Unconvincing. Everyone is yammering on about how good England are now - yet on the radio pundits were saying we must play two holding midfielders against the "better" teams. Wait a minute, I thought we were one of the better teams? What folks really mean is we're a lot better against minnows. Put England up against any decent European teams and we are taken apart at the back. Yet Gareth reckons we're even better now than in 2018 when we won the World Cup.
There are still a number of question marks about our defence. It is not good enough against the top nations. We have got some excellent forward players like Kane, Sterling, Rashford, Hudson- odoi etc. But without a strong defence we are not going to win anything.
Underachievers. Well over 100 years, 1,001 matches. One piece of Silverware*. A million miles from good enough, for the nation that invented Association Football. A shameful record. How many World Cups and European Championships have there been? I would guess at about 40 by now. One victory and three semi-final defeats is woeful. *not counting home nations trophies. Proper silverware.
We have now entered, in footballing terms, what Douglas Adams once described as "The long dark tea-time of the Soul". These International breaks are soul destroying. England playing in the 2nd tier of a pointless tournament. Players from all four domestic tiers off getting injured playing for Countries most of us have never heard of. What a waste of time and money.
The job needs a serious tactician capable of getting a disciplined and effective performance out of whoever is available. A man the players respect and even fear a little. The FA just wants a yes man (preferably one who looks good in front of a camera but that's not essential). I wonder why they haven't offered the job to Alan Pardw*nk.
There used to be two unwanted Autumn breaks for tedious internationals, but in 2024 there are 3 FFS They disrupt the domestic calendar and I genuinely don’t know anyone who wants them. What is this new league they are playing in …who cares ?
