England v Bulgaria - Wembley Sat @ 5pm (ITV)

[UniFox21]

4 minutes ago, Ric Flair said:

Southgate has brought the nation back together, whether he's a crap manager or not he's done something many top level managers have failed to do. I'm happy with him at the helm right now.

Fully hat's off to him for what he's managed to do with national football, people actually care now.

 

I just wish that he could or would be more adventurous with his tactics and take a few more risks rather than playing it relatively safe all the time 

[Mr Weller]

No one is saying people don’t have a right to criticise Southgate. What they are saying is that it’s a bit much to focus on the negatives when he’s had so much success. 

 

Taken overall, he’s been a big success for England. It’s true, he was unconvincing at club level but the job is different and requires some skills that are not as relevant at club level. 

 

Tactically, we all like to offer our own version of the team, and some of these points may be right, but for whatever reason we have had the best international results since the late 1960s so to harp on about the criticisms suggests a level of personal animosity. 

 

Most England football fans agree that the mood around our national team has changed and where there was little interest there’s now quite a lot. If we start losing or have a bad Euros it’ll change again but to hear a constant stream of negativity in the face of good results is both boring and wearing. 

 

Enjoy the ride.

[foxfanazer]

20 hours ago, Out Foxed said:

why the **** does it seem everyone is drinking the southgate kool aid. he's not a good manager tactically. 

Yep a very limited manager tactically. His in game management is appalling

[Oxfordfox83]

3 hours ago, coolhandfox said:

Still can't believe how many people buy into the media myth that Southgate is a good manager. The bloke is a Steve McClaren type fraud, media savvy, but a nothing manager! 

He’s a million miles from McClaren. 

 

Southgate is in charge. For better or for worse he behaves like a manager, and he leads his young team. I disagree with some of his selections and tactics, but he has a long-term plan and it’s not without merit. McClaren hung around Rio and Rooney et al like he’d won an experience day, and looked surprised when we lost to the first half-decent side. 

[Stadt]

I don’t even think he’s ‘bad tactically’ we just have unintelligent players that struggle to react in games. For all the talent in this squad we don’t have a proper midfield which hamstrings us. 

 

Southgate isn’t amazing but he’s been inventive in eking the most out of good but lacking pool of players. “We didn’t play anyone good at the World Cup” yeah we beat the dross and struggled against the side with multiple world class players, as you’d expect. Beating shit teams has been a thorn in our side for a long time in France we what, drew with Russia & Slovakia then lost to Iceland? Which ever way you carve it up we’ve made progress.

[UniFox21]

8 minutes ago, Stadt said:

I don’t even think he’s ‘bad tactically’ we just have unintelligent players that struggle to react in games. For all the talent in this squad we don’t have a proper midfield which hamstrings us. 

 

Southgate isn’t amazing but he’s been inventive in eking the most out of good but lacking pool of players. “We didn’t play anyone good at the World Cup” yeah we beat the dross and struggled against the side with multiple world class players, as you’d expect. Beating shit teams has been a thorn in our side for a long time in France we what, drew with Russia & Slovakia then lost to Iceland? Which ever way you carve it up we’ve made progress.

Think you hit the nail on the head here. 

We have a hugely talented attack, as much as we criticise Kane; him, Sterling and Sancho is a hugely talented strike force. 

We then have a decent back line and a decent keeper, which good reserves for the back line. 

 

But our midfield we can't seem to get right, which is worrying considering the number of talented players we have in those positions. 

We just haven't got the mix of a base, box to box and creative threat right just yet. 

I think the minute we crack that region, we'll be way on the way to being a top team. 

 

 

[shailen]

I genuinely think at this point, we have the best team on paper after France and Belgium.

 

Front 3 are class, as well as the fullbacks. Dele Alli, Oxlade Chamberlain, Maddison and Henderson are quality midfield players. Full backs are certainly the best in the world and Stones and Maguire are a solid enough duo.

 

We are missing a quality defensive midfielder and Declan Rice is not the answer imo, as well as a quality keeper. Maybe Hamza could be the answer for the DM role in a couple of years if he continues his development.

 

Saying that France and Belgium do not have the same quality full backs as England do, but overall they have more world class players.

[Stadt]

44 minutes ago, shailen said:

Front 3 are class, as well as the fullbacks. Dele Alli, Oxlade Chamberlain, Maddison and Henderson are quality midfield players. Full backs are certainly the best in the world and Stones and Maguire are a solid enough duo.

None of those midfielders are anywhere near being world class. Our centremids are decent but functional players, they don’t have the ability or intelligence to really dictate a game. Spain probably have 10 central midfielders better than ours and have so much proven ability.

 

For all the promise in our squad how many players have played a significant part in winning anything of note? Henderson, TAA, Walker, Sterling and Stones. 

 

The youth development culture has improved here but there’s still a long way to go, we saw at the Nation’s League that a Netherland’s team far from their peak are still better than us. We beat Spain last year but it wasn’t convincing at all, despite poor tournaments in 2018 you’d expect Brazil and Germany to beat us as well. Portugal would beat us in a tournament too as well as France and Belgium as you mentioned.

 

I’m upbeat about the future of England but that doesn’t change the fact there aren’t significant flaws with our current squad.

[Foxxed]

We fail to break them down for 60 minutes, we bring on Mason Mount, Bulgaria's keeper puts it in his own net, we defend the lead, Maddison fails to impress in the final 5 minutes and Southgate praises Mount's maturity in the post match interview. I'm in a brilliant mood today. Sending positive vibes to the England team.

[Corky]

I think some people will never warm to the England team again, years of disappointment does that.

 

England are much better to watch now and another good tournament next year is vital.

[The_Rorab]

There's a difference between discussing Southgate's flaws as a manager, and calling him a poverty manager and refusing to listen to anything positive about his tenure.

[Phube]

I think what disappoints me with him is the way he has just ignored his own rhetoric.

•Must be playing well and for their club! 

 

And yet Delph, Dier, Stones, Alli, Lingard etc keep getting selected?

 

 

[orangecity23]

Don't like the sound of that Rob Dorsett tweet. Sounds like Southgate switching back to the FA default of maximising the number of shit Spurs players in the lineup. He's probably pondered whether he'd get away with a quick emergency call up of Eric Dier and Oliver Handball Skipp. Still, massive club, won the league twice over 50 years ago don't you know. The mark of the spud on your CV is enough to turn Ex Newcastle United and Forest permacrock Jermaine Jenas into the BBC's go to pundit for all things football, due to his knowledge of winning **** all and barely playing, or transform Jake Livermore into a first choice England midfielder, or transform Garth Crooks into an interviewer and BBC column writer, despite being an absolute weirdo and also lacking the ability to form a coherent sentence.

[Dan]

I think international football in general is suffering. We aren't the only ones with these kinds of issues. Deschamps and Low have both won the World Cup and the consensus with both is that they'd want alternatives.

 

The problem with it is other than touraments it is just a bit dull and hard to warm to. Club football's become a bit too powerful to the point it's firmly seen as secondary now. These are the knock on effects.

 

I think we could win the World Cup and I'd still be 'meh' when international break comes around tbh. It's just the nature of t.

[Stadt]

39 minutes ago, Dan LCFC said:

I think international football in general is suffering. We aren't the only ones with these kinds of issues. Deschamps and Low have both won the World Cup and the consensus with both is that they'd want alternatives.

 

The problem with it is other than touraments it is just a bit dull and hard to warm to. Club football's become a bit too powerful to the point it's firmly seen as secondary now. These are the knock on effects.

 

I think we could win the World Cup and I'd still be 'meh' when international break comes around tbh. It's just the nature of t.

At least the Nations League has brought more competitive games against higher level opposition. Frustrating that we were pretty poor but you could sense there was aggression in those games and most looked forward to it, you’d think as the competition goes on the more seriously it will be taken too.

[CyprusFox]

6 hours ago, UniFox21 said:

Fully hat's off to him for what he's managed to do with national football, people actually care now.

 

I just wish that he could or would be more adventurous with his tactics and take a few more risks rather than playing it relatively safe all the time 

Yeah he shouldn't be playing it safe against Bulgaria at Wembley.  The most creative player in the premiership (madders) should definitely be starting this game .

[UniFox21]

8 minutes ago, CyprusFox said:

Yeah he shouldn't be playing it safe against Bulgaria at Wembley.  The most creative player in the premiership (madders) should definitely be starting this game .

I'd want TAA to start, Rice/Winks and Henderson/Winks to partner one of Maddison and Mount. 

2 holding midfielders doesnt work well against teams that sit there, we've seen that for a year in the league. 

[spacemunky]

Madders and Chilly on the bench.

[Sunbury Fox]

I'll be watching the cricket now. Rose over Chilwell and Barkley over Maddison. Utter joke.

[spacemunky]

Two best play makers Madders and Sancho both start on the bench.

[st albans fox]

2 minutes ago, Sunbury Fox said:

I'll be watching the cricket now. Rose over Chilwell and Barkley over Maddison. Utter joke.

Chilly has been injured .... no surprise to see rose preferred

 

and Barkley likely told to perform or see his place lost to Maddison or mount 

 

 

[UniFox21]

Barkley, Henderson and Rice. Wouldn't be worried about anything interesting happening. 

 

Sterling will add some spark, but Rashford over Sancho? He takes too long on the ball for how we play internationally

[Fightforever]

In other news kosovo is on top of our group incredible for a country of 1 million

[Fox92]

Shame about Maddison tbh. Been good for us and would provide the side with some creativity. 

 

Rose isn't better than Chilwell either.

[FoxyJim1987]

Sancho, Maddison and Trent Alexander should all be in based on recent performances surely. What exactly has Ross Fvcking Barkley done to justify starting.