Good morning all
Before I get to England, lets start with Saturday's quarter final in which France met Spain.
France really went out with a bit of whimper to be honest. They lacked any real cohesion as a team. I was suprised by the team selection. Blanc chose to opt for Malouda ahead of Nasri.Malouda has been poor for Chelsea. Nasri has been one of the better players for France and they missed his creativity.
France clearly decided to try and defend and then catch Spain on the break. However they offered very little as an attacking threat. On the other hand Spain were really boring to watch. They spent large spells of the game with the ball and yet had little desire to really go for goals against the French. They broke through midway through the first half, an unlikely source for the goal though. It was Alonso who got it with a nice header.
Spain did eventually get a second through a penalty but it was the worst and most boring game of the tournament for me. Spain again started without a striker and they were pretty tough to watch. Just no real cutting edge and they did not seem to be bothered about adding to their first goal. I really hope we see more ambition from the Spanish in the semi final.
So England lose on penalties again!
Apart from a 20 minute spell in the first half, England really did not do much. They were outpassed and were dominated more and more as the game went on. Pirlo was sensational on the night. His passing and movement were a joy to watch. England allowed him far to much space and on another night would have lost the game within the normal time. The gap in technical ability, coupled with England's lack of quality meant that they were relying on heart and hard work to go through ( and Joe Hart). When Young did miss I just knew that was it. Pirlo's penalty was so cheeky but just showed his supreme confidence in his own ability. Most notable absentees on the night were young, rooney, milner and gerrard. England just did not keep the ball. It is always the same as what is needed is a change of philosophy with a move away from this defensive 'hard to beat' approach. Young players with attacking flair need to be encouraged and given the opportunity to express themselves.
How did Henderson get onto the pitch? Based on what? He is shocking and is the first that should be culled from the squad.
Much work is needed and to be honest a manager who can change styles is what is required.
Before I get to England, lets start with Saturday's quarter final in which France met Spain.
France really went out with a bit of whimper to be honest. They lacked any real cohesion as a team. I was suprised by the team selection. Blanc chose to opt for Malouda ahead of Nasri.Malouda has been poor for Chelsea. Nasri has been one of the better players for France and they missed his creativity.
France clearly decided to try and defend and then catch Spain on the break. However they offered very little as an attacking threat. On the other hand Spain were really boring to watch. They spent large spells of the game with the ball and yet had little desire to really go for goals against the French. They broke through midway through the first half, an unlikely source for the goal though. It was Alonso who got it with a nice header.
Spain did eventually get a second through a penalty but it was the worst and most boring game of the tournament for me. Spain again started without a striker and they were pretty tough to watch. Just no real cutting edge and they did not seem to be bothered about adding to their first goal. I really hope we see more ambition from the Spanish in the semi final.
So England lose on penalties again!
Apart from a 20 minute spell in the first half, England really did not do much. They were outpassed and were dominated more and more as the game went on. Pirlo was sensational on the night. His passing and movement were a joy to watch. England allowed him far to much space and on another night would have lost the game within the normal time. The gap in technical ability, coupled with England's lack of quality meant that they were relying on heart and hard work to go through ( and Joe Hart). When Young did miss I just knew that was it. Pirlo's penalty was so cheeky but just showed his supreme confidence in his own ability. Most notable absentees on the night were young, rooney, milner and gerrard. England just did not keep the ball. It is always the same as what is needed is a change of philosophy with a move away from this defensive 'hard to beat' approach. Young players with attacking flair need to be encouraged and given the opportunity to express themselves.
How did Henderson get onto the pitch? Based on what? He is shocking and is the first that should be culled from the squad.
Much work is needed and to be honest a manager who can change styles is what is required.
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