14 Jul 2024 22:31:21
Spain deserved the win not just because of this game but they have been the best team throughout the tournament.
Congratulations to Cucarella. That Garry Neville is a good judge, NOT.
Kane had a very poor tournament and putting aside a few mins so was Foden.
The manager needed to make tough decisions but also his management style is far too passive for my liking.
The England player's that impressed me were Stones and MG and that just about sums it up for me!
15 Jul 2024 00:07:51
Tom, quite right Spain deserved to win and it’s good for football that the best team won. Southgate’s squad and team selections were flawed and no real tactical plan except let’s see how it goes for 70 minutes. None of his starters were impressive; the players were generally poor and didn’t seem to gel as a team. Hopefully, Southgate will go and replace Pep at City. lol.
15 Jul 2024 00:31:08
Spain were well deserved winners both on the night and overall. With the way Southgate gets the team to play we’d have needed an extreme amount of luck as given in the first few games of the tournament or Spain to just have a very bad day at the office.
Southgate’s squad selection and tactics were the biggest downfall but the majority of the starting 11 were poor throughout most of the tournament. MG, Stones, KM, Palmer were the only ones with a good tournament. Kane and Foden were missing for 95% and whoever takes over next I’d advise to drop Kane to a bench player as we have so much other talent we don’t need to build the team around him.
Not slating Saka but just a general enquiry about him as I don’t watch Arsenal much but does he always slow down play in the PL? Almost every time he got the ball he’d sorta of just stand up the defender and wait til Spain were back in shape and either Walker was overlapping to pass to or would then attempt to take on Cucurella. Thought he missed some vital moments in the first half on the counter where he should have attacked Cucu whilst it was a 3 on 4 situ but just waited til Spain had 10 men back behind the ball and Walker had caught up play.
15 Jul 2024 05:55:44
Saka’s preference is to cut inside onto his left foot and the Spanish manager nullified that by simply asking Williams to drop back.
At the top level it’s all about small margins, big moments and mistakes.
If players are not performing they should either be dropped or hooked. Of course the other side of that is Bellingham was having an average game at best a probably should have been substituted but then scored a Worldie to keep us in the tournament.
I see Potter is 5/ 4 fav to be our next manager followed by Howe at 7/ 2. To my surprise Klopp is 14/ 1. If Southgate does leave I think they will give the job to Carsley.
15 Jul 2024 07:32:59
Well done to Spain and shoot-out to cucurella. Certainly has turned his form around and is looking a great player. Hope he can put those disastrous displays behind him and I have full faith he's turned a corner.
15 Jul 2024 07:50:52
For me, I wasn't surprised about England that lost in the finals back to back. Football is not played in the media where England is the world best. England is the Tottenham of the international football. Chronic bottlers. Unfortunately there's no outsider to ping the blame on as they are good in finding a scapegoat but now there's no person to hang it on but English.
15 Jul 2024 08:21:26
Your hatred/ dislike of anything English is well known on this site.
Your bigoted views on players, fans and the media are thankfully very rare nowadays in this wonderful country.
15 Jul 2024 08:41:09
How poor was Rice as well.
15 Jul 2024 08:58:19
Tusole, even taking into account your obvious bigotry, what you have said makes zero sense.
No one in the media lists England as the world's best.
In the last four tournaments England have reached the semi-final, final, quarter-final and final. They are a good international team that haven't quite been good enough.
The reaction within England throughout this tournament is that they have been very poor, were unlikely to continue to get the rub of the green against better teams, and that the best team in the tournament won.
What exactly is it that you think English fans and media are saying?
15 Jul 2024 09:19:06
Nicole Williams simply sensational in all he did last night. Spain so. much better as a team than us plus great individual ability. Yet fact that we could still have taken it into extra time right at end a tribute to never say die attitude. But yes just not enough possession or tactical nouse against superb opposition.
15 Jul 2024 11:44:03
The best team won. The next best teams went out in the quarter and semi finals…
I wrote on another site that this is the natural end of a cycle for Southgate, Kane, Walker, maybe Shaw. A new manager who can encourage the players to love the ball and build on the resilience and cultural reset that Southgate achieved is what is needed now. Potter fits that mould for me, although Carsley has been innovative in the U21s too.
Southgate (and Holland) ’s approach was based on what won tournaments 10 years ago. The world has moved on and I think they (and France) have been left behind.
Much of the England DNA work Southgate and Ashworth did was good and has raised the technical standard of English footballers, so we are not going from a zero base. But the reversion to playing long, clearing the ball first and worrying about it coming back second, of running over passing… need to be addressed.
Keep the ball, rest in possession… we will never overcome fatigue if we chase the ball endlessly. And players who are injured need to be honest about that and accept that, to pick a random example, a fit Ollie Watkins is a better player than a half fit Harry Kane.
Southgate has been the Stuart Lancaster of England football - a good guy who has got so much right off the pitch, but has been found out on it and in selection.
Shame we lost, but a shame for football if we hadn’t.
15 Jul 2024 23:16:05
Where do you live tussle? I'll laugh if you say england.
16 Jul 2024 01:14:38
FD77, can any international manager really raise the technical standards of players? They have them for 6-8 weeks spread out throughout a year. In Englands case the most technical of the players Bellingham/ Foden etc have only been in the team a couple of years so Southgate hasn’t had much time to work with them.
16 Jul 2024 05:54:44
Fuser, Southgate changed our shape in the tournament three times and for some reason he allowed a disconnect between the DMs and the AMs. This should and could have been solved by just moving the defence a few yards further up the pitch.
The same players who handle a press at there clubs week in week out couldn’t handle it for England and that begs the question, Why? We then up giving the ball away time and time again from a Pickford punt.
England got lucky with the draw and still had to rely on moments of individual brilliance rather than team performance.
I have no idea what our style of play was and I’m still surprised with the squad selection of unfit players. Add to that the constant selection of a player who contributed virtually nothing throughout the tournament was bizarre.
International managers may not have time to influence the standards of individual players but they should have an idea of team shape pre-tournament. The skills of any player is why they have been selected. I also find it hard to believe that the skills of Foden, Rice and Bellingham have suddenly disappeared.
16 Jul 2024 13:23:35
I totally agree TomB. Kane, Bellingham and Foden could have all been rested for the group games. Shaw and Trippier should both have been left at home, Trippier was playing so poorly towards the end of the season he was dropped and Shaw wasn’t fit.
The group games England required a certain amount of luck with massive deflections for 2 of the goals. Created very little otherwise.
16 Jul 2024 15:24:04
It’s amazing what a surprise it was that certain national teams played with a low block. The players in that squad play against that tactic every other week but they play for teams that find a solution. That England team didn’t.
What was the point of TAA in the squad? Was he picked as a wing back, Full back, DM or inverted FB and why try it in the first game in a competition.
I can’t remember him switching players positions during a game and a team pressing seemed to come as a shock.
I’m sure he is a really nice bloke but tactically not very good and far to passive with our so called style of play.
Good luck to him in the future and good luck to whoever takes over!
16 Jul 2024 21:35:19
Tom, it’s getting boring, I am finding myself agreeing with most of your recent posts. Lol. Southgate has some attributes unfortunately not as a coach. He selected a squad full of crocks; how does Trippier and Bowen get near an international squad. Saka, Foden and Kane were generally poor and not one start for Palmer, the most in form English player. Southgate’s biggest failure was not in Sunday as Spain were the better team but the 2020 ( 2021) Euro final against a very poor Italian team. I am not sure what Tusole is on about, most England fans accepted that we had a fortunate path to the final and there was nothing wrong in hoping that England might win and accept that Spain deserved the trophy.
As for the Enzo situation, I am unclear on the details. I understand he was party to a racist anthem against the French team. If this is true it is unacceptable and very disappointing. When he comes back to the club this needs to be addressed; not by the coach by the hierarchy.
16 Jul 2024 22:15:27
Jimbo, I have expressed my thoughts about Enzo on another thread but like you as things stand and from the video I’ve seen, I am very disappointed.