They are so frustrating. Whether your team is off the back of a good result and you want to keep up the momentum or your off the back of a bad result and want to rectify it quickly it's really frustrating. Never mind the injuries that players pick up on international duty.
Now I'm not saying scrap international football as it still had its moments. In Ireland there are few better times in the country than when we make an international tournament.
There's surely a better way of organising it.
What do people think of this as an idea?
Start the football season at the same time in August but go straight through without any international break and the season will then probably end in early April.
There's usually 10 group games in each qualifying campaign so play 5 at the end of each season and fit an a few friendlies too. The players are still playing exactly the same amount of games and getting the same rest periods but the club season isn't getting needlessly broken up.
On the occasions where there's playoffs needed the other nations not involved can play friendlies like they usually do and nations will still get the same rest before tournaments. It would give players more time to gel and we may actually start to see a better brand of football on the international stage.
It will probably never happen I know but what do people think of that setup?
Remove mid-season international breaks
posted on 4/10/17
Comment Deleted by Site Moderator
posted on 4/10/17
Lower league clubs don't have international breaks though (well, most of them).
Generally speaking it's true that fans of smaller clubs are more bothered about England though. I reckon it's because they are (often) from smaller places, so don't have the same affinity to an area like big city fans do.
The smaller places are often seen as places to get out of, not places to aspire to get to, so while the support is there for the local team, the identity of 'scouse' or 'manc' or 'cockney' isn't the same, so identifying as 'English' becomes more important.
posted on 4/10/17
A lot of supporters from teams on the PL and Championship don't like it because they get players who travel halfway around the world and return 3 days before a game or even worse, they get injured.
For me, I prefer watching PL/Championship football to International level football personally. If there was a change in format though, then it might change.
posted on 4/10/17
Not sure there is much of a base to that claim?
Where I'm from there are loads of Gillingham and Charlton fans who don't care about England while I know people who go regularly to top flight teams and England games. The lower league fans seem to have more apathy towards England than most, tbh.
I know a couple of United fans who follow England abroad as well.
posted on 4/10/17
*was replying to selbs
posted on 4/10/17
Probably don't care because of how we've turned out tbf. Bet for the one's who were alive in 66, bet they were bothered then.
posted on 4/10/17
comment by JustYourAverageFan (U21016)
posted 47 seconds ago
Probably don't care because of how we've turned out tbf. Bet for the one's who were alive in 66, bet they were bothered then.
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For me it's not the results, it's just the sheer lack of identity and incompetence. We get buffon's like Sven, Roy and Southgate who have or in Gareth's case probably will get chance after chance after fecking up yet Big Sam who i genuinely believe would have given the team an identity and somewhat competitive edge is fired after 1 game.
I know what he did was horrific but the FA and most of the England squad are hardly angel Gabriel.
posted on 4/10/17
comment by D'Jeezus Mackaroni (U1137)
posted 12 minutes ago
Not sure there is much of a base to that claim?
Where I'm from there are loads of Gillingham and Charlton fans who don't care about England while I know people who go regularly to top flight teams and England games. The lower league fans seem to have more apathy towards England than most, tbh.
I know a couple of United fans who follow England abroad as well.
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Well I'm not sure your personal experiences hold any more weight than mine.
In my experience, of both being from a small town and following England abroad, small club fans are more likely to care about England than big club fans.
posted on 4/10/17
Didn't say my experience did, was highlighting how two different experiences give two different stories.
Evidence suggest that there is a mix , rather than leaning one way or the other.
posted on 4/10/17
comment by Greatteamswinit4times- a terrible enemy (U6008)
posted 6 hours, 43 minutes ago
comment by Jalisco Red - Bought-a-Matic for the People (U4195)
posted 2 hours, 50 minutes ago
It's a shame people feel this way about international football. Is it just an English thing? It certainly wasn't always this way: I remember coming home from school excited to watch recorded coverage of England playing in Malaysia in a friendly.
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It's not even an English thing. It's a supporter of top clubs thing. The national team means a hell of a lot more to fans of clubs who who are lower down the leagues.
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I'm a little disallusioned with the whole moneybags prem at the moment anyway, so rather enjoy the internationals, can't beat the wc and euros as a spectacle.