Dude, what the hell is your argument??? You are all over the place... What is it? That Argentina aren't that bad? Of course they are not - you guys had a bad day and your manager sucks. Stop posting rants...
Has the Argentine national organization done what it can to help the team perform? Just having a bunch of pampered prima donnas swear an oath isn't enough these days.
The pampering only came at Diego's expense. Place the blame on the coach not the players. AFA? They're the elephant in the room that caused this whole drama.
I'm not insulting the players, it's just an observation - they get treated like kings, they know since childhood that they've got godlike talent. Morale makes a big difference in turning a bunch of players into a team. What did the AFA do to make them unhappy? I heard some gossip that they put them into a fleabag hotel, is that true? How can you expect guys like Messi to put up with that, oath or no oath?
Although I can see the blame pointing at Maradona for this world cup... who should Argentina blame for the other ones? Bilardo? Basile? Passarella? Bielsa? Pekerman? At some point you need to start looking elsewhere for answers. AFA needs new leaders... Grondona has been unable to provide the right environment. Also, teams should look at a new business model that doesn't put the sale of young future stars as the main source of revenue. They leave so young, that by the time they get back to the national team, it becomes more of a "mercenary" mentality to it. You get the best hired guns... masters at their craft, who will play for themselves or by themselves rather than the group.
A few things I want to add. First I want to reply to that Argentina fan who said Germany aren't better just because they scored in counter attacks. First goal was not a counter. Second goal, again not exactly. Third goal...obviously not. Fourth goal is the only goal that was a counter attack goal. With that said, even if they were all counters...so what? Why are you ignoring the great German defense that easily kept out Di Maria, Tevez and Messi? I'm proud of the defenders, incredible. Di Maria was totally invisible when he was playing on the same side with Lahm, then when they switched him to Boateng's side, he got a little better. Still, those shots were pathetic and it's because how good the defenders held their own. Yes, we were better than Argentina in every single way. Even player by player. Ozil not only is absolutely fantastic for his club, but he is just as incredible for the NT. Can Messi say that? Noway. I'm proud of our youngsters, no other team has played better than we have and if we don't win the world cup that will be criminal. Still I won't be disappointed, 4-0 against Argentina in the world cup? Who else can say that? That is all.
I know. I don't think I said you did insult the players? Blame that 'kingship' attitude because of Diego's leisurely attitude. I don't remember any of this during Bielsa or Pekermen's tenure. I really don't think the players care about luxuries, other than winning the trophy. I think all athletes are like that, the Germans get treated with their high price pay cheques and wives. I think it's a little unfair to paint a picture of the entire Argentina squad as primma donna's, especially knowing they haven't won anything to deserve that elite title. Afa: Some old guy who is a kingpin and smokes his cigars in his third century of life has trouble making decisions and letting go of his nice little seat. He's too old to make decisions or solve matters off the pitch, like having players quit on him. It starts from the top. I think the Argentine public are too proud or maybe egocentric to admit that things are wrong? I'm not really sure, Argentine football is a strange thing. I think now with all these defeats, lines of communication will finally start happening. Right now nothing is going to happen, but when the weeks come, you might see a new attitude and change. At the moment, we still have Diego as coach. I agree with all your arguments and statements. I'm known as a whiner in that regard, but all my complaints fall on deaf years. I agree, something has to be done. An initiative has to be taken or we'll just get repeats after repeats. There's no problem with Argentine players talent. There's another problem, that people need to look in the mirror first and admit it. edit: I think Pekerman was a perfect coach. He started from the youth, groomed his players and played tactical acumen football. Even a year after his departure, the side that he composed was still kicking bubble gum and taking names well into 2007. That's how good his 'touch' was.
Argentina was outcoached, plain and simple. They never had a chance. I'm actually glad - not just because some Argentines rejoiced when Brazil was eliminated, but also because Maradona isn't a real manager, and it would've been a travesty of justice for him to get far. I actually have no personal animus against him - but I think managers like Joachim Low or Dunga (or even Marcelo Bielsa) deserve more than he does as they are actual coaches. Thank you Germany for showing the world that it does no good to get a past hero without real coaching credentials. Hopefully for Argentina, they'll pick a real manager for their future rather than someone who arouses more passion and less logic.
Nonsense. Dunga's system was flawed, but it yielded results: the 2007 Copa America, the 2009 Confeds Cup, 1st place in CONMEBOL WCQ (with away wins in Uruguay, Argentina, and Chile), and friendly match victories against Argentina, England, Italy, and Portugal. Moreover, Elano was out with a terrible injury, and Ramires was suspended. Elano was a key player for Dunga and an absolute starter; Ramires was a dynamic player who offered spark and speed. Had both been available, Felipe Melo would have been on the bench. Holland may still have won, but Brazil wouldn't have imploded, and the first-half domination vs. the Dutch may have continued. Maradona's only achievement was, other than getting his team to South Africa, deploying a side that played admittedly exciting and vivacious attacking soccer. I don't agree with some of Diego's selections, but please don't compare Maradona and Dunga. Dunga may get a job in Europe - do you think Maradona will get a job offer?
If anyone is going to get that nitpicky, we can easily turn to Argentina for examples. Heinze is of German ancestry. Does this make him less Argentine? What about Batistuta, Zanetti, who were both of Italian heritage? The players were born and raised in the given country - end of story.
Indeed. It would've been pointless for the Argentine players to start any confusion or for them to misbehave. Losing happens. Furthermore, there was some trash talk before the match, and everyone watching vividly remembered the brawl 4 years ago. No need for fights.
Yep. I give them a kudos for behaving this way after the incident from 2006. About the game: Apparently, Löw just bluffed Maradona in the Munich friendly ) ... knowing that we might be facing each other at the WC again. This time, it was Mr. Löw who tactically clearly outplayed Diegito. Kudos to him & the young team (which we can be very proud of), I'm still speechless. Who'd have just dared dreaming of such a shocking result against a squad like Argentina (not even conceding 1 goal against their top strikers)? And it's not just the result but also the way we dominated them for 60 minutes. To be honest, I never thought this would be possible ... but well, as we know our guys can be pretty crap on a bad day, but also outstanding on a good day. When I saw the video clip with them leaving the last training session singing, I knew they might have a good day ... nevertheless, only the most optimistic Germany fans could have believed in what happened later on. Simply incredible!
It happens all the time with us and our Cricket team as well. Truth is, it doesn't matter, the same people who whinge about where a player is from in sporting terms are the same that harp on about having a multicultural society. If we're going to have a diverse country, we may as well make it work for us! We live in a multi national world.
Gullit never was coach of Holland. Rijkaard was and he wasn't that bad with a half final at Euro 2000. It was not his fault Holland missed 2 penalty's in regular time and on top of that 3 in the shootout. v Basten had actually a great winning record and was not a flop in my view. Didn't do it great either. Something in the middle I guess.
It's funny that the thread is about discussing Germany-Argentina match but all of sudden it turned into a completely different topic.