The Final England Squad

[tcj_jones]

I have to disagree with you there, LeChuck. If we were going to play with a passing midfielder in front of the back four, then we would have gone with Carrick, who is a far better player. While Scholes was simly brilliant in his day, he's not really the same player any more, and I don't think he'd have offered us an awful lot. I see a lot of Man United because my friend supports them and, as they're in the Champions League, we watch a good number of games. TBH he hasn't had a particularly great season.

As for the USA. Well, I'd have preferred us to face them last as they're the only team in our group capable of causing an upset and I'd have liked us to have played them after we'd found our rythem a bit. However, I really do think they've been over-hyped, and that we really should be expecting to win comfortably.

[thenodrog]

Correct JBN. We are bereft of quality right down the spine of the team.

1. Average keepers...... and I'm being kind.

2. Injury prone, aged and out of form centre halves.

3. A central midfield that cannot play together and never could. A situation engineered years ago by national press and weak national managment. Our best international midfielder will no doubt be stuck out on the left wing whilst the Billy Big Times will be holding hands and watching the game pass em by as usual.

4. Not one centre forward that stands out as top drawer. Crouch is best but he can't get a regular run out for Spurs.

5. As usual we are pinning almost our entire hopes on the excellent Wayne Rooney.

Dont be fooled into buying expensive telly's folks!

I make no claim to be some enlightened football visionary, yesterdays performance was simply so predictable. Depressingly so.

Capello is the third national manager in a row who is clueless enough to think that Gerrard and Lampard can play in the same team. What the hell are they looking at? Since only an injury prevented Beckham being selected I'm beginning to think that there is something inserted by Nike or similar into the England managers contract that states that certain players must be selected in whatever formation. Gerrard has never ever been close to being the world class midfielder despite the press and media repeating it ad infinitum in case someone might actually be listening to them, but he did OK last night. Lampard on the other hand was awful again. Abysmal even. His performance last night would have embarrassed Keith Andrews!

Postman bloody Pat selected a centre half as first choice a man who cannot even train ffs! What thought or logic went into that? Can someone please remind the clown that this is a contest for the worlds best!! If there is a paraplegic World Cup after I think King will go down a storm.

My already low opinion of Capello's abilities is diminishing by the minute.

[thenodrog]

I make no claim to be some enlightened football visionary, yesterdays performance was simply so predictable. Depressingly so.

Capello is the third national manager in a row who is clueless enough to think that Gerrard and Lampard can play in the same team. What the hell are they looking at? Since only an injury prevented Beckham being selected I'm beginning to think that there is something inserted by Nike or similar into the England managers contract that states that certain players must be selected in whatever formation. Gerrard has never ever been close to being the world class midfielder despite the press and media repeating it ad infinitum in case someone might actually be listening to them, but he did OK last night. Lampard on the other hand was awful again. Abysmal even. His performance last night would have embarrassed Keith Andrews!

Postman bloody Pat selected a centre half as first choice a man who cannot even train ffs! What thought or logic went into that? Can someone please remind the clown that this is a contest for the worlds best!! If there is a paraplegic World Cup after I think King will go down a storm.

My already low opinion of Capello's abilities is diminishing by the minute.

I make no apology for repeating any of this save to express amazement at how slow and ponderous so many of our team were today. Gareth Barry was like a tortoise compared to the Germans, as were Johnson and Terry. Whilst Lampard is poor and Gerrard is not a ferkin left winger!

Me, JBN and Dr Kaiser Beckenbaur had it about spot on from the start.