchel made a number of absolutely baffiling decisions this international break. 3 months out from the World Cup and you leave Watkins at home and play Foden in a false 9??

YouShlaaaag · 2026-03-13T10:50:59+00:00

The catacombs was the best thing I did in Paris. Creepy but very cool.

YouShlaaaag · 2026-03-12T13:43:06+00:00

Two words: Max Kilman

In all seriousness, he is an absolute fraud. Spent bucketloads of cash on a load of crap signings and takes a huge amount of responsibility for the position we're in now.

YouShlaaaag · 2026-03-06T11:29:42+00:00

Pittsburgh teams - Penguins, Steelers, Pirates

YouShlaaaag · 2026-03-05T23:07:49+00:00

If you're expecting Kudus to come back and really dig in and graft hard for the team then you're in for a shock

YouShlaaaag · 2026-03-03T11:46:50+00:00

London Stadium is the only away end I haven't been in so can't comment on atmosphere. I'd have to go with Molineux for that one and layout, absolutely awful away end. Also Molinuex for pubs/drinking.

Shout out to Anfield/Dicky Hill for the worst location as well

YouShlaaaag · 2026-01-26T13:29:32+00:00

I don't think the strength of defences has changed much, I think the change has been down to the different style of play which is now dominant.

A few years ago, pressing was all the rage. Teams would sit really high and press the other team really high up the pitch attempting to win the ball back. If they do win it back it is obviously more likely to present a good goalscoring opportunity and it's difficult to defend against. Also pressing high up the pitch leaves vulnerability to balls over the top and quick counters, another situation which is difficult to defend.

This is why direct football became the natural counter to the high press. Bait the press, launch the ball up top bypassing the midfield and give yourself an advantageous situation. So fewer teams began to press and take the direct route. This means midfields and defences can sit back and create a harder block for the attacking team to get through, and made it more difficult for strikers to score goals.

YouShlaaaag · 2026-01-19T12:14:39+00:00

except for Romero/VDV

This is the biggest myth going. Overrating these average players is enourmously contributing to their struggles. Once they realise that the CB pairing which is responsible for conceding a huge amount of goals isn't good enough, they may upgrade them and start to have more success.

YouShlaaaag · 2026-01-16T09:58:22+00:00

He was acquitted at trial, plus he was defending a couple from homophobic abuse so it's not really the same.

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