[Football] England squad announcement - Lewis Dunk RECALLED!

[TWOCHOICEStom]

I don't disagree with a lot of this, with two glaring exceptions. Firstly, if we sack him today, who comes in? I've said it a few times, I don't see anyone waiting in the wings. You can forget about anyone currently doing well in the Premier League. That leaves someone doing badly - Gary O'Neill or Sean Dyche if you want an Englishman - or someone not involved at all - Potter. Or promoting Lee Carsley.

I don't see any of those options being great. Potter for the reasons I've put on here on a number of posts, GON because he's unproved, ditto Carsley, and Dyche because he's Dyche.

You might get Smeddie if Newcastle bin him off but I suspect he'd be the type to hang around for another Premier League gig. Like Potter he wouldn't exactly be poor.

This is why I said to @Krafty last night that he has to stay until there's a better option. IMO Potter isn't it.

BTW Southgate has the second best win ratio of all England managers since the war. The only higher is Capello who was in charge for exactly half the number of games and was horrible in major tournaments. He also didn't have to do the Nations League.

This feels like a carbon copy of the Hughton era comments we all made.

 

[Mellotron]

But, I think that the reason why the majority of fans aren't watching England is because these friendly/qualifying games are just incredibly boring.

Even that I find slightly odd though. We were painfully boring at points under Hughton - I still watched the games though.

 

[dejavuatbtn]

To be strictly accurate, he may have implied it, but you inferred it.

Is that you, Bill Lawrence, back from the dead?

 

[Seagull27]

But most England ‘fans’ are only really interested if we do well/reach later stages of a tournament. When people talk about the whole country getting behind Southgate’s team in the Euros it was us glory hunters they are talking about. I’m not going to sit through shite England performances in the way I am prepared to for Brighton. Never have done. I have my club team for that because I support and have a view on way more than just the team. With England that’s all you have. I don’t see it as in any way comparable.

Replace the words "England" with "Chelsea", "Southgate" with "Tuchel", "Euros" with "Champions League" and "club team" with "national team" and it's exactly comparable. It just doesn't feel comparable to you because you're not used to supporting a club team in that manner. Many - in fact, probably the majority - of club football supporters are just like that, and as Brighton fans we abhor it.

 

[Krafty]

Even that I find slightly odd though. We were painfully boring at points under Hughton - I still watched the games though.

I think I'm more attached to Brighton, than I am to England.
Plus, I could not care less about the qualifying matches because they are typically predictable and I have no interest in international friendlies - just a personal thing.

 

[Guinness Boy]

This feels like a carbon copy of the Hughton era comments we all made.

The obvious difference being that we sacked Hughton at the end of a season. Southgate is about to qualify for his fourth major tournament in a row.

I don't think he can carry on beyond Euro 24 but we can't realistically replace him with anyone but Potter or Carsley today can we? Bad form England poaching a club manager mid-season. Will never happen.

 

[Tom Hark Preston Park]

It's all getting a bit embarrassing now

Pre-modern defender Harry Maguire’s lack of mobility holding England back | Barney Ronay

Gareth Southgate has been overly loyal to Harry Maguire with the England manager needing to weed out a player that is becoming a problem for the team

www.theguardian.com

 

[Farehamseagull]

I don't disagree with a lot of this, with two glaring exceptions. Firstly, if we sack him today, who comes in? I've said it a few times, I don't see anyone waiting in the wings. You can forget about anyone currently doing well in the Premier League. That leaves someone doing badly - Gary O'Neill or Sean Dyche if you want an Englishman - or someone not involved at all - Potter. Or promoting Lee Carsley.

I don't see any of those options being great. Potter for the reasons I've put on here on a number of posts, GON because he's unproved, ditto Carsley, and Dyche because he's Dyche.

You might get Smeddie if Newcastle bin him off but I suspect he'd be the type to hang around for another Premier League gig. Like Potter he wouldn't exactly be poor.

This is why I said to @Krafty last night that he has to stay until there's a better option. IMO Potter isn't it.

BTW Southgate has the second best win ratio of all England managers since the war. The only higher is Capello who was in charge for exactly half the number of games and was horrible in major tournaments. He also didn't have to do the Nations League.

Oh I agree with you, I don’t think now is the time to replace him. Personally I would have done it after the WC. I thought Southgate himself was tired of the job by then and by the sounds of it was persuaded to stay on. There’s no point replacing him now though, that would potentially cause greater problems.

There’s never going to be a huge list of potential candidates whenever he does go but I would try and beat Brazil to Ancelotti after the Euro’s.

 

[Horses Arse]

Sums him up.

Has he really said he no longer picks players on form? Shocking if so, big regression from him.

 

[Neville's Breakfast]

Replace the words "England" with "Chelsea", "Southgate" with "Tuchel", "Euros" with "Champions League" and "club team" with "national team" and it's exactly comparable. It just doesn't feel comparable to you because you're not used to supporting a club team in that manner. Many - in fact, probably the majority - of club football supporters are just like that, and as Brighton fans we abhor it.

Yes, I’m admitting to being a glory hunting England supporter. I don’t have room to support another team in the same way as I support Brighton. I will jump on the bandwagon if there’s any England glory to be had and I really enjoy the big tournament games but I would watch Brighton regardless of competition or level. I suppose more committed England fans would immediately ignore my views on the manager and that’s fine.

 

[Badger Boy]

Serious question; Does anyone actually enjoy watching Southgate's England team play?

 

[Guinness Boy]

Serious question; Does anyone actually enjoy watching Southgate's England team play?

Yes some games. The 7-0 against a North Macedonia team that had qualified for the World Cup at Italy’s expense was great and that was only in June. Saturday? Not so much. Very similar to Brighton beating Newcastle 3-1 being better than Brighton losing to Everton 5-1.

Same in the World Cup. Smashing Iran, Wales and Senegal was great. The USA game? Admittedly very poor.

 

[Pavilionaire]

Southgate's England is like one of those teams in kid's football where the coaches start their own kids / favourites, regardless of the effect it has one the team, the formation or the tactics.

How many times have I watched a speedy midfielder sacrificed and forced to play centre-back alongside the leaden-footed head son of the head coach, or seen a fox in the box shunted out to the wing to accommodate the assistant coach's glory hunting but limited wannabe kid striker.

Maguire, Henderson and Phillips are the teacher's pets. Dunk, Foden and Bellingham are the victims. You play those 3 in their best positions with the right supporting cast and we are a different animal.

 

[Mellotron]

I think I'm more attached to Brighton, than I am to England.
Plus, I could not care less about the qualifying matches because they are typically predictable and I have no interest in international friendlies - just a personal thing.

Yeah I guess everyone has different formative experiences.

Euro 96 was huge for me and meant I cared just as much about England as Brighton from that point onwards.

 

[chaileyjem]

Maguire, Henderson and Phillips are the teacher's pets. Dunk, Foden and Bellingham are the victims.

Victims ? Bellingham has started pretty much every England game for the last two years. Foden has missed - apart from a couple of injuries- hardly any games in the last 2 years starting many . He's picked him more than Pep does. . Dunk - correct. Overlooked by Southgate in favour of Maguire and Stones . Dunk will start tomorrow almost certainly. (otherwise - why give him a call up).

 

[AmexRuislip]

Are people still arguing about Southgate? Playing Maguire and Henderson and choosing Phillips over JWP is nonsense. Any argument should end there whatever successes you perceive we've had under him.

Pre-modern defender Harry Maguire’s lack of mobility holding England back | Barney Ronay

Gareth Southgate has been overly loyal to Harry Maguire with the England manager needing to weed out a player that is becoming a problem for the team

www.theguardian.com

Decent Guardian article, with a nod towards Dunk near the end

I quote:
"Maguire has often been compared to a wardrobe: square, traditional, hard to shift. In this England team he functions more as a defensive sofa'

 

[chaileyjem]

Serious question; Does anyone actually enjoy watching Southgate's England team play?

How many times in the last 30-40 years have we beaten Italy away from home. That was just a few months ago.

 

[US Seagull]

I remember early in Southgate's tenue several football "think pieces" (as much as any football journalism can be labeled "think") that talked about how well Southgate did with generating a feeling of "togetherness" within the team and how much work he put into team-building (like the whole splashing about in the pool with a unicorn floaty). It seemed to work quite well for England initially, although I wonder how much was due to lower expectations due to the previous years of disappointment and disfunction.

But, I wonder if now that is perhaps become Southgate's weakness? He selects the same players because those are the players he feels have "bonded" into a team and he is afraid that making too many changes will upset that. If he is constantly shuffling players in and out of the squad, nobody will feel secure and everybody will be playing more for themselves, fearing that they'll be replaced, rather than playing for the team. This is why he continues to select Maguire even though United hardly use him anymore and he is clearly past his sell by (play by? select by?) date.

 

[Badger Boy]

Yes some games. The 7-0 against a North Macedonia team that had qualified for the World Cup at Italy’s expense was great and that was only in June. Saturday? Not so much. Very similar to Brighton beating Newcastle 3-1 being better than Brighton losing to Everton 5-1.

Same in the World Cup. Smashing Iran, Wales and Senegal was great. The USA game? Admittedly very poor.

Ok, that's a fair response but personally I don't ever particularly look forward to watching England play because at its best it's not as good as the worst Brighton performance under RDZ. We're far better to watch than anything Southgate will ever be able to serve up.

How many times in the last 30-40 years have we beaten Italy away from home. That was just a few months ago.

That game really cemented my belief that England are purely a results/highlights team. If you just look at the result, that one is fantastic. You do have to totally ignore the actual performance in the game to enjoy that result. A goal from a corner and a penalty won us that game. A win is a win, but let's not pretend it was a good performance or enjoyable to sit through. I watch most England games, including that one. But should I ever have a better option, I'd take it.

 

[Harry Wilson's tackle]

The quicker we get knocked out of a tournament the better...

Yes. And Brighton to be relegated. And another five years of Tory rule.

Right, let's all nip off and kill ourselves.