THE WORLD CUP!!!
- Thread starter ECG
- Start date
He is sticking with Rooney who is clearly not inform. Defoe came on and straight away there was life up front, he needs to play him.
Lampard should stop taking corners, he failed with every single one he took.
Tbh we need a new manager, I dont think he is the right man for the job to which I said ages ago.
Lampard should stop taking corners, he failed with every single one he took.
Tbh we need a new manager, I dont think he is the right man for the job to which I said ages ago.
Martyn B
CF Legend
Big questions marks would arrise if any manager dropped Rooney. He is too good to drop.
But anyway, what an awful, awful game. I never seen our national team play so poor in all my life. They played like a bunch of strangers who have only just met, with a stubborn manager who refuses to change things 'because it worked so well in qualifying'.
The thing which got to me the most, was that no one seemed bothered about what was going on. When ever they lost the ball, especially Johnson, they just turned around and jogged away. No one battered an eye lid. There was never any urgency about our play, even with just ten minutes left, they were just casually passing backwards towards our goal, no rush. At least Capello admitted we were rubbish, he even said 'this was not the team I know'. So hopefully he will change things.
There was one good thing to come out of that game though; we now dont expect them to get very far, so we wont be too disappointed when we do get knocked out. Which I imagine will be on Wednesday.
And a quick message to Rooney, when the fans have travelled over 6,000 to watch England play, and you all play as badly as you did, they have every bloody right to boo you.
I'm still just coming to grips with what I saw yesterday.
The Germans have themselves to blame for not reacting sooner to the lunatic Spanish ref who showed six yellow cards for the first six fouls in the game. Klose has been around long enough & played in enough World Cup games to know better. Still nine yellow cards were shown & maybe two at the most were legit.
I can't really blame Poldi for the weak penalty attempt though, because these things happen from time to time, but he is a striker that has been struggling all year & I can't help but feel that Schweinie, Oezil or Khedira should have stepped up instead.
I still think the Germans will finish top of the group in spite of the loss.
As for the Yanks, well they can blame the ref all they want for the blown call, which it clearly was, but they really only have themselves to blame.
It was a collective sleepwalk that put them down by two goals in the first half, forcing them to produce one of the most furious comebacks we'll likely see at this World Cup, or any other for that matter.
They went from disaster to hope in the second half. Then they were robbed. If they had played that furiously from the start, they would not have needed the Edu goal, which was surely legitimate.
The ref has not yet explained his call, nor has FIFA, other than stating that it was for a foul in the box & not an offside call. One thing is for sure, nobody will see the ref from Mali in the second round. He will surely be sent home — no explanation, of course.
Then there was that horrid England performance, or lack of one I should say. How can a team with so much talent play so poorly? They sure could learn a thing or two about teamwork & fighting spirit from a bunch of second rate players from the U.S. of A. Now they have it all to do against Slovenia, who will likely be a tougher opponent than either of the Group C teams England has already faced.
If they do manage to beat Slovenia they will need to hope that the Yanks lose to Algeria (which is quite possible) or they will finish 2nd in the group & have to face the Germans in the next round. The Americans (myself included) will be pulling for a draw or England to win, as that would give us the top spot in the group (provided we beat Algeria, of course). Don't be surprised if Slovenia & Algeria are the actual teams to advance from the group however.
And this is a goal no matter how you look at it.
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YGc6Kld7nzc[/youtube]
Today's predictions:
Holland 2, Japan 0
Ghana 1, Australia 0
Denmark 1, Cameroon 1
The Germans have themselves to blame for not reacting sooner to the lunatic Spanish ref who showed six yellow cards for the first six fouls in the game. Klose has been around long enough & played in enough World Cup games to know better. Still nine yellow cards were shown & maybe two at the most were legit.
I can't really blame Poldi for the weak penalty attempt though, because these things happen from time to time, but he is a striker that has been struggling all year & I can't help but feel that Schweinie, Oezil or Khedira should have stepped up instead.
I still think the Germans will finish top of the group in spite of the loss.
As for the Yanks, well they can blame the ref all they want for the blown call, which it clearly was, but they really only have themselves to blame.
It was a collective sleepwalk that put them down by two goals in the first half, forcing them to produce one of the most furious comebacks we'll likely see at this World Cup, or any other for that matter.
They went from disaster to hope in the second half. Then they were robbed. If they had played that furiously from the start, they would not have needed the Edu goal, which was surely legitimate.
The ref has not yet explained his call, nor has FIFA, other than stating that it was for a foul in the box & not an offside call. One thing is for sure, nobody will see the ref from Mali in the second round. He will surely be sent home — no explanation, of course.
Then there was that horrid England performance, or lack of one I should say. How can a team with so much talent play so poorly? They sure could learn a thing or two about teamwork & fighting spirit from a bunch of second rate players from the U.S. of A. Now they have it all to do against Slovenia, who will likely be a tougher opponent than either of the Group C teams England has already faced.
If they do manage to beat Slovenia they will need to hope that the Yanks lose to Algeria (which is quite possible) or they will finish 2nd in the group & have to face the Germans in the next round. The Americans (myself included) will be pulling for a draw or England to win, as that would give us the top spot in the group (provided we beat Algeria, of course). Don't be surprised if Slovenia & Algeria are the actual teams to advance from the group however.
And this is a goal no matter how you look at it.
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YGc6Kld7nzc[/youtube]
Today's predictions:
Holland 2, Japan 0
Ghana 1, Australia 0
Denmark 1, Cameroon 1
Martyn B
CF Legend
East Coast(er) General said:
Eh? To finish top, we just have to beat Slovenia and better your result? So if USA win 1-0, and we win 2-0, we'll finish top.
And also who says the Germans are finishing top? There's a big chance they could go out completely, let alone finishing even second.
Lain
Giga Poster
marc said:
Well they do say "players win games and managers lose games."
Capello did a great job in qualifying, and has proven himself as manager I think. The players lone are to blame for the shocking performances. They just don't seem to be able to perform in the big tournaments - it was the same four years ago. None of them seem to want to win.
Dave
CF Legend
But he does try motivate them, the main thing that he does really wrong is the 2 hours before rule he keeps employing. It must put so much pressure on the players if they are chosen or not.
But Capello should stay even if we don't get through the group stages, as he is a good manager but its the players who don't step up to the mark, most of them are Premier League 'stars'.
But Capello should stay even if we don't get through the group stages, as he is a good manager but its the players who don't step up to the mark, most of them are Premier League 'stars'.
Martyn B said:
If both England and USA win, either team has to win by a greater difference to finish top. That will be the goal differential tiebreaker. So yes, your situation would work.
But if we both win by the same margin, England will had have scored (and give up) either 3 more goals than USA for outright lead or 2 more goals for a even tie. Say USA won 2-0 (goal differential +2). England would need 4 goals (with Slovenia 2) to tie and 5 (to Slovenia 3) to out right win.
The later holds true for if we both tie, except that it would then be for the 2nd spot instead of the top.
After watching refs take the headlines the day before, it was nice to see Roberto Rosetti calling a game the way it's supposed to be. The Holland-Japan wasn't the most difficult to call, but I think the Italian veteran is the best at the World Cup & should call the Final.
As far as the game itself, I think Holland underperformed & Japan played their usual game. The Dutch wrapped up a spot in the round of 16 with the win & Japan still have a chance, but I still think the Danes will go through - especially after dumping Cameroon out of the tourney. I had hoped that the Lions would have been able to get one back after giving up the lead, but it was still the best game of the day.
I do have to hand it to the Aussies though. I thought they were done for when Kewell was sent off. At least they've kept their slim hopes alive, but I don't think they'll upset Serbia.
Today's predictions:
Paraguay 1, Slovakia 0
Italy 2, New Zealand 0
Brazil 2, Ivory Coast 1
As far as the game itself, I think Holland underperformed & Japan played their usual game. The Dutch wrapped up a spot in the round of 16 with the win & Japan still have a chance, but I still think the Danes will go through - especially after dumping Cameroon out of the tourney. I had hoped that the Lions would have been able to get one back after giving up the lead, but it was still the best game of the day.
I do have to hand it to the Aussies though. I thought they were done for when Kewell was sent off. At least they've kept their slim hopes alive, but I don't think they'll upset Serbia.
Today's predictions:
Paraguay 1, Slovakia 0
Italy 2, New Zealand 0
Brazil 2, Ivory Coast 1
Nemesis Inferno
Strata Poster
Note to all England fans...
It could be worse...
http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/footbal ... 750302.stm
It could be worse...
http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/footbal ... 750302.stm
Paraguay are really looking like they should make the quarterfinals (where they'll meet up against Brazil). They'll likely win the group & Italy, should they make it through, will go up against Holland in the next round. The All Whites played a smart game & deserved the draw with the defending champs. I really enjoyed watching the game in spite the lack of flair.
Eriksson is to blame for the loss to Brazil. Not that the Ivory Coast would or should have won the game, but the team just isn't the same with Eriksson in control. They were a magical team to watch in Germany 4 years ago & now they play like every other team the Swede has coached.
And what was up with the ref & Fabiano's 2nd goal? He used his hand/arm twice on the play & the ref clearly saw one of the infractions but didn't call it. Instead he smiled & joked about it with the Braziian after the celebrations. :?
I'm also loving the way the French are falling apart at the seams. Too bad they took a spot at the World Cup away from Ireland, because France is showing that they certainly don't deserve to be in South Africa.
Today's predictions:
Portugal 2, N. Korea 0
Chile 1, Switzerland 0
Spain 2, Honduras 0
Eriksson is to blame for the loss to Brazil. Not that the Ivory Coast would or should have won the game, but the team just isn't the same with Eriksson in control. They were a magical team to watch in Germany 4 years ago & now they play like every other team the Swede has coached.
And what was up with the ref & Fabiano's 2nd goal? He used his hand/arm twice on the play & the ref clearly saw one of the infractions but didn't call it. Instead he smiled & joked about it with the Braziian after the celebrations. :?
I'm also loving the way the French are falling apart at the seams. Too bad they took a spot at the World Cup away from Ireland, because France is showing that they certainly don't deserve to be in South Africa.
Today's predictions:
Portugal 2, N. Korea 0
Chile 1, Switzerland 0
Spain 2, Honduras 0
