World Cup Roundup – Groups A and B

FIFA is a criminal organization that sells a legal product, and Qatar have been more than happy to overpay for that product as it helps them sportswash their country.

Group A

Winners – Netherlands

Runners Up – Senegal

Eliminated – Ecuador and Qatar

The Dutch went for a stroll today and beat Qatar 3-0 without ever getting into full gear. Qatar are a flat-out bad team that should never have been at this tournament. They only qualified because they are the host nation and did not bring a competitive edge to this group. Well done to the Dutch for winning, but let’s not pretend that it was a challenging match for them today. Dutch striker (and rumored Manchester United transfer target) Cody Gakpo is one to watch in the race for the Golden Boot, given out to the tournament’s top striker.

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Senegal vs. Ecuador was a much different affair. The way the the group shook out, the winner of this match would join Netherlands in the next round. Ecuador only needed a draw technically, but The African side won 2-1 and it was not an easy match for either side. Winger Ismaïla Sarr put the Senegalese ahead 1-0 from the penalty spot on 44 minutes after winning the penalty himself via a foul, but Ecuador persevered and got an equalizer on 67 minutes from midfielder Moisés Caicedo. It was a tap-in from close range for Caicedo, after the ball was flicked on from a corner. Poor marking from Senegal, but well done to Caicedo for being in the right place at the right time.

Ecuador’s jubilance was perhaps a tad strong though, as the Ecuadorians conceded again just three minutes later when center back Kalidou Koulibaly powered it home from about 8 yards out. Senegal had won a free kick in the right channel, and the clearance from Ecuador unluckily fell straight to Koulibaly. Center backs aren’t always the best finishers, but there was no mistake from the big man on this occasion. Ecuador pushed and pushed in the final 20+ minutes to find the miracle goal to send them through, but the west Africans held firm. It was tense, but it was clear that Ecuador’s main goal-scoring threat Enner Valencia was not 100% fit this match. It will be disappointing from their point of view to go out like this, especially after the good results against Qatar and the Dutch.

Some of my more observant readers will note that I predicted Netherlands and Senegal to get out of this group before the tournament started! Happy to be right with a prediction for once!

Group B

Winners – England

Runners up – USA

Eliminated – Iran, Wales

England needed only a draw to advance today, and they even could have done so with a loss as long as it wasn’t by four goals or more. But as the England match kicked off and got underway, it was very apparent that Wales would not be scoring four goals against them. The first half was goal-less but much better for England than their previous match against the USA. Striker Marcus Rashford went close after being through on goal early on, only for his effort to be snuffed out by a very alert Welsh keeper in Danny Ward. Wales maybe had a half chance or two towards the end of the half, but England keeper Jordan Pickford was never seriously tested. England were doing a much better job of running the counter-press and looked to be worthy of a goal.

England finally turned all their positive possession and attacking intent into a goal on 50 minutes when forward Phil Foden won a free kick in a very dangerous position, just to the left of center of the goal roughly 20 yards out. After a discussion among some of the players, Rashford stepped up and hit the ball very sweetly with his right foot. It flew over/through the Welsh wall and flew into the right corner of Ward’s net. A great strike from a great player!

England got their second roughly a minute and a half later, when Rashford won the ball high up the pitch on the right wing. He played the ball forward to striker Harry Kane, who was on the edge of the right side of the penalty area. Without even looking up, Kane hit a low cross that was met at the far post by Foden, who slotted home with his first touch from a tight angle. Another great goal, but for a different reason. The first goal was a marvel of technical skill. The second goal was the result of aggressive pressing and a sublime final ball from Kane.

At 2-0 the match was mostly done and dusted, but Wales responded with their best chance of the match when a deflected strike from distance nearly wrong-footed Pickford, but he recovered enough to push the ball away. England got their 3rd on 68 minutes when Rashford was allowed to run into the box and cut inside substitute left back Connor Roberts. He lashed a fierce shot straight at Ward, who made a colossal error by allowing the shot to slip between his legs. It was poor from Ward, but take nothing away from Rashford. Goalkeeping errors only happen as a result of aggressive play, and England were very aggressive today. Rashford now suddenly finds himself in the race for the Golden Boot!

The Welsh looked finished, and truthfully England looked much more likely to score a fourth than Wales did to get their first. The substitutes were running wild for a bit there. England will be very happy with this result after the rather tepid display against the Americans, and it proves that England are at their best when they play aggressively and press high up the pitch. Sitting back and defending, simply put, does not suit this group of players. We need to carry this aggressive form forward as the tournament progresses.

Wales will of course be disappointed to not have done better at this tournament. They only scored one goal and earned only one point as a result of it. They have quality in this team, but they could never put it together for 90 minutes. Their best half of play was the second one against the Americans in the opening group match, but one half of good play out of six is usually not enough to secure progression. It will be interesting to see how star players Aaron Ramsey and Gareth Bale handle this loss. Bale says he isn’t retiring from Wales, but we will see if his mind changes about that once he’s back on his beloved golf courses. One thing that’s for sure is that he looked like a passenger today, and had to go off at half time due to apparent injury.

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The match between USA and Iran was much more closely-contested. The Americans were the better team by far in the opening 45 minutes. They were running at Iran and controlling possession effectively. While they squandered numerous chances and were caught offside one or twice, they got their breakthrough via attacking midfielder Christian Pulisic, who bundled the ball home from close range after a good cross from right back Sergiño Dest. Pulisic hurt himself while scoring and had to come off, but the Americans were good value for their lead. Iran was struggling to put passes together and to hold on to the ball. Iran did not have a shot on goal in the opening half.

The Iranians did grow into the game a little more as the second half started and wore on, but they struggled to seriously test USA keeper Matt Turner. Iran’s final ball was lacking all match, and despite 9 minutes of extra time, they could not find the equalizer that would have sent the Americans home. After a solid defensive effort, USA held on to win 1-0.

While the Iranians were disappointing, I can’t really blame them for playing as poorly as they did today. It’s very clear the players and their families are under a heavy degree of scrutiny by the Iranian government, and there were rumors pre-match that any sort of protest by the players against the regime would result in harm happening to the players’ families. I can’t imagine having to play under those conditions. Not taking anything away from the USMNT today, but I have to question just how much those negative emotions impacted their play. #standwithwomen #iranianwomen #mahsaamini

For the Americans, this was more of the same. They are young, fast, and athletic; but it’s very clear they lack a strong center-forward. They would be a much more dangerous team with a Kane or Olivier Giroud of their own. They need a big, strong forward who can hold off a challenge in the box and finish with aplomb. The defense has played well so far, and I have been especially impressed with midfielders Weston McKennie and Tyler Adams, but the Round of 16 will be a much tougher test than Iran was today.

I also thought England and USA would get out of this group before the tournament! 4 for 4 so far!

USA vs. Netherlands – Saturday December 3, 2022 at 7 am PST

England vs. Senegal – Sunday December 4, 2022 at 11 am PST

World Cup Roundup – England Remain Top of Group B, Qatar Eliminated

Qatar is a terrible country with terrible laws and FIFA are holding a World Cup on the backs of slave labor.

Qatar vs. Senegal

Senegal won 3-1 and never really looked like being seriously threatened. Qatar are simply not good enough to compete at this level, and they only qualified because they’re the host nation. I do not wish any ill will towards the individual players in the team, but its frankly a sham that they’re even here at the tournament. Very happy to see them go out. They are not only the first team eliminated this year, they are the first host nation to be eliminated after two matches.

Ecuador vs. Netherlands

The surprising Ecuadorians managed to get themselves a 1-1 draw with a much more talented Netherlands side thanks to a late goal from Enner Valencia, who is now top-scorer at this World Cup with 3 goals. Striker Cody Gakpo had put the Dutch ahead with a very good strike early on, but the Dutch could not find a second and Ecuador came away with a very important point.

Group A is now down to three teams – Ecuador, Netherlands, and Senegal. Given that the Dutch play Qatar in their last match, they’ll be fancied to go through. Second place (and maybe first, depending on the goal differential) is going to come down to the Ecuador vs. Senegal match. Ecuador’s hopes are pinned largely on the fitness of Valencia, who was stretchered off with injury in this match after scoring.

Wales vs. Iran

This was the minor upset of the day, with Iran winning 2-0 thanks to two late goals. The game was choppy and staccato for most of it’s duration, but it all really kicked off in the final 15 minutes of play. Wales keeper Wayne Hennessey was sent off on 86 minutes for a bad foul after he failed to get to the ball ahead of an onrushing Iranian forward. The collision was a tough one to watch and it’s hard to argue against the red card there. Wales were down a man and their starting keeper, which certainly had an effect on them.

Iran got their breakthrough goal towards the end of 9 minutes of stoppage time via substitute midfielder Roozbeh Chesmi. The Welsh defense only half-cleared a cross from the left, and it fell to Chesmi in acres of space just outside the box. He unleashed a finessed shot from the edge of the box into the right side of the goal past substitute keeper Danny Ward. A late winner is always sensational to witness, and this was no exception. All the Iranian fans in attendance were beside themselves, and rightly so.

Wales poured forward to find an equalizer, but were instead hit for a second in the 11th minute of stoppage time on the counter-attack by winger Ramin Rezaeian. Iran had an extra man over on the Welsh, and it was a simple pass and chipped finish that sealed a famous three points for them. Well done to those lads for going and getting a result like this. There is an awful lot of political turmoil in that country right now, and the emotions of winning a match like this might give their fellow countrymen (and women!) something to cheer for when it’s desperately needed.

Wales, for their part, were very poor. They were never really in this match. Their two best players – Gareth Bale and Aaron Ramsey – failed to make any significant impact. While Wales are not mathematically eliminated, they need a victory over England and for the other match to go their way in order to get out of this group. They currently sit bottom of the group on 1 point. Iran are 2nd with 3 points.

England vs. USA

Alright, here we go. This is the one I have been waiting on since the groups were announced. As an England fan living in America, this one was always going to be a special match. I was secretly expecting England to win, but mainly I really did not want the Three Lions to lose. American football fans online are insufferable when they win, and if they beat England the vitriol would be positively prolific. Unfortunately, it turned out to be one to forget for the neutral. A 0-0 draw is usually not a formula for an entertaining match.

The headline here is that England played poorly and the Americans played slightly better than most expected. Striker Harry Kane had the first half chance at the goal around the 10 minute mark, but his effort was blocked by a US defender. American midfielder Weston McKennie blazed over keeper Jordan Pickford’s bar from inside the box about 10 minutes after that, and then USA midfielder Christian Pulisic hit the crossbar from a tight angle on 33 minutes. England’s next good chance came just before half time, with midfielder Mason Mount’s effort parried away from distance by American keeper Matt Turner.

There were even fewer chances in the second half. England were defending well thanks to Harry Maguire and John Stones, but the attack was absolutely dismal. Maguire was on hand to clear a succession of corners around the hour mark, but again England could not find consistency going forward. Kane looked decidedly off the pace today, as did wingers Raheem Sterling and Bukayo Saka.

And once again, the main question about this England team is the manager. Gareth Southgate named an unchanged side today and also did not really change the tactics from the Iran match, which ultimately was to England’s detriment. But the much bigger issue is his repeated inability to make the substitution or tactical change that enables England to find a way through. Most would agree with bringing Jack Grealish on, but why also a defensive midfielder in Jordan Henderson when England need a goal? But why not start Grealish outright? Why wait so long to bring on winger/forward Marcus Rashford when Saka and Sterling are clearly struggling? Why keep starting Mason Mount when we have the likes of Phil Foden on the bench? Why not use Foden at all? These honest and fair questions surrounding his managerial skills will continue to be asked every time England doesn’t get a good result. Southgate clearly believes in the players that he likes and he believes heavily in his system. That’s fine and it’s produced some decent results for England, but once teams figure out that system he needs to be able to change it on the fly. England have plenty of talent, it just needs to be put to good use.

At the end of the day though, a draw is not the worst thing in this situation. England remain top Group B on 4 points, while the Americans are 3rd with 2. England are still in a good position to get out of the group, but they are far from guaranteed to be group winners. They will need to beat Wales outright in order to win the group. If they draw or lose, then all three of the other teams could find their way to the next round.

The Americans can take a fair amount of pride in this result, but it’s clear they lack a finisher. They frustrated England very effectively today, but I questioned the tactic of trying to beat England in the air when it came to their own attacking play. It was clear that Maguire was dominating the area in the air, and he struggles at times with smaller and quicker attackers. Americans would be fair in asking why Gio Reyna was not brought on until late. but they need a victory over Iran to progress. Another draw won’t be enough.

Group B Matchday 1 – Americans Held by Wales, England Steamroll Iran

First things first – FIFA and the government of Qatar are absolutely horrendous entities. This tournament should not have been held in this country.

USA vs. Wales

Let’s start with this one since most of my readers are Americans. Classic game of two halves here. The Americans came out with tenacity and a high work-rate in the first half, and Wales really struggled to get a foot in the game. The Americans’ ability to press high up the pitch was causing Wales all kinds of problems. Even when they were on the ball, they couldn’t find space to hit long passes. The work rate and passing of Weston McKennie and Yunus Musah were particularly impressive. It seemed that the Welsh were tactically okay with letting the Americans have the ball while trying to hit the Americans on the counter-attack via speedy wingers Daniel James and Gareth Bale.

That tactical plan did not really work in the first half though, and the Americans cashed in on a golden opportunity on 36 minutes courtesy of winger Tim Weah (son of former Balon d’Or winner current President of Liberia, George Weah). Some neat passing in midfield led to Christian Pulisic being allowed to run towards the Welsh goal unchallenged, and Weah made an excellent diagonal run in behind the back-4. Pulisic spotted his run and played an excellent ball to him, and Weah then used the angle created by his run to re-direct the ball home past keeper Wayne Hennessey. It was nothing less than the Americans deserved for their tenacity, possession, and work-rate. Wales limped into half time after that, but they managed to keep the Americans from adding another.

Wales manager Rob Page brought on striker Kieffer Moore at half time, and his impact was felt almost immediately. In the first 45 minutes, Wales had no outlet. They had no one up front who could hold onto the ball and/or win fouls while supporting players ran up the pitch. Moore changed all that. His big frame was very useful for Wales, and all of a sudden they had a lot more possession in their attacking third. Moore had a header go over USA keeper Matt Turner’s crossbar around 66 minutes that he really should have better with. But as with the Americans in the first half, you sensed a goal was coming.

And indeed, the Welsh got their vital equalizer on 83 minutes from the penalty spot. While this referee can be rightly criticized for some of his decisions in this match, the penalty decision was spot-on. USMNT defender Tim Ream was marking Bale in the box when he elected to go through the back of Bale in an effort to win the ball. He did make some contact with the ball, but it is generally a very bad idea to go through the back of an attacking player in your box with a 1-0 lead. His knee came into contact with Bale and Bale went down like he’d been shot, as is to be expected at this level of the game. The referee pointed to the spot, and Bale stepped up to dispatch the penalty with power into the right hand corner. Turner did go the right way to make the save, but there was just too much power and height on the ball to keep it out. 1-1, and the first goal scored by a Welshman at the World Cup in 64 years!

As stoppage time approached, the already-physical game became even tougher, with challenges flying in from both sides. Neither team was really able to fashion a good chance. Substitute Wales winger Brennan Johnson tested Turner with a shot from a tight angle, but that was about it. The match ended 1-1, which was probably a fair result given how it played out. The Yanks were better in the first half, the Welsh better in the second. USA supporters will be disappointed with how the match ended, and the Welsh will be disappointed with how it began. Both teams will need to play better to make a deep run at this tournament.

If I’m a USA supporter, I am very concerned about the health and fitness of McKennie. He was the best player on the pitch in the opening 45 minutes, and the game really changed when he went off. I am also concerned about the 2nd half response by USMNT manager Gregg Berhalter, or perhaps the lack thereof. For some mysterious reason (and this may have partly been due to McKennie coming off), the Americans stopped attacking the Welsh through the middle of the pitch. They instead elected to get the ball wide and try and find headers from aerial crosses, but that seemed to be futile against a much taller Welsh back line. The Yanks are at their best when the ball is at Pulisic’s feet and he’s allowed to run at defenses, as made obvious by their goal today. They will need to re-establish that strategy going forward.

England vs. Iran

England were expected to win this match given the gulf in talent between the two sides, but very few expected a 6-2 result. Iran were ranked 20th in the world coming into this match, the highest-ranked Asian side at the tournament. They usually cause problems for more-talented opposition and only lose by the odd goal here and there, if they lose at all.

England were the dominant team throughout the match, but it must be noted that it took England 35 minutes to breach the Iranian goal. It was only then that a fine cross from left back Luke Shaw found midfielder Jude Bellingham’s head in the box, and he powered a thunderous header beyond substitute keeper Hossein Hosseini. Once the first one went in, the floodgates opened. Wingers Bukayo Saka and Raheem Sterling added their names to the scoresheet next, and it was 3-0 at halftime to England. Saka got another goal on 62 minutes as well, and England were well on their way to three points and the top of the group.

The Iranians did not stop trying however, and they were rewarded with a goal on 65 minutes from the talented Mehdi Taremi. England failed to clear a long throw-in from Iran, and when the ball was played to Taremi he smartly powered home the ball into the roof of the net. England keeper Jordan Pickford could do little about it. It was never anything more than a consolation goal, though.

England continued to attack, with striker Harry Kane finding substitute winger Marcus Rashford, who cut inside from the right wing and slotted home under Hosseini for England’s fifth. Rashford had only been on the pitch for 49 seconds when his shot found the back of the net, so he made sure his impact was felt. The action dulled a bit after that, but England were awarded a 6th goal on 90 minutes after striker Callum Wilson found midfielder Jack Grealish unmarked in the box. Grealish swept home the pass and England were essentially home and dry.

The referee had to have his say, however. First, he missed an obvious foul on center back Harry Maguire in the first half that would have given England a penalty. Secondly, he awarded a monumental 13 minutes of stoppage time today. That is well above the average, but I suppose it is acceptable given the long injury delays in the first and second half. He awarded a penalty to Iran very late on, and while it did not affect the outcome of the match, it was a good example of inconsistent application of the rules. If the penalty late on for a shirt pull was a penalty, then so was the shirt pull on Maguire in the first half. Again, it matters not for today, but in a closer match it could matter quite a bit.

England were by far the better side and deserved to win this match. For a team that has struggled to score goals recently, scoring six in the opening match of a World Cup is fantastic. Some questions remain defensively, but the ruthless finishing today more than made up for it. Credit to the Iranians for never stopping, even though it would have been understandable if they did.

Even more credit to the Iranians however for not singing along with their national anthem before the match. This was done on purpose in protest against their current governmental regime and its treatment of women within Iran. A very ballsy move indeed, and it’s significantly braver than any form of “protest” against Qatar planned by European nations. Iran is playing for something bigger than just their team, and I wish them nothing but the best of luck in this group.

All four teams resume play on Friday, November 25th. USA vs. England and Wales vs. Iran. England are in the driver’s seat after today, but nothing has been decided yet. Four massive matches tomorrow, including Argentina vs. Saudi Arabia, Mexico vs. Poland, Denmark vs. Tunisia, and France vs. Australia.

World Cup Group B Preview – Yes, the One With the Yanks In It

England. Wales. Iran. USA.

For the first time since 2010, England will play the Yanks in the group stage of a World Cup. I do think that England and the USA are probably the favorites in the group, as I already wrote in my Quick n’ Dirty World Cup picks post. However, let’s take a deeper dive into this group and figure out what’s going on. And remember – this tournament should not be happening in Qatar, and FIFA is the most corrupt organization on the planet.

USA

I normally let my Yank friends and colleagues discuss the USMNT (which of course stands for United States Mutant Ninja Turtles) for me as I don’t routinely follow them, but given that they are in England’s group this tournament I have been following them a little more closely. At World Cup 2010 in South Africa, the Americans drew with England 1-1 and then managed to later win the group! That would be a fantastic result for them again this time around, but this group is much different than the one in 2010.

This is the most talented USMNT I have seen assembled for a major tournament. They have some undeniably good players, mainly in attack. Giovanni Reyna, Joshua Sargent, and Tim Weah all play for big clubs across Europe, and Christian Pulisic is the most naturally-talented American player I have ever seen. Pulisic and Reyna also have Champions League experience, with Pulisic being the owner of a winners’ medal. I do not think the Americans will struggle to score goals, provided manager Greg Berhalter allows them to run at defenses.

Where the concerns come in are with the rest of the team. The midfield might be ok as long as Weston McKennie and Tyler Adams are able to find the attacking players with key passes. However, the defense looks extremely thin outside of Sergiño Dest. Most of the defenders in this team do not play in Europe, and I am concerned about them having to rely on the aging legs of DeAndre Yedlin at fullback. The goalkeepers, at least two of them, aren’t regular starters at their clubs and the current No. 1 Ethan Horvath plays in the second division in England. There just isn’t a ton of top-level experience in this side apart from the forwards and McKennie.

A further concern is the form of the Americans coming into this tournament. To say the least, it hasn’t been convincing. They failed to win their CONCACAF qualifying group, and in their recent friendlies against Japan and Saudi Arabia they failed to score a single goal. Most Americans will tell you that Berhalter is largely responsible for those failures. From my limited perspective, Berhalter needs to shape his tactics and team selection around scoring goals and defending from the front. I do not think the Americans are good enough in defense to hold out against quality opposition for 90 minutes. The best strategy for the USMNT is to get out on the front foot first though and make the opposition work. They must press high and win the ball in forward areas.

The team spirit of the Americans at these tournaments is usually very good. To quote famous match commentator Martin Tyler, “Americans always believe they can do it.” There is no more apt a quote. Americans always believe they can win games, even when all logic and reason says they won’t. Self-belief is ingrained in American culture, and while it has its downsides it certainly can be helpful in football.

Overall though I think this current crop of American talent needs four years to mature. This tournament might have come just a bit too soon. They are of course not the pushovers they were 20 years ago, but I still think there is a gap in quality between the Yanks and the elites of the world.

Wales

The Welsh have not been to a World Cup since 1958, but that long absence has made them very hungry for some success. They qualified via an emotional playoff against Ukraine in which the entire football world was rooting against them, so there are no questions as to their mental toughness. It’s true they are small in terms of population of geography, but the talent and experience in this Wales team makes me think they are one of the biggest sleepers going into this tournament.

They are of course led by talismanic forward Gareth Bale, who is the most talented player Wales has ever produced and he just won the MLS Cup with Los Angeles FC. He will lead the forward line, probably supported by Nottingham Forest forward Brennan Johnson and Fulham winger Daniel James. In midfield they have the aging but still reliable Aaron Ramsey, along with Joe Allen and Harry Wilson. There is also a lot of experience in defense via Neco Williams, Chris Gunter, and Ben Davies. Wayne Hennessey is also a massively experienced keeper and had a fantastic outing in the playoff against Ukraine. This is both the first and last World Cup for Bale and probably Ramsey as well, so they will be giving their all.

The big question for Wales is their depth. Aside from the starters I named and maybe one or two more players, the Welsh do not have the depth of some of the bigger teams. They will have to rely on their starters in order to do well at this tournament. That might work during the group stage to a degree, but I do not feel they have the depth for a long run. However, anyone who disregards the Welsh in this group will do so at their own peril. They have talent, experience, and are in good form coming into the tournament.

The Americans play Wales in their first group match on November 21st.

Iran

So as a non-Iranian its easy to not pay attention to this team and not take them seriously due to their lack of talent. And objectively, they are the least-talented team in this group. Most of their players play in the Iranian domestic league, although there are a few notable names who play in Greece, Turkey, and Croatia. Iran are probably strongest in attack similar to the Americans, with Karim Ansarifard, Mehdi Taremi, and Sardar Azmoun all looking to make a name for themselves at this tournament.

Also, when a team is lacking in talent, they can sometimes make up for it in tactical prowess and team spirit. There are many occasions both at the club and international level where a less-talented team has gotten a result against a better team simply because they had a better tactical plan. That will be Iran and manager Carlos Quieroz’s mantra going into this tournament. They’re not idiots, after all. They know they lack the talent that other teams in this group have. Still though, they are one of the best Asian teams in the world and have had a good run of form coming into this tournament. They won’t just roll over and concede that they’re just happy to be here.

Iran’s greatest strength however is not their talent, nor their coaching. Interestingly, it is the current political tension in their country and the team spirit that results from it. Many of these players support women’s rights in Iran and are critical of the current regime. They know that they are ambassadors for their culture and people, not necessarily their government. I think they will want to show the world what Iran is really about. The people of that nation are much more progressive than their government is generally speaking, and they have a chance to show support for the women of their country by playing well at this tournament. Ansarifard has already done a bit of that recently when he scored a goal for his club and then removed his team shirt to display a message of solidarity with women in Iran.

It would be beyond surprising for Iran to progress out of this group, but it is certainly not impossible. They are much more likely however to ruin another team’s chance of progression.

England

The Three Lions are my team of choice and I usually don’t like to make predictions about them due to superstition, but I can give some general previews about the expectations around this team. England fans expect this team to win the World Cup every time it comes around, no matter how delusional that may be. As has been said many times on this blog, England have only won the world Cup once, and it was a staggering 56 years ago.

But the past five years or so have provided some justification for those lofty expectations this time around. The past five years have been the most successful in England’s history, aside from 1966. In 2017 we reached the semifinals of the Nations League, in 2018 we reached the semifinals of the World Cup in Russia, and in 2021 we reached the final of the European Championships. No trophies were won at any of those tournaments sadly, but this is the most consistently good this team has been in my lifetime. Manager Gareth Southgate and this current generation of English talent are the primary reasons for this success.

There is no denying England’s star power in attack, and the defense should probably be pretty solid as well. The midfield is admittedly a little on the light side after the starters, but if England do poorly at this tournament a lack of talent will not be the reason why. With world-class players like Harry Kane, Bukayo Saka, Jude Bellingham, Luke Shaw, and many others all currently in the form they’re in, we are capable of beating every team at this tournament. On paper, at least. There is also a lot of depth for England, particularly in attack and defense. We are chock full of first-team starters at their respective clubs. Indeed, our bench players are better than some other teams’ starters.

But England’s greatest issue at this tournament will be Southgate’s conservative approach and tactics. It’s true that the system implemented (3 at the back, with a slow buildup towards the goal) works fairly well, but on the off occasion it doesn’t, England struggle to adapt. Southgate has a ton of faith in the players he likes, and for whatever reason he is slow to respond to negative events in a given match. The best teams know how to win in more ways than one, and I am concerned that Southgate is either unwilling or unable to realize that. Will he roll the dice when needed? Will he make the correct adjustment that leads to a win? We will have to see. If England do not play well this tournament, it will be his job on the line. Failure to get out of the group would be unacceptable for a team of this caliber.

Personally, I want to see a ruthless England in this group stage. Nay; a positively villainous England. It’s no secret that most of the world won’t be cheering for us for a variety of reasons, so it’s time to embrace that villainy and use it to our advantage. Let’s go out and put 4 goals past each team. Let’s dive to the floor like Italians whenever a tackle comes in. Let’s go out there and commit some professional fouls in the first 10 minutes of matches so oppositions know we aren’t messing about. I don’t want us to just win, I want the opposition utterly demoralized. We already have the talent, but now we need to be nasty! If we have to go out, I want us to go out kicking and screaming every inch of the way.

England plays their first match against Iran on November 21.

England Uninspiring in Defeat – Congratulations to Wales

With the club season now fully over and done with, all attention turns to the national sides and the various tournaments, qualifiers, and friendlies that will be played during the month of June. Just when you thought you were getting a break from footie, here comes more matches! To be honest there probably are too many matches each year. The numerous fixtures are draining on the players and it’s difficult for casual fans to keep up with what sort of fixture is being played.

The Nations League has started for England and many other European countries. This “league” was created to replace friendly fixtures and to give them a little more competitive impetus. It remains to be seen just how important these fixtures are. Some of the players take them seriously, but many superstars have little interest in playing glorified friendlies after a long season. Manchester City and Belgium star midfielder Kevin de Bruyne is one player who has recently voiced his dissatisfaction with the set-up. Really though, like everything with UEFA/FIFA, it’s about money. It’s all about increasing match revenue and TV ratings, which in turn creates more money for UEFA and the FA of a given country.

England’s first match was yesterday against Hungary. The match was played in Budapest, but it was supposed to be played in an empty stadium as a penalty on the Hungarian FA for allowing racist chants from supporters the last time England played there during World Cup qualification. Hungary’s FA has however found a loophole in that punishment, as they filled the stadium with roughly 20,000 or so children 14 and under with one adult per every 10 kids. It seems they can sell youth tickets to a match, even when they are not supposed to be making any money at all off ticket sales. UEFA doesn’t really seem to have a problem with this either, which proves that their anti-racism campaign is an utter joke and that they don’t really care about addressing the problem of racism in football. If the options are either 1) making money or 2) actually doing something to effectively punish an FA for racism, UEFA is going with option 1 every time.

The match itself was downright boring, with England losing 1-0 after a fairly dubious penalty decision which striker Dominik Szoboszlai converted from the spot. England’s style of boring football under manager Gareth Southgate reared it’s dull head again, and many have criticized Southgate for not really going for it. He needs to decide on a back-3 vs. a back-4 for England. Given that we like to build from the back, the make-up of the defensive back line is key for building attacks. Both formulas can be successful, but he needs to make up his mind and figure out what personnel are best-suited for the formation in question. Being overly-defensive cost us against Italy in 2021, and also against Croatia in 2018. I realize this was effectively a friendly after a long and grueling season in which England were missing some regular starters, but this result and the manner it was achieved does not make me feel excited about the prospect of the World Cup in November. The match on Tuesday against Germany will be more indicative of where England is as a squad. Any match against Ze Germans is never a friendly.

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The positive action from today was Wales defeating Ukraine 1-0 and qualifying for their first World Cup in 64 years! The winning goal was the result of a free-kick from superstar winger/forward Gareth Bale, which took a deflection off the head of Ukraine winger/forward Andriy Yarmolenko before going in. The Welsh join England, USA, and Iran in Group B at World Cup 2022!

Commiserations to Ukraine of course. This was a team that the whole world – aside from Wales – was cheering for. They’ve had a really rough go of it recently as a country, and their football team doing well was one of the few positives they could hang their hats on. Indeed, had there not been an active war in their country, these qualification matches would have been sorted out earlier this year. Their victory over a frankly hapless Scotland side earlier this week gave them so much hope for qualification, only to fall short against Bale, keeper Wayne Hennessey, and the Welsh defense. All of the Ukrainian players are still heroes though, and as an England supporter I am happy to not have to deal with them come November. Ukraine will be back, though. Andriy Shevchenko is a talented manager, and they have the footballing heritage to rise again.

Take nothing away from Wales though, as they were underdogs with something to prove in their own right. This was Bale’s last chance at a World Cup, and his free-kick is the reason that Wales are in it. Due to their lack of depth in talent, the Welsh usually go as Bale goes. If he plays well, they have a strong chance to win. If he doesn’t play well or is marked out of the game, Wales usually struggle. He is the most decorated British player in the history of Real Madrid, and he knows this will be his final chance to make his mark on the most prestigious tournament in the world.

Excited for a British derby in Qatar!

Euro 2020(1) – Round of 16, First Matches

The knockout stages of Euro 2020(1) got underway today and the first two games featured Denmark vs. Wales in Amsterdam, followed by Italy vs. Austria at Wembley in London.

Denmark Brush Aside Wales

On paper this was an intriguing matchup. Neither side is a traditional “powerhouse” in terms of population or tradition of winning big trophies, but I figured that meant the match would be fairly open and both teams would really go for it. Wales have two and half superstars in Gareth Bale, Aaron Ramsey, and Manchester United’s own Daniel James. Denmark don’t really have much in terms of star players but a look at the team sheet shows a team that is perhaps more talented collectively. They have several good to very good players, while the Welsh are decidedly average outside of the aforementioned superstars.

One factor in play here today that is not normally as influential was the emotional component. Major tournaments are always emotionally draining at the knockout stage, but Denmark have the “advantage” of playing for their stricken teammate Christian Eriksen. He was released from the hospital in Copenhagen a few days ago but there’s no indication of when (or if) he will play again. The rest of the team have been galvanized by the adversity and today showed a unity that is rare to find among national sides that don’t spend a lot of time playing together. Every neutral was a fan of Denmark today.

And indeed it was Denmark that were the better side throughout this match. Wales had a good spell in the first 10 minutes or so of each half, but for the other 70 minutes it was all Denmark. They were better in possession, better in attack, and better on defense. The scoring was opened via a fine strike from Kasper Dolberg from about 19 yards out midway through the first half. It was only 1-0 at halftime though and you knew that Wales had a chance because of players like Bale and Ramsey. Those two only need one moment of magic, one chance, to find an equalizer.

However, the Danish defense and midfield were excellent at marking those two and keeping them from getting involved. Bale is most effective when he can receive the ball in space and use his dribbling to create openings, but that simply didn’t happen today. When not in possession, Wales looked rather uncreative and lacked ideas on how to beat the Danes. I don’t think I even heard the commentators say the names “Bale” or “Ramsey” for large portions of the match.

Some very poor defending lead to a second Danish goal and a second for Dolberg. A cross was played in from the Danish right side, and Welsh substitute defender Neco Williams panicking a little and heading the ball back across the face of his own goal. The ball fell to Dolberg and he slotted home for a second after he dug the ball out of his feet. Good play for the Danish for the first one, but bad play by Wales for the second. At 2-0 you felt it was mostly over, and despite a Welsh push later in the half the only result was a 3rd goal for Denmark, this time scored by Joakim Maehle. At 3-0 it was well and truly over, but that did not dissuade the Danish and they went and got a 4th via Martin Braithwaite in stoppage time. Braithwaite was offside for me but in this situation it doesn’t really matter. There was also a Welsh player sent off, but again it matters little in terms of the result.

Wales did well to get out of their group but they were definitely second best today. They can perhaps feel hard done by due to some questionable refereeing decisions, but you can’t blame the ref for a team not creating chances. They need help in the center of the park in terms of providing service in to Bale and Ramsey that simply wasn’t there today. Credit to the Danes for being organized and playing for a bigger purpose simply than just winning matches. I didn’t think the Danes would make it this far without Eriksen (their best player), but they have more than made up for his absence with the victories over Russia in the group stage and this victory in the Round of 16.

The Danes may just end up being the “Cinderella” team of this tournament. They play the winner of Netherlands and Czech Republic in the quarterfinals.

Italy Squeaks By Austria

Italy have been the best team at the tournament so far, winning all their group matches by multiple goals while simultaneously not conceding any. They love attacking down their left side when going forward, and are anchored by two excellent center backs in defense, Leonardo Bonucci and Giorgio Chiellini. Both of them are very old, but despite their collective age of 70+ they are incredibly tough to break down. While this Italian team lacks a lot of the superstars of old, they make up for it with tactics. They are managed by former Manchester City manager Roberto Mancini, and indeed he has them playing very much like a Premier League side and not like the Italian sides of old. The Italians traditionally won with patient build-up play and possession, but this Italian team succeeds with aggressive pressing and winning the ball back as soon as it is lost. They had not really played against opposition with real quality until today though.

Austria are always somewhat of a wild card at these tournaments. Before Euro 2016, many fans and pundits had them as a dark horse candidate to win the tournament, but they crashed out at the group stage. This time around no one is expecting a lot from them, but they’ve gone and done better than they did five years ago by reaching the Euro knockouts for the first time in their history. They have superstars of their own in utility-man David Alaba and forward Marko Arnautovic, but there are question marks about the midfield for them. A lot of the creative duties tend to fall on Alaba when he isn’t in defense, and they don’t have many more creative players like him. Where to play Alaba has been a big headache for Austrian manager Franco Foda. Alaba can play almost anywhere on the pitch, but there is only one of him at the end of the day and he can’t be everywhere at once no matter how hard he tries.

As expected, Italy dominated the first 45 minutes and clearly looked like the side that was going to score. Austria defended just well enough though and kept Italy out. The Azzuri’s best chance was a quality Ciro Immobile strike from distance that hit the post. Austria didn’t create much for themselves either, but keeping Italy from scoring has proven to be difficult to do this tournament so credit to them for doing so. The second half was much different as Italy did not really create much going forward, despite having a lot of possession in Austria’s half of the pitch. It then became Austria who were asking more questions of the previously impervious Italian defense, and they definitely caused some problems for Italy with their physical play.

Arnautovic had the ball in the back of the net on 66 minutes after a counter attack and a find headed pass from Alaba, but the Austrian celebrations were cut short due to the offside flag. VAR did a check however and it did appear that Arnautovic was maybe a foot ahead of the last Italian defender just before he nodded past Italian keeper Gianluigi Donnarumma. Italy were saved by the linesman but should have took that passage of play as a warning shot. For the rest of normal time however, they did not. It ended 0-0 after 90 minutes which meant that another 30 minutes of additional time would need to be played.

Mancini made some key substitutions just before the additional time started, bringing on Federico Chiesa and Matteo Pessina. Italy has a strong bench and he knew some kind of change was needed in order to jump start his lethargic team. Chiesa rewarded him 5 minutes later by scoring the first goal of the match from a tight angle. A cross came in from left back (and probably Man of the Match) Leonardo Spinazzola that found Chiesa in space on the right hand side, and after some good control in the box he lashed home past the Austrian keeper. Pessina got Italy’s 2nd about 10 minutes later. A cross once again came in from the left hand side and Austria failed to clear it. The ball was knocked into the path of Pessina by Italian defender Francesco Acerbi, and Pessina did well to finish from the left side. At 2-0 with only 15 minutes left in extra time, it seemed over.

Austria didn’t think it was over though, as they got a goal back from a corner six minutes before the end of the match. It was a poor goal to concede really and a bit of a clusterfuck defensively from the Italian point of view, but credit to Austrian forward Sasa Kalajdzic for sticking his head out there and getting contact. Corners usually don’t result in goals, but they can be vital for a team that doesn’t get the lion’s share of the possession. There was a tense finish to the match, but Austria never really created another solid opportunity and Italy saw the match out to the finish, winning 2-1. Austria’s goal was the first one conceded by Italy in over 12 matches.

Italy got the job done in the end, but they showed today that they are mortal. They can indeed be beaten, which didn’t seem likely before today. If you can defend from crosses and don’t mind playing a little bit on the back foot, you can frustrate them and eventually they’ll stop creating so many chances. You will need to score a goal of your own though. Austria found a formula to win today, and had they executed even slightly better Italy may have gone out.

Italy will play the winner of tomorrow’s mouth-watering Belgium vs. Portugal fixture in the quarterfinals. No matter which team they play, it will easily be their toughest test of the tournament. They should definitely still be considered among the favorites to win the whole thing, but some kinks in the armor were on display today.

Tomorrow

Netherlands vs. Czech Republic (9 am PDT)

Belgium vs. Portugal (Noon PDT)