Tuesday, February 4, 2020

The Weekly Take, Issue 100: 100 Posts, 100 Takes

This being my 100th post, I decided to do something a little different. I will post 100 football-related opinions of which some might be controversial and some might be completely wrong to some of you. Nevertheless, I stick firmly by all of them and will be willing to hear any counterarguments.

So, without further ado:

1) Most underrated player ever: Andrés Iniesta
2) Most overrated player ever: Steven Gerrard
3) Most overrated team ever (international): Brazil 1982
4) Most overrated team ever (club): Arsenal 2004
5) Most important match ever played: Chelsea 2-1 Liverpool, 2003
6) Greatest tactical performance of all time: Inter Milan 3-2 (aggregate) Barcelona, 2010
7) Greatest league title race ever: 2000-01 Bundesliga

8) Best World Cup: 1998
9) Worst World Cup: 2002

10) Most underrated World Cup run (team): Turkey 2002
11) Most underrated World Cup run (individual): Diego Maradona 1990
12) Greatest Champions League season: 2011-12
13) Greatest Champions League match ever: Liverpool 3-3 AC Milan, 2005
14) Most important moment in football history: Neymar signs for PSG, 2017
15) Greatest single-match performance ever (individual): Rivaldo vs Valencia, 2001
16) Greatest single-match performance ever (team): Germany 7-1 Brazil, 2014
17) Most significant tactical innovation: Catenaccio
18) Greatest quote: "Football is a simple game. Twenty-two men chase a ball for 90 minutes and at the end, the Germans always win." - Gary Lineker
19) Rule that needs to be changed: Last man fouls should be a penalty AND a red card even if the foul took place outside the penalty area
20) Most disrespected position: Defensive midfielder
21) Most overrated position: Centre-forward
22) Best era: 1997-2004
23) Worst era: 1975-1980
24) Most overrated coach: Arsène Wenger
25) Most underrated coach: Helenio Herrera
26) Best signing ever: N'Golo Kanté to Leicester, 2015
27) Worst signing ever: Fernando Torres to Chelsea, 2011
28) Worst refereeing decision ever: Francesco Totti's bogus second yellow card vs South Korea, 2002
29) Greatest free kick taker ever: Shunsuke Nakamura
30) Biggest "what if": What if the Hungarian Revolution never happens and the 1950s Hungary team stays together
31) Most overlooked yet impactful transfer: Diego Forlán to Villarreal, 2004
32) Most over-romanticized (not necessarily overrated) player ever: Juan Román Riquelme
33) Most undeserved tournament victory: Barcelona, 2008-09 Champions League
34) Best duel: Cristiano Ronaldo vs Zlatan Ibrahimović (Portugal vs Sweden, 2013)
35) Greatest goal ever scored: Diego Maradona vs England, 1986
36) Greatest rivalry match (club): Barcelona 4-3 Real Madrid, 2014
37) Greatest rivalry match (international): Italy 3-2 West Germany, 1982
38) Biggest one-hit wonder (club): Steaua Bucharest 1986
39) Biggest one-hit wonder (international): Greece 2004
40) Weakest transfer move of all time: Luís Figo to Real Madrid, 2000
41) Most surprising individual season ever: Luca Toni, 2014-15
42) Most disappointing individual season ever: Denílson, 1999-2000
43) Most overrated status: "One-club man"
44) The fate of the universe is on the line, who do I want taking the last shot?: Cristiano Ronaldo
45) Best Women's World Cup match ever: Japan 2-2 United States, 2011
46) Best stadium: Maracanã
47) Best backline ever: AC Milan 1990
48) Best central midfield ever: Barcelona 2011
49) Best wing pairing ever: Bayern Munich 2013
50) Best frontline ever: Real Madrid 1960
51) The next legendary player is: Christian Pulisic
52) The next legendary coach is: Julian Nagelsmann
53) The host of the 2030 World Cup should be: Netherlands/Belgium as joint hosts
54) Something which I would like to see added: A FIFA Hall of Fame
55) Best stadium atmosphere: Signal Iduna Park (okay, maybe I'm a little biased :P)
56) Early pick to win Euro 2020: Netherlands
57) Early pick to win World Cup 2022: England
58) Best position for captains: Central midfield
59) Worst position for captains: Winger
60) Player who should move to a better team: Richarlison
61) Greatest domestic league ever by decade: 1990s Serie A
62) Most overrated tournament: FA Cup
63) Luckiest player ever: Dani Alves
64) Unluckiest player ever: Jari Litmanen
65) Tournament which should be revamped: Confederations Cup
66) Greatest World Cup upset: West Germany 3-2 Hungary, 1954
67) Greatest Champions League upset: Deportivo de La Coruña 5-4 (aggregate) AC Milan, 2004
68) Most undeserving Ballon d'Or winner: Allan Simonsen, 1977
69) Most underrated season by a club: Inter Milan, 2009-10
70) Opinion on VAR: Generally positive but can still be improved
71) Most overrated current player: Karim Benzema
72) Most underrated current player: Trent Alexander-Arnold
73) Most overrated current coach: Claudio Ranieri
74) Most underrated current coach: Maurizio Sarri
75) Rule that needs to be introduced: NBA/NFL-style team-wide salary cap, replacing the current Financial Fair Play rules
76) My Mount Rushmore of coaches: Herrera, Michels, Mourinho, Ancelotti
77) Most impressive league title victory: Atlético Madrid, 2013-14 La Liga
78) Most impressive Champions League victory: Inter Milan, 2009-10
79) How I would improve the Nations League: Disconnect it from Euro qualifying
80) Greatest club team of all time: Real Madrid 2014-18
81) Greatest international team of all time: West Germany 1970-76
82) Greatest player rivalry: Cristiano Ronaldo vs Lionel Messi
83) Greatest coach rivalry: José Mourinho vs Pep Guardiola
84) Biggest fan misconception: A club's history is directly linked to its current status
85) Best derby: Fenerbahçe vs Galatasaray
86) Most overrated domestic league by decade: 2010s Premier League
87) Most unbreakable record: Dino Zoff wins World Cup as captain at the age of 40
88) Biggest "one-season wonder": Riyad Mahrez
89) Next multiple-time winner of the European Golden Shoe: Kylian Mbappé
90) Biggest headcase: Hatem ben Arfa
91) Biggest dumpster fire of a team (international): France 2010
92) Biggest dumpster fire of a team (club): AC Milan 2015 
93) Most overhyped signing ever: Gareth Bale to Real Madrid, 2013
94) Most overlooked all-time great team: AC Milan 2003-07
95) Most ill-advised stadium-related decision: Tottenham vacates Wembley
96) Most overrated football move: Rabona
97) Current player who ought to have a statue when he retires even though most would not expect one for him: Giorgio Chiellini
98) Next €100 million player: Lautaro Martínez
99) Next big-money transfer dud: Adama Traoré
100) My all-time XI: 4-2-3-1 formation; Yashin, Cafu, Beckenbauer, Ramos, Maldini, Gattuso, Iniesta, Cristiano Ronaldo, Maradona, Cruyff, Messi. Coached by Mourinho.

No comments:

Post a Comment