I didn't watch it so I feel great.Quote:
Originally Posted by Lewis
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I didn't watch it so I feel great.Quote:
Originally Posted by Lewis
Yev being donned out of existence. Go drown in the tub.
What do South Korea 2018 have that England 2021 do not?Quote:
Originally Posted by Yevrah
There is no higher power involved in these things, it's just a game of football.
False.Quote:
Originally Posted by -james-
People who think the NARRATIVE isn't beholden to the NARRATIVE know nothing about the NARRATIVE.
Why do we never beat anyone good then? Why did we spunk the best chance anyone could ever wish to have to get to a World Cup Final? Why do you think we're good enough to win something? Where is the evidence?Quote:
Originally Posted by -james-
You can say Korea beat Germany, Leicester won the league and Peter Sutcliffe died of COVID, but how is any of that relevant to England rising above being an average to good side for the first time in over 50 years? Which is the only time let me remind you. Maybe it's less to do with historical performance having an impact and more to do with us continually overrating our players and set up, but whatever it is, we're doing it again.
France aside, since they could put two teams out better than us, we have as good a team as anyone on paper, but we've got a shit coach and a loser mentality so any half-decent side with a plan and some nerve will rattle us.
No celebrating when it eventually happens please, Yev.
I was looking at Haalands stats and noticed something so I thought I'd google it.
https://i.imgur.com/38omvNv.png
Me and the lads :cool:
I'd totally forgotten that Germany finished bottom of their group last time. :drool:
If you had a decent centre half and a better midfield I’d be more confident about England winning. Alas, they don’t and their manager is useless
I'd love us to win something, it's the only thing I've really got left to see in football, but the optimism I once had finally died in 2010 and it's going to take more than rattling through a few qualifying groups full of goat herders to get that back. Much more.
There is no reason to take any England results from before 2018 into account when evaluating their chances of doing well this summer. It's like saying United won't beat City because they've only won 3 of the last 18 games stretching back to 2010 or whatever.Quote:
Originally Posted by Yevrah
What England have is attacking talent to rival any squad in Europe and a back line that concedes very few goals. Maybe we overrate them but they play at a reasonably high level for their clubs so that's all you can really use.
The last five minutes of that game are about as good as football gets.Quote:
Originally Posted by Ian
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OKjV2SQfKrw
That 'back line that concedes very few goals' sounds like the statistical equivalent of when we used to ride high in the rankings by only ever really losing the games that actually mattered.
Individually we may do, but what good does that do? Assuming players will play as well for their national team as they do for their clubs is dumb in the extreme. That's one thing you can definitely look at from history and conclude it's wrong to do so. And we might concede very few goals, but we play a lot of shit and always seem to be a complete bomb scare waiting to happen at the back.Quote:
Originally Posted by -james-
Do you trust Southgate to play the best team though? He’ll go with Sterling-Kane-Rashford and other than Kane, they other two aren’t rivalling shitQuote:
Originally Posted by -james-
I reckon all our major team sports generally underperform their capability under tournament pressure. Think as a nation we are too rooted in orthodoxy (in all sports) and it costs us the ability to think on our feet or pull something together on the fly.
The rugby and cricket winning teams both looked like they were going to win for years beforehand, because they got THE PROCESS right, both got the right set of good players together, and then both just barely scraped over the line vs plucky antipodeans when it came to it. We'll never shock anyone in a tournament, the way we think about sport in this country. When we eventually win a football tournament - and we will - we'll know it's coming. And it ain't coming in 2021.
How many games that matter have England played under Southgate? Three? It's just such a tiny sample. And apart from the second half against Croatia it's not a bad record.
Southgate putting out the reserves in the final group game against Belgium is probably the finest piece of international management this decade as well.
It might happen, it might not. They're alright.
Don't forget they're missing Grealish, Rashford, Saka, Barnes, Maddison, Pickford (lol), Henderson, Gomez and Ings. That's likely 3, maybe four/five starters in Pickford, Gomez, Henderson and maybe Grealish/Rashford.
I get they're still English lololol, but that squad this week was light on quality and there's room for improvement.
John McGinn btw :cool:
This lot are promising in some respects but they've not got 'it'. They're a big defensive leader and a Kane-like champion in midfield away. Grealish is the man but he's too much of an individual for us to deal with. Mason Mount... I dunno. Love him, but he needs an edge. Foden is the one, I think, but they seem to have deemed it too early for him.
Kane himself also has to stay fit. Not just available, but fit. If everything happens perfectly we could be contenders in 2022. More likely Euro 2024.
I think people forget that there are no good international teams out there. Not really any good managers either. It's just a crapshoot. England talent pool is pretty diverse in terms of what they can field and have as good a chance as anyone. They are unlikely to win it, but I think 5/1 is about right.
You don't play many games under anyone that matter, that's the nature of international football. And you can't say we've played three that did and then discard 75 minutes of the most important one.Quote:
Originally Posted by -james-
This is the key for me. I just don't see it coming relatively out of the blue. We'll need the best players or close enough to, a very good manager and approach and it'll be clear from games we're playing that we're on the right trajectory.Quote:
Originally Posted by Jimmy Floyd
Pope
Alexander-Arnold/James/Walker/Tripper/about10others
Gomez
Maguire
Chilwell
Henderson
Mount/Rice
Sterling/Rashford
Grealish
Foden
Kane
That can win a tournament imo. Has enough. Not as good as France or Belgium though and obviously have to deal with being WEAK ENGLISH BASTARDS.
My point is that you can't discern anything from three games between teams of approximately equal strength. There's nothing special about England or international football. You're just seeing patterns where there aren't any.Quote:
Originally Posted by Yevrah
If there are no good international teams out there, not really any good managers, we have a diverse talent pool and as good a chance as anyone, what happened in 2018? We beat Sweden and Colombia. Which was good in the case of the former and about bloody time in the case of the nature of the latter, but that was it.Quote:
Originally Posted by -james-
Grealish is the only one that can deliver glory. It looks like the maggot will go Sterling, Mount and Rashford though which is absolute lols.
If we're talking x factor, I highly doubt any side has a set piece setup as good as England's (Grealish to earn them, JWP to deliver, Maguire at the back post), and in a tournament that is going to be 95% terrible football I reckon that's worth a couple of goals.
Do agree on manager and approach and it not being an all conquering generation of superstars though. But then no one has that other than Belgium, who have missed their best chances. France have a good squad too, but fuck the French.
Are we discerning it from one of the worst qualifying groups in all of human history instead?Quote:
Originally Posted by -james-
How can you not 'discern anything from three games between teams of approximately equal strength' when we feebly lost all three?
I was referring to Sweden, Colombia and Croatia. Nations League, eh, arsed.
Which team at Euro 2020 hasn't lost an important game in a feeble manner?
I thought you meant the three defeats at the World Cup. Carry on.
The first Belgium loss was the correct result, and the other was a third place play off.
Absolutely seething that this actual football discussion has distracted from me and Marcelo Bielsa having the same birthday.
Steps 1 and 2 sound great, but it’d fall down on 3 with Maguire. He’s fantastic at winning headers and absolutely dire at directing them.Quote:
Originally Posted by -james-
Him scoring tonight was quite a shock. I guess he should be allowed to use his feet but not his head in the opponent’s box.
I only saw the second half but thought we looked alright. Foden is class but not sure he gets the best from Kane when playing off the wing. Kane thrives with speed all around him so could understand Southgate going with Sterling and Rashford in the XI, even if they aren’t in the best form closer to the tournament.
Means missing out on Grealish, but Southgate doesn’t seem to like him anyway so not holding much hope in him getting more than a token kick.
Who would have thought that a defender who consistently makes mistakes when under pressure, would make a mistake under pressure. Playing centreback for City should not be a gauge for how good a defender is - they generally have fuck all defending to do.