Official European Championship Thread

[Outcast]

Gosh; I really hate Henderson with passion, there something about him makes me feel wanting to stamp on his face .

[Hazy2]

Getting it done. This lad Sterling looks tasty!

[carl_feedthegoat]

Getting it done. This lad Sterling looks tasty!

Just a shame he cannot do it for us in a European Tournament competition.

[salford city]

Getting it done. This lad Sterling looks tasty!

Haha, said to the Mrs last night that he was on the floor more than Grealish and that takes some doing

[carl_feedthegoat]

Amazing how Sancho got 90 mins and yet Foden gets subbed both games he played in.....Sancho was nowhere to be seen for 45 mins yet stays on.....does one mazy run and now is hailed as a ''must play'' England player.

Makes you puke doesn't it.

[ruralblue]

Amazing how Sancho got 90 mins and yet Foden gets subbed both games he played in.....Sancho was nowhere to be seen for 45 mins yet stays on.....does one mazy run and now is hailed as a ''must play'' England player.

Makes you puke doesn't it.

Plays for Rags now innit

[zuricity]

nice quote "it's like celebrating you've beaten Stevie Wonder at darts"

[salford city]

nice quote "it's like celebrating you've beaten Stevie Wonder at darts"

I like that. Whilst that is true, you can only beat what is in front of you. I'm sure Germany, France et al wouldn't mind still being in the tournament - they're not and England are. Let everyone remain giddy whilst the team prepare for a semi final

[Outcast]

Amazing how Sancho got 90 mins and yet Foden gets subbed both games he played in.....Sancho was nowhere to be seen for 45 mins yet stays on.....does one mazy run and now is hailed as a ''must play'' England player.

Makes you puke doesn't it.

A mazy run that went nowhere, like to see him doing it against the Italians not some average B side. He'll be dropped next game. To be fair I have nothing against the lad and still think he's brilliant, what I can't get my head around is Fekking Rashford, shit season, shit form, Rags been calling him out all season and brings nothing to the table, somehow gets minutes, pathetic management

[Cotswoldknight]

What does Mount and Rashford have over Southgate for them to play more than Foden

[PeterParker]

From the outside, England looks like they had a favorable route under Southgate both at the previous WC and now.
In 2018 what? Super lucky with Colombia, then Sweden, then out with Croatia, an inferior team.
This year the worst German team in the last 10 years, Ukraine and now Denmark.

Southgate looks like a lucky bastard and the team has incredible morale + home advantage so they can actually do it. I think you are better than Denmark and Spain, but the Italians are better.

But can't help to think about our players in the England squad if they win this. Imagine if the brainfarts in the FA Cup semifinal and Champions League final never happened. They could have won everything in the same year, don't think something similar happened in the history of English football.

[Hazy2]

Getting it done. This lad Sterling looks tasty!

Haha, said to the Mrs last night that he was on the floor more than Grealish and that takes some doing

Have to say he has his mojo back.

[PeterParker]

Getting it done. This lad Sterling looks tasty!

Haha, said to the Mrs last night that he was on the floor more than Grealish and that takes some doing

Have to say he has his mojo back.

Fantastic how Southgate did more with him than Baldie in two years.
But also, you can argue he was not arsed at us vs the national team. And if so, a problem imho.

Curious to see him in August.

[Hazy2]

Getting it done. This lad Sterling looks tasty!

Haha, said to the Mrs last night that he was on the floor more than Grealish and that takes some doing

Have to say he has his mojo back.

Fantastic how Southgate did more with him than Baldie in two years.
But also, you can argue he was not arsed at us vs the national team. And if so, a problem imho.

Curious to see him in August.

With a 9 in the team he can do his thing it seems. Fair play to him he deserves it, has been brilliant in the main.

[Tokyo Blue]

Getting it done. This lad Sterling looks tasty!

Haha, said to the Mrs last night that he was on the floor more than Grealish and that takes some doing

Have to say he has his mojo back.

Fantastic how Southgate did more with him than Baldie in two years.
But also, you can argue he was not arsed at us vs the national team. And if so, a problem imho.

Curious to see him in August.

2019-2020 he scored 31 goals in 52 games. So I am calling bullshit on this "shit for two years" thing.

Not at his best for six months perhaps.

I think Hazy has hit the nail on the head in his post above. Let's see how he goes when there is a striker for him to feed and feed off.

[salford city]

Getting it done. This lad Sterling looks tasty!

Haha, said to the Mrs last night that he was on the floor more than Grealish and that takes some doing

Have to say he has his mojo back.

Fantastic how Southgate did more with him than Baldie in two years.
But also, you can argue he was not arsed at us vs the national team. And if so, a problem imho.

Curious to see him in August.

2019-2020 he scored 31 goals in 52 games. So I am calling bullshit on this "shit for two years" thing.

Not at his best for six months perhaps.

I think Hazy has hit the nail on the head in his post above. Let's see how he goes when there is a striker for him to feed and feed off.

Fair point - remains to be seen if this is what he needs.. hope so as he can be a nuisance when he is on it

[PeterParker]

2019-2020 he scored 31 goals in 52 games. So I am calling bullshit on this "shit for two years" thing.

Not at his best for six months perhaps.

I think Hazy has hit the nail on the head in his post above. Let's see how he goes when there is a striker for him to feed and feed off.

Last year and this year he was on a descending route, and this year he hit rock bottom.
I am not impressed by his number, they are good, no one is saying they are not, it is overall play that went down since the Spuds game in UCL.
5-0 vs WHU away in the opening game when he scored three and he declined, badly. Scored a few, sure, but rarely when it mattered.

Six months, no way. Maybe meet in a middle and say full last season, but no way 6 months,
So you have to ask yourself:
a) it's Pep and he doesn't know how to use him
b) it's him and he is not arsed at the club

[stupot]

2019-2020 he scored 31 goals in 52 games. So I am calling bullshit on this "shit for two years" thing.

Not at his best for six months perhaps.

I think Hazy has hit the nail on the head in his post above. Let's see how he goes when there is a striker for him to feed and feed off.

Last year and this year he was on a descending route, and this year he hit rock bottom.
I am not impressed by his number, they are good, no one is saying they are not, it is overall play that went down since the Spuds game in UCL.
5-0 vs WHU away in the opening game when he scored three and he declined, badly. Scored a few, sure, but rarely when it mattered.

Six months, no way. Maybe meet in a middle and say full last season, but no way 6 months,
So you have to ask yourself:
a) it's Pep and he doesn't know how to use him
b) it's him and he is not arsed at the club

So if we're meeting in the middle and calling it one full season which I'd agree with then it's not Pep as he had him for 4 previous seasons.
I don't think he's not arsed but i do think he took the not being considered one of the 1st 11 pretty badly. Next season will be interesting.

[BlueinBosnia]

I believe more than a few outsiders see most England fans as assumed to typically either:

1) Expect "it to come home" leading to critcism as "arrogant" or "naive" when it comes to "reality" or talent assessment outside the PL bubble and British tabloid coverage.

2) Wildy pessimistic, negative, self-loathing, harsh, bitter, and anxiety ridden. This often leads to being over-reactive in moments and then is a chicken and egg like cycle that projects onto the players that impacts their performance in games also in part due to the tabloids

3) or even more perfect in its representation of English fans to outsiders, and links to the well known "dry" English sense of humour so many love and admire globally, is actually fall right in the middle of 1 & 2.

That Southgate has managed to truly MANAGE this situation and build player camaraderie is a testament to his leadership and I think is why he deserves credit.

Can you imagine Big Sam or Roy doing this?

I think you've described it perfectly. No team in the history of the Euros has made it to the semis without conceding a goal, and yet Southgate is being criticized for being overly defensive-minded (with some on here using a 0-0 draw with Scotland as justification for the criticism). All games (besides Scotland) were won without a need for extra time. All knockout games have been won by 2+ goals.

England are by no means the 'stand-out' squad of the tournament: none are, really. It kicked off with maybe 18 teams having a not-improbable chance of making it to the last 8.

Southgate has got the team to the semi-finals. His third as their manager. No other manager has ever achieved this in England's history. The squads under Keegan, Cappello and Eriksson were all more ahead-of-the-pack than this, and all under-achieved.

Southgate might be a Championship-level manager from a club perspective, and I agree with this statement to a degree. But international management is a chasm apart from club management. It involves a different approach (intermittently working with a squad, travelling further afield more regularly, players often being separated from their families for longer preceding a matchday), and it seems that the FA have got it right this time, rather than defaulting to their tried-and-tested method of dragging in someone who doesn't speak English from Real Madrid, making them the best-paid manager in the world, and insisting that "It's coming Home" loudly and often enough that everyone believes it.

[City64]

I believe more than a few outsiders see most England fans as assumed to typically either:

1) Expect "it to come home" leading to critcism as "arrogant" or "naive" when it comes to "reality" or talent assessment outside the PL bubble and British tabloid coverage.

2) Wildy pessimistic, negative, self-loathing, harsh, bitter, and anxiety ridden. This often leads to being over-reactive in moments and then is a chicken and egg like cycle that projects onto the players that impacts their performance in games also in part due to the tabloids

3) or even more perfect in its representation of English fans to outsiders, and links to the well known "dry" English sense of humour so many love and admire globally, is actually fall right in the middle of 1 & 2.

That Southgate has managed to truly MANAGE this situation and build player camaraderie is a testament to his leadership and I think is why he deserves credit.

Can you imagine Big Sam or Roy doing this?

I think you've described it perfectly. No team in the history of the Euros has made it to the semis without conceding a goal, and yet Southgate is being criticized for being overly defensive-minded (with some on here using a 0-0 draw with Scotland as justification for the criticism). All games (besides Scotland) were won without a need for extra time. All knockout games have been won by 2+ goals.

England are by no means the 'stand-out' squad of the tournament: none are, really. It kicked off with maybe 18 teams having a not-improbable chance of making it to the last 8.

Southgate has got the team to the semi-finals. His third as their manager. No other manager has ever achieved this in England's history. The squads under Keegan, Cappello and Eriksson were all more ahead-of-the-pack than this, and all under-achieved.

Southgate might be a Championship-level manager from a club perspective, and I agree with this statement to a degree. But international management is a chasm apart from club management. It involves a different approach (intermittently working with a squad, travelling further afield more regularly, players often being separated from their families for longer preceding a matchday), and it seems that the FA have got it right this time, rather than defaulting to their tried-and-tested method of dragging in someone who doesn't speak English from Real Madrid, making them the best-paid manager in the world, and insisting that "It's coming Home" loudly and often enough that everyone believes it.

England has the best squad by far in the tournament. Southgate hasn’t got the ability to get the very best out this outstanding squad that is loaded with top class attacking ability. You can’t argue with Southgate,s clean sheets but England haven’t really played the top countries have they ? Croatia and Germany are decent the rest absolutely woeful . Mancini managing this England team would have the tournament won already, Italy ….. Great defence great keeper and an incredible little midfielder the rest Mancini just gets the best out of them . Italy also have there best player now injured and out of the tournament. If England do win this then absolutely fantastic, it is ours now to lose with home advantage but in no way is Southgate a top manager, David fucking Moyes or BFS could get this unbelievable England squad over the line .