Name the manager who..

[Grist_To_The_Mill]

Germany will be absolutely ruthless following their dismal performances and will start rebuilding immediately for the Euros and the next World Cup. Spain, Argentina and Brazil will come back stronger. Animal is right we will never get a better opportunity than the one we have just blown. We desperately need to unearth some new diamonds but with the Premiership dominated by foreign stars I don't know where they will come from. Southgate will become a better manager but he is not the Messiah and won't be able to work any more miracles in the future than he has this time round.

Well, the last Messiah, they eventually crucified him.

This England performance had a sort of firework theme to it. You buy a big beautiful box of fireworks, inside it is a big rocket to use as the finale. You wonder what it will do and marvel at its cost. The fireworks leading up to the end are fairly good with a few whizzes and bangs. Then after much anticipation you put the rocket in the bottle, light the fuse and stand back. The fuze fizzes down and in a cloud of smoke it launches itself to 8 foot off the ground, gives off a strangled pop and comes crashing back to earth again.

That’s true England football

[Pattylallacks2]

On the firework analogy, our whizzbangs prematurely ejaculated, Sterling was a damp squib, Deli Ali failed to sparkle, and the rest were party poopers rather than party poppers.

[animallittle3]

It's a question of money v putting in the work and having the desire to compete at the very highest level for your country .

Croatia had a number of players who although hugely wealthy were still prepared to go and dig deeper for their nation .

It's all about the mindset for me , all things equal we should be stronger with this group in four years time and the location of the next world cup favours nobody .

How much do they want it ?

Time will tell of course .

[Pattylallacks2]

It's a question of money v putting in the work and having the desire to compete at the very highest level for your country .

Croatia had a number of players who although hugely wealthy were still prepared to go and dig deeper for their nation .

It's all about the mindset for me , all things equal we should be stronger with this group in four years time and the location of the next world cup favours nobody .

How much do they want it ?

Time will tell of course .

To make the irony even more poignant, Croatian football is in financial chaos and they don't even have a decent national stadium.

[Grist_To_The_Mill]

To make the irony even more poignant, Croatian football is in financial chaos and they don't even have a decent national stadium.

Hardly surprising considering the country only achieved independence in 1991.

Whilst we still bang on about Italia 90.

Meanwhile Luka Modric might spend the rest of his playing career in jail if the perjury trial finds him guilty

[Geetarman]

Have you ever been to Croatia Victor?

You can lie and say yes if you like.

[Grist_To_The_Mill]

Have you ever been to Croatia Victor?

You can lie and say yes if you like.

If you mean me, the answer is an honest yes. Love the place, it’s getting expensive again though.

[animallittle3]

To make the irony even more poignant, Croatian football is in financial chaos and they don't even have a decent national stadium.

English football breeds easy street in my opinion , totally set up for life at 20 years of age without doing anything in all reality .

I take the point many members of the present squad have had to fight tooth and nail to get where they are , Trippier was ok at Oakwell on a years long loan but did I envisage him scoring a goal like that in a world cup semi for England , your havin a laffe of course .

I'm hopeful Gareth is on to something here where he can positively seperate wealth from achievement , it is possible because man management is his key strength , tacticaly he possibly needs to improve , he's also a wealthy man lets not forget but he's driven , we have a chance with this guy .


This tournament should be the start of something and not the end like it was in 1990 .

No parades required , parades are for winners not 4th best , it's unacceptable in my opinion .

You can cut the coming home shyte too for me It's counter productive and looks like desperation .

Man up , play the game , show some b@llax , 4th aint where its at for me .

[great_fire]

Some good points there.

Note also that some teams have found success by putting in "citizens" born in their ex colonies.

Our ex colonies tend to be non football countries, so we don't have that supply route.

Actually Nigeria and Ghana are the 6th and 7th best teams in Africa so presumably we could do the same.

Although it's cheating really.

The France team is really the France and French Africa team.

[great_fire]

English football breeds easy street in my opinion , totally set up for life at 20 years of age without doing anything in all reality .

I take the point many members of the present squad have had to fight tooth and nail to get where they are , Trippier was ok at Oakwell on a years long loan but did I envisage him scoring a goal like that in a world cup semi for England , your havin a laffe of course .

I was looking at the squad today.

5 of them play of have played for Tottenham.

4 for Man United.

But 3 had played for Barnsley and 3 for Sheffield United.

Which is pretty good, shame that isn't translated to any SY success at club level.