Yip, we should have had a bit more foresight and got 2-3 more CB’s.
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It has been suggested before that Joe is injury prone, while other have said no, he’s just unlucky as they have been serious injuries. Can we at least now confirm without argument that he is injury prone, even though this is another serious injury (23 years old).
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Just like to point out that for all people like to point out the similarities with City last year they never had a situation which they lost both their starting CBs for up to a year at the same time and had two other CB options miss games due to injury within their first 10 league games. City had nowhere near as rough a time of it as we are having. But then we don’t have Otamendi on our books so I still feel we are luckier (although I think Stones is a better player than his form there shows).
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Retirement choice is not in the players hands. The National Association has to accept the player’s decision to retire from the International game. Obviously when a player gives years of service, and in their 30’s “asks” to retire the FA usually allow it, but it is their decision. You cannot refuse to play when called up for International duty.
This injury has come as a real kick in the nuts, I’m depressed since hearing about it. The only positive I can see is it will force the fast tracking of the Junior players and/or bring forward a decision on signing a centre half, which would have likely happened this summer anyway.
I hope we see at least one of the young lads step up and a quality addition in the window added.
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I reckon Nat Phillips has a shot at cult hero status now.
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No but English players have for years successfully used with aplomb the deployment of playing shit, and that has sometimes worked.
I find this utterly baffling, and wonder what the fine would be for a player who doesn’t present himself to play for his country?
Gutted for Joe, but what can you do? 
Klopp and co will have to find a way.
It will be a hell of a ride until January, and possibly fast-forward a move for a top center back. Although I don’t know whether there will be any quality player available. Probably not.
Get well soon , Joe. YNWA
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Regarding “paid professionals” spending so much time throughout the course of their normal season with their respective national team. I am here in America, and learning the nuance of their professional sports culture is so different. The basketball, baseball and ice hockey players have the chance to represent their country for olympics, but it seems as tho it’s discouraged by the employer or the “club” that pays the salary to the players due to the risk. These clubs invest millions of “US dollars” into these athletes to win their respective games and they’re never going to risk those investments on activities that do not benefit the club. The NHL banned its players from playing in the Winter Olympics bc of the risk and the league disruption.
No real point to this post other than to highlight the differences. IMO there is zero chance ANY of the leagues here in America would release their professional players 4 different times through the season for other duty.
I’m not exactly sure but they can stop your participation in the game for a period of time, possibly indefinitely. I’d imagine Kopstar knows the finer details.
Essentially the player asks to retire from international football, permission has to be given by the governing FA. I suppose you could say the FA has the power over the player, not the club.
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They’d stop you playing for your club if they think you’re being snide,can’t force you no but they can stop you playing,the cunts.
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Or play how many Argentinian players play for their country. They’ll themselves stop calling up.
They can bar the player from playing for the club during the period of the international fixtures for which their country called them up and also for an additional period beyond that (up to 9/10 days). After that the player could also be subject to further disciplinary sanctions. Possibly a fine but more likely a longer suspension from playing for their clubs depending on the degree of fault and whether it was the first time or not.
There is no obligation on the national associations to honour that though - it is a relatively recent ‘convention’ but it is not in the rules themselves. If a national association insisted on calling up the player regardless then, by the rules, they could have that player suspended if they didn’t make themselves available (except due to injury, which the national association is entitled to satisfy for itself).
Matip isn’t a great example as whilst he may well have submitted the notification that he did not want to be considered for selection the reason that Cameroon’s complaint to FIFA didn’t go anywhere was because they hadn’t complied with the correct procedures for calling him up.
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This season’s Neil Mellor
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Thank you. So, the only realistic way for a player who is called up against his will, is to avoid any injury during training, and then to ‘play badly’ during the games. Or maybe start an almighty fight with the coach… Next time he is called up, Gomez will maybe attempt a leg-breaking tackle from behind on Southgate. That should do the trick for him!
(Only joking, but I’m stunned that a player can be forced against his will to play for a national side.)
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It’s documented in this thread…we literally went through it with Matip and Cameroon about 2 years ago. Joel had publicly stated his desire to not play for Cameroon again after falling out with their coach. he was subsequently not selected for a period of important games, seemingly an acknowledgment of his position. The manager later then decided to reignite the fight and picked him for a round of games to which Matip responded with a “per my last email.” The issue hung around with no one giving us resolution and so we ended up not picking him for our first game back after the break because of the uncertainty of whether he was serving a domestic ban for refusing an international call up. The case resolved itself not because Matip was in the right, but because Cameroon had an administrative error.
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You physically cannot make them show up, but the player will be penalized to the detriment of the club if they refuse a call up.
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They can stop a player from turning out at club level if they refuse a call up.
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You are assuming that players might not want to represent England. I have never seen any evidence of that and particularly among our players past and present…
From a fans point of view I get the hostility but I am pretty sure all players would see representing their country as a huge honour. Ask Stevie G.
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England are pretty good about accepting a player’s decision not to represent their country and won’t call them up or try and force the situation (see Scholes, Carragher, Milner, Vardy etc).
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Was watching the documentary on Amazon about the Brazilian NT and Copa America, what you’re saying seems absolutely true atleast for the South American football players apparently. Not just the players, the family, the town for everyone it’s a huge huge thing. Think the same would be true for any country tbh.
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