[Archived] More Madness From Mcclaren

[herbergeehh]

Watched bits of the match on the net, he showed some decent touches and some neat passing from what I saw. Nugent looked good!

[pleasure]

Perhaps Scotty secretly likes a big cock....

]

(as coffee blasts down my nostrils).

intriguingly, Scotty hasn't responded. maybe you touched a nerve.... ?

[Scotty]

I thought I'd let the children have some fun, bless 'em.

[brfcshabba]

Not a bad start.

I've noticed Chris Kirkland can't kick a ball

[cn174]

Not a bad start.

I've noticed Chris Kirkland can't kick a ball

I think Chris Kirkland's dad made £10,000 today - he had a bet years and years ago that his son would one day play for England.

[tcj_jones]

Fantastic decison to play Gerrard on the right, I posted a topic on this last season about it being the answer to all our midfield problems...finally we have a balanced midfield with quality in every position;

Gerrard is a terrific wide-right player. His crossing is brilliant, he can beat people, he can cut inside and support the front players...he can do everything from there, basically.

Lampard is currently ranked as the second best player in the world and fully deserves to be starting. With Hargreaves alongside him, the shackles will be off and we shall hopefully see the Lampard that plays for Chelsea week in, week out.

Everything McClaren has done so far has filled me with nothing but optimism; the appointment of Venables, the removal of Beckham and Walcott, Gerrard playing on the right, Hargreaves keeping his central midfield place, a 4-4-2 formation...

Of course, time will tell whether all this will actually lead to success on the pitch, but so far he is doing everything 100% correct.

I would just like to highlight this post after the match tonight. I always thought it would be best to keep Beckham on the right and drop either Lampard or Gerrard. However, Gerrard showed tonight just how good he is on the right. Hargreaves was excellent and allowed Lampard to get forward and score.

Furthermore, I would like to, once more, state just how highly I regard Downing and how much better we play with at least one traditional wide man. Downing is not only a quality player, who set up two goals tonight, he stretches the game and gives us more width than Cole. He has pace, skill, can beat his man and can deliver a quality ball. There is no reason why he shouldn't be in the team and I hope that McClaren, having coached him for years at 'Boro, will continue to play him and shut his critics up. I don't even understand why he has any critics!

[AxesFirstTouch]

Kieran Richardson what a player

[Presty On Tour]

I think Chris Kirkland's dad made £10,000 today - he had a bet years and years ago that his son would one day play for England.

i have the link here

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/4800731.stm

The syndicate can collect £9,908.10. from a bet done by eddie(kirklands dad) at 100/1 when chris was 14 or 15 years old.

[Anti Euro Smiths Fan]

Massimo Maccarone is reported to have said about Steve McClaren: "Only in England can somebody with such evident limitations become the head of the national team."

The Italian striker is also reported to have slated McClaren's training methods as being "a quarter of a century out of date."

Maccarone's agent is now playing down the words of the Italian, which were quoted on La Gazzetta dello Sport's official website.

I don't know if Maccarone has been quoted accurately or not, but I suspect that his reported comments about McClaren's training methods do have a ring of truth in them. After all, McClaren was partly responsible for the coaching of the players during the World Cup shambles in Germany last year. And after the tournament, a number of the England players in their autobiographies acknowledged that they were unfit and under-prepared for the biggest tournament in the world.

Frank Lampard said that he wanted to do more running in training to get fit, but the England management preferred to concentrate on set pieces rather than doing fitness work.

Seb Coe (admittedly not a football expert, but he does know a thing or two about fitness) said after the World Cup that he believed England were clearly one of the most unfit and under-prepared teams in the competition.

Has Steve McClaren learnt anything from the shambles of Germany?

[thenodrog]

He'll do nowt until he stops getting his hair cut at the same place as Donald Trump.

Seriously though the great underachieving Maccarone is displaying typical Italian traits by having a pop from a safe distance whilst in reverse gear! BUT Somebody 'proper' with better credentials should have said it as I do believe the inference.

[joey_big_nose]

Interesting team that McClaren has put out tonight. looks like it could be:

------------------Crouch

-----Dyer----------------------------SWP

------------Gerrard-----Lampard

-------------------Carrick

P Neville--Woodgate---Ferdinand--G Neville

----------------------Foster

The only selection I really disagree with is Phil at left back, surely Barry should have got a shot even if he has been playing midfield this season? And I would have preferred Parker to Carrick to give us a bit of bite, but Carrick isn't too bad, and Dyer on the left is a bit daft, if that is what happens. But you have to remember it is a friendly so we need to try new things; reading the 606 boards though you would think that the world has ended!

Personally I think we should perform decently mainly as a result of Lampard and Gerrard being free to dominate midfield.

In a free world I would have gone for:

-------------Crouch-----Gerrard

-Downing----Parker----Lampard----Dyer

---Barry---Woodgate--Ferdinand--Neville

--------------------Foster

And it still isn't that good a team. It shows what McClaren has to conted with.

[Ronin]

Seb Coe (admittedly not a football expert, but he does know a thing or two about fitness) said after the World Cup that he believed England were clearly one of the most unfit and under-prepared teams in the competition.

Has Steve McClaren learnt anything from the shambles of Germany?

I guess, as McClaren is still there, it'll probably be a case of history repeating if England qualify for the Euros.

[Eddie]

Interesting team that McClaren has put out tonight. looks like it could be:

------------------Crouch

-----Dyer----------------------------SWP

------------Gerrard-----Lampard

-------------------Carrick

P Neville--Woodgate---Ferdinand--G Neville

----------------------Foster

The only selection I really disagree with is Phil at left back, surely Barry should have got a shot even if he has been playing midfield this season? And I would have preferred Parker to Carrick to give us a bit of bite, but Carrick isn't too bad, and Dyer on the left is a bit daft, if that is what happens. But you have to remember it is a friendly so we need to try new things; reading the 606 boards though you would think that the world has ended!

I don't think that any player should play a different position for his country from what he plays at club level. Also, Barry's performances have been hyped up and to be honest Neville has been the better player. Barry benefits from the extra attention given to Aston Villa this season and from the fact that he scores more goals.

[Jan]

I don't think that any player should play a different position for his country from what he plays at club level. Also, Barry's performances have been hyped up and to be honest Neville has been the better player. Barry benefits from the extra attention given to Aston Villa this season and from the fact that he scores more goals.

Not being English I couldn't really give a stuff, but isn't the whole point of the game to score more goals than the opposition. Therefore wouldn't having someone who can actually do that be better than having some useless duffer who can't?

[blue phil]

I guess, as McClaren is still there, it'll probably be a case of history repeating if England qualify for the Euros.

To me it's a question of how quick we can get rid of him with the least possible damage to the team's chances of qualifying . I get the feeling he'd be delirious with a draw tonight ...

[1864roverite]

McCockups selection process has just come home to roost.

1-0 down at home against a quite poor but obviously skillful Spanish outfit.

When will the FA ever learn?

[RevidgeBlue]

Not that I'm bothered but spain have just scored and are 1-0 up after 65 mins.

[Paul Mellelieu]

Complete and utter garbage.

Come on Spain!

[Jan]

Just to make matters marginally more amusing, Jay McEveley has just scored for Scotland's B team!

[T4E]

BBC is reporting it as goals from Maloney and Gow.

Maloney still languishing in the B team is a complete joke. Hope Eck sees sense on that one asap.

[Jan]

Bizarre- one minute it's 3-1 with a goal from McEveley and the next it's 2-2. I give up on the BBC

Oh and you're right about wee Shauny!

[philipl]

Well thankfully we don't have to watch many English players in the Premiership. Even by the standards of a poor manager, that was rank bad from England.

[T4E]

England were pants pants pants pants.

Spain weren't much better.

Rubbish game, good goal. Spoke volumes for me though when, late on the game, Spain brought on Fabregas and England brought on Downing.

Different leagues.

[Bazzanotsogreat]

England were pants pants pants pants.

Spain weren't much better.

Rubbish game, good goal. Spoke volumes for me though when, late on the game, Spain brought on Fabregas and England brought on Downing.

Different leagues.

Not really, England when having a fully fit XI have a better side than Spain and with a different manager would beat Spain 9/10. Spain weren’t any better/worse than England apart from one good shot. Still one of the worse games I have had the misfortune of watching

[Hasta]

2 quick points.

First SWP. Can't get in the Chelsea side for two years. When he does get in the side he doesnt look anything like the player he was at City. Why is he being picked ahead of people in form (or at least not as out of form)?

Secondly, and most annoyingly, how bad was Michael Carrick. I've not noticed him too much this season but I imagine he's being carried at Man U at the moment by Scholes, Giggs and the awesome Ronaldo. I know he's not meant to be the most gifted footballer but every pass he played was awful. Either found a spaniard or was wieghted suicidally. As an example, in the second half he played two cross field balls to the right wing that were nowhere near an England man and just dribbled out of play or to their goalie. He was completely inept. If that had been Owen Hargreaves (before we realised he was being played out of poistion and was actually quite good) he would be being lambasted on every forum and radio/TV talkshow going. But as he's a golden boy at Man Utd he'll get rated 5 or 6 out of 10 in the rags tommorow. Shocking performance. Worryingly unlike some players on that pitch I think McClaren might be considering him as a first choicer.

Edited February 7, 2007 by Hasta