The Football Thread.

AustrianJohn

TTony said:

Southgate has resigned.

Potter is English and available.

Philly_Q

I was going to mention Graham Potter, but when he came to Swansea his reputation was based on building a team from a bunch of players who weren't necessarily the best individually.  Which sounds good, but it was a slow, gradual process which worked at club level (although he wasn't given the time at Chelsea). 

It doesn't seem ideally suited to international football where you're only seeing the players for a few days at a time, months apart.

RaymondLin

My personal issue with the way Southgate played his football was that his team plays in a way different to what the players play week in week out.

All the big teams now play pressing, possession football.  But not just possession in the back 4, possession further up the pitch.  That is not Southgate's style.  So he is making his team play in a way that differs to the players are used to.  Putting players that isn't in their natural position, trying Trent in midfield, Trippier on the left (surely there are other left backs beside Shaw!), Foden then Bellingham on the left.

He tried to force 3 square pegs into round holes in 1 team.  Played the team with a mindset different to what they are used to.

In short, I don't think he was playing the best abilities of their players at his disposal, which is my biggest criticism.  

Boromedic

No surprises really, he's taken the team as far as he can and he's been the most successful manager in my lifetime, to see us reach the latter stages of all the major tournaments during his tenure has been brilliant to be fair. He's just fell short on the big occasions but he's done better than the supposed big names before him. Yes we had some luck, but we've had bad luck before so it all evens out.

I hope they can transition now to being a more entertaining team on the pitch, and get results, which to be honest is really all the matters in the end. I'd love to see Klopp do it personally, don't think he will, Potter isn't a bad choice as I don't think Howe will leave Newcastle.

Wait and see eh!

guitars4you

Gerrard and Lampard were listed as options on the BBC - God help us especially if it is FFL

Would Howe want it - Yet equally he is only a step away from his bosses chucking him under a bus for a 'bigger' more established name - Sooner or later his bosses will be expecting more

Best wishes to Gareth - 3 semi's and 2 finals is not to be sniffed at - But alas 'nearly made it' is different to a set of gold medals - I feel it is the right time to change but the poxy nations league starts in under 2 months and we are now relegated to the 2nd tier, which won't help our ratings for the WC qualifying rounds with selection to be made in Dec

I think Howe could be a good option - Not so sure about Potter - Great at Brighton flopped at Chelsea albeit not an ideal base to work from and no time allowed to establish a platform - But now we are wondering how good is he 

Philly_Q

guitars4you said:

Gerrard and Lampard were listed as options on the BBC 

LOL.  Why not have them as joint managers?  Demonstrating once again that "it's impossible to get them to work together effectively"...

Boromedic

^^hahaha, very good

UnclePsychosis

Imagine hounding out the most successful England manager since the era of the black and white newsreel and then having Lampard and Gerrard listed as seemingly creditable replacements. 

Its very hard to escape the feeling that there are huge swathes of the English media, and of their fanbase, who absolutely do deserve to be punted out by Iceland in the last sixteen. 

thecolourbox

There's not a great lot of choices by the looks of it. Surely Lampard or Gerrard would be as hopeless as they've been at club level? Potter is a club manager who builds, not really a guy to get things clicking straight away with players you only see a few days every few months.

LionAquaLooper

munckee said:

That’s assuming of course Howe wants a job where you can get to a semi a quarter and a final and then get pelted by your own fans for qualifying first from your group at a euros.  

Yes shame on those fans who were throwing bottles and whatnot at the team - even though they topped the group no less.  Disgraceful and disgusting.

mrkb

Harry Kane for player- manager !!!

Philly_Q

I think Uncle Roy Hodgson's available....

munckee

They’ve just said on Sky that in the 25 tournaments since 1966 we had won 7 knockout games, Southgate won 9 in 4 tournaments and lost one final on penalties and another to a goal in the last 5 minutes.  

guitars4you

munckee said:

They’ve just said on Sky that in the 25 tournaments since 1966 we had won 7 knockout games, Southgate won 9 in 4 tournaments and lost one final on penalties and another to a goal in the last 5 minutes.  

I also heard on R5 the other day, that in all the WC and Euro's KO matches whereby we went a goal behind, that we only came back to win in 5 of those matches - One was 1966 - The other 4 were under Southgate - Every other time if we went 1 down we lost 

guitars4you

Man U fans might happily suggest Steve McClaren - A chance to get rid of him, indeed if he does anything positive at OT - A man who somehow keeps walking into good jobs without any good record behind him 

Boromedic

guitars4you said:

Man U fans might happily suggest Steve McClaren - A chance to get rid of him, indeed if he does anything positive at OT - A man who somehow keeps walking into good jobs without any good record behind him 

I dunno, as a Boro fan, getting us to the UEFA cup final was unbelievable tbh, and we did it playing good football. The Quarters and Semi finals, coming back to win was simply some of the best times to be a Boro fan. I hold him in high regard just for that, I appreciate his other records aren't the best!

DrCornelius

I wonder if Wenger fancies the job ?

Philly_Q

guitars4you said:

munckee said:

They’ve just said on Sky that in the 25 tournaments since 1966 we had won 7 knockout games, Southgate won 9 in 4 tournaments and lost one final on penalties and another to a goal in the last 5 minutes.  

I also heard on R5 the other day, that in all the WC and Euro's KO matches whereby we went a goal behind, that we only came back to win in 5 of those matches - One was 1966 - The other 4 were under Southgate - Every other time if we went 1 down we lost 

The stats and facts are all undeniable, he's by far the most successful England manager since Ramsey.  And yet ... it does seem to be widely acknowledged that tactics and in-game management aren't his strong point.  Couldn't that have been improved by changes in the wider coaching team?  Maybe the manager shouldn't have the last word on absolutely everything?

TTony

munckee said:

and lost one final on penalties and another to a goal in the last 5 minutes.  

... although they only made it to the final - to lose in the last 5 minutes - by equalising against the footballing powerhouse of Slovakia in the 96th minute ...


England's team was drawn from the best club sides across Europe, and the squad was the most highly valued (FWIW).  They should be "the best" individual players.  And yet they failed to function effectively, either individually or as a team.  The job of the manager is to take individual parts and make them work as a cohesive whole. 

Southgate failed in that respect.

But it's not only down to him.  Many of the players also looked exhausted.  I don't think the entire blame was the wrong formation, the safety-first approach, or playing them in wrong positions.  They just didn't look like they had the energy.  Kane was lethargic.  Saka got lots of positive comments, but he scored one and made another via a lucky deflection.  Bellingham had one moment of genius/skill (or luck) and a few nice touches, but spent more time looking moody.  Trippier looked completely out of depth. 

Too much football?

LionAquaLooper

DrCornelius said:

I wonder if Wenger fancies the job ?

But why would he want to improve a team who might end up beating his home country in some tournament down the line?  I know Erikson did it but I wondered that back then as well.