Nations League

England looked good, creating a lot of chances - Lukaku's header off the line was extremely fortunate for Belgium.
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I don't care for this seeding/format for the nation's league - IMO, England should not have been in the same group as the number 1 ranked FIFA side.
 
BlueHammer85 said:
do I really do that ? Can you find me a quote ever to say what a great managed he is ?

I give him credit for taking us to a WC semi (however we did it) and the fact he gives youngsters a chance.

if he got sacked tomorrow. I wouldn’t care. I will support England whoever the gaffer is.
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I get what you say Sparky - you’re an England fan and will support them whatever.

I believe people would like England to be a decent team and would back them more if they could buy in to what goes on.

Southgate had a decent start. By hook or crook, we got to the World Cup semi final. We were Harry Kane being a selfish **** short of going 2-0 up (but then there was no guarantee that Raz would’ve scored from long range). I agreed at the time that we could only beat what was in front of us. You only need to look at Germany’s run to the 2002 World Cup final to see that a team can get a lucky draw - Republic of Ireland, Cameroon and Saudi Arabia in the group followed by Paraguay, USA and South Korea in the knockout stages.

So we do well in the World Cup. We then beat Spain away after being 3-0 up. Worryingly though, it finishes 3-2 and we were hanging on for dear life. Then we beat Croatia and win the group. There is hope as well as caution.

The finals are a bit shit but then we are playing Holland who are decent.

We win a shit Euro qualification group but again, we can only beat who we play.

For me, this is where the problems start.

We’re back in the Nations League. Foden and Greenwood are daft and get a pair of strumpets back to the hotel. I have no qualms with them being sent home.

At the same time, Harry Maguire get paralytic drunk on holiday in Greece. He allegedly assaults a police officer and then tried to bribe the police to get away with it. He comes back to England and tells a story that reminded us all of Dominic Cummings’ tea garden conference.

Luckily for Slabhead, he has the full backing of his international manager who keeps him in his squad for a few hours until news emerges that he’s been found guilty.

Maguire misses the international week but is called up for the next squad. Foden and Greenwood are still out of this one but 3 players who have attended a party are all ok to join up.

We remarkably beat Belgium and put ourselves in pole position to win the group. He keeps faith with Maguire despite the fact that his form and confidence has plummeted.

In the next match, Maguire has a fucking stinker. We go a goal down to Denmark. We need a goal but one of the brightest prospects we’ve had in decades is sat at home because he’s been naughty. That’s ok, less than a week earlier, Jack Grealish showed that he can carry the creative burden in a friendly that we shouldn’t have organised given the incredible pressures currently on footballers. Oh wait, Southgate stubbornly leaves him sat in the stand.

This is also a game that sees all Liverpool players left out of the starting line up, presumably because they had a big game a few days later.

We go on to lose to Denmark and give up the impetus we had.

We now need a remarkable set of results to qualify but lose in Belgium meaning that the match this week against Iceland is pointless.

Players are dead on their feet and going down with injuries left, right and centre but England will now play a 2nd none event inside a week.

We fucked the group up because of him being weak with his Denmark election one way but as stubborn as a mule the other.

If the manager of the national team doesn’t give a fuck about one game that could see us succeed in a competition, why the fuck should we care about dead rubber matches that he has caused?

Gareth Southgate is a man out of his depth and I can see the most miserable performance ever on home soil coming over the horizon.
 
jimharri said:
It's a patriotic cock-er-nee with dubious tastes in music, and a penchant for compiling lists.
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Hmmm... BlueHammer dual account... maybe?
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In all seriousness though, England has a fantastic side. I don't think that they're as good as France, Belgium, or Portugal - 4th best in the world or there abouts seems about right to me. Up against any higher ranked side, England would have a very good chance of winning, assuming that everyone is fit.
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I haven't followed Southgate's team selection/tactics enough to judge whether or not I like him as a manager... he does, however, seem to have the backing of his players and at the same time is able to tamp-down on off-field controversy.
 
BlueMoonFromAcrossThePond said:
Hmmm... BlueHammer dual account... maybe?
====
In all seriousness though, England has a fantastic side. I don't think that they're as good as France, Belgium, or Portugal - 4th best in the world or there abouts seems about right to me. Up against any higher ranked side, England would have a very good chance of winning, assuming that everyone is fit.
====
I haven't followed Southgate's team selection/tactics enough to judge whether or not I like him as a manager... he does, however, seem to have the backing of his players and at the same time is able to tamp-down on off-field controversy.
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Hmm, Pubs still open over there eh.
 
its grim up north said:
Hmm, Pubs still open over there eh.
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The Pubs here in the USA have been open for quite some time :-)

Look, I've no idea what to think of your manager - but I really do think that you've got a fantastic side! Best of luck in the upcoming World Cup - I'll be routing for you!
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Off topic - what the fuck is up with team USA? - out-of-nowhere, USA actually has a decent national squad - probably not top 10 in the world - but for the first time in about 8 years, team USA actually seems... well, respectable.
 
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