Post-Match Thread and Ratings England v Slovakia 30th Jun2024 17:00hrs ko.

[Leigh_Seasider]

You are both drunk.

Correct

 

[Holy Joe]

The way they are celebrating is embarrassing. Should think themselves lucky they’ve got through.

Feel for Slovakia they genuinely were the better team and nipped at the last minute.

Need to seriously change things if we want to progress.

Nah they weren't the better team - they did a Southgate and sat back after taking the lead.

 

[EastStandBlue]

More questions than answers from that performance, and more problems for Southgate to solve going forward.

Bellingham and Kane scoring the goals is an absolute headache, as Bellingham especially was an absolute disaster for 95% of that game. Kane’s legs have gone, but at least he’s maintaining some kind of discipline in how he’s playing. Bellingham’s rocking up in positions where he’s doing more harm than good, being wasteful and lackadaisical in possession and is offering next to nothing out of possession. It’s heaping additional workload on Rice and his partner off the ball, and hindering any fluidity England might have with it.

If we’d fluked a win without him contributing, he simply could not start against Switzerland. As it stands, it’s an endorsement of a “moments” approach where your match winners stay on the pitch no matter what.

I actually don’t mind the “Who Else” celebration. You need that swagger and given how he’s played this tournament, it shows his mentality’s basically bulletproof. And hopefully his goal will be a galvanising force and an impetus for him in this tournament. Something needed to drop for him, and luckily it did.

Of course, we now also have the additional headache at the back. Guehi, who continues to be outstanding, is suspended for next weekend while Trippier’s clearly shot to bits, Shaw’s had no minutes and Kyle Walker’s seemingly picked an inopportune time to take up ketamine. Stones has knees made of biscuit and he’s holding this defensive unit together.

Potential positives:

Mainoo was England’s best player again. Continues to be the only one looking remotely capable of anything like dictating the tempo of a game.

Palmer looked lively and tidy in possession without creating too much.

With just under a week until the Switzerland game, there’s time to recover properly.

We’re through. Just.

It’s difficult to see where England go from here other than continuing to select your ‘moments’ players and hope something sticks. Nothing material is going to change in a week. The nature of the win could well bring the group closer together and offer them a chance to draw a line under four games of disjointed performances, but it will have exerted a lot of emotional energy. Teams that go the distance and trade punches in the early rounds don’t tend to hang around for much longer.

 

[Tribal Chief]

At Euro ‘96 and ‘20, we peaked too early. We haven’t done that this time. Still think we will win the tournament.

 

[Leigh_Seasider]

Whatever people say about Southgate he’s definitely got a knack when it comes to tournament football. Same amount of knockout wins for him vs all England managers between 1968 and 2016. It’s not pretty but .. well if it’s about winning and progressing to the next round it’s job done .. again. We’re in another QF. Time for the big names to step up and deliver.

 

[Swiss Tony]

As Rudyard Kippling said:

"If you can keep your head when all about you
are losing there's and blaming it on you;
If you can trust yourself when all men doubt you,
But make allowance for their doubting too;"

But Kipling didn’t have to watch Southgate’s boring tactics every game,I much prefer Tennysons Charge of the light Brigade, much more what we need.

 

[Supershrimper]

Didn't watch it live as with 2 kids aged 4 and 5 i'm not going to be given the chance to watch a whole match un-interrupted when they only show a passing interest in football.

Had to wait until it was available on ITVx catch up (thought it was going to be on the BBC) Finally it appeared on ITVx at 9:30. Skipped through all the usual pre match crap and started the match.

Realised pretty quickly that i'm going to need some food to munch on to stay awake. Sadly my bowl of doritos gave out around the 80th minute and I must have woken myself to see England 2-1 up. Quickly went back and found where I fell asleep but feel asleep again shortly after going 2-1 up. Woke up at 02:40 to an aching neck and the tv which had put itself to sleep.

God watching England is so boring.

And why was Gareth so against using substitutes during the normal time. We could have gone out with only 2 of the 5 being used.

 

[RHB]

But Kipling didn’t have to watch Southgate’s boring tactics every game,I much prefer Tennysons Charge of the light Brigade, much more what we need.

They ended up dead, tough choice.

 

[Swiss Tony]

They ended up dead, tough choice.

118 died.

 

[RHB]

118 died.

And around 160 wounded, 40% casualty rate, too many.

 

[Swiss Tony]

And around 160 wounded, 40% casualty rate, too many.

 

[Swiss Tony]

And around 160 wounded, 40% casualty rate, too many.

But you said they all died they didn’t

 

[BoyWonder2]

One thing I will say in the defence of Southgate, and his substitutions.

Our winner came from all of our subs. Palmer took the free kick that the goalkeeper punched away, Eze shuffed his shot, which Ivan Toney headed across goal to Kane to score.

Yes, he should have made his substitutions quicker, and arguably should have made more in normal time, however the subs he did make affected the game.

 

[RHB]

But you said they all died they didn’t

Ok, I surrender, never joust with a wise man.

 

[Napster]

But you said they all died they didn’t

They did in the end.

 

[PIERS]

I’d like to see 3-5-2. Walker on the right of the back 3
Right wing backs/wingers arnt a problem. Do we have a natural left sided wing back ?
Rice Bellingham in the middle with a.n.other. Start with Kane and Foden up front
Saka as a sub

 

[Massimo Giovanni]

I am with you on a 3 5 2 @PIERS
TAA, Stones and Gomez as the back 3.