so where do we draw the line?
you cited juan arango at mallorca as the only player playing in a top european league, yet conveniently left out the players in the german, portuguese and turkish leagues.. but now you saying the french league counts
There was nothing 'convenient' about the omission at all, but it's interesting to see the paucity of your analysis on display. If anything Arminia Bielefeld was the only other "top league" European club on your list. None of the others are in their respective First Divisions. If you can argue otherwise then bring it, I'll gladly make room for the two or three other players if you can find them.
if you find those countries i call dont work we could pull some other examples.. i guess by your and asylumseeker's rationale it would be fair to say that uzbekistan and iraq leaving us in the dust too, because they making some significant strides in their football right? you do know they were minnows who started making waves in the football world in recent times..
How many f**king international pro's do Uzbekistan and Iraq have? Anybody even making the claim other than your yourself apparently...that Uzbekis-facking-stan and Iraq having surpassed TnT football?? What facking waves are they making?? Iraq winning the Asian Cup is any kinda international wave?
you really not making any sense because on the one hand, you fighting a point about venezuela having little overseas player presence however trinidad is the direct opposite based on having one of the biggest overseas presences in the UK leagues.. This equals to no comparison with venezuela.. just to recap, here's what you said..
Venezuela is a very apt comparison...regardless as to whether some think they're in direct competition with us or not. From a footballing perspective they're minnows with no pedigree to speak of. At least we have 1973 and 1989 to show for our efforts (yeah yeah...they're coming out of CONMEBOL blah blah blah). To have a team come out of 'nowhere' like that and surpass us, it's helpful to take note, because again...it's a sobering statement as to just how much momentum we may have squandered...or at best, how little development has been sustained.
so because they are minnows who have had good recent results, one of you please explain how that means they are surpassing us?
Follow closely ...let me know if you need connect-a-dots:
Go back to my first post in this thread and you'll see that I said that I don't believe in the theory that Venezuela has surpassed us. However,
IF that is the case, then that in fact would be a very sobering reality for TnT football. The very fact AND I MADE MENTION OF THIS...typing it big so that yuh can't miss it this time...the very fact that they HAVE NO PEDIGREE to speak of...including this lack of an international presence, little/no impact by their professionals on the international game (this is the point of getting you to look up their overseas pros...IMPACT), when you compare that the the international impact that TnT has had on football, not just with our overseas pros, but our international showing the past 35 yrs. This glaring juxtaposition...is what is alarming IF indeed Venezuela has surpassed us. I have little patience for people who want to petulantly and insipidly play stupid. The rationale has been laid before you, but you insist the comparison is faulty and so you decline to follow the obvious logic.
This thread would have made sense if the title was "Haiti could leave us in the dust".
i don't know why asylumseeker and yourself cant come clean and admit that this comparison of venezuela to trinidad has much more to do with the fact that they are our close geographical neighbors, and little to do with anything remotely football related... and after the fact yuh realize it really have no basis for that comparison at all...
you're right.. i'll probably never get it..
The fact that the comparison was in part based on Geography was already admitted to in Asylumseekers "neighbour factor" statement above. We are making the comparison because from a footballing standpoint Venezuela, though situated in South America (much like Guyana and Suriname), and though a part of CONMEBOL, is very much a 'regional' country. It is for this reason there has been such extensive ties between Venezuela and the Caribbean, compared to say Colombia and the Caribbean, which is essentially none. From a regional standpoint, Trinidad and Jamaica have been the traditional regional powers, Trinidad perhaps even moreso than Jamaica, France 98 notwithstanding. So for a 'regional' team like Venezuela to have surpassed us (if the opinions in favor of such a theory are to be believed) then it just goes to show either the pace at which Trinidad is dropping, or the severe lack of development of TnT ball.
I can't explain it in any simpler terms than that.