Man Utd Thread:

[nrico2006]

Let's compare four of the most talked about footballers at international level on this forum

Torres, games 76 goals 24
Rooney, games 64 goals 25
Messi, games 48, goals 13
Pele, games 92, goals 77

Rooney & Messi have plenty of time to improve those stats in the years to come, Torres will always be in the Spanish hearts after scoring the winnner in euro 2008 & Pele's return was pretty decent

for me Ferenc Puskás must be one of the best 84 goals in 85 games for Hungary

For the past few years I have always argued with a certain Liverpool fan on how Torres is not the best striker in the world.  The fan I mentione seems to be influenced by the extremely narrow minded opinions of the articles he reads in the daily English tabloids who typically bum any player in the Premier League as the best in the World by default.  I have always told him that he isn't even the best Spanish striker, and I think I am being proved right now in his eyes eventually.  Here is Villa's stats for Spain:

Games: 62
Goals: 42

Ach Rico I think you are referring to me and I am touched. First off, i don't read the daily tabloids. Any opinion I have is my own and gained from watching Torres, at any given time you could make an argument for three or four strikers being "the best in the world" and of course club loyalties blind some more than others. When Torres is injury free ( becoming less and less so) I believe he is the best striker I te world, the stats only tell you so much. Torres has delivered in all Liverpools big Champions league games, Chelsea, Real Madrid, Arsenal, Inter Milan etc and has a decent goal scoring record against Man Utd, Arsenal and Chelsea in the league. So doing it in important games is what separates the really good ones, and is why Ibrahimovic for example is not considered or of the very best. Villa is a great player and we will see more of him in the Champions League with Barcelona but that stay you posted of his Spanish goals scoring record will have been padded (as all international goal scoring records are) by playing against shite like San Marino etc. Klose has scored 50 goals for Germany yet he can't get a game for Bayern............

If Villa has scored against the like of San Marino, then I am sure Torres' total has benefited from the same standard of teams considering they both play for the same Country.  But then again when it comes down to their time in the Spanish League, Villa's record was again far superior.   

[Minder]

The thing is I am not using bare stats to back up what I am saying, I never mentioned Torres goal scoring record for Spain. Torres is a far better player now than when he played in Spain, if he wasn't more teams would have been in for him when Liverpool bought him. Put it like this do you think he would go for the £25m Liverpool paid for him in 2007? Double it maybe.  If I believed everything the English tabloids told me sure I would know Rooney is the finest player to ever lace a pair of boots...........

[Boycey]

It was tedious enough when the argument was about Rooney but now people are arguing about bloody Torres on the United thread....

How about some internet speculation... Its been mooted over the last couple of days that some newspaper has a Wayne Rooney "story" that they have been holding back but are now ready to spill the beans so to speak and this is the real reason hes been so poor at World Cup. Probably a load of shite but more fun than A's better than B, no hes not, yes he is....

[The Real Laoislad]

It was tedious enough when the argument was about Rooney but now people are arguing about bloody Torres on the United thread....

How about some internet speculation... Its been mooted over the last couple of days that some newspaper has a Wayne Rooney "story" that they have been holding back but are now ready to spill the beans so to speak and this is the real reason hes been so poor at World Cup. Probably a load of shite but more fun than A's better than B, no hes not, yes he is....

He's moving onto Great Granny's?

[muppet]

It was tedious enough when the argument was about Rooney but now people are arguing about bloody Torres on the United thread....

How about some internet speculation... Its been mooted over the last couple of days that some newspaper has a Wayne Rooney "story" that they have been holding back but are now ready to spill the beans so to speak and this is the real reason hes been so poor at World Cup. Probably a load of shite but more fun than A's better than B, no hes not, yes he is....

Didn't we have this with Roy in Saipan as well?

[Norf Tyrone]

It was tedious enough when the argument was about Rooney but now people are arguing about bloody Torres on the United thread....

How about some internet speculation... Its been mooted over the last couple of days that some newspaper has a Wayne Rooney "story" that they have been holding back but are now ready to spill the beans so to speak and this is the real reason hes been so poor at World Cup. Probably a load of shite but more fun than A's better than B, no hes not, yes he is....

That story is doing the rounds since the JT story emerged. The reason- I believe- it was held back was so as to not harm England's chances. If the medja slaughtered another player the theory being the public would then back the players against a perceived witch hunt.

[supersarsfields]

I just got an email that says theres an alledged story coming out about Gerrard. Whether this is just getting mixed up with the Rooney one or if there's anything to it I don't know.

[EC Unique]

I just got an email that says theres an alledged story coming out about Gerrard. Whether this is just getting mixed up with the Rooney one or if there's anything to it I don't know.

Did the Email include the word 'sister'?

[supersarsfields]

yip!!

[EC Unique]

SG's wife has no sisters so you could be right on the mix-up!!

[supersarsfields]

Aye kinda thought it was funny two stories breaking at the same time. No doubt someones got their lines crossed somewere!!

[magpie seanie]

There were also the "stories" about Ronan O'Gara when he played badly at the rugby World Cup.

[NAG1]

These types of stories have been doing the rounds for years about certain players and nothing has come of them yet so I think this is more Internet garbage.

Anyway, does anyone else think that RH getting the Liverpool job is a dangerous appointment for the rest in the top six or was he just the steady eddie character to see them through this difficult patch?

[ross4life]

These types of stories have been doing the rounds for years about certain players and nothing has come of them yet so I think this is more Internet garbage.

Anyway, does anyone else think that RH getting the Liverpool job is a dangerous appointment for the rest in the top six or was he just the steady eddie character to see them through this difficult patch?

If RH has start like he had at Fulham or a finish he had with blackburn and he certainly won't make it to 2011! I still can't believe Inter Milan got Rafa as a Maureen replacement

[Minder]

Perhaps, just maybe Ross, there are those in football better qualified than you to make decisions on hiring and firing.