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The 50 worst things about modern day football


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Guest sheridans_world

50. Technical areas

 

Did Bob Paisley need a technical area when Liverpool won three European

Cups and six league titles? Did Alf Ramsey need a technical area when

England won the World Cup? What's so technical about a bit of grass and

some white lines, anyway? Memo to all modern managers: Sit down and shut

up.

 

49. Motorway service stations

 

You pop in to go to the toilet and five minutes later you've bought a

full-English breakfast for £18.99 and joined the AA.

 

48. Transfer windows

 

Imagine if you could only do your shopping twice a year - once in January

and then in June, July and August. What would happen? You'd have a fridge

full of beer and you'd run out of toilet paper. It wouldn't work in real

life and it doesn't work in football.

 

47. Squad numbers

 

Remember the days when the best player was No 10 and goalkeepers were No 1?

Not any more. Thanks to someone at the Premier League watching an American

football game, players can have any number they want. George Bowyer is

Rochdale's No 33, Ronaldinho is AC Milan's No 80 and William Gallas is

Arsenal's No 10. Why?

 

46. Autobiographies

 

There comes a time in every player's life when he decides - or his agent

tells him - to write his life story. A couple of interviews with a

ghostwriter later and hey presto we have 200 pages of guff and absolutely

zero interest from the book-buying public. Wayne Rooney has already written

two books. That's one more than he's read.

 

45. Craig Bellamy

 

He's gobby, he's played for 842 clubs, he's covered in tattoos and he earns

£90,000 a week. What's not to like?

 

44. Undisclosed transfer fees

 

If you're going to spend some of my hard-earned season ticket money on a

player I've never heard of, I want to know how much he cost. I'm not

interested in add-ons or projected fees. I just want a number. Any number

will do.

 

43. Statistics

 

American obsession that is gradually weaving itself into the fabric of our

national game. Do you care how many assists Wayne Rooney has this season?

Do you care how many passes Steve Gerrard has completed in the final third?

Do you care if Gareth Barry's tackle win ratio has dropped off since

Christmas? Thought not. There's only one stat that matters. The score.

 

42. By mutual consent

 

Three of the most meaningless words in the English language. Either the

manager resigned or he was sacked. Just tell us the truth, we can handle

it.

 

41. Fans who complain when games are called off

 

Were little white things falling out of the sky when you walked to the car

this morning? Was the pavement a bit slippery? If the answer to both these

questions is yes, there's a good chance the game's going to be called off.

It's not the referee's fault, it's not the FA's fault and it's not the

groundsman's fault. Some things just weren't meant to be.

 

40. Gloves

 

This is England, not Siberia. Your hands will warm up if you run around for

five minutes.

 

39. The fat bloke in row P

 

Go to any football ground anywhere in England and there will be a fat bloke

in your row who will a) arrive late b ) talk rubbish c) leave five minutes

before half time d) come back five minutes after the game has restarted e)

talk rubbish f) leave five minutes before the game has finished.

 

38. The manager's programme column

 

"First off I'd like to say a big welcome to blah blah blah blah blah blah

blah blah blah blah blah blah we were robbed last week blah blah blah blah

blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah the lads have been

training brilliantly blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah

blah blah blah blah blah get behind the lads today blah blah blah blah blah

blah blah blah blah blah blah. Enjoy the game."

 

37. Formations

 

Yawn. 4-4-1-1, 4-3-2-1, 4-3-3, 4-1-4-1, 4-2-3-1, 3-5-2, 4-2-1-3. Can't we

just knock it up to the big bloke and get the little bloke to bang it in?

 

36. Chelsea

 

The new Manchester United.

 

35. Sky Sports News

 

The television station that thinks John Carew's ingrowing toenail

responding to treatment is breaking news. Is Sky Sports News the greatest

invention known to man or a drug more addictive than crack? We'll be back

after the break.

 

34. trainline.com

 

If you fancy following your team around the country by public transport,

don't bother with one of the worst websites in the world. Try telling it

you want a train from Manchester to London on Saturday night - journey time

2 hours 30 minutes. No problem. Get the 21:06 to Birmingham New Street.

Then jump on 22:53 to Northampton. Then hop on the 04:58 bus to Leighton

Buzzard. Then hop on the 06.44 bus to London. With any luck you'll be in

Euston at 8 o'clock on Sunday morning - journey time 11 hours.

 

33. Added time

 

"The fourth official has indicated that there will be three minutes of

added time". So what? We got along just fine without a bloke in a tracksuit

holding up a big No 3 at a quarter to five every Saturday.

 

32. Joey Barton

 

We don't like to kick a man when he's down, but he did, so here goes. Type

"Joey Barton Scum" into google and you get 30,500 results.

 

31. Official statements

 

Did Robinho really say, "I am committed to helping Manchester City become

the force the owners assured me they would become"? Maybe one of his agents

typed it into his Blackberry. Robinho doesn't know what "committed" or

"assured" mean because he doesn't speak English.

 

30. Match Of The Day

 

Used to be the best programme on TV. Now, it's the best football highlights

show on TV on Saturday nights.

 

29. Electronic pitchside advertising boards

 

Next time you go to Old Trafford make sure you take some sunglasses,

otherwise you'll be blinded by the light from the adverts on the TV screens

wrapped around the pitch. A word of advice for the skinny latte-sipping

Soho adman who came up with this idea: We can't afford a new Audi. We're

here for the football and the beer.

 

28. Referee's assistants

 

They're linesmen. End of.

 

27. Hi-tech dugouts

 

Minutes from Manchester United board meeting May 2007: Sir Alex Ferguson

requested that the board sanction the removal of the plastic seats in the

home and away dugouts at Old Trafford. The manager wants them replaced with

leather racing car seats like the ones they have in Porsches and Ferraris.

Sir Bobby said that was ridiculous. Sir Alex told Sir Bobby to shut up.

 

26. The fourth official

 

Pointless - like Luton Town until last Saturday.

 

 

 

25. Club shops

 

Empires of tat and greed that make your local Poundstretcher look like

Harrods. The club shop at the Emirates Stadium has a special section for

Arsenal presents for your dog. The Stamford Bridge megastore sells Chelsea

Christmas crackers - £10.43 for a pack of six - and Manchester United have

ventured into the toiletries market. Ever fancied washing your hair with

Manchester United shampoo and conditioner? Now you can. For £9.99.

 

24. Media training

 

All Premier League players and managers are given media training to make

sure that they never say anything remotely interesting when someone puts a

microphone in front of them. Now you know why they're taking one game at a

time, why they didn't see their captain punch one of his team-mates, why

they haven't thrown in the towel yet and why everything is going to be

terrific.

 

23. Kaka

 

If he's not interested in money why do AC Milan have to pay him £173,000 a

week?

 

22. Let Me Entertain You

 

Atrocious Robbie Williams song that has ruined the build-up to every single

football game in the world since it was released in 1998.

 

21. Points deductions

 

This is England, not Italy. Deducting points from teams because they failed

to comply with the Football League's insolvency rules or because they paid

agents through a holding company has turned the bottom of League Two into a

joke. Luton Town started the season on minus 30 points. The team at the

bottom of the table should be the worst side in the league, not the club

with the idiot accountant.

 

20. Official club websites

 

Good for getting directions to the ground, but not much else.

 

19. ITV

 

We haven't forgotten about the ITV Digital disaster and your FA Cup

coverage isn't much to shout about either.

 

18. Opinions

 

We live in an "Everyone's entitled to my opinion" kind of world and when it

comes to football, everyone's got one. Rafa's God. Rafa's an idiot. Becks

is past it. No, he's not. How can Kaka be worth £100 million? Yeh, but

you'd pay £45 to see him play. Stevie G and Lamps can't play together. But

they're the best we've got. Can't we all just shut up and watch the game?

 

17. Brazil

 

The greatest team in the world have become football's Harlem Globetrotters.

Ronaldinho and Co have played only one friendly in Brazil in the past 2 ½

years. In the meantime they've put on a show in Oslo, Kuwait, Stockholm,

London (four, about to be five, times), Basel, Gothenburg, Dortmund,

Montpellier, Chicago, Boston, Dublin, Seattle and Boston. Ker-ching.

 

16. Internet message boards

 

My team's better than yours. No, my team's better than yours. No, my team's

better than yours. No. my team's better than yours. Repeat until the world

ends.

 

15. Tattoos

 

When we were kids only sailors and binmen had tattoos. Now, you can't walk

into a dressing-room without being blinded by Celtic crosses, barbed wire,

angels, Chinese proverbs, the name of everyone's kids, the name of

everyone's kids in Hebrew, the name of everyone's wife, the name of

everyone's wife in Latin, a couple of Welsh dragons and Steve Sidwell's

marriage vows.

 

14. Superagents

 

How does an agent become a superagent? Make a few phone calls, get friendly

with Roman Abramovich and buy a flat in Knightsbridge.

 

13. Injuries

 

"We're down to the bare bones" and it's not surprising considering that

modern-day footballers are about as tough and durable as a Ming vase. Half

of them can't run without pulling a hamstring and the other half can't

tackle with breaking a metatarsal. What's a hamstring anyway? And how come

Bobby Moore never pulled one?

 

12. Manchester City

 

The new Chelsea.

 

11. Kick-off times

 

Football used to be played at three o'clock on a Saturday afternoon. Now

it's played when it suits Sky and Setanta.

 

10. Goal celebration music

 

Listen. Very. Carefully. We. Don't. Want. To. Hear. I. Feel. Good. Chelsea.

Dagger. Or. Song. Two. Every. Time. Someone. Scores. A. Goal. Got. That?

 

9. The FA Cup

 

When was the last time a milkman lifted the FA Cup? When was the last time

a postman scored at Wembley? There's nothing romantic about a competition

which ends every year with a bloke who earns £100,000 a week lifting a

trophy that he doesn't really give a monkey's about.

 

8. Takeovers

 

In the old days all you needed to support your local club was a scarf and

rattle, but these days you need a degree in economics, an MBA and a

subscription to the Financial Times. Come back all you butchers, car

dealers, property developers and local boys made good - all is forgiven.

 

7. Wembley Stadium

 

The old Wembley Stadium had it all. Players dreamed of playing there and

supporters dreamed of going there - even if the toilets smelled a bit

funny. Then some bright spark at the FA thought it would be a good idea to

knock down the most famous football stadium in the world and replace it

with an £800 million concrete box and a pointless arch. Best stadium in the

world? Thanks to Arsenal's new ground, the new Wembley's not even the best

stadium in North London.

 

6. Radio phone-in shows

 

"The next caller is Gary from Guildford. What do you want to get off your

chest, Gary?"

 

"Well, Alan. I think Rafa's got to go. How can you leave Torres on the

bench when you need three points? And as for that ref, he's got to be the

worst ref I've ever seen."

 

"Were you at the game, Gary?"

 

"No."

 

5. Rotation

 

You pay £50 for a ticket, you spend £10 on a pint of beer and a hotdog and

you get to watch a kickabout between a bunch of kids no-one's ever heard

of. Thanks Arsene. Thanks Rafa. Thanks Alex. Nice to know you care.

 

4. New stadium

 

Where would you rather watch a game? Maine Road or the City of Manchester

Stadium? The Baseball Ground or Pride Park? Highfield Road or The Ricoh

Arena? The Dell or St Mary's? Filbert Street or The Walkers Stadium? Nice

prawn sandwiches, though.

 

3. The Champions League

 

What's changed since the European Cup turned into the Champions League in

1992? Everything. If you won the European Cup, you were the best team in

Europe. If you win the Champions League, you owe someone £700 million.

 

2. The Premier League

 

What's changed since the Premier League broke away from the Football League

in 1992? Everything. If you won the First Division title, you were the best

team in England. If you win the Premier League, you owe someone £500

million.

 

1. Television

 

The monster that ate football.

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39. The fat bloke in row P

 

Go to any football ground anywhere in England and there will be a fat bloke

in your row who will a) arrive late b ) talk rubbish c) leave five minutes

before half time d) come back five minutes after the game has restarted e)

talk rubbish f) leave five minutes before the game has finished.

 

I take exception to this.

 

Fat jokes are seen to be an acceptable form of humour, with cover comments such as 'no offence' etc..etc..

Its about time people realised the hurt it can cause

Sexism, Racism.. everyone seems concerned with, but Fattism...

How do we put a stop to it?

 

====================================================================

 

 

 

 

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I take exception to this.

 

Fat jokes are seen to be an acceptable form of humour, with cover comments such as 'no offence' etc..etc..

Its about time people realised the hurt it can cause

Sexism, Racism.. everyone seems concerned with, but Fattism...

How do we put a stop to it?

 

====================================================================

 

I suggest the fat bloke sit on them and then they won't be cheeky.

 

 

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I take exception to this.

 

Fat jokes are seen to be an acceptable form of humour, with cover comments such as 'no offence' etc..etc..

Its about time people realised the hurt it can cause

Sexism, Racism.. everyone seems concerned with, but Fattism...

How do we put a stop to it?

 

====================================================================

 

 

Go on a diet?

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Go on a diet?

It's clearly a virus as reported recently.

 

That's my excuse and I refuse to place the blame at the door of the occasional bacon sandwich. To do so would be pigist.

 

By the way, I don't take exception to the original comment despite being 'stouter' than average (as determined by the RRE turnstile test).

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Go on a diet?

 

 

A fish diet?

 

I take exception to this.

 

Fat jokes are seen to be an acceptable form of humour, with cover comments such as 'no offence' etc..etc..

Its about time people realised the hurt it can cause

Sexism, Racism.. everyone seems concerned with, but Fattism...

How do we put a stop to it?

 

:grin:

 

 

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49. Motorway service stations

 

You pop in to go to the toilet and five minutes later you've bought a

full-English breakfast for £18.99 and joined the AA.

 

34. trainline.com

 

If you fancy following your team around the country by public transport,

don't bother with one of the worst websites in the world. Try telling it

you want a train from Manchester to London on Saturday night - journey time

2 hours 30 minutes. No problem. Get the 21:06 to Birmingham New Street.

Then jump on 22:53 to Northampton. Then hop on the 04:58 bus to Leighton

Buzzard. Then hop on the 06.44 bus to London. With any luck you'll be in

Euston at 8 o'clock on Sunday morning - journey time 11 hours.

 

 

3. The Champions League

 

What's changed since the European Cup turned into the Champions League in

1992? Everything. If you won the European Cup, you were the best team in

Europe. If you win the Champions League, you owe someone £700 million.

 

2. The Premier League

 

What's changed since the Premier League broke away from the Football League

in 1992? Everything. If you won the First Division title, you were the best

team in England. If you win the Premier League, you owe someone £500

million.

 

Hope I'm not being a dope, but I just don't get the above ones.....

 

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I take exception to this.

 

Fat jokes are seen to be an acceptable form of humour, with cover comments such as 'no offence' etc..etc..

Its about time people realised the hurt it can cause

Sexism, Racism.. everyone seems concerned with, but Fattism...

How do we put a stop to it?

 

====================================================================

With the greatest of respect, f*ck off.

 

And I bet I'm fatter than you.

 

What is it for you? Metabolism? Genes?

 

For me it's being a lazy :censored: who likes takeaways.

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Guest sheridans_world
Hope I'm not being a dope, but I just don't get the above ones.....

From memory, the debt in English football is 3.5 bn, of which 3bn is divided between the top four clubs in the premier league.

 

Something like that.

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A fish diet?

 

I take exception to this.

 

Fat jokes are seen to be an acceptable form of humour, with cover comments such as 'no offence' etc..etc..

Its about time people realised the hurt it can cause

Sexism, Racism.. everyone seems concerned with, but Fattism...

How do we put a stop to it?

 

:grin:

 

Come on, as Razza found out...it's been done and perfected by the master.

 

Think of something new...and to all others, accept no imitations... :wink:

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I take exception to this.

 

Fat jokes are seen to be an acceptable form of humour, with cover comments such as 'no offence' etc..etc..

Its about time people realised the hurt it can cause

Sexism, Racism.. everyone seems concerned with, but Fattism...

How do we put a stop to it?

 

====================================================================

 

Tell him it's the turnstile or nothing!!!

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I'm surprised player diving hasnt been mentioned on the list.

dont know if its been mentioned, but i most hate the pulling of shirts and putting arms round players and stopping them from running at the ball when corners are being taken.

refs should give more penalties for these infringements but most just turn a blind eye.

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With the greatest of respect... WOOOOOOOOOOOOOSH!!!!

That did cross my mind. Later. :unsure:

 

If so, I'm sure Dave will accept my apology and mark me down as well and truly woooooooooooooshed. :getmecoat:

 

 

 

Ironic really. Oldham's not exactly a town full of stick people is it? :grin:

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By the way, I don't see anything on there about fans only having a memory of 6 days. Or anything about the fans who seem to think they can call a player or manager the most disgusting and abusive things they can think of without any kind of repercussion, and then immediately go running to the police if said player or manager so much as looks at them a bit funny.

 

Nor did I see anything about fecking drums, brass bands and all manner of other tuneless, noisy shyte that seems to have entered our game lately... :blink:

Edited by garcon
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What's with the irrational hatred of tattoos? Although the bloke who was sat in front of me at Elland Road, who had 'Leeds til I die' tattooed on his scalp, was living proof of the saying "where there's no sense there's no feeling".

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