#898

Likelihood of winning the thing:
France
Belgium
Croatia
England
Sweden
Russia

Likeability of teams:
Croatia
Belgium
Sweden
England
France
Russia

Nothing to dislike about England’s players or manager but a lot to like. Also very hard to be objective with the mass hysteria and media coverage etc. But purely in terms of the football… Not for me, Clive.

#899

5 Likes
#900

image

11 Likes
#901


#902

There are no international teams who play good football, are there?

#903

172738

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#904

p.s. I don’t even understand the joke cos watched in public house without commentary.

#905

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#906

1112711%20(1)

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#907

image
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#908

Enjoyed a lot of the teams that’ve gone out. Belgium are a lot of fun, France nowhere near as fun as they should be. I like the doggedness of Uruguay and Sweden and the way they punch above their weight.

England canny. The vibe is very different and three at the back makes a difference, but ultimately the focus on set piece routines and winning penalties gives a very Allardyce sort of feeling. In terms of open play… there’s almost nothing there. Not just because of the lack of goals, but also the lack of chances or decent shots on target. With some of the forward options… would expect more. Hopefully will see it tomorrow onwards.

#910

ahem

This is what happened in the qualifiers

1 Like
#911

https://frinkiac.com/gif/S07E05/559625/562077.gif?b64lines=IOKZqiBZT1UgRE9OJ1QgV0lOCiBUaGUgd29ybGQgY3VwCiBXSVRIIGRpdmluZyBuZXltYXIg4pmqCiA=

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#913

I don’t think there’s a focus on winning penalties, it’s just that the opposition we’ve faced (or at least the 1st team has faced) haven’t come up with anything to counter our set pieces other than “wrestle Kane to the floor and hope no-one notices”, which has led to penalties

#914

Disagree. Think there’s been a focus on drawing such physical duels, knowing VAR would pick up if they go down

Which is clever thinking tbf. Rather see games decided by open play ingenuity personally

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#915

I agree that the attacking options are good but they’re only as good as the service they get. They can make all the runs they want but we don’t have a passer who is gonna pick them out

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#916

Nah. In the first England game it was pretty clear that they were dominant at set pieces. Two of the teams England have subsequently faced (Panama and Colombia) have chosen, unwisely, to try and target that defensively. England have shown some ability at drawing fouls in open play…but, in set pieces, it’s primarily down to their opposition. (I wouldn’t go as far to say that England would have scored 3 goals - the amount of penalites they’ve been awarded - without these tactics…but I think it would be reasonable to suggest there would be 1 or 2 more)

3 Likes
#917

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#918

Also, as someone who usually doesn’t see much live football during the regular season…I am VERY bored of the “international teams aren’t that good” line of thinking,

There was a decent post in the “silence thread” about the link between football enjoyment and mh. Genuinely don’t think I’ll go back to club football for a while after this. just doesn’t tickle my fancy anymore

1 Like
#919

Well I agree it’s down to the opposition because they are committing the fouls. But I think England strategically set up their corners etc in disorientating opposition and trying to get ahead of them, whether they need to or not. Instinctively the more physical teams are going to be drawn into stepping the line. It’s clever but I’m bored of penalties being so influential.

Unforeseen consequence of VAR. Teams reticent to show the necessary physicality because they’re worried it’ll get picked up, giving attackers more of an advantage. Teams tactically drawing in duels and fouls because it should get picked up. A lot more penalties. With a couple of notable exceptions, it’s applying the laws correctly but I think it’s having a wider (negative) effect on attacking/defending.