Football

[Jamesrob637]

Offside second. Come on the 3 lions!! You can do this

 

[Iskra]

England score! But now we have to worry about Spain…

 

[Ivor]

Get in!

 

[AlterEgo]

What a superb goal.

 

[DarloRich]

Southgate - rubbish. Sack him. Clueless.

Err: Final. Olymiastadion. Berlin. 20:00 Sunday.

( never a penalty. Who cares!)

 

[Haywain]

Southgate - rubbish. Sack him. Clueless.

Bloody right, no idea. How can we get close to winning anything with him in charge?

 

[DarloRich]

Bloody right, no idea. How can we get close to winning anything with him in charge?

back to back Euro finals.

Just read that again. England. Back to back Euro finals. England!

 

[westv]

England score! But now we have to worry about Spain…

Better to be worrying about Spain than to be thinking about what time the flight back to England leaves tomorrow morning

 

[Purple Train]

( never a penalty. Who cares!)

And it's not as if it's a penalty without which we'd definitely have gone out, either!

I have no expectation of beating Spain, but, if there are still people saying Southgate's useless after a second-placed finish, then I think they're in something of a fantasy. I still think he should probably bow out on a high, mind, as he does seem a bit jaded (and who can blame him after eight years), but he has done a wonderful, wonderful job.

 

[YorkshireBear]

Lots of people saying Gareth Southgate is useless all tournament. Well if getting to two Euro finals in a row is useless I'll take it any day of the week.

Best performance of tournament by far and felt a deserved victory, some fortune with the penalty but sometimes luck goes your way.

 

[philosopher]

Southgate - rubbish. Sack him. Clueless.

Err: Final. Olymiastadion. Berlin. 20:00 Sunday.

( never a penalty. Who cares!)

If England win on Sunday, I bet there will still be people criticising Southgate for only winning by getting lucky, being too defensive, etc.

 

[Trackman]

If England win on Sunday, I bet there will still be people criticising Southgate for only winning by getting lucky, being too defensive, etc.

I wouldn't say that, a win is a win, by hook or by crook.

 

[Haywain]

I think it's also worth mentioning that we have never before reached the final of a major tournament outside of England.

 

[Norm_D_Ploom]

Southgate - rubbish. Sack him. Clueless.

Err: Final. Olymiastadion. Berlin. 20:00 Sunday.

( never a penalty. Who cares!)

I didn't think it was a 1st but once you saw the replay he's not in control of the challenge and is endangering his opponent.

Pen

You can usually tell by the reaction of the players and they all went up for it.

 

[Cowley]

I think he steadied things at the beginning and we did fairly well at the first two tournaments (although there was a healthy dose of luck involved with those). Tactically he’s inept though and despite appearing to be quite an intelligent man he just doesn’t seem to be able to adjust his thinking.

Well.

That was me a couple of weeks ago and I’m more than happy to say that I clearly got things entirely wrong, I think it’s definitely time to eat a bit of humble pie...

Bit by bit the team has come more and more into this competition and that performance was excellent, with us properly bossing the game at times and finishing them off right at the end of normal time.

Yep. England in another final and it’s wonderful!

Ps - I now can’t watch them anywhere other on the telly that I’ve watched every game on as I feel like I’ll jinx it.

 

[Trackman]

I think it's also worth mentioning that we have never before reached the final of a major tournament outside of England.

Is this their 3rd major final?

 

[Haywain]

Is this their 3rd major final?

It was the 7th or 8th* semi-final, which is perhaps more significant.

* Depends what you count!

 

[Ted633]

Is this their 3rd major final?

Yes. Both of the previous finals (1966 & 2021) have been at Wembley. First one abroad.

 

[778]

Well.

That was me a couple of weeks ago and I’m more than happy to say that I clearly got things entirely wrong, I think it’s definitely time to eat a bit of humble pie...

Bit by bit the team has come more and more into this competition and that performance was excellent, with us properly bossing the game at times and finishing them off right at the end of normal time.

Yep. England in another final and it’s wonderful!

Ps - I now can’t watch them anywhere other on the telly that I’ve watched every game on as I feel like I’ll jinx it.

I hope there are no big problems on the railways on Sunday (points failiures, train cancellations etc). It won't look good for the TOCs if people can't get home in time to watch the final.

 

[DarloRich]

Bloody right, no idea. How can we get close to winning anything with him in charge?

checking social media it is luck, mismanagement and entirely despite Southgate that we have reached the final. Cant people just enjoy that we are in another final? Could the plastics, FIFA boys & talk sport brain donors not have a day off?

he's not in control of the challenge and is endangering his opponent.

this kind of statement is destroying football. "Endangering an opponent " ( sigh) is doing a big Dunc on someone not trying to block a goal!

 

[Jamesrob637]

I hope there are no big problems on the railways on Sunday (points failiures, train cancellations etc). It won't look good for the TOCs if people can't get home in time to watch the final.

Northern will have even fewer staff than normal you can guarantee!

 

[Xenophon PCDGS]

Now that England have reached the final of this tournament, will that awful "Scummy Gnome" anthem be heard again in the next few days....

Where has the "Scummy Gnome" been living for the last 58 years?

 

[Trackman]

Northern will have even fewer staff than normal you can guarantee!

It will be just be like any other Sunday in Norternland for pax.

Now that England have reached the final of this tournament, will that awful "Scummy Gnome" anthem be heard again in the next few days....

Gets on my nerves too.

 

[Bantamzen]

Whilst I am extremely happy for us to have made the final, we should be under no illusions that Southgate's tactics at times have risked us going out more than they have saved games. We have the squad to play way better and way more positive than we have for most of the tournament, although being fair we played by far our best game last night. But Southgate is going to have to change how he approaches the final, we really, really cannot afford to sit back against the Spanish, we have to play the kind of football that got us to Germany in the first place. If we sit back their midfield and wingers could tear us apart, but if like France in the second half of the other semi final we get on the front foot Spain are capable of falling back and inviting pressure.

Personally I think this is going to be a very tight game, with Spain beating us by 15 ankle grabs....

Seriously though I am not going to say that we can win it, but I'm thinking it loudly. We just need to let the players, well play.

 

[Ivor]

Personally I think this is going to be a very tight game, with Spain beating us by 15 ankle grabs....

Seriously though I am not going to say that we can win it, but I'm thinking it loudly. We just need to let the players, well play.

I was pleasantly surprised last night that we actually looked so much better than the earlier games & I’m banking on Spain having their first bad game on Sunday.

I’m going for Spain 1 England 3

No I’ve not been drinking the third goal we go for & get late in the game & not sit deep for much of the second half.

We are capable of breaking forward if the right players are on the pitch at that time as in Bellingham, Palmer, Saka, Watkins…….

So RF England fans what’s your score predictions?

 

[Kite159]

Regardless if England win or loss on Sunday I can see it being Southgate's last game in charge.

Either going out on a high note or a "I've taken this team as far as I can, time to hand over to a new manager who can take the next step to win the final".

As for Sunday, it will depend on the referee being strong enough not to be fooled by the Spanish doing impressions of Tom Daley or being dirty

 

[Purple Train]

So RF England fans what’s your score predictions?

My heart says 1-1 and England win on penalties, my head says 3-1 to Spain. I'm not terribly convinced by our defence, and Spain's attacking play has been extremely good.

 

[Xenophon PCDGS]

As for Sunday, it will depend on the referee being strong enough not to be fooled by the Spanish doing impressions of Tom Daley or being dirty

Of course, nothing like that is ever committed by the England team players...

 

[dangie]

Of course, nothing like that is ever committed by the England team players...

Like the quality of their football, the Spaniard’s are just better at it.

 

[Xenophon PCDGS]

Having mentioned to my neighbour, a very deeply football-imbued Caledonian, even older than me, about the comment that I made about the "Scummy Gnome", he saw the funny side of what might happen by letting the "Scummy Gnome" present the trophy to the winning team in the final and then go off with the winners for the interim time that the next Euro finals will be played...