England match thread

[scotlad]

I can't fault the team's attitude tonight.  We could have shown England too much respect and sat back (think Levein's final game against the Belgians) but instead we were positive, had a go at them and forced them into making mistakes.  Unfortunately we didn't capitalise on those mistakes - prime example, Stones plays a loose pass which is pounced on by Griffiths but he decides to shoot instead of playing Snodgrass in who would have had a clear run in on goal.

England had - off the top of my head - 4 clear-cut chances and scored from 3 of them.  That says a lot to me.  Someone on here recently expressed a theory that it wasn't the lack of a Gareth Bale standard attacking talent that prevented us from qualifying for the Euros, it was the lack of a decent centre-half pairing.  I think that's spot on.  Until we learn how to defend again, we ain't going anywhere lads.

[stevenmcn]

4 minutes ago, scotlad said:

I can't fault the team's attitude tonight.  We could have shown England too much respect and sat back (think Levein's final game against the Belgians) but instead we were positive, had a go at them and forced them into making mistakes.  Unfortunately we didn't capitalise on those mistakes - prime example, Stones plays a loose pass which is pounced on by Griffiths but he decides to shoot instead of playing Snodgrass in who would have had a clear run in on goal.

England had - off the top of my head - 4 clear-cut chances and scored from 3 of them.  That says a lot to me.  Someone on here recently expressed a theory that it wasn't the lack of a Gareth Bale standard attacking talent that prevented us from qualifying for the Euros, it was the lack of a decent centre-half pairing.  I think that's spot on.  Until we learn how to defend again, we ain't going anywhere lads.

That's true, and most if not all wanted to see change in the centre half pair, just not the one Strachan made. Hanley must have some serious dirt on wee ginger baws. Seriously, how many people looked at that team tonight and didn't think "what the fcuk". We go from a fairly stable, if not poor regular starting line up to Gordon, Berra and Morrison all in from nowhere a start for Griffiths, Anya at right back and the best of our centre back pairing dropped. Fecking unreal.

[adamntg]

Anya played well I thought.  Everyone was shiting it about him in the air but he won two headers in the first 50 seconds. 

[DoonTheSlope]

Well that escalated quickly

[Nobby]

1 hour ago, Bino's said:

hey nobby

we've just guaranteed you apish manager for the next two years and a group stage exit in Russia

Tell me something I don't know ?

[Langtonian]

Beaten by a an average England team by not taking our chances at important times in the game and poor defending

[MikeyGC]

The game was decided in the first 5 minutes of the second half. We rushed the chances we were given whilst England were clinical. They created very little in the first half, the one opportunity they had was a well taken header which they scored. Once the 2nd goal went in, just after the good chances we had, it was game over. Can't fault the effort of the players tonight, like Strachan said in his post-match interview, when England's confidence is high at Wembley, very little you can do last 15 minutes when England were played keep ball.

[BraveheartGordon]

Thought Lee Wallace was excellent, for all the raving about Kingsley or Mulgrew to start Lee created our 2 best chances.

Would like to see what he would have produced against a side like Lithuania.

 

In terms of the difference in the match....it's been the same problem for 3 years under Strachan.

It's an inability to defend cross balls and set-pieces.

If we didn't concede goals from corners and free kicks we would have got to the Euros.

[Toepoke]

6 hours ago, ProudScot said:

Fairly accurate. Although choosing Griffiths was the correct decision. Griffiths, given the same amount of caps and starts someone with less technical ability has, like Kenny Miller for example, would score more goals.

Griffiths is nowhere near the player Kenny Miller was in his prime.

 

[Batzek-osemba]

7 hours ago, Rossy said:

Colonise countries in Africa.

Pardon my lack of knowledge but had you not colonized 3/4th of the earth? with your brothers in arms from down south? they seem to have profited from that last time i saw the 3 lions. many african and west indian origins in them.

Solution is simple: you(Scotland) did extremely well for decades so there was hardly any need for change or improvement. since all the others improved, got better you stood still. thats the result of it. it will take 5-10 yrs to see results from the countermeasures and with a population of 5 mio and being no southern country(smaller southern countries in europe/south america balcans produce regularly 1-2 exceptionel talents who can lift a team)you need to wait for the next generation and hope for a standstill in other footballing nations as well.

 

Holland is such a negative example so is serbia!

[EddardStark]

Scotland are totally unwatchable these days.

[scottishgraham1971]

Anya tried hard but is not a defender, about 3 times he knocked the ball out of play for no reason, no control, our best player was lee wallace who has played with a non team in the lower leagues for three years, painful to watch

[DoonTheSlope]

The lead up to the corner for the third goal was embarrassing. 20/30(?) touches they got while no Scotland player made any attempt to win the ball back. At 2-0 what was there to gain by sitting off them

They can ram there membership up there farters 

[Rossy]

That'll be it for many I'd imagine.

I suspect loads of people only renewed their SSC membership to enable them to get a Wembley ticket. 

Next time round it wouldn't surprise me if around 30% didn't bother renewing.

[Return of Yermaw]

There are longer term underlying reasons that need to be addressed but the calibre of players individually is far far better than the collective performance of the team. That problem solely rests with the manager. For those arguing that we need continuity and consistency, you are not going to get that from a manager who from one game to the next (or one squad to the next) makes irrational and contradictory squad and team selections. Oliver Burke being a case in point - recently trusted to start a crucial game now seemingly lucky to be involved in the periphery of the squad. 

If we appoint a manager who picks in-form players and then plays a system to suit those in in-form players, I would bet my house that team performance would imrpove dramatically. Currently we have a manager with a preferred system who is prepared to shoe-horn out of form players into it and play players ouf of position to accommodate a system that he clearly is unable or unwilling to deviate from. And we then ask ourselves why are we so poor? I am not saying a ompetent manager will address all ills but it will have positive immediate effect. 

 

 

[macy37]

1 minute ago, Return of Yermaw said:

There are longer term underlying reasons that need to be addressed but the calibre of players individually is far far better than the collective performance of the team. That problem solely rests with the manager. For those arguing that we need continuity and consistency, you are not going to get that from a manager who from one game to the next (or one squad to the next) makes irrational and contradictory squad and team selections. Oliver Burke being a case in point - recently trusted to start a crucial game now seemingly lucky to be involved in the periphery of the squad. 

If we appoint a manager who picks in-form players and then plays a system to suit those in in-form players, I would bet my house that team performance would imrpove dramatically. Currently we have a manager with a preferred system who is prepared to shoe-horn out of form players into it and play players ouf of position to accommodate a system that he clearly is unable or unwilling to deviate from. And we then ask ourselves why are we so poor? I am not saying a ompetent manager will address all ills but it will have positive immediate effect. 

 

 

Fantastic post.

[Stu101]

8 minutes ago, Rossy said:

That'll be it for many I'd imagine.

I suspect loads of people only renewed their SSC membership to enable them to get a Wembley ticket. 

Next time round it wouldn't surprise me if around 30% didn't bother renewing.

Think of eight of my lot that could have gone yesterday, only 2 did. 

Their texts last night suggest they've now chucked it.

I didn't even go to the pub to watch it last night.

Pleased that I didnt chuck £300/£400 on the trip. Or £40 in the boozer.

They are not worth it.

[Stu101]

3 minutes ago, Return of Yermaw said:

There are longer term underlying reasons that need to be addressed but the calibre of players individually is far far better than the collective performance of the team. That problem solely rests with the manager. For those arguing that we need continuity and consistency, you are not going to get that from a manager who from one game to the next (or one squad to the next) makes irrational and contradictory squad and team selections. Oliver Burke being a case in point - recently trusted to start a crucial game now seemingly lucky to be involved in the periphery of the squad. 

If we appoint a manager who picks in-form players and then plays a system to suit those in in-form players, I would bet my house that team performance would imrpove dramatically. Currently we have a manager with a preferred system who is prepared to shoe-horn out of form players into it and play players ouf of position to accommodate a system that he clearly is unable or unwilling to deviate from. And we then ask ourselves why are we so poor? I am not saying a ompetent manager will address all ills but it will have positive immediate effect. 

 

 

Yup.

[Bino's]

2 minutes ago, Return of Yermaw said:

There are longer term underlying reasons that need to be addressed but the calibre of players individually is far far better than the collective performance of the team. That problem solely rests with the manager. For those arguing that we need continuity and consistency, you are not going to get that from a manager who from one game to the next (or one squad to the next) makes irrational and contradictory squad and team selections. Oliver Burke being a case in point - recently trusted to start a crucial game now seemingly lucky to be involved in the periphery of the squad. 

If we appoint a manager who picks in-form players and then plays a system to suit those in in-form players, I would bet my house that team performance would imrpove dramatically. Currently we have a manager with a preferred system who is prepared to shoe-horn out of form players into it and play players ouf of position to accommodate a system that he clearly is unable or unwilling to deviate from. And we then ask ourselves why are we so poor? I am not saying a ompetent manager will address all ills but it will have positive immediate effect. 

 

 

give McLeish another go

I despised him at the time but don't care now

 

he would put players in a sensible formation based on form

[Toepoke]

14 minutes ago, Rossy said:

Next time round it wouldn't surprise me if around 30% didn't bother renewing.

The potential for home games at Euro 2020 will probably keep me for one more campaign.  Hopefully we can get a team capable of making it to 3rd in a group though...

 

[Return of Yermaw]

and whilst I am at it, I will be adopting Strachan's approach at my next end of year or mid-term assessment:

Line Manager "Yermaw, we need to talk about your poor performance"

Yermaw "I am not thinking about me at this time. It's my colleagues I am thinking about at this time"

Line Manager "Yes, but you have been rank rotten over the past year"

Yermaw "its not about me. My colleagues have given their all and are sat in there dejected"

admittedly, my Line Manager is a tad more tenacious in applying culpability then the SFA or Scottish media (or many of our fellow fans). 

[thplinth]

Strachan was a good choice to replace Levein but he should never have stayed on for the second campaign. He was always going to run out of ideas as he is alas a limited manager. He knew it himself IMO but took the job on anyway. McLeish is also acutely aware of our limitations but he is a far better manager. Better at identifying which players to play, what formation and tactics to suit them and he would have made meaningful substitutions at the right time. Strachan by comparison is like someone who does not really know football he seems lost and a little clueless. Worth remembering McLeish only had the job less than 12 months first time around before being poached. Bit worried he may have fallen out of touch now and be a bit past it but he would still do better than Strachan, he was just a much better manager.

[Mox]

18 minutes ago, Bino's said:

give McLeish another go

I despised him at the time but don't care now

 

he would put players in a sensible formation based on form

McLeish is a dinosaur.

[irnbruman]

12 minutes ago, Mox said:

McLeish is a dinosaur.

Does he play at Jurassic Park?

[Och Aye]

There is a reason McLiesh has been out of football management for a while. He's pish. So aye, with the twats in charge of our game, I imagine he's in wi a shout of being the next manager.