Well they are like trains my posts, nothing for a while then two in two days! Anyway....
Once again England have came, have seen and have been conquered. And once again the media circus goes full circle.
Pre tournament, pundits and media alike were once again getting behind team England highlighting that they seemed more relaxed this time, more joyful, and that King Woy had introduced an attacking flair last seen with Brazil 1970. I am not English, but I said before the tournament that at least England were starting to play with a little more freedom, a little more adventure and giving their attacking players more license than under previous regimes.
This is course is fine in friendlies. This of course is probably fine for the first game of the tournament where things aren't won or lost. But at the end of the day, when it was all on the line in game 2, England once again resorted to type. The tempo was slower, adventure seemed cut, and they again resorted to the type of football that is safety first. England froze. Again.
This was the game where Roy should have thrown the dice. The type of game where an exhilarating 4-3 score either way would have at least seen England bow out with the public just about on their side. But alas, once again, in the critical first half of matches where your tempo is set, England seemed happy to quell the occasion. Then, when you are losing, it's EPL pace, which should have been set right from minute 1, not 71.
England are more than likely going out of this tournament, and whereas they had the opportunity to fall on their sword with some pride, once again they will be limping out with regrets and 'what ifs'. Now some scathing assessment of England's 'key men'.
This was supposed to be the tournament of Wayne. Weekly monetary intake aside (which is starting to look a back-firing joke for Man United fans going forward), he has buckled once again. He set up a goal in the Italy game; fair enough, I'll give him that. And he scored yesterday; of which you got to be there to score I suppose. But football at the highest level is decided by moments, we all know this, and Rooney messed up his lines two out of two.
Against Italy he should have scored. At this level, that is gilt edged. Hit the target and he scores.
Against Uruguay last night, a world class striker in and around the box, with a free shot, should be scoring. I refer my right honorable friends to Luis Suarez (and a half Luis Suarez at that). Clinical, decisive, taking the moment for his beloved Uruguay in style and passion. At this level, you look up to your leaders, and I'm sorry to say that Wayne Rooney has failed miserably.
My second bullet is for one of my heroes, Steven Gerard. Asked to play the dictating role in front of the back four, I'm not sure is his favorite role. Nevertheless, again, on the world stage the younger players look for direction and inspiration, and Gerrard looks just about shot these days. I'm not sure how much the last Premier League campaign has taken out of him. Both physically and mentally he is probably drained. He has carried an entire team for more or less his career at club level but in game one he was a non entity and in game two the same. The second Uruguay goal was his fault and his passing game, whether or not he had enough options in front of him, just wasn't firing.
England had the momentum after the second goal, but I got the feeling that Uruguay could pull something out of the bag regardless. Somebody like Suarez or Cavani need only one more half chance, and the game is finished.
Now onto what I felt about the teams. England are great at using words to sum up their pride playing for their country, what it means to represent their country, and the hurt they feel etc etc. But you looked at the Uruguay bench in the end, and the sheer desperation to win, the joy at winning, their hearts were almost bursting out of their chests. It's a different kind of love for their country. You see, in England these boys have been pampered, comfortable lives. You just feel that every time a Uruguayan puts on that shirt they are doing it with their families, their countrymen resonating on their psyche.
Whilst England sing their anthem with the Queen at the fore front of their minds, the Uruguayans are probably thinking about their poorest of countrymen and the kids that cheer them on. National pride is different from different angles. Suddenly money means nothing, they are the underdogs and they are proud. You get the impression that in 'that moment', they would quite literally die for the cause. I never seem to get this impression with England or its players. Joe Hart can go back to his Head and Shoulders ads, Wayne can keep signing those endorsements and taking fancy to grannies, and the rest of the team can get up to whatever mischief in night clubs that they continue to do.
What a WILL say....and after ALL that I have written there, is that the landscape of the match would have been changed dramatically if that Uruguay defender had been rightly second yellow carded. It's something that England are just not very good at, basically milking key moments for all that they have got in order to gain an advantage on the match. When all is said and done, nobody will remember that this guy should have been sent off, and that's where these foreign teams have an edge in things like this. They are willing to bend, break, cheat the rules for gain. I've no doubt that if Cahill for example had checked Suarez like that, the Uruguayan would have made sure that Cahill walked with a theatrical display of injury.
The bottom line is though, that once again England will limp out of tournament football. But where is the surprise in that?
Once again England have came, have seen and have been conquered. And once again the media circus goes full circle.
Pre tournament, pundits and media alike were once again getting behind team England highlighting that they seemed more relaxed this time, more joyful, and that King Woy had introduced an attacking flair last seen with Brazil 1970. I am not English, but I said before the tournament that at least England were starting to play with a little more freedom, a little more adventure and giving their attacking players more license than under previous regimes.
 |
| The beacons were too dim |
This was the game where Roy should have thrown the dice. The type of game where an exhilarating 4-3 score either way would have at least seen England bow out with the public just about on their side. But alas, once again, in the critical first half of matches where your tempo is set, England seemed happy to quell the occasion. Then, when you are losing, it's EPL pace, which should have been set right from minute 1, not 71.
England are more than likely going out of this tournament, and whereas they had the opportunity to fall on their sword with some pride, once again they will be limping out with regrets and 'what ifs'. Now some scathing assessment of England's 'key men'.
This was supposed to be the tournament of Wayne. Weekly monetary intake aside (which is starting to look a back-firing joke for Man United fans going forward), he has buckled once again. He set up a goal in the Italy game; fair enough, I'll give him that. And he scored yesterday; of which you got to be there to score I suppose. But football at the highest level is decided by moments, we all know this, and Rooney messed up his lines two out of two.
Against Italy he should have scored. At this level, that is gilt edged. Hit the target and he scores.
Against Uruguay last night, a world class striker in and around the box, with a free shot, should be scoring. I refer my right honorable friends to Luis Suarez (and a half Luis Suarez at that). Clinical, decisive, taking the moment for his beloved Uruguay in style and passion. At this level, you look up to your leaders, and I'm sorry to say that Wayne Rooney has failed miserably.
My second bullet is for one of my heroes, Steven Gerard. Asked to play the dictating role in front of the back four, I'm not sure is his favorite role. Nevertheless, again, on the world stage the younger players look for direction and inspiration, and Gerrard looks just about shot these days. I'm not sure how much the last Premier League campaign has taken out of him. Both physically and mentally he is probably drained. He has carried an entire team for more or less his career at club level but in game one he was a non entity and in game two the same. The second Uruguay goal was his fault and his passing game, whether or not he had enough options in front of him, just wasn't firing.
England had the momentum after the second goal, but I got the feeling that Uruguay could pull something out of the bag regardless. Somebody like Suarez or Cavani need only one more half chance, and the game is finished.
Now onto what I felt about the teams. England are great at using words to sum up their pride playing for their country, what it means to represent their country, and the hurt they feel etc etc. But you looked at the Uruguay bench in the end, and the sheer desperation to win, the joy at winning, their hearts were almost bursting out of their chests. It's a different kind of love for their country. You see, in England these boys have been pampered, comfortable lives. You just feel that every time a Uruguayan puts on that shirt they are doing it with their families, their countrymen resonating on their psyche.
Whilst England sing their anthem with the Queen at the fore front of their minds, the Uruguayans are probably thinking about their poorest of countrymen and the kids that cheer them on. National pride is different from different angles. Suddenly money means nothing, they are the underdogs and they are proud. You get the impression that in 'that moment', they would quite literally die for the cause. I never seem to get this impression with England or its players. Joe Hart can go back to his Head and Shoulders ads, Wayne can keep signing those endorsements and taking fancy to grannies, and the rest of the team can get up to whatever mischief in night clubs that they continue to do.
What a WILL say....and after ALL that I have written there, is that the landscape of the match would have been changed dramatically if that Uruguay defender had been rightly second yellow carded. It's something that England are just not very good at, basically milking key moments for all that they have got in order to gain an advantage on the match. When all is said and done, nobody will remember that this guy should have been sent off, and that's where these foreign teams have an edge in things like this. They are willing to bend, break, cheat the rules for gain. I've no doubt that if Cahill for example had checked Suarez like that, the Uruguayan would have made sure that Cahill walked with a theatrical display of injury.
The bottom line is though, that once again England will limp out of tournament football. But where is the surprise in that?
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