Football Thread!

[Phoenix]

I only caught the post game discussion, but the general consensus seems to be that the Socceroos really took it up to the world champs. It's still early days, but there does seem to be some improvement leading into the 2018 qualifiers.

Obviously I'm looking forward to the match against Macedonia. I think it will be a good indicator of where Australia and Macedonia are in relative terms, given that they are (unusually) ranked around the same place according to FIFA. I'd probably expect Australia to win, but who knows with Macedonia who have always been largely inconsistent.

Good to see Fox sports and Peacock refer to Macedonia as just that...Macedonia. We will see if their tone changes come Tuesday. Finally, lol at Ned Zelic too, you gotta love his presence on the panel and within Australian football. Surely he has to be one of the most passionate football analysts out there.

I thought it was a really strange game, the Germans looked disinterested at the start. It was a very 'ungermanlike' performance overall. They appeared to be experimenting and going through the motions...perhaps they totally underestimated the Australians.
In the patches of play that they actually switched on for, they looked a couple of classes above Australia.

I still reckon Postecoglou is a tin arse and not a miracle worker with this national team of hacks and shit kickers that he puts on the paddock.

I was disappointed to hear Andy Harper, refer to "FYR Macedonia"...I've admired Harpers work previously and I really thought he was above the bullshit.

[Macedonian_Nationalist]

I can't believe fifa are so anti racism with their say no to racism patches on all the jerseys out there but recognise Macedonia under a racist name

Joke

[Phoenix]

I can't believe fifa are so anti racism with their say no to racism patches on all the jerseys out there but recognise Macedonia under a racist name

Joke

I wonder whatever happened to not mixing sport and politics...?

At the end of the day FIFA is even more corrupt and dysfunctional than Greece could ever be but the buck stops with the Macedonian government and FA in this case.
We don't stand up for ourselves...why should anyone else give a fuck?

[Soldier of Macedon]

Disappointing to see the FYR tag used, but it'll be interesting to see how Ange refers to Macedonia.

The FYR tag has been used inconsistently in the media, I saw one example where Macedonia was referred to with and without the tag in the same article. Nevertheless, as disappointing as it is to see Macedonia referred to in such a way, the ultimate blame rests with Macedonian politicians and the people who vote for them. As for 'Ange', some of you here seem to favour him for what he has (supposedly) done with the Australian team and previously with the club he coached. I hope for your sake he doesn't disappoint you. I would be extremely surprised if he referred to Macedonia or Macedonians as such, most likely he will try and avoid the matter altogether by referring to them as 'the opposition' or something along those lines. Or, he could turn out to be a overt maggot like so many of his kinsmen and come right out and offend us.

[EgejskaMakedonia]

The FYR tag has been used inconsistently in the media, I saw one example where Macedonia was referred to with and without the tag in the same article. Nevertheless, as disappointing as it is to see Macedonia referred to in such a way, the ultimate blame rests with Macedonian politicians and the people who vote for them. As for 'Ange', some of you here seem to favour him for what he has (supposedly) done with the Australian team and previously with the club he coached. I hope for your sake he doesn't disappoint you. I would be extremely surprised if he referred to Macedonia or Macedonians as such, most likely he will try and avoid the matter altogether by referring to them as 'the opposition' or something along those lines. Or, he could turn out to be a overt maggot like so many of his kinsmen and come right out and offend us.

I'm over them SoM. If the Australia v Macedonia game has shown us anything so far, it's that these maggots will comment and rave on about a match that has absolutely nothing to do with Greece (but I guess we knew that anyway). Any post, whether it be from Fox, SBS or any other sports reporter is plagued by these scumbags who have nothing better to do with their time than denigrate Macedonians at any opportunity. They probably couldn't even care less about the match itself, and I doubt any of these pricks will even be watching at 6am. Check out the official Socceroos Facebook event page, it makes me sick how they just go on and on and on. After so many years, I still can't comprehend how an entire group of people can be so blinded by their own hatred that they fail to see the racist nature of their remarks/actions. It really is a sickness.

[EgejskaMakedonia]

Kudos to the interviewer here.

http://www.socceroos.com.au/article/wholl-start-for-the-socceroos/xr8ulfxf6zt61o1clylcetkqi

I think Ange is trying really hard not to refer to Macedonia at all by name, whether it be as 'FYR Macedonia' or 'Macedonia.' I've listened to a bunch of interviews and he hasn't mentioned it once. You could bet which one he'd go with if given the chance though...but at least he's keeping it to himself for the time-being.

[Dejan]

So he ignores our name just to show respect? koj go eba
I understand that one of the trainers/coaches in the Socceroos side is Macedonian, which the coach is supposed to be close to. Name is Peter Cklamovski if I'm not mistaken.

From what I saw of the game this morning, seems as though socceroos tactics don't account for lesser opponents at the moment.

[sydney]

Key insights from this experience:

- Macedonia is not doing a good enough job to promote itself at an international level or ensure its brand is represented correctly. For example, Fox Sports used a mix of the old and new FFM logo and Macedonia has been named in a number of ways
- Macedonia was not showcased as a destination. Advertising opportunities to promote Macedonia were most likely not explored
- Ange Postecoglou expertly sidestepped any mention of Macedonia during the numerous media interviews
- Macedonian football is in a dire state with what appears to be a talentless pool of players
- The game itself was an horrific spectacle for football fans
- The manager needs to explain why you would play a heavily defensive game at home in a friendly
- The home supporters are clearly dissatisfied with the state of football affairs. But I'm not sure how the whistling and booing helps the morale of the team...
- The playing surface only enforced the perception of Macedonia being a backwater Balkan destination
- There was no evidence of using the friendly to send 'friendly' messages from within the stadium (no banners, no nothing). I understand sport and politics shouldn't be mixed but opportunities like this are rare
- The ships in the squad continue not to sing the national anthem

I think that's it?

[Stojacanec]

We had a chance to showcase what we got and what we can do to the world albeit friendly against Australia. It was embarrassing to see 1000 people show up.

The commentators were pocking fun at the supporters because either they were sounding an irritating horn or they were booing.

On a positive note the Aussies couldn't break the deadlock. Even though we sat back a lot, they couldn't come away with a win. The Italians get away with boring defensive tactics all the time.

The pitch was choppy and rough, maybe the Kozi were allowed to graze earlier in the day.

We had a chance to showcase what we had and we failed.

It shows to me that soccer in Macedonia is dead. We have the potential to improve but we need to change our whole mindset.

I try and watch Macedonian news on SBS, not a word on local soccer.

[Amphipolis]

"It happened in Macedonia - Gibraltar U16s match. Macedonia scores in extra time and while players celebrated, Gibraltar players score quick goal for historic draw."

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mpmeFV-5OpA

[Nikolaj]

So he ignores our name just to show respect? koj go eba
I understand that one of the trainers/coaches in the Socceroos side is Macedonian, which the coach is supposed to be close to. Name is Peter Cklamovski if I'm not mistaken.

From what I saw of the game this morning, seems as though socceroos tactics don't account for lesser opponents at the moment.

I only found out about him recently myself, he is my relative - according to his surname.

[Soldier of Macedon]

So he ignores our name just to show respect?

Not to show respect, to avoid showing disrespect and being labelled a racist. In a way, ignoring our name is just as bad as referring to it by the stupid acronym. As far as I am concerned, his silence is deafening and obvious. If he had no issue with Macedonia he wouldn't have walked on eggshells.

[EgejskaMakedonia]

Somebody mentioned on Facebook that Ange referred to us as 'Macedonia' during an interview on SEN. I can't confirm that, and I'm not sure there'd be a record of the interview online...which may explain why he may have used it then but not in other media appearances.

[Momce Makedonce]

Macedonian national team with a new coach.

http://www.macedonianfootball.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=7377:ljubinko-drulovic-named-macedonias-manager&catid=13:international&Itemid=64

Ljubinko Drulovic named Macedonia's manager

Serbian coach Ljubinko Drulovic has been named the new manager of the Macedonian national team.

The board members of the Macedonian federation came to that decision at today's meeting in the city of Veles. FFM President Ilcho Gjorgjioski was in charge of selecting the finalists, and then the board members casted their votes to pick the new manager.

Ljubinko Drulovic, a 46-year-old coach from Serbia, received the most support from the board members, thus becoming the new manager. Drulovic is best known for leading Serbia U19 to the title of the 2013 UEFA U19 championship. They beat France 1:0 in the final to claim the prestigious trophy.

After that achievement, Drulovic briefly served as an interim coach for the senior national team of Serbia. He led the team for four games (coming in the period from March to June in 2014), compiling two wins, one draw and one loss. However, he was not kept for that position permanently. Instead, the Serbian federation decided to go with Dutch manager Dick Advocaat, who also only lasted four games before being replaced.

Drulovic spent all of his playing career in two countries, Portugal and Serbia. His longest club stint came with Portuguese giants Porto.

Speaking to some of our Serbian friends on Twitter, they had good things to say about Drulovic. Some of the above twitter conversations took place several days ago since it was known that Drulovic was one of the finalists.

Ljubinko will be promoted to the press next Tuesday, on April 28. He signed a contract for 2-and-a-half years, meaning until the end of the 2018 World Cup qualifications.

[sydney]

Change was the way to go. The manager is critical to the success of team environments so hopefully some solid leadership is shown and the players rally and produce some better play and results on the pitch.