Gemmill

That's your problem.

I love that. From now on I'm referring to Scottish Mag as "The pint-sized poster".

He came on and was neat and tidy and didn't do a lot wrong tbh. I absolutely loved it when he missed the penalty though.

Is anyone buying this stuff in the press about the end of the golden generation? Seems to me that the bulk of the current team (minus Neville and Beckham) will still be around come the next World Cup, and when you add in players like Lennon, Walcott (if he's actually any good) and obviously future England captain Steven Taylor ( ) the future's not all that bad. Yes, I think an opportunity has been wasted in this tournament by Sven's inability to mould a team out of the players at his disposal, but I don't think it's the end of the world that the press are making out. I think to an extent it's a desperate desire on behalf of the press to lay as much blame at Eriksson's feet as possible.

Bollocks, anyone with any sense hated him long before this happened. All this incident has done is added considerable weight and acceleration to the anti-Ronaldo bandwagon. I'm loving the fact that the bloke that said he would buy him if he became president of Real didn't get voted in as their new president. With any luck he'll still be turning out for Man United next year and getting both barrels from his own fans and fans at every away ground in the country. Might make him think twice about the way he plays the game.

Whilst it's true that if we'd taken better penalties we'd be through, I NEVER blame the penalty-takers when we go out in a shootout. The pressure of that situation must be immense and I can completely understand the nerves getting the better of someone as they run up to take what should be a routine kick of the ball. The fact that it's ALWAYS us that goes out on penalties is a bit of a worry. It's something that's become part of our culture - it's no longer "a penalty shootout" it's "the DREADED penalty shootout", and I really don't know what it's going to take to put it right. I'm pretty sure our players go into penalty shootouts fearing the worst and with very little belief that we can win.

Nah, it shouldn't be a problem I don't think. On a football pitch you're all pulling for the same cause. Emotional speech from Beckham today and I think he's a top lad. I hope he rediscovers some form for England as a result of giving up the captaincy because I think he's been class for England over the years, and has been one of the few England players that's really taken pride from all of the caps he's picked up.

Yer joking........aren't ye? D'ye think his tactics/decisions were to have Rooney sent off and Lampard, Gerrard, and Carrager, to miss penalties. Despite Rooney's sending off the game was there to be won on the penalty shoot-out, d'ye think Sven had anything to do with 3 missed penalties? 155409[/snapback] So a shit world cup squad selection, shit team selections, shit tactics, shit formation, shit substitutions, had nothing to to do with Sven Goran Eriksson ? Yeah right. 155419[/snapback] C'mon man, everything you say had everything to do with stupid Sven but when the final whistle blew and the score was nowts each the final result lay with the penalty takers, not Sven or Scolari. They missed 2, ...........we missed 3, .......end of a dream, ......end of of a story. 155423[/snapback] Noelie, you're missing the point. If we'd had a good manager who had .......................................... 155476[/snapback] NO, I think you're missing my point bonny lad, the game was up for grabs at the penalty shoot-out and our penalty-takers themselves let the victory slip through their fingers by missing three(3) times out of four(4) and should be held responsible for their failure in the clutch. A 'good' manager would probably have had Gerrard and Lampard in the team too and because of their ability to score goals would have more than likely taken the penalty kicks with any manager, good or bad. And please let me explain, I didn't like Sven from day one and my dislike grew to hatred, and as for McClaren, I think he is a piss-poor choice but I hope he proves me wrong. 155565[/snapback] STOP USING FELT TIP PENS 155568[/snapback] Crayons tbh.

You've got to give McClaren a chance tbh. I liken this to Newcastle when Souness left and Roeder came in - I think everyone is slightly underwhelmed, but there's also that feeling that the crazy, nonsensical, impossible-to-comprehend decisions are behind us. McClaren strikes me as a bloke that will make simple, transparent decisions and can spot when things are going wrong and make the changes to try and put them right, in the same way that Roeder has. There's no way Sven was taking orders from McClaren and I'm sure that a) the squad would have been very different and the team and formation would have been very different with McClaren in charge in place of Sven. So it's wrong to try and judge McClaren on Sven's performance.

The annoying thing about the Rooney sending off is that if he'd been Portuguese, he'd have been on the deck long before it got to the moment where he stamped on Carvalho's plums, and he'd have got the foul given his way. It was his honesty that kept him on his feet and trying to battle and win the ball off the two of them. And before anyone starts - yes, I know stamping on the bloke's knackers (probably) intentionally was far from the decent thing to do.

Good craic that latest podcast. Frank Skinner's reaction when Rooney got sent off. And when Lennon misses that chance "Oh I would soooo love to beat these cheating playacting dishonest Portuguese gits"

He was brilliant tonight, can't believe how well France have played considered how poor they were in the Group stages. 155385[/snapback] Imagine being able to be that good in a World Cup game against Brazil and still feeling it was time to retire!? There's players in our squad will never be as good as even a Zidane on the verge of retirement.

I'm supporting France for the rest of the tournament. Be class if Zidane wins the WC in his last game.

Brazil on their way out it seems....I reckon France might have their name on this you know...

Easy to say in hindsight but he fucked up by changing his mind, his second pen was very poor compared to the first, looked like panic to me. 155364[/snapback] Aye, English players can't do the stutter-step penalty. The whole point is that you stutter to watch which way the keepers going, then go the other way. Ricardo just didn't move so Carragher shit himself.

Special mention for Carragher btw. Brought on as a specialist penalty taker, and to be fair to him took a canny penalty........only he forgot to wait for the whistle. His second one was shite.

Agreed there like. He was fucking immense today. Where the fuck was he finding the energy to keep popping up up front in extra time?! He's the English player I felt most sorry for for losing today - really didn't deserve it. 155357[/snapback] I'll be honest, he wouldn't have been in my squad prior to the world cup, but I've got to give credit where it is due, Owen Hargreaves was phenominal today, one of the very few England players to deserve any praise whatsoever. 155359[/snapback] Should be a permanent fixture as a defensive midfielder in a 4-4-2 from now on. Lampard to make way for him.

I'm not a big fan of France, but it would be a fucking brilliant story if Zidane finished the last game of his career by lifting the World Cup. Especially after a mystery ghost told him to make a comeback.

I don't, I hope he gets to visit every Premiership ground in the country and gets the shit he deserves. 155349[/snapback] Agreed. I would have no qualms if he'd beaten us with a brilliant goal or a defence-splitting pass, but the footage of him winking after the Rooney sending off was too much for me. I hope he stays at Man United next season and has a thoroughly miserable year.

Agreed there like. He was fucking immense today. Where the fuck was he finding the energy to keep popping up up front in extra time?! He's the English player I felt most sorry for for losing today - really didn't deserve it.

I'm thinking that driving up Friday would be a far more sensible idea, but only of that kind Mr Pud could allow me to doss an extra night. 155197[/snapback] Not a problemo my jizzing friend as long as you can hold it in for the extra day! If I find one stain or mark on the carpets or bedding or cat then there'll be a war on! 155241[/snapback] Pud you're a star !, I'll have to "off load" before hand, otherwise my scrotum might explode ! 155246[/snapback] You could always jettison some fluid off his balcony. Assuming he's worked out how to open the door yet.

I just tried a Pro Evo prediction too. Portugal went 1-0 up in the first period of extra time, so I got up and turned it off before it had even finished showing their replay, so that the computer game didn't have time to have a bearing on reality. :D

This close season AND the previous close season we've been told that Shola was going to have an operation on his hip in the summer. Both times a decision has then been made to just give him injections in the expectation that things would improve. They didn't last year and they haven't this year. Sorry like, but believing this would work once and going ahead with the injections is one thing, but do fucking well do it AGAIN the following season and once again find the injury doesn't clear up is rank incompetence.

I think Simao's been a bit of a disappointment tbh. I'm less concerned about him playing than I would be about Ronaldo or Deco.

I quite fancy a scoreline like that actually. I don't think I can cope with penalties though.