Cronky

I suspect Southgate is going 4 at the back. He'll be worried about the two Spanish wide players, and might not want to rely on wing backs.

I really like Gnabry, though he seems too old at 29 for our usual transfer strategy. I think he's a great talent who hasn't fulfilled his potential. Eddie has a knack of getting something extra from a player, so I'd be very happy if this went through. With Gordon and Isak, we've had success in scooping up players whose standing seems to have dipped after an indifferent season. I'm hoping this could be another one.

Best players of the Euros, I'd say. No chance.

Someone I know has 2 tickets for the Euros Final. He paid £300 each including accommodation, but he didn't realise when he bought them months ago that it was going to be the same day as his wedding! If you are interested, he is looking for someone to take his place! It's at St Helens Registry Office, at 4pm and the bride's name is Hannah.

In the last four tournaments, we've reached 3 semis, and 2 finals. However, in 3 out of the 4, we've been very lucky with how the draws for the knockout stages have worked out.

Hang on. He was late. He attempted to play the ball and didn't get it. The fact that most of the energy came from Kane's boot is irrelevant. Kane got the ball, the defender didn't.

To be frank, I think what’s confusing the issue is that the defender didn’t prevent Kane from getting his shot away cleanly, and so the offence seems less serious. Say in another part of the field, a defender clears the ball into touch but a late challenge from an opponent leads to the defender’s foot colliding with the opponent’s foot. No question in my mind that’s given as a foul. There has been a convention that giving a pen requires a foul to be more serious than would be the case in other parts of the field. However, with Var, that seems to be loosening. Maybe in the early days of Var that incident may have failed the ‘clear and obvious’ test. But in order to get consistency, some rules are being tightened. So I think the decision was fair enough.

I thought the pen was fair enough. The defender was making a challenge for the ball, rather than blocking the shot. He was just late.

I've been wanting Southgate to pick Watkins. That sort of goal is his trademark. He creates just a bit of space for himself in the area and then hits the corners. I don't think there's any chance of his starting ahead of Kane in the final, but hopefully he'll come on a bit earlier.

I think there's room for improvement with Madueke, and Eddie has a way of bringing out the best in players. The talent is there. Bowen is 5 years older, and I think has already peaked. Good athlete, but not particularly great on the technical side, would be my view.

Bowen would cost a lot, and I think he's a bit over-rated. Madueke yes please, but I imagine his wages could be a barrier. Elanga is the more realistic.

I may be the only one, but I thought Van de Ven's challenge on Akaydin deserved at least a yellow. He jumped in and had no chance of getting the ball. I was quite surprised at the referee expert's opinion that it was a fair challenge.

The danger was created when Trippier got beaten by Schar.

Lousy piece of defending for Trippier for their goal. Over the last few months, a not untypical error, I have to say.

Kane just looked off the pace. I don't mean to be unkind, but I hope he's out for the semi-final. I'd prefer Watkins to Toney, mind.

I see. Thank you.

Good post, but help a non-Geordie out, please? What is 'skuttling'?

Way off thread topic, but I can't resist. As I recall, Batty replaced Lee Clark in the anchor role, which at first I think was an upgrade, but maybe not a significant one. In later seasons, I think the conservatism of his play held us back a bit. I think that the signing we shouldn't have made was Asprilla. Good player, but the partnership between Ferdinand and Beardsley, which was so fruitful, was disrupted, with Beardsley moving out wider to replace Gillespie, who was struggling. No-one would argue that Gillespie was a better player than Asprilla, but the shape and balance of the side was badly affected. At the time of Asprilla's signing, Brian Clough wrote an article in a paper. He said that when Forest were closing in on the title, he was tempted to make a signing 'just to make sure', as it were. He resisted the temptation, thinking that the signing might be a vote of no confidence in the existing players, and was based on anxiety rather than positive thinking. Clough thought that the Asprilla signing would prove to be an error, for those reasons. Right or wrong, you can't get any better than correctly predicting the outcome.

Yep, we blew it.

I've just checked out a video on Youtube. I see what you mean. Unusually for a British player, he much prefers to use the outside of his right foot rather than use his left. However, he is pretty good with that, so I'm not sure it's a problem. It was quite an impressive highlights reel. He is very quick, and that would be an asset for us. In fact, it made me wonder why he hasn't made the England squad. I guess there's a fair bit of competition of that role.

I'd put Mainoo in Rice's place, which I know is a risk. In time I think he'll play that anchor role very well, and perhaps he's not ready. But I just can't see any alternative that will improve things. I've not seen enough of Wharton. Rice and Bellingham are both best suited to be box-to-box, and only one should play, as would be the usual practice. That's Bellingham. Foden, Saka and Eze, with Watkins up front.

This England team is looking disturbingly like the previous 'golden generation'. A recurring problem is that the players who look technically good enough seem to lack pace. As a result, we're unable to press or hit teams on the break. Our attacks seem very one-paced. Contrast that with Spain, all of whose players seem to be very nimble whilst also possessing the skill to work the ball in tight spaces under pressure. The two apparently undroppable players who define the structure of the team - Rice and Kane - are holding the team back. I'd put in Mainoo and Watkins in their places.

It’s a risk but I think DCL is worth the risk. Practically unbeatable in the air and links well with his team mates.

Ivesaiditbeforeandillsayitagain. Declan Rice is not as good as he’s cracked up to be. And his best role is box to box rather than DM. The team as a whole looks a bit ponderous. We don’t seem to be able to counter attack. We’re missing a few players so it’s not all Southgate’s fault. But Trent in midfield just looks like a failed experiment.

I'm inclined to think that if Foden is poor, the problem will be with the set up rather than his ability. I'd move Bellingham back to partner Rice, and have Foden as the number 10. To be honest, I wasn't completely happy with Bellingham's performance tonight. He's a great player, but he sometimes slowed the game down with his tendency to look around for something spectacular to do.