20 Jun 2024 19:45:32
Bellingham, fantastic player looks completely out of sorts with this England team.
Rice, had probably his worst game for England.
Arnold, I wouldn't have a clue how many games he has played in midfield for the scousers but his two games for England in this tournament have shown him to be ineffective in that position.
Saka, just about ok.
Trippier, out of position but him playing at LB is just worrying.
Foden, just play the lad in his best position.
Southgate, my opinion about his abilities as a manager at any level hasn't changed.
20 Jun 2024 22:00:23
Tom, Southgate isn’t a manager at any level. His stubbornness by playing TAA in midfield again is an example of his misguided self confidence. TAA is not a midfielder; frankly I consider him to be one of the most overrated players in the PL. Then to bring on a bread and butter player like Bowen who shouldn’t even be in the squad and leave Palmer on the bench shows what a bonehead he is.
21 Jun 2024 08:46:29
Balance of the side just looks all wrong, I think there needs to be the threat of an overlap on the left if that is where you are going to play Foden and Trippier isn't providing that.
We haven't looked bad defensively imo, so I would keep the same backline. Drop Bellingham into midfield alongside Rice and just tell him to pick his moments for when to drive forwards. He's good enough to know when to go. Play Foden in the 10 and then its dealer's choice for the left side, Palmer could play there but I would go with a pacey wide threat in Gordon since Trippier is playing so conservatively.
Sounds so simple. Ultimately, Southgate has backed himself into this position by persisting with TAA in midfield which has never looked like a long-term solution and I think was always likely to be found out against teams with a top class midfield.
The England team has looked noticeably tired in the second half of games which doesn't bode well.
21 Jun 2024 09:20:38
I think even most neutrals - ie non Chelse fans - are amazed Palmer wasn't brought on yestreday and agree with you RBD that Gordon should certainly also be given game time and could be highly effective off the bench versus tiring opposition.
I do remind myself that the group stage games often don't give reliable ifdea of likely winners of a tournament but that second half performance from England was truly poor, including some dreadful Rice moments
Watkins did lend a bit of spark, pace and threat of getting in behind Danish defence when on for Kane.
21 Jun 2024 09:45:46
Foden for City seems to play more games on the right side with Walker behind him, so why try and reinvent the wheel.
21 Jun 2024 09:54:09
Gareth southgate is the David Brent of football managers and has been getting away with it for years
Foden out of position
Bellingham out of position
Bowen ahead of palmer
Is in my eyes a sackable offence gross misconduct of the highest order
And that's b4 we mention TAA.
21 Jun 2024 10:47:31
Neatly put gg. like GS as the David Brent of managers!
21 Jun 2024 12:51:01
Agree with all you say JBS. Gordon gives a good direct option on the left. Trent in midfield doesn't work – but why even try it if you don't set up to have players running in behind anyway? I've defended Southgate in the past because, despite his tactical ineptitude, he managed to do something I couldn't have imagined – make playing in an England shirt not look like a cross for the players to bear. But we seem to run out of road now, and perhaps the tactical advancement of the game in the intervening period (at international level it was never as important as vibes) has found him out; the spark seems to have gone, and we were right back to the bad old days with that performance last night. Perhaps people will be kinder at some future date when they remember that what we saw yesterday was pretty much the norm for England games for fifteen years or so pre-Southgate. Comparing him to Brent is harsh – Brent would have never stood up in the way Southgate did for his Black players and I'll always applaud him for that.
21 Jun 2024 19:27:38
EdW, it’s difficult to work out what qualities Southgate had to be appointed in the first place. I assume it was because he was a FA man, a yes man and they didn’t want a foreign coach. True, England have appointed poor coaches as for the others it is difficult to assess as it depends on the quality of players available and equally the quality of the players in the other international sides during tournaments. What I will remember about Southgate is losing the Euro final at Wembley to a bang average Italian team. He seems to rely on certain favourites and can’t think outside the box. Hence, his desperate attempts to bring Maguire into the squad and the decision to bring Shaw without proper cover. His comments about not having Kalvin Philllips available demonstrate his utter incompetence. I was hoping that he would get the Man Utd job.
21 Jun 2024 21:46:30
His comments about not having a Kalvin Phillips were laughable. Kalvin is pish poor, and if it’s about the balance of the side then maybe he shouldn’t be trying to shoehorn a RWB into CM ? not to mention the fact that he picked the squad, I’m sure there are other comparable CM’s to Phillips he could have chosen. I’d argue the biggest problem is that the only LB he brought is injured and likely won’t be fit to play til the last 16 if lucky ?.
22 Jun 2024 05:03:02
Just pick players and then play them in there beat positions.
The comments about Phillips are bizarre and then choosing an unfit left back for a squad was frankly ridiculous in my opinion.
22 Jun 2024 20:25:25
Southgate just said Trent in midfield is an EXPERIMENT as we don’t have a replacement for KALVIN PHIILIPS, if Gareth watched that and thought, you know what we lack, kalvin phillips. Then he needs to be sacked before the knockout games
Kane only does well with fast creative wingers as he stands still or drops deep,
Trent has no right being near the midfield except he has a good long pass - no good when saka kane foden eze palmer Bowen all like ball to feet,
If he wants to experiment with a midfielder put Bellingham there allow foden or palmer to play the ten role,
Gordon who is really good, not as good as the others but his fast. Try him, why are we going into a major tournament still experimenting.
Gareth said before game the balance of squad isn’t ideal as no left footed left backs as shaw is injured, we all knew shaw was injured, Mitchell chilwell?
The man is so underwhelming it’s laughable, will look good for the last group game when he rests a load of players and plays Watkins and Gordon and palmer mainoo.