John Buckleys advetures

[Eddie]

On 17/10/2025 at 23:46, Upside Down said:

But Britain arms, supports and enables all of these regimes. Especially Saudi Arabia. In fact the only reason it is Saudi Arabia and not just Arabia is because of Britain and the US. 

I'm hoping this discussion doesn't get nuked because it's a crucial element of this overall discussion here. 

Personally I wouldn't take Saudi blood money but I wouldn't take the US blood money either. My main gripe with players in the Saudi pro league is the same as it is with other leagues of a similar format and that is they are tinpot and Mickey Mouse.

If you don't have proper relegation and promotion then it's not a proper league system in my opinion. 

I am glad to see Buckley doing well though, hopefully he can use this as a platform to get a gig at a proper club and play in a proper league. 

I don't want to derail the discussion, but it's very different.

By going and playing in Saudi Arabia, or joining LIV, participating in a comedy festival there, or doing a host of any other jobs in KSA you are being paid directly by the authoritarian regime, benefiting from their restrictive policies, and existing within infrastructure that is built using slave labour.

There are lots of reasons to be critical of the US Government and many American companies, but playing for Inter Miami doesn't mean that your salary is literally coming from Donald Trump, nor are you playing in the Raytheon Arena, and you aren't living in a society that has been built (recently) by slave labour.

It's very hard to have a clean life where you don't tacitly endorse certain activities, but you can put in some degree of effort to distance yourself from them. Banking with HSBC means I use the same financial institution as many organizations and individuals I disagree with (many of whom HSBC is even investing in), but that isn't the same as taking money directly from those groups. 

It's disingenuous to imply otherwise. 

[KentExile]

Team of the week

[KentExile]

On 01/12/2025 at 22:31, riverholmes said:

I'm finally calling it (for myself) after seeing recent highlights in which Buckley struggles to track back or defend. He's an attacking midfielder or second forward. 

 

I cant read Arabic, but the heatmap says not 😉 

 

 

Edited December 3, 2025 by KentExile

[Bohinen1983]

 

Looking tidy would be a great addition...

[B16Rover]

I'm not doubting how well he's doing, but he's started more than he's played 

 

Edited yesterday at 18:32 by B16Rover

[danger19_80]

Playing against Ronaldo and Mane, his career's gone proper downhill

[riverholmes]

On 02/12/2025 at 13:16, Eddie said:

I don't want to derail the discussion, but it's very different.

By going and playing in Saudi Arabia, or joining LIV, participating in a comedy festival there, or doing a host of any other jobs in KSA you are being paid directly by the authoritarian regime, benefiting from their restrictive policies, and existing within infrastructure that is built using slave labour.

There are lots of reasons to be critical of the US Government and many American companies, but playing for Inter Miami doesn't mean that your salary is literally coming from Donald Trump, nor are you playing in the Raytheon Arena, and you aren't living in a society that has been built (recently) by slave labour.

It's very hard to have a clean life where you don't tacitly endorse certain activities, but you can put in some degree of effort to distance yourself from them. Banking with HSBC means I use the same financial institution as many organizations and individuals I disagree with (many of whom HSBC is even investing in), but that isn't the same as taking money directly from those groups. 

It's disingenuous to imply otherwise. 

Fair, but morality isn't about being pure, but about doing something meaningful. What is more likely to have any impact, lambasting Jordan Henderson for moving to Saudi, or lambasting the UK football authorities for giving the game away to global billionaires (including, but not exclusively, the Saudi despots)? It wasn't long ago that Russian oligarchs were the norm in our game, of course and the game has 'Emirates' emblazoned across it these days.

Better to boycott Saudi World Cup or the US World Cup (which the current regime will flaunt), or use it as an opportunity to critique the corruption of the football authorities - as well as the situations in Saudi Arabia/US (and ties to UK)? 

To be fair, I might boycott the World Cup personally, frankly on grounds of dullness... But that is increasingly applying to a lot of football.

Back on Buckley, whenever I try to watch highlights etc., he seems to be ambling around, somewhat off the pace. But he has some assists and goals and is holding his position in the team, so fair play to him.