FIFA World Cup 2018

[Chris2K]

I'm going to assume Ronaldo is the first man to score a hat-trick in the World Cup on the same day they were sentenced to a suspended jail term?

[FLiam]

This was my friends’ group chat as Ronaldo was lining that free-kick up:

Spoiler

I’ll go into hiding.

[Kaney]

Hahaha, Iran are top of the group!

[GA!]

2 minutes ago, Rich said:

BEST IN THE WORLD

(Except Clive Mendonca)

YES!!!

 

If there's a game better than that to come, this will be a cracking tournament.

[Bobfoc]

That's what I want to see in a World Cup game. I thought it would be a cagey war of attrition, but I'm glad to have seen a game of quality attacking play.

[MDK]

Just now, Spainanite said:

Hahaha, Iran are top of the group!

I fancy them Tehran away with it.

[GoN_]

So after this match, do we get a little more love from EWB?

[MDK]

Just now, GoN_ said:

So after this match, do we get a little more love from EWB?

*winks*

No.

[Rich]

I bloody love football.

(right now)

[Liam]

 

It made me chuckle.

[TCO]

My goodness what a game! Ronaldo never ceases to amaze. 

Also did anybody notice that he took the free kick completely differently to how he normally does? He usually knuckle balls the shit out of it and it flies into the wall or over the bar. The man is so technically gifted and he takes his free kicks in a way that has a ridiculousl level of difficulty and low success rate. Just step up and put it in top corner, you're Cristiano Ronaldo!

[Arjen Robben]

Still not having him as the GOAT. 

[The Lusophone]

5 minutes ago, Arjen Robben said:

Still not having him as the GOAT. 

Tbh until either one of them wins a World Cup its still Pele. >_>

[Arjen Robben]

Messi for me regardless. I don't really buy the idea that someone has to win the World Cup anymore. Honours are important but I think you have to judge them by their ability. Most boring debate in the world comparing these two since they're both amazing, I know, but I really don't think I've ever seen anyone like Messi where he can pick up the ball on the halfway line and he has my full attention because I fully believe he could be about to do something special, every single time he picks up the ball. Ronaldo has those moments of doing special things but I don't get the feeling that he's about to do something special when he picks up the ball, he'll just pop up with moments occasionally like that overhead kick against Juventus. Even his hat trick tonight was a penalty, a mistake by De Gea and a free kick. Great free kick obviously, but then so was Golovin's yesterday, but it's not like three incredible moments of brilliance out of absolutely nothing. 

I don't imagine him coming on 2-0 down to Sevilla and changing a game entirely and ending up with a 2-2. I do find it well annoying when I start getting like "but Messi does this and Ronaldo doesn't!" cause they're obviously both amazing, and I always feel like some dickhead off the YouTube comments section, but Messi is like watching the best kid in the playground make everyone look a cunt every game, and Ronaldo is just this machine that has transformed himself in to this ultimate athlete that just racks up goals. But as I say, Messi picks up the ball and I think something special is about to happen, Ronaldo picks it up and I expect him to just shoot or play a simple pass to Marcelo. Plus I don't like his attitude at all. I love his professionalism when it comes to striving to be the best athlete in the game and everything like that and he must work had as fuck, but his belligerence and constant whinging at teammates, moping about because a teammate scored instead of him or constantly wanting the headlines, and apparently always having a cry because the club want to sign somebody he sees as a threat.

Would love Messi to score like four tomorrow. Wouldn't surprise me if he did either. Seems to be the story of their 'rivalry', always one-upping what the other does.

I think Pele is still counting goals he scores in his back garden with the grandkids as part of his record at this point. Probably even follows them in to lash them back in to the net when they roll out and claims the rebound as a goal too, like that Partridge clip where he's like "AND ANOTHER!". 

Boring post has ended!

[Lineker]

Unusually, Argentina boss Jorge Sampaoli named his team the day before their game against Iceland on Saturday:

Argentina starting XI: Willy Caballero, Eduardo Salvio, Nicolas Otamendi, Marcos Rojo, Nicolas Tagliafico, Lucas Biglia, Javier Mascherano, Maximiliano Meza, Lionel Messi, Angel di Maria, Sergio Aguero.

[Arjen Robben]

Needs more Cristian Pavon.

Surely Geronimo Rulli is better than all three of the keepers in the Argentina squad?

[The Lusophone]

5 hours ago, Arjen Robben said:

Needs more Cristian Pavon.

Surely Geronimo Rulli is better than all three of the keepers in the Argentina squad?

Sergio Romero too, as well, but he's injured. Rulli's an odd one, for some reason the Argentina manager called up the equally uncapped Franco Armani instead, who plays for a River Plate team that came 8th.

[stokeriño]

11 hours ago, Spainanite said:

Hahaha, Iran are top of the group!

That sweepstake's coming home, baby. 🇮🇷 

[TCO]

Yeah Ronaldo is other worldly but he's not even the best player of his generation, it's Messi and I don't think it's debatable really.

World Cups don't come into it either. It's every 4 years and so reliant on luck and a lot of factors not in control of an k individual player.

It's Messi #1, Ronaldo a close #2 and the rest up for the discussion when it comes to the GOAT.

[Colly]

Did I read that that was Ronaldo's 45th World Cup free kick and the first one he's scored? Lampard-esque conversion rate that. 

It was a good one though.