How would you rate your football knowledge?

[EireYid]

So just on the back of some of the players we're being linked to or have signed, I'm curious to know how far people's knowledge of football goes outside of the Premier League/Spurs.

Personally for me over the last few years, I only watch Spurs matches, and some of the bigger games. Other than that, I will sometimes catch quick 3-4 minute highlights of other matches just to see the goals etc.

Outside the Premier League, apart from the Champions League I couldn't tell you what goes on in other leagues and especially with players unless they're HUGE (Haaland, Mbappe etc). I remember I used to be big into watching Barcelona back in Guardiola days with Revista De La Liga on Sky Sports. That team will go down as the best footballing team I'll I ever watch I'm sure of it.

Anyway, outside of Spurs, how far do your own football knowledge expand?

 

[hughy]

I'll watch all Premier League games and keep up with results, highlights and the odd live game from La Liga and the Championship. I have a limited amount of knowledge on the other 3 big leagues (Bundesliga, Ligue 1, Serie A) but that's mainly due to browsing r/soccer.

Any other countries I have literally no clue about unless it's the odd Eredivisie, Scottish Prem or Liga NOS player who are over-performing or moved there from the Prem.

I get that people literally spend their entire lives watching football, but I genuinely don't believe people have an encyclopedic knowledge on every single player in world football like some seem to claim.

 

[Marty]

I am a sports studio director for a TV station that has the rights to the World Cup, Euros, PL, CL and La Liga, up until recently had Serie A and EL, and after a six year spell without it regain all domestic Norwegian rights in 18 months.

It's kind of my job to be almost as informed as the people in our studios. As such if I didn't consider myself as having pretty extensive knowledge I'd be in the wrong job.

 

[Blake Griffin]

i'm going to sound like a right dick here but my belief is that the vast majority of those claiming to have extensive(or even any) knowledge of the likes of gollini, gil, tomiyasu, romero, vlahovic etc are chatting absolute breeze. <1% of people on this site will have watched any of those players for a full 90 minutes, most wouldn't have even been able to tell you what club they played for before we were linked so i'd take most of what you read on here with a large grain of salt. there are a few posters on here whose knowledge of foreign football i respect and believe but they are a minority.

i myself have watched a few obscure games/leagues from time to time and i follow the youth sides almost as much as the first team so i'm not saying that no one watches games outside of the premier league ever but i don't believe that half of sc are in the habit of sitting down to catch bologna vs atalanta on a sunday afternoon either, sorry. stats and youtube do a decent job of giving an overview of a player but it's incomparable to having watched said player in game over an extended period of time.

 

[spursfan77]

Yeah I used to be pretty switched on when I was younger and had the time to watch more games and play football manager but now I’m pretty useless and I agree with the OP that the players we are linked with I know little about.

Frustrating as it is best to have your own opinion but that is where SC comes in to play. Without this place the resources to find out the players would be scarce for me.

 

[Hazelton]

I would say my insight into the game is good, in terms of seeing what's happening on the pitch. However my football knowledge is terrible now, I don't know any of these players we're linked to nowadays. I used to watch every league and know every player a decade or so ago but now I only watch Spurs and I barely even enjoy that.

So yeah, in summary, I probably know fuck all.

 

[BehindEnemyLines]

I can't even remember the names of half our players, let alone spell them.........so, I reckon I'm about average for the membership of this messageboard.

Having said that, I'm fucking excited for the signings of Gollini, Takemitsu, and Romeo - I'm telling you, they are all frigging amazing and will be world beaters!

 

[Japhet]

I'd say 'outdated' describes mine. I tend to watch our matches and occasional high profile foreign matches. I don't play Fifa or anything like that (or any other computer games for that matter) and don't have much interest in stats or any of that stuff.

 

[bigfrooj]

Another outdated here too. Once had an idiot savant level knowledge of Spurs, Spurs youth and English football but now just an idiot. Really shakes you when you realise there is more to life!

 

[barry]

I watch Spurs games, other big prem games, and a lot of YouTube highlights of the players we're linked to so I'm uber knowledgeable.

 

[HNIM]

Nonexistent.

 

[kr1978]

Same as most on here I expect, I know the big names in Europe and that’s about it, mainly from champions league.
I think a lot of the ones who claim to know loads about all these different players probably play a lot of football manager and are going off that.

 

[ILS]

When I was younger I would back myself in a quiz against anyone in respect of footballing knowledge as I was a nerd. The amounts of books I still have and football shows I watched between the age of 6 -12 years old was ridiculous. It use to wind my Father up, as I can remember utter pointless football stats but not School work.

Some of the more random stats I knew were for example; Danny Wilson ex Sheff Wed manager is born on 1st Jan 1960 and he was a 364 days older then Steve Bruce was born on 31st Dec 1960... Looking back it's like who gives a shit..but I did for some reason....Brian Marwood wore size 5 boots.

Once I met my wife I started to calm down a bit, although was still obsessed and then the kids came along but i still watched alot of football. Then about three years ago I just started to get bored with it. Apart from spurs matches which my whole life revolves around including missing my kids football matches to watch spurs, I don't watch much football at all anymore.

Take the pre season matches. I was the sad bastard who stayed up all hours to watch us in the States or Asia etc and now I watched about 15 mins of the Colchester match. I'm losing the love slowly.

As for other football around the world, the day La Liga went off Sky was the day I gave up on that. I watch the Bundesliga highlights programme but apart from that not much else.

 

[taidgh]

i'm going to sound like a right dick here but my belief is that the vast majority of those claiming to have extensive(or even any) knowledge of the likes of gollini, gil, tomiyasu, romero, vlahovic etc are chatting absolute breeze. <1% of people on this site will have watched any of those players for a full 90 minutes, most wouldn't have even been able to tell you what club they played for before we were linked so i'd take most of what you read on here with a large grain of salt. there are a few posters on here whose knowledge of foreign football i respect and believe but they are a minority.

i myself have watched a few obscure games/leagues from time to time and i follow the youth sides almost as much as the first team so i'm not saying that no one watches games outside of the premier league ever but i don't believe that half of sc are in the habit of sitting down to catch bologna vs atalanta on a sunday afternoon either, sorry. stats and youtube do a decent job of giving an overview of a player but it's incomparable to having watched said player in game over an extended period of time.

I would put good money on the knowledge of all those experts on foreign leagues being based almost exclusively on fifa and/or football manager.

 

[Serpico]

This is an insight to my football knowledge brain. Romano / Romero which one are we signing?

 

[Romario]

This is an insight to my football knowledge brain. Romano / Romero which one are we signing?

Romario says we are signing Romero not Romano, hope that doesn't confuse you more my friend.

 

[Serpico]

Romario says we are signing Romero not Romano, hope that doesn't confuse you more my friend.

So who is signing Fabrizio Romano?

 

[Romario]

So who is signing Fabrizio Romano?

Nobody, he is not a footballer but an Italian Journalist.

 

[aliyid]

It’s now got to the point where I don’t know and have never heard of any of the players we’re linked to but trust that people making the decisions do.

I’m naive enough to believe that I can read the game and see patterns of play better than most (then again I disagree with virtually every mainstream pundit so I could be very wrong there).

 

[easley91]

I try to be clued up. Mostly English based. But (And I know people joke about it) Football Manager helps me learn about other players when I can't watch them on a regular basis.

I have gotten better and understanding tactics and that sort of stuff. I tend to watch more for that now (especially non Spurs games) and off the ball movement.

Even if I disagree with decisions, I can at least understand why a manager picks a certain player or system (Trippier at LB for example).