I was playing football in Dublin and a shot did the opposite, went through a hole at the base of the post.

Keeper stood up and went "went wide, goal kick" and the ref accepted it.

The next corner, two blokes shoulder barged him and the ball into the back of the net.

There was another thread elsewhere on this. Apparently there's precedent for it in the Bundesliga.

Stefan Kiessling, incidentally, is one of my more favourite neutral players. Really good record for Leverkusen and watched him absolutely boss an England U-21 side in the mid-2000s.

No idea, but if black footballers in the UK think the doors are closed with regards to becoming coach/manager, whether real or imagined, something needs to be done. I think the "currently 30 % of footballers are black" is a bit of a misleading stat as the average manager is going to have ...

I'm just assuming a level of self-consistency that is, yes (chuckles), a bit naive.

I am all for making the number of teams that qualify from around the world fairer...even if that means Europe loses a few spots..... To make it more representative of the 'better' teams as recorded by FIFA rankings, then you'd have more European spots, not less. If you wanted to remove European tea...

soggy biscuit

stealthpapes I'm not sure that 2020 is a nonsense just yet. I think Soggy and I had similar opinions - its different, it might work, let's not jump on it just yet.

yep. irrespective of how they won it, I think Qatar WC could be pretty skillz.

2020 is the proposed multicity Euros, 2022 is Qatar.

I'm not sure that 2020 is a nonsense just yet. I think Soggy and I had similar opinions - its different, it might work, let's not jump on it just yet.


BUT

there are reasons why a 24 team Euros and a 40 team World Cup would be shite. There just aren't that many good teams to justify it.

I'm honestly never sure what to make of these. It's an agreement that isn't set in stone.

If it goes in, it's a goal. Fortunately for the ref, he found a way of disallowing it.

I was reading that Shawcross got booked post-game and Mark Hughes questioning it.

Simple answer, Mark, yes, the referee can do that. And its possibly the nearest Shawcross has coem to winning the ball cleanly in his career.

No-one really knows.

The winner was one of those where you can see exactly what's going to happen just before it happens.

just some bloke Let's settle this once and for all with a simple question:

What would you rather have on your chest? Thee big fucking excellent rampant lions or a bloody chicken?

Riddle me that one, bloody Francophiles.

papereyes, HNA?s #1 Francophile.

Trying to remember the world cup final England got to. Nope. Struggling.

If a ref stops a game, does it always end in a draw? I think that might be one for PaultheRef. I would reckon that its down to the specific rules of the competition and the reasons for the cancellation. But, trying to think of an example, when has a referee stopped a game and it been given as a dra...

I can also dig out the correct paperwork to arrange a FA approved fund raising barbeque/summer fair for an amateur club. That was a particularly enthralling 30 minute group session.

Ref should stop the game? Team losing badly, fans just get all racist. Game stopped, draw. Not should, can. It's part of Law 5 and backed up by a UEFA Executive Comittee resolution from 2009. I can dig it out now, or I can dig it out of the 'coaching course stuff that I'm never going to use again' ...

It's a little bit more complicated than that. I'd imagine it will get lawyered again.

I would suggest that if the ref decides to stop the game for those circumstances, the scoreline would be an irrelevence.

TBM Back again....Man Citys game at CSKA

I'm guessing Jason Roberts has commented on this?

btw, saying the ref should be banned is a tad harsh - should it really be his job to try and stop the chants?

While I agree, it is within his power to stop the game.

CSKA's officials were probably joining in

No Fixed Abode

Nameless All depends on definition of 'elite'.

International footballers are by definition 'elite', but is Lampard in the class of Ronaldo, Messi, Zidane, Maradona, Pele, Cruyff ? No.

Different type of player.

yeah, not as good.