Derbados Posted September 8, 2014 Share Posted September 8, 2014 Ok so I recently watched some old games from the 60's and early 70's mainly. I couldn't help thinking throughout that the quality and standard of football was no where near what it is today, with our millionaire footballers having strict diets, the latest technology, best pitches etc. it led me to think, the players we revere from the past as the "greatest of all time" for example pele, if he were to play in today's game having come straight from the 60's for instance, how good would he actually be by today's standards? Still one of the best in world? Better than Ronaldo? Messi? Premier league quality? Always makes me think, what is the gulf in class now between football in the 60's and football today? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Boycie Posted September 8, 2014 Share Posted September 8, 2014 I don't think they'd be able to compete. George Best would have the tricks, but the fitness is far superior nowadays, Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cisse Posted September 8, 2014 Share Posted September 8, 2014 Give Messi a ball from the sixties and he can't get it in the air. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AmericanRam Posted September 8, 2014 Share Posted September 8, 2014 Ok so I recently watched some old games from the 60's and early 70's mainly. I couldn't help thinking throughout that the quality and standard of football was no where near what it is today, with our millionaire footballers having strict diets, the latest technology, best pitches etc. it led me to think, the players we revere from the past as the "greatest of all time" for example pele, if he were to play in today's game having come straight from the 60's for instance, how good would he actually be by today's standards? Still one of the best in world? Better than Ronaldo? Messi? Premier league quality? Always makes me think, what is the gulf in class now between football in the 60's and football today? Today's standards have obviously improved ten-fold from earlier decades.This has made the game faster imo at times while bringing more creativity as well. Would Pele do well if he played now?I think his innate given talent would still have him being way better than other strikers and it would be easier imo for him because today's game is more 'girly' as it were imo in terms of star players drawing fouls easier,among other things.If Messi played in the 60's he would still be good but not as incredible as he is now due to he would not get all the calls,and the higher aggressiveness of defenders would hinder the things he likes to do with the ball. I love football from earlier decades and think today's game is not more entertaining.Today's game is just more flashy in terms of personalities and that is sometimes focused on more rather than the skill shown on the pitch. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ambitious Posted September 8, 2014 Share Posted September 8, 2014 It's a lot, lot better now, but it's going to be judged all relatively. If you haven't seen Ronaldo doing those tests for a Spanish University on Youtube, I would highly recommend. Jumps as high as a NBA player, Runs as fast as a 100m sprinter...etc The part where he puts the ball in the goal from pitch black as soon as the ball has been kicked is outstanding, really is. That's not to say the older game didn't have its strengths, but since everyone is an athlete now at the very top of the game, it seems to make little difference. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
uttoxram75 Posted September 8, 2014 Share Posted September 8, 2014 Players in the 60's and 70's, even earlier, Matthews, Finney etc, were technically as good if not better than many of today's players. Looking at Messi and Ronaldo they are the exception rather than the rule, that's why we talk about them so much. George Best for instance was easily as good as Messi is, skill wise. Would he have been as good with modern diets and training techniques? Probably better, if he had the mental strength of Messi and kept off the booze. If the players of that era were as fit as today's i believe they're skill on the ball would be generally better. A lot of players today get picked for their size, strength, speed and fitness rather than skill. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Phoenix Posted September 13, 2014 Share Posted September 13, 2014 It's like saying would W G Grace have hacked it in today's cricketing world. Probably yes because you play to, or in his case, above, the level of the day. He was so far ahead of his contemporaries,his 'innate talen't would have got him there. Also, the wickets were terrible in his era. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sexydadbod Posted September 13, 2014 Share Posted September 13, 2014 One thing you can say that if players like pele or best were in this era they would be even better because of improved fitness. It is all relative. Messi and ronaldo would not have the protection they have now in the 1970s Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Daz_The_Ram Posted September 13, 2014 Share Posted September 13, 2014 All of the above ... It's the same debate as people have with boxing all of the time. Put all of the greats from yesteryear into the current conditions, with the same regime ... and they would be even better. They aren't considered true greats for no reason. You would need five Klitschkos in there for example, to beat Muhammed Ali or Joe Louis ...were they put into the exact same training regime and conditions. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Daz_The_Ram Posted September 13, 2014 Share Posted September 13, 2014 Messi and ronaldo would not have the protection they have now in the 1970s Absolutely ... even as recently as the eighties ... some of the treatment of Maradona was pretty bloodthirsty in comparison. I wonder what Claudio Gentile or Andoni Goikoetxea would have thought of Ronaldo? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stoners Posted September 13, 2014 Share Posted September 13, 2014 It's a lot, lot better now, but it's going to be judged all relatively. If you haven't seen Ronaldo doing those tests for a Spanish University on Youtube, I would highly recommend. Jumps as high as a NBA player, Runs as fast as a 100m sprinter...etc The part where he puts the ball in the goal from pitch black as soon as the ball has been kicked is outstanding, really is. That's not to say the older game didn't have its strengths, but since everyone is an athlete now at the very top of the game, it seems to make little difference. Thanks for that Half way through it as I speak. Great stuff Although the presenter is pissing me off constantly high fiving Ronaldo Cringeworthy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brammie Steve Posted September 13, 2014 Share Posted September 13, 2014 In the 60s and 70s players played for love of the game and loyalty to their club. The best players and the best teams reached the highest echelons. In 1970 the Brazilians took the game by the scruff of the neck and catapulted skill levels to previously undreamed of heights through an incredible fitness regime and a sense of disappointment in the 1966 world cup. The ball was VERY much heavier than it is now. Yes the players of that era deserve their legendary status and they would quickly adapt to 2014 playing standards. The only player in the modern game who I would say is better than the players I had the privilege of watching in the 70s is Ibrahimovich who deserves the title of genius IMHO. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Daz_The_Ram Posted September 13, 2014 Share Posted September 13, 2014 In the 60s and 70s players played for love of the game and loyalty to their club. The best players and the best teams reached the highest echelons. In 1970 the Brazilians took the game by the scruff of the neck and catapulted skill levels to previously undreamed of heights through an incredible fitness regime and a sense of disappointment in the 1966 world cup. The ball was VERY much heavier than it is now. Yes the players of that era deserve their legendary status and they would quickly adapt to 2014 playing standards. I concur with all of that ... the guys of the '60s and '70s were pioneers of the game. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mozza Posted September 13, 2014 Share Posted September 13, 2014 Can't resist it.. but i'm not sorry .. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ambitious Posted September 13, 2014 Share Posted September 13, 2014 Why do people talk about players in the 60s and 70s as if they were allergic to money or playing for a better pay? Let's not forget that we broke the British transfer record ourselves. There is a naivety amongst supporters who talk as if players should be loyal - especially if that player is playing for their current club. Yet, none of them think twice about digging a player out on a Saturday afternoon for not performing. It's an insane way of thinking. Alan Irvine is a great example, after a great first year in charge at Preston, he was offered the manager's job at West Brom for quite a lot of money - he turned it down. Six* months later, he was sacked by Preston after a poor start to the season. If you support the club, and I mean truly support the club, then loyalty will come into it but at the end of the day, it's a job. For an example, let's say you play at Bradford City and Derby County couldn't/don't want to sign you, but Huddersfield Town offered you double the wage in a higher division. Is it disloyal to leave Bradford City? Shouldn't you bleed orange and brown because some supporters once sang your name from the stands? Of course not, it's nonsense. Players simply want to play at the highest level for an obscene amount of money - there is nothing wrong with that. Just as there is nothing wrong with managers/chairman wanting to shift out the players surplus to requirements. It's a cut throat business, none of this 'well you've two poor seasons but keep putting the effort in and we'll be happy to pay your wages. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CumbrianRam Posted September 14, 2014 Share Posted September 14, 2014 In any sport it is impossible to compare eras as conditions and circumstances are completely different. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
petersimple Posted September 15, 2014 Share Posted September 15, 2014 Ronaldo and Messi are far better than any players from the 1960s. If you go on youtube and watch them carefully they are doing moves that nobody tried in the old days. Even George Best didn't go past players like this : http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tx7Al9vUwfo Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
top 6 finish Posted September 16, 2014 Share Posted September 16, 2014 Back in the days we were allowed to tackle without getting booked or penalised,modern footballers wouldn't have survived 5 minutes,they are pampered today and its getting worse. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Duracell Posted September 16, 2014 Share Posted September 16, 2014 It's not just the fitness that's changed. Cisse touched on it with the footballs, but pitches and boots make a huge difference. It makes what Stanley Matthews did with a football all the more impressive. The fact he could do all that with greying hair also says a lot about how unfit footballers were. Matthews was a trendsetter in how he treated his body, and he took his fitness very seriously - the others didn't. The modern game is also helped by the fact if you're good enough, you will be spotted. Before the developed and extensive scouting networks of the modern era, a few players with the natural talent to make it could well have been left undiscovered somewhere. It's difficult to say if Messi and Ronaldo are as naturally gifted as past greats, but using "skills" as "proof" that they're better? Do me a favour, that's daft. They're playing a game that's lived and developed through three centuries in its current form alone. If football was invented yesterday, there is no way Messi and Ronaldo play it in the same way. That's like saying modern artists are better at drawing than their medieval counterparts because their artwork looks more realistic. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Daz_The_Ram Posted September 16, 2014 Share Posted September 16, 2014 The modern day game has evolved in terms of working conditions for the players - but that has also led to these prima donna attitudes that are just so off putting the modern player. Look at the Welsh last week against Andorra. The commentator Barry Horne was initially laughing and taking the p!ss out of the Andorrans ... and then hilariously had to back track once the Andorrans showed no fear...started making excuses because of the pitch...rubbish. In the old days, it didn't matter...these days, players are waiting to use conditions as an excuse. I'd love to see Ronaldo have a birthday on the old Baseball Ground pitch of the '70s...or some of the pitches Maradona used to do it on in '80s Buenos Aries...add to that some of the...shall we say ... agricultural defending. I wonder what Tommy Smith, Jimmy Case, or Norman Hunter would have done with him. He'd be crying into his hair gel. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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