Discussion Football (Soccer) Thread

[PoppedCorn]

It just seemwd to be outside the box so sadly fair enough

Concede another and yeah it's over

 

[George]

KANEEEEEEEE!!!!

 

[PoppedCorn]

That's better

 

[PoppedCorn]

 

[George]

Miracle from here

 

[George]

Possible penalty...jesus christ

 

[PoppedCorn]

For sure penalty

 

[George]

Come on Kane put it in for the love of God

 

[PoppedCorn]

How's this pressure for kane

 

[PoppedCorn]

FMD

 

[George]

Beckham crapping himself in the stands lol

 

[George]

****s sake

 

[PoppedCorn]

Give Beckham a shirt and make a sub

 

[George]

Just not good enough. A shame Kane put that 2nd penalty over the top but congrats to France, looking to be the first side since Brazil in 1958 and 1962 to win back-to-back World Cups.

With Australia and England out, I'll be supporting France for the remainder of the tounament because of Ibrahima Konaté - only Liverpool player left.

Argentina v France would be incredible.

 

[PoppedCorn]

 

[bergholt]

Poor old England, honestly France didn't look that good with Walker sitting on Mbappe but no luck for the Poms.

Honestly no great sides in it this time around. Argentina and France are both pretty good, Croatia are OK, Morocco are decent. Should be Arg v Fra in the final but funny things happen in football.

 

[MUFKilda]

Slack jawed Kane. What the hell was that penalty??

 

[mighty_sainters]

I despise Harry Kane, would have loved Hendo to lead England.

 

[austinnn]

Watched the fra eng match.

England were better and certainly cleaner in midfield but so lacking with the final ball.

So many players reluctant to put their rep on the line by taking a chance, slow and safe up top throughout.

Compare that to France who did next to **** all except little snipey fouls but their players tried things, and 2 seconds of sublime skill beat 98mins of labour.

That's the annoying/beautiful thing about football.

 

[gringo2011]

Watched the fra eng match.

England were better and certainly cleaner in midfield but so lacking with the final ball.

So many players reluctant to put their rep on the line by taking a chance, slow and safe up top throughout.

Compare that to France who did next to * all except little snipey fouls but their players tried things, and 2 seconds of sublime skill beat 98mins of labour.

That's the annoying/beautiful thing about football.

England is carrying so much baggage. Every possession is under scrutiny and they feel the eyes and tongues on them. There is a bit of the Saints in them. Years of falling short have given them mental baggage that is hard to push to the side.

 

[George]

England is carrying so much baggage. Every possession is under scrutiny and they feel the eyes and tongues on them. There is a bit of the Saints in them. Years of falling short have given them mental baggage that is hard to push to the side.

Agree and the media and public don't do them any favours by harping on about the '66 World Cup, making songs about how unlucky they've been, etc. Probably the most pressure out of any big side in the world.

Liverpool carried the same shit until Klopp came in and made an effort to wipe that slate clean privately and publicly, reiterating this group was not the groups of the past and they are here to make their own history.

All comes down to elite man management for me. Southgate is a nice bloke and has the team in harmony for the first time in decades but he's nowhere near the level of Klopp or someone similar who can take belief to a new level. England need their next manager to be like that, given Southgate likely will step down now.

 

[The Punter]

I thought England bottled the tactics. The way France were defending, it screamed out for a "everyone in the front three can play anywhere in the front three" type approach, which you can't do with Kane. Saka is serious talent and so is Foden, but the match was a reminder that Foden is that kind of player who is caught between lines in modern football, not really a forward but better going forward than a midfielder, which is OK if you play for Pep because you just play where is best for you anyway. Was screaming out for a Sterling-Rashford-Saka front three. But Kane's your captain so it's hard to resist picking him.

Anyway, the English are still young but they need to transition away from a few players (Hendo, Maguire, Walker).

 

[bergholt]

All comes down to elite man management for me. Southgate is a nice bloke and has the team in harmony for the first time in decades but he's nowhere near the level of Klopp or someone similar who can take belief to a new level. England need their next manager to be like that, given Southgate likely will step down now.

Hard to get a good international manager, it's a kinda shit job. You can't buy players to fill gaps, and you barely get to work with the players you do have - only a few weeks a year. And because there's so few games you spend most of your time looking at spreadsheets or watching guys play in completely different competitions where it's hard to compare them. Any good manager just wants to work for a big club where they can get continuity.

 

[George]

Argentina v Croatia in the first of the semis on at 6am today. Winner into the World Cup final, loser into the 3rd place playoff.

Hope Argentina get through for Messi and his place as the GOAT, but I love the team spirit and doggedness of the Croats so will be happy whoever makes it.

 

[bergholt]

Argies way too good, let's hope France cruise through then we're set up for a really good final