Neil

He wasn't the problem. It was the main guy insisting we'd "forget about the 2 previous games if we won", and belittled Slovenia to the role of no-hopers, which would have sounded to someone watching who wasn't particularly clued up, that we should have thumped them 5-0 with ease. Anyway, good performance on the whole with some excellent individual displays from the likes of Terry, Cole and Milner. Disappointing Rooney couldn't get his goal but there we go. Bring on the Joimans.

That has to be the funniest post in the whole thread If nothing else, use of the term 'floppage'.

Get in, will be able to see the game tomorrow. Don't win and it's going to be a long shift. 2-1 England: Lampard and Rooney to do the business.

You watch it, pal. I'll fuck up next year for you, remember.

Aye. It's all a bit complicated with regards to something that's happening that day, I don't really know the times of it at all yet. Would love to play like, will keep you updated.

Can only really repeat that for the time being.

Well, Brazil will probably be resting players so Portugal have a chance. I wouldn't have thought Portugal could beat even an under-strength Brazil team, if it wasn't for such a convincing display yesterday.

Get in, I'll be able to see England's 2nd round match. If...

Ah, balls, just been talking about this in the other thread. Needless to say, howay Honduras.

It's strange, because Chile (hope they go through) are 3 points ahead of Spain and Switzerland yet you can make a case for them being in the weakest position going in to the last round of games. Switzerland are likely to beat Honduras, taking them on to 6 points, and Chile wouldn't want to have to play Spain for a result, yet at the same time Spain would want an easier game, it's a fascinatingly close group.

Lampard has proved with Essien, Drogba, Obi Mikel and Malouda and Ballack around him that he can look good at Chelsea. FYP He is still a top drawer player though and he does look better playing with them but i think that is as much down to them knowing each others games better rather than just ability. Especially with Mikel as I don't rate him in the slightest. i never know what people can't understand about this - football is littered with players who are consistently good or great at club or even european level but once taken out of their comfort zone and put into an unfamiliar team they don't perform this is frank lampard, he's virtually the dictionary definition of it really Not to mention he is part of a Chelsea side that routinely roll over 90% of the opposition. When up against a team of other international players with good technique and no fear, reagardless of the size of the country I'm sure they start doubting themselves when things don't go well the first 20 minutes. Every professional team in the world can match you for effort....its that little bt of extra skill and technique that will take you past teams. Sadly we lack it, all we have is a bunch of blokes that can run for 90s. The countries set up for producing players is totally incorrect, this is what happens when you allow load mouth c***s like Howard Wilkinson in. Ball skill and control over fitness anytime. Agreed. Thought Beckenbauer said it right (unfortunately) - kick and rush football is what England are playing and he's right. I wanted to cry at some of Lampard's passing during the US game, not just him, but he stands out in my mind as the worst offender simply due to the hype surrounding him. Carrick needs to be in the team right now as he's one of the only players with good technique, passing range and vision. With the space Rooney & Gerrard can make for themselves we'll be OK with that setup but not if we just hopelessly hoy it up the pitch again. My worst fear, in a way, is that for once the "names" play a half decent game and we beat Slovenia to go through 'cause it would only paper over the cracks 'til we met someone good. Far prefer us to work out what's going wrong now 'cause it's fuckin obvious. Imho and you probably agree there are certain players who are untouchable and the main skeleton of the team will stay the same but Joe Cole has to be a priority and drop Heskey for Crouch or Defoe who need a proper chance to change our teams fortunes . People joke but I honestly think when it came to it, US and Algeria were, whilst marking Heskey obviously, aware that he was unlikely to cause much damage. Hence, more effort could be devoted to marking Rooney out the game. Get Heskey off and get a goalscoring threat on, PLEASE!

Fwiw, can't think of a better left back. But I'd agree that those players mentioned would "make all but the very best teams", doesn't mean they'd get into a World XI. This could well go back to what you define as "world class" which has probably already been discussed at length in a few threads.

As I say, it's unlikely I can play on the 17th but a 10/11am KO might leave me with a chance; I'd definitely like to play. I'll stick my name down as a possible but until I know, others obviously have priority.

Wouldn't recommend Portugal. They'll probably inevitably nick a late goal or 2. NK will play the same as they did vs Brazil probably and you can't blame them.

I don't condone it for a second but from the Ivorians' point of view I'd have seen the logic behind it if there was more than 5 minutes to go. "Get him off with plenty of time to play, stretch them and we could get back into this". But in the end they just disrupted a decent bit of pressure they were exerting on Brazil. It was utterly pointless in every way.

http://cms.442.haymarketnetwork.com/contentimages/blog/FourFourTwoView/8Rivaldo.jpg Lolz. Poor quality but I feel that one really captures the combination of him falling and clutching his face simultaneously.

You were doing so well. Now that's just a woeful WUM performance, as Bright would say.

I had £20 on at half-time for Kaka to get sent off with the 2nd one being completely unjust. And aye Josh.

Really disappointing end to what was on the whole, a good match, and Brazil started to really move it well in the 2nd half.

You're actually being serious here aren't you?

Well fucking played to fucking people who fucking won on that fucking game.

On the other hand, from an outside point of view it's quite funny Brazil have been wrongly punished for an opponent cheating, and to be precise, clutching his face and falling down for no reason.

are fucking blind or something, their wasn't even an elbow in the bloody incident en anglais? Are you fucking blind or something? There wasn't even an elbow in the bloody incident. Better. The answer is: No, and there was. Up, merchant, wind.