The All Purpose Other Teams Thread - Pt. III (R)

Well Colombia looks like they are going to win the group. We win, we will be 2nd in our group and play the runner-up of group C. We could be headed to a Uruguay-Argentina game.

 

Im okay with that , would be a tasty game where we would have to leave it all on the freakin' pitch .

 

Multiculturalism is the buzzword of the age, but I think a tournament like the WC was founded in the principle of competition amongst nations - and by that I mean national cultures.

What happened to France last year I attribute precisely to this rampant scouting and nationalizing of foreigners. They didn't really give a shit, the tradition of Kopa, Fontaine, Platini, Giresse, Cantona, Zidane, etc. didn't mean anything to this group. Players like Evra, Abidal, Anelka, do they really know anything of French culture or is the being part of the French NT merely a nice ace card at the negotiating table?

 

It is a buzzword because globalization is real. It is possible to have more than one culture, you do know that, right? I do, and it does not make me any less German than the next guy...

What you are displaying are simply repressed signs of xenophobia. Welcome to the 21st century.

These kids were not scouted...most of them were born here, or moved here at a very early age and they came through a very successful German youth system. For the most part, it is the DFB that invested in them and trained them. In the end, some will go play for Turkey, Ghana or even the US. You win some and you lose some.

The fact that some of these kids have one of their parents that is not German is not their fault, and therefore, they should not be pushed aside simply because they aren't a particular Austrian's wet dream of 1939.

 

But come on Cris, you still have had players like Cacau and Kuranyi that had little to nothing with being German.

 

How do you know players of immigrant background like Evra and Co. don't know anything of French culture, but older players of immigrant backgrounds like Kopa, Platini, Zidane, and Cantona did? (You realize they all had foreign origins right?)

 

Just wanted to ask that too!^^

Btw I think you should just not generalize too much. In Germany for example we always had some pure-blooded German players giving a shit about the national team too. Bernd Schuster&Stefan Effenberg for example.

 

You are right, we have had some naturalized players in the past...and more than likely, may see a few others in the future as well. Most of us did disagree with Cacau's call-up but in the end that was Loew's choice and the DFB accepted this and FIFA approves. Cacau became a German citizen going through the proper channels and was not fast tracked.

Kuranyi had a German dad and a German grandfather.

But I get your point...I'm not happy about naturalized players with no ties on a national team either.

However, the point I was making was not the 1 or 2 players that come into the German team every 20 years or so, but the fact that the kids playing today, are actually German - even though their last name is not "Fritz" or "Moeller" or "Voeller", do not have blond hair and blue eyes, are not Protestant but Muslim and have a father that is from abroad.

As much as the older generations may not want to accept this - this is Germany today.

 

And I believe that your country will be all the better off as a result of it.

 

Not to mention their team will be better bc of it. I definitely think that this German generation - the crop who are 19-25 age are going to win a WC before they retire.

 

Watched a bit of the U17 final and it showed me a couple things.First time really watching or even following this tourney. These kids are very raw, their first touch and movement is really bad. I did not see much skill or talent from any of the teams in the tourney besides the Germans. The Germans I believe were the best side of the tourney. Brazil were sub-par at best, their "star" Lucas Piazon seems to be just hype.

Tim Vickery was right about the U17's, it's just really meaningless to label a star before or after this tourney. The U20's should give us a better sense on how the future holds up.

 

You remember the video that went viral last year, in which the NT physical trainer has a go at team captain Evra. You can see the difference between someone who truly cares for France's wounded pride...while Evra stands there completed unaffected. So you think he gives a shit?

Some countries are multicultural in their heritage, such as USA, Brazil, Argentina, Netherlands, France, England, etc. but to me countries like Spain, Italy and Germany are not. Italy iand Spain are doing the right thing by keeping their NT representative of their Latin heritage, the Germans will have to learn the hard way.

 

That phrase says it all. To you, perhaps, and that is all. Are you German? As Germans, we have accepted those that have lived here for so long participating in Germany's reconstruction after WWII as "guest workers". They have become a part of our identity even though they also embrace their own roots. Though not everyone in Germany, especially the older generation, may accept it...it is evidently clear that the next generation has, judging by all these German women having kids with them.

Germany became multi-cultural in the second half of last century. Does it make a difference that it didn't occur a century earlier or before? Because that seems to be your argument here.

To further your example of what you believe is a "traditional" nation of non-immigrants - let us not forget Brazil's Marco Senna. He was instrumental in the Euro's victory in 2008 for Spain. Their current unlimited talent, however, was able to allow them to continue this resolve in 2010 without him, ultimately crowning them as WC champions.

The hard way?

• Finalist in 2002
• 3rd place in 2006
• Finalists in 2008
• 3rd place in 2010

Not to mention the UEFA youth titles in;

• U21 in 2009
• U19 in 2008
• U17 in 2009

I also like what I saw in the U17 today by beating Brazil 4-3. Oh, sorry - I forgot - they are not "real" Germans, are they? What is a "real German" to you, if I may ask?

I apologize for the thread jack as this thread pertains to Copa America - feel free to start another thread here, or go to the German boards and start one, we welcome non-regular posters all the time or you may just PM me.

 

That's a fair point. However, Germany is about as multicultural as either France and England and has had a significant Turkish population for since the past 1/2 century, it's only recently that they've begun to acknowledge that, and I think in light of that, their national team makeup should change as well.

 

I wonder if this is the last time we see Mexico in the Copa. They were just as bad as the US in 2007. If they are not going to be permitted to bring their "A" team, then I guess there is not point. I doubt they will anyways because their priority will be the Gold Cup so they can get at ticket to the Confederations Cup. I doubt they want to continue this trend and get their butts handed to them like this again. But as I said from day 1, I am not a fan of other regions coming into our ground and playing this tourney.

 

I think it would be interesting to see the Gold cup and CA merged. Not going to happen of course, but would be cool nonetheless.

 

Are you kidding me? Yeah let Argentina beat Aruba 45-0 and Messi nets 35 of those goals, and let him pull a Chícharito or Landon Donovan . We do not need our players to stat pad. Thanks but no thanks. Nothing cool about that TKORL.

Oh, sorry about the rant .

 

Even if CONCACAF doesn't limit them, the clubs can still deny invitees the players, Arsenal didn't allow Vela to come, and that was the reason why Japan withdrew the majority of the european clubs didn't want to release the japanese players.

No point for us for that to happen.

 

It could be set up with an actual elimination, the way Concacaf does it with the minnows weeding out early on, before they even have a chance to be hammered by the strong sides.

 

Yes it could but then we would have to unify Concacaf and Conmebol into one Federation.

 

And still having 6 wouldn't bring anything it's too much. Having 2 is more than enough.

 

Well....by merging them, I meant the better teams from NA, like US, Mexico, Canada, maybe Trinidad - or whoever qualified to the WC last time around.

It would add a couple of decent teams and give the Copa two big TV audiences.

Anyways it's not going to happen.

 

Not going to happen indeed, but what I meant is that beyond Mexico, and from there United States and occasionally Costa Rica the rest don't bring anything to the table playing wise.

 

Anybody watching Brazil-Ecuador? Brazil looks like uninterested on the match. Remember that if they lose they're out, with this result they're in.

 

Ecuador just scored the equalizer.

1-1