The Football Thread

[Meini Again]

ECK..... For Goodness Sake, get his wonkername right

[risen]

Originally Posted by Meini Again

ECK..... For Goodness Sake, get his wonkername right

My mistake but in my defence we used to call him something far less pleasant.

And Peter Reid when he was at the Sky Blues. My pal got warned for calling him all manner of names as they trooped off at the end of a Tuesday night game vs North End.

[Meini Again]

No Probs

[Meini Again]

Sky Blues = = = Cov ? As they were always known as..... or Moss Side ?

Just curious

Reid hung out at both....

One should say ...." stole a Wage at both".....

[risen]

Originally Posted by Meini Again

Sky Blues = = = Cov ? As they were always known as..... or Moss Side ?
One should say ...." stole a Wage at both".....

Coventry City that is, just to avoid any confusion with Manchester City.
Dead right about stealing a wage. He had a contract that allowed him to miss games to continue his punditry and I don’t think there was any financial penalty. Dick Turpin wasn’t the only highway robber.

The Coventry Telegraph AKA the Daily Liar being part of Mirror Group still carries adverts for his book. I was thinking of getting one as I understand it’s a good trial for the best crayons.

[seany65]

England 5 : 0 Czech republic.

I didn't watch it but I'll bet a whole glorious 5p coin that the England fans only sang the National anthem and 1 verse of Rule Britannia.

How tiresome. the anthem only appears just before the FA cup final kicks off (as far as I know) and Rule Britannia has nothing at all to do with football.

Can they not sing silly football chants like they do during domestic games, or "Abide with Me" (which even though it appears only at the FA cup final gives a better atmosphere than the national anthem)?

[buttsie]

Originally Posted by countjimmoriarty

WC failure? Did better than 28 other teams...

The only purpose of being in a tournament as a major player of the game is to win it

The only reason this WC was seen as a success was because it wasnt a disaster
like the previous tournaments which ended very early ie the 2-1 Iceland defeat amongst others
where the defending was lamentable for such a highly ranked nation.

I say failure / under achievement if you wish because unlike the teams of the 90s who couldnt beat Germany in the Semis this team had only to overcome Croatia to make the final

Croatia hadn't done anything since they made the 1998 semis

This England team should improve and be a real force in the future but they wont ever get an easier draw to a WC final than this one - Italy didnt qualify , Spain & Germany also rans

Like Leicester winning the EPL - once in 3/4 generations and then some

[pierrelm]

Originally Posted by buttsie

I say failure / under achievement if you wish because unlike the teams of the 90s who couldnt beat Germany in the Semis this team had only to overcome Croatia to make the final

and Croatia had a keeper carrying an injury which very obviously limited his agility. Yet we never looked to exploit it - the free kick we scored early on was the perfect example of how to do it.
Instead we had Kane playing a withdrawn role, Dele less than fit, Sterling misfiring at every opportunity and an inexplicably cautious approach which saw us trying to funnel the ball back to Pickford, simply to retain possession. It was excruciating. We had the tools to do the job but never looked like exploiting our assets properly. Instead we handed the game to Croatia in the second half and never looked like winning, which we had the potential to do.
The nation was too determined to be in love with a likable but tactically limited manager and a squad who looked like they didn't trust in their own ability once they came up against opposition worthy of the name.

I'm with Buttsie - we were arguably the third best team in the competition, after Belgium and France, yet in the end we were satisfied with surpassing the lowest of expectations, mainly due to the euphoria generated in beating a very ordinary Columbia on penalties.

[pierrelm]

As for the 5-0 drubbing of the Czechs, I watched the first half, in which the first, excellent goal was undoubtedly the highlight. Dier went off to be replaced by Barkley, who initiated a lovely one-touch passing move with Kane feeding perfectly in for Sancho to cross to the far post where sterling slid in for the opening goal.
The second goal was given as a penalty where two Czech defenders shut the door on Sterling; had it been a game against Italy in Rome, I think the ref would have waved play on - he seemed to respond as much to Sterling's appeal as much as to what he'd seen.
If the Czechs are genuinely the second rated team in this group, then we have a succession of practice matches ahead of us. They were poor, around Championship standard. From what I saw, I'd like to see anther right back - Walker still looks guilty of giving the ball away and loses concentration; Pickford isn't the best English keeper and Heaton or Gunn should be given a run - unless Pope regains full fitness and gets some games.
Our midfield still looks woefully slow and pedestrian. The ball goes 'safely' backward far too often. I do wonder if Foden now really needs to be playing every week and forcing his way into this squad.

[risen]

In the first 5 minutes v Slovakia, Wales have shown more commitment and resolve than Scotland have for years. Oh, and a goal from a lad who looks about 15, as does half the team. Slovaks no mugs either.