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The World Cup 2014: Unofficial owtb discussion thread


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That was, in places, like watching us in the first few months of last season.

 

Encouraging effort. Play like that twice more and we'll progress.

 

Beauty of Costa Rica result is a draw versus Uruguay and win against Costa Rica will be enough if Italy beat Costa Rica themselves and avoid defeat against Uruguay, as is likely (but not guaranteed) to happen.

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Much as I don't like losing, we didn't do much wrong.

 

Baines turning his back on the ball for the winning cross was amateur and Rooney, despite a gem of a cross for our goal, isn't our best player on the left and isn't in form as a striker. Roy should make the big call.

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I thought it was one of the best England performances for a long time. The Last Euros was a slight improvement on the last disastrous World Cup. We've looked flat and clueless for a long, long time. Last night, against one of the strongest teams in the world, was vastly better. It was much brighter. we didn't give the ball as much as we have been. we were positive and never looked out of our depth. All the more frustrating, then, that we conceded two really soft goals. To not pick up a player from a corner on the edge of the box was a schoolboy error (though he struck it really well). The second was piss poor defending on the wing and far post. Cut out the basic errors and play Rooney in the middle. Apart from that, credit where it's due. Much better.

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Cut out the basic errors and play Rooney in the middle. Apart from that, credit where it's due. Much better.

I agree with moving Rooney across to the middle.......the problem I saw was that Rooney delivered the sort of cross he would love to receive.......I'm not sure we have that quality anywhere else in the squad. Welbeck had an excellent game, harassing their defence and an occasional break. Sterling was brilliant with his running with the ball BUT apart from that superb pass to Rooney and that cracking early shot, he tended to either finish off by running into several defenders and lose the ball or try a shot when faced with a wall of defenders. Sturridge also had an excellent game but, for me, should not be playing at the top......he tends to drift out to the right wing where he wants to pick the ball up to run towards goal and try a left-footed shot.

 

I wasn't impressed with Gerrard and Henderson who, I thought, would have offered more both defensively and offensively.....one good shot from Henderson between them. Wiltshire was poor....needs to learn when to pass and when to run....seems to carry the ball with his head down.

 

Our full backs were the weak link....both poor in defence and attack.

 

Having said all that, play the same attacking 4 with Rooney top and Sterling behind with Sturridge right and Welbeck left. My one other change and I'm sticking my head above the trench here, drop Henderson and play Milner. I think he would have the discipline to support Gerrard and allow him to have more control and play his natural game.

Edited by mikejh45
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Sterlings pass through to Rooney for the goal was awesome. All credit to Rooney for the cross but that was it for him, had he scored his chance, we could at least said he was clinical when it mattered but he didn't. It's telling that the Italian press have said he wasn't up to much either. My guess is that he will start the other two group games, but I'm not sure why.

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I'll accept that the full backs were our weak link, but nobody helped Baines out against an excellent right sided double act. On the other flank, I thought Johnson was less than average and was often helped out by others, thankfully. If we had another decent right back in the squad, I'd drop Johnson immediately as I don't think he's done anything of note in the last few games.

 

Had he not followed into the area but stayed behind the CBs, Ballotelli wouldn't have got the header in. And the way we stood off for their first goal was criminal.

 

All in all though, I thought we played well enough for at least a point. But I'd certainly make some changes for the Uruguay game. I wouldn't mind lining up:

 

Hart

Johnson (cos there's no one else), Cahill, Jagielka, Baines

Gerrard, Barkley

Sturridge, Sterling, Welbeck

Lambert

 

It might be a bit contentious leaving Rooney out, but I simply don't believe that he's worth, or deserved, a place at the moment. Having said that, I'm pretty sure he will start because I don't see Hodgson losing faith in him.

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Hodgson despite all his supposedly tactical knowledge looked clueless once the game kicked off, Billy Quamby could have done better in assessing the opposition.

Edited by BP1960
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It looked like our strategy was to give them enough to worry about with the front 4 that we played the game in their half. Surely Henderson and Gerrard have to play a role in supporting the full backs when two of them are there to anchor? I have to say that Johnson looked woeful though. It was obvious that Baines saw early on that he had the :censored:ty end of the stick

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Hodgson despite all his supposedly tactical knowledge looked clueless once the game kicked off, Billy Quamby could have done better in assessing the opposition.[/quote

Nothing wrong with the tactics by Hodgson....the problem lies with the lack of quality within the English game. Too many foreign coaches who see Premier league domestic success can only be achieved with foreign imports.

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Pat Nevin thinks France's second goal didn't go in, despite the replays and technology clearly showing it was a goal.

 

I believe Clarke Carlisle commented on Ecuador's strength today in that Jackson Martinez can't get in their squad. That is because he is Colombian.

 

Phil Neville.

 

Where do they get these guys?

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Pat Nevin thinks France's second goal didn't go in, despite the replays and technology clearly showing it was a goal.

 

That was ridiculous. It was obvious the goal line technology was showing that the ball didn't cross the line when it first hit the post, but it did when it came off the keeper. I thought I was being thick not knowing what the fuss was about, until I went on twitter and saw that everyone in the world was calling Jonathan Pearce a stupid prick.

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Pat Nevin thinks France's second goal didn't go in, despite the replays and technology clearly showing it was a goal.

 

I believe Clarke Carlisle commented on Ecuador's strength today in that Jackson Martinez can't get in their squad. That is because he is Colombian.

 

Phil Neville.

 

Where do they get these guys?

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