Russia World Cup 18

[Jairzinho]

I don't think England have the better players at all.

 

Croatia's forwards are more experienced, intelligent, and work much better as a collective. Excellent right back (for both teams), and Lovren and Vida seemed to work well as a pair. And, obviously, their midfield is on a completely different level.

 

Southgate definitely made mistakes though. The biggest of which was playing a one man centre midfield, as Alli and Lingard were largely a complete waste of space.

[an tha]

Looks to have been about as good a World Cup as we could have hoped for.

 

Lovren and Henderson aside none of our players have really stacked up loads of games/minutes.

 

No injuries.

 

A lot of our rivals best players are stuck out there for the maximum possible time.

 

Ingerlund squad full of Spurs, Mancs and Belgium same with key Chelsea players too....France has a couple of Chelsea as well.

 

Gonna be some real disruption to those teams at start of season assuming they will be looking at 3 weeks holiday then you are talking back at clubs just 1 week before season starts.

 

Could work out very nicely for us that.

[Gym Beglin]

So uniquely inane that England’s final game will mirror the equally inane circumstances of their final group game.

[Bamo]

They should change the format of the WC to the one used in that Nike advert a few years back. Three-a-side played in a cage on a converted oil tanker. One rule - first goal wins. Losers have to jump off the ship and swim home. Just park it in the middle of the Pacific.

Said during the match someone should tell Southgate they changed the rules so if there's a shootout and it's level after all the players have had a go it comes down to the Coaches, watch his colour drain

[stringvest]

I don't think England have the better players at all.

 

Croatia's forwards are more experienced, intelligent, and work much better as a collective. Excellent right back (for both teams), and Lovren and Vida seemed to work well as a pair. And, obviously, their midfield is on a completely different level.

 

Southgate definitely made mistakes though. The biggest of which was playing a one man centre midfield, as Alli and Lingard were largely a complete waste of space.

 

 

I think Croatia are a far better team front to back.  Our midfield was rubbish once they blew themselves out; Croatia realised they couldn't chase around forever, so England played right into their hands, and effectively invited Croatia to attack at will.  Modric and the other Croatian midfielders were superb.

[Gym Beglin]

I don't think England have the better players at all.

 

Croatia's forwards are more experienced, intelligent, and work much better as a collective. Excellent right back (for both teams), and Lovren and Vida seemed to work well as a pair. And, obviously, their midfield is on a completely different level.

 

Southgate definitely made mistakes though. The biggest of which was playing a one man centre midfield, as Alli and Lingard were largely a complete waste of space.

Lingaard regularly ran more metres than any other player, and completed the most sprints, but agree he was ineffective.

[deiseach]

Thought England played really well first half but then after that they were poor and ended up reverting to type and playing long balls.

 

I’d expect them to get better over the next few years if they keep on the same path.

 

England's performance against Iceland in Euro 2016 was one of most astonishingly inept things I have ever seen on a sporting field. Their inability to keep the ball was so total that you wondered whether it was deliberate. I know The Owl was stinking the place out - no doubt he warned the players beforehand about how Iceland were formidable opponents - but this has been a feature of England for years now. So it was a surprise to see England against Colombia and Sweden, and in the first half against Croatia, succeeding at such Maradonaesque stuff as passing the ball ten yards to a teammate in plenty of space. I think the burden of expectation got to them in the end and any discipline that Southgate drilled into them crumbled. Still, they've shown they are capable of doing the basics and they might blossom in the less high-octane atmosphere of the European Championships.

 

Ah, who am I kidding? The scumbag press will have marked all their cards before the first ball is kicked that England Expects and they'll wilt accordingly. Cue another 52 years of hurt.

[Tony Moanero]

I think he means for betting purposes mate. Match bets in footie are generally settled on the result after 90 minutes and injury time.

Fair enough. I didn’t realise he was taking about betting.

[Caramac]

By far and away my favourite moment of the night. Any chance of an animated gif of Dejan poleaxing Dribble-chin, Camrac?

 

 

 

 

 

Any idea of approx time it happened?

[El Rojo]

Always wonder when a player is immobile with an injury like Trippier was, and there aren’t any subs left and it’s a huge game, is there any role he can play on the pitch? Even standing static on one wing so the opposition at least have to think about him?

[Jairzinho]

Lingaard regularly ran more metres than any other player, and completed the most sprints, but agree he was ineffective.

 

Yes, the problem comes when he has the ball.

[The Golden Eel]

Croatia had more experienced key players, that was definitely a factor as the game went on, I thought. 

[SasaS]

I keep thinking it was mostly the mentality, character, psychology.

 First half went exactly as I expected from Croatia and I think England expected to see the game out safely after that little break in play around 65 minutes whilst Croatia were beginning to despair and the goal was like an adrenalin shot straight through Uma Thurman's heart. England than felt collective unconsciousness coming to the fore and transforming into an ineffectual individual id of every player thus affecting the trans-substiation from nailed on finalists into bottlers. 

[El Rojo]

Yes, the problem comes when he has the ball.

I thought he was pretty decent. Certainly more dangerous than Sterling when he’s near the opposition’s goal.

 

I thought Alli stank the place out for the whole tournament, one goal aside.

[Caramac]

By far and away my favourite moment of the night. Any chance of an animated gif of Dejan poleaxing Dribble-chin, Camrac?

 

 

[J-V]

Gotta laugh at all the papers calling them Heroes.  Rewarded for failure.

[Anubis]

Beautiful. Just beautiful.

[INTORRESTING]

A semi-final is hardly failure.

[J-V]

 

Well in Dejan.  Hobble and his love-train mate kept shtum about him in the 2nd half whilst Lovren made them eat their words.

[J-V]

A semi-final is hardly failure.

 

It was harder not to reach that semi final considering the bye they had to it.  Manc Esque how all that fell to them.

[chrisbonnie]

I thought he was pretty decent. Certainly more dangerous than Sterling when he’s near the opposition’s goal.

 

I thought Alli stank the place out for the whole tournament, one goal aside.

Don't forget good whinging and diving.

 

Granted I don't like him anyway, but he was in uber cunt mode for the whole match last night.

 

I was fuming watching the cunt moaning and falling over.

[sir roger]

Always wonder when a player is immobile with an injury like Trippier was, and there aren’t any subs left and it’s a huge game, is there any role he can play on the pitch? Even standing static on one wing so the opposition at least have to think about him?

 

I was once left up front for 30 minutes ' To act as a nuisance ' in a Zingari League game when we had no subs and subsequently found out I had broken my ankle in 2 places.

 

And had to pay £2.50 subs for the privilege.

[The Guest]

I don't think England have the better players at all.

 

Croatia's forwards are more experienced, intelligent, and work much better as a collective. Excellent right back (for both teams), and Lovren and Vida seemed to work well as a pair. And, obviously, their midfield is on a completely different level.

 

Southgate definitely made mistakes though. The biggest of which was playing a one man centre midfield, as Alli and Lingard were largely a complete waste of space.

Personally I do think we have got better players but I can see why people disagree. They’re a level above anything else England had played though and my point is still the same. I can’t remember the last time in a knockout game England beat a team that was as good as them or better than them on paper never mind getting beat by teams that are worse. They never over achieve and it’s always down to the managers doing stupid things. They had good enough players to beat Croatia but didn’t.

[Anny Road]

All this ‘heroes’ and ‘lions’ stuff basically translates as you are not quite as shit as we all thought you were.

[Dave D]

Imagine if we get anybody in the top 10 teams next time around