The World Cup

[Selly]

When did Mexico and Morocco come good?

Mexico - they have pretty much been constant presences* in the WC last 16 - and now they are playing at home where they have lost 2 games competitively ever.

Morocco? WC semi finalists last time out Morocco? AFCON finalists Morocco? Yeah they are a real dark horse


* This may be bollocks, but it's my gut feeling impresssion

 

[Snowflake]

Mexico - they have pretty much been constant presences* in the WC last 16 - and now they are playing at home where they have lost 2 games competitively ever.

Morocco? WC semi finalists last time out Morocco? AFCON finalists Morocco? Yeah they are a real dark horse


* This may be bollocks, but it's my gut feeling impresssion

I think your gut is in good condition

 

[SwissBlade]

Mexico - they have pretty much been constant presences* in the WC last 16 - and now they are playing at home where they have lost 2 games competitively ever.

Morocco? WC semi finalists last time out Morocco? AFCON finalists Morocco? Yeah they are a real dark horse


* This may be bollocks, but it's my gut feeling impresssion

Mexico will play their next game at home as well, July 5th against either DR Congo or England.

After that their route is all in the US

 

[Shadota]

Mexico - they have pretty much been constant presences* in the WC last 16 - and now they are playing at home where they have lost 2 games competitively ever.

Morocco? WC semi finalists last time out Morocco? AFCON finalists Morocco? Yeah they are a real dark horse


* This may be bollocks, but it's my gut feeling impresssion

Since USA '94, Mexico have only failed to reach the knockout phase of a World Cup once - 2022. Every other tournament they have reached the round of 16. In the two previous tournaments they have hosted (1970, 1986), they reached the quarter final stage both times.

 

[Davalon]

 

[Edgar Allan Poo]

Love it!

 

[Ndiayewillalwaysloveyou]

Mexico - they have pretty much been constant presences* in the WC last 16 - and now they are playing at home where they have lost 2 games competitively ever.

Morocco? WC semi finalists last time out Morocco? AFCON finalists Morocco? Yeah they are a real dark horse


* This may be bollocks, but it's my gut feeling impresssion

Fairs.

Must be mainly on team spirit etc etc. Can't say I know too many players through the years and Jiminez is like god.

 

[Revolution]

Since USA '94, Mexico have only failed to reach the knockout phase of a World Cup once - 2022. Every other tournament they have reached the round of 16. In the two previous tournaments they have hosted (1970, 1986), they reached the quarter final stage both times.

Having, on both occasions, been favoured with the weakest group, and in 1986 a guaranteed easier second round match.

 

[CaptainMorgans]

Southgate usually made pretty light work of games like that tonight. Can't escape the thought we should have stuck with him.. we look awful under Tuchel.

 

[Selly]

Southgate usually made pretty light work of games like that tonight. Can't escape the thought we should have stuck with him.. we look awful under Tuchel.

Light work?

Tunisia 2018
Colombia 2018
Scotland 2021
USA 2022
Slovakia 2022
Serbia 2024
Slovenia 2024
Slovakia 2024
Switzerland 2024

All games which were anything but light work

I'm not saying we look better under Tuchel, but the idea that Southgate had us easing through to the latter stages of tournaments is complete nonsense. In fact Sven was better at beating teams we should beat (IMO). What sven failed at was beating the first good side we faced. Southgate was able to get England to do that (apart from in 2018 and 2022)

 

[CaptainMorgans]

Light work?

Tunisia 2018
Colombia 2018
Scotland 2021
USA 2022
Slovakia 2022
Serbia 2024
Slovenia 2024
Slovakia 2024
Switzerland 2024

All games which were anything but light work

I'm not saying we look better under Tuchel, but the idea that Southgate had us easing through to the latter stages of tournaments is complete nonsense. In fact Sven was better at beating teams we should beat (IMO). What sven failed at was beating the first good side we faced. Southgate was able to get England to do that (apart from in 2018 and 2022)

Some knock out games I remember:
2-0 Sweden
3-0 Senegal
4-0 Ukraine
2-0 Germany

Even the 2-1 against Netherlands, we absolutely battered them and should have been out of sight by half time.

The best we performed out the lot, we lost 2-1 to France but we went toe-to-toe and were probably the better side.

The 2024 tournament was hard to watch at times, but that aside I felt we always looked like winning most of the games against lesser nations (even when we rode our luck into ET / pens).

We looked more organised under Southgate, a happier camp and I felt we had a plan.
The only thing I have seen from Tuchel that I prefer is his attacking subs.

 

[The Crab]

Kane got Pickford out of the shit tonight. Grbic-esque for their goal

 

[ChefYouKnighted1889]

We are so shit under tuchel imo Mexico will batter us,defensively we look like Wednesday

 

[Snowflake]

We are so shit under tuchel imo Mexico will batter us,defensively we look like Wednesday

I don’t think a different manager would improve the ability of the defenders that we have.

 

[CaptainMorgans]

I don’t think a different manager would improve the ability of the defenders that we have.

Would TAA, Maguire, Hall etc. not offer more than the players picked though?

 

[Wards]

The full back picks are genuinely baffling. I like O'Reilly but he's a midfielder. Spence plays in a shit Spurs defence. Reece James always injured. Dan Burn a centre half and emergency full back. Quansah is just rubbish.

Declan Rice has looked the best full back of the lot so far.

I don't get the hype about Konsa either - for me Maguire should undoubtedly be there. Stones and Guehi probably the best two we could pick from what we have.

 

[ChefYouKnighted1889]

Would TAA, Maguire, Hall etc. not offer more than the players picked though?

Hundred percent mate

 

[Silas]

England looked a lot better side when Hordon was on the pitch but that second goal by Kane was insane.

 

[Ndiayewillalwaysloveyou]

Senegal were 4/1 tonight. Lol

 

[Younger Dryas Blade]

England looked a lot better side when Hordon was on the pitch but that second goal by Kane was insane.

A far better player than Gordon.

 

[Snowflake]

Would TAA, Maguire, Hall etc. not offer more than the players picked though?

I doubt it. With injuries and old age they are not exactly quick ! I know little about Hall.

 

[Harry's Game]

Best thing yet.

 

[Wapping Blade]

Would TAA, Maguire, Hall etc. not offer more than the players picked though?

TAA wouldn;t coz he can't defend either, we'd be even more open!

 

[mattbianco1]

Even the 2-1 against Netherlands, we absolutely battered them and should have been out of sight by half time.

We battered Congo last night. That GK will never have a game like that again

 

[CaptainMorgans]

TAA wouldn;t coz he can't defend either, we'd be even more open!

He can attack though and half our game plan has been swinging crosses in from the right...

 

[BazWainwright]

I thought we were bang average,

The defensive frailties - which Mexico and later, if we are lucky, Brazil will exploit, evened out some great work and effort by Rice, Bellingham, Rashford, Anderson and Kane.

Tuchel has shaken the dice, badly. He has left out effective players, Foden, Palmer, TAA, Maguire, Shaw ... the ones with real international experience and have a point to make, and basically replaced them with trialists.

I also think that 4-2-3-1 is not the way to break the low block. If oppositions are sitting deep with 5-4-1, you need to limit their opportunities to defend and flood their zones with players. Two attackers would help so 3-5-2 is the most effective formation which also stops any counter attack. Saka and Rashford as a the wide men, Rice and Anderson LCM and RCM with Bellingham slightly advanced supporting Kane and Watkins up front. Guehi, Stones and Konsa at the back.

Still think Pickford has a world cup exit blooper waiting to happen. His positioning for Congo's goal yesterday was woeful

 

[SwissBlade]

We got the job done last night and without playing well. That’s a positive.

Beyond that there are so many questions and most relate to the players we’ve taken and some we’ve left at home.

I think there’s a number of options of RB that Tuchel could’ve taken, I’d have taken James, despite his injury record. But i think whatever your view on who should be there, Spence would never be on the list.

The decision to play Madueke and Rashford was also dubious when there are other players that could fill the roles, left at home. Cole Palmer, Foden and Gibbs-White give us more attacking options. We’ve just not seen consistency with Madueke, Rashford and Gordon.

We’ve played 45 mins of decent attacking football in four games, in stadia and conditions which haven’t been extreme.

What worries me is that we play so slowly, despite possession, we don’t ramp things up. As shearer said, it’s pass, pass, pass, right, then pass, pass, pass, left. Nobody wanted to go past players. Madueke seemed to prefer cutting in but looked dangerous when he went outside. Rashford made some awful decisions.

Gordon didn’t do too much except doing things at speed.

Against Mexico, we have to be smarter, we need to solve the RB problem, the wing problem and bring more pace into our attacks.

I’d also drop Pickford but he’s not going to do that

 

[djbaldken]

We got the job done last night and without playing well. That’s a positive.

Beyond that there are so many questions and most relate to the players we’ve taken and some we’ve left at home.

I think there’s a number of options of RB that Tuchel could’ve taken, I’d have taken James, despite his injury record. But i think whatever your view on who should be there, Spence would never be on the list.

The decision to play Madueke and Rashford was also dubious when there are other players that could fill the roles, left at home. Cole Palmer, Foden and Gibbs-White give us more attacking options. We’ve just not seen consistency with Madueke, Rashford and Gordon.

We’ve played 45 mins of decent attacking football in four games, in stadia and conditions which haven’t been extreme.

What worries me is that we play so slowly, despite possession, we don’t ramp things up. As shearer said, it’s pass, pass, pass, right, then pass, pass, pass, left. Nobody wanted to go past players. Madueke seemed to prefer cutting in but looked dangerous when he went outside. Rashford made some awful decisions.

Gordon didn’t do too much except doing things at speed.

Against Mexico, we have to be smarter, we need to solve the RB problem, the wing problem and bring more pace into our attacks.

I’d also drop Pickford but he’s not going to do that

I saw it as pass pass pass pass pass pass pass pass lose it and get caught on the break.
Or pass pass pass pass, could have crossed it, but pass pass pass could have crossed again, but still pass pass pass and then lose it AGAIN.I
Thank God for Harry Kane.

 

[ATL Recs]

Nah, not really. It's also a completely different team, management and environment so largely irrelevant anyway. I'd say the same for the out of form players he has taken. If Tuchel can't get the best out of players of that quality in his environment, with his tactical set up, he shouldn't be England manager.

We got the job done last night and without playing well. That’s a positive.

Beyond that there are so many questions and most relate to the players we’ve taken and some we’ve left at home.

I think there’s a number of options of RB that Tuchel could’ve taken, I’d have taken James, despite his injury record. But i think whatever your view on who should be there, Spence would never be on the list.

The decision to play Madueke and Rashford was also dubious when there are other players that could fill the roles, left at home. Cole Palmer, Foden and Gibbs-White give us more attacking options. We’ve just not seen consistency with Madueke, Rashford and Gordon.

We’ve played 45 mins of decent attacking football in four games, in stadia and conditions which haven’t been extreme.

What worries me is that we play so slowly, despite possession, we don’t ramp things up. As shearer said, it’s pass, pass, pass, right, then pass, pass, pass, left. Nobody wanted to go past players. Madueke seemed to prefer cutting in but looked dangerous when he went outside. Rashford made some awful decisions.

Gordon didn’t do too much except doing things at speed.

Against Mexico, we have to be smarter, we need to solve the RB problem, the wing problem and bring more pace into our attacks.

I’d also drop Pickford but he’s not going to do that

Gordon got two assists last night so he did make a big impact. Other than that, bluntly we look awful with and without the ball our delivery from wide areas -so United even Rice's corners terrible. Spence needs dropping and instead of going inverted wingers lets go a natural left on the left and right on the right from the start