2018 FIFA World Cup Thread

I think we've found the Bad Ref. There's always one

palarsehater said:

SDAddick said:

palarsehater said:

if we cant beat tunisia then may aswell give up now, im expecting a big win tonight and to comfotably beat panama i would even consider resting some players against belgium as hopefully the belgians dont fuck us over for once and win both there games then we will both be qualified going into the last game.

This is the kind of attitude that dooms England at major tournaments. England expects. Expects what? And why? We've seen time and again that hard working, compact teams can frustrate the more fancied sides. And we have seen England fall victim to it in just about every tournament in recent memory. It's all well and good playing the Brazils and Hollands of the world in friendlies, but that's not who England struggle against. They struggle against Slovakia and Russia and Slovenia, teams that are tough to break down, exactly like Tunisia.

England look a decent side with a good young manager who are the third youngest at the tournament. But how many times have we seen England teams turn up and forget how to control a ball at a major tournament? You would think after Iceland, and just as much after some of the performances in the group at the Euros, this "we'll steamroll all the small teams" would stop.

thanks for telling me how i should support my nation but trust me dooming England is the last thing i want to do i've watched them live 27 times, nothing wrong with positivity and tbh i dont fancy tunisia and i fully expect us to win 3/4-1.

im entitled to an opinion and this comment is akin to some muppet on here 2016 euros asking fans attending " dont spoil it for us watching at home ".

were expected to achieve nothing so have nothing to lose in my opinion.

1/4 finals and go home and that is progress i think and its achievable.

tunisia got to the wc topping a group of libya, dr congo and guinea and drew 2 of those matches, so fair play for getting there but do think we are better and should win.

At no point did I say you couldn't have an opinion.

I just think the idea of expecting England to turn up and beat smaller countries just because they're smaller countries is not really based on recent tournament performances. I don't see anything in the last 25 years that indicates England should be anything other than a knockout stages team at a major tournament. I'd even go one further and say when was the last time England had a good attacking performance at a tournament? It then becomes a self-fulfilling prophesy that when people put high expectations on England and then get mad when they don't meet them. I don't know if you fall in to that category, it just seems to be a common trope.

I think your second post shows more subtlety and I agree, quarter-finals would be good, a good step forward for a young team.

ForeverAddickted said:

JessieAddick said:

Sweden are so woeful in front goal. Both teams lack quality. Worst game I've watched so far.

Nah Nigeria v Croatia has that honour

Terrible game, least there is attacking intent in this one, that one felt as though it was at walking pace

I only saw the first 15-20 minutes of that game, but thought it looked alright.

In terms of quality I'd say Morocco vs. Iran was probably the worst, though this game will give them a run for their money I suspect. I didn't watch Serbia-Costa Rica, so can't comment on that.

It should really be stressed Sweden are not a good footballing team. They're a good defensive side. They're physical, but they're pretty awful going forward. And Korea seem to be caught in between generations. I think this might actually be the most difficult game for Sweden in a certain way because they will feel they need to go and win it, to keep the ball and attack. That does not suit them. Coming up against Mexico and Germany they'll be able to sit deep and defend with their backs against the wall as they did against Italy, something they're much more comfortable with. I actually think they could knick a result against one of those, possibly Mexico.

All-in-all, at the risk of jinxing it, am I the only one who thinks this has been a World Cup of pretty good quality thus far? The Russia game wasn't amazing but there were some moments of real quality. Peru-Denmark also not of the highest quality but it had an openness and a mental-ness to it that I really appreciated. And I think the rest pretty much speak for themselves.

Chris_from_Sidcup said:

Zlatan still far and away Sweden's best striker.

Toivonen is absolute shite. 0 goals for Sunderland then 7 goals in 2 seasons in the French league.

How can you be the starting striker for a country in a world cup with 7 goals in 3 seasons?!

And yes i fully expect he'll score in the second half now!

Two words: Emile Heskey.

Sweden may be winning, but how the hell did they beat Italy?!