Sounds good mate. We should get a few on it for sure.

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Comment deleted by Site Moderator

moreno is european royalty, i likes him

comment by GTWI4T- some people deserve to get trolled (U6008)
posted 14 minutes ago
comment by Insert random username (U10647)
posted 1 hour, 42 minutes ago
We should be all out to batter teams in to submission,

A top striker, three or four great wingers, a couple of great choices at attacking midfield, the best attacking right back in the world...

Nah, lets play three CBs two deep fullbacks, two sitting midfielders and hope that three players can get something against the opposition defence and midfield.

Then we will focus on set peices and penalties again. Laughable..

Play to your strengths not your weaknesses, Attack is the best form of defence, batter them in to submission, score one more than them etc etc etc.
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Well the full backs don't play deep.
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Isn't the point that our CBS are rammal and we don't have a dm who can pass the ball?

I mean yeah, we have great attacking talent but we don't have a single cb that I'd trust in a two personally.

I also think the attacking patterns are improving but it's hard to find balance with the players available.

comment by Robbing Hoody - Legacy Fan (U6374)
posted 9 minutes ago
comment by GTWI4T- some people deserve to get trolled (U6008)
posted 14 minutes ago
comment by Insert random username (U10647)
posted 1 hour, 42 minutes ago
We should be all out to batter teams in to submission,

A top striker, three or four great wingers, a couple of great choices at attacking midfield, the best attacking right back in the world...

Nah, lets play three CBs two deep fullbacks, two sitting midfielders and hope that three players can get something against the opposition defence and midfield.

Then we will focus on set peices and penalties again. Laughable..

Play to your strengths not your weaknesses, Attack is the best form of defence, batter them in to submission, score one more than them etc etc etc.
----------------------------------------------------------------------

Well the full backs don't play deep.
----------------------------------------------------------------------

Isn't the point that our CBS are rammal and we don't have a dm who can pass the ball?

I mean yeah, we have great attacking talent but we don't have a single cb that I'd trust in a two personally.

I also think the attacking patterns are improving but it's hard to find balance with the players available.
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From left field, but how do you think Trent would do at DM?

Comment deleted by Site Moderator

Central midfield will be England's underlying problem again, as soon as they come up against a good side. Same as previous tournaments.

Defence is poor too.

I'd start Bellingham with Rice and Mount myself which is a tasty if inexperienced midfield but I don't think Southgate will.

I'd never, ever, play Rice and Henderson together either but Southgate does.

At International level you work with what you're given unfortunately. If your defence is worse than your attack (in our case), that is the strength we should play to. Playing 3 CB's with 2 holding midfielders does not do that.

It might give more structure and stability, but it doesn't suit our best players. There is no point trying to do something that just doesn't suit us "because it's International football and it's naturally slower". That's a poor excuse.

European football is usually slower, try telling the likes of Atalanta and Salzburg that. They go and play to their strengths and don't care about how it "should" be played. If we had an International manager as brave as that, we'd be a far more dangerous outfit.

comment by Robbing Hoody - Legacy Fan (U6374)
posted 22 seconds ago
I'd start Bellingham with Rice and Mount myself which is a tasty if inexperienced midfield but I don't think Southgate will.

I'd never, ever, play Rice and Henderson together either but Southgate does.
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The only reasons I would play Henderson and Rice is either against the top teams or to supplement TAA down the right side, if he ever actually started.

Comment deleted by Site Moderator

I guarantee that as long as Henderson comes through the friendlies unscathed, he will start with Henderson and Rice. A midfield with a horrendous lack of balance.

Comment deleted by Site Moderator

That's 4 of our best attacking players when we could have 5 on the field though. Considering we want to go and win tournaments or at least reach the latter stages, we need to be on the front foot so we need our attacking players who can make a difference rather than relying on 6 more defensive minded players who aren't as good as the attackers that we have.

comment by GTWI4T- some people deserve to get trolled (U6008)
posted 3 minutes ago
comment by Robbing Hoody - Legacy Fan (U6374)
posted 2 seconds ago
I'd start Bellingham with Rice and Mount myself which is a tasty if inexperienced midfield but I don't think Southgate will.

I'd never, ever, play Rice and Henderson together either but Southgate does.
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I've got no real issue with these two against the better teams as long as they can dovetail a bit. I think we'll see 3 at the back against Croatia and then again in the last 16 but expect to see a 4-3-3 against the Scots and Czech.
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On paper yeah I've no problem but it just doesnt have that je ne sais quoi in terms of just being natural in that said dove tailing. You can coach the ass out of that at club level because you have time so if they spend a few weeks together maybe it will improve.

I'm not a fan from what I've seen though and as such I'd drop Rice for Henderson.

Comment deleted by Site Moderator

This "balance" is the reason why fans are moaning and it's also the reason why we are struggling past Poland, losing to Denmark, not laying a glove on Belgium etc.

The aforementioned attacking players also suit the defensive side of the game though, particularly without the ball and in transitions as well. So even if we do come up against a big side like Spain who will dominate the ball, we know that the likes of Kane, Grealish, Mount, Foden, Sterling, Sancho, Rashford etc all play at clubs who like to press and are all good at it. I understand it also depends who else they play with at their clubs as you have said, but they are all used to and suited to playing in a pressing team. So we build our model based off what they do at club level, that's the point of International football for me. Some teams will be good enough to play through our press, likewise some teams will not be good enough to play through our press with our attacking players and will be reluctant to do so.

It's about seizing the initiative. It's not about us trying to stop a Spain from bossing the ball, sitting in and hoping we can take our chances. We have to take the game to them and set up in a system that says "we are going to press you, let's see how beat it". There is a reason why most of the time, the teams who try to stop the opposition instead of beat them lose.

I think it's also about respecting the opposition.

Expecting us to roll over the like of Poland and Denmark as though it's a given seems a bit unreasonable to me.

Comment deleted by Site Moderator

Three more years of Ole
https://www.telegraph.co.uk/football/2021/05/27/ole-gunnar-solskjaer-set-new-three-year-man-utd-contract-despite/

I wouldn't expect us to roll over Denmark and Poland by any means, as I have said before, they are solid sides in their own right but I also wouldn't expect us to struggle like we do.

I'm also not saying it's as simple as "all press at once", because I know it's not. But my point is you are not asking players to do things that are massively different to what they are used to at their clubs. Of course they intensity and pressing triggers would be different, but a player who is fit enough to press and is used to pressing is likely to be able to do what the national manager wants, because the national manager should be trying to play his best players in what they are best at, not try to mould them into his own style as such. Of course, there will be variations, but it shouldn't be as drastic as what Southgate's England is compared to the top clubs these players play for.

What you have stated about clubs is exactly what I am saying though as well. An International manager should not be trying to develop his own way of playing, because he does not have the time on the training field. His style should be whatever gets the best out of his best players, not trying to mould his best players into his style. He has a selected pool for a reason, if he wants to mould his own style, he should go and manage a club side. I think that's what you don't understand as well.

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Comment deleted by Site Moderator

comment by Happy Pranks 2021 FF JA LFC Champion (U22336)
posted 2 hours, 14 minutes ago
https://gaming.uefa.com/en/uefaeuro2020fantasyfootball/create-team

This looks to be it.
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Anybody made a league yet?