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[Football] The Reality Check Is Nigh



el punal

el punal

Well-known member
Aug 29, 2012
11,763
Bitterne,Southampton. In the land of wrong stripes
Not too many hours to go before our boys take on Belgium, and what a wonderful situation to be in. Facing stern opposition, a test of resolve, tactics, mental and physical strength and everything else - without the booby prize of being turfed out of the tournament for coming second in the match.

To be honest I can’t wait. This England team has flattered without deceiving anyone. They have gone about their business in a, well, business like manner. Did what was required, with a few hiccups, against an awkward Tunisia and put the WWE experts, Panama, straight back on the canvas in great style. Now we are facing our equals in Belgium, some would say better. Belgium is a team that, in my view, are definitely one of the contenders for the trophy.

How England will fare from here on in is anybody’s guess. One thing is for sure they’ve achieved more plaudits in the last two games than previous squads have in the last ten years.

Keep it going lads, we’re behind you!
 




PILTDOWN MAN

PILTDOWN MAN

Well-known member
NSC Patron
Sep 15, 2004
18,695
Hurst Green
el punal said:
Not too many hours to go before our boys take on Belgium, and what a wonderful situation to be in. Facing stern opposition, a test of resolve, tactics, mental and physical strength and everything else - without the booby prize of being turfed out of the tournament for coming second in the match.

To be honest I can’t wait. This England team has flattered without deceiving anyone. They have gone about their business in a, well, business like manner. Did what was required, with a few hiccups, against an awkward Tunisia and put the WWE experts, Panama, straight back on the canvas in great style. Now we are facing our equals in Belgium, some would say better. Belgium is a team that, in my view, are definitely one of the contenders for the trophy.

How England will fare from here on in is anybody’s guess. One thing is for sure they’ve achieved more plaudits in the last two games than previous squads have in the last ten years.

Keep it going lads, we’re behind you!
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You’re right but the nation is still subdued, few flags, no bunting seems a bit flat
 


Official Old Man

Official Old Man

Uckfield Seagull
Aug 27, 2011
8,540
Brighton
Belgium are likely to play their 'B' team whilst England are all up for winning. Problem is, it's a game no one wants to win as second in the group get a better draw. 1 nil up with two minutes to go, what a time to send on Dunk for a classy OG.
We all knew he should have been there.
 


J

Jim D

Well-known member
Jul 23, 2003
5,249
Worthing
I remember the good times said:
Belgium are likely to play their 'B' team whilst England are all up for winning. Problem is, it's a game no one wants to win as second in the group get a better draw. 1 nil up with two minutes to go, what a time to send on Dunk for a classy OG.
We all knew he should have been there.
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It would need to be an own goal and a red card
 








AmexRuislip

AmexRuislip

Trainee Spy 🕵️‍♂️
Feb 2, 2014
33,801
Ruislip
crabface said:
Saw my 2nd car with flags on it this morning since the start of the tournament, maybe people are begging to get excited.
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Either that or people are waiting to see if Joe Bloggs get theirs out first, not wanting to be seen as a complete chav, doing so.
I admit it's been a bit subdued lately, with the flag on car situation.
Normally it's been like some South American rally, after a coup d'etat :lolol:
 


C

crabface

Well-known member
Mar 24, 2012
1,852
AmexRuislip said:
Either that or people are waiting to see if Joe Bloggs get theirs out first, not wanting to be seen as a complete chav, doing so.
I admit it's been a bit subdued lately, with the flag on car situation.
Normally it's been like some South American rally, after a coup d'etat :lolol:
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I completely agree, maybe once the group stage is over it will be easy to identify the chav drivers as a few more will come out.
 




Pantani

Pantani

Il Pirata
Dec 3, 2008
5,445
Newcastle
bhaseeer said:
We really need to finish 2nd......the other side of the group is nasty.
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At the moment one side has Spain and Russia, the other Uruguay and Portugal. No real difference there. Brazil have a tough game to come, and are no guarantees to win their group as Switzerland are playing a pretty dire and already out Costa Rica. Colombia in the second round is the only thing we should be thinking of trying to avoid.

But as I said on the previous thread on this subject let's wait until 17:00 on Thursday before we start assuming potential routes through the competition. Or even more sensibly remember we have beaten two pub teams intent on fouling and spoiling, and have won only six knock out games in 52 years. It is classic England fan hubris to be looking at who we might get in the quarter finals. If only we had some recent example of England getting in to the easier part of the draw and failing in the first knock out game to remind us of this...

 


casbom

casbom

Well-known member
Jul 24, 2007
2,581
Whatever happens in this tournament, I am liking how England play.
Probably for the first time since Venables was in charge I've actually been looking forward to watching England. Southgate has instilled clear principles on how he expects us to play and the players are fully behind him. With quality young talent coming through (and already World Champions/Tournament Winners in their age groups) the future looks bright for England if Southgate carries on in the same vein. I can actually see us winning a tournament in the next 10 years!
 


H

Hotchilidog

Well-known member
Jan 24, 2009
8,692
Pantani said:
It is classic England fan hubris to be looking at who we might get in the quarter finals. If only we had some recent example of England getting in to the easier part of the draw and failing in the first knock out game to remind us of this...

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Absolutely this. We should want this team to play it's best at all times and go for the win. We had the 'easier' QF in 1990 and nearly went out. You play to win and take on the next opponent. Not massively impressed by Germany, Spain and Brazil so far, but have been impressed by the likes of Colombia, Senegal, Uruguay (in the last game), Croatia and Switzerland. Who is to say what is or isn't an easy route.

I am not expecting England to win this tournament on the back of two decent performances against teams we should be expected to beat. That we did comfortably on both occasions is a welcome improvement. Looking forward to us playing a team that will be more concerned with playing football rather than kicking us off the park. I am fascinated to see how we set up and cope against a top level opponent.
 




Kalimantan Gull

Kalimantan Gull

Well-known member
Aug 13, 2003
12,923
Central Borneo / the Lizard
I remember the good times said:
Belgium are likely to play their 'B' team whilst England are all up for winning. Problem is, it's a game no one wants to win as second in the group get a better draw. 1 nil up with two minutes to go, what a time to send on Dunk for a classy OG.
We all knew he should have been there.
Click to expand...

I don't believe second in the group will get a better draw. Right now I think Colombia will win Group G, Japan come second; and both Germany and Brazil will win their groups. I'd rather the Japan-Brazil route than the Colombia-Germany one.

Indeed its hardly impossible that Sweden beat Mexico and Germany hammer South Korea, and then Switzerland hammer Costa Rica; Colombia beat Senegal and Poland beat Japan....

Then its Colombia - Germany/Brazil if you come second, and Japan - Mexico/Sweden/Switzerland if you win the group :shrug:


I hope we keep winning, a defeat will be a real downer. It was widely thought that Russia preferred to come second in their group to stay in Moscow and have an extra days recovery, but they've ended up with a 3-0 defeat, a guy banned after a red card and a tie with Spain rather than Portugal. I wonder how they feel now.
 




Not Andy Naylor

Not Andy Naylor

Well-known member
Dec 12, 2007
8,797
Seven Dials
Hotchilidog said:
Absolutely this. We should want this team to play it's best at all times and go for the win. We had the 'easier' QF in 1990 and nearly went out. You play to win and take on the next opponent. Not massively impressed by Germany, Spain and Brazil so far, but have been impressed by the likes of Colombia, Senegal, Uruguay (in the last game), Croatia and Switzerland. Who is to say what is or isn't an easy route.

I am not expecting England to win this tournament on the back of two decent performances against teams we should be expected to beat. That we did comfortably on both occasions is a welcome improvement. Looking forward to us playing a team that will be more concerned with playing football rather than kicking us off the park. I am fascinated to see how we set up and cope against a top level opponent.
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I wouldn't say we beat Tunisia 'comfortably'. Yes, we were easily the better team but we needed an old-fashioned set play to a big defender and then some Albion-like defending of the second phase to grab a late winner. I think a lot of people went nuts over the Panama win. Let's see how we get on against a decent side. The decision as to whether we finish first or second may not be ours to make.
 








H

Hotchilidog

Well-known member
Jan 24, 2009
8,692
Not Andy Naylor said:
I wouldn't say we beat Tunisia 'comfortably'. Yes, we were easily the better team but we needed an old-fashioned set play to a big defender and then some Albion-like defending of the second phase to grab a late winner. I think a lot of people went nuts over the Panama win. Let's see how we get on against a decent side. The decision as to whether we finish first or second may not be ours to make.
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In terms of the performance we were, we created plenty of bona fide good chances but lacked a clinical finish, especially early on. It compared well to laboured performances against the likes of Algeria, Trinidad et al in the past.

I could not agree more that the decision to finish either first or second is not ours to make, or even that our progress through the round of 16 is guaranteed, such thoughts are arrogant in the extreme.
 






hart's shirt

hart's shirt

Well-known member
Jul 8, 2003
10,167
Kitbag in Dubai
Tom Hark said:
Not to worry tho, I'm sure Belgium will grant you your wish :lol:
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scotland.jpg

:lol:
 


seagull_special

seagull_special

Well-known member
Jun 9, 2008
2,931
Abu Dhabi
I’ve loved the way England have gone about their business. There seems a real sense of camaraderie, quiet confidence and I think the players are enjoying the tournament. Southgate’s leadership has been outstanding and I am sure the emphasis will be on beating Belgium without running the team into the ground or risking suspensions. This game has draw written all over it. Do I think we could win the WC? Heart says yes please, head says realistically no but as long as we continue to play with heart and passion this will be the most enjoyable England team to support for a couple of decades.
 


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