I know they can, but they can also lose badly. Besides there is a big difference betwen cup football and league football. I remember seeing Cork City give Bayern a tough game back in the early 90's but I don't think they would survive in the Bundesliga then or now
The eL is improving and I think it's great, if the kids can be converted and stop thinking England is the beallandendall of football that would be a great thing.
always loved to watch him play...happy for him today...
how good was weso today? cant see him being at blackpool for much longer tbh, as was said if he'd been paitent he probable could already be at a championship side, espically given shels collapse
arent we all just magic little monkeys...
54,321 sold - wws will never die - ***
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New blog if anyone's interested - http://loihistory.wordpress.com/
LOI section on balls.ie - http://balls.ie/league-of-ireland/
Just to match the other Wes Hoolahan thread just started . Perhaps they can be merged?
Forget about the performance or entertainment. It's only the result that matters.
http://www.blackpooltoday.co.uk/spor...icleid=2905787YOU know a player is a bit special when his team-mates can't stop talking about him.
And Wes Hoolahan has been the name on everyone's lips this season.
He's the man all the Seasiders players talk about, mainly because you can give the winger the ball in just about any situation and he's almost guaranteed to retain possession.
But Shaun Barker has gone one step further and has hailed Hoolahan as the best he's ever played with.
"If you go and watch him in training he is just unbelievable," said Barker. "He's without doubt the most talented player I have ever had the pleasure to play with.
"The one thing he does lack is that little bit of pace. If he had that extra bit of pace he could be playing at a much higher level at a much bigger club.
"But his skill, his ability and technique ... everything about him is fantastic.
"He can go as far as he wants to and fingers crossed that he does.
"All the boys want him to stay at Blackpool but that's a big decision that he has got to make."
Contract talks with Hoolahan have stepped up a gear this week.
His agent – his brother – has held discussions with Karl Oyston and the club is expected to make an announcement, one way or the other, next week.
Was at the game on Sunday.
Saw all his off the ball runs, which TV would have missed.
Keigan Parker failed to spot him on a number of occasions, where he was in a great position.
He got forward at every chance, tracked back well and made some very important tackles. The standing ovation would have been noticed on TV, but the comments from the fans around me, show that he's incredibly highly rated, at Blackpool.
I think he should reward the faith of Simon Grayson and spend at least one more season with the Seasiders. Ideally, he'd sign the 3 year deal that he was offered months ago.
Have Boot Disk, will travel
He actually reminded me of Shaun Maloney on Sunday. He'll take a player on if needs be but first priority is to play the pass. Intelligent player.
I watched the game and didnt realise that Hoolahan was an ex-EL player. I was impressed with him, he has good vision and passing. What age is he? He did seem small in stature alright and The Championship is a very physical league and obviously the standard of football is higher than league 1 so he will take time to adjust to that. Given time he could most definitely play for a team in the middle tier of the PL.
I have only attended one EL game this season thus far (Cork City V Shamrock Rovers) but have to be honest and say that Blackpool v Yeovil game was a tad better in terms of football for me. Neither Blackpool or Yeovil would look out of place in the Championship but the EL game I saw was most definitely League One level.
(Before anyone attacks, I can only compare the games I have seen live. I have watched other EL games on tele but I tend only to use games I watch live when comparing leagues. I plan on seeing a few more EL games when I move back to Dublin next month, so I should be able to get a better picture of the standard of football here when I do so.)
Last edited by reder; 29/05/2007 at 3:52 PM.
I only watched one champions league game myself (Chelsea v Liverpool)but have to be honest and say the Blackpool v Yeovil game was a tad better in terms of football for me.Neither Blackpool or Yeovil would look out of place in the Championship but the Champions League game I saw was most definitely League One level.
I've been to countless Blackpool games and this is the first season that they've played good football, consitently. What was the consequence? They got promoted! I've seen so many bad games, I'd lost belief that Blackpool would ever get promoted.
Having watched Man U v Chelsea, in the FA Cup Final, I have to say, the game on Sunday was 10 times better.
Have Boot Disk, will travel
Chelsea v Liverpool was a lot better than League One standard. It was also a lot more dull than your average League One game, but the standard was much higher.
The standard of defending was incredibly high as it usually is in those games. That's why they are generally dull and appear, to the untrained eye, a much lower standard. They aren't-both teams are just cancelling each other out.
"Life is like a hair on a toilet seat. Sooner or later you are bound to get pi$$ed off."
"In this league, a draw is sometimes as good as a win" - Steve Morison
I don't agree, I watched a Milan Derby (also a CL semi I think) from a few years back and it was a 0-0 and one of the best games I have ever seen, proper defending by 2 top class teams.
Liverpool & Chelsea just spent 90 minutes hoofing the ball to their respective donkey centre forwards. I don't doubt there are talented players in both sides but that game in particular did nothing to showcase them.
The reason they were hoofing the ball to their respective donkey centre forwards was because their other attacking players were being marked out of the game.
Whereas with Crouch/Drogba it's a bit hard to mark them, since they're beanpoles who can beat everyone else in the air without even jumping.
"Life is like a hair on a toilet seat. Sooner or later you are bound to get pi$$ed off."
"In this league, a draw is sometimes as good as a win" - Steve Morison
As I said before, I only pass comments on games at which I was present when wanting to compare the levels of football. Luckily, I was at the 2nd CL semi at Anfield and have attended every liverpool v Chelsea game at Anfield for many years, so I am in a position to pass comment.
Thankfully, Cymro has hit the nail on the head 100%. Putting aside the level of tension involved in a fixture like a CL semi 2nd leg completely, a game of that magnitude between Chelsea and Liverpool is exactly like a game of chess.
There was absolutely no option to pass through midfield for the duration of that game. Both sides are top class defensively, so both managers had no other option but to direct their players to by-pass midfield and target their respective beanpole centre forwards.
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