PT Barnum may have been right 150 years ago, but The Greatest Show on Earth these days gets underway this afternoon, despite the shameful corruption displayed by Fifa. By comparison, the Olympics is a sideshow. My first experience of the World Cup was watching Scotland play Zaire in 1974. For 20-odd years the tournament had participation value for Scotland, even if the joy of being there was short lived.
These days the joy is all about being a neutral football fan and soaking up the drama and brilliance from the game.
Statistically it is difficult to look past Brazil, who will benefit enormously from home advantage. European teams have never won the tournament in the Americans, where Brazil and Argentina have won every competition since Uruguay triumphed in the last time the tournament was held in Brazil 64 years ago.
Leo Time
Lionel Messi was, until recent times, the undisputed best player on the planet, but his position in the all-time greatest list is in considerable dispute. Ask an older Barcelona fan, who has watched Cruyff, Maradona Ronaldo and Messi all do their stuff at the Camp Nou, and they are likely to tell you Leo is by far the better player. His stats as a striker bear this out, but ask an Argentinean, and he’ll scarcely get a mention in the same breath as Diego. There is not even a debate that Messi is the greatest Argentine.
After giving a spectacular display of goal-scoring prowess in 1982, then 25-year-old Diego Maradona singlehandedly led Argentina to their second World Cup in 1986 and back to the final four years later. By Comparison, 26-year-old Messi has looked comparatively pedestrian in his two previous tournaments. He’ll be 30 by the time of the next tournament, which will be held in the completely different environment of Russia. If Messi is to be considered an all-time great, he needs to take Argentina to the final. If his career ends without an outstanding World Cup, he’ll slip somewhere between Eusabio and Cruyff in the list.
I’d like Belgium to win. Belgian clubs and FA go about their business correctly and brought a remarkable bounty of talent to Brazil. It’s always been easy to back Brazil but I’m still not over the Neymar thing. The guy is an abomination in the Brazil No. 10 shirt, a vastly over-rated charlatan. Anyone but Neymar, please.
Bertie Auld live chat, tomorrow, 1pm, on CQN. Be there.
Visit the CQN Bookstore to get Tommy Gemmell to sign your personal copy of his tome, All the Best.
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THEGLASGOWCELTICWAY
Ultimate sanction!
Better one would be that if he disnae behave,he disnae get any lemonade and crisps while he’s standing outside the pub.
I hope the fitba’s better than this sh*te, I’m even considering watching Eastenders!
These ceremonies are a waste of time and money,just get the gemme oan ….
estadio
haha, I was saying exactly the same to my missus, though not quite as eloquently.
Could that wee Childs munchkin guy have blown any more sunshine up Cannavaro’s erse ?
Then they bring on that dick Wright. Enough for me
And just to think….they rehearsed this.
3 times.
Hail hail
Estadio
BMCUW
Aye, good idea, tell him I was asking for him..
Mind you the young eligible lady in the emerald green had nice armpits.
Hail hail
Estadio
Is that our Doc in the Brazil tap on
Preacepta, the Glasgow Uni Vet school is on that site at The Switchback Road side so I would assume the Uni owns all the land between the Vet School entrance and that from the Killermont side.
Thems used to train there, Strathclyde Uni playing fields at Millerston/Stepps, Jordanhill College and at Polloc cricket ground near Crossmyloof.
A friend of mine stayed on Darnley Street near Crossmyloof. He went along to watch thems train at the cricket club. He said it wasn’t exactly training or coaching. The alleged coaching staff just shouted abuse at the players. My pal told me the abuse given to Chic Young by the legned & Knox was tame compared to that dished out to the players.
If sevco do start using it,I hope it’s on a cash up front basis.
The shambles that is betfair.com
Promotion – place a world cup outright and receive a free £5 bet on every Brazil group match.
I do so on Tuesday, realise the freebie has not been credited, contact them, get a reassurance the promo bets will be applied 48 hours befroe k-o.
Nothing.
Today a mail saying they were having ‘technical difficulties’ and staff would manually be going thru accounts and applying promo bets.
90 mins to kick off, still nothing. Great.
Avoid.
Well, I suppose I’d better shower and go find a pub with the game on. 3 0.
Left the room for 15 minutes but came back in to some far more pleasant sights ;-)
TWISTS N TURNS
I’ll do that,mate.
Enjoy the pub.
When’s that run if yours that you’re in training for,btw?
Hope J LO was well wade in for that p#sh!!!!
Monteblanco – There is one issue with the tv link. I use chromecast to broadcast internet tv to my big screen. Your buddy’s service uses the same DNS proxy server as chromecast so they won’t work together. Any wireless configuration guru’s out there know how to get round this?
Jay lo regretting taking part I think.
BMCUWP
Been keeping a packet of “Salt and Shake” for just such an occasion.
Evening all
Just watched the BBC Wales documentary on John Hartson.
Very emotional stuff and thoroughly recommended – expect its available on BBC iplayer.
Cannae wait……… Celebrity master chef on in 15 mins …
Think I’ll follow tallybhoy’s advice an watch the golf till 9:00
Turned on STV for the football
Brazils got talent on first
When’s simon cowbell gonna hit the buzzer and get the screeching cow off with the baldy weirdo in the Brazil shirt and daft troosers
J-Lo’s camel toe the highlight so far.
BMCUW
Ach had to go on hold mate. Waiting on hernia op. Have to go private, NHS won’t treat me. Not serious enough! Will get op after I get back from holiday.
God bless HD.
Who are Sterling and Wellbeck?…and who cares!
Dallas Dallas – those uni pitches are well known to sevco – their previous incarnation used it for their youth games hh
Most of Tajikistan’s population belong to the Tajik ethnic group, who speak Tajik which is similar to Dari (spoken in Afghanistan) and Persian (spoken in Iran).
This fascinating fact comes from simply searching for ‘why pistachio nuts are salty’ and then hitting he wrong key.
If this is God’s plan then I have to have a serious word with his mammy. Unfortunately she is not available at the moment as she is currently kicking twelve levels of shite out of the telly.
Hail hail
Estadio
gary67
19:24 on 12 June, 2014
Did Mrs Chiles no gie him the bum’s rush when he was all over the ole’ Unionist tart off the One Show??
Nae wummin wid pit up wi that – amazed she put up wi him at aw.
squire danahar –
watched Big John’s programme last night and loved it. A couple of great one liners from Martin O’Neill, my favourite being along the lines of “Hey John, get warmed up I’m taking you off”!
My eight year old just asked “Why do they keep talking about England?” 4 weeks to go…
Excellent Opening Ceremony…….don’t tell me we need to listen to them talking about England for the next hour ….aaaarrrrggggghhh
Meansong
Missed it
U got a link :-p
Fabio Cannavarro just mentioned Montilivo (sp) in the Italian midfield. I thought he broke his leg last weeK?!
Great t-shirt, WGS, lol.
Wee Gordon about to speak…
Tonight’s game…Brazil against Croatia.
Never mind! Let’s talk about England…and let’s talk about the likelihood of me scratching my erse and finding a diamond caught in my classically guitar trained filed nails.
Mind you I did have a unimaginably brilliant diamond and lettuce salad for breakfast.
And now we have Glenn Hoddle talking about a previous existence.
Go on Gordon, kick the feck out of them
Hail hail
Estadio
‘ for you lot again’ :-)
Go on the Strach.
Hail Hail
Estadio
Times like this im glad i get RTE
Wee Gord is a wee legend… the rest are complete gimps
Wish Roy Keane was there to tell them England are s****.