PBP Match Thread: Nigeria vs Argentina, 26 June 2018 [R]

That’s a good point about timekeeping. VAR definitely adds to injury time, but I’m not sure it did here

 

True.

 

One of these days this Argentina team is going to kill Dieguito. His bobo, weakened by la falopa, is gonna stop beating, and he's gonna be left tieso como un pajarito.

https://www.stuff.co.nz/sport/footb...ego-maradona-says-hes-fine-after-his-collapse

 

Look I'm gutted at the loss but our players only have themselves to blame. Ighalo misses a golden opportunity after the Rojo handball, doesn't even hit the net. He scores that and its game over Argentina. Pathetic miss for a striker so often critisized. I hope his national team career is done, it should be.

1st half Argentina just seemed to want it more and again we came out kind of flat. We had control for a decent portion of the second half bit failed to put the sword into Argentina, who were the better team overall.

Stop complaining about the ref. He wasn't perfect, but he was far from being that biased.

Personally I think the penalty we were awarded was kind of soft, but Mascherano was holding. Worse offences haven't been called this world cup but also softer ones have been given. I'm really getting sick of all these penalties tbh, I think it takes away from the game unless its a clear goal scoring opportunity. Rojo handball was not a penalty, clearly ball to hand, and again we got a sitter out od the play that Moron Ighalo didn't finish. The other kick to the head was after he got the ball, so no penalty either. Really I hate soft PKS, even for my team, it really ruins the sport.

We did not get robbed by the ref. If he was really out to get us he wouldn't have awarded us that first penalty which was 50/50 IMO. He certainly wasn't going to give us 2 soft ones.

We simply failed to put Argentina away squandering a sitter and multiple dangerous counter attacks which were ill coordinated.

If you want to see who got robbed look at Morocco. Daylight robbery against both Spain and Portugal. They got complaints against the refs, we don't.

But I will fault the ref on only 4 minutes added time when ot should have been at least 6 or 7.

But overall we got the better calls overall in the match and we had clear chances to progress and we failed. No one to blame but our coach and players if we are being honest.

 

I think there's a case for Mascherano penalty because that foul would've been given let's say at the midfield... yeah, it was soft, but idiotic for masche for grabbing him even if that didn't made him fall.

Rojo's handball was awful defending, he gave the attacker a gift to score, but that was no penalty.

I made the same observation regarding the injury time (and was relieved at the time) precisely because before the goal by Rojo we were hoping/demanding at least 5 or 6 minutes be added (mainly bc of the penalty and time wasted on VAR checking), so we also agree there.

 

I guess you'd have to ask a European over the age of about 50 but from an outsider's point of view, the level of nationalism from the populace has definitely been on the decline for several decades now.

And it's by design, too. The creation of the EU and the UN and other similar bodies have helped in that regard.

Overall, it's a good thing. Nationalism kept Europe in constant war for a couple of thousand years. After WWII, they finally figured out that if they kept that up, they might destroy humanity. So they stopped.

These things translate over to national team support, IMO.

 

I agree with most of you said and, in particular, I share your view that soft penalties should not decide games. The truth is that there is usually a lot of contact in the box and if you call all of them penalties, you will have 4-5 penalties in each game. With VAR, however, things have become even more arbitrary since some incidents that can be called a penalty technically are being reviewed and often awarded as such, while others are being ignored. While I don't think the pattern from VAR has been entirely coherent and one-sided in favor of the big teams, the whole thing is beginning to risk turning football into a choreographed sport where others can decide who wins and loses using VAR to decide games.

Many have reacted negatively to my suggestion regarding fouls in the box that don't involve stopping a dangerous play from being developed, but I am even more adamant that I what is needed now than before. Basically, I do not agree that a penalty (a 70% goal) should be awarded for all infractions in the box. Instead, penalties should be reserved for infractions which deny a dangerous chance to be developed or converted, while other infractions should be penalized by awarding indirect free-kicks in the box instead of a penalty. Otherwise, the game of football can easily become one which is decided by the referee and those who control VAR as I doubt there will be any close games which won't involve 4-5 incidents that cannot (if someone wants to focus on them) be called penalties depending on what kind of a result you want to choreograph and see.

 

Argentina could go far if they start to play as a team. The best thing about Argentina so far is their Hinchas and their unwavering passion for the Albiceleste. Good luck against France

 

Maybe somebody should do a courtesy call and check up on him.

 

In Saint Petersburg the experience has been fantastic for fans of all NTs. The locals have been amazing.

You really shouldn’t let the posters in this forum, many of them with overt agendas, keep you from something special like the WC.

Although not as big in numbers, there was a good contingent for Nigeria over here.

 

Thanks for this post.

Let’s be gracious this time.

 

If I wasn't gracious, I wouldn't have asked for somebody to check up on him. Not to mention, I could've easily bumped my post about Nigeria not beating us in a World Cup and that wasn't going to change.

 

I agree with u 100% IM

In fact I was going to open a thread about this.

PKS are ruining the game IMO.

Pks should be only for clear goal scoring opportunities denied in the box.

Any other fouls in the box should be an indirect free kick.

Look at those 2 joke of a penalty Saudis got against Egypt.

The penalty we gave away to Iceland. I agree it was a foul in the box, but that player was nowhere near our goal and there was absolutely no danger. He was actually running AWAY from our goal when he was fouled. Does that nonsense really deserve a PK?

Ill even go one step further in how O think the rules should apply. If a clear chance is prevented by a foul in the box, the penalty should HAVE TO BE TAKEN by the player who got fouled.