Howard

[carolinablue232]

Well that's because OFC is one of the hardest groups to qualify in. People don't realise but playing away at Fiji, Samoa etc is quite difficult not matter who you are due to the overwhelming lure of going swimming, surfing or fishing in the crystal clear waters...your mind is not going to be on the game.

Ok, I get your being sarcastic, but I don't really see why. Maybe you just think you're being funny. Most everyone has admitted that qualifying out of CONCACAF should be and pretty much is as easy as it gets for the US. The region isn't as bad as some say however, especially away from home. Asia is pretty easy for top teams as well. UEFA qualifying is the most difficult, but is it the US's fault CONCACAF's gets 3.5 spots? Nope.

 

[Thorny]

Ok, I get your being sarcastic, but I don't really see why. Maybe you just think you're being funny. Most everyone has admitted that qualifying out of CONCACAF should be and pretty much is as easy as it gets for the US. The region isn't as bad as some say however, especially away from home. Asia is pretty easy for top teams as well. UEFA qualifying is the most difficult, but is it the US's fault CONCACAF's gets 3.5 spots? Nope.

I think it's perfectly fine that CONCACAF get 3.5 spots, and I think the whole allocation is good in general (well maybe that Sth America get 5 and Africa get 4.5 instead)...it's a World Cup...the Europeans complaining about that should just watch the Euros instead.

I just don't rate the level of oppositions that is in the CONCACAF as highly as some do.

 

[Elong]

Will probably be Mexico. You really find yourselves favorites against Mexico? Bold prediction and completely wrong, but I like it.

If they've got that much to the crapper that they'll end up 4th, then yep, I back ourselves! Hey, we can be patriotic too, even if I'm not born a kiwi b)

 

[steken1]

Again mate, the point I made in the other thread was that World Cup Qualifying away at any of those places is just as hard as many European away matches. For some reason, many European based football fans just don't understand that. I'm not going to put that down to any sort of European bias. I'm going to put it down to that they just don't watch those matches and so they don't have an appreciation for how hard it is to play there, regardless of the quality of the team.

Bill your making statements as fact and I'm not really sure where they come from or how you can back them up.

World Cup Qualifying away at any of those places is just as hard as many European away matches. For some reason, many European based football fans just don't understand that.

Any match in football is as hard as the opponents you face. A lot of the nations you face will have part time players or lads at very poor clubs and poor standards. I assume in some degree you're talking about inhospitable places or different climates? I appreciate that to some degree but it's the same here. Winter in Russia and Poland is very different than England.

I'll give an example of what I mean and then leave it at that because I don't want to derail this thread.

Panama are fourth in your qualifying at present. They've got three players in your league, 1 at Poznan and one lad at Malaga. The rest are nowhere.

Poland are fourth in our group which is the easiest group in Europe. They've got three PL keepers. Defenders at Sampdoria, Leverkusen, warsaw and Steau Bucharest. Mids at Dortmund, trabzonspor, hoffenheim, Kaiserslautern, Brugge, Sampdoria, udinese and other decent sides. Then players like Lewandowski who are genuine world class.

I don't misunderstand I disagree. You're talking low, low quality players here. Countries like Estonia and Moldova would hold their own against a lot of Concacaf nations.

 

[The Hibbert Agenda]

With Steken here, in fact I'd argue that to a large degree that the CONCACAF qualifying group is inferior to Asian and (Definitely) African.
It's also rather unfair in my opinion that there is potential for 4 teams to qualify from a 10 country federation when in Africa there is potential for 5 teams to qualify from about 50. And that's without even mentioning that there are already many more competitive teams there than in CONCACAF.

 

[Allezfan]

With Steken here, in fact I'd argue that to a large degree that the CONCACAF qualifying group is inferior to Asian and (Definitely) African.
It's also rather unfair in my opinion that there is potential for 4 teams to qualify from a 10 country federation when in Africa there is potential for 5 teams to qualify from about 50. And that's without even mentioning that there are already many more competitive teams there than in CONCACAF.

It's not that bad.

North America get 3.5 places out of 37 teams or 9.5%. Africa get 5 out of 54 or 9.2%. Asia get 4.5 out of 46 or 9.7%.

South America get 45% and Europe get 24% but that's because they have all the best teams so fair enough.

And then 1 place goes to the hosts and half a place goes to New Zealand 4.5% of the pacific nations.

 

[The Hibbert Agenda]

I just feel that NA has Mex and USA, and then lots of crap
Asia has Aus, South K, Japan, and then lots of crap
Africa has A LOT of crap teams, but that initial list of decent teams is longer (Ivory Coast, Nigeria, Egypt, Ghana)

It's not that bad.

North America get 3.5 places out of 37 teams or 9.5%. Africa get 5 out of 54 or 9.2%. Asia get 4.5 out of 46 or 9.7%.

South America get 45% and Europe get 24% but that's because they have all the best teams so fair enough.

And then 1 place goes to the hosts and half a place goes to new Zealand.

 

[Allezfan]

I just feel that NA has Mex and USA, and then lots of crap
Asia has Aus, South K, Japan, and then lots of crap
Africa has A LOT of crap teams, but that initial list of decent teams is longer (Ivory Coast, Nigeria, Egypt, Ghana)

I agree.

African teams aren't very good as a whole (they're the only confederation outside the pacific to never produce a world cup semi finalist) but they have strength in depth, the way north america doesn't.

You can tell because different people keeping winning the african nations, whereas it's always mexico or the usa in the gold cup.

 

[The Hibbert Agenda]

I agree.

African teams aren't very good as a whole (they're the only confederation outside the pacific to never produce a world cup semi finalist) but they have strength in depth, the way north america doesn't.

You can tell because different people keeping winning the african nations, whereas it's always mexico or the usa in the gold cup.

The failure of African football also is down to administrators and governments also- the teams massively underperform considering the players that feature.
When you consider that half of West Africa and the Arab countries have regular coups and no infrastructure, and that Ivory Coast constantly chop and change coaches, bringing in the latest unimpressive Bosnian ex-soviet coach fresh off being sacked from the Bahrain job, there's just no way for these teams to reach their deserved heights without miracles.
Whether this then justifies only having 5 slots, or whether increasing them by 1 or 2 would incentivise improvement, who's to say (its almost definitely the former).
But yeah.

 

[The Hibbert Agenda]

Tim Howard though!

(Sorry mods)

 

[jamesdawson]

he made a couple of mistakes saturday, but we got away with them. he is lucky barry was so alert, otherwise there'd be no hiding from them.

 

[Ruairi77]

Again mate, the point I made in the other thread was that World Cup Qualifying away at any of those places is just as hard as many European away matches. For some reason, many European based football fans just don't understand that. I'm not going to put that down to any sort of European bias. I'm going to put it down to that they just don't watch those matches and so they don't have an appreciation for how hard it is to play there, regardless of the quality of the team.

I've watched all these games and they are no different to going away to the likes of Turkey or Armenia. In Irelands case, the one automatic qualifying spot will be taken by Germany in this campaign. It was Italy in 2010, France 2006 etc. etc. CONCACAF qualifying is a far lower level than UEFA qualifying.
On the Howard thing. I'm always nervous. I was never nervous with Martyn or Southall. Thats what I want from an Everton Keeper. This isn't an Anti-US rant, I still think Donovan should be in the squad.

 

[pfim]

He had so many gaffes in that 18 months or so of bad play, every time he makes one it will be over-magnified.

I think he's become more assertive in the box in the past 12 months or so. His save on Ramires was uncommon. It's an area the club can improve but I don't think Robles is the answer. I would get used to Howard for the next two years or so.

 

[Housequake]

That god awful mistake aside thought he was sound, great save from Ramires and put Schurrle off enough.

3 clean sheets on the spin, he's doing sound for now.

 

[steken1]

That god awful mistake aside thought he was sound, great save from Ramires and put Schurrle off enough.

3 clean sheets on the spin, he's doing sound for now.

He's started well. I give him stick so I have to give him a bit of credit too.

He's been getting the ball to the FB and CB's quickly this season. I used to give him loads as being a terrible hoof merchant under Moyles. I always assumed it was his nervous disposition that made him always hoof it long. It appears that was a Moyes tactic.