I would agree here. Hodgson played an experimental team against a top South American team (Probably amongst the top 6 in the World) - did he underrate them ? If he did then we wasted an opportunity of testing our best squad against the sort of football we will face in Brazil - because Chile are a more important test here than Germany.
Mmm...............your usual mixture of some good points mixed in with utter tosh. Baines WAS a yard behind Sanchez.................and showed last night why he isn't quite up to International football, as I've always thought. Cole is, by far, the better all round player for International football. Baines is a fantastic, attacking full back in the hurley-burley of the Premier League, but will always get found out at the highest level imo. Cole wouldn't have let the forward get ahead of him for that first goal. NB: France are currently performing at a much, much worse level than England. Lovely!!
Chile are without doubt a top 15 side currently but never a top six nor will they be Germany will make the last 4 depending on the draw France have a mountain to climb and we will see if they can do it in Paris IMO they should be close I would watch them before England any day. I will cheer if England win of course as i am English but in terms of football we haven't got the game to compete at the moment. No one in this country gave Chile a preview that said they would thras us in the manner they did … Look at that carefully and you will get where i am coming from with the culture The English fans were boing the team FFS … not acceptable IMO A result against Germany and then we will win the World Cup and the Chile game evaporates Chile a new side with talented players played away at what they called the cathedral of football and won very easily. A decent side will quality and a spine would of held that team but each English player ran around like a headless chicken … just because they were one nil down from a great headed goal all of 4 feet high. Baines is a very good player yet gets the blame from a cross that should firstly not have come and secondly dealt with. It exposed that England are not a team IMO Even Englands best game currently not good enough unless they understand controlled expression and ball retention The world cup isn't by any means the highest level of football … its just the biggest event
I think a big danger here is if we put out our strongest team and Germany don't but still beat us it could have a dire effect on what little self-belief we have left...
Lallana might have been picked on merit but Rodriguez wasnt, he wouldnt make it into the QPR side ahead of Hoilett or Philips.
I was making a point here of implying that we are preparing for a World cup played in South America - no European side has ever won it there, and so all of the South American sides will be dangerous and will, to an extent, dictate the style of play which dominates there. Any side which qualifies automatically from their qualifying group (they all play each other and have a far harder qualification than any European sides) must be considered as amongst the favourites when on their own patch. Germany will do well until someone plays World class football against them - and if they can avoid Brazil, Spain and their bogey team Italy.
It is a well made point Sooper. Germany can't name their strongest eleven as they are five players short of that in this squad. So if England put out their best eleven and lose your point will have been made. Bring back John Terry I say.
We know we have no hope if we need and old, lumbering CB who isnt worth a PL place any more. England are already a joke, somehow doing that would just make it worse.
I hate them too Norway. I think all international football should be banned. It's not the actual football I hate but the people at the top of the international game. The likes of John Delaney here in the FAI and Sepp Blatter at FIFA. They both make me sick.
They are dull, all non club leagues are boring. WC, EC, CL and EL are just a massive waste of time. I wish we could just FF to the knock out stages.
Even though I do not like the international weekends either I love the weeks during EC and WC. I have attended 2006 in Germany, 2008 in CH and that was great fun indeed - so yes, I do hate all the QPRlees time but then again it is much fun every 2 years when the best teams meet.
Utter bollocks. England have beaten and drawn with Brazil over the last year or so. England finished top of their qualifying group.....they could do no more! England have some very good players and no Country will want them in their WC group, particularly as England won't be seeded. Souper makes a very good point..........Hodgson is damned if he does and damned if he doesn't. Play our strongest team and lose and confidence will be hit. Play a second string and lose and people will criticise him for not picking his strongest team. As ever, with many England haters, he can't win. Dave..........France are struggling mate.
Phillip Lahm, Manuel Neuer, Mesut Ozil and Sami Khedira (ruptured knee ligaments) have all withdrawn from the German squad to play England, all of whom played away to Italy on Friday. That leaves Germany without 8 players who most likely will start for them in Brazil. I predict a win for England, and for the expectations to falsely rise before the World Cup.
Fear not DT, Ribery will bail them out like he's done all throughout the qualification. On Tuesday he will show why he'll win the Balonn d'Or.
Can't agree with the diver tag Col. But he can exagerate the fouls made, there's a difference (not as bad as Mbia though) You have seen the kicking Taarabt got in the Championship, multiply that by 10 and you've got what Ribery deals with. He is always targeted, fouling him is the only way to stop him. There was a stat before last seasons CL final; "Franck Ribéry has been fouled 42 times during Champions League season, at least 14 more than any other player." It has nothing to do with diving but opponent tactics.
I have absolutely no problem with that mate The day I see rangercol praise a Frenchie is the day I pack it in He has a real nasty side to him has to be said. This happened against Juve in last season CL, after Vidal had repeatedly kicked him without protection from the ref he snapped. The irony though is that it went unpunished, not even a free kick. And it wasn't the first time Ribery has retaliated. [video=youtube;zau4oYZB32Y]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zau4oYZB32Y[/video] It is stuff like this that will probably rob him of the Ballon d'Or.
