World Cup Russia 2018 Thread

William posted:

I am bemused by the real-time contributions to the thread amidst all the excitement...

It's 0145 AM here... ????

It seems I don't need to cut my fingernails after all.

Well, the dream is over but Southgate's young lions did well and will get stronger having been through this experience. Perhaps things would have been different if England had turned their first-half dominance into a bigger lead but on the balance of play I thought Croatia deserved their victory. I shall be supporting them in the final and hope they win against France. What an achievement that would be for a relatively small nation?

TOBYJUG posted:

Kiwi cat posted:

Nature called in the second half. I said to my son, I bet someone scores whilst I am in the WC, or words to that effect.

Bingo!

Well done France!

Just make sure you time it right tomorrow night, or the blames on you.

The WC manoeuvre wasn't timed as well tonight.

I love this team. Humble, courageous, passionate and dignified. So proud.

MDS posted:

Well, the dream is over but Southgate's young lions did well and will get stronger having been through this experience. Perhaps things would have been different if England had turned their first-half dominance into a bigger lead but on the balance of play I thought Croatia deserved their victory. I shall be supporting them in the final and hope they win against France. What an achievement that would be for a relatively small nation?

I'm not a big football person but would have ben delighted if England had gone further.

Didn't see much of the first half as I was working, but during 2nd half/Extra time Croatia just looked hungrier and prepared to take risks - it paid off.

From a non-Englisman, congratulations for getting so far, and doing the UK proud.

From here, good luck to Croatia  - why did the coverage mainly show their supporters???

Well the curse of Clive Tyldsley and ITV has done for England once again.

I do feel gutted for England, although they have exceeded most peoples expectations just by reaching a semi final.

Overall, Croatia were the better perhaps more 'streetwise' team but there wasn't much in it to be fair.

To add insult to injury they have to hang around until Saturday to play a 3rd/4th place game. Completely pointless nobody gives a toss!

sjbabbey posted:

Well the curse of Clive Tyldsley and ITV has done for England once again.

Curse of the White Strip too... odd, but it does seem that we do so much better in the Red shirts !

Too bad,,but must still congratulate England????

You came much further than many thought, and,..Don't forget,it's a match left for the bronze medal.

/Peder???? 

For Britain, a lot to be proud of and a great foundation for the future.

This has been a great World Cup. The games have been superb. As a Southern California retiree you often had one game at 7:00 am and another at 11:00 am. It was addicting.

I thought Croatia's fluid, attacking football made them the better side this evening. It was the manner of Croatia's winning goal that most disappointed me, where I thought we just switched off for a moment and should have done better. This will no doubt cause groans but it was a bit like watching Saints v Spurs in the Prem, only faster.

But I'm proud of the English team for all they have achieved, and wish Croatia well in the final on Sunday.

A well fought game with the better team winning, same as yesterday's match. Looking at FIFA's world ranking from June 2018 we will have in the final game #7 (France) playing #20 (Croatia). At the time Germany, Brazil and Belgium were ranked 1,2, 3, while England was 12th.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/FIFA_World_Rankings

Heart broken for England, but I think Croatia is thoroughly deserved, they are technically more gifted.

So England finish the World Cup with respect but I think a reality check needed. Last night they were out-classed over the match by a very decent Croatia side.

The tally (before the desperately pointless 3rd v 4th playoff) reads played 6 Won 3 (one against an utter rabble) D 1 Lost 2.

Decent teams beaten? How many teams beaten ranked above us?

I think they've developed and grown and been admirable in many ways but they have over-achieved, assisted by a very soft draw.

Hopefully the good things can be developed into a competitive team for the Euros in 2020.

Bruce

Bruce

 Could you be a little gentler with us, we are hurting badly at the moment. Your assessment is correct though and I am sure Southgate knows where we are. 

The real achievement is getting to this point of development so quickly from a low base a couple of years ago and the exciting prospect  of the team for the future if they carry on this trajectory.

Ray

I honestly think the England team played well last night.

another 2 more years of experience in the ART of winning crunch matches  ( both for the team and manager ) will do England a world of good.

At the Euro 2020 - Holland and Italy might be there too and i am already salivating at the prospect of watching this young and sharp England side do well there.

Those who are hurting - england fans - dont be.

Simply because you have the nucleus of a new team with no starry airs - which ruined your game in the past - IMO

The team played proper football and played fair but hard.

The goalie Pickford - is very good.

I like his left footed long kicks of the football. 

Get up and smile..

the sun will rise today and so it will tomorrow..

PS ; Many unheralded excellent teams have fallen .. Belgium / Japan / Morocco i thought all played well.

Thats the nature of sport - there can be only 2 winners.

One - the winner

Two - the sport itself.

best regards

mpw

Hugely disapointed in the performance last night Harry Kane had one of those games where he goes on the missing list, Dele Ali, Lingard, Ashley Cole and Henderson where all under par and Walker was at fault for the equaliser.

One nil up after five minutes Crotia should have been put to the sword and finished off within the first thirty mintues, a  real world class team would not have let them off the hook and allowed them back into the match they were tired and a goal so early on was a massive blow had Kane scored instead of hitting the post it would have finished them off. 

I'm afraid to say they blew it and were just not good enough on the night and unfortunately for them they may never get a better chance to win the World Cup.  Realistically they won two games in the group stages that they should have one albeit with a very late winner against Tunisa and the penalty fest against Panama did flatter them a bit then they had a very close shave against the Colombians in the last sixteen and although they played well against Sweden they should beat Sweden every day of every week.

So yes they did OK but as always we all got very carried away and let our imaginations run wild, the big winner was Gareth Southgate who managed to heal the wounds of the Iceland debacle in Euro 2016 and install a bit of respect back into the England set up so a huge well done to him.

And Marcus Rashford should have got a lot more game time than he did that was a mistake especially in the semi final.

I do want to say well done to Crotia I would love to see them go on and win it.

Watching the game last night, so many of the Ingerland players seemed out of sorts, and their relative inexperience, as has been mentioned, allowed Croatia back into things, when the game should have been killed off after such a great early opener.

In the second half, our midfield was overrun, quite predictably, since Modric was playing in a more advanced role than in their previous game against Russia. A rethink was called for, either with substitutions  and / or a reshaping of the midfield to deal with this.

So, coming up against their best opponent in the competition so far, Ingerland's shortcomings were revealed, and the relatively easy draw notwithstanding, it's all the more to their credit that they progressed as far as they did.

Onward and upward, hopefully.

Bob the Builder posted:

And Marcus Rashford should have got a lot more game time than he did that was a mistake especially in the semi final.

I wondered about that too. Then again I reckon he's better with Vardy than with Kane.

Unfortunately football won’t be coming home, it’s probably going to be lost in France.....

wenger2015 posted:

Unfortunately football won’t be coming home, it’s probably going to be lost in France.....

The very small silver lining in going out against Croatia is that we cannot be beaten in the Final by the French now.

England has very fast players which can create havoc but what is missing from this team is the ability to carry the ball and set the pace at midfield ... here's where Luka Modric (who with his face and the way he touches the ball and passes with the outside of the foot reminds me a bit of my childhood hero Johan Cruyff) makes the difference...

to quote JC : Technique is not being able to juggle a ball 1000 times. Anyone can do that by practicing. Then you can work in the circus. Technique is passing the ball with one touch, with the right speed, at the right foot of your team mate.

Cruyff wrote the blue print for modern football taking the total football of Ajax to Barcelona where he tutored the likes of Guardiola. 

Apparently an extremely arrogant individual unpopular with his teammates he was a football genius.