**Official** English Football Season 2023/24

[sledger]

Isn't there a winter break on rn?

Winter schminter

 

[dontcloseyoureyes]

 

[Furball]

Came for this picture, was not disappointed.

 

[GIMH]

Doesn't sound great. A bit unfortunate as an England manager in major tournaments, 2 penalty shoot out defeats to Portugal and that Ronaldinho fluke. With the kind of draws Southgate has enjoyed, you sense he might've been more successful.

Southgate would have got us past Portugal in 06

 

[Pothas]

Southgate would have got us past Portugal in 06

Would he? Penalty loss (or win) seems about right for both.

That Portugal team easily as good as the Croatia one from 2018. Or Italy 2021 for that matter.

 

[GIMH]

Would he? Penalty loss (or win) seems about right for both.

That Portugal team easily as good as the Croatia one from 2018. Or Italy 2021 for that matter.

He’d get us past them with the current team IMO. Probably not in 2018 like.

He also wouldn’t play an unfit striker with a broken foot at the head of a formation we hadn’t played before, or take someone who has played zero top flight games (and then be afraid to use him in a striker crisis).

I have a lot of time for Sven, 02 and 04 he did well with what he had. But he lost the plot in 06.

 

[sledger]

Rooney losing the plot and getting sent off definitely massively contributed to the result in 06 imo, and Sven can't really be blamed for that.

If anything I think Sven might actually be more to blame in 04. Bringing on Vassell to play up front alongside Owen after Rooney went off injured was absolute foolishness.

 

[sledger]

Southgate bringing on Vardy against Croatia instead of Welbeck also quite underrated in the dire England tactical decisions rankings imo. But I suspect I am in the minority of opinion on this one.

 

[sledger]

Sven not going absolute hell for leather against Brazil in 02 (who only had ten players for the last 30 minutes), and only bringing on Sheringham and Vassell with around ten mins to go, another one that bothers me to this day.

 

[GIMH]

Rooney losing the plot and getting sent off definitely massively contributed to the result in 06 imo, and Sven can't really be blamed for that.

If anything I think Sven might actually be more to blame in 04. Bringing on Vassell to play up front alongside Owen after Rooney went off injured was absolute foolishness.

Rooney lost the plot because he had no business being out there. It’s very much on Sven

On 04, not sure who else he could bring on? Was Heskey the other striker?

 

[Pothas]

Rooney lost the plot because he had no business being out there. It’s very much on Sven

On 04, not sure who else he could bring on? Was Heskey the other striker?

I could easily see a half fit Harry Kane starting a quater-final.

 

[sledger]

Rooney lost the plot because he had no business being out there. It’s very much on Sven

On 04, not sure who else he could bring on? Was Heskey the other striker?

I think he definitely had business being out there tbh. He was great.

And yeah Heskey was the other. I'm not a Heskey fan or anything, but bringing on Vassell (i.e. a worse version of Owen) to play up front with Owen in a 4-4-2 was just nonsense. Needed to be someone Owen could actually play off, or at least someone who offered something different.

 

[GIMH]

I think he definitely had business being out there tbh. He was great.

And yeah Heskey was the other. I'm not a Heskey fan or anything, but bringing on Vassell (i.e. a worse version of Owen) to play up front with Owen in a 4-4-2 was just nonsense. Needed to be someone Owen could actually play off, or at least someone who offered something different.

Of course he was great but he’d broken his metatarsal in May ffs

 

[sledger]

Haha I had forgotten that. I only remember Owen having been out for ages and clearly unfit.

 

[Burgey]

I see The Sun continued its classy association with football coverage over the weekend. What a pack of ***** they are.

 

[Molehill]

Just when I was starting to like football again it goes and kicks you in the nuts. Pompey losing their two best players to season ending injuries has totally thrown them (the young Man City/Aussie lad Robertson I mentioned a while back sadly torn a hamstring). Need to make a couple of serious signings now or we'll fall away again.

I really hate League 1.

 

[flibbertyjibber]

Of course he was great but he’d broken his metatarsal in May ffs

Same as Beckham in 02. Shouldn't have been playing. Same injury wasn't it. Both were passengers all tournament

 

[sledger]

Beckham in particular had absolutely huge talismanic/morale-boosting value though.

 

[BoyBrumby]

I see The Sun continued its classy association with football coverage over the weekend. What a pack of ****s they are.

I try to avoid that particular pamphlet whenever possible and have managed it so successfully I have NFI what this refers to.

 

[wpdavid]

I see The Sun continued its classy association with football coverage over the weekend. What a pack of ****s they are.

Go on then, what did they do?