CROUCH & GERRARD scored late goals to beat Trinidad & Tobago.
Sven’s heroes were clueless, but won 2-0.
England will never play worse in a tournament and get six points from two group games.
How have they done it? By playing in Group B, the group of garbage.
Other groups have provided some good matches, some patches good football, and promise more, but every game in Group B has been embarrassing and tedious.
Paraguay should not be at the World Cup, Trinidad & Tobago should not be at the World Cup, Sweden are a dull side who punch above their weight, and England are a collection of BskyB superstars coached by a con-man who is riding his luck.
For that, I say : Thanks, chaps. My sincere thanks to messrs Adam Crozier, David Davies, Mark Palios and Brian Barwick. You gave us something we had never seen before : a foreign coach with all the charisma of a bank clerk.
OK, Sven qualified for 2002 and 2004 and 2006, but any one of 100 coaches in world football could have done that with England’s resources.
Why pay £5 million a year to a guy can’t change a game, can’t inspire a team, can’t structure a team ?
And you hire his No2 for 2006-2010 ? Four years of Steve McClaren? If Wembley ever opens, it will be empty.
Newsnight’s Michael Crick reported on the England fans in Germany and said most of them are from small towns and villages. I had not realised that. I thought many were from northern cities.
Even those folk are not gonna pay millions of £ £ £ £ £ to watch a Steve McClaren England team. They’re gonna twig it eventually and find something else to do.
TODAY IS FRIDAY and the best thing about today is that England are not playing.
The World Cup starts again today and Holland versus the Ivory Coast will be fantastic : Arjen Robben and his good friend Robin van Persie, Kolo Toure and his brother Yaya, Drogba the big English No 9.
Eboue might make a run down the wing if only that bozo in front of him would move out of the way and give him some space to explode into.
I missed Holland’s first game, so I can’t wait to see how their 4-3-3 system works and I can’t wait to see how Wesley Sneijder, 22, performs in central midfield.
We have been told for 25 years that Ajax kids switch around and learn different positions in total football and I’ve always noticed that Sneijder, when he was playing on the wing, is very two-footed.That helps a lot in football.
As you know, coach Marco van Basten was coached by Rinus Michels, who was himself an Ajax centre forward.
JOHANN CRUYFF persuaded Marco to come out of retirement and coach Ajax reserves and now, a couple of years later, the legendary Marco, 41, is coaching Holland in the World Cup Finals.
How good are Holland? I don’t know, but can’t wait to find out. I’ve got my appetite back.