[Albion] NSC Fantasy Albion World Cup- THE FINAL: Americas A vs Africa

So here we are. Twelve teams arrived at the Withdean Stadium for this momentous inaugural NSC Fantasy Albion World Cup. Dick Knight is here to present the trophy alongside his son Leon.

To recap here are the semi final results.

Spain 17-20 Africa
Americas A 33-6 Rep. Ireland

Here are our two finalists

Americas A- Managed by Gus Poyet

The pre-tournament favourites are absolutely frothing at the mouth with talent but it is always possible that manager Gus Poyet could storm out of a match at any moment. Nonetheless there is talent throughout this well balanced squad that contains a genuine World Cup winner alongside a player who was sold for over £100m. Their goalkeeper is possibly the weak link and could cost them later in the tournament. These guys breezed through the first round without breaking sweat. They then went on to absolutely destroy a talented Welsh side in the Quarter Finals and a much fancied Irish side in the semi's.

(4-3-3)
GK: David Gonzalez- This ponytailed Colombian lothario played 4 games for the Albion in 2012. He has been capped twice by the Colombian national side

RB: Gonzalo Jara Reyes- This Chilean psychopath has two loan spells at the Amex in 2011 and 2012. He has been capped a monumental 115 times by Chile
CB: Igor- This Brazilian hunk is a current Albion player and when he's not in the club surrounded by honeys he's playing a vital role in Albions defence.
CB: Bernardo- This Brazilian left back played for the Albion between 2018 and 2021 when the Albion distracted him from what appears to be an unhealthy obsession with Red Bull.
LB: Pervis Estupinan- This Ecuadorian is possibly the best Left Back in the Premier League right now

CM: Alexis Mac Allister- World Cup winner played for Brighton between 2019-2023 and is a bona fide club legend. He has also been capped 21 times by the Argentinian national team
CM: Moises Caicedo- Before slithering off to Chelsea like a snake, this Ecuadorian midfielder was one of the best defensive midfielders in the Premier League
CM: Steven Alzate- Fan favourite, this London born Colombian international is as versatile as a Swiss Army knife.

FW: Julio Enciso- Cheeky chappy who is capable of the spectacular, this Paraguayan has bags of potential
FW: Leonardo Ulloa- This Argentinian big man had an excellent goalscoring record for the Albion before leaving for Leicester.
FW: Joao Pedro- This Europa League penalty banger is currently impressing after his big money move from Watford.

Subs: Facundo Buononotte, Jeremy Sarmiento


vs


Africa- Managed by Adam El Abd (player manager)

These guys have the potential to be the real neutrals favourites. There is an abundance of talent here with flair, pace and some glorious physiques. Coach El-Abd has caused some controversy by calling up former Swedish international Rami Shaaban with his justification being "his name sounds African" which he said glaring at the tournaments administrators, topless and flexing his muscles. They decided to allow it. Absolutely breezed through the first round without much effort at all. Survived the toughest Quarter Final tie, beating an exceptional Rest of Europe A side in a close encounter as well as a very close fought Semi final with Spain. They've sure done it the hard way and their excellent strength in depth is really proving useful.

GK: Rami Shaaban- Played 6 games for Brighton in 2005 having been previously considered a replacement for David Seaman at Arsenal. Played for African team Sweden 16 times including at the 2006 World Cup

RB: Tariq Lamptey- Impossibly quick pint sized right back who played for Ghana at the 2022 World Cup
CB: Adam El-Abd- Brighton born hard as nail wind up merchant played 300 times for Brighton and 7 times for the Egyptian national side
CB: Leon Balogun- Only really known for 1 goal and did very little else. Played for Nigeria at the 2018 World Cup
LB: Gaeten Bong- Popular Left Back and a key member of the Championship promotion side

CM: Enock Mwepu- Was on course to become an real fans favourite at the club before his untimely retirement
CM: Yves Bissouma- Survived an inconsistent start to become one of the best defensive midfielders in the Premier League
CM: Carlos Baleba- Has made a great start at the club and could well be the elusive Caicedo replacement

FW: Simon Adingra- Speed and skill merchant who has also made a strong start at the club
FW: Lloyd Owusu- Was an ageing journeyman striker by the time he arrived at Brighton on loan from Cheltenham Town (wtf). His 7 goals in 14 games and lethal partnership with Gary Hart (wtf) helped keep the club up whilst raising the roof on a constant basis
FW: Kazenga LuaLua- After 3 loan spells at Brighton, Lualua signed permanently in 2011 and went on to play 127 games. Capable of beating his man again again and again and possessing a rocket shot, the Congolese winger was a real crowd favourite. Has somehow never been capped by DR Congo.

Subs: Adam Chicksen, Mustapha Carayol, Ade Akinbiyi, David Adekola, Abdul Razak, Emeka Ifejiagwa, Percey Tau

As much as I love the African side absolutely jam packed with cult heroes, the Americas side are simply too strong

for future reference, the qualifying for next years tournament has been completed, with a whopping SIXTEEN teams qualifying

they are:

Sussex (hosts)
Africa
Asia
United Ireland A
United Ireland B
Wales
Scotland A
Scotland B
France & Belgium
Netherlands
The Nords
Rest of Europe A
Rest of Europe B
Americas A
Americas B
and
England Capped

The African firepower in attack let's them down, Americas A 4-1 all day long

The midfield battle would be fantastic to witness, but I just can't see past the Americas strikeforce.

That African defence won't be able to keep out Ulloa, Enciso and Pedro IMO.

I can’t see Rami Shaaban let in any goals!

marks out of 10

Goalkeeper:
Africa *****
Americas *

Defence
Africa *****
Americas ******

Midfield
Africa **********
Americas **********

Attack
Africa *****
Americas *******

Both fairly dodgy at the back and in GK. Africa have a very good midfield, but Americas better. Americas attack wipes the floor with Africa.

Overall, Africa would probably be a high-end Championship side, whereas Americas could be a mid-table Prem side.

The African midfield is very good but it's up against the best midfield in the club's history and they're going to be feeding arguably the best forward line in the competition. I just can't see past the America A team.

Next year the African midfield could be the strongest with Baleba having had a full seson with us but as it stands he's currently raw potential.

I'm there, vuvuzela in mouth, lodly tooting along to Waka Waka by Shakira whlst watching the lads from the Cradle of Humankind deliver an inhumane kind of beating to these new world impostors.

Africa win.

Percy Tau

stewart12 said:

for future reference, the qualifying for next years tournament has been completed, with a whopping SIXTEEN teams qualifying

they are:

Sussex (hosts)
Africa
Asia
United Ireland A
United Ireland B
Wales
Scotland A
Scotland B
France & Belgium
Netherlands
The Nords
Rest of Europe A
Rest of Europe B
Americas A
Americas B
and
England Capped

Click to expand...

thinking of resurrecting this for the 2024 edition what with the weather turning crap. Also have the squads ANNOUNCED (yes I'm currently in between jobs) and with an expanded tournament, plus some great additions in the summer a cracking tournament is good to go

The squads: (PM me if I've made any glaring omissions, and yes I've been a bit liberal in places)

Sussex
Manager: The Ghost of Tommy Cook (player-manager)

Goalkeepers: John Sullivan, Brian Powney
Defenders: Lewis Dunk (Captain), Ian Chapman, Adam Webster, Steve Cook, Tommy Elphick, Ross Johnson, Kerry Mayo, Paul Watson, Stuart Tuck
Midfielders: Tommy Fraser, Tony Towner, Jack Hinshelwood, Solly March, Dean Cox, Simon Rodger, Dean Hammond
Forwards: Jake Robinson, Joe Gatting, Chris McPhee, Darren Freeman, Tommy Cook

England Internationals
Manager: Peter Taylor

Goalkeepers: Dave Beasant, Joe Corrigan
Defenders: Ben White, Wayne Bridge, Matt Upson, Fikayo Tomori, Steve Foster (Captain), Martin Keown, Gary Stevens, Russell Osman, Levi Colwill
Midfielders: Adam Lallana, James Milner, Lee Hendrie, Mark Chamberlain
Forwards: Peter Ward, Bobby Zamora, Darren Bent, Jesse Lingard, Danny Welbeck

France
Manager: Neal Maupay (player-manager)

Goalkeepers: Florent Chaigneau
Defenders: Georges Santos, Romain Vincelot, Romaric Yapi
Midfielders: Alexis Bertin, Therry Racon, Davide Martot, Alex Frutos, Seb Carole
Forwards: Georginio Rutter, Neal Maupay, Anthony Knockaert (Captain)

Africa
Manager: Chris Hughton

Goalkeepers: Rami Shaaban
Defenders: Adam El-Abd (Captain), Tariq Lamptey, Leon Balogun, Gaeten Bong, David Adekola, Emeka Ifijiegwa, Adam Chicksen, Zoumana Bakayogo
Midfielders: Yves Bissouma, Enock Mwepu, Carlos Baleba, Abdul Razão, Samy Chouchrane, Al Bangura, Nzuzi Toko
Forwards: Lloyd Owusu, Simon Adingra, Kazenga Lualua, Percey Tau, Yankuba Minteh, Albert Jarrett, Leroy Lita, Dennis Foreman, Mustapha Carayol, Ade Akinbiyi

Asia & Oceania
Manager: Maty Ryan (player-manager)

Goalkeepers: Ali Al-Habsi, Maty Ryan, Andy Petterson
Defenders: Zesh Rehman, Paul Reid, Moshe Gariani, Jacob Cohen
Midfielders: Nick Ward, Dave Clarkson, Beram Kayal (Captain), Yasir Kasim, Aaron Mooy, Cameron Peupion, Mahmoud Dahoud
Forwards: Gai Assulin, Chris Wood, Kaoru Mitoma, Alireza Jahanbaksh, Tomer Hemed, Eric Lancelotte

Americas A
Manager: Gus Poyet

Goalkeepers: David Gonzalez, Tony Meola
Defenders: Bernardo, Gonzalo Jara Reyes (captain), Igor Julio, Pervis Estupinan, Valentin Barco
Midfielders: Moises Caicedo, Alexis Mac Allister, Steven Alzate, Jeremy Sarmiento, Facundo Buononotte
Forwards: Jose Izquierdo, Leonardo Ulloa, Joao Pedro, Julio Enciso

Americas B:
Manager: Mauricio Tarrico (player manager)

Goalkeepers: Tom McGill, David Yelldell, Jurgen Sommer
Defenders: Mauricio Tarrico, Sam Adekugbe, Keith McPherson, Gavin Hoyte
Midfielders: Rohan Ince, Diego Arismendi, Agustin Battipiedi, Chris Birchall, Emmanuel Ledesma, Bradley Johnson, Elliot Bennett
Forwards: Mark McCammon, Trevor Benjamin, Junior McDougall, Federico Turienzo, Tony Rougier (captain)

United Ireland A
Manager: Liam Brady

Goalkeepers: Wayne Henderson
Defenders: Sammy Nelson, Stephen Ward, Shane Duffy, Mark Lawrenson (captain), Kieran O'Regan, John Napier, Paul McShane
Midfielders: Steve Penny, Oliver Norwood, Keith Andrews, Gerry Ryan, Tony Grealish, Gary Dicker, Gary Howlett, Danny Wilson
Forwards: John Byrne, Evan Ferguson, Michael Robinson, Gerry Armstrong, Charlie Webb

United Ireland B
Manager: Pat Saward

Goalkeepers: Alan Blayney
Defenders: Colin Hawkins, Marcos Painter, Aaron Hughes, Joe O'Ceurill, Joe Dolan, Paul McCarthy (captain), Joe Kinnear, Glen Rea
Midfielders: Richie Towell, Darragh Ryan, Paddy McCourt, Shane McFaul, Mark Yeates, Paul Armstrong, Dessie Hutchinson, Jayson Molumby, Andrew Moran, George O'Callaghan
Forwards: Leon Best, Aaron Connolly, Graeme Barrett, Mark O'Mahony, Kevin Thornton

Scotland
Manager: Mark McGhee

Goalkeepers: Graeme Smith, Stewart Kerr
Defenders: Adam Virgo, Doug Rougvie, Gordon Greer (captain), Stewart Henderson, Derek Allen, Bernard Gallacher, Jimmy McNulty
Midfielders: Liam Bridcutt, Billy Gilmour, Neil McNab, Jamie Murphy, Jimmy Collins, Steven Thomson, Marc Leonard, Craig Conway, Paul McDonald
Forwards: Paul Dickov, Kevin Bremner, Alan Young, Alex Dawson, Kit Napier, Stephen Dobbie, Craig Mackail-Smith, Chris Iwelumo, Gordon Smith, Dave Cameron

The Nordic Nations
Manager: Sami Hyypia

Goalkeepers: Casper Ankergren, Niki Maenpaa, Mikkel Andersen
Defenders: Casper Nilsson, Vegard Forren, Leo Ostigaard, Ivar Ingimarsson (captain)
Midfielders: Matthias Normann, Valur Gislason, Emil Asmundsson, Peter Gwargis, Yasin Ayari, Matt O'Riley
Fowards: Henrik Bjordal, Viktor Gyokeres, Toby Adgestein, Vahid Hambo

Rest of Europe A
Manager: Roberto De Zerbi

Goalkeepers: Tomasz Kuszczak
Defenders: Uwe Hünemeier, Stefan Ivan, Markus Sutter, Ezequiel Schelotto, Gary Chivers, Ferdi Karioglu, Seb Pocognoli
Midfielders: Brajan Gruda, Radostin Kishichev, Jakub Moder, Joao Teixeira, Pascal Gross (captain)
Forwards: Florin Andone, Deniz Undav, Sam Baldock, Sergei Gotsmanov, Ashley Barnes, Leonard Trossard

Rest of Europe B
Manager: Fabian Hurzeler

Goalkeepers; Peter Brezovan
Defenders: Michael Karbownik, Tudor Baluta, Ales Mateju, Vitalijs Maksimenko, Noah Atom, Antef Tsoungai
Midfielders: Alexis Nicolas, Reda Khadra, Jiri Skalak (captain)
Forwards: Lorenzo Pinamonte, Dirk Lehmann, Andi Zeqiri, Maheta Molango, Colin Kazim-Richards, Igor Gurinovich

Wales
Manager: Nathan Jones (player manager)

Goalkeepers: Mark Walton
Defenders: Eric Young, Joel Lynch, Ed Turns, Nathan Jones, Des Tennant
Midfielders: Peter O'Sullivan, Robbie Savage, Andrew Crofts (Captain), John Robinson, Arron Davies, Jordan Davies, Mickey Thomas
Forwards: Dean Saunders, Kurt Nogan, Sam Vokes, Craig Davies, Stuart Fleetwood

Netherlands
Manager: Michel Kuipers (player manager)

Goalkeepers: Michel Kuipers, Bart Verbruggen, Kjell Sherppen, Tim Krul
Defenders: Jan Paul van Hecke, Joel Veltman, Hans Kraay
Midfielders: Soufyan Ahannach, Davy Propper, Danny Holla, Elvis Manu, Rajiv van la Parra, Kemy Agustein (captain), Mats Wieffer
Forwards: Jurgen Locadia, Roland Bergkamp

Spain
Manager: Oscar Garcia

Goalkeepers: Robert Sanchez
Defenders: Bruno, Inigo Calderon (captain), Martin Montoya, Marc Cucurella
Midfielders: Vicente, David Lopez, Andrea Orlandi, Jack Harper
Forwards: Fran Sandaza, Adrian Colunga, Ansu Fati, David Rodriguez, Johnny Dixon

will do the draw later today. The seeding pots are below. Last years semi finalists are all in pot A.

Pot A: Americas A, Ireland A, Africa, Spain
Pot B:England, Asia, France, Netherlands
Pot C: Sussex, Scotland, Wales, ROE A
Pot D: Americas B, Ireland B, Nordics, ROE B

ok here it is, the LIVE DRAW for the first round of the 2024 Fantasy Albion World Cup

Over to the guest celebrities hosting the draw, Big Bobby Booker and Dick Knight

Booker will draw the teams and Knight will draw the groups. Over to you gentlemen.....

Bob: Scotland

Mark McGhee's Scotland reached the quarter finals last year, losing to their Celtic rivals Ireland. They are 3rd seeds this time around

Dick: And they'll be in Group C

Bob: Americas B

A slightly chaotic side last time around managed by Mauricio Taricco. He'll be hoping they can improve on their first round exit last year. They are 4th seeds this time

Dick: And they'll be in Group A

Bob: Sussex

Of course managed by the ghost of Tommy Cook. They are 3rd seeds but are seen as many as dark horses for this tournament, especially as hosts

Dick: Group A

Bob: England

Making their tournament debut, this side are very heavily fancied even though they're second seeds

Dick: Group B

Bob: Africa

Last years beaten finalists, they are improved and hungry for success this year under Chris Hughton. They are top seeds

Dick: Group D

Bob: Ireland B

A new side for this tournament but with many of the Ireland side that made the semi finals last year.

Group D

Bob: Spain!

Another top seed, this heavily fancied side made the semi finals last year

Dick: Group A

Bob: Asia & Oceania

Were plagued by infighting and political turmoil last year which didn't do this talented side justice

Dick: Group D

Bob: Americas A

The champions will once again be heavily fancied.

Dick: Group B

*gasps around the room. They will face England in the first round*

Bob: Wales

The Welsh did well last year and reached the quarter finals, only losing to the eventual winners

Dick: Group D

So Group D is now complete: Africa, Asia & Oceania, Wales, United Ireland B

Bob: Ireland A

Ireland reached the semi finals last year and have added several players through the integration of their pals from the north

Dick: Group C

Bob: Rest of Europe A

De Zerbi's men were heavily fancied last year but lost in the quarter finals

Dick: Group B

This is already looking like the group of death

Bob: France

As France & Belgium this side made the quarter finals last year despite constant infighting

Dick: Group C

Bob: Netherlands

This hugely talented side crashed out in the first round last year

Dick: Group A

Group A is now complete: Spain, Netherlands, Sussex, Americas B

Bob: Nordic Nations

Another side making their tournament debut.

Dick: Group B

Which means, Bob?

Bob: Rest of Europe B

A sigh of relief goes around the room, no technical issues this year

Dick: Group C

The draw in full:

Group A: Spain, Netherlands, Sussex, Americas B
Group B: Americas A, England Internationals, Rest of Europe A, Nordic Nations
Group C: United Ireland A, France, Scotland, Rest of Europe B
Group D: Africa, Asia & Oceania, Wales, United Ireland B

Group A will commence TOMORROW

Leon Best and Aaron Connolly would dovetail beautifully, just saying.

hans kraay fan club said:

controversial…

Click to expand...

Gonna be fun and games at their training camp for sure