Ireland-Spain was boring as expected and there is very little to learn from this, let??s wait until Spain has to play against better teams. I would love to see a Germany-Spain final - with Germany winning, of course.
Sweden to park the Volvo, but they have conceded a lot in the air lately, so The Big Man will bag one. Ibra to go missing, JT will have him in his pocket. The Terry family always have interesting things in their pockets, yes?
Reckon Ukraine will beat us and it's goodbye Krakow.
DocMcCoy"Go and laugh in your own country!" 5,917 Posts
Best England performance I've seen in years. Yes, they fell asleep for about ten minutes, but for the other 84, they looked like a team. It's been a very long time since I was able to say that about England. They gave the ball away a bit too much, and they'll get hurt if they do that against a better team than Sweden, but at least they worked hard to get it back when they did give it away. Three great goals as well, Walcott's just about shading it as the best.
It'd be ridiculous to start talking as if we can win the thing after that, but whatever happens from here on in, at least they haven't embarrassed themselves.
DocMcCoy"Go and laugh in your own country!" 5,917 Posts
skel said:
Doc, you been on the turps?
Hah.
Will you ever know the joy of watching England go 2-1 down in a German bar, with Teutonic laughter echoing in your ears, only to see them go 3-2 up and for the room to be struck silent? Apart from a solitary Englishman saying, "Ich kann nicht alles h??ren!"?
I love/hate watching us play. Every fixture gives me that (interview/exam/public performance/first date) knotted ball of stomach pain feeling, this match more than most. Good goals but we sit deeper than we should and possession retention was a joke. Good job it was only the Swedes, Roy got work to do....
OK, OK, I jumped up and started shouting and fist-pumping and danced a little jig, and insisted to my friend that Wellbeck meant it as you could tell that he looked to where the ball went in, and then downed my drink and reached for a refill, but was always waiting for dissappointment... and it was at that stage of the game, when the Swedes pressed forward and the flow of the match became more one end straight to the other that I thought we looked at our best.
And I know that the good teams will never let a game get that ragged.
I don't know what was better; the goal or #1 son's euphoric response (IIRC):
Hugs me, points to telly and makes whistling bomb noise and resultant explosion noise -
"You hear that? That's the sound of your party tanking! Dance to that, Losers!"
Wonder if Theo will get a start the next day? He did well when he came on & that boy can fly. I'd be much more fearful of him than Milner if I were the opposition
Assist for Carroll's amazing header aside, Gerrard was awful. 2-1 down in the second-half and I began to count how many times he gave away possession. After a dozen misplaced passes in less than ten minutes I gave up moaning about how sh*t he was. The other problem is that Carroll had to keep dropping back into midfield to chase the ball down as Gerrard spent the game walking around. This meant that when Wellbeck managed to bring down the odd lump-forward, he'd be totally isolated. Parker & Carroll shouldn't have to do all of the work in midfield because Stevie Me is above working for the team. Gerrard was at fault for Mellbergs second goal - replays showed Gerrard was marking Mellberg, and just let him run off unmarked to nod in. Lee Dixon and Shearer pointed this out only for Hanson to try and deny that Gerrard was to blame. Lawrenson spent the game with his tongue up Gerrard's arse.
How different this team would be if Scholes was in the middle of the park. Not world-beaters but we'd probably spend less time chasing the ball.
Milner should be on the bench as an emergency RB/LB. He can run, but that's about it.
Johnson didn't push up and played Mellberg onside for the first goal, but made ammends later on with a few decent interceptions. Ashley Young should just play on the right wing as he's been total arse on the left. Try the Ox on the left. Or drop Young for Walcott???
Finally, watching that speed-merchant Ibrahimabitch leave John Terry for dead was painful. And we left Rio at home? The defender we're really missing is Cahill - just ask Barcelona.
you are spot on about cahill john terry can give you one important save but 2 or 3 mistakes down the line
walcott homed in on his strengths if he can give you quality outside the box and put in good tight crosses he will be dangerous and other teams may not have rated him as such. glen johnson did a good job for the most part
young,welbeck,theo and shrek need to step up if you want to be serious contenders
i hope stevie G gets injured
i am rooting for england primarly so that my best mate can go back to his homeland whilst they are still in the tournament
but much like france...england looked competent but not threatnening or dominant
great game though
ibra being a true bastard as always he despises everything you could clear;y see his own squad hated him
DocMcCoy"Go and laugh in your own country!" 5,917 Posts
The individual shortcomings of certain players - Johnson's inability to defend, Terry's lack of pace, Gerrard's tendency to go missing or slip into Roy Of The Rovers mode - oughtn't to surprise anyone by now. More surprising, I thought, was Young's general uselessness. He came into the tournament as one of England's few form players, but he contributed little and looked a light-weight last night. Terry, on the other hand, had a good game apart from that one time he got roasted by Ibrahimovic, who was a constant threat.
England made mistakes, sure, but there really wasn't anything like the sort of tactical naivety we've seen in the past. Sweden aren't a great side, but they weren't easy opponents either. It's easy to say, "Well, they won't be able to get away with this against better sides", but we'll have to wait and see. So far, they haven't lost, their performances are improving and they look more assured and well-organised than any England side has for a long time. Considering how long Hodgson's been in the job, he deserves credit for getting as much out of them as he has. Perhaps he'll do alright after all.
I've been enjoying watching Woy's England. Tactically interesting, if not dazzling in other ways.
The first game, although we were outplayed by the French, I thought they did well playing in an unusual system for an Englang 11 - players swapping roles and everything!
Last nights game we reverted to type a little, playing hoofball to da big man. Bar the opening goal, we looked as flat and hopeless as ever. But Roy pulled some strings, recognised that for all his possitive attributes Milner is not the dynamic player who's going to bring a little creatvity to our game. He brought Theo on, changed it up and we looked a little more promising again.
All that and his willingness to risk playing the youngsters, it looks kinda promising for the future. If Roy's aim is to get us playing like his Fulham side of old, and there's no real reason why our players shouldn't be able to achieve that, I'll see it as a vast improvement. Come the WC when players like Welbeck, OxC, Wilshere, Cleverly, maybe even McEachran, will be more established, we might actually have a team worth supporting.
Comments
Or will we snatch an undeserved set-piece winner?
OR will England lose due to a mistake by one of its own players(Scapegoat related ala Pierce/Waddle/Southgate/Beckham/Phil Neville)????????
Three thumbs up!
Them cray, cray Swedes.
The multi-copy lucky Stool Pigeons are on standby, calling it 2-1 the Ingerlund.
Cardigans albums to get it if we crash and burn; self-harm possible if imacuntovic scores.
Sweden to park the Volvo, but they have conceded a lot in the air lately, so The Big Man will bag one. Ibra to go missing, JT will have him in his pocket. The Terry family always have interesting things in their pockets, yes?
THIS is why the fucking vuvuzelas should never have been allowed at the last World Cup. Real atmosphere. Got to tip my hat to the Irish support.
Didn't see any of last night's games - what did Cassano do to piss every one off?
Dickbag homophobic remarks (or "jokes") at a press conference before going out to do his job wearing a shirt with "RESPECT" emblazoned on the sleeve.
What about Brazil in 1970?
that WC will always be remembered first & foremost for the team in orange jerseys that captivated the world for two weeks in the summer of 74.
Just on Sweden England......no headline will ever come close to matching The Sun's from Euro 92........Swedes 2 Turnips 1
Can we blow the whistle now?
The delicate perfume of the knockout stages will elude that Hooknose muhfug.
Nah but both sides are piss-poor.
Reckon Ukraine will beat us and it's goodbye Krakow.
It'd be ridiculous to start talking as if we can win the thing after that, but whatever happens from here on in, at least they haven't embarrassed themselves.
Hah.
Will you ever know the joy of watching England go 2-1 down in a German bar, with Teutonic laughter echoing in your ears, only to see them go 3-2 up and for the room to be struck silent? Apart from a solitary Englishman saying, "Ich kann nicht alles h??ren!"?
More fun than you can imagine. Trust me.
And with the other goal from Theo you should probably all be thanking Wenger right now for providing some quality to the England squad.
I love/hate watching us play. Every fixture gives me that (interview/exam/public performance/first date) knotted ball of stomach pain feeling, this match more than most. Good goals but we sit deeper than we should and possession retention was a joke. Good job it was only the Swedes, Roy got work to do....
OK, OK, I jumped up and started shouting and fist-pumping and danced a little jig, and insisted to my friend that Wellbeck meant it as you could tell that he looked to where the ball went in, and then downed my drink and reached for a refill, but was always waiting for dissappointment... and it was at that stage of the game, when the Swedes pressed forward and the flow of the match became more one end straight to the other that I thought we looked at our best.
And I know that the good teams will never let a game get that ragged.
He most definitely did that on purpose.
Goal of the tourney so far!
Hugs me, points to telly and makes whistling bomb noise and resultant explosion noise -
"You hear that? That's the sound of your party tanking! Dance to that, Losers!"
Someone has a lot to answer for.
Hahhaaa! Cheers all.
Anyone notice when he picked up Hart's water bottle to take a few gulps? ha
I hate that feeling of sitting in the pub down 2-1 and thinking they've done it again...
I'll have you all know I used my bday wish for the boys to pull one through.
Disappointed on Stevie G's game today (cept for that great pass on the first goal). Can't believe he missed that one down the stretch.
Assist for Carroll's amazing header aside, Gerrard was awful. 2-1 down in the second-half and I began to count how many times he gave away possession. After a dozen misplaced passes in less than ten minutes I gave up moaning about how sh*t he was. The other problem is that Carroll had to keep dropping back into midfield to chase the ball down as Gerrard spent the game walking around. This meant that when Wellbeck managed to bring down the odd lump-forward, he'd be totally isolated. Parker & Carroll shouldn't have to do all of the work in midfield because Stevie Me is above working for the team. Gerrard was at fault for Mellbergs second goal - replays showed Gerrard was marking Mellberg, and just let him run off unmarked to nod in. Lee Dixon and Shearer pointed this out only for Hanson to try and deny that Gerrard was to blame. Lawrenson spent the game with his tongue up Gerrard's arse.
How different this team would be if Scholes was in the middle of the park. Not world-beaters but we'd probably spend less time chasing the ball.
Milner should be on the bench as an emergency RB/LB. He can run, but that's about it.
Johnson didn't push up and played Mellberg onside for the first goal, but made ammends later on with a few decent interceptions. Ashley Young should just play on the right wing as he's been total arse on the left. Try the Ox on the left. Or drop Young for Walcott???
Finally, watching that speed-merchant Ibrahimabitch leave John Terry for dead was painful. And we left Rio at home? The defender we're really missing is Cahill - just ask Barcelona.
walcott homed in on his strengths if he can give you quality outside the box and put in good tight crosses he will be dangerous and other teams may not have rated him as such. glen johnson did a good job for the most part
young,welbeck,theo and shrek need to step up if you want to be serious contenders
i hope stevie G gets injured
i am rooting for england primarly so that my best mate can go back to his homeland whilst they are still in the tournament
but much like france...england looked competent but not threatnening or dominant
great game though
ibra being a true bastard as always he despises everything you could clear;y see his own squad hated him
England made mistakes, sure, but there really wasn't anything like the sort of tactical naivety we've seen in the past. Sweden aren't a great side, but they weren't easy opponents either. It's easy to say, "Well, they won't be able to get away with this against better sides", but we'll have to wait and see. So far, they haven't lost, their performances are improving and they look more assured and well-organised than any England side has for a long time. Considering how long Hodgson's been in the job, he deserves credit for getting as much out of them as he has. Perhaps he'll do alright after all.
The first game, although we were outplayed by the French, I thought they did well playing in an unusual system for an Englang 11 - players swapping roles and everything!
Last nights game we reverted to type a little, playing hoofball to da big man. Bar the opening goal, we looked as flat and hopeless as ever. But Roy pulled some strings, recognised that for all his possitive attributes Milner is not the dynamic player who's going to bring a little creatvity to our game. He brought Theo on, changed it up and we looked a little more promising again.
All that and his willingness to risk playing the youngsters, it looks kinda promising for the future. If Roy's aim is to get us playing like his Fulham side of old, and there's no real reason why our players shouldn't be able to achieve that, I'll see it as a vast improvement. Come the WC when players like Welbeck, OxC, Wilshere, Cleverly, maybe even McEachran, will be more established, we might actually have a team worth supporting.