The KUMB bits 'n' pieces & off-topic thread

[Colours never run]

Indeed. And you still get to play for your national team for such countries even in the lowly English leagues. In any case, he's clearly happy doing it in Anderlecht and he still could have been gaining caps whilst playing for us.

[Ironing Board]

Indeed. And you still get to play for your national team for such countries even in the lowly English leagues. In any case, he's clearly happy doing it in Anderlecht and he still could have been gaining caps whilst playing for us.

Yeah, but who wants to be playing for Luton or Stoke when you can be winning titles and cups as well as playing in Europe in front of 60,000 fans?

[Colours never run]

I don't know, ask all the lowly League Irish Internationals the same question.... Appears to work for them.

[Ironing Board]

I don't know, ask all the lowly League Irish Internationals the same question.... Appears to work for them.

I seriously doubt any lower league Irish internationals would turn down the chance to play for Celtic.

[Colours never run]

And nor do they whilst playing for the lower League's here. I don't even know why it bothers you so much that the Championship etc are seen as an equivalent level to Celtic when gaining caps Internationally.

[DublinDave]

Point of order...
Josh Cullen is without doubt, based on recent performances, Ireland's best midfielder by a country mile & has grown as a player exponentially since moving to Anderlecht for whom he is now captain...
He would never have got the game time or responsibility that he needed here...
He would be ripe to poach back though, he idolises Nobes & you can see he learnt alot from him to take the captains armband so soon after joining Anderlecht, he's a natural leader & the next Ireland captain imo...

[DublinDave]

And by the by...
Celtic are a truly massive club worldwide, as are Rangers...
Yes they play in a bog @rse league but players, (& agents) know they can get incredible exposure in European competition for what is, baring 10-12 games a year, a training exercise...
If Bassey stayed on Leicester's bench last year we wouldn't have even heard of him...
Henrick Larsonn, Paulo di Canio etc made their name in Scotland...

[Ironing Board]

And nor do they whilst playing for the lower League's here. I don't even know why it bothers you so much that the Championship etc are seen as an equivalent level to Celtic when gaining caps Internationally.

The Championship is a higher standard overall, but playing for the Old Firm is far more prestigious. They would be competing with anyone if they weren’t stuck in Scotland.

I would say it would be better for a player to appear for Celtic, Rangers, Ajax, Rosenborg, Porto, Anderlecht, etc than it is to play in the Championship. Many of the European giants are now artificially lower standard purely down to money.

[Colours never run]

And yet lower league level players are still getting caps for where they are playing...

In any case, we've been scouting him recently;

https://www.google.co.uk/amp/s/www.hitc ... fer/%3famp

Bit of a Declan-Lite regarding Chelsea situation where we may have let go of a gooden for peanuts only to maybe buy him back for a loss.

[Ironing Board]

And yet lower league level players are still getting caps for where they are playing...

In any case, we've been scouting him recently;

https://www.google.co.uk/amp/s/www.hitc ... fer/%3famp

Bit of a Declan-Lite regarding Chelsea situation where we may have let go of a gooden for peanuts only to maybe buy him back for a loss.

That would be ideal then. Proves Cullen made the right decision for his career. There is no way he would have reached his current level without appearing in that competitive environment.

[Ironing Board]

And by the by...
Celtic are a truly massive club worldwide, as are Rangers...
Yes they play in a bog @rse league but players, (& agents) know they can get incredible exposure in European competition for what is, baring 10-12 games a year, a training exercise...
If Bassey stayed on Leicester's bench last year we wouldn't have even heard of him...
Henrick Larsonn, Paulo di Canio etc made their name in Scotland...

Don’t forget Virgil Van Dijk!

[Colours never run]

That would be ideal then. Proves Cullen made the right decision for his career. There is no way he would have reached his current level without appearing in that competitive environment.

If you think so, yet he still managed senior Irish caps whilst floating about as a bit part player for us and for loan sides in lower League's. Nothing will convince me that wouldn't have continued once he played the role that Kral should have played. Cullen wouldn't be naive to think he is better than Rice or Soucek but he would have loved playing most of the Cups and European football with occasional Prem appearances much like Areola didn't mind settling for that last season and arguably again this season. Being a decent back up doesn't mean you are somehow ****, sometimes it just means you have to accept you have world class players ahead of you like Rice and I know I'd love to play that role! He comes across as the same type too the way he carried on about West Ham previously.

[Ironing Board]

If you think so, yet he still managed senior Irish caps whilst floating about as a bit part player for us and for loan sides in lower League's. Nothing will convince me that wouldn't have continued once he played the role that Kral should have played. Cullen wouldn't be naive to think he is better than Rice or Soucek but he would have loved playing most of the Cups and European football with occasional Prem appearances much like Areola didn't mind settling for that last season and arguably again this season. Being a decent back up doesn't mean you are somehow ****, sometimes it just means you have to accept you have world class players ahead of you like Rice and I know I'd love to play that role! He comes across as the same type too the way he carried on about West Ham previously.

Playing for a team like Anderlecht every week would be a much bigger buzz. I’m glad he showed the ambition to go somewhere else and improve his game.

[Cuenca 'ammer]

not a knock on Cullen by any stretch, but the limited amount of minutes that Moyes gave Noble, and let's be honest, Noble is at least 3 times the player young Josh is, would indicate that there was ZERO chance of him getting minutes here last season.

imvho that is.

made a great decision to go abroad, getting loads of minutes, captaining a side and playing under Kompany ? well done Mr. Cullen.

[Colours never run]

Playing for a team like Anderlecht every week would be a much bigger buzz. I’m glad he showed the ambition to go somewhere else and improve his game.

He was only playing in the Europa Cup and Europa Conference Cups like we will/have been. He still would have got that same buzz, arguably a lot more whilst representing his boyhood Club abroad. No bigger buzz than that.

[Ironing Board]

He was only playing in the Europa Cup and Europa Conference Cups like we will/have been. He still would have got that same buzz, arguably a lot more whilst representing his boyhood Club abroad. No bigger buzz than that.

To a degree. But once you are on the pitch you forget about everything but the match. And getting into the rhythm of playing every week and becoming a captain will have done wonders for his confidence, leadership and game toughness.

[StevePottsGoalsReel]

Looking forward to DL trolling everyone by moving the Cullen discussion into the transfer thread

[Colours never run]

Looking forward to DL trolling everyone by moving the Cullen discussion into the transfer thread

Ironically he might have to anyway if the reports of West Ham having scouted him recently as a possible transfer target this summer...


https://www.teamtalk.com/west-ham-unite ... ond-chance

https://www.google.co.uk/amp/s/www.hitc ... fer/%3Famp

It makes sense the more I think about it, as long as the asking price with 1 year left on his contract aint silly money for him.

[Aztec Hammer]

Cullen made a great choice to go to Anderlecht. It’s a ridiculously low level of football. Just like Scotland. But a massive club in their country. It’s a cool career for someone like him. Your average Englishman that has to play for Ireland if he wants an international career type of player. Noble was the exception to that where he was actually a really good Premier League player for much of his career and was somehow overlooked. It would be an insult to Nobes to make any comparison with Cullen.

That’s not meaning to be mean to Cullen. He was never anywhere near good enough for West Ham unfortunately.

As a side note, the format of the Belgian League is hideous. Particularly notable in how it played out last season.

[simonirons]

Cullens a decent player. - Not just for Anderlecht, Charlton fans loved him. - Any player who gets his tooth smashed out on the pitch and goes back on gets my vote. - Sometimes you need to go away to come back