Rob1981

“Unfinished business” Not my words, the words of Alan Shearer CBE

This isn’t how VAR is supposed to work It’s to correct obvious mistakes, it’s not there so that the ref can duck a decision in real time and go and look at the monitor instead. Any referee worthy of a World Cup quarter final should be giving that foul on Mount immediately. The defender isn’t even looking at the ball. And I’m not blaming the ref for England’s exit btw, but someone trusted with a game of this magnitude is supposed to be one of the best half a dozen refs in the world. For someone at level it was embarrassing. And the Kane one at the other end is 50/50 whether it’s a pen. If he’d given a foul just outside the box I don’t think anyone would be complaining too much. But to not even see a foul at all is pretty bad.

Came up briefly in Jon Champion’s commentary of the Morocco v Portugal game, he seemed pretty sure they were going to pump for 12 x 4 based on what has been said in the corridors of power in Qatar. Much better format but it turns it from 80 games to 104 games after the point that they have decided on host cities and stuff. Also extends by nearly a week and means the finalists play eight games instead of seven, and this is what FIFA were trying to avoid all along so they didn’t get so much pushback from the elite clubs.

Haha. Been out all day so I haven’t read the whole thread yet. But I don’t know how anyone can watch that and think that somehow Sean Dyche is the answer. Probably the two best teams left in the competition and we’ve gone toe to toe for 90 minutes. A shame either of us had to go out at QF stage because it was a game worthy of a semi final or a final. On another day Kane scores the penalty or Harry Maguire’s header goes three inches the other side of the post, or Rashford’s last minute free kick finds the target, or Shaw puts a better ball into the box with those crosses near the end. Or Griezmann’s ball has slightly too much on it and France don’t score their second. You play that game ten times and we probably win five each. I was ready for Southgate to fall on his sword if we got embarrassed or out-thought or outplayed. But you can’t blame him for much there. We weren’t so timid we switched to five at the back and sat deep in midfield. We didn’t lose because he refused to drop Sterling and get Foden into the starting eleven, or because we didn’t go for the throat at 1-1, or because we kept faith with Maguire and a suspect defence couldn’t cope with Mbappe. We gave it a right go. We came close. But at this level you can play your best games and still go out. The margins at this stage of the tournament are vanishingly small, this is why we love international football after all. Maybe he leaves Saka on, but Saka had run himself ragged for more than three quarters of the game. And if Rashford and Grealish and Sterling never get off the bench then people are asking why he hasn’t used more fresh legs when we can make five subs. I actually think he might call it a day though. We’ve talked to death about the spirit in the camp and the club culture stuff. Very easy to keep the momentum going when you keep breaking new ground and getting to semi finals and finals for the first time. But going into a third or fourth tournament with mostly the same players, and after a big disappointment to boot. I don’t know if the hunger and desire and enthusiasm stays at the same level without something different. He’ll spend some time talking it through with senior players as well as the FA bigwigs would be my guess. But yeah, if he goes... it’s because the group as whole will benefit from some fresh energy. Not because the FA have a ready made super tactician waiting in the wings.

France starting to play like we normally play. Drop back and hope their luck holds. Gonna be bringing Owen Hargreaves on at this rate.

Give it 15 minutes, then get Grealish on for Saka if it’s still 0-1. Tight game like this a set piece might make the difference and Grealish will win us more free kicks than Rashford.

“At the very least it’s a foul!” says Pougatch, even though VAR can’t go back and give a foul. Textbook.

Decent that. As long as we don’t go 2-0 down, we’ve got 45 minutes to score against a team that haven’t kept a clean sheet yet. Rather that than a 1-0 lead and we are already camped on the edge of our own six yard box. Still confident.

Don’t. Score. Early.

Come on lads, go and win it for these two.

YES LADS. England will be playing four three ****ing three.

You've obviously heard there's a football match on tonight.

Hate-boat It's a team game. If you're a senior player with his experience, you should put the team before yourself. Be there to support the youngsters in defeat, not storm off on your own for a sulk. Not sure why that's so hard to understand.

Looks good lads

Actually getting more and more angry the more I look at this. Kids himself that he's still the leader of that team. Then you have the young guys like Dalot and Joao Felix and Ruben Neves and Goncalo Ramos and Rafael Leao... all at their first World Cup, all dealing with the most gut-wrenching defeat of their careers. And he's left them out on the pitch and stormed off to have a cry on his own.

I think Germany v Czech Republic at Euro 96 as well actually

Yeah, Portugal v Greece at the Euros as well. It was the opening game and the final

Definitely coming home now

Probably gone to phone Piers tbf

Following him down the tunnel Can’t even stay on the pitch to lift the younger Portuguese players or be gracious to the opposition. Absolutely pathetic little man.

A GOAL FOR ALL OF AFRICA

CR tears incoming

Taking short corners on 94 minutes, get another body in the box ffs. Deserved to go out for that alone.

Joke of a second yellow

Looks like it.