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Reply | England v Switzerland Quarter Final match thread
at 09:29 1 Jul 2024
The big question is, when did the number 6 stop being a CB?
As for Rice, he's fantastic at covering ground and winning the ball back, he can also carry the ball forward. The one thing he can't do is play creative passes which is why Arsenal put Jorginho next to him. I guess Southgate tried the same with TAA but that was never going to work. I don't think England have a midfield playmaker like Jorginho or Rodri, maybe having a midfield 3 with Mainoo & Bellingham either side of Rice would work but in a different way, I definitely prefer Bellingham playing deeper than he currently is. |
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Reply | Players leaving
at 14:13 28 Jun 2024
He only had to say the magic words "f*ck brentford" and he'd have got his end away! |
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Reply | Who is going down this season?
at 15:15 26 Jun 2024
Oxford, Plymouth and one of Blackburn, Millwall, Cardiff or possibly Sunderland. Hull will be an interesting watch too, it all seems quite unsettled there at the moment. |
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Reply | England v TBC last 16 Match Thread
at 10:56 26 Jun 2024
I've noticed this too, we're missing the vocal input from Henderson and Maguire because we certainly don't get any support from the sidelines, no point having the England dug out there, they don't do anything!
I'd like to see:
Pickford
Walker - Stones - Guehi
TAA - Mainoo - Rice - Gordon
Foden - Palmer
Kane
Give Bellingham & Saka some rest, I'd even consider playing Palmer as a false 9 and resting Kane. Mainoo made a big difference last night so I'd keep him in, Palmer and Gordon deserve more game time too. |
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Reply | England ๐ด๓ ง๓ ข๓ ฅ๓ ฎ๓ ง๓ ฟ v Slovenia ๐ธ๐ฎ Match Thread
at 10:50 26 Jun 2024
A failed Middlesbrough manager teamed up with a failed QPR manager, hardly a recipe for success, we can't be that surprised at how this is turning out. Imagine going from the likes of Pep and Ancelotti to Southgate & Hasselbaink.
We lost any chance of momentum in the group with the negative approach and square pegs-round holes set up from the very start. That then creates problems with giving game time to the likes of Wharton, Mainoo, Palmer etc because the pressure to perform increases - fortunately, they seem up for the challenge. It's also led to a lack of confidence throughout the team, I've never seen players such as Walker play so poorly.
Why are we still shoehorning players into a back 4 when we don't have a LB, play a back 3. I know we've only conceded 1 goal, but we've still not been particularly convincing defensively.
I can't see any coaching input in the team. Set-pieces were once a strength but are now poor. Positioning and formation is a mess. There's no attacking pattern of play, we seem to be relying on things happening by chance.
Foden has woken up to the fact that he needs to get hold of the game. I can understand how he in particular is struggling having gone from a manager who coaches a system as close to perfection as possible, with a clearly defined role for him to a manager where he'll make sure we don't concede and hope that individual brilliance will get us a goal. A manager like Pep would probably struggle at international level because of limited time on the training ground, and I suspect Foden struggles for the same reason. Whereas players like Palmer & Eze should adapt more easily as they're already in the position at club level where they have limited attacking set up around them and are relied upon to create for the team almost on their own.
Kane doesn't look fit, and Bellingham (who I think is massively overrated anyway) looks very tired too. It would be interesting to hear the medical teams view on whether those 2 in particular should've been rested for a game or 2 in the group stage.
I think he needed to make more than 1 change last night, I think we all did, and now he has pressure to start Mainoo, Palmer & Gordon but he won't like to make such big changes for the knockout rounds so he's put himself in a tricky spot. Last night was the time to make 3-4 changes, another missed opportunity.
We can only get better, I hope... |
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Reply | Transfer rumours 2024
at 17:49 22 Jun 2024
Itโs the FFP threatened clubs (scum, villa, Everton) trading between themselves before the end of June deadline.
Sell a player for ยฃ20m and itโs an immediate ยฃ20m profit, buy a player for ยฃ20m and spread it over his contract, e.g., 5 years, and itโs only a ยฃ4m loss for this year.
Yet again highlights what a nonsense FFP is. |
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Reply | Transfer rumours 2024
at 14:48 21 Jun 2024
Cov apparently paying ยฃ6m with add-ons taking up to ยฃ10m!!
We should've signed him from Wimbledon, that was our missed opportunity. |
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Reply | Denmark ๐ฉ๐ฐ v England ๐ด๓ ง๓ ข๓ ฅ๓ ฎ๓ ง๓ ฟ Match Thread
at 20:27 20 Jun 2024
"Southgate is insisting he doesn't tell them to drop deep after scoring which makes me wonder where they get it from."
But...does he tell them to push up?
Every time he was shown on TV he was either telling them to calm down or think, or sat watching the game. He really doesn't do in-game management, compare that to how Guardiola, Simeone, Klopp, Arteta and just about every manager out there coach their teams through games. Southgate doesn't do that.
Edit: Iโd also love to know why Hasselbaink is there given his coaching & managerial record, must be inspiring having him & Southgate as a management duo!! [Post edited 20 Jun 20:32]
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Reply | Denmark ๐ฉ๐ฐ v England ๐ด๓ ง๓ ข๓ ฅ๓ ฎ๓ ง๓ ฟ Match Thread
at 19:56 20 Jun 2024
100% this. Bellingham has to put his ego aside, his performances have never justified the hype. Every time he got the ball tonight he lost it then sat on the floor looking at the ref for a sympathy foul, this isn't Real Madrid with their La Liga referees! He needs to drop back alongside Rice and put in a lot more effort than he has so far this tournament, he's not the star that his agent/management team are making him out to be. |
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Reply | Denmark ๐ฉ๐ฐ v England ๐ด๓ ง๓ ข๓ ฅ๓ ฎ๓ ง๓ ฟ Match Thread
at 15:30 19 Jun 2024
Rico Lewis is right footed and has played well in CM as well as RB so I was a little surprised he wasn't included in the initial squad before it was cut down to 26.
I presume he was thinking of Rico Henry, the Brentford LB who would definitely have been capped by now if he hadn't picked up a serious injury a while back, no idea if he's back playing yet but I suspect not as they had Reguilon on loan last season. A shame for him as he'd almost certainly have been in the squad otherwise, a very good LB. |
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Reply | Serbia ๐ท๐ธ v England ๐ด๓ ง๓ ข๓ ฅ๓ ฎ๓ ง๓ ฟ Match Thread
at 11:18 17 Jun 2024
True but when he did drift inside it meant there was no one wide left because Trippier isn't a LB and wasn't pushing up, when Trippier did push up he immediately turned back onto his right and went backwards or inside again.
Second half, Foden stayed wider which resulted in him not getting involved as much. Get Foden in the middle with an option to his left and I'm sure he'd have an impact. It was all very unbalanced last night & Foden suffered the most because of it, and is therefore getting the most stick too. |
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Reply | Serbia ๐ท๐ธ v England ๐ด๓ ง๓ ข๓ ฅ๓ ฎ๓ ง๓ ฟ Match Thread
at 10:31 17 Jun 2024
I wasn't disappointed by last night as it was utterly predictable.
When you don't have a LB the logical thing to do is play a back 3 (Guehi-Stones-Walker). Instead we shoehorn a RB into LB with predictable results.
If you want to play TAA you have to play him wide right imo where his long passing, switching of play and crossing can be utilised and his weaknesses won't be exposed as much. In CM, his ball control isn't good enough and his body shape & positioning is weak, often the ball will go straight back to where it came from because he hasn't opened his body up to see what's around him or progress the ball.
Foden is at his best playing as a 10, not stuck out wide. When we played France, he terrified them every time he drifted into the middle, but Southgate kept insisting he stick wide. If we're going to play him, play to his strengths and get him in the middle. For me, Bellingham is better playing from deep as he can use his physique to break the lines, if you play Bellingham as a 10 you lose that. A CM of Rice-Bellingham would have everything and allow Foden to play as a 10.
The solution in my opinion is a 3-4-3 with Foden and Saka playing behind Kane. Saka often goes inside & Foden playing centrally would create space for TAA and Gordon to push forward. No square pegs in round holes.
Pickford
Walker-Stones-Guehi
TAA-Bellingham-Rice-Gordon
Saka-Foden
Kane
On the positive side of things, Guehi and Rice were excellent, as were others in periods. Gallagher & Bowen did well when they came on too. |
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Reply | New Away kit .
at 14:03 13 Jun 2024
I've got a feeling it's going to be based on the view from away shirt, navy with white pinstripe hoops, just a guess though. |
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Reply | Armstrong extended
at 13:57 12 Jun 2024
He'd get booked for kicking the ball away. |
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Site Scores| Forum Votes: | 1235 | | Comment Votes: | 3 | | Prediction League: | 0 | | TOTAL: | 1238 |
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