Italy bossed it tbf. We always looked vulnerable down that left flank and they exploited it fully. Pirlo is a fucking amazing player for sure, for all the hype Gerard gets he's just nowhere near that kind of quality.
As improved as England were and as happy as I am to see the kind of squad I've been asking for for several years now, we still don't really have the technique to compete with the top teams. When they wanted to Italy just walked through us, ok they didn't actually threaten our goal too often, but they gave up after their second goal and settled for defending their lead.
They'd just give the ball to Pirlo, who'd check for the long ball, then lay it off to a wide player in space around the halfway mark, who'd immediately knock it to someone in space more central, who would then have options of going back out wide to either wingforward or wingback, or another player in space centrally, and all this happens in 1 or 2 touches. England on the other hand would knock it wide then it would either be a hopeful ball down the wing, a ball centrally to a marked player going nowhere, or they'd stand there doing the 'somebody give me an option' dance, by which point it's too late and it's knocked back to a CB.
To succeed at the top level you to have to have players moving in space who are expecting to receive the ball in a few passes, and each player needs to be aware of their options and to have made their next pass decision before they've even received the ball. England only occasionally try to do this but they're very rarely on the same wavelength, whilst the quality sides all know how to do this and we must get there and learn to work the ball as a team as well. The problem is exemplified by someone like Wilshere, who will drive at defences expecting team mates to move with him, strikers to come short etc so they can play quick short passes to cut through defences on the move, like he does at Arsenal. Unfortunately England players are more likely to go in the opposite direction moving wide or towards the goal to await a cross, so Wilshere just looks like he's running into a blind alley.
Whatevers, but this WC already outshines the whole of SA2010, and hopefully we've seen the end of that tiki bullshit that sucked the life out of the event.
Teams seem more intent on attacking rather than suffocating.
When I close my eyes I can still see the Rooney corner which never made it onto the pitch. *shudders*
It must sting quite a bit for him. Do your part to get the team to the big show. But for the most part underachieve at the big show. Perfect pass to create a great goal. Flops it from the corner... Will be talked about for years.
I still don't understand why he was taking the corner in the first place.
That all said. It was hopeful seeing the youth at it yesterday.
I thought England looked pretty good, and they still have a strong chance of going through thanks to Uruguay's shocker.
Costa Rica looked surprisingly good though, from what I understand that Campbell kid belongs to Arsenal but couldn't get a work permit to play in England?? That kid looked better than Theo Walcott!
Today we have the first match here in Porto Alegre - France v. Honduras. I almost got a ticket from some dude, but he was trying to sell me one of those corporate tickets (this one from Johnson & Johnson) and couldn't transfer it to my name, and I wasn't about to give dude a chunk of change only to get blocked at the gates for not having the correct ID or some shit. Pretty ironic though that FIFA has all these bullshit rules to keep scalpers away yet the tickets being scalped are the ones given to the big corporate sponsors. Got my Holland tickets the official way though, lucked out with the FIFA website over the weekend. Plan on getting my afternoon drunk on with the people in oranje on wednesday.
I'm gonna try to hit up the bars for the Argentina game, see if the french will be out partying (or crying into their beers).
WHY HAVE WE WAITED 36 YEARS TO HAVE ANOTHER WORLD CUP IN SOUTH AMERICA????
Argentina, 1978. Nothing untoward about that tournament...
;-)
But this has, so far, been the best opening to a World Cup I've watched. Goals in every game, attacking football, great stadium atmosphere, headline-grabbing results.
HarveyCanal"a distraction from my main thesis." 13,234 Posts
Still nursing a hangover from whooping it up all through the Costa Rican and Italian victories yesterday. HELL TO THE YES! I'm flying to San Jose tomorrow morning. Will be there for Costa Rica versus Italy on Friday. My goodness.
England did well against Italy. And that Sterling kid is unfuckingreal! Like, ho-lee-schitt.
Several great games so far. And yes, I too am loving the teams that are just going for it. None of this nil-nil shit. A few exciting upsets. Love it. More, please.
b/w
!!!!PORTUGAL!!!!
DocMcCoy"Go and laugh in your own country!" 5,917 Posts
I think England will get out of the group. On the evidence of the earlier game, neither Costa Rica nor Uruguay have anything approaching the same sort of quality in the middle or at the back as Italy (who we were never going to beat), and if their coach keeps his word and doesn't play Suarez against England, the latter aren't likely to have much success up front either.
It's been a good WC so far, from what I've seen. After the Brazil game, we had the now-traditional community singing of that old World Cup favourite, "Take Away [insert name of talismanic player/ref/sponsor/kit manufacturer here], and Brazil Don't Really Look All That, Do They?", but they're unlikely to struggle, are they? Spain getting utterly murdered by an admittedly very good and much-improved Dutch side did underscore my belief that this Spanish team is reaching the end of its cycle. I've rooted for them going into the last three major tournaments, and I think they'll get a lot further than the other night's result suggests, but they won't retain it - I have a feeling it'll be Argentina's year.
Was pretty average for the entire first half. Sterling had more impact.
If you pegged Messi's transfer value at, say, £100M before the competition, I predict that figure will appear wildly optimistic when the dust has settled.
Maybe he's knackered from Spain. Maybe he's not 100% healthy, but they are not letting on.
I think USA has a reasonable chance of getting out of the group now. Beat Ghana, possible win or draw against Portugal, and take it like a [strike]man[/strike] 5 dollar hoe from Germany, and job done.
Comments
As improved as England were and as happy as I am to see the kind of squad I've been asking for for several years now, we still don't really have the technique to compete with the top teams. When they wanted to Italy just walked through us, ok they didn't actually threaten our goal too often, but they gave up after their second goal and settled for defending their lead.
They'd just give the ball to Pirlo, who'd check for the long ball, then lay it off to a wide player in space around the halfway mark, who'd immediately knock it to someone in space more central, who would then have options of going back out wide to either wingforward or wingback, or another player in space centrally, and all this happens in 1 or 2 touches. England on the other hand would knock it wide then it would either be a hopeful ball down the wing, a ball centrally to a marked player going nowhere, or they'd stand there doing the 'somebody give me an option' dance, by which point it's too late and it's knocked back to a CB.
To succeed at the top level you to have to have players moving in space who are expecting to receive the ball in a few passes, and each player needs to be aware of their options and to have made their next pass decision before they've even received the ball. England only occasionally try to do this but they're very rarely on the same wavelength, whilst the quality sides all know how to do this and we must get there and learn to work the ball as a team as well. The problem is exemplified by someone like Wilshere, who will drive at defences expecting team mates to move with him, strikers to come short etc so they can play quick short passes to cut through defences on the move, like he does at Arsenal. Unfortunately England players are more likely to go in the opposite direction moving wide or towards the goal to await a cross, so Wilshere just looks like he's running into a blind alley.
Teams seem more intent on attacking rather than suffocating.
It must sting quite a bit for him. Do your part to get the team to the big show. But for the most part underachieve at the big show. Perfect pass to create a great goal. Flops it from the corner... Will be talked about for years.
I still don't understand why he was taking the corner in the first place.
That all said. It was hopeful seeing the youth at it yesterday.
http://www.foxnews.com/opinion/2014/06/13/why-wont-be-watching-world-cup/
Costa Rica looked surprisingly good though, from what I understand that Campbell kid belongs to Arsenal but couldn't get a work permit to play in England?? That kid looked better than Theo Walcott!
Today we have the first match here in Porto Alegre - France v. Honduras. I almost got a ticket from some dude, but he was trying to sell me one of those corporate tickets (this one from Johnson & Johnson) and couldn't transfer it to my name, and I wasn't about to give dude a chunk of change only to get blocked at the gates for not having the correct ID or some shit. Pretty ironic though that FIFA has all these bullshit rules to keep scalpers away yet the tickets being scalped are the ones given to the big corporate sponsors. Got my Holland tickets the official way though, lucked out with the FIFA website over the weekend. Plan on getting my afternoon drunk on with the people in oranje on wednesday.
I'm gonna try to hit up the bars for the Argentina game, see if the french will be out partying (or crying into their beers).
Having said that, England's pushing style was well worth a draw and better to watch.
I believe, if we can maintain that tempo, WE CAN DO THIS.
Argentina, 1978. Nothing untoward about that tournament...
;-)
But this has, so far, been the best opening to a World Cup I've watched. Goals in every game, attacking football, great stadium atmosphere, headline-grabbing results.
Several great games so far. And yes, I too am loving the teams that are just going for it. None of this nil-nil shit. A few exciting upsets. Love it. More, please.
b/w
!!!!PORTUGAL!!!!
It's been a good WC so far, from what I've seen. After the Brazil game, we had the now-traditional community singing of that old World Cup favourite, "Take Away [insert name of talismanic player/ref/sponsor/kit manufacturer here], and Brazil Don't Really Look All That, Do They?", but they're unlikely to struggle, are they? Spain getting utterly murdered by an admittedly very good and much-improved Dutch side did underscore my belief that this Spanish team is reaching the end of its cycle. I've rooted for them going into the last three major tournaments, and I think they'll get a lot further than the other night's result suggests, but they won't retain it - I have a feeling it'll be Argentina's year.
http://copadomundo.uol.com.br/noticias/redacao/2014/06/14/ingles-usa-mesma-fantasia-ha-tres-dias-e-ja-nem-sabe-o-que-esta-bebendo.htm
b/w
Costa Rica!
Stan Field, 44 anos, e excepcao.
"A Skol e fantastica"
Lollers
Good to see he's making an effort to pick up the lingo
B/w
"Hooliganismo"
Still not Maradona-good.
If you pegged Messi's transfer value at, say, £100M before the competition, I predict that figure will appear wildly optimistic when the dust has settled.
Maybe he's knackered from Spain. Maybe he's not 100% healthy, but they are not letting on.
Y'know, like Rooney is.
ALL THE TIME.
Maybe Messi was a client too?
B/W
3 zip? Where the hell is Portugal today?
Oil and strife in common.
Big powerful fuckers against nippy little fuckers.
This is what it's all about.
Bore draw potential.
No worries. They have a perfect record so far this tournment.
Nigeria all long ball.
Poor opening quarter.