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Post by another_ruined_saturday on Dec 8, 2013 22:34:40 GMT
they won't! it's definitely a tough draw for them as well, but i think they're both a level above us at the moment. that's not to particularly decry england - we've just had a tough draw.
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Post by gazz on Dec 8, 2013 22:40:12 GMT
The ranking system is ridiculous but Italy and Uruguay will be just as worried about the prospect of playing us as we are them. That's a fair point, mate. I just hope we prepare properly, and above all pick the right players for the job in hand. I said right from the start when Roy took over that I will give him the World Cup qualifying campaign before passing judgement, and he's got us there, so job done for me so far. Now we move on to Brazil next year, and he has my 100% support whoever he picks. However, both he and the players better get it right this time, because I'm sick to the back teeth of failure after failure. Hodgson has had his tournament compromised by the ridiculous seeding system and the incompetence of others, but this is still going to be the last time I will entertain the England team if we go out without a fight. I feel sorry for him, he's a good man and does know his football, but I've had enough of the hype followed by failure that we see every two years. That said, I just think the whole system in this country is so broken even someone like Mourinho or Hiddink would struggle to fix it. Since Euro '96, I can probably count on one hand the number of truly class performances by any England team since then.
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Post by another_ruined_saturday on Dec 8, 2013 23:51:58 GMT
i kind of think how they use st george's park and grass roots initiatives is the most important thing for the english game over the next ten years. let's see if we can kick on like the french did after using clairfontaine.
until then, i just want them to go into tournaments on the front foot and give everything - players and coaching staff alike. if we get that and go out i can accept it. the 'front foot' thing is important though - i don't think we're positive enough on the pitch. easy enough to make positive noises in the build up, but i've learned not to buy that anymore.
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Post by gazz on Dec 9, 2013 0:24:17 GMT
I think your front foot terminology sums up perfectly what is lacking in our game at international level, ars, right on the money that is. Another fault that I've seen all too often with the England team is the way that some managers have shoe-horned the top players into the same starting XI (Lampard/Gerrard as an example), and not played to the strengths of the individual players. Also, how many times have our teams underperformed? You can watch any other half decent international side, and most of the time their players perform the way they do for their clubs, often rising above it, yet we see so many times with England the players don't even look half the players they do in the PL. There's been one genuine bright spark of hope in this England team, and that is Andros Townsend, who appears to have been given the licence to just go out there and rip into the opposition. I haven't been this impressed with a new England player since Gascoigne first burst onto the scene, he really does give us something extra, that unpredictability that defenders can't fathom. If we are to have any joy next Summer, then Townsend is key to our chances of making an impression. For the rest of the team, I hope Roy Hodgson will pick players that fit into his system, rather than force a system that fits the players. I think that's where we've gone wrong in the past. Oh, one more thing, put a ban on all televised and printed media for the f*****g month! Well, for first week anyway, and see how we get on!
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Post by Admin on Dec 9, 2013 1:31:47 GMT
I swear everyone in the media is from Scotland when the World Cup comes around, they seem determined to ruin any minute chance we may have!
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Post by gazz on Dec 9, 2013 2:16:48 GMT
I swear everyone in the media is from Scotland when the World Cup comes around, they seem determined to ruin any minute chance we may have! THe S*n and The Mirror are the worst offenders. I remember at Italia '90 after our 1-1 draw with Ireland in Cagliari (calm down, Fudgie, I said Cagliari, not Calgary! ), Italian fans went on the rampage trying to cause mither with our fans and The Sun were calling for the government to bring the team home, then after THAT semi against West Germany they were all over the team trying to get the exclusive interviews with 'our boys'! Then there was The Mirror with that flesh crawlingly embarrassing 'apology' after we beat the Dutch at Euro '96. The national press in this country are a disgrace, and the England team gain nothing whatsoever from currying their favour during major tournaments, so they should ban them from the camp, full stop.
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Post by Admin on Dec 9, 2013 2:37:28 GMT
If I was the England manager I'd ban everyone from the training camp, players and staff only, I'd give them a day or two a week to do their own thing but absolutely ban them from talking to the press under threat of being dropped, I'd tell the press they had absolutely no power or influence in my camp, they wouldn't read or view any British media, it'd be as though Britain doesn't exist for that month or however long it is.
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Post by another_ruined_saturday on Dec 9, 2013 20:21:30 GMT
agree on townsend gazz. i'd also take lallana if he sustains his current form. neither are the best players in the world, but they're the type who try to be positive. james milner's a decent enough player, but i'm sick of us playing the likes of him in such a negative way - ooh, he makes us more solid...fantastic...now if we could only retain the ball, fashion some chances and not get conned into conceding dangerous set pieces we might have a chance. get rid of that mentality...
i sort of think...well at least for me anyway...roy hodgson's got a blank cheque. expectations were low anyway, we've got a tough group. go and attack it like you did the last two qualifiers. and if we get through, go and attack the second round, and on until we go out. there's just no point in playing the football of consolidation in tournament football. it doesn't suit our natural mentality. go out blazing if we're going out, and i for one won't fall out with you.
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Post by another_ruined_saturday on Dec 9, 2013 20:23:09 GMT
with the likes of townsend, it's about seeing what problems we can cause the opposition. let's not spend our time thinking about what problems they might cause us.
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Post by gazz on Dec 9, 2013 20:33:50 GMT
i sort of think...well at least for me anyway...roy hodgson's got a blank cheque. expectations were low anyway, we've got a tough group. go and attack it like you did the last two qualifiers. and if we get through, go and attack the second round, and on until we go out. there's just no point in playing the football of consolidation in tournament football. it doesn't suit our natural mentality. go out blazing if we're going out, and i for one won't fall out with you. This is my point exactly, that is how our players go about their business in the Premier League, so why do they not take that into the England squad?
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