World Football Thread VIII - The beautiful game?

[Imran Siddiqui]

Btw, anyone else think Sven will go with a 4-5-1, or 4-3-2-1 if Owen and Rooney can't go?

I'm thinking this:

----------------Robinson------------
Neville - Ferdinand - Terry - A. Cole----
Beckham ------- Carrick ------ J. Cole--
---------Gerrard------Lampard------
----------------Crouch------------

[CerberusIV]

I'm not surprised SWP didn't make the squad. He is quick but isn't getting any experience. That's the main reason the wheels will come off Chelsea soon - because really good players would rather be playing somewhere else than sitting on the bench or in the reserves at Chelsea (whatever Jose says I don't believe Ballack and Lampard will be on the pitch together much next season in the Premiership).

[Lawrence of Arabia]

no way will england go 4 - 5 - 1, especially with a goal challeneged striker in crouch.

[Cort Haus]

With so few Strikers Sven has to be thinking of 4-5-1, with Owen on his own, and Stevie G and Lamps getting up to help him. Seems reasonable.

Bent has had an England chance and fluffed it. Beattie & Phillips have shown how you can have a good run of goals in the EPL but not be good enough internationally.

Sven gets stick for being conservative, so he goes bold and now everyone's on his back for taking a risk. I'd rather he took a risk with the young sprinters Lennon & Walcott than the freak Crouch, though.

Hargreaves is a squad-utility player that can backup various roles, but even Spurs fans aren't too impressed with Jenas this year, I gather.

Defoe might still make it - this is a provisional squad and if Rooney's injury is confirmed to rule him out then Defoe will be there. I don't think that Defoe or Bent would make the impact England need, but Walcott & Lennon might. They are the future, and one day they will be terrorising defences with their pace, so lets get 'em in the setup early.

Lennon has justifiably taken SWP's place based on their recent performances, and it'll be easier to get Walcott to gel with an England setup, with all the players meeting afresh, than in a two-games-a-week-for-a-month club environment, where, as Wenger said, it is more difficult to integrate him into the team.

Arsene knows!

[Imran Siddiqui]

Originally posted by Lawrence of Arabia
no way will england go 4 - 5 - 1, especially with a goal challeneged striker in crouch.

Well that's the reason you go to a 4-5-1. So Gerrard and Lampard have free reign to join the attack, but Carrick is back covering to prevent breakthroughs while counter attacking.

Otherwise, if you had decent strikers, there would be no need to do a 4-5-1, because you wouldn't need 2 central midfielders to create scoring chances.

[Imran Siddiqui]

They are the future, and one day they will be terrorising defences with their pace, so lets get 'em in the setup early.

Not a convincing argument . Lennon I can see since he HAS had Prem experience and has done well. Walcott? He hasn't even played in the Prem! What's the sense of bringing him in? When Rooney and Owen were picked they had Prem experience. It showed they could play with the big boys. Walcott has shown he can play... in the Arse reserves? In the CCC? Not good enough!

And then Sven says he's never seen him play in a match! Oy... maybe just a favor he owes to Wenger.

[MikeH]

Originally posted by alva


No European team has ever won in SA, and no SA team has ever won in Europe.
The change this time (more than before anyway) is that most internationals play in Europe anyway.

The real statistic is:

No country have evern won outside their home continent, except Brazil who've done so three times.

[Cort Haus]

Walcott is a secret weapon to come on late in a game and use his blistering pace aginst tired defenders. Some players are good enough to take a chance with, and England are not going to challenge in this tournament with the alternatives (Harewood, Bent, Defoe).

[duke o' york]

Originally posted by CerberusIV
I'm not surprised SWP didn't make the squad. He is quick but isn't getting any experience.

Yes! Of course.
You clearly can't say that about any of the players he did choose.
SWP's pace is exactly what Cort Haus wants, and he has experience.

[Imran Siddiqui]

Originally posted by Cort Haus
Walcott is a secret weapon to come on late in a game and use his blistering pace aginst tired defenders. Some players are good enough to take a chance with, and England are not going to challenge in this tournament with the alternatives (Harewood, Bent, Defoe).

Yeah... that argument still doesn't work for me. Use Lennon for that... at least he is somewhat proven.

[C0ckney]

Originally posted by Cort Haus
Bent has had an England chance and fluffed it.

a whole 45 minutes?

considering the very real possibility that both rooney and owen won't be fit for the world cup, it's madness to choose a kid who has played about 10 senior games in his whole career, over the leading english goalscorer in the premiership.

[Dauphin]

Originally posted by Locutus


I doubt he is, but even if so, he announced he retired from doing prediction threads. That's why there were no CL/UEFA Cup threads this year I'd do them myself but I usually barely have the time to hand in my predictions in time, let alone run the whole show...

Ah, ok.

In that case I'll set up a thread a week or 2 before the first game if no-one else does - will give enough time for people to make predictions and confirm the exact format. I would suggest the same as the last World Cup, but there may be some interesting changes that people will suggest.

[Lawrence of Arabia]

Well that's the reason you go to a 4-5-1. So Gerrard and Lampard have free reign to join the attack, but Carrick is back covering to prevent breakthroughs while counter attacking.

Otherwise, if you had decent strikers, there would be no need to do a 4-5-1, because you wouldn't need 2 central midfielders to create scoring chances.

no, no no imran. werent you also the one advocating chelsea play a 4 - 5 -1? its a defensive formation - its what fc thun played when in the champions league. you play this formation when you do not have the best team on the pitch. when youre england you are clearly superior to most teams, and you dont shoot yourself in the foot by playing one striker, a goal challenged striker at that, who is more of a target and not a threat to take off from the middle cirlce and dribble the defense.

I don't care if you have to play walcott or another joker up front with crouch, but when you are england, when you are a better team, you do not play a defensive formation in the world cup.

[Imran Siddiqui]

Who the Hell says it has to be a defensive formation?

Play the 5 MF as a 3-2 and have the 2 make offensive runs, kind of like withdrawn forwards.

[Lawrence of Arabia]

and I think he shoulda taken bent, the leading british goal scorer in the premiership, but if he took walcott or anyone else over bent, then he has confidence in them to play upfront with crouch.