Cronky

Looks to me like a talented player who hasn't fulfilled his potential. So a gamble, but one worth taking, I'd have thought.

In for a penny, I suppose. I do think there's a tendency amongst supporters of our club to elevate particular individuals to such heroic status, that not only are they immune from any criticism, but any comment that isn't a statement of total devotion gets treated as blasphemy. That really isn't an exaggeration, and I'm thinking here of Keegan, Shearer and now Rafa. Every now and then, that becomes dangerous, and the club as a whole can suffer. Most of the time, I accept that state of affairs, but every now and then the frustration gets the better of me, unfortunately with the same results. Do you really want this site to be an echo chamber?

The fact is that, purely in terms of league positions and points haul, there's barely any difference between Rafa and Bruce. So it boils down to personal opinions about the quality of the players that each manager had at their disposal. Everyone's entitled to their opinion on that score, but I don't see why anyone should be surprised that some of us don't go along with the extreme polarisation that goes on here - ie Rafa was the Messiah and Bruce is completely useless.

Bellamy transformed us from a mid-table team into title contenders in one season. Sir Alex said later that we might well have won the league if he hadn't got injured with a couple of months to go. Beardsley had a similar effect when we signed him second time round. And of course he was a great signing first time too. Lastly, Rob Lee. I'd seen him play for Charlton and I couldn't understand why no-one had snapped him up. A great all-round midfield player. I can't see how Shearer can figure on this list. It was a world record fee, and the team went into decline after his signing. The Bellamy signing picked things up, but after he left we went downhill again. Shearer also played two seasons longer than he should, though that's not his fault. He became bigger than the club, to our ultimate detriment.

That's a good list. It's a shame about Joelinton because he didn't decide the fee, and I can't fault his attitude and application since he's come. And last season, he justified his place in the side, even though he's been a disappointment. In a way, Michael Owen was our most foolish error, because he made it absolutely clear beforehand that he didn't want to join us. He was desperate to play for England, and Clever Freddie put pressure on him by making a bid that made it very difficult for Madrid to accept any other offers. He had lost that searing pace on which his early career was based, and wasn't worth that kind of money any more. Liverpool were only prepared to pay £8m.

I don't think you can say that Southgate has done a bad job. Whether he could have done better is up for debate. Every England manager has had to deal with the issue that our players aren't as technically able on the ball as their international opponents. Now I think ever since the start of the Premiership and the influx of foreign coaches and foreign players, our standards in that regard have improved. Whether we're quite able now to play a successful continental style game is the unknown. Southgate passed up the opportunity to give that a go, but possibly he was right to remain pragmatic. I was optimistic going into the game, because we seemed to have gained some momentum and spirit after the Ukraine and Denmark games. I thought Southgate was going to pick the same side for the final, and I was disappointed when he reverted to three centre backs. It caught Italy on the hop, and we could have got 2 or 3 goals in the first half hour. But after Italy had adjusted, our players seemed to lose their way. We did look better when we went back to a back four, and brought in Grealish and Saka. Looking at the starting eleven, there was only one player that you could say was truly comfortable on the ball, and that was Mount. And he struggled to get into the game, because he's a player who operates between the striker and the midfield, and we made very little attempt to play anyone in between the lines. We stuck to traditional English methods of getting behind the defence down the wings, and although it worked at first, due to Italy being unprepared, thereafter we looked more and more one dimensional. Southgate has done more than well enough to continue, but I hope he becomes that bit bolder, certainly once these good young players have gathered more experience.

Yeah, I agree. He did well trying to bring the ball out of defence as well.

In the end, we were let down by the usual English problem of a lack of technical ability on the ball. Italy's superior ability to keep the ball in tight spaces and pass accurately was very apparent. A chance opened up for us with the home games and the easy draw, but we weren't quite good enough to take it. We have been relying a lot on Sterling to open things up for us. His change of pace and direction will always be a threat, but he's a poor passer of the ball and doesn't always know when to pass. He wasted some good opportunities for us tonight. A couple of times in the first half, he had the ball on the right, but couldn't feed in the wing back running into acres of space. He ended up running down a blind alley into the centre. I don't think he's confident about that particular pass, which needs to be carefully weighted. We need to get a better balance between skill and athleticism through the side. Easy with hindsight, but was it a good idea for Southgate to pick three young players for the 3rd, 4th and 5th penalties?

So far, we've been a bit inhibited by the fear of defeat, but somehow I think the pressure has eased. Going out in the earlier rounds, or to a team like Ukraine or Denmark, would have been hard to take, but getting to a final is an achievement in itself and the expectations around playing Italy are different. Sometimes, a tournament just opens up for a side, and by the time the final comes round, the momentum and belief has become strong. I'm thinking Greece and Denmark in the Euros, and France in 1998, and England in 1966. I just feel this team has the mentality now that whatever challenge comes up tonight, they'll rise to it. (Playing at home helps, of course)

I thought so, yes.

Linked with Matthew Hoppe, Schalke 04. Looks classy.

Probably a close call, but Foden is more skilful and quicker.

He may be tall, but he seems a bit of a lightweight to me. I've assumed that his lack of physicality is what has put off Premiership clubs. I see him as the sort of player who would have been better off playing abroad.

I think Hughes is very skilful, though obviously with his size he struggles on the physical side. But we don't have anyone like him in the midfield, so I think he'd be a good buy.

Assuming that Henderson is fit (which is a big assumption), I would play him instead of Rice. Rice looks like a cross between a midfield anchorman and a centre back. He's a good athlete, but defensive midfielders often need quick movements and footwork in order to put in a tackle or close someone down effectively. Phillips and Henderson both look more the part. And I'vesaiditonceandI'llsayitagain. A player in that position sees a lot of the ball, and if they are too unambitious with their passing, then it wastes a lot of opportunities.

I just think we have the scent of victory and will seize the moment.

I thought the pen was fair enough. The defender made contact, probably not enough for him to fall over, but enough to stagger him and prevent a shot. Those don't always get given, but Sterling made his own luck there.

Well, we finally faced a setback, and we were able to raise our game. The more it went on, the more we looked like winners. Foden did very well when he came on. Southgate may be tempted to start him rather than Saka on Sunday, but otherwise I can't see any changes.

Assuming we get to the final, I'd rather face Italy. I don't think Spain would let us have the ball.

That's a good assessment on what Walker brings to the defence, but he is very limited on the ball IMO. What's more, he knows it and avoids playing anything but the very safest of passes. Last night he gave the ball away in a very dangerous position, but got away with it. He always looks to me like he has at least one howler in him per game. Reece James is a better all round player, but didn't really take his chance to impress during the Scotland game.

Gary Neville said earlier on that Gareth Southgate didn't feel that we had the players to outplay good opposition, and that he had decided on a very conservative style, with good discipline as the best way of getting results. I didn't want to hear that, because I felt that we had some skilful players for once who could play to a different style. We did play much better in the qualifying matches and the pre-tournament friendlies. Well it looks like Gary Neville was right in his assessment of Southgate's defensive tactics. In attack, we're relying on traditional British tactics of trying use the wings to get behind the opposition, and centring the ball for a close range header or shot. All but one of our goals has come from the wings, and we're making very little attempt to work the ball through the midfield - something which the better teams have in their armoury. Last night, the Ukrainian defence proved to be very poor in the air. When Jordan Henderson scores with a header direct from a corner kick, something's going wrong. So I share the anxiety about how we'll cope with a good side and we go behind. In that situation, we won't be able to break down a defence with the limited style that we're using at the moment. We'll have to change, and we have the players to do that, but it won't be easy to change gear like that. We may get lucky, but with Denmark and Italy / Spain to come, we may well have to face up to that challenge.

There were spells where Italy looked a class above Belgium, which is no mean feat. They're the best international team I've seen for some time.

I'd like to see Henderson in. When he's come on, the midfield has looked a lot more positive. However, with his lack of match fitness, I can't see Southgate starting him. If he does, then I'd put him with Phillips, who has looked far more confident than Rice. Despite his goals, I still don't trust Sterling, but Southgate likes him so he's bound to start him with Kane. Mount is good at linking midfield with attack, so that leaves Grealish, Foden, Saka and Sancho fighting for one place. I don't feel confident about Sancho in an England shirt, but you can make a case for any of the other three. I'd pick Grealish, for his ability to open up a defence.

Most of the time, they're missing that detail out. Anyway, who cares. We won.

Why is everyone going on about it being our first win against Germany in a major tournament since 1966? We beat them 1-0 in Euro 2000. Shearer got the goal.