World Football Thread V

[C0ckney]

well stuart pearce wouldn't be my first choice either, but then again, how much experience does jurgen klinsmann have? being an international manager isn't the same as being a club manager.

and you're right about being stuck with sven, the FA won't sack him and it's not as if he's going to walk away from his fat contract. which is a crying shame, because we have such a good group of players at the moment, and won't win a damn thing with them if eriksson stays in charge

[Zopperoni]

Marco van Basten didn't have much experience either (couple of seasons with the Ajax youth), and he's still undefeated with the Dutch national side (10 wins and four draws).

[reds4ever]

There was a good piece in the Daily Star by that 'Wooly' bloke (who I normally disagree with out of principle) saying that it will be a crying shame if this lot of players fails to make an impact at the World Cup because of bad management.

[Imran Siddiqui]

Originally posted by Zopperoni
Marco van Basten didn't have much experience either (couple of seasons with the Ajax youth), and he's still undefeated with the Dutch national side (10 wins and four draws).

That settles it! Alan Shearer for England manager!

[reds4ever]

We'll see how good he is when they play a decent side in a competative match, until then the jury is still out...

[CerberusIV]

I watched the Republic of Ireland lose 0-1 to France. You think England have problems? France were awful. Apart from one free kick by Zidane saved by Given and Henry's goal (excellent strike) they never looked like scoring. Their defence was shaky and they didn't seem to have any real ideas.

The Republic didn't play that well either. Roy Keane had a good game but Robbie Keane and Clinton Morrison haven't had enough first team football and it showed.

The French coach will probably keep his job a bit longer but they may yet fail to qualify and even if they do then on this form a team that can pressure them and score will take France apart next summer.

[Cort Haus]

France still have the best defensive record in the Euro-qual groups, alongside Serbia & Montenegro.

[Imran Siddiqui]

France will probably get their asses in gear for the World Cup though. They'll qualify and then they'll really start to play. England, however, may still have Sven and that leaves them at a disadvantage .

[Joe Kick Ass]

Northern Ireland

England

Ian Wright

Congrats to Scotland as well, an excellent couple of results for them.

[Krill]

"What we needed was Churchill. What we got was Ian Duncan-Smith"

Well done to NI, and Sven needs to be shot.

And to Sam Allardyce

[child of Thor]

well done Poland still i wonder if the bitter welsh/english thing made the result predictable? or maybe wales just havew a bad footie team

and well done NI its good to put the prima-doners in their place sometimes(speaking of some of the english superstars).

i didn't see the england match, but from what i've read it was the players that mostly let england down - so calling for sven to go is a bit harsh no?

[Krill]

Yes, but when you play the best players out of position, and then the players play badly, it is fairer to blame Sven (more) than the players, although I agree the players ought to be blamed as well.

[child of Thor]

true - still i can see you have to experiment sometimes, and when were talking about great players(which they all are), well i dunno i would just expect more from them? It sounded like a very disapointing match to watch - maybe NI had the right spoiling tactics? Its just after the freindly loss against denmark and now NI, i wonder if the players(that should be) are really giving it 100%? Maybe try a few different players from the norm to keep people on their toes more ref their place in the team?
I feel the same about Wales half the time - lots of talent, but sometimes the performances dont add up to certain players price tags and reputations. Its a funny old game

[Krill]

Just switch back to 4-4-2, and dump Beckham from the squad for a couple of games. Promote SWP to the Right Wing, and go back to Joe Cole on the Left (not perfect, but it works). Rooney and Owen up front. Same old system, new improved players, ready for the meat grinder.

Plan B could always be to put a holding midfield player on instead of the J. Cole or SWP, 4-1-3-2

[Imran Siddiqui]

As long as Sven's managing, Beckham will never be dumped from the first team. I think he'd rather play SWP and Beckham (and no Gerrard), rather than Gerrard and SWP (and no Beckham)