I'd drop him in a heartbeat for a defensive midfielder(in a midfield 4 ) - anything that frees up Gerrard is fine by me. Quite frankly I'm leaning towards a five man midfield with the team we have at this tournament, which incidentally is the only system I've seen Lampard suceed in.

Sack the Swede, utter @#/?. This side is pedestrian, the forward line is a joke and the centre of midfield can't play together. Not that anything will change at half time. I think it sums it up that the hopes of a nation rest on the shoulders of a 20 year old, a crocked one at that. Quite frankly the team is a disgrace right now.

It's next to Togo and the Ivory Coast, a hotbed of football I've been impressed with Desailly and O'Neill tonight, even if they still struggle to get a wold in edgeways. Mr Hansen has to have his screen time

You've won then, they have Adebayor for god's sake

The has been and the never was - had to mute the game after five minutes. I agree Rover6, O'Neill was the only one yesterday who knew what he was talkin about, unfortunately he was drowned out by Hansen and Shearer.

Utter garbage, once again the team hasn't played to the sum of it's parts. If you look at that team sheet (besides the @#/? forward line) they should be steamrolling teams, not squeaking out a fortunate win. Yet again Sven has shown his complete lack of tactical nouse, especially in his choice of forwards- Crouch has about as much mobility as a statue, yet he was upfront on his own, pure genius. Walcott wasn't risked, for reasons unbeknown to me whilst Owen is clearly still not fully fit (his match sharpness leaves a lot to be desired). Overall we'll get fairly deep into the competition only to be comprehensively outclassed by quality opposition. Which is a shame considering the talent the England manager has available.

Jeez it's exactly the same incident - a tangle of legs whilst running down a ball in the right hand channel. He clearly has very fragile bones.

It's sad life being a scot.

If I was going to write a reply to this thread, it'd look something like Lathund's post. Well done sir.

The winner of Togo vs S. Korea

Therein lies the problem. I agree he's a decent player technically. Unfortunately he's woeful in the air and has the upper body strength of a small child, probably their acceleration capabilities too. When you add it all together he's pretty @#/?. I'd much rather have Ashton, Beattie, even Davis if you're wanting to play a big (ish) player upfront to support Owen.

Utter @#/? player, nice dance though.

I wouldn't mind the comments if he had any positional sense. Absolutely no problems with selling him off now, it's clearly what he wants.

How long have you been sitting on that one AESF?

Riijkard (sp) came out as saying he was very frustrated with Henry, stating that they had a gentleman's agreement on the terms of the contract and he went back on them.

Rubbish mate. Barca were desperate to sign him, y'know the champions of Europe. He 'failed' in Italy as a winger and no other league is good enough for him. I was never in doubt once the order went out to rough him up in the final. I might have to give him a little clap when he comes to Ewood next year, showing my appreciation of his play/the fact he's staying.

Probably still a better player than Pongolle due to the fact he can control a ball. His moaning won't be missed, but his work rate will. Good luck Paul, just don't score against us!

One of the most honest interviews I've ever seen. Not quite sure which game you were watching, Tris, but once Lehman was dismissed, Henry, was kicked off the park. When we try that (FA cup semi final) we're villans, but when, Barca, try that it's brushed over - double standards. As for his lack of workrate during the last ten minutes, well it's the catch twenty two situation there. He'd led the line admirably all night with little support from his midfield and, in my opinion, was carrying a knock from an earlier challenge in the game (ironically one of the few that weren't cynical attempts to injure him). Now as, Wenger, do you take your best player off the pitch, when we're all fully aware what he can do given the chance, or do you replace him with an inexperienced youngster who will defend from the front for ten minutes? Not a decision I'd like to make. I'd also put money on him staying at, L'Arse, but that's just a hunch

Poor officiating ruins another game, it's beyond a joke now.

You don't happen to work in PR do you

Yeah, either/or - just sign me up for whichever one you like.

Or he'll get dicked on as he's just a raw talent, and not a very productive one at that.

That's the key word. It's a ridiculous gamble, especially when your starting front two probably aren't going to be fit enough. Logic would dictate that Bent, Ashton, Beattie, and Defoe would go ahead of him. If you're going to take the kid, make him the fifth striker so he can soak up the experience and all that jazz, right now we're relying on him to start/make a significant impact from the bench. That's utterly absurd, the kid is 17 and hasn't even played a game of Premiership football yet! You can't expect him to do anything on the biggest stage in the world.

You're joking right? He'd be at the top of my list - quick, strong, good in the air, good with the ball at his feet, knows where the back of the net is, English, young, still developing as a player. The last three factors are the reason nobody has mentioned him as a possible import, he'd cost an absolute bomb. However, finances aside, he'd be up there on everybody's wish list. Silly statement really Tris.

Crouch is utter @#/? at the target man role; he has no strength, athleticism or size (he's a flimsy beanpole!). He can't even jump to win a header for ######'s sake! Beattie is clearly the man for that job, but then again he doesn't play for one of the glitzy clubs does he