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Ze french

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posted on 16/6/21

PSG aside the domestic league have no real big boys and so the teams are stacked full of young French players with the best being sold abroad. Whereas here teams like Burnley, Brighton, Palace etc have to buy foreign talent just to stay in the Prem and therefore some late developing English talent just simply doesn’t make it

posted on 16/6/21

I'd argue that even Pavard is world class to be honest.

Most of the talents in the French side get picked off of French clubs and are developed elsewhere. I think it's a trend we are beginning to see more and more in England now, with the likes of Sancho, Bellingham, Keanan Bennetts etc all going abroad for a better chance at making a top career.

I just don't think most PL sides will gamble a youth player when they import from abroad. Can you blame them when you have the resources to sign better players from abroad that give these clubs a better fighting chance.

posted on 16/6/21

comment by JustYourAverageFan (U21016)
posted 25 seconds ago
I'd argue that even Pavard is world class to be honest.

Most of the talents in the French side get picked off of French clubs and are developed elsewhere. I think it's a trend we are beginning to see more and more in England now, with the likes of Sancho, Bellingham, Keanan Bennetts etc all going abroad for a better chance at making a top career.

I just don't think most PL sides will gamble a youth player when they import from abroad. Can you blame them when you have the resources to sign better players from abroad that give these clubs a better fighting chance.
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Pavard certainly looks a terrific player

posted on 16/6/21

Not a huge fan of Lloris personally. However you don't really have to be amazing to be the French keeper do you?

They are a quality team though. It's going to take something special from another team to stop them in this tournament. Can't see it happening either.

posted on 16/6/21

In theory England should be able to do what France are doing; the French and British populations are pretty much the exact same, and football is the dominant sport in both countries.

I don't know enough about grass roots football development in France or here to say what the major differences are, but it seems to be that whatever the differences may be, they could be addressed (and possibly already are being address) if there was a will to do so by those in charge. Likewise Spain and Germany, who have seemingly been ahead of us since forever, despite no obvious reasons for being so.

posted on 16/6/21

We have an awful lot of quality in our squad too. Kane, Sterling, Grealish, Foden, Rashford, Sancho etc are hardly crap are they?
I think offensively we can hold our own with anyone right now.

However France for sure are much stronger in other areas than we are. Our defence simply isn't to the standard require to win major competitions and ultimately that will be where we get found out.

posted on 16/6/21

comment by Glazers_Out (SE85) (U21241)
posted 6 minutes ago
We have an awful lot of quality in our squad too. Kane, Sterling, Grealish, Foden, Rashford, Sancho etc are hardly crap are they?
I think offensively we can hold our own with anyone right now.

However France for sure are much stronger in other areas than we are. Our defence simply isn't to the standard require to win major competitions and ultimately that will be where we get found out.
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Lot at Rashford. Grealish is unproven at highest level and Foden goes missing in big games

posted on 16/6/21

comment by BerbaKing11 (U6256)
posted 20 minutes ago
In theory England should be able to do what France are doing; the French and British populations are pretty much the exact same, and football is the dominant sport in both countries.

I don't know enough about grass roots football development in France or here to say what the major differences are, but it seems to be that whatever the differences may be, they could be addressed (and possibly already are being address) if there was a will to do so by those in charge. Likewise Spain and Germany, who have seemingly been ahead of us since forever, despite no obvious reasons for being so.
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Can they? The dailyfail will write an article everyday to attack the "foreigners" making up the England squad.

The French have been very lucky with having players not necessarily born there representing the country- going back to the days of Viera.

posted on 16/6/21

There isn't that much money in the French league outside of PSG really, or many of the top teams. In all fairness, it's the clubs usually outside of the biggest one's in the league that produce these talents. Toulouse and Lorient used to be really good at bringing them through, but obviously the downside is you sacrifice quality in the squad overall for youngsters coming through.

In England, dropping out of the PL could be a death sentence for some clubs because there is that much money in the PL, where the drop off in France is by no means as big. Obviously both Toulouse and Lorient have been relegated in recent seasons, so it seems as if the develop-sell cycle has run it's course for now, but other clubs will take over. Rennes are another good example. It's so common place for the mid-lower league French clubs to bring through players that they compete within themselves with many French players that come through their academy, as that's there way of survival really.

posted on 16/6/21

The Pogba - Kante partnership in midfield is second to none

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Tbf, it's not really a partnership as its a midfield 3 including Rabiot.

posted on 16/6/21

comment by BerbaKing11 (U6256)
posted 23 minutes ago
In theory England should be able to do what France are doing; the French and British populations are pretty much the exact same, and football is the dominant sport in both countries.

I don't know enough about grass roots football development in France or here to say what the major differences are, but it seems to be that whatever the differences may be, they could be addressed (and possibly already are being address) if there was a will to do so by those in charge. Likewise Spain and Germany, who have seemingly been ahead of us since forever, despite no obvious reasons for being so.
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Well we're not massively far off them in that respect anymore. In fact i'd say after France we're probably leading the way in terms of the quality of young players coming through at the moment. Off the top of my head, Bellingham, Foden, Sancho, Greenwood, Reece James arguably Saka are all 21 or under with world class potential.

There are just a few key areas which for some reason we seem to lack in and it ends up exposing us in the big games. We can't seem to find a central midfielder in the mould of a Modric, Verrati, Fabregas, Kroos etc (difficult though they may be to find). Or a truly world class CB.

posted on 16/6/21

I do also think the British media has a detrimental effect on the development of some players. Not everybody coming through is going to be "the next …" but there is always that perception. You don't get this kind of coverage in France really, probably because it's so common place amongst the lower league clubs in France.

posted on 16/6/21

I think the English game has in the past, been geared towards power, pace and stamina far more so than other countries, with the likes of Walker, Sterling, Rashford relying on raw pace rather than footballing ability.

In Foden, Grealish, Mount, Greenwood and others though, its good to see that this is becoming less and less important, and may see us close the gap on other countries in the future.

posted on 16/6/21

comment by Wayne and Robin aka Red Indian (U21328)
posted 18 minutes ago
comment by Glazers_Out (SE85) (U21241)
posted 6 minutes ago
We have an awful lot of quality in our squad too. Kane, Sterling, Grealish, Foden, Rashford, Sancho etc are hardly crap are they?
I think offensively we can hold our own with anyone right now.

However France for sure are much stronger in other areas than we are. Our defence simply isn't to the standard require to win major competitions and ultimately that will be where we get found out.
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Lot at Rashford. Grealish is unproven at highest level and Foden goes missing in big games
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Seriously you are the strangest poster on here 😂

Do all French forwards not go through bad spells then? Giroud, Greizmann, Coman and Benzema have been up and down a lot over last few years.

And Rashford scored 21 goals this season. The second highest of any English player.

posted on 16/6/21

It must be their 'joie de vivre'

posted on 16/6/21

I thought that Griezman and Benzema were mostly missing as an attacking threat. Griezman was more noticeable from chasing back defending.

I thought Germany had much more of the game than they should have.

posted on 16/6/21

Seriously you are the strangest poster on here
___

And that is some feat with the candidates we have.

posted on 16/6/21

Rugby is the dominant sport in France

posted on 16/6/21

comment by Martial Law (U13506)
posted 6 minutes ago
Rugby is the dominant sport in France
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I think Cycling and Tennis might be.

But if you Google: 'what is the dominant sport in France' you get a definitive answer

posted on 16/6/21

Don't a large number of the best French players in recent years come from the estates on the outer edge of Paris. Maybe these poorer areas are a breeding ground for kids to hone their talents, similarly to the favelas in Brazil or any other poor areas where football is a life changing opportunity.

posted on 16/6/21

Don't forget the French players that represent their country of origin instead. The French produce talent all over the pitch. We should be improving our scouting in that country.

posted on 16/6/21

"In these suburbs, perhaps more so than anywhere else in the world, talent is refined by an efficient state sporting structure. The best local kids are swiftly lifted into the professional orbit. Jamel Sandjak, president of the Paris-Ile-de-France league, says that compared with the rest of France "the average level is higher in the Ile-de-France and the young are more motivated to become professional players. Then the professional clubs have scouting networks practically everywhere in our region.""

Interesting article on the Ile-de-France (suburbs on the edge of Paris) and why it produces so much talent.

https://www.espn.co.uk/football/blog/espn-fc-united/68/post/3320634/greater-paris-biggest-talent-pool-in-football-paul-pogba-kylian-mbappe-anthony-martial

posted on 16/6/21

comment by Glazers_Out (SE85) (U21241)
posted 49 minutes ago
comment by Wayne and Robin aka Red Indian (U21328)
posted 18 minutes ago
comment by Glazers_Out (SE85) (U21241)
posted 6 minutes ago
We have an awful lot of quality in our squad too. Kane, Sterling, Grealish, Foden, Rashford, Sancho etc are hardly crap are they?
I think offensively we can hold our own with anyone right now.

However France for sure are much stronger in other areas than we are. Our defence simply isn't to the standard require to win major competitions and ultimately that will be where we get found out.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Lot at Rashford. Grealish is unproven at highest level and Foden goes missing in big games
----------------------------------------------------------------------

Seriously you are the strangest poster on here 😂

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He has been quiet all week too... It's like an alert is set for the word "rashford" in any post

what a tard

posted on 16/6/21

comment by manutd1982 (U6633)
posted 14 minutes ago
Don't a large number of the best French players in recent years come from the estates on the outer edge of Paris. Maybe these poorer areas are a breeding ground for kids to hone their talents, similarly to the favelas in Brazil or any other poor areas where football is a life changing opportunity.
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There is something in it.

I'd take a wild guess that at least 80% of the players we signed under Fergie were from 'poorer' areas (at least relative to the country they live in). Also something about the mentality it gives you I suppose.

posted on 16/6/21

About two decades too late the English FA instigated major reforms to emulate the best aspects of the youth development in other countries. As the effects of that trickle down, we're seeing England competing seriously (and sometimes winning) at world and European championships at youth levels. There's no guarantee that this will translate into winning senior tournaments but I think the likes of Foden, Mount, Greenwood, Grealish, Saka and Bellingham represent a step up in technical quality and in terms of being assured all-round footballers compared to the England players who transitioned to senior football a decade ago.

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