Euro 2020

[Tony Towner]

Seems to be 2 different points of view:
a) a point puts us more or less through and that's all that matters
b) the manager is holding us back

Personally I think b will make a somewhat hollow

 

[Deutsch Wolf]

Depends what the FA view as acceptable.

We are still strong favourites to win the group, we beat the Czechs 5-0 last time we played them at home and they haven't looked very good in either game. So if we get Portugal in the R16 and lose (without getting battered and/or completely played off the park) would they shrug and say "ah, we got a tough draw in a stupid format"?

Or if we draw with/lose to the Czechs and come second, win against whoever we get in the R16 and then lose to France in the QF (same caveats as vs Portugal), would they reason that we don't generally get past that stage and they are the world champions and all that, harsh to give someone the bullet for that.

Then we'll obviously qualify for the World Cup with no difficulty at all as our qualification record is ridiculous and we're already top with none of the other teams likely to trouble us, Poland missed their chance at Wembley, Andorra AND San Marino are in our group FFS.

I don't see him being sacked any time soon is the long and the short of it, we're not a nation who has been grooming a replacement with the U21s for years - at least I hope not as it was Aidy fucking Boothroyd -, we're probably never going to go down the foreign route again due to how it ended each of the two times we did it and there are few viable English candidates available, it was only going to be a catastrophe here that would lead to that, and it's not especially likely to pan out that way, not now we're 99% assured of going through. Earliest you can hope for is in 18 months time. If you want that you also have to want us to have a shit World Cup, or that by then having been in the job for six and a bit years, he's had enough.

 

[jd1981]

Likely route to winning this will be Portugal, Spain, Netherlands & France.
Said it before I’d be surprised if we’re involved in the later stages the dumbass format and seeding process means certain teams get a far easier route through than others.

 

[Charlie Wolf]

Well that was fun, why Foden off? I'm not getting the love for Sterling this season, holds onto the ball too long, runs up blind alley's, no end product.
If Kane isn't injured then there's a problem cos he's been our worst player so far in 2 games.
Although it worked ok Sunday, don't think we need Rice and Phillips on the pitch at the same time.
Only real positive is Pitchford's form

Agree, again Southgate has fallen into the norm of playing several players based on past reputation and their associations with the big six, whilst Scotland played the occasion and raised their game so the result was always going to be tight.
Imagine facing France Italy or Belgium! We would be absolutely mullered cuz the establishment want Kane and Sterling to play above the likes of DCL, Grealish, Sako or Bellingham who are in form and we’re fixated with a back four with inferior technical or tactical ability.
In short, we’ll scrape through the groups and be knocked out next round. We will never learn!!!

 

[PuntsWolf]

Game for the Nuno apologists. Never really tried to win the game. Back 4 with deep fullbacks and a pair of defensive midfielders. A back 6 rather than a wolves back 7 but worse gven the calibre of player available and the opposition.

Phillips actually did try and get forward in the first half but if you’re going to play him as an #8/#10 hybrid then you may as well have played mount there…

Sterling just isnt that good and Foden inefective having no one around him. Kane just isolated and couldn’t get in the game, touch stats are grim.

I mean fair enough play it for the first 45 but then maybe change it at half time or 60? Instead just change the personell within the system rather than the system itself. Rashford up top is bizarre when your limited to hoofing it long. Almost like he has some hierarchy of subs/starters rather than actually using his brain

The only justification for it really is we’re going to play two holding midfielders against anyone else in the rest of the tournament. So he probably doesn’t feel the need to be Gung ho in the groups for no real reason.

 

[Wilf Wolf]

Game for the Nuno apologists. Never really tried to win the game. Back 4 with deep fullbacks and a pair of defensive midfielders. A back 6 rather than a wolves back 7 but worse gven the calibre of player available and the opposition.

Phillips actually did try and get forward in the first half but if you’re going to play him as an #8/#10 hybrid then you may as well have played mount there…

Sterling just isnt that good and Foden inefective having no one around him. Kane just isolated and couldn’t get in the game, touch stats are grim.

I mean fair enough play it for the first 45 but then maybe change it at half time or 60? Instead just change the personell within the system rather than the system itself. Rashford up top is bizarre when your limited to hoofing it long. Almost like he has some hierarchy of subs/starters rather than actually using his brain

The only justification for it really is we’re going to play two holding midfielders against anyone else in the rest of the tournament. So he probably doesn’t feel the need to be Gung ho in the groups for no real reason.

Good assessment. I hope Foden doesn’t become one of those players that never quite excels for their country because they play a completely different style to his club. He needs players around him to create options and with a back six that won’t happen anywhere near enough.

The game was crying out for a change and I’d have taken Rice the Crab off for Grealish but sadly Southgate is becoming more conservative by the game and needs his comfort blanket. At least as Wolves fans we can enjoy watching our second team, Portugal.

 

[Templeton Peck]

Foden was our biggest threat all night and he subbed him.

He's a very conservative bloke. It was great in 2018 with a shit squad but things have changed since then and a different approach is required. 2 DMs v Scotland at home is farcical. You just know he'd pick Sinton over Waddle.

We wasted the 'golden generation' through having a naturally cautious manager too wedded to 442 and big names. Southgate isn't wedded to systems tbf and his man management is great but Sterling and Kane need binning atm.

 

[AndyWolves]

Seems to be 2 different points of view:
a) a point puts us more or less through and that's all that matters
b) the manager is holding us back

Personally I think b will make a somewhat hollow

I actually agree with both of those points

 

[big mean bunny]

Croatia are way better than Scotland. We were shite tonight, so we're they. All they offered was diving and spoiling tactics. That's fine as thats what they should be doing - we had no answer. Sterling was shit again and so was Kane.

Going to regret this no doubt but there has been no evidence Croatia are way better than Scotland in this actual tournament. They have looked slow and labourered. I'd say its more likely Scotland get a win versus Croatia than England do versus the Czechs.

The issue is the goal threat looking so minimal. But if they can get more regular service to them then Dykes and Adams can trouble Lovern and Vyda. Issue will be whilst he was good last night I'd worry about Perasic on O'Donnell.

 

[jd1981]

Having slept on last night key not to over react, England were poor but better do it now. Scotland highly motivated and performed very well.
Having said they still didn’t win and we’re fortunate not to give away a penalty.
Never known a side draw 0-0 get such high praise, reality is they missed an opportunity last night.
I think they’ll beat Croatia just in the week.

 

[Derby Wolf]

More chance of Madeline McCann coming home than football under Southgate.

International football is such a bore, England France and Portugal are all worse than the sum of their parts because of shite managers who have no real case for being where they are. I know the latter two are current World/European champions but they should be streets ahead of where they are while we're going to squander another groups international hopes to 'keep it tight' against shite that hasn't qualified for a major tournament in 20 years.

Still, we'll have an oven ready excuse "well it was the Euro/World Champions" when we're invariably knocked out.

 

[Templeton Peck]

Pickford
Trippier Stones Maguire Shaw
Rice Bellingham Mount
Foden Kane Grealish

 

[Deutsch Wolf]

I'm fine with that providing someone tells Cristiano Grealish that the object of the game is to score goals, not win the most fouls. Unreal at the end with literally five seconds to go that rather than pass or shoot, he was standing still on the edge of the box waiting for someone to foul him. Guess what, they didn't.

Or just play Sancho instead.

Sick of the commentators and pundits constantly going on about him, he isn't that bloody good. It's not like when we started France 98 with Owen on the bench for the first two games.

 

[Sniffer]

Pickford

Trippier Stones Maguire Shaw
Rice Bellingham Mount
Foden Kane Grealish

i don’t know what you see in Shaw. Suspect defensively and not great going forward. At least Chilwell excels at one out of the two.

Other than that I’d go with the lineup.

 

[Templeton Peck]

Pickford

i don’t know what you see in Shaw. Suspect defensively and not great going forward. At least Chilwell excels at one out of the two.

Other than that I’d go with the lineup.

Him and Foden were our best attacking options last night. Low bar I know.

 

[AndyWolves]

I'm fine with that providing someone tells Cristiano Grealish that the object of the game is to score goals, not win the most fouls. Unreal at the end with literally five seconds to go that rather than pass or shoot, he was standing still on the edge of the box waiting for someone to foul him. Guess what, they didn't.

Or just play Sancho instead.

Sick of the commentators and pundits constantly going on about him, he isn't that bloody good. It's not like when we started France 98 with Owen on the bench for the first two games.

Every game that Grealish doesn't play / start in he gets better

 

[sycophantia]

I'm no big Grealish fan but he has to start over Sterling surely, who has been off form for some time. I'd be happy to see Sancho instead.

 

[The Bion]

We've now played 11 tournament games under Southgate (incl Nations League finals)

Tunisia W 2-1 (2 goals from set pieces, scraped it in injury time)
Panama W 6-1 (2 from set pieces, 2 pens)
Belgium L 0-1
Colombia D 1-1 (pen, won on pens)
Sweden W 2-0 (1 from set piece)
Croatia L 1-2 (set piece)
Belgium L 0-2

Netherlands L 1-3 (pen)
Switzerland D 0-0 (won on pens)

Croatia W 1-0
Scotland D 0-0

P11 W4 D3 L4 F14 A11

4 goals from open play in 11 games

There's an issue

 

[Derby Wolf]

I'm fine with that providing someone tells Cristiano Grealish that the object of the game is to score goals, not win the most fouls. Unreal at the end with literally five seconds to go that rather than pass or shoot, he was standing still on the edge of the box waiting for someone to foul him. Guess what, they didn't.

Or just play Sancho instead.

Sick of the commentators and pundits constantly going on about him, he isn't that bloody good. It's not like when we started France 98 with Owen on the bench for the first two games.

Properly plays for himself. He has that most fouled player nonsense in the Premier League and wants the same for the Euro's.

I think its why Southgate was so hesitant to initially pick him and now, play him.

 

[Deutsch Wolf]

Adama is definitely more fouled if we're talking about actual fouls, not just falling over when someone breathes on him. Even then he doesn't always go down (or he gets booked for diving when he's obviously fouled. Yes I'm still bitter about that).