The Football Thread

[Banjo]

Another scary England performance. 

Yeah i think with that typical England let down performance and the injurys maybe the best we can do is the quarter finals-but you never know -we came good in 1990 after an awful start.

[Le Bon]

Yes, England are stumbling through the competition. Another poor 2nd half and now Owen looks out of it.

Holland 2 Argentina 1
Ivory Coast 2 Serb & Mont 0
Portugal 3 Mexico 1
Iran 1 Angola 1

[Half Soldier]

I'd have had two tonight if not for the worst bit of defending in the competition so far by England in the last minute.  And so to tomorrow ...

Holland 2 Argentina 0
Ivory Coast 2 Serbia etc 0
Portugal 2 Mexico 0
Iran 1 Angola 3

You watch, Iran - Angola will be 2-0 and the others will be 6-1 or something daft.

[Half Soldier]

I've just remembered, I'm going away to the lovely Isle of Wight next week so I can't play since I won't know the fixtures for the quarters onwards.  Can I predict the results AFTER I get back

I might come across an internet cafe and sneak off.

[Le Bon]

Did anyone catch the ECSTASY OF GOLD Remix on ITV tonight, during the match preamble?

[Half Soldier]

I did and posted something under ecstacy of gold thread in GBU section.  I wasn't sure which to put it under

[Banjo]

  Can I predict the results AFTER I get back

Sure you can

[Banjo]

Did anyone catch the ECSTASY OF GOLD Remix on ITV tonight, during the match preamble?

That drum machine back beat was just horrible

[titoli]

Sorry folks, yesterday had troubles with my PC.

Holland 1 Argentina 2
Ivory Coast 2 Serb & Mont 2
Portugal 1 Mexico 2
Iran 2 Angola 0

[Marco Leone]

......and now Owen looks out of it.

In truth, I'm not sure he ever looked "in" it!  But it leaves us painfully exposed with a lack of strikers, i.e. a not yet fit striker (Rooney), a lanky and not up to the required standard "striker" (Crouch), and a never tried and tested and unlikely to play striker (Theo).

Yet again it demonstrates a really bad piece of management from one of the most over rated and over paid managers in the game.

[Banjo]

You are so right Marco, but thankfully we have some useful goalscorers amongst the midfield rank

[titoli]

Yet again it demonstrates a really bad piece of management from one of the most over rated and over paid managers in the game.

Would one of you please elaborate on this and make it clear? Maybe this is the best generation of players you had in decades, but how many managers made better than Eriksson from the '70's till now? And also take into consideration that your best man has had the problems we know, that you don't have a goalkeeper (yesterday one of the italian channel where the match was aired  had fun in replaying the expression he had when Sweden hit the crossbar).  I also wonder what David Beckham is there for? I agree with late George Best judgement about him.

 

[Banjo]

but how many managers made better than Eriksson from the '70's till now?

As regards the Englands strikers i think Marco pretty well summed up the total hash that Erikson made with his squad selection-Owens been struggling for fitness and form for several months and shouldn't have been taken and to select Theo Walcott an 18 year who has never even played in the English Premier  league is beyond belief,Peter Crouchs height helps the team alot but he is hardly word class.With both Owens and Rooneys injury doubts Sven should have brought at least one other striker.
His other real clangers when it really matters occurred in the last World Cup where we lost to a 10 man Brazilian team - Erikson lacked the tehnical know how to outwit Scolari  and he never appears to have a plan B through substituting the right players at the right time.The way England sucumbed to Portugal in Euro 2002 after Rooney went off injured was totally unacceptable. 

[Banjo]

As regards Managers prior to Erikson-i think it was Ron Greenwood who was in charge in Spain 1982 when we had a great squad of players despite Kevin Keegans absense-we had a brilliant start winning all 3 of our group games and only went out of the 2nd phase because we couldn't score against Germany or Spain but we were the only team apart from Italy to not lose a game in that tournament so i'm glad they changed that crappy format.
Under Bobby Robson in 1986 and 1990 we also had very strong squads but had the ill luck of the "hand of god" in one and the first of our disastrous runs of penalty shoot outs in the other.
I believe that if Beckham hadn't have got himself sent off in 1998 we would have gone all the way under Glen Hoddle-France hadn't reached their peak at that point and were lucky to win the tournament.
I strongly feel that Japan/Korea 2002 was the only time England truly deserved to go out of the World Cup competition due to bad tactics and substitutions by Erikson

[Marco Leone]

As regards the Englands strikers i think Marco pretty well summed up the total hash that Erikson made with his squad selection-Owens been struggling for fitness and form for several months and shouldn't have been taken and to select Theo Walcott an 18 year who has never even played in the English Premier  league is beyond belief,Peter Crouchs height helps the team alot but he is hardly word class.With both Owens and Rooneys injury doubts Sven should have brought at least one other striker.
His other real clangers when it really matters occurred in the last World Cup where we lost to a 10 man Brazilian team - Erikson lacked the tehnical know how to outwit Scolari  and he never appears to have a plan B through substituting the right players at the right time.The way England sucumbed to Portugal in Euro 2002 after Rooney went off injured was totally unacceptable. 

Spot on Banjo.  Although you rate Crouch a bit more than I do.

On paper, and possibly strikers aside due to injuries, oh and the goalkeeper haha, this is the best England team I can remember.  But unfortunately with a joker at the helm.

As far as Beckham is concerned, in open play I agree that he often lacks, but his ability to cross and deliver set pieces is essential for us.