One of the big differences for me is how well we win the ball back in midfield. With Phillips and Rice there its high tempo stuff and it means there is less pressure on the defenders. Sterling annoys me. He never seems to spot the pass when in good positions but he has scored 3 now so has justified being in the starting eleven.
WE STILL BELEIVE! IT's COMING HOME!!!! Lovely jubbly! If Pickford keeps clean sheets the whole way through I'm getting his face tattooed on my arse with "England's Number 1"
Sterling is so frustrating to watch as a fan. He often seems to make the wrong decisions and loads of people call for him to be dropped. However, when you hear footballers and managers talking about him the analysis is so different. I get that you will always have differing opinions in football, but when you have people like Klinsmann talking about him as our most important player then I start to wonder if his role is just one of those things that you need to know the game from the inside to fully understand.
Thought there were plenty of good performances. Pickford didnt put a foot wrong and made one outstanding save , Shaw was involved in both goals, Rice seemed to be everywhere. What Sterling brings though that is unique is a desire to run at defenders which nobody else was willing to do. While he occasionally gets it wrong it adds a facet we wouldn’t otherwise have.
I hated the performance but that's because I see football as an entertainment and the reality is that it's a results business. I literally don't care about England anymore, but sterling was motm for me. Kane is a great finisher but he's a lazy player that reply on being fed too much for me to enjoy watching him. Basically England are a machine that represents everything I don't want football to be and unfortunately that's the way football could end up if England win, so I hope a country that has a go wins because that's a win for football imo. Newcastle > football > England
It's a fair point of view to say that you would prefer to be entertained rather than focusing on just results, but isn't that the exact opposite of what you argue when talking about how Bruce has done ok as our manager?
No it's not because I've repeatedly said there's been no issue since Jones came in..we've been scoring plenty and been in some very entertaining games. The football before Jones can in was awful, not the same at all and it was dull. I honestly don't know what the fans issue has been since Jones came in? I think they just don't want to lose an argument.. I hate possesion based football I like them to ****ing run at them and have an edge... End to end please
I was critical of the line up yesterday and berated Southgate - hot reflection - prior to the game but having seen the game and heard his reasons for it afterwards he got it spot on- matched them up man to man, banked on Rice and Phillips out running the German CM's (which they did) and hit quickly on transition of possesion. Also the subs - only used two of the 4/5 allowed but he got it spot on again. Wouldn't be surprised to see us go back to 4 at the back vs Ukraine and fit Grealish into the side in front of Rice and Phillips after last nights performance - but again you've got to say he's getting the teams right for the matches - horses for courses and all that.
He's getting it right because results are there, but I'm just saying I don't enjoy it at all. It's not Southgate it's the way the game is.. If the boring let's keep it tight sides keep winning that's all we're ever going to get, so I'm hoping England lose. Call me mad but I cannot enjoy this England side and I've had better experiences in losses. Just my opinion and I won't change it. They've renamed cheating as winning free kicks and renamed time wasting as game management and breaking up play. I'm close to not watching the sport.. Not that anyone cares but that's where im at.
Has someone been riding Harry Kane all night or something before each game? He looks absolutely ****ed physically. The missus is a football casual and said last night "He's been crap in all 4 games, why do they keep picking him? He is so slow. They should put that one with the stupid hair on (Grealish)" Trying to convince her that he's actually a top class striker when he has energy was not easy. I also explained that Grealish is not a striker, but she was disinterested and said "well at least his legs will work". I might ask that Southgate's behaviour is looked into, because to keep rolling him out in that condition is tantamount to slavery. Other than Kane though I thought we did quite well against a below par German side. Defensively good (with a portion of luck), and they all worked really hard. Sterling was poor in spells, but you can't knock him. He is doing the single most important thing and scoring goals. His run past Rudiger for his goal and the movement into the box was excellent. He is a bit like this as a player, in and out. Not the way I'd go about it and we've been **** to watch overall, but I don't suppose anyone will care if we get the job done. I wish people would stop saying "he's been proved right" like we couldn't have won playing a different way. Its the same when people say you can't stay up playing attacking football. Of course you can you ****wit! Same goes here, many ways to skin a cat and Southgate has his own way. Personally I think a QF is good for this England team on ability. So to me Southgate can say his way is one way to go about the tournament successfully. Anything beyond a QF is a job well done for me.
Kane has been dreadful and that header was put on a plate for him. He doesn't try hard enough and I'm sorry but that's the bare minimum I expect.. He's a lazy poacher with a deadly finish, but that's boring he's a goal scoring machine that can't do anything else at all and it's just not what I like to see... Essentially I'm Bored of these robotic players and sides. Lower league football is far more entertaining.
Can’t stand Sterling, never have never will. However, he has scored the goals that have got us to where we are, so I can only give him credit for that. He plays like a fairy, never tackles ( bit like most these days) can’t pass even when it’s right in front of him and runs into trouble the majority of time he try’s to dribble Do I think we play exciting football? No I have never been as bored watching England , the constant sideways/ back passing and so called game management, but that is down to coach/manager For the next game please play a few exciting players to watch, sancho /foden/ Bellingham are all fresh, u don’t need 2 holding CM against Ukraine But southgates remit is to get to the final , I just don’t want it to be like watching a mid 80s Italian side
That's hardly a new phenomenon though. We often see the past through rose tinted spectacles but the above description could equally apply to Gary Lineker, Gerd Muller, Miraslav Klosse, Inzaghi, Schillaci, etc, etc. History remembers the goals and not the bits in between.
I think a lot of that is down to us as fans. As a nation we don't have a great track record on giving people time to build a team or style of play. The media would have a turnip stuck on his head on the back page if he tried to play exciting football and went out early. Look at the reaction to Bobby Robson in 1988 and the build up to 1990. By the time the country had worked out that he actually knew what he was doing it was too late and he had already decided to **** off to somewhere he would get less hassle and be appreciated. The papers print this ****e for sensationalism and we lap it up and pay to read it (either directly or through hits on their websites and ads). Any England manager knows the rules of this game with the media and public and will only ever play by those rules as long as they exist.
