I think he knows that better than anyone else in the country!
assisted Kane vs Germany…so not completely ‘bugger all’, but yes, it felt like the hype outweighed the truth
1 Like
I like Grealish but has he actually done anything this tournament?
1 Like
post just above yours
I agree. To build on this. England have Maguire and Stones in defense. Solid under the high ball, getting in the way, tackling too perhaps (maybe not Maguire)
Put the ball at their feet, despite the reputation that Stones has and they are, in my opinion pretty average. I missed most of the game, but the bit I saw I saw a midfield that had no authority on the game at all. Totally incapable of retaining possession, relieving pressure and actually building pressure of their own. That sadly included Henderson.
Then, imagine these players having grown up and played in Spain, Italy or Germany say. I suspect many of them would be at a different level, as far as playing in Euro’s / World Cups is concerned.
1 Like
To be fair, it might look a little different if they had Gomez in defence, or perhaps Ox in midfield?
For me Southgate has to many of the outfield players defending, 7 defending and 3 attacking and subbing Grealish against Denmark after bringing him on was comical. First 15-20 minutes was great yesterday then goes all cautious and ends up paying the price.
1 Like
I don’t think the main issue was the approach, if England weren’t so blunt upfront during the match it might have been a completely different story. They could have gone for a conservative approach that would have paid off if Sterling or Kane were replaced. Sterling did well to progress the ball, but only to lose it countless times, often taking the dive when he was in a position to do something better. That’s something that infuriated me a lot about Mané in the past season, where he would fall over easily rather than trying to do something with the space and opportunities he had.
1 Like
The problem with Maguire is that, put bluntly, he’s gash. Decent basic old school defender, but he can’t pass for shit, and was at fault for the wave after wave of Italian pressure that England invited all second half.
That’s categorically wrong. You put your foot down in a stupidly fast car and that little demon in the back of your head wants more regardless of the risks.
Oh yes, in a VW camper watching Porsches race 
Seek help. 
1 Like
And yet Maguire is first choice for England. He wouldn’t get near lining up for some other international sides I think. England seem to manage to progress with players where someone like Maguire represents the pinnacle.
So the question then becomes is he considered better than I (we) believe him to be or is it case of he’s the best available?
I think England’s weak point is the Goalkeeper CB triangle. And I don’t think they have much better available, sadly.
1 Like
Not sure about keeper, but if Gomez can stay fit and get back to being 1st choice next to Virgil, and Ben White reaches a level which matches his hype, there’s potentially a solid partnership there.
Stick in Arnold and maybe Chilwell and in 2024 you could have a decent back four.
Not that I want Trent and Gomez having to play for England. It’s been nice only having Hendo to worry about.
I don’t get the criticism over the age of the players who were selected. You don’t pick players at this level and then protect them simply because they are young… There isn’t too much top level experience in this side at the moment, so it’s not like players who have seen it all were overlooked. Southgate picked the players he thought were most likely to score theirs and I don’t see any reason why a player would be more likely to handle that by virtue of simply being a few years older.
There is also the oddity that sometimes it is the young kids who are bravest in these situations at tournaments. Something about being too young to understand the pressure.
I think it’s fine to question the decision to bring players on specifically to take the kicks, but that has become less of a taboo than it used to be. I’d certainly rather a fresh and confident rashford to take one than a clearly knackered sterling for instance. Question his timidity with how deep his side to play, even at a time when Italy looked a bit off the game. But to do it for picking a player in form justifiably in the side on merit to take a pen just because he’s young? I dont get it.
1 Like
Same old England every two years it’s coming home it’s coming home but it never does. I honestly thought they would win this but Southgate was far too negative got a early goal and sat back for the night and end up losing on pens is just ridiculous.
Good points. Still a decent goalkeeper needed though.
1 Like
spot on, this!
1 Like
1 Like