Hoping england win for the General feel good factor around the country rather than being an actual fan of the national team.
Hoping England win so I can get the day off tomorrow. Nah tbh I'm getting excited. Off out in a couple of hours and already feeling butterflies in the stomach. Got a good feeling about the game...
Been out a couple of times today and there is definitely a feel good factor about. Lots of England shirts, football songs being played and people clearly in good spirits. I'm not expecting a England win because I think Italian are too strong for us but hoping I'm wrong, would love to experience England winning a (relevant) trophy in my lifetime despite it being ****e negative football.
Yeh very much so near me, it's buzzing. I went into town, piccadily gardens earlier and it was heaving. Not keen on the topless drunken arseholes at midday but the rest of the vibe was good. I can't call it. Could go either way with about 3/4 different scenarios. We could score early, defend for our lives. Or either side could demolish the other inside 30 mins. Or could be 1-1 after 120 mins and playing for pens. I really cant call it.
ah the feel good factor well earlier today i did call someone an ignorant ****wit instead of **** - does that count ?
Little thing called covid is going to be referred to for the next 6 months after this so enjoy the heaving masses
Pickford kept them in it. England should never have got to ET and penalties because in the second half they went missing. Mancini was tactically too strong and Italy were much better organised. Getting a 19-year-old to take the deciding penalty was poor judgement and Sterling bottled the lot. Still he waits for a Euro winners' medal. Kane was unable yet again. For all that Southgate's done, he still has too much to learn. I lost count of the number of subs Italy made while he faffed and fannied about. It was all too late by then. Gutted for Hendo. The least said about the classy England fans the better. No wonder people don't want us to win anything.
In every other shootout, the teams put defensive players up for the initial penalties (less pressure as there is time to recover) leaving the later and more pressured penalties to those that take them regularly... Kane went first... Saka, who as never taken an in-game penalty before, took the most pressured fifth... Sterling? Grealish? Phillips? Shaw? Stones? Even Pickford? Where were these players? All should have been before Saka. If Southgate truly picked the takers, wtf was he thinking? We brought Rashford and Sancho on purely to take a penalty. Surely someone like Southgate should know the pressure involved in these shootouts without the need to magnify it with such a move!
No issue with Kane going first to get the ball rolling. Maguire did go second. Rashford has experience of high-pressure penalties. If Sancho was up for it then no issue with him taking either. But Saka should not have taken, and agree, where were the others. Can only assume that Saka takes a good penalty in training and put his name forward.
