Luka Modric interview on Football Focus

Shadydan · Feb 13, 2016

Nothing like a bit of hyperbole to get your point across, it's always the people who watched football in the 70s (the era where a lot of footballers were unfit nonetheless) have this complex of everything nostalgic was better than modern day including football players lol

Capocrimini · Feb 13, 2016

I love the old Hoddle videos, appreciate he is Mr Tottenham, and laud his outer worldly talent.

However being in my 20s and putting up with Nielsen, Freund, Sherwood, and Redknapp as our midfield stars for many a year, I can tell you Modric is without a doubt one of the GOAT CMs we have had. Never seen any of our midfielders boss games the way Carrick did, then after he fucked off Modric was another level. Left foot right foot, the swivels, the touch, the vision and the bite in his game was remarkable. Watching him and Thudd boss teams for a few months was precious.

Dickhead for wanting to go Cheslki but all is forgiven for his performance in his last season.

danielneeds · Feb 13, 2016

Shadydan said:
Nothing like a bit of hyperbole to get your point across, it's always the people who watched football in the 70s (the era where a lot of footballers were unfit nonetheless) have this complex of everything nostalgic was better than modern day including football players lol

That's just bollox. Sports science was not as advanced as it is these days, and the game was not as fast, but the top players in the 70s and 80s were very fit lads.

Comparing eras is always a fool's errand really, the game is constantly changing, in some ways it gets better, and in some ways it gets worse.

Spurger King · Feb 13, 2016

Shadydan said:
Nothing like a bit of hyperbole to get your point across, it's always the people who watched football in the 70s (the era where a lot of footballers were unfit nonetheless) have this complex of everything nostalgic was better than modern day including football players lol

Agreed. Obviously there were some incredibly gifted footballers in the 60s and 70s (and God knows how good they would be if they were given the fitness training of today), but it's a simple fact that since the 90s, when crazy money appeared in the sport, the general quality of top flight footballers is significantly higher. Better scouts, better youth coaching, a greater number of kids trying to become professionals - its inevitable that the cream of the crop filter through.

Shadydan · Feb 13, 2016

danielneeds said:
That's just bollox. Sports science was not as advanced as it isthese days, and the game was not as fast, but the top players in the 70s and 80s were very fit lads.

Comparing eras is always a fool's errand really, the game is constantly changing, in some ways it gets better, and in some ways it gets worse.

It's not bollox at all, a lot of footballers used to drink and smoke between matches, Geogre best was an alcoholic those times and he was amongst the top names in that era ffs and thus this is the point how can you compare players from now and yesteryear which such a damming verdict on who was the better players and not take into account that the fitness of those players wasn't as advanced as it is now. Ultimately the argument is flawed either way, my point is that people always tend to sway towards nostalgia when comparing era's without looking at the bigger picture.

danielneeds · Feb 13, 2016

Spurger King said:
Agreed. Obviously there were some incredibly gifted footballers in the 60s and 70s (and God knows how good they would be if they were given the fitness training of today), but it's a simple fact that since the 90s, when crazy money appeared in the sport, the general quality of top flight footballers is significantly higher. Better scouts, better youth coaching, a greater number of kids trying to become professionals - its inevitable that the cream of the crop filter through.

I'm not sure that is fact - the simple fact is that less kids in the developed world are playing as much as they did before because of computer games, and the various distractions. It's even starting to move into South America and other parts of the developing world.

danielneeds · Feb 13, 2016

Shadydan said:
It's not bollox at all, a lot of footballers used to drink and smoke between matches, Geogre best was an alcoholic those times and he was amongst the top names in that era ffs and thus this is the point how can you compare players from now and yesteryear which such a damming verdict on who was the better players and not take into account that the fitness of those players wasn't as advanced as it is now. Ultimately the argument is flawed either way, my point is that people always tend to sway towards nostalgia when comparing era's without looking at the bigger picture.

I'm talking about the quality of the player though, you can work on fitness in a pre-season and get fitter, as Poch has proved. Yes, the game it faster now and more tactically advanced, but that doesn't always equate to a higher quality player.

Oh yeah, and players still smoke and booze now, mate, don't think they don't.

monkeynick · Feb 13, 2016

diamond lights said:
I remember all these players and I think Modric was better than any of them. Different talents and strengths but Hoddle was so naturally gifted but looked better than he was as the game was so slow and we were shit most of the time. Great natural ability but not the hardest worker. Waddle was great for us for a season or two but I'd rather have Ginola. Gazza was potentially great but over rated (because he was English) by many for what he actually did. England were crying out for a star at the time and he came the closest to it but he wasted it so badly.
Bale was the best of the lot but I prefer the type of player Modric was for us - he made everyone around him better. To me Ardiles is the closest thing in our history that compares.

When I say our history I mean the last 40 years or so that I remember.

What's most mental about your slightly mental post is that any fool knows that Glenn Hoddle's amazing talent was hugely stifled by the era in which he played not enhanced as you mentally claim you bleedin mentalist

TwanYid · Feb 13, 2016

I hate Modric because he never loved us. Greatest footballer I've ever seen (yes, better than Bale), but a petulant little shit who wanted to fuck off to the blue scum in the worst way. I loathe him and Berbatov because the two of them always looked like they couldn't give a flying fuck about Tottenham, replete with that Eastern European, aloof, "you-mean-nothing-to-me"-way of carrying on.

Bale was like the pretty girl who actually did kind of like you- but whom you knew would eventually leave you for a richer guy- whereas Modric and Berbatov were like gorgeous prostitutes, both of whom fucked you well (you certainly got your money's worth) but who- as soon as the deed was done- got dressed and mosied the fuck on outta there.

At least Bale gave the appearance that he liked it at Spurs- that he cared. He faked it well. The other two didn't even try.

"No like Chicken Badge"- suck my dick.

Sevens · Feb 13, 2016

Spurger King said:
Agreed. Obviously there were some incredibly gifted footballers in the 60s and 70s (and God knows how good they would be if they were given the fitness training of today), but it's a simple fact that since the 90s, when crazy money appeared in the sport, the general quality of top flight footballers is significantly higher. Better scouts, better youth coaching, a greater number of kids trying to become professionals - its inevitable that the cream of the crop filter through.

No it's not a fact. What is a fact is watching players cross eras. And when that happens it makes a mockery of that "fact". Examples from the Premier League?

Sheringham was a better player at Millwall in the 1980's than he was at Spurs second time around in the 2000's. And yet in the 2000's he was still excellent for us.

Giggs made his debut in the early 90's and yet was a great player for Utd well into the 00's despite clearly not being anywhere near as good as he was in the 90's.

Gullit was well passed it by the time he arrived at Chelsea and yet was sensational. The same can be said for Vialli.

Carrick is still a regular for Utd and playing quite well. But he is passed his prime and not a patch on how good he was for us over 10 years ago (let alone at his peak at Utd). And yet in 2016 he is more than capable of holding his own still in the Premier League and still better than most Premier League midfielders even today.

Gordon Strachan, Stuart Pearce, Gary McAllister etc. I could go on and on with examples.

Spurger King · Feb 13, 2016

Shadydan said:
It's not bollox at all, a lot of footballers used to drink and smoke between matches, Geogre best was an alcoholic those times and he was amongst the top names in that era ffs and thus this is the point how can you compare players from now and yesteryear which such a damming verdict on who was the better players and not take into account that the fitness of those players wasn't as advanced as it is now. Ultimately the argument is flawed either way, my point is that people always tend to sway towards nostalgia when comparing era's without looking at the bigger picture.

I do wonder if there will come a point where things plateau (or maybe its already happened).

The way things are set up in world football, it's now incredibly difficult for gifted young players to slip through the net. Too many scouts and agents clamouring to find the next big talent for real ability to go unnoticed, and there's a cap on how fit a player can be that I think we've already reached.

I think it's easier to look to players from about 10 years ago (such as Zidane) and say they would clearly have the same impact today. Short of a significant drop in financial investment in football, I can't see the general quality we have now changing much over the next 10 or 20 years.

yankspurs · Feb 13, 2016

Hey Luka, come back. And bring Gareth with you. (y)

Spurger King · Feb 13, 2016

Sevens said:
No it's not a fact. What is a fact is watching players cross eras. And when that happens it makes a mockery of that "fact". Examples from the Premier League?

Sheringham was a better player at Millwall in the 1980's than he was at Spurs second time around in the 2000's. And yet in the 2000's he was still excellent for us.

Giggs made his debut in the early 90's and yet was a great player for Utd well into the 00's despite clearly not being anywhere near as good as he was in the 90's.

Gullit was well passed it by the time he arrived at Chelsea and yet was sensational. The same can be said for Vialli.

Carrick is still a regular for Utd and playing quite well. But he is passed his prime and not a patch on how good he was for us over 10 years ago (let alone at his peak at Utd). And yet in 2016 he is more than capable of holding his own still in the Premier League and still better than most Premier League midfielders even today.

Gordon Strachan, Stuart Pearce, Gary McAllister etc. I could go on and on with examples.

Well it is a Benitez fact really, because I wasn't talking about individuals but the overall quality of the opposition the greatest players were up against. The standard of the average player shot up when crazy money became involved. I've watched top flight matches from the 60s and 70s, and half the players look like pub team jokers.

Your example of Giggs actually sums it up perfectly. His quality didn't dip (actually, if anything it continued to improve until the last two or three seasons), but the quality of the opposition (due to the increased financial investment in football from the 90s onwards) meant he was playing against an increasingly higher quality of opponent.

Shearer was an outstanding footballer that would have been successful in any era, but stick the Blackburn Premier League winning team in the league today and they'd be mid-table at best.

danielneeds · Feb 13, 2016

Spurger King said:
Well it is a Benitez fact really, because I wasn't talking about individuals but the overall quality of the opposition the greatest players were up against. The standard of the average player shot up when crazy money became involved. I've watched top flight matches from the 60s and 70s, and half the players look like pub team jokers.

Your example of Giggs actually sums it up perfectly. His quality didn't dip (actually, if anything it continued to improve until the last two or three seasons), but the quality of the opposition (due to the increased financial investment in football from the 90s onwards) meant he was playing against an increasingly higher quality of opponent.

Shearer was an outstanding footballer that would have been successful in any era, but stick the Blackburn Premier League winning team in the league today and they'd be mid-table at best.

Actually the Blackburn team played very much like the Leicester team top of the league at the moment. A mixture or lower league players who came up together and play with a great spirit, augmented with some smart signings, and a striker on fire.

Spurger King · Feb 13, 2016

danielneeds said:
Actually the Blackburn team played very much like the Leicester team top of the league at the moment. A mixture or lower league players who came up together and play with a great spirit, augmented with some smart signings, and a striker on fire.

They'd get pissed on from a great height.

McFlash · Feb 13, 2016

As good a Modders was, and he was very good, I preferred watching Ginola.
That's not to say that he was a better player but because of the time, his style, my man-crush.
He got me out of my seat more than Modern did.

Shadydan · Feb 13, 2016

That Blackburn team are not a patch on Leicester or any team currently in the Prem, in an era where there was technical quality and tactical discipline that Blackburn team didn't need to have much team cohesion or patterns of play, they were very much your typical English side 4-4-2 with flying wingers and a powerful striker with a good midfield engine, in fact the only thing this Blackburn team have only many teams nowadays is their mentality, they had some match winners and captains in their side but as far as ability is concerned they don't match up.

Spurger King · Feb 13, 2016

Shadydan said:
That Blackburn team are not a patch on Leicester or any team currently in the Prem, in an era where there was technical quality and tactical discipline that Blackburn team didn't need to have much team cohesion or patterns of play, they were very much your typical English side 4-4-2 with flying wingers and a powerful striker with a good midfield engine, in fact the only thing this Blackburn team have only many teams nowadays is their mentality, they had some match winners and captains in their side but as far as ability is concerned they don't match up.

Plus they were basically the Man City of their day. An average nothing club that catapulted to success due to having a lot more money than their opponents.

I remember that season well and it was far from a 'plucky underdog comes good' story. They were minted compared to the other teams, and assembled the best team in the league that season. They were still average in comparison to today.

sirleytonbrisbane · Feb 13, 2016

For me he's up there with Hod and Gazzaas the best midfielder I've seen play for us.

Was great having him Rafa and Gareth in the same team

Also used to love it when the Croatians got frustrated with the rest of the team knocked around to each other.

danielneeds · Feb 13, 2016

Spurger King said:
Plus they were basically the Man City of their day. An average nothing club that catapulted to success due to having a lot more money than their opponents.

I remember that season well and it was far from a 'plucky underdog comes good' story. They were minted compared to the other teams, and assembled the best team in the league that season. They were still average in comparison to today.

They may have spent a bit of money on Shearer, Sutton, Flowers and Batty, but the rest of their side was cheap as chips. Le Saux, Sherwood, Ripley, Henning Berg, Wilcox, Gale, Hendry. If only we had spent our money so wisely in the early 90s, we wasted far more than they spent to "buy" the title.

Forums

What's new

Matches

Sportsbook

Members

Luka Modric interview on Football Focus

Well-Known Member

Well-Known Member

Kick-Ass

can't smile without glue

Well-Known Member

Kick-Ass

Kick-Ass

Well-Known Member

Well-Known Member

Well-Known Member

can't smile without glue

Enic Out

can't smile without glue

Kick-Ass

can't smile without glue

In the corner, eating crayons.

Well-Known Member

can't smile without glue

Active Member

Kick-Ass

Similar threads