The Football Thread - Season 2011/2012

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I'm sure it will all go belly up and Fernando Ladyboy will come off the bench to ruin the fun but if we can hold onto this lead I'll be happy as (by Scottish definition) we'd be World Champions !
 
Fantastic defensive performance and we were no weaker going forward without Rooney :naughty:
 
dinners said:
I'm sure it will all go belly up and Fernando Ladyboy will come off the bench to ruin the fun but if we can hold onto this lead I'll be happy as (by Scottish definition) we'd be World Champions !
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Point of information: The Scottish definition requires you to win AWAY from home. :nono: :rules: :wave:
 
TriggerHappy said:
Fantastic defensive performance and we were no weaker going forward without Rooney :naughty:
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Agree about the defensive performance but I'm not sure about the going forward bit.

The team were very defensive on the whole and yes that was the order of the day against Spain however we were fortunate to have kept a clean sheet.

We only just had enough to grab a single goal from a set play. 9 times out of 10 that won't be enough.
 
dinners said:
Agree about the defensive performance but I'm not sure about the going forward bit.

The team were very defensive on the whole and yes that was the order of the day against Spain however we were fortunate to have kept a clean sheet.

We only just had enough to grab a single goal from a set play. 9 times out of 10 that won't be enough.
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It was a more a dig at Rooney's lacklustre performances in an England jersey than it was saying we were good enough going forward because we definitely weren't.
 
TriggerHappy said:
It was a more a dig at Rooney's lacklustre performances in an England jersey than it was saying we were good enough going forward because we definitely weren't.
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Yeah I know (y)

Watching the Paul Gascoigne Interview with Piers Morgan just now.

Compelling (if sad) viewing.
 
Only saw the 1st half and have to say that Spain were not at their best, good victory for morale, buts its victories in tournaments that count.

Alan smith did a piece in the telegraph yesterday saying that most of thespanish reserves are better than our players which is possibly true, but put Rooney as better than villa? No way.
 
joescrivens said:
you sure you got the offside rule right there marcel.
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Was discussing this with a mate last night. I got it embarassingly wrong there didn't I? I didn't know it came off the foremost QPR player.
I thought it went straight in off the header, hence why the city players were up in arms, so I was trying to figure out why it was seemingly offside.

Turns out it was onside after all :)
 
cambsno said:
Only saw the 1st half and have to say that Spain were not at their best, good victory for morale, buts its victories in tournaments that count.
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i didnt think there was anything wrong with the way spain played actually.

It was our resolute and outstanding defending that won the game. It wasn't attractive or adventurous but it was a very passionate and heroic defensive performance.
 
joescrivens said:
i didnt think there was anything wrong with the way spain played actually.

It was our resolute and outstanding defending that won the game. It wasn't attractive or adventurous but it was a very passionate and heroic defensive performance.
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I agree

Spain played well enough to create quite a few decent chances in fact if it wasn't for the fine margins with their 'finishing' that performance may easily have resulted in 2 or 3 goals.

In terms of England - whilst Spain did have some chances, we limited them to far fewer chances than they would normally expect to have and ultimately that's what allowed us to get the win with just the solitary goal.
 
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dinners said:
I agree
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:eek:

dinners said:
Spain played well enough to create quite a few decent chances in fact if it wasn't for the fine margins with their 'finishing' that performance may easily have resulted in 2 or 3 goals.

In terms of England - whilst Spain did have some chances, we limited them to far fewer chances than they would normally expect to have and ultimately that's what allowed us to get the win with just the solitary goal.
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also, don't you think that after the chance we got, we weren't really interested in getting anymore, instead the plan seemed to be protect the lead at all costs. If that free kick had not resulted in a goal, the rest of that second half wouldn't have played out the way it did. We would have played further up the field resulting in more chances which may or may not have gone in. We weren't playing as deep as we did until the goal was scored
 
Get Capello out!

England finish 2011 unbeaten
England beat the world and european champions
England beat the number 1 ranked team for the first time in history
England beat sweden for the first time in 43 years
England qualify for Euro's top of their group

Get Capello out!

:LOL:
 
I think they should get Capello out ......... Get 'Arry in ..... surely they can pay him cash for a much cheaper rate.
 
joescrivens said:
Get Capello out!

England finish 2011 unbeaten
England beat the world and european champions
England beat the number 1 ranked team for the first time in history
England beat sweden for the first time in 43 years
England qualify for Euro's top of their group

Get Capello out!

:LOL:
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I think his actual record for getting results and importantly his qualification results are fine.

The problem seems to arise come tournament time when the emphasis shifts to instilling team spirit, harmony, motivation and confidence.

I would have had no problem whatsoever if we'd let him get us to the finals then get a different man in for what becomes a very different job.
 
dinners said:
The problem seems to arise come tournament time when the emphasis shifts to instilling team spirit, harmony, motivation and confidence.
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you're making a judgement on one tournament. And personally if the players putting on the shirt for their country is not enough to be motivated at the worlds biggest tournament then I give up all hope.
 
joescrivens said:
Get Capello out!

England finish 2011 unbeaten
England beat the world and european champions
England beat the number 1 ranked team for the first time in history
England beat sweden for the first time in 43 years
England qualify for Euro's top of their group

Get Capello out!

:LOL:
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Capello OUT!!!

We finish 2011 unbeaten - so what? Spain have lost this year but are easily the best team in the world.

We beat Spain in a friendly - nice yes, and we played sensibly, but I doubt Spain are in tears over it. Same with Sweden, good that we did it with a reserve team, but not a meaningful result. We did those things without arguably our best player - Rooney - so maybe that means he shouldnt play again!!

Ok, we topped the group. Not the hardest group out there but yes, we did well. Trouble is that when Capello took us to the world cup he was awful. Everything from squad selection to man management was wrong. If we do well in the Euros I will be the first to say well done, even if we win in the style of Greece!!! BUT, I fear that he may resort to Rio rather than Cahill who has done better. Jones as a central midfielder will not work in the Euros, he has to show balls and leave Rooney at home. Parker and Wilshire have to be no.1 midfield pairing. Hart is easy no.1 keeper, so why only give Carson 45 mins - he should be playing no.2 keeper all the time in case anything happens to Hart.

Due to the players we have, we should be like Germany, Spain, Italy etc... qualification should be expected and we should not really be celebrating too much. The important time is when the tournament starts, thats when Spain of late and Germany excel.
 
cambsno said:
Hart is easy no.1 keeper, so why only give Carson 45 mins - he should be playing no.2 keeper all the time in case anything happens to Hart.
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disagree with that!

It's important that the back 4 get used to the main keeper and communicate with him as much as possible. Each keeper has their own style and they need to be a unit.

This has to be balanced with giving the 2nd keeper and any sub defenders their own practice too. But exclusively going with carson now and not giving hart any minutes just because he is clearly number 1 would be a massive mistake and I'm surprised you can't see that :cautious:
 
It was pointless taking Hart to last WC as he had no experience and unless both keepers were injured he would not play. Last night he was playing with Terry and Cahill who he knows, and Bains and Walker who are unlikely to start. I would say that Hart does know Cole, Terry, etc... pretty well. If Richards or Lescott play he knows them from Man City.

What if Hart gets injured, or suspended? Even a massive drop of form? Who have we got in reserve? Carson who has not played for 3 years and has just 45 mins?
 
cambsno said:
It was pointless taking Hart to last WC as he had no experience and unless both keepers were injured he would not play. Last night he was playing with Terry and Cahill who he knows, and Bains and Walker who are unlikely to start. I would say that Hart does know Cole, Terry, etc... pretty well. If Richards or Lescott play he knows them from Man City.

What if Hart gets injured, or suspended? Even a massive drop of form? Who have we got in reserve? Carson who has not played for 3 years and has just 45 mins?
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our lack of a second decent goalkeeper is a big problem I agree but you have to manage expectations with making sure your first 11 are solid too. Carson may not have played with the england team for the last 3 years but he's still been playing a lot of football so it's not like he is out of practice. He's just not had the experience with the england back 4 much - but it needs to be weighed up with continuity with the number 1 keeper so I think a full half was the right move and I'll expect the same in the friendlies of 2012.

it wasnt pointless taking hart to the WC. Even just being around the competition helps for the time you get back there in 4 years time.
 
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joescrivens said:
it wasnt pointless taking hart to the WC. Even just being around the competition helps for the time you get back there in 4 years time.
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Agree in that respect, but surely we should be taking players who can do something rather than warm the bench and be a total last resort.
 
So Joe, take Rooney to WC or not? The fact that we can beat Spain without him means why take him? I say leave him at home - we won in 66 without our 'best' striker! Give Bent a chance, maybe Defoe or even Carroll too?
 
cambsno said:
So Joe, take Rooney to WC or not? The fact that we can beat Spain without him means why take him? I say leave him at home - we won in 66 without our 'best' striker! Give Bent a chance, maybe Defoe or even Carroll too?
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I say leave him at home too! Not only is he going to be missing games but he's the most likely player to get sent off as well.
 
cambsno said:
Agree in that respect, but surely we should be taking players who can do something rather than warm the bench and be a total last resort.
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yeah i know what you mean. But don't you have to take 3 goal keepers in the squad?
 
joescrivens said:
I say leave him at home too! Not only is he going to be missing games but he's the most likely player to get sent off as well.
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Yes we won those two games, but lacked an attacking presence, you can't leave rooney at home, none of our other strikers are strong enough. Sturridge was rubbish last night, bent is hit and miss, defoe is also hit and miss. And this is coming from a Spurs fan.

The player to leave behind is Gareth Barry, he is useless!
 
Gomas said:
Yes we won those two games, but lacked an attacking presence, you can't leave rooney at home, none of our other strikers are strong enough. Sturridge was rubbish last night, bent is hit and miss, defoe is also hit and miss. And this is coming from a Spurs fan.

The player to leave behind is Gareth Barry, he is useless!
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i thought we showed a lot of attacking options last night actually :shrug:

the final ball was missing at times but there was a lot of creativity in the midfield creating quite a few chances.
 
Gomas said:
Yes we won those two games, but lacked an attacking presence, you can't leave rooney at home, none of our other strikers are strong enough. Sturridge was rubbish last night, bent is hit and miss, defoe is also hit and miss. And this is coming from a Spurs fan.

The player to leave behind is Gareth Barry, he is useless!
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Bent effectively scored v Spain, all Lamps had to do was fart on the ball!!!

Play with Bent, Walcott, Johnson as a front 3? Spain dont have a forward and they do ok (Villa spends a lot of time on the wing)!
 
cambsno said:
Bent effectively scored v Spain, all Lamps had to do was fart on the ball!!!

Play with Bent, Walcott, Johnson as a front 3? Spain dont have a forward and they do ok (Villa spends a lot of time on the wing)!
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i think our attacking midfield options are good enough to not need a natural striker too

downing, rodwell, walcott, milner, adam johnson

all looking good in attack

and like you say, stick welbeck in that group and we have some good options

right now i think we could play our best football with the following lineup, whether its good enough to beat the best is still up for debate but i think its a well balanced squad with potential

------------
hart
------------
johnson
cahill
terry
cole
-----------
jones
parker
lampard/gerrard
-----------
downing/walcott
welbeck/rodwell
johnson/young/milner

what do you think?
 
My squad would be:

Keeper: Hart, Robinson (is possible), Carson, Stockdale (if Robinson not available)

Defs: Terry, Cahill, Jones, Cole, Jagielka, Richards, Smalling

Mids: Wilshire, Gerrard, Downing, Parker, Lampard, Walcott, Milner, Johnson

Atts: Bent, Young, Agbonlahor, Carroll, Crouch

Backups: Rodwell, Lescott, Sturridge, Ruddy

Long shot - I would take Owen with me instead of Carroll/Crouch if he was fit and had a few games. Experienced, knows where the goal is, and if fit who better to come on with 20 mins to go? Fan of Joey Barton too but doubt he will get a look in!
 
My team (based on all being fit and on current form):

Hart

Richards Terry Cahill Cole

Parker Wilshire

Walcott Gerrard Downing

Young
 
joescrivens said:
i think our attacking midfield options are good enough to not need a natural striker too

downing, rodwell, walcott, milner, adam johnson

all looking good in attack

and like you say, stick welbeck in that group and we have some good options

right now i think we could play our best football with the following lineup, whether its good enough to beat the best is still up for debate but i think its a well balanced squad with potential

------------
hart
------------
johnson
cahill
terry
cole
-----------
jones
parker
lampard/gerrard
-----------
downing/walcott
welbeck/rodwell
johnson/young/milner

what do you think?
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I agree with most of those. Switch out Johnson for Richards and Walker on the bench. Add Wilshere into the midfield once he's recovered. Rodwell isn't quite there yet but his 2nd half performance yesterday showed his promise. I'd probably add Defoe as a forward option too. I certainly don't think we need Rooney. He really doesn't perform any better than other strikers for England and he's a huge liability by comparison.
 
TriggerHappy said:
I agree with most of those. Switch out Johnson for Richards and Walker on the bench. Add Wilshere into the midfield once he's recovered. Rodwell isn't quite there yet but his 2nd half performance yesterday showed his promise. I'd probably add Defoe as a forward option too. I certainly don't think we need Rooney. He really doesn't perform any better than other strikers for England and he's a huge liability by comparison.
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i think richards and glen johnson both suffer from the same problem in that they both love to get forward more than stay back. But I think richards is a little bit lazier in my opinion to get back once he has ventured forward
 
joescrivens said:
i think richards and glen johnson both suffer from the same problem in that they both love to get forward more than stay back. But I think richards is a little bit lazier in my opinion to get back once he has ventured forward
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I thought the walker/walcott partnership down the right was really interesting to watch yesterday. Walker's another offensive-minded RB but Walcott showed really willing and capable of coming back in support of him which is something he hasn't shown a great deal of before. I wouldn't be surprised if in the future that's the pairing we see down the right side because they seemed to have far more chemistry and co-ordination going on than any of the other possible combinations I've seen down that side.
 
There's no right or wrong answer and even after the event it might be impossible to say whether taking Rooney or not was the right decision.

Being professional and putting personal views aside - If we get through the knockout stages would you want Rooney in the squad ?

My own view (regardless of him being a United player) is that I'd take him.

I don't buy into that whole agrument (although few still have the view) that it's a waste selecting a player that can't play for the first 3 games as that's normally true of some in the squad anyway.
 
joescrivens said:
Get Capello out!

England finish 2011 unbeaten
England beat the world and european champions
England beat the number 1 ranked team for the first time in history
England beat sweden for the first time in 43 years
England qualify for Euro's top of their group

Get Capello out!

:LOL:
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Just read in the paper - Spain played the mighty Costa Rica last night in a friendly and after being 2-0 down, managed to scrape a 2-2 draw with goals 7 mins from time and the last minute. Puts our result in perspective - doesnt mean much! Despite that draw and defeat, Spain are still the best n the world and should start the next 2 tournaments as favourites.
 
cambsno said:
Just read in the paper - Spain played the mighty Costa Rica last night in a friendly and after being 2-0 down, managed to scrape a 2-2 draw with goals 7 mins from time and the last minute. Puts our result in perspective - doesnt mean much! Despite that draw and defeat, Spain are still the best n the world and should start the next 2 tournaments as favourites.
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How is a performance against another team relevant? It's another day, a totally different performance, we should judge our performance on the day we played them, when in my opinion spain played well but still got beat by us.
 
Because you think that the fact we beat Spain and the worlds no1 side means that we are good or Capello is doing a good job. Yes, it was a decent performance on the day, but the fact that Spain don't seem to perform brilliantly in friendlies gives us no more reason to think we can do well.
 
So, it's back to †he domestic game tomorrow. Anyone fancy a bit of a fun competition? Put your predictions for tomorrow's premiership games here and whoever gets the most points wins.

Points:
correct result = 1 point
correct score = 2 points (as well as above)
prize = bragging rights.

Thinking this could be a trial run in this thread and maybe move it to a new thread and keep it going if enough are interested.

I'll start

Norwich 1 - 3 Arsenal
Everton 2 - 1 Wolves
Man City 1 - 0 Newcastle
Stoke 0 - 0 QPR
Sunderland 2 - 0 Fulham
West Brom 1 - 1 Bolton
Wigan 0 - 0 Blackburn
Swansea 0 - 2 Man Utd
 
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