Our last 16 fixture will be either Ecuador or Senegal. Neither would be as easy fixture but the odds will certainly be on us to get through it.
The QF will then likely be France.
Would be an absolute cracking game and the BBC better be covering it!
Mbappe running at Maguire already scares me.
We'd have to play a back 3 with Walker in there to give ourselves any chance.
I've heard this said several times and I don't disagree that it's a decent strategy. Nevertheless, is it the only solution? How about some good old fashioned man to man marking? Why not put Rice on him? Just give Rice (or maybe Walker if you insist) the order to stay on him all game and stop the ball even getting to his feet. Teams just don't do this anymore but there are defensive players good and fast enough to make it work. If you succeed at this, it basically then becomes 9v9 outfield players.
As Argentina walked off against Saudi Arabia beaten, I said on CL they would still qualify with 6 points and top the group as Saudi Arabia would struggle to emulate that victory.
So you predicted that Argentina would beat two teams ranked lower than them and Saudi Arabia would struggle to emulate one of the greatest shocks in World Cup history?
I'm pleasantly surprised at the level of Joe Cole's punditry. He's not the best but he largely talks sense in a measured way. I may be going soft in my dotage but he's much better than I'd have expected.
Mbappe with 250 career goals including 31 for France and still only 23 years old is incredible.
What is even more incredible is that he'd have to score 50 goals a year until he's 34 to get to Ronaldo's numbers.
You look at stats like that, it's been used with Haaland as well, and it really hits home how good and for how long Ronaldo was.
Agree. Ronaldo and Messi have been the outstanding attacking players in World football for 20 and 17 years respectively. Again just like Haaland and Mbappe being different types, Ronaldo is the supreme athlete where Messi looks like he had sand kicked in his face. Older CL guys will have seen Pele career but he quit at 30 after 13 fantastic years including the 58 WC as a 17 year old when Brazil won in Sweden. Maradona made me sick with how he got away with the handball and I still remember yelling for some English defender to take one for the team and bring him down when he scored a half decent goal in the same match after going past 6 or so players !
Considering how many times Messi and Ronaldo have been kicked in matches it amazing how few games they missed through injury.
TBF to Joe Cole, Karen Carney and Robson- Kanu who is an excellent pundit with his articulate manner they have summed up the first half well and no surprise that Costa Rica played 5 at the back after being hit for SEVEN by Spain.
Bring a football geek who went to 50 matches last season from Youth football, step 5 to 3 games in the Woman's Euros*, I still enjoyed the 1st half !
2nd half Japan have gone up 2 gears in the 1st few minutes.
* The nailbiting Spain v England and Germany v Spain games
Mbappe with 250 career goals including 31 for France and still only 23 years old is incredible.
What is even more incredible is that he'd have to score 50 goals a year until he's 34 to get to Ronaldo's numbers.
You look at stats like that, it's been used with Haaland as well, and it really hits home how good and for how long Ronaldo was.
Agree. Ronaldo and Messi have been the outstanding attacking players in World football for 20 and 17 years respectively. Again just like Haaland and Mbappe being different types, Ronaldo is the supreme athlete where Messi looks like he had sand kicked in his face. Older CL guys will have seen Pele career but he quit at 30 after 13 fantastic years including the 58 WC as a 17 year old when Brazil won in Sweden. Maradona made me sick with how he got away with the handball and I still remember yelling for some English defender to take one for the team and bring him down when he scored a half decent goal in the same match after going past 6 or so players !
Considering how many times Messi and Ronaldo have been kicked in matches it amazing how few games they missed through injury.
Defenders could brutally assault attacking players in the old days, Messi and Ronaldo have had it FAR easier.
This type of game doesnt suit Japan at all, they’re not really a side that breaks teams down.
Agreed mate but how refreshing to see them turn in midfield and look to play a forward pass most of the time instead of the sideways backwards borefest played by a lot of teams.
That stat about the lack of goals in the 10am KOs is stupid because they’ve obviously picked the ones that are likely to be more boring to be earlier games. Eg. Spain/Germany tonight was never gonna be a 10am.
TBF to Joe Cole, Karen Carney and Robson- Kanu who is an excellent pundit with his articulate manner they have summed up the first half well and no surprise that Costa Rica played 5 at the back after being hit for SEVEN by Spain.
Bring a football geek who went to 50 matches last season from Youth football, step 5 to 3 games in the Woman's Euros*, I still enjoyed the 1st half !
2nd half Japan have gone up 2 gears in the 1st few minutes.
* The nailbiting Spain v England and Germany v Spain games
I’d agree on those pundits, I quite like Andria Townsend too.
Lee Dixon co-commentating on the match the other night was atrocious.
That stat about the lack of goals in the 10am KOs is stupid because they’ve obviously picked the ones that are likely to be more boring to be earlier games. Eg. Spain/Germany tonight was never gonna be a 10am.
Are the games not pre-determined when the groups are drawn?
Comments
How about some good old fashioned man to man marking? Why not put Rice on him? Just give Rice (or maybe Walker if you insist) the order to stay on him all game and stop the ball even getting to his feet. Teams just don't do this anymore but there are defensive players good and fast enough to make it work. If you succeed at this, it basically then becomes 9v9 outfield players.
I actually thought all countries got the same pictures.
Agree.
Ronaldo and Messi have been the outstanding attacking players in World football for 20 and 17 years respectively.
Again just like Haaland and Mbappe being different types, Ronaldo is the supreme athlete where Messi looks like he had sand kicked in his face. Older CL guys will have seen Pele career but he quit at 30 after 13 fantastic years including the 58 WC as a 17 year old when Brazil won in Sweden. Maradona made me sick with how he got away with the handball and I still remember yelling for some English defender to take one for the team and bring him down when he scored a half decent goal in the same match after going past 6 or so players !
Considering how many times Messi and Ronaldo have been kicked in matches it amazing how few games they missed through injury.
Bring a football geek who went to 50 matches last season from Youth football, step 5 to 3 games in the Woman's Euros*, I still enjoyed the 1st half !
2nd half Japan have gone up 2 gears in the 1st few minutes.
* The nailbiting Spain v England and Germany v Spain games
And pitches were far worse back then also.