Maradona37
Well-known member
The state of British football punditry is awful. They come out with awful bollocks all the time, and are constantly wrong in their predictions. Neville, Scholes, Richards, Keane and Ferdinand (just to name five) have played at an infinitely higher level of football than I and other fans have, yet we have often been proved right on things they get wrong. This prediction thing isn't an opinion - it is a fact.
It could be bias. It could be that footballers in general in the UK just aren't very bright. Journalists like Raphael Honigstein or Julien Laurens generally speak much more sense. It's probably because they're generally more educated, and education and intelligence are more important in analysis than doing something a lot.
It's a running gag in Britain about just how moronic most ex-pros are.
Also, being one of the best players ever doesn't mean you know football. Maradona and Pele spoke constant bollocks, while guys like Ferguson and Pep were much worse players but far better coaches.
The truth is that being good at something doesn't necessarily translate well to analysing it. The skills needed are different and not that much is transferable. Loads of fans give better insights than pundits.
And it isn't just pundits - look how horribly many football clubs are run. Look at the sheer amount of poorly thought out, bad signings teams make. Look at how badly Man United and Barca have been run by 'people in authority'. They make the most stupid decisions, and this isn't said with the benefit of hindsight. It does seem like football is an industry of morons. I have actually heard people say this before.
Even the coaches I have met in Scotland. Lower level than other countries, but coaches from big SPFL clubs like Motherwell and Dundee United who are concerned with their young players being 'big and strong' and overlooking smaller players with better technique. Then they wonder why the Scotland NT is so bad. Our coaches are thick.
Of course some are smart, and those smart ones gain an edge from intelligent decision-making.
What I am essentially saying is that intelligence and evaluative skills are much more important in analysing the game than having played at a high level (especially in Britain where many of our ex pros are daft).
In terms of coaches who weren't good players or players at all, I think it was Arrigo Sacchi who asked if he had to be a horse to become a jockey. Now, would you rather listen to Arrigo on football or 'one of the best CBs England have ever had' Rio Ferdinand?
I don't know if the same is true of other sports. But it's certainly true in football in Britain.
It could be bias. It could be that footballers in general in the UK just aren't very bright. Journalists like Raphael Honigstein or Julien Laurens generally speak much more sense. It's probably because they're generally more educated, and education and intelligence are more important in analysis than doing something a lot.
It's a running gag in Britain about just how moronic most ex-pros are.
Also, being one of the best players ever doesn't mean you know football. Maradona and Pele spoke constant bollocks, while guys like Ferguson and Pep were much worse players but far better coaches.
The truth is that being good at something doesn't necessarily translate well to analysing it. The skills needed are different and not that much is transferable. Loads of fans give better insights than pundits.
And it isn't just pundits - look how horribly many football clubs are run. Look at the sheer amount of poorly thought out, bad signings teams make. Look at how badly Man United and Barca have been run by 'people in authority'. They make the most stupid decisions, and this isn't said with the benefit of hindsight. It does seem like football is an industry of morons. I have actually heard people say this before.
Even the coaches I have met in Scotland. Lower level than other countries, but coaches from big SPFL clubs like Motherwell and Dundee United who are concerned with their young players being 'big and strong' and overlooking smaller players with better technique. Then they wonder why the Scotland NT is so bad. Our coaches are thick.
Of course some are smart, and those smart ones gain an edge from intelligent decision-making.
What I am essentially saying is that intelligence and evaluative skills are much more important in analysing the game than having played at a high level (especially in Britain where many of our ex pros are daft).
In terms of coaches who weren't good players or players at all, I think it was Arrigo Sacchi who asked if he had to be a horse to become a jockey. Now, would you rather listen to Arrigo on football or 'one of the best CBs England have ever had' Rio Ferdinand?
I don't know if the same is true of other sports. But it's certainly true in football in Britain.
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