Being a brilliant player isn't all that relevant to the task of being a commentator. Indeed, the ranks of great players include some notable absolute knuckleheads. It's all about being able to translate your own experience into a broader understanding of the game and the things you're commenting on. I don't think Souness is doing very well with that, to put it gently. Which may also have been why he was so absolutely useless as a manager.
Graeme Sourness | Retires from “punditry”
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Being a brilliant player isn't all that relevant to the task of being a commentator. Indeed, the ranks of great players include some notable absolute knuckleheads. It's all about being able to translate your own experience into a broader understanding of the game and the things you're commenting on. I don't think Souness is doing very well with that, to put it gently. Which may also have been why he was so absolutely useless as a manager.
Couldn't believe my ears. He basically basing his whole ability to defend on a inch her and there in his height. Its so ridiculous when you think about it. He could prob leap as high as Maguire but doesn't matter that couple inches standing straight height the difference from being able to centre back in English football.
He then said baresi etc height doesn't matter as he played with them and they bigger than what the official heights are
The massive flaw about this Casmerio take with Souness is the fact Casmerio is a better player than what he was, and has done it at the highest club level like him too, and won more champions Leagues.
Why its total baffling his take on him being a steady eddy, considering he calls himself a top player
Irony being that England's first great centre-half Billy Wright - who was regarded as the best in the world for a good decade and, even now, is considered perhaps the 3rd best English centre-half of all time behind Moore and Rio - was 2 inches smaller than Martinez. Granted that was a long time ago, but if anything the game was more direct and aerial-based half a century ago compared to today, yet Wright thrived because he was springy both on the deck and in the air.
Wright was also the same height as Passarella who posed arguably the greatest aerial threat of any defender in history and who Souness should know well enough having played against him in Serie A.
On here I spend a lot of time defending Souness, but he's talking bollocks there.
this dude is like when you have a mate who supports Liverpool but cant be objective about anything United.
He is the most biased commentator. He was a "good' player but a poor judge of talent.
What about guys that never made it into professional football due to injury or illness? Can their opinion of the game be of value if they remain avid followers of the game?
My take and that of many football lovers, because you were one of the lucky ones to carve out a Successful career in football doesn’t mean you have a greater godgiven understanding of it.
We can respect his achievements but not treat his shameful opinions as gospel. To be honest he seem to be back tracking but yet ruining it by doubling on things that make no sense to him as at all.
Different skill-sets required. Especially when you come from a completely different era of football and do not constantly refresh your knowledge. You become outdated.
You're doing what Talksport want by sharing and spreading this.
Yeah, that's why they hired him.
"Hey, this guy talks total shite! Get him on the show so people call our premium line and start arguing! Even more money from TradePoint this Christmas
"He is what the French call "les incompétents"
What an imbecile. The man who hired Ali Dia. How can anyone trust what he says on football? Ali Dia makes Bebe look like Johan Cruijff.
Exactly this. I don’t know why anyone with even half a brain cell shares, quotes or gets annoyed by TalkSPORT audio bites.
It’s all for revenue. They know Souness, Jordan, Sinclair or any other anti-Man Utd pundit is going to find anything to criticise us and get our fans seething.
Man Utd news sells better than any other football news. And talkSPORT capitalises on this better than anyone.
Hated, Adored, Never Ignored.
He's a massive Liverpool fan who struggles to form objective opinions about United, just like Carragher. What do people expect?
Good post.
I still enjoy listening to Souness even though he can be a little biased at times but then can’t we all. When him and Keano are on the same bill it’s a great watch.
What a ridiculous take from Souness. Isnt good on the ball ? He hasn’t watched him. Can’t have. He’s just basing his opinion on him being a bit of a nut case.
Now Pogba has left, he needs someone else to talk bollocks about.
You take Michael Owen's views in a serious way?
A little?I still enjoy listening to Souness even though he can be a little biased at times but then can’t we all. When him and Keano are on the same bill it’s a great watch.
You listen to him, but you don't have to agree with him. However, Souness for me have lot more knowledge. Lot more.
Some things never get outdated. Even if he played way back, he still has lot to offer.
Souness works for Murdoch spin channels and did an interview for the Sun as Liverpool manager 3 years after Hillsborough. He over compensates because he's got no class or taste. He loves the sound of his own voice.
Because Souness played football in a period when football was almost a different sport from current day footbal he should be taken serious? Even when he speaks about football he talks about ''his days'' as if that has any relevance to current day football. The only ''specialist knowledge'' an ex pro has over a non pro is that the ex pro knows about the mental aspect of playing in front of thousands of people or the pressure before big games.
Martinez is the best we've signed in defence since Vidic imo, and Souness is clearly singling him out because, he's hot right now, cost so much, and thinks he'll fail long term, he must be gutted he didn't jump on Sancho or DvB earlier, but we all know they have been crap, so it won't get the same reaction, which is the whole point.
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"But they're all just playing games at that club. Ten Hag, no disrespect, but he's just a sheep like Mourinho was. Moyes was a wolf. Rangnick was a wolf. Ten Hag is a sheep and he's bought a bunch of players who just want to play games. Spinning in circles, pushing opponents, smacking metal slammers into stacks of plastic discs. Making sheep sounds. Playing pogs and making sheep sounds."
"Graeme, I really think we shou-"
"Pogs and bahs, fecking Pogbas everywhere! POGBAS!!! POGB-"
get 20% off all laminated flooring that you can scam old people with after you do a shit job redoing their bathrooms, only with Trade Point...
Imo he’s doing it because he doesn’t watch our games. I bet you any money he follows results but he isn’t sitting at home watching 3/4 games a day.
it’s an outdated viewpoint from a casual viewer
Even if true, which would be tragic for a guy doing the 'job' he does, he just needs to read the newspapers, or listen to the media to know he's rowing against the tide with this one.
He's picking an easy target to get a reaction, and taking a chance that he'll be proven right long term, not like they'll be any repercussions when he's proven to be talking crap anyway.
The chronicle has spoken.
He is also what the Caf call "bellend"
Does Michael Myers say that though?
Watch it with subtitles and see.
He was always useless with analysis and now he's making a total joke of himself and somebody needs to shout stop.
Full video
So you agree with Souness when he says that Martinez is poor on the ball?
He definitely doesn't watch any games from outside the Premier league. When you listen to him talk about other leagues, he's incredibly dismissive. He mentioned how the new Brighton manager had never managed in "our game" and seems to question almost every foreign player who comes in without PL experience.
Martinez doing well in the CL is irrelevant to him because its not "our game" and he thinks European football is a load of 5'3 wimps.
It’s the fact that he has no idea how brilliant he was as a player that completely invalidates his opinions.
He was a hard nut, but was also immensely skilful and had a tremendous gift for always being in the right place at the right time. Once he’d become a manager the only one of these qualities he rated was the first; hence his getting rid of quality players at Liverpool like Beardsley and Houghton and replacing them with a load of cloggers.
His success at Rangers was the result of having a fortune to spend on top English players at a time when Scottish football was beginning its decline.
Pogba did still win a world cup. I don't think Souness has ever really accepted that.
Sounds a lot like Roy Keane.
I can accept him still struggling to believe that a 5’9 centre back can work in the PL. Its so ingrained into his beliefs about the British game that him taking time to come round to the idea that it can actually work is somewhat understandable. It goes against everything he believes in and effectively destroys his view of British football. That’s a hard thing to admit, especially for someone of his age and stubbornness.
But to say that Martinez isn’t that good on the ball is such a laughably bad opinion that it completely undermines any other arguments he’s making. It’s very clear that he’s simply not watched him at all. You just can’t take someone who’s opinion is so wide of the mark seriously.
But to say that Martinez isn’t that good on the ball is such a laughably bad opinion that it completely undermines any other arguments he’s making. It’s very clear that he’s simply not watched him at all. You just can’t take someone who’s opinion is so wide of the mark seriously.