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Oh bollocks. 12 minutes of knuckle biting……
Don't want extra time - there's Tour highlights at 7!
that was almost worth it for Pickford's absolute class eppy at Sterling
Your joy on England scoring is overwhelming however 😆
On the contrary. But then Argentina aren’t playing in this comp.
Edit. Oh look, more good work from Shaw 😆
Don’t go defensive, and stop playing.
Err, I think it’s a bit late for that.
Very quiet here in the Vaterland....
I hate 2-0
You feel you can't lose now, then leak a goal, then you feel 'we couldn't, could we?' and before you know it.
Binners has gone very quiet. Hope he’s OK..
Hang on.. I think they just showed a shot of him in the crowd.
Jaysus Raheem, what did I just say? Keep playing, don't go defensive. You'd have made a forward run there if you weren't ahead.
Edit. Oh look, more good work from Shaw
We're counting reasonably competent assists to an assist now eh? 😛
26 minutes of added time
(it feels like it)
Funny how things start happening when Grealish is on the pitch rather than sat on his arse.
brilliant by Walker getting back for the Muller chance, he made 10 yards on him and while Muller should have scored he took the chance to knock it wide of Pickford off the table.
England were much better than Germany and imo thoroughly deserved the win. Confidence will be sky high now but a couple of much better teams than Germany are still in the competition
Was England all the way there. Germany were honkin.
Err, I think it’s a bit late for that.
If ave to see the heat maps but for England that was anything but defencive. They played superbly. They neutralised the German wingbacks and without them, Germany were without any real thrust. The goals, indeed the best attacks came from wide on the left (ahem!).
I think the shape suited Shaw.
Look, this isn't the Germany we are used to, same with Spain and France and others. England got the tactics just right, given how they were deployed. I still think it was the wrong shape but the players did what they were asked, retained concentration, and that's the best they can do. I have my doubts about Southgate, still.
Germany got a sterling Kaning off Grealish Britain, shaw did!
Yup pretty solid performance and Sweden/Ukraine in the next round is a fairly good chance to progress further. Can't really argue with 4 clean sheets and 3 wins.
Maybe. The problem remains that Sterling really isn't a wide player. He and Kane operate best in mostly the same places. So they still have to solve the wide attacking problem. I think it's no coincidence that the goals came when Ster!ing went to the right, Grealish came out to the left. Crosses from wide, Sterling cutting in. Dunno what the answer is. Rashford, Saka and one of Sterling/Kane? Heck of a gamble.
I think it’s no coincidence that the goals came when Ster!ing went to the right,
Mrs Dubs commented they were almost the same pattern. I was to nervous to notice.
. I was to nervous to notice.
Focussing on the minutae is the only way I can poke my head up from behind the sofa.
Funny how things start happening when Grealish comes on to the pitch with 30 mins to go to torment a tiring opposition after England have shut them out for an hour.
Subs have been more influential in this tournament than any other than I can remember. Southgate has got his tactics spot on for how this tournament is playing out. England are playing like the Italy of old while Mancini has modelled his side on the premier league (apparently).
We'll see who's got it right in the final.
England are playing like the Italy of old
I didn't see a 12 man cattenacio and the lone forward going to ground everytime he got the ball?
that's a good hit.
Having been critical of Sterling's performances in the previous matches I will credit him with a much better performance in today's match. I thought he played really well - apart from his attempt to play Mueller in. And Macguire had a much more solid game at the back - even if he does seem painfully right footed. I thought Saka had a good first half as well. Agree that this isn't a vintage Germany side but they still have the potential to damage you - as Portugal found out. Not the prettiest match to watch for a lot of it but job done for now. 🙂
that’s a good hit.
Wasn't it just. You expect that to land in row zed but his technique was superb. He's a city player isnt he?
Playing the entire rest of the game within 20 yards of your net though?
And Macguire had a much more solid game at the back
The one thing about a back 3 that I like. Macguire is much better when he can be aggressive and defend off the front foot. Having Stones' sense and Walker's speed to cover allows him to do that.
Ukraine's winner was a cracker.
Awful challenge for that red card 😱
Absolutely perfect delivery.
Ukraine’s winner was a cracker.
Utterly undefendable
Awful challenge for that red card 😱
I'm torn on that one. Horrible coming together. The Swedish player kicks a loose ball. There was no challenge per se. The Ukrainian guy has to realise he is getting there second and bail out. Are we now saying you can't play a loose ball with your foot more than 6" off the ground? Games buggered. He did catch him with his follow through, and players have known for a while that the follow through would be judged. I don't want to see collisions like that, I also don't want to see a game where you can get sent off for quite rightly playing a loose ball
I'm with you there. No malice, no intent even, stretching to reach a loose ball. I think it was the outcome that caused the decision.
On the other hand - increasingly players are supposed to be aware of the potential to cause injury and not make tackles that could endanger their opponents. Either or both could have ended up the injured party, either or both *could* have pulled out.
I'm not sure where the balance is because that could have ended the Ukrainian's career, looks like it's ended his tournament for sure. But we want it to be a quick game with tackles still, and misjudgements will happen.
I think that's the downside of VAR. Look at it in SLO mo and you think he hung his foot out there, studs up for a long time waiting for the Ukrainian. In real time it looks like not much. I think the ref got it right with the yellow. Agree the red was based on the outcome, not his actions, which aren't in his control.
I would compare it to headers - players constantly go in late, often heading an opponent in the head, just as long after the ball has gone as that. Way more dangerous, completely routine, hardly ever gets called as a foul. Look at the German who launched himself into Macguires midiff when Macguire was heading the ball 3 feet above that. Could have ended horribly (likely for the German) but still. No foul even.
The Red card was incredibly harsh in my view. His eyes were on the ball and his intention was to volley it clear. You can't do that with your foot on the floor. It was an unfortunate collision and looked bloody painful but not a red. When the ref went to the VAR screen the editor showed him a still of the high foot first. That seemed to make up his mind. He hesitated when he saw the slo-mo replay but I thought that if he'd seen it in real time first, he'd take a different view. Having said that VAR has been used very well in this tournament. Last night was an exception to the rule.
There was a challange afterwards where a swedish player took a knee to the head, and I found myself thinking "if the high boot was a red card, why is a knee to the head ok and not even worth checking with VAR?"
looked bloody painful
Slight understatement....!
I cried out when I saw that and GF came running wondering what I had done to myself.
@sobriety - that was when Berg got clattered but he went in to the challenge really low blocking a potential shot. On the replay it looked bad but it wasn't foul or dangerous play, just 2 committed players
but a couple of much better teams than Germany are still in the competition
One of them is England 🙂
I know it's been said a million times but the standard of refereeing and application of VAR in general has been soooooooooooo much better than in the Premier League (Wales fans may not agree :P). I don't get why we get it so wrong. In general the referees seem fitter also.
It is the best referees from Europe that are selected, the standard should be better than any individual national league. And there are fewer games per match day for the "analysts" to highlight the mistakes from
They have also dictated a slightly different application of the rules, ie thicker lines for offside decisions. But they still seem to be finding excuses to back a referees mistake rather than correct it.
But they still seem to be finding excuses to back a referees mistake rather than correct it.
Interpretation I think; VAR is there to correct glaring errors rather than every single error particularly when some of those are very grey areas. It's not like offside, or did the ball cross the line, is a tackle a foul or not is opinion a lot of the time.
In fact, I was a little surprised by the red card last night, I could see factors that would justify not over-ruling - it wasn't as if the Ref had missed it completely, the tackler won the ball, there was a lack of intent, and so on. But once told to look at it it usually only goes one way.
It is the best referees from Europe that are selected, the standard should be better than any individual national league.
And for some bizarre reason, one from CONMEBOL. They've sent a Spaniard to the COPA. Don't know what that's all about.
It's basically the Champions League pool. With all the good and bad that brings.
But they still seem to be finding excuses to back a referees mistake rather than correct it.
The philosophy behind it is they want the decision made on the field, then they'll review it. Of course, if that means constantly overruling the refs, they will eventually get so fed up of being made to look stupid they'll walk and the fans will turn. So they have to set the bar for error so insanely high, it's hardly ever going to happen. The issues of fact (offside, ball over the line) are easy to wave away as VAR simply being able to measure better than the human eye.
My deep disappointment is that havent even tried to use it to eliminate the bits that most fans seemed to want it to address - the diving, snide niggles, ankle biting, all-in wrestling in the box, off the ball stuff and the afters. Like all the forwards in this tournie that have been grabbing the shirt, shorts and goolies of defenders when waiting for long balls, then falling down as soon as the ball bounces 29 yards off them, because the defender was hand checking them and getting free kicks.
Never a red surely?
Barely a foul. Takes ball first, no studs involved, barely any follow through. Spaniard collapsed like a chocolate teapot but with more screaming. Oliver fell for it as per. VAR not going to overrule given the threshold.
Pretty sure there was an actual scissor tackle in the last Spain game, by Spain. Got a yellow if I recall.
Love the Italian national anthem, it's like a race to the end.
I like the way the Italian lying prone on the deck miraculously recovered to join in the celebrations once they scored.
The ref is being constantly fooled by Verratti's play-acting.
Love the Italian national anthem, it’s like a race to the end.
I always think it's over and THEN they start singing.