Does Benzema have a point?

Randy

Well-known member

Interesting discussion to be had here I think. I completely agree with him and I think the explosion of betting firms and websites is the reason why people are so obsessed with statistics these days.
This xG b***ks for example is exactly that, b***ks. Plus all the booster bets you see on all these gambling websites, how many corners, successful dribbles, tackles, cards. It's a poison that is ruining our game.
 
Not sure I really agree. Goals win games which is why scoring goals is deemed so important, above all other aspects. The guy that puts the ball in the net has always been lauded regardless of what else they contribute.
 
Not sure I really agree. Goals win games which is why scoring goals is deemed so important, above all other aspects. The guy that puts the ball in the net has always been lauded regardless of what else they contribute.
But there are players over the years who were never out and out goal scorers who did the gritty dirty work to give those forwards who are worshipped the opportunity to score. Look at the likes of Makalele when he was at Real and Chelsea, yes talked about as a great player but for me one of the absolute best midfield players of his generation. Kroos at Madrid also, not really a galactico player but has kept that the team ticking along at the right end of the table and on Europe for years now.
 
xG is a representation of what has happened on the pitch. I’m not sure how you’ve made a leap to gambling either!
 
Makelele was talked about as one of the best midfielders of his generation. It was generally accepted, as it is with Kante, that he was genuinely world class.
 
When I play the forwards live or die on whether they get goals. Have played with some right lazy folks over the years and if they scored they got plaudits regardless of effort.

That's what a forward if for. Statistics that are now being used are the ones clubs use to determine the success or failure of players.They have come out of coaching and recruitment rather than gambling.

I agree fans don't see everything but if a forwards not scoring but getting assists that is recognised.
 
But there are players over the years who were never out and out goal scorers who did the gritty dirty work to give those forwards who are worshipped the opportunity to score. Look at the likes of Makalele when he was at Real and Chelsea, yes talked about as a great player but for me one of the absolute best midfield players of his generation. Kroos at Madrid also, not really a galactico player but has kept that the team ticking along at the right end of the table and on Europe for years now.
Nobody would dispute, I'd imagine, that all types of players are vital to a teams success. But his complaint is that he gets praised if he scores even if he is otherwise terrible. Which imo is natural and has always been the case because of the fundamental importance of scoring goals. There will always be the real football nuts who will look deeper into a performance but vast majority of fans don't care.
 
xG is fantastic if you use it correctly. I agree with him that people tend to look at who scored and think they had a good game though.

Statistics are the same everywhere, you have to use them in the right way and they’re very useful, if you don’t then they’re useless.
 
Well you only have to look at who has win the so called coveted Balon D’or for the past 10 years or so— it’s always the gadgie who scores. I personally think that FIFA should perhaps have a rethink on this process because in this day and age of so called equality I’ve never seen a vote for a defender or perhaps a winger.
 
Crooks was given MOTM today by Maddison presumably because he scored both goals which won us the match rather than the pretty poor 85 minutes he had before that.

Isn’t that the point of MOTM though?
 
I don't like it either. See it a lot with the Ronaldo Messi debates over the years and it being about stats.

Use your eyes and judge on who you see create magic or other good all round play aswell as stats.

The likes of Brazilian Ronaldo, Zidane etc didn't score the goals of Cristiano, but they were at least every bit as good.
 

Interesting discussion to be had here I think. I completely agree with him and I think the explosion of betting firms and websites is the reason why people are so obsessed with statistics these days.
This xG b***ks for example is exactly that, b***ks. Plus all the booster bets you see on all these gambling websites, how many corners, successful dribbles, tackles, cards. It's a poison that is ruining our game.
I don't think it's the case in the PL, or the EFL.

People may criticise MOTD but they do focus on players in all positions not just the strikers.
 
I get where he's coming from. There have been plenty of "supporting" forwards over the years who contribute in other ways - assists, putting themselves about, unsettling defences.....winding opposition players up - but don't really get the credit they deserve. Become almost cult heroes. However, the ones who stick the ball in the net are the ones - more often than not - who get the mega £££££££. Benzema can't have it both ways. He's highly paid for one thing - scoring goals. Unless he has an assist bonus in his contract.......
 
Crooks was given MOTM today by Maddison presumably because he scored both goals which won us the match rather than the pretty poor 85 minutes he had before that.

Isn’t that the point of MOTM though?

Crooks was undoubtedly the most valuable player but in terms of overall performance absolutely not. It depends how you define what MOTM means.
 
I love stats. You have to use them in the right way. It's the only objective measure we have. Once you assign numbers to something you have a like - for - like measure of performance.

They do fail occasionally, as all starts do, but they are a fantastic measure in a complex game like football.
 
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