[Archived] European Championship France 2016

[BlooBoy]

My point still stands, case closed, good night

nite nite x

[Baz]

Wales have a superstar though, we don't, I doubt Coleman would have got Wales this far without bale

Ramsey and Joe Allen have been outstanding too.

Bale has been heavily marked and relatively inefficient in open play.

Well done to Wales, I don't think Portugal have won a game in 90 minutes yet, so there's an opportunity there.

[Gav]

Not sure who made the point earlier in the piece but I thought picking the England team from Championship players and below is a stroke of genius.

Playing for the national team would be the pinicle for most of the side, a right good idea for me, hungry, determined and desperate for success, unlike the premiership lot that put club before anything else.

Good idea

[Clitherover]

Not sure who made the point earlier in the piece but I thought picking the England team from Championship players and below is a stroke of genius.

Playing for the national team would be the pinicle for most of the side, a right good idea for me, hungry, determined and desperate for success, unlike the premiership lot that put club before anything else.

Good idea

That's the second time I've heard someone say this and it is a very good idea. It might also give the players from the Premiership who think they are too good for England a reason to get their fingers out.

Wales getting into the semi's just rubs salt into the wound of us hitting an all time low, after that video and the fans chanting about us during last nights game I'm going to find it very hard to wish them any success.

[Audax]

Actually, the best thing for the English National Team might be Wales' team playing so well. How far is the question now. And if they actually won the trophy!

[Clitherover]

I can't imagine them ever beating France or Germany, but then again this seems to be turning into a year where the extraordinary becomes the ordinary.

[Presty On Tour]

Wales can't do no wrong in this tournament, it's absolutely buzzing here. I haven't been this happy since Matty Jansen scored in Cardiff and we won the Worthington Cup in 2002!

Qualifying for the tournament itself was magical and winning the first game was amazing. Losing to England hurt but made the team stronger. The way we bounced back and defeated Russia was something else and N Ireland was always going to be a hard won battle.

Belgium tonight was winnable as we did them in the qualifiers. The fightback after going 1-0 down and on the ropes was outstanding. Heart, determination, skill, organisation and team spirit. Yes Bale is brilliant and the star player as you will but the rest of the team tonight and the whole tournament have played out of their skins. Hennessy have been calm and assured. The defence has been organised and put their bodies on the line. Joe Ledley has recovered from a broken leg quicker than I recover from man flu and with Ramsey and the Welsh Pirlo Joe Allen in there, it's a great unit. Robson Kanu is unemployed for Gods sake and what a goal he scored tonight. Robbie Savage in commentary summed it up perfectly.

Chris Coleman deserves a knighthood and the keys to Wales for the post match interview alone. Total passion and emotion!

England in my view are under so much scrutiny from the media and the pressure to play is just too intense. Every kick to what deodorant is being used is being analysed to death. Winning 10 from 10 in the qualifying and beating Germany away was the perfect setup going into France and then Hodgson decides to change all the good work by playing people out of position. Why?

Rooney is the all time record scorer and is a forward, not a midfielder no matter what he or anyone else says. Kane and Sterling were out of form and should of been dropped. If your playing Sturridge, play him as a striker not a winger.

To sum up, Wales are in dreamland. They went as hero's and will come back as legends no matter what happens on Wednesday against Portugal. Davies and Ramsey are going to be sorely missed but the replacements will give their all for their country.

I for one cannot wait!

"Don't be afraid to dream"

[Audax]

Kanu's goal was Cruyff-like, I'm watching the replay and yes, that was brilliant.

[USABlue]

Alex Ferguson for two years.

That is regrettably the name I thought about. Not sure he would hack it, I think he needs time to build from scratch. Give Hoddle another crack at it.

[USABlue]

Klinsman gaining traction.

Not done so great with the Yanks I don't think

[USABlue]

Not sure who made the point earlier in the piece but I thought picking the England team from Championship players and below is a stroke of genius.

Playing for the national team would be the pinicle for most of the side, a right good idea for me, hungry, determined and desperate for success, unlike the premiership lot that put club before anything else.

Good idea

Tis true, I always get the impression with these overpaid prima donnas that playing for England is just a major inconvenience. Who will re-ignite the pride and passion that we used to have. I used to be devastated when we lost now its so ho hum.

The.Welsh showed what a well coached team with some pride and passion can do. Would dearly love Wales and Iceland final.

[Ricky]

Wales can't do no wrong in this tournament, it's absolutely buzzing here. I haven't been this happy since Matty Jansen scored in Cardiff and we won the Worthington Cup in 2002!

Qualifying for the tournament itself was magical and winning the first game was amazing. Losing to England hurt but made the team stronger. The way we bounced back and defeated Russia was something else and N Ireland was always going to be a hard won battle.

Belgium tonight was winnable as we did them in the qualifiers. The fightback after going 1-0 down and on the ropes was outstanding. Heart, determination, skill, organisation and team spirit. Yes Bale is brilliant and the star player as you will but the rest of the team tonight and the whole tournament have played out of their skins. Hennessy have been calm and assured. The defence has been organised and put their bodies on the line. Joe Ledley has recovered from a broken leg quicker than I recover from man flu and with Ramsey and the Welsh Pirlo Joe Allen in there, it's a great unit. Robson Kanu is unemployed for Gods sake and what a goal he scored tonight. Robbie Savage in commentary summed it up perfectly.

Chris Coleman deserves a knighthood and the keys to Wales for the post match interview alone. Total passion and emotion!

England in my view are under so much scrutiny from the media and the pressure to play is just too intense. Every kick to what deodorant is being used is being analysed to death. Winning 10 from 10 in the qualifying and beating Germany away was the perfect setup going into France and then Hodgson decides to change all the good work by playing people out of position. Why?

Rooney is the all time record scorer and is a forward, not a midfielder no matter what he or anyone else says. Kane and Sterling were out of form and should of been dropped. If your playing Sturridge, play him as a striker not a winger.

To sum up, Wales are in dreamland. They went as hero's and will come back as legends no matter what happens on Wednesday against Portugal. Davies and Ramsey are going to be sorely missed but the replacements will give their all for their country.

I for one cannot wait!

"Don't be afraid to dream"

Agree with a lot of that but how can you say Kane was out of form? He'd just finished as the leagues top scorer and had also been scoring for England.

[joey_big_nose]

Id say if you compare England to the teams doing well - Germany, Wales, Iceland, Italy - the main thing that stands out is a lack of a balance and a lack of a clear system

There is an argument to start picking players more on whether they fit in the team well, rather than simply being the best on offer.

For example start playing the likes of Townsend because he offers genuine width, Noble as he an engine and bite. Fair enough they might not have the quality of others but you can drill them into a system. And then drop players who are hard to fit in the system and unbalance the team eg. Rooney, Sterling, Lallana, Sturridge. We have so many narrow players who want to play in the area just behind the striker. We cant fit them all in the system.

You could go for an England team like

--------------Forster

Walker---Smalling---Stones---Rose

Townsend---Dier---Noble---????

---------Caroll---Vardy

No left winger (why do we not produce them?) means you would have to go for an imperfect option like Sterling or Lallana. Caroll is mainly in for a different style of striker but you could have Kane in there.

Then once the team and system is picked we have to stick with it. Its very difficult for the manager to stabalise though because if any player has a good or bad season (eg. Townsend and Vardy last year) the press are all over the manager demanding change.

Bottom line for me is we lack quality in key areas, but clearly we can do more with what we have. Something isnt working.

Ps. Wales were FANTASTIC!! I really hope they or Iceland win it.

[yorkblue]

Hasn't anyone told the Welsh players that they are physically and mentally exhausted after a long domestic season and unable to play anywhere near their best in tournament football because of it?

[Mike E]

That's the second time I've heard someone say this and it is a very good idea. It might also give the players from the Premiership who think they are too good for England a reason to get their fingers out.

Wales getting into the semi's just rubs salt into the wound of us hitting an all time low, after that video and the fans chanting about us during last nights game I'm going to find it very hard to wish them any success.

I'd change that to just getting a manager who picks on form.

The likes of Defoe, Noble, Carroll should've been there.

[onlyonejackwalker]

Id say if you compare England to the teams doing well - Germany, Wales, Iceland, Italy - the main thing that stands out is a lack of a balance and a lack of a clear system

There is an argument to start picking players more on whether they fit in the team well, rather than simply being the best on offer.

For example start playing the likes of Townsend because he offers genuine width, Noble as he an engine and bite. Fair enough they might not have the quality of others but you can drill them into a system. And then drop players who are hard to fit in the system and unbalance the team eg. Rooney, Sterling, Lallana, Sturridge. We have so many narrow players who want to play in the area just behind the striker. We cant fit them all in the system.

You could go for an England team like

--------------Forster

Walker---Smalling---Stones---Rose

Townsend---Dier---Noble---????

---------Caroll---Vardy

No left winger (why do we not produce them?) means you would have to go for an imperfect option like Sterling or Lallana. Caroll is mainly in for a different style of striker but you could have Kane in there.

Then once the team and system is picked we have to stick with it. Its very difficult for the manager to stabalise though because if any player has a good or bad season (eg. Townsend and Vardy last year) the press are all over the manager demanding change.

Bottom line for me is we lack quality in key areas, but clearly we can do more with what we have. Something isnt working.

Ps. Wales were FANTASTIC!! I really hope they or Iceland win it.

Agree Joey. Time we started thinking differently.

Said all along Townsend should have gone. The ability to beat a man being key. He also contributes to the scoring, 4 from 13 after joining a struggling Newcastle last term, plus he has notched already for England.

Noble and Drinkwater had good claims to be playing.

Stones will be centre half for years to come and couldn't have done any worse.

Fraser Forster after a bad injury but bounced back well for Southampton and it is time to rest Hart.

Upfront we had to take Kane and Vardy, but used them properly in a system they understood long before the tournament. Sturridge couldn't get a game for Liverpool and Sterling was benched for City towards the back end of last season but were immediately on the plane for us.

Crouch or Carroll offered something different. Defoe was up there with the very best last year in a struggling team.

Clyne played well when called upon. Perhaps better defensively than Walker. Could they both have played? Walker wide right, Clyne behind him?

No left winger is also a major problem. You need a natural left footer on the left, or team balance and shape is lost as they cut in on their favoured foot. Easy to defend. Not many to choose from however.

I wouldn't have taken the squad chosen, nor picked the same team. All ifs and buts now however.

Congratulations to Wales. Brilliant. Didn't like how they celebrated us going out, but it is understandable in a way. Still hoping they keep going.

[SIMON GARNERS 194]

Outstanding Wales...performance of the Tournament so far for me.

[yorkblue]

Id say if you compare England to the teams doing well - Germany, Wales, Iceland, Italy - the main thing that stands out is a lack of a balance and a lack of a clear system

There is an argument to start picking players more on whether they fit in the team well, rather than simply being the best on offer.

For example start playing the likes of Townsend because he offers genuine width, Noble as he an engine and bite. Fair enough they might not have the quality of others but you can drill them into a system. And then drop players who are hard to fit in the system and unbalance the team eg. Rooney, Sterling, Lallana, Sturridge. We have so many narrow players who want to play in the area just behind the striker. We cant fit them all in the system.

You could go for an England team like

--------------Forster

Walker---Smalling---Stones---Rose

Townsend---Dier---Noble---????

---------Caroll---Vardy

No left winger (why do we not produce them?) means you would have to go for an imperfect option like Sterling or Lallana. Caroll is mainly in for a different style of striker but you could have Kane in there.

Then once the team and system is picked we have to stick with it. Its very difficult for the manager to stabalise though because if any player has a good or bad season (eg. Townsend and Vardy last year) the press are all over the manager demanding change.

Bottom line for me is we lack quality in key areas, but clearly we can do more with what we have. Something isnt working.

Ps. Wales were FANTASTIC!! I really hope they or Iceland win it.

I entirely agree that the practice of playing "big name" players instead of players who are in form and fit the system is a big problem. For me though I want defenders in my team who can defend especially at full back.Walker and Rose are very good going forward but are poor defenders. I have said for years that Walker is a liability at this level and that was exposed against Iceland. Playing three central defenders would accommodate very attacking but defensively limited full backs like Walker. I think Clyne is a better defender than Walker at right back and hopefully Luke Shaw will recover fully from his injury. Having natural wide players ahead of the full backs also makes it less important that they are ultra attacking. I also like Andros Townsend playing for England. He is one of the very few players in recent years who actually performs better for the international team than his club side.

[Tom]

I could enjoy Wales success a bit if it wasn't for Robbie Savage

Loved him when he played here but he's the worst of the worst when it comes to commentators and pundits

[Gav]

I'd change that to just getting a manager who picks on form.

The likes of Defoe, Noble, Carroll should've been there.

Couldn't disagree more, Hodgson picked most players on form and got his squad bang on.

You could argue about Drinkwater but that's about it in my opinion.

[Mike E]

You would argue against having Carroll and Defoe in place of Sturridge and Rooney? Both played far better than the pair of them and Rooney only played well because he was shoved in midfield.

In fact, I'd have taken Noble in place Milner and Drinkwater in place of Wilshere.

[DE.]

England in my view are under so much scrutiny from the media and the pressure to play is just too intense.

IMV this is nothing more than an excuse for weak players and management to fall back on. Try being in Italy during tournament time - that's scrutiny. The Italian team was being ripped apart in the press before the tournament started, but rather than use it as an excuse to underperform, their team has stuck two fingers up at the media and fans who doubted them. England meanwhile are summed up by the pathetic visual of players collapsing and crying at the end of the Iceland match, with the utterly inept manager looking shellshocked in the dugout.

[Gav]

Rooney was always going to play in midfield, you could argue he shouldn't have gone, but not be replaced by Carroll or Defoe who frankly is nowhere near England class anymore and probably never was.

Sturidge was excellent for me, no problem with him going.

Good shout on Noble, he must have been close to being on the plane.

[arbitro]

It's really interesting that the two teams playing three centre backs and wing backs have been, in my opinion the outstanding teams of the tournament so far. With the right personnel who understand their roles it is really effective and can sometimes confuse the opposition who struggle with it. Last night I though Taylor and Gunter played the wing back role really well. They got forward, stretched the Belgians but out of possession they effectively were part of a five which again the Belgians struggled with.

It shows to me that it is not always about having the best players but a system which a manager is bold enough to play and players who can adapt.

I think they can beat Portugal who have been bang average so far but Ramsey and Davies will be big misses on the day.

[Norbert Rassragr]

Portugal will have their 1 good game against Wales. Ronaldo will be storming, and Wales will miss Ramsey too much. Then we'll have a very sh-t team no-one will feel deserves to be there in the final. Portugal have been lucky that all the real top teams are in the other side of the draw, and Wales beat Belgium.

Whatever happens it is good to be half Welsh.