I just caught the Portugal v France semi-final and it was a dire game.

And it seems every game I’ve seen was rubbish; Switzerland v Ukraine, France v Switzerland, Brazil v Croatia and every other game, not to mention every England match.

What the hell is wrong?

There seems to be a big effort to play negative, boring football and when very, very average teams such as Germany, France and Portugal reach the penultimate round of a World Cup then something is very wrong.

I will admit to falling asleep as I tried to watch quite a few of these ‘world class’ matches. Do I have narcolepsy? Possibly but I doubt it.

Past it players like Zidane suddenly become a match-winner again, after playing poorly for the last few seasons. Hell, even Patrick Vieira looks half decent in this World Cup.

They’ve even made the ball lighter to make things more difficult for the goalkeepers but there is still a lack of action on the goal front.

The most exciting action is from the referees and how many yellow and red cards they will produce!

I hate to think what the World Cup Final is going to be like on Friday Sunday.
(Edit: The World Cup Final is obviously on Sunday, not Friday. Maybe I do have narcolepsy…)

Final’s are usually boring anyway and this World Cup is going to guarantee possibly the longest 90 minutes you will ever witness.

Another Tournament. Another Disappointment.

Football is a cruel game and yet again England are leaving another major tournament early.

And as usual when the World Cup began on June 9th the English faithful were full of optimism and rightly so – this was the best squad of players we had taken to a tournament in a long while.

Steven Gerrard has been in phenomenal form, John Terry and Frank Lampard were as good as they had ever been, Ashley Cole and Michael Owen were back from long-term injury, Wayne Rooney looked like he’d make the final squad and added to that were two of the Premiership’s greatest potentials in Aaron Lennon and Theo Walcott.

And so off to Germany we went…

England started well and managed to score after only 3 minutes after David Beckham sent in one of his trademark freekicks. Paraguay defender Gamarra tried to divert the ball past away from his goal but only succeeded in deflecting the ball into his own net. In the heat England managed to hold on for the 3 points but played average in the 1st half and even worse in the 2nd – surely better performances were to come.

England struggled to get that first goal and it wasn’t until the 83rd minute that Peter Crouch broke the deadlock with a header from a brilliant David Beckham cross. England made plenty of chances but their unability to score – Frank Lampard being the main culprit – without ever being in total control of the match. This was highlighted just before half-time when still at 0-0, T&T fullback Carlos Edwards beat Robinson to a cross and almost scored! John Terry had to clear the effort off the line. Sven, who has been criticised for his substitutions in the past made a decent change when he introducted Lennon and Rooney in the 58th minute. England had more ugency about their play and Gerrard finished off the job with a fantastic left-foot pile driver in the 90th minute.

With qualification secure, England went into their final group game knowing a draw would secure top spot in Group B. Things turned sour after only 2 minutes though, when Michael Owen suffered an arkward fall in which his leg seemed to buckle underneath him. That fall signalled the end of a poor World Cup for the Newcastle forward. Joe Cole scored an absolute blinder from over 30 yards out on the 34th minute, but the second half really exposed our defensive problems from dead ball situations. England conceded two goals from corners and long throw ins and looked very nervous from and type of ball into the area. After Allback equalised on the hour mark Steven Gerrard got us out of jail again with a smartly taken header with 5 minutes to go. But then our poor record against the Swedes continued after Henrik Larsson tapped in from close range after England failed to defend a long throw in. Not the best performance but England managed to top the group.

David Beckham took England into the final eight with a great freekick on the hour, and made history for being the first Englishman to score in 3 World Cups. But before that Ashley Cole made possibly the tackle of the tournament when he threw himself at Carlos Tenorio’s shot and deflected the ball into the bar. England started with Wayne Rooney as the lone striker and Michael Carrick came in as the holding midfielder, and Gerrard and Lampard were urged to push on to support Rooney. But Gerrard and Lampard did not get forward enough as Rooney seemed to get frustrated at his lack of involvement in the game. Lampard again had some great opporunities to put the game beyond reach but again failed to score or even force the keeper make a save. All that didn’t matter as Svennis had successfully guided England to the last 8 of the World Cup yet again.

And to the Quarter Final against Portugal. The main news before the game was the absence of Portugese players Costinha and Deco, and throughout the game the Portugese failed to really trouble England without the Brazilian-born playmaker. England started the game really well and created some decent chances. Although England had most of the possession Rooney was again isolated up on his own and you could see him getting more and more frustrated as the game ticked by. And his anger boiled over after 62 minutes as he was sent off for stamping on Chelsea defender Ricardo Carvalho. England played better with 10-men and until the end of extra time it seemed that it was Portugal who were a man down. But again, Frank Lampard cemented his poor tournament as he missed a couple of guilt-edged chances to give England the lead. The England fans were in full voice and acted as England’s 11th man and this gave the England players the energy they needed to fight until the end. Aaron Lennon was wreaking havoc on the right hand side and the introduction of Peter Crouch on 65 really gave England a new dimension in play. Ironically it was the unfavoured Crouch and Hargreaves who were England’s best players – funny how football turns out sometimes. But with England without that little piece of luck to snatch a goal the game ended with the dreaded penalties. And we all know what happened next…

Hard to say really because of Sven’s tactics used throughout the World Cup most of the England players ended up having very average tournaments. Beckham was mediocre, Joe Cole only showed glimpses of what he is capable of, Lampard had a dire tournament and while the defensive unit played well at times we were shoddily exposed during the Sweden game. The man that stands out for me is Steven Gerrard for his desire, commitment and sheer guts. He gave England everything and you can’t ask for more than that.

For me Frank Lampard had awful tournament. For a player who scores for fun at Chelsea to miss as many chances as he did is really unforgivable. The problem was Lampard was the more attacking midfielder and Gerrard suffered by playing in a deeper role. Sven really should have had Stevie G further up the field as he needs less chances to actually find the net – as the Trinidad & Tobago and Sweden goals show. If Gerrard had played in Lampard’s position he would have scored at least half of the opportunities that he was presented with. His poor penalty against the Portugese summed up his World Cup.

It has to be John Terry, who had a fantastic tournament. He saved England from conceding against Trinidad & Tobago and always gives 110%. One of few players who was consistent over the 5 games England played over the World Cup.

Despite missing the first game against Paraguay Rooney would return in England’s second group game against Trinidad & Tobago gave the whole country a huge lift. Unfortunately it proved to be one of very few positives for the England team during the entire tournament.

Joe Cole’s screamer against the Swedes just pipped Beckham’s freekick for me. The sheer audacity to even try it was amazing but to execute it and score like that was a special moment for England. Cole was one of the real highlights in the England team and I’m so glad he managed to such a great goal because it sums up his performances for the Three Lions.

Just when things seemed to be going right for England Michael Owen suffered a terrible injury against Sweden after his knee buckled beneath him. That really signalled the end of two upfront as Theo and Crouch weren’t seen as suitable partners for Rooney and the young forward would suffer because of this.

Sven Goran Eriksson played a system that didn’t suit the players but allowed him to play all the star names. Instead of having the bottle to drop David Beckham and Michael Owen when they were playing poorly really hampered England’s progress in the World Cup. Sometimes you have to mix things up to get the best out of the players but to field your favourite players without the threatening to drop them gets players into the comfort zone which in turn gives poor performances. England had no really consistency in the formation or system they played, and the players really suffered because of it. Because Sven only took 4 strikers, consisting of Theo Walcott who he never intended to play, a crocked Michael Owen and a just returning Wayne Rooney. With that squad he had to play one up front and Rooney on his own was a disaster waiting to happen…

England were a victim of Sven’s inadequate tactical knowledge. While having some of the World’s best talent at his disposal England performed poorly throughout the World Cup. While countries such as Germany, France and even Italy have seen gradual improvement as the tournament has progressed England (albeit a decent 20 minutes against Portugal) never looked like putting in a good performance. Of course, it is a results tournament but if you don’t perform at some stage of the tournament or even show improvement as the games get harder then you will get exposed. England have stuttered through games and that is just not good enough. I would love to say the future is bright now Sven has departed but with Steve McClaren taking the reigns expect much of the same over the coming years. Except that Stuart Downing will now be in the first eleven.

Anguish & Despair. It Can Only Be Penalties.

In 1990 Gazza cried, in 2002 Seaman cried and now with our latest exit from another World Cup tournament it’s former England captain David Beckham’s turn to feel a countries anguish.

It never gets any easier.

And losing on penalties again!

I don’t know what it is with England and penalties do we just not practice them or do we just lose our bottle? Why do the Germans find them so easy?

And we could have all predicted how England would be knocked out of the World Cup – it’s always the same story:

Going out with a fight in the Quarters!

And yet again England didn’t deserve to go out.

England started the game in a lively fashion and managed to put Portugal on the back foot in the early parts of the game. Portugal were really missing the invention of Deco and throughout the game did not have any real threat going forward.

The best chances were going to England.

And then Rooney lost his cool. The United forward appeared to stomp on Chelsea defender Ricardo Carvalho and unfortunately it was right in front of the referee.

But as England went down to 10-men it was Portugal who seemed to be a man down.

England played with blood, sweat and tears and made the clearer chances – but we just couldn’t take them.

Ironically it was the unpopular Owen Hargreaves who was the man of the match for me – he was running everywhere and for a holding midfielder was pushing the team forward at every opportunity.

But as time ticked by the dreaded penalties were inevitable.

Frank Lampard, who for me has had a terrible tournament, took the first spot-kick. Just like against Hungary in the friendly before the World Cup he missed from the spot. Why the f*ck doesn’t he practice them?!

Missing one is unlucky but two in quick succession is just pathetic.

And once the first one was missed the writing was on the wall.

England were out again on penalties. And the other ironic thing was that the only England player to actually convert his penalty was a ‘German’ – he was never going to miss!

And it was the diving tw*t Cristiano Ronaldo that sealed our fate…

Hard Times For Our Young Protégé

There’s only a 3 day break in the World Cup until tomorrow’s game between Germany & Argentina but it’s a strange feeling not having any football to watch! But that gives us time to reflect on the Round of 16 and how the games panned out.

If I had to pick one game from the second round then it would have to be the Spain v France match that stood out. In the end it was an entertaining game and for Arsenal fans had so many sub-plots it was unreal.

Vieira against Cesc, master against apprentice – who would win?

Henry v Aragones – would it all kick off?

In the end France were victorious with goals from Ribery, Vieira (of course) and finally Zidane. I was pretty even for most of the game and it took a set-piece and a Vieira header to seperate the teams. And even then the freekick that lead to the goal wasn’t without controversy!

At first Henry appeared to be elbowed in the face but replays showed that contact was made around the chest.

What do I think?

Well first of all it was a foul, but obviously Henry saw the chance to get Puyol sent off.

But why would Henry do this?

After all, this is the guy that ‘doesn’t fall over like a woman’.

When I think about it, there are a few reasons why I think Titi decided to do what he did.

There was obviously still a lot of animosity between Henry and the Barcelona defence – especially Puyol and Marquez for their very rough treatment of the French forward during the Champions League Final.

Then there is the whole racism issue in Spain itself.

It would be stupid to tar every Spaniard with the same brush but it seems that Spainish football fans are worst than most when it comes to racial abuse during games.

We remember the abuse England players Ashley Cole, SWP, Emile Heskey et al received in the friendly in Spain last year and Luis Aragones didn’t exactly help the situation when he referred to Henry as a black sh*t.

In fact Henry was so enraged he started a whole world-wide campaign against racism.

That’s why I think it was just a one off – Henry doesn’t act like that.

Henry isn’t stupid, he knows millions are watching.

I’m sure considering the circumstances we can forgive the impeccable Henry for a rare faux pas. I am certain that this will be the last time we see Henry acting out of character.

The other main story of the night was Fabregas and his obvious anguish after losing another important match of his short career.

But as ArseBlogger said today defeats like that are character building, and he will return a better man – and player – for it.

He’s had an impressive tournament – the highlight of which was his match-winning performance once he came on against Tunisia.