The Euro 2024 Thread

[Jinky]

Got a bit of an empty feeling this morning. Not sure why as Spain were clearly the better team & deserved to win, but it’s just another ‘what if’ sort of feeling. I think, as a nation, we could really have done with a win. The school run was certainly a gloomy one this morning!

Going against the grain a little here, but I can’t criticise Southgate for planning to bring Gallagher on. Spain were completely overrunning us and cutting us apart in midfield at that point and we had zero control of those areas. I can see why he’d want some extra energy and ‘legs’ in there. Ultimately you can’t just keep slinging on attacking players & hoping for the best - particularly against a side as good as Spain. But that’s the only bit of defence I give Southgate. I know he’d have wanted to get over the line and leave on a high. Now he might be tempted to give it “one more go”, but for me we need new ideas, new energy and to get these players on the front foot playing more aggressive, attacking football rather than the ‘safety first’ mentality we’ve seen. So I hope after a week or so of reflection we get an announcement saying he’s gone.

 

[Elephant Pyjamas]

Agree with all of that Jinky.

Gallagher was the right sub in that moment, we had lost any grip of the game and needed something in midfield.

It's time for Southgate to go, despite his obvious success, the country are just bored of him and he can't win, even when he does win.

The problem is the lack of options to take over, Howe, Potter, Carsley, Lampard?

Meh.

 

[Johnny75]

Agree with all of that Jinky.

Gallagher was the right sub in that moment, we had lost any grip of the game and needed something in midfield.

It's time for Southgate to go, despite his obvious success, the country are just bored of him and he can't win, even when he does win.

The problem is the lack of options to take over, Howe, Potter, Carsley, Lampard?

Meh.

Nope

 

[YoungWolf]

It’s felt like Carsley is being lined up for a while. I’d be pretty happy with Potter though.

The noise is that they are trying to get Southgate to do 2026 though

 

[leedswolf]

Disappointing weekend, not one shot on target, and the football was nearly as bad...

 

[EpsomWolf]

Pretty pissed off after that.

Not having the Southgate defence of 2 finals and a semi being better than we’d done since the year dot. From ‘66 onwards England were fucking useless playing Jurassic football with the rest of the world laughing at us. We were pissing in the wind until the advent of the Premier League with foreign players and coaches with their methods and thinking. It took some time for that to filter through to us culturally and for the improvements to manifest themselves in the England team. Southgate has been lucky enough to be the manager who has been the main beneficiary of that.

He’s also had an immense amount of good fortune with relatively easy passages in tournaments, a distinct lack of iffy decisions against us, injuries, dodgy sending offs and so on that have killed us before.

Well done for eradicating the cliques within the squad and well done for giving some youngsters a chance, oh, and well done for not necessarily giving a shit if they play for a ‘big’ club or not,

But you are not ever going to win a trophy if you are found wanting, and every single time he has. There’s no agony of a shot that hit the inside of a post and came back out, or your star man going off injured, or a useless Lino not noticing a ball has crossed the line, or an idiot getting himself sent off, this is ALL on one man who came up short.

Who knows if we’ll actually do better under a new guy, but for me it doesn’t change the fact it’s several opportunities lost and we could and should have done better.

 

[Johnny75]

It’s felt like Carsley is being lined up for a while. I’d be pretty happy with Potter though.

The noise is that they are trying to get Southgate to do 2026 though

I'm not sold on Carsley he seems more of the same to me.

I'm not sure Potter gets the best out of this team either.

If we're going English, Howe would be my choice as I think he's very good at getting the best out of all talents and can play a system whereby he uses his attacking players well.

He wouldn't take it but Klopp would be my choice for the WC. He'd easily get the best out of these players and he's on a break from club management.

 

[Langers]

It’s felt like Carsley is being lined up for a while. I’d be pretty happy with Potter though.

The noise is that they are trying to get Southgate to do 2026 though

I agree re: Carsley. But I really don't know anything about his coaching style whatsoever.

I do know I hated him when he was at Blues for that foul on Chris Iwelumo.

 

[YoungWolf]

I'm not sold on Carsley he seems more of the same to me.

I'm not sure Potter gets the best out of this team either.

If we're going English, Howe would be my choice as I think he's very good at getting the best out of all talents and can play a system whereby he uses his attacking players well.

He wouldn't take it but Klopp would be my choice for the WC. He'd easily get the best out of these players and he's on a break from club management.

Carsley seems a bit more flexible to me. Quite liked how he played without a striker in the u21 euros and it wasn’t a negative move.

Potter similarly I enjoy watching his teams play, big question mark after how he did at Chelsea but then it is Chelsea.

I can’t stand Howe or how his teams play

 

[Jinky]

Don't think you can judge Potter too much from his stint at Chelsea. Absolute basket case of a club. He'd be my choice from the realistic choices. Absolutely no way Klopp would manage England IMO.

 

[Derby Wolf]

Connor Gallagher is never the correct answer because he's fucking gash.

Had Adam Wharton been given minutes earlier in the tournament he could have been trusted to come on last night, he's a decent tackler and can make the kind of first time incisive passing to have got the Spanish facing their own goal.

Does Gallagher impact Spain over-running midfield? Let's say yes and they don't pass around him while he runs around like a demented labrador what does he offer to get us up the pitch if we can break? not a fat lot.

In bringing him on Southgate was battening down for the next 5 minutes and following 30. Dare I say it, Spain finding a winner is poetic justice.

 

[Langers]

I can’t stand Howe or how his teams play

I can't abide Howe - just way too smug and like you, I hate his gamesmanship and all that bollocks.

Southgate may have his limitations but he's incredibly likeable and has made the setup so much better. I fear Howe would change a lot of that.

 

[Paddingtonwolf]

Don't think you can judge Potter too much from his stint at Chelsea. Absolute basket case of a club. He'd be my choice from the realistic choices. Absolutely no way Klopp would manage England IMO.

England can afford to make Klopp the highest paid coach in world football, just like they did with Capello.

They won't though.

 

[YoungWolf]

Klopp isn’t leaving the Liverpool job a year early to manage England whatever money they offer him

 

[Johnny75]

Klopp isn’t leaving the Liverpool job a year early to manage England whatever money they offer him

Well yes, but as Nuno said...

 

[Tom Hark]

I can't abide Howe - just way too smug and like you, I hate his gamesmanship and all that bollocks.

Southgate may have his limitations but he's incredibly likeable and has made the setup so much better. I fear Howe would change a lot of that.

Yes, anyone but Howe for me. I just can't imagine wanting any team managed by him to win. Potter would be a good move both for him and for the country. His self-confidence must have been at rock bottom after Chelsea, and perhaps this is why he hasn't taken another club job yet. His record aside from trying to steer that clown car outfit speaks for itself.

 

[jd1981]

I think we have a tendency to over praise certain managers Venables, Robson and now Southgate.
Robson tournament record reads as W5 D5 L6. 86 QF, 88 group stage 90SF. The wins were Poland, Paraguay, Egypt, Belgium & Cameroon.
Played some turgid stuff in 1990 only scoring 3 goals from open play.
You can dissect Southgate’s record to knockout wins v Germany and Netherlands are his biggest two feathers in his cap.
But his eliminations are Croatia, Italy, France & Spain.
England are in a better state now than when he took over but it should be in even better shape. We’ve gone from people laughing at our early elimination to laughing at our lacklustre Final performances.
This is the time to move on, I don’t trust the FA to make a good appointment though.

 

[ROVERT47]

Agree with Klopp, there’s an argument that if a Coach of his quality had been in charge for the past few years would could’ve won our second World Cup and two Euro’s.

 

[Paddingtonwolf]

It's before the time of a lot of you here, but England played some good stuff in 1982 under Ron Greenwood. Destroyed the French team that made the semi final. Robson was ridiculously good in that game.

Whole thing was of course ruined by the 0-0 against Spain. Bringing on previously injured Keegan and Brooking when it was all too late. Gave West Germany one hell of a game too.

 

[Tredman]

https://twitter.com/x/status/1812652834220880295