JudgeTedd wrote: ↑Sun Sep 10, 2023 11:49 am
Zambo wrote: ↑Sun Sep 10, 2023 11:38 am
Acceptance of failure, and more so to try and make it sound like a great performance, is why we get what we deserve, nothing.
England have won about as much as Birmingham City have. You wouldn’t expect this sort of reaction if they drew would you?
I’ve read some false equivalences on here but that is one of the best.
Comparing England’s ambitions as an international side with those of Birmingham City as part of the club football scene is completely incongruous.
As is the idea that any negative reaction to the result is in relation to this game in isolation. It’s based on the patterns which have been demonstrated over the course of six years of Southgate.
He’ll always do reasonably well in tournaments because he plays with a safety first mentality, with keeping the opponent’s score at zero as the primary objective. That’s not unreasonable in itself, good defences help win tournaments, limiting the opponents score reduces the number of goals you need to win yourself.
The problem is, in any tournament, eventually you’ll need to switch gears and seek to press your advantage and aggressively go after the opposition. He regularly fails to do that, which then puts an element of doubt into his own players while allowing the opposition to rebuild their own confidence and take the initiative.
Colombia WC 2018 - At 1-0 England drop deeper and deeper, either through his instruction or his unwillingness to address it. Colombia score a last minute equaliser, the game goes to penalties and England get out of jail.
Croatia WC 2018 - England start brightly, take an early lead and immediately begin to surrender possession to Croatia. At the point where Croatia inevitably equalise England find themselves stuck in a defensive frame of mind and are unable to wrest away control of the game. Croatia score a second, England are eliminated.
Italy Euro 2021 - England start fast, take an early lead and continue to dominate a clearly rattled Italian side. England come out after half time and are suddenly playing 5-10 yards deeper than at any point in the first half. The fullbacks who had been so vital to England’s attacking play stop making the overlapping runs and the Italians slowly take control of the game. England never recover attacking impetus, Italy in on penalties.
France World Cup 2022 - A very beatable French side take the lead through a long range strike caused by England habitually backing off from the midfield press. They slowly get back into the game and equalise via a penalty. At that point, rather than continuing to take the game to a tired looking French side, they immediately cede the initiative back to France. Again dropping deeper and deeper until Olivier Giroud is able to score the winner from a deep delivery into the box. England are eliminated.
England have a group of attacking players who should be the envy of the world. But the pattern persists, in big games when the opportunity to allow those players to impose themselves on the opposition, time and time again Southgate demonstrates a lack of trust in his team. And giving out a few stylish pastings to the odd team of international cannon fodder doesn’t disguise that.