Falling Out Of Love With Football

[gosties]

The last two major tournaments have been won by two workman like sides. After watching that game last night I thought Italy were no more than a more technically adept Greece. At the moment defensive organisation seems to be stifling and killing football.

Their seems to be a lack of entertainment on show. The likes of Chelsea play the same sort of game and it is terrible to watch. Am I alone in believing that teams have an obligation to entertain.

I understand that if you are fan of the team involved that you say that the end justifies the means. But I think that football is danger of losing the fan's interest and that is very dangerous. Some games that are on tele I switch off after 15 mins because it is like watching paint dry.

I just hope that more teams take a leaf out of the freeflowing passing games of the likes of Barca,
Arsenal.

Furtherly, I also think that something has to be done about diving as it becoming endemic in the game, the likes of Portugal are hammered for it, but every team is at it. I would give retrospective red cards for dives, if no contact is proved.

[sbowler]

Couldnt agree more, the games now are less than exciting. And I think that France played the better game last night. And deserved to win.

[Istanbul_Kop]

If you're 'falling out of love with football' - you were never truly in love with football in the first place.

Football is for life.

[gosties]

I have been enjoying football for about 20 years but have over the last few years have noticed that teams are becoming more negative. I am probably what would be termed a purist but just want to see games where both teams want to attack.

I can remember the Milan teams of the early 90's who were fantastic to watch. I utterly detest Man Utd but they do play attractive football. Maybe I am naive but still belive that teams have to entertain. A lot teams just place the emphasis on not conceding goals which does not make for much of a spectacle.

I am not that old and never envisaged that I would say that the game was better to watch years ago.

[JohnG]

Originally Posted by Istanbul_Kop

If you're 'falling out of love with football' - you were never truly in love with football in the first place.

Football is for life.

I have to disagree with that. I've been watching and loving football for years and have been to away matches in this country and abroad but I am getting fed up with football as well. I was wondering if it's to do with my age (45) and having been through the era when you could afford to go to loads of matches (I use to watch Forest and Mansfield Town in those days) and it was a proper game with proper tackles and real men playing it
There is far too much live football on the telly these days, I ended up only half watching the World Cup Final yesterday as I found it boring

[TeeDoubleUDee]

Originally Posted by gosties

I am not that old and never envisaged that I would say that the game was better to watch years ago.

I agree - I AM that old and remember when there was such a thing as sportsmanship, the balls were very heavy leather which nearly concussed you if you headed it but then men WERE men

[overkill]

Originally Posted by JohnG

I have to disagree with that. I've been watching and loving football for years and have been to away matches in this country and abroad but I am getting fed up with football as well. I was wondering if it's to do with my age (45) and having been through the era when you could afford to go to loads of matches (I use to watch Forest and Mansfield Town in those days) and it was a proper game with proper tackles and real men playing it
There is far too much live football on the telly these days, I ended up only half watching the World Cup Final yesterday as I found it boring

Quite agree John. The standard of football, as recent World cups have shown, is falling everywhere and spin seems to be increasingly used to 'fill in' for lack of ability. I enjoy less and less of what I watch in top flight (English football) and in the division you and I are regularly going to watch games in, the level of performance shocked me when compared to twenty years ago. It's dire.

The 'beautiful game' is a myth now, and with the triumph of cynicism over skill in this World cup, as shown by Portugals semi-final appearance and Italy winning the thing, things will only get worse.

I mourn for the game I used to love.

[Miyazaki]

Surely the fact that "workman" like football is doing the buisness suggests that England should have hired Allardyce?

[Kevo]

It's 'imploding' and will eventually go the same way as pop music, TV and films.....markmewurdz

[RMCF]

Originally Posted by gosties

Their seems to be a lack of entertainment on show. The likes of Chelsea play the same sort of game and it is terrible to watch. Am I alone in believing that teams have an obligation to entertain.

I understand that if you are fan of the team involved that you say that the end justifies the means.

Couldn't agree more about football dying.

But I think the days of coaches feeling obliged to entertain the fans is long gone. The results are the most important thing now, not how you get them.

I am a Real Madrid fan and they have always had a tradition of wanting entertaining football. Thats one of the things that attracted me to them in the early 80s. Indeed I remember them getting booed off at home in the late 80s after winning 3-0, but the fans didn't enjoy the performance!! But I can see the day when even Madrid fans will settle for results over entertainment.

On your second point, and this brings me back to the WC, is England. Their performances were woeful yet anybody that tried to criticise them were slated for not supporting 'the boys' or their country. Numerous posts would say, 'we are in the next round - thats all that matters'. If this is all that matters to the modern fan then God help the future of football.

I agree with Istanbul_Kop - I am a football fan and will always like it. The game needs to have a total change of direction but I just feel that it is not possible - its gone too far. We need to go to a game where only the captain and offending player can chat to the ref about fouls, where players don't need to appeal for EVERY throw-in because they know who's throw-in it actually is, where managers play more than 1 up front, where keeping a clean sheet isn't all-important, where players only fall over if they can't stand up any more, where players accept the refs decisions, where fans get a decent ticket allocation, where Sky admit that most of the EPL games are crap, where players stop flashing imaginery cards etc.

But this will never happen.

Football started to implode when the salaries went crazy. Before that it was a game played, in most cases, by honest hard-working players. But when the stakes get higher cheating becomes inevitable.

And someday football will go belly up. And it will only be the 'real' football fans that are turning up to watch the games, not the Sky generation who will have moved on to some other fad.

[chaddy]

i will always watch football but being only 23 i wasn't around for the good hard tackling days where people if they hit the ground they didn't usually get back up.
My earliest memory of watching football was the start of the prem league.
This seem to be the end of the good old days as more foreigners started to join English clubs.
Now the game has turned into basketball but with feet.
Its turned into a non contact sport full of over payed Nancy's.
All you have to look at is the people like Alan Smith, Cisse and owen in the world cup.
When they are hurt they have pain on the faces but there is no rolling about all it is get medics on quickly to sort it out.
but a tap on the ankle takes 5mins to sort out.

[JohnG]

Chaddy - let's see how you feel about the game in another 22 years when you will be 45 the same as I am now, I bet you'll be moaning about it just like I am and not watching many matches

[Ian J]

My interest in footie started to declined when the game was acquired by Sky and it became big business rather than sport.

I liked the days when football was played in the winter and cricket in the summer with all games played on Saturday bar the odd midweek cup game.

I try and see my team play a couple of times a season when they are in the Midlands but rarely bother with televised games any more.

[lostinspace]

Originally Posted by Ian J

My interest in footie started to declined when the game was acquired by Sky and it became big business rather than sport.

I liked the days when football was played in the winter and cricket in the summer with all games played on Saturday bar the odd midweek cup game.

I try and see my team play a couple of times a season when they are in the Midlands but rarely bother with televised games any more.

I agree, Sky has a lot to answer for. When everyone played on saturday's, going to a match was a real occasion. I well remember the boards that were put up around the ground telling you the half time scores in other matches- old buzzard that I am!
Now, because the leagues took the most money they could, matches have to be played throughout the week, and there are no big match days anymore.

The overpaid cheats we have for players these days will bancrupt football, and the only ones who can see it are football fans, not the blind, tribal followers of individual teams.

When Cantona wasn't thrown out of football, players realised they had ALL the power and can do whatever they want, and now they'll never be put back in Pandora's box. Their contracts are worthless as they just walk away when it suits them.

Agents are the scum of the earth- name one with football anywhere in his list of priorities. A footballer's best interests are always measured in how much money he can get.

Football is a sport- at least it's supposed to be. Sky has ensured that money is now the only measure of success in a player's career.

Once sky finds a better way of getting dishes on people's walls, they'll dramatically reduce the money for football, and football will be in financial crisis (f it isn't already).

Football is corrupt. Corrupt businesses go bust. And I can't wait for the day.

[SickStu]

I can't believe it but I think I agree. There was only one game worth watching in this World Cup, the Germany v Italy semi-final. Even that was blighted by the cheating that is practised by all players and will kill the game unless it's stamped out (retrospective punishment with video evidence required).
English football is dead ( Chelsea will win the league every year at a canter until Abramovitch gets bored or is in jail ) and the national team will get weaker & weaker as the number of English players at the top level declines.
Still, at least I'll save £35.06 a month when I cancel Sky (I'll miss the golf though).