Group B: England, Iran, United States, Wales (England and USA qualify)

[MagMal]

He won't change the tactics we have seen it in previous tournaments. He keeps playing the same players and formation and by the time we get to the knockout games Kane is knackered and half injured as the opposition know all they have to do is stop him.the second have against Croatia he should have been off and against Italy he was done after 20 minutes. 

 

The over reliance on him costs us, yes he's a good player, even though I don't like him, but that is more from the fact that any team that plays him becomes so in flexible as they have got to play off him and it slows the game down, we are too predictable.

[gazza ladra]

All these pundits arguing that Trent Alexander-Arnold would’ve made the difference.  

[TheBrownBottle]

51 minutes ago, Optimistic Nut said:

 

Euro 2000 must have been perfect. Keegan manager and going out to two 3-2 defeats.

Euro 2000 is still my favourite Euros, funnily enough  - though I don’t think I’m alone in the opinion that it was the best Euros to date. 

[TheBrownBottle]

1 minute ago, TheBrownBottle said:

Euro 2000 is still my favourite Euros, funnily enough  - though I don’t think I’m alone in the opinion that it was the best Euros to date. 

Edit: to test this, just did a quick Google of ‘best European championships ever’, then clicked on the first two articles:

 

https://www.sportskeeda.com/amp/football/ranking-the-best-uefa-euro-championships-of-all-time

 

https://www.planetfootball.com/quick-reads/a-definitive-ranking-of-every-euros-since-1996-from-worst-to-best

 

no prizes for guessing the winner

 

I just want to watch decent football, especially when (for me) it is low-stakes

[St1pe]

I don’t think Southgate is the greatest coach we’ve had but he’s taking more flack than he deserves after that game. We’ve played far better with much more desire and intensity than we did last night under him and some of those players need to look at themselves if they can’t get motivated to play in a World Cup game. We got out worked and outfought by the US. 
 

Kane and Sterling in particular had that look of a pro at the end of their career just plodding about at international level living off reputation.

 

Throw in Saka and Bellingham having poor games and Rice going backwards so often the entire team was completely toothless. 
 

Southgate should have changed it sooner. The reluctance to sub Kane when him plodding around in the 10 position without anyone making a real attempt to get behind him was painful.

The Foden thing is just bizarre. 
 

 

 

[Coffee_Johnny]

11 hours ago, Astroblack said:

Fuck it, I’ll take a 0-0. 

This made me chuckle. Your ultra confident pre-match messages to resigned acceptance of shit-show, slow to change, Southgate-soccer (…don’t know where that phrase came from, but hope I won’t be needing it again) exactly mirrors my feelings yesterday. 

[Coffee_Johnny]

6 hours ago, Bizza said:

 

Throw the cunts out! 

Genuinely want to vomit. 

[Cronky]

Karen Carney made a good point afterwards that there was no link between Rice, Bellingham and Mount down the middle. It was difficult to tell from the TV, but she said that Rice was very deep and the physical distance between them was a problem. Rice and the CBs ended up playing predictable balls out to the full backs, who usually had no option but to turn inwards and return the ball backwards.

 

Foden is good at retaining and using the ball in tight spaces under pressure. We often seemed to lose the ball due to a heavy first touch, so if Maddison isn't fit, maybe the best idea is to replace Mount with Foden. Grealish is also better at retaining the ball than Sterling so that would be the other change.

 

Southgate seems to see Foden as a wide player, but I'm sure he has the ability to have a freer role.

[joeyt]

6 hours ago, Shearergol said:

As a striker, yes. Wouldn’t want Kane at Newcastle 

 

Second most goals ever in the Prem, incredible statement. Do you really think Southgate should have started Wilson over him?

[MagMal]

Part of the problem for me is this stupid obsession we have with the England captain, at international level everyone should be a leader and the captaincy should be depending on the opposition or occasion but we tie ourselves into this position that we can't drop a player because he wears an armband. If that player is then a striker you have to play to him regardless of the other players or his form or the public and papers go made.

 

As a result of that we have lost all abilities to have a play B or C as Kane can only play in one system and he is there to get the goals to win games, if the captain was in midfield, defence or even the keeper (not pickford) the team would have more flexibility on tactics. 

[Cronky]

I'm not sure that Kane is a great captain, but for that role you need someone who is near certain to play when fit. No other candidate fits that particular criterion.

 

Well, apart from Pickford, but for obvious reasons that's a no.

[La Parka]

Sterling is a liability. 

 

Mount is fucking shit.

 

The gap between the forward 4 and rice and Bellingham was too far.

 

Not one of the centermids can pick a pass through the lines .

 

The pressing was utter shit, they'd be better off sitting in shape in a low block. 

 

Kane is our best player with the ball at his feet, but he's often too deep if saka and theoretically sterling get in behind.

 

Trips was shit. He misses almiron. 

 

The passing was ponderously slow, predictable shit. There was no urgency. 

[Rich]

Can’t believe we lost 0-0.

[RS]

Just me that can see a fired up Wales meeting Southgate driven negative tactics and knocking us out of the tournament?

[Rich]

Aye.

[Coffee_Johnny]

England will qualify but I’m far less optimistic. We’ll struggle against better teams. Just hoping Southgate stumbles upon, as Robson did with Beardsley-Lineker in Mexico ‘86, an attacking formation which gets the best out of our squad. I doubt it will happen, but I’d be fascinated to see how Kane and Wilson would link up as a forward two and finding a starting place for Foden. Apart from the obvious goal threat he brings, he is so athletic and combative he brings so much more than Sterling and Saka. 

[NUFCDoog]

4 minutes ago, RS said:

Just me that can see a fired up Wales meeting Southgate driven negative tactics and knocking us out of the tournament?

Would need to score 4 and beat us by 3 clear goals so not happening, could certainly see us not win the game though 

[ponsaelius]

7 minutes ago, RS said:

Just me that can see a fired up Wales meeting Southgate driven negative tactics and knocking us out of the tournament?

 

There's no way even the worst England lose by 4 goals to Wales. We are through.

[The Butcher]

England's biggest problem is a lack of a plan. There are no patterns of play, no rhythm, no nothing. 

 

There are some really good players in that squad, but they all look like strangers on the pitch. 

[Lush Vlad]

Fuck we are boring to watch. Just another reason to go up the pub with your mates, really. 
 

I prefer to watch NUFC at home if it’s on the TV. As you see and hear more. But I think I’d change the channel if I was sat at home watching England. 
 

Whenever there is a tight game. Southgate just seems happy with his lot. Never makes inspiring subs or seems to make any meaningful decisions that change it mid-game. 5 subs, wait all that time and the first thing we do is bring Henderson on FFS  not that he played badly, TBF. But Mount, Saka and Sterling were stinking the pitch out and we have some great options in the forward positions. Foden and Wilson not even getting 10-15 mins is daft. 
 

I’m still not sure what our plan is when we are trying to build an attack when in possession? The odd diagonal to the full backs or Kane drop deep and then nobody goes beyond the ball? 
 

Depressing as fuck to watch such negative shite. Yanks were the better team. 

[WilliamPS]

Tbh if you dig out the threads from the Sweden games, Croatia and Italy you’d see the same issues - England have relied on set pieces or one off moves down the flanks for goals. The midfield has always been poor, although what’s worse this time is he has options (unlike in 2018)

 

With Southgate I think the most they can be hoped for are minor player changes - likely Sterling out for Grealish or Foden.

 

I would like to see a move from the 4231 to 433 to get the midfield functioning and get players closer to Rice but this is probably too big an ask (comically small change as it is!)

[ponsaelius]

Honestly the game last night was bad but people do overreact. A draw puts us essentially through while a loss would have left things completely in the balance. We could afford to do that because the opening win was so convincing.

 

I complained after the Scotland game bitterly that we had 'lost monentum' because of the way we played - but it turned out to be nonsense as we cruised through the rest of the competition up to the final. So this time I am witholding judgement.

 

 

Edited November 26, 2022 by ponsaelius

[Shearergol]

1 hour ago, joeyt said:

 

Second most goals ever in the Prem, incredible statement. Do you really think Southgate should have started Wilson over him?

Kane’s been world class over the years. I just think we needed an in the box striker on the pitch last night.

[St1pe]

Reading loads of stuff on twitter saying Trent should have played. Trent marking Pulisic instead of Trippier and we lose that game. 
 

There was absolutely nothing happening up front so he’d have no one to pass to while having to keep Puslic quiet. No chance. 

[Hanshithispantz]

Playing TAA with no striker 

 

The few times we actually looked dangerous were when Trippier played Saka in behind the fullback.