+ Visit Derby County FC Mad for Latest News, Transfer Gossip, Fixtures and Match Results
Page 1 of 2 12 LastLast
Results 1 to 10 of 11

Thread: OT what a breath of fresh air

  1. #1
    Join Date
    Sep 2011
    Posts
    7,376

    OT what a breath of fresh air

    Kosovo. A relatively new land that has existed for about 11 years or so. Played their first ever international game in 2014. They were on a 15 game unbeaten run until the went to St Mary's and lost 5-2 to England. A defeat, yes, but they can hold their heads high. IMO the basic skill levels of their starting XI was higher than than that of the England XI. They have a fanatical 68 year old coach who has them extremely fit and they work their butts off in a well organised system that sees them pressing high and tracking back when they get passed. They also did very little to disturb the flow of the game and were not guilty of faking injury to the extent "better" teams do. They were a joy to watch.

    It took them a mere 35 seconds to open the scoring. Pickford got the ball, passed it to, I think it was Barkley, he passed back to Keane who attempted to pass square to Maguire. He hadn't looked and missed Berisha who was between the two. Berisha accepted the gift gratefully and put it away. The rest of the first half saw England dominate play and they put 5 away.

    The second half started the same way the first had, Rice lost the ball, totally unnecessarily, in midfield and 2 or 3 passes later Berisha had his second. 8 minutes after that, an unnecessary foul by Maguire saw Kosovo get a penalty. After that I expected England to restore the natural order and they had chances enough. Sterling hit the post, Kane missed a penalty but that was, IMO, poetic justice as the Kosovo defender did tug on Barkley but that was just outside the box. Barkley made sure he fell over in the box. Not a penalty to me. England were much less sharp in the second half. Possibly thinking they didn't have to have the same intensity to extend the lead. It didn't happen. The major reason for that being the constant delaying of passes that either saw the man in possession lose the ball, play the pass too late making it easy to intercept or put the pass either behind or too far in front og the intended target. IMO Barkley and Sterling were the 2 biggest culprits by a country mile but they were by no means alone. Kosovo never gave up and kept on their high pressing game and were the better side in the second half. They impressed me and I shall watch their games when they can be picked up here in the Netherlands.

    The England players? I question the maneuverability of the two centre halves. I don't think Rice is an England international. The majority of his passes are sideways or backwards and too many don't reach their intended target. Barkley started in the #10 role but he spent a lot of time where a DM would be expected to be, too many wayward passes, too many too late passes, too often he kept dribbling until he lost the ball. Sterling. An enigma. I always said, until about 2 years ago, that he was a sprinter and not a footballer. Pep has turned him into more of a footballer and he is a pretty efficient one as well. As with Rice and Barkley, too many of his passes are too late or misplaced but the rate of goals and assists he now has mean he is worth his place in the side. I will not comment on his manner of running

    If England make those mistakes against better sides they will get punished as Kosovo punished them and against that better side they will not get the chances they got against Kosovo. Last night's very enjoyable game should be a wake up call for England. That might seem a strange thing to say of a side that scored 5 but the concession of 3 and the manner in which they occurred is food for thought.

    Kosovo will have given many a minnow hope and, hopefully, we might see more of the minnows come and have a go instead of parking the bus

  2. #2
    Join Date
    Mar 2012
    Posts
    4,783
    I bloody missed It. Agree entirely though. Good old attacking football from the highlights I saw..
    Sterling looks unplayable when he is working at pace..

  3. #3
    Join Date
    Jul 2007
    Posts
    9,155
    England great going forward but defended like Derby!

  4. #4
    Join Date
    Jul 2008
    Posts
    10,439
    I wish we were great going forward though

  5. #5
    Join Date
    Sep 2011
    Posts
    7,376
    Just spotted a typo, it was 5-3, not 5-2.

  6. #6
    Join Date
    Jul 2008
    Posts
    10,439
    Come to think of it we're not great doing anything.

  7. #7
    Join Date
    Nov 2007
    Posts
    4,716
    Thought Sterling was excellent. Still don't rate Barclay though, very one footed and gives up possession too easily

  8. #8
    Join Date
    Jan 2015
    Posts
    4,651
    Quote Originally Posted by MadAmster View Post
    Kosovo. A relatively new land that has existed for about 11 years or so. Played their first ever international game in 2014. They were on a 15 game unbeaten run until the went to St Mary's and lost 5-2 to England. A defeat, yes, but they can hold their heads high. IMO the basic skill levels of their starting XI was higher than than that of the England XI. They have a fanatical 68 year old coach who has them extremely fit and they work their butts off in a well organised system that sees them pressing high and tracking back when they get passed. They also did very little to disturb the flow of the game and were not guilty of faking injury to the extent "better" teams do. They were a joy to watch.

    It took them a mere 35 seconds to open the scoring. Pickford got the ball, passed it to, I think it was Barkley, he passed back to Keane who attempted to pass square to Maguire. He hadn't looked and missed Berisha who was between the two. Berisha accepted the gift gratefully and put it away. The rest of the first half saw England dominate play and they put 5 away.

    The second half started the same way the first had, Rice lost the ball, totally unnecessarily, in midfield and 2 or 3 passes later Berisha had his second. 8 minutes after that, an unnecessary foul by Maguire saw Kosovo get a penalty. After that I expected England to restore the natural order and they had chances enough. Sterling hit the post, Kane missed a penalty but that was, IMO, poetic justice as the Kosovo defender did tug on Barkley but that was just outside the box. Barkley made sure he fell over in the box. Not a penalty to me. England were much less sharp in the second half. Possibly thinking they didn't have to have the same intensity to extend the lead. It didn't happen. The major reason for that being the constant delaying of passes that either saw the man in possession lose the ball, play the pass too late making it easy to intercept or put the pass either behind or too far in front og the intended target. IMO Barkley and Sterling were the 2 biggest culprits by a country mile but they were by no means alone. Kosovo never gave up and kept on their high pressing game and were the better side in the second half. They impressed me and I shall watch their games when they can be picked up here in the Netherlands.

    The England players? I question the maneuverability of the two centre halves. I don't think Rice is an England international. The majority of his passes are sideways or backwards and too many don't reach their intended target. Barkley started in the #10 role but he spent a lot of time where a DM would be expected to be, too many wayward passes, too many too late passes, too often he kept dribbling until he lost the ball. Sterling. An enigma. I always said, until about 2 years ago, that he was a sprinter and not a footballer. Pep has turned him into more of a footballer and he is a pretty efficient one as well. As with Rice and Barkley, too many of his passes are too late or misplaced but the rate of goals and assists he now has mean he is worth his place in the side. I will not comment on his manner of running

    If England make those mistakes against better sides they will get punished as Kosovo punished them and against that better side they will not get the chances they got against Kosovo. Last night's very enjoyable game should be a wake up call for England. That might seem a strange thing to say of a side that scored 5 but the concession of 3 and the manner in which they occurred is food for thought.

    Kosovo will have given many a minnow hope and, hopefully, we might see more of the minnows come and have a go instead of parking the bus
    MA agree with all that they were a joy to watch If I'm being honest I thought they were the better team over the ninety minutes ,no play acting, no cheating .I've said on here many times Celina of Swansea is the best midfielder in the Championship and I thought he proved it last night. He outshined our midfielders

  9. #9
    Join Date
    Sep 2011
    Posts
    7,376
    Quote Originally Posted by AdiSalisbury View Post
    Thought Sterling was excellent. Still don't rate Barclay though, very one footed and gives up possession too easily
    Sterling. How he has improved. Still not the finished article but an immense improvement. If he can stop running too far with the ball and losing it and improve his passing he will be well in line for UEFA and FIFA Player of the Year awards.

  10. #10
    Join Date
    Nov 2007
    Posts
    4,716
    Quote Originally Posted by mistaram View Post
    no play acting, no cheating
    Are you sure? Faking an injury, and falling / rolling into play when you're already stood on the touchline - isn't cheating? Glad we played on and scored.

Page 1 of 2 12 LastLast

Forum Info

Footymad Forums offer you the chance to interact and discuss all things football with fellow fans from around the world, and share your views on footballing issues from the latest, breaking transfer rumours to the state of the game at international level and everything in between.

Whether your team is battling it out for the Premier League title or struggling for League survival, there's a forum for you!

Gooners, Mackems, Tractor Boys - you're all welcome, please just remember to respect the opinions of others.

Click here for a full list of the hundreds of forums available to you

The forums are free to join, although you must play fair and abide by the rules explained here, otherwise your ability to post may be temporarily or permanently revoked.

So what are you waiting for? Register now and join the debate!

(these forums are not actively moderated, so if you wish to report any comment made by another member please report it.)



Posting Permissions

  • You may not post new threads
  • You may not post replies
  • You may not post attachments
  • You may not edit your posts
  •