England, Euros, who to watch and when….

Not sure that I can get the enthusiasm to watch England , Under Southgate they are so disjointed and have very little flair in their attacking play. I see a team of individuals that are just strung together without any real purpose.
Admittedly many players were omitted last night but no shots on target is a shocking condemnation for a match against Iceland at Wembley.

Was, not wasn’t.

Good afternoon Rico and all

So England lost 0-1 to Iceland again. The goal was scored around the 12th minute. Where was Maguire when England needed him?? Then Saka appeared in the 65th minute and at the end of the match the first player mentioned by the pundits was YEP you guessed right…..Our own Star boy Saka.

Afternoon Rico and comrades…

Thanks for the fixture list Rico.

I may not watch any England games this tournament, a first for me. As long as that loser and his useless coaching staff are running things England will achieve zero.

Still, our own Ben White is having a lovely holiday…

Kev I’m so happy for Ben White. He is a man apart.
I have been saying since we started pursuing Rice, halfway through the previous season, that Southgate would be wise to take advantage of an Arsenal spine.. from Ramsdale, through Ben White (after apologising to get him to return), then Declan , through Saka… to utilise their familiarity as an edge to use more Arsenal style play..

If he added them to some Manchester City players who play a similar style, he could have a majority of the 11 who can press and combine better than any national team out there.
John Stones, Walker, Foden all come from the similar system.
Most people use the word disjointed as a description of what the team is now using Pickford and Mcguire … no wonder there’s no fluidity.
The next England manager should take advantage of the City and Arsenal players. Pep and Arteta have done all the hard work in training them to this high level.

Yeah, his girlfriend took some pics of her and Ben on holiday and put them on TikTok I think. Good for him…

Yes Nigel, using a core of players from Man City and Arsenal seems too obvious for Southgate, but makes sense.

Yes Rico, England are chasing 202 but have lost two wickets. It’s going to be a tight finish.

I turned over when Jacks got out Rico, the run rate was climbing and our batting, bowling and fielding hasn’t been up to scratch. Too many of our cricketers believe their own headlines without doing it on the field first. We must beat Oman and Namibia and should just about creep through but it’s not been that impressive. We need to take a leaf out of the way Australia field and defend a score.

Good Morning Rico and all

I found the following about Ben White……..

Arsenal right full-back Ben White expressed his indifference towards playing football for both his club and national team. He stated that if any coach disrespects him, he wouldn’t beg for a call-up or a starting spot to play football.
Instead, if any (coach) who sees his capabilities he would always do his best to help (his teammates) achieve what’s expected.
In a candid conversation, Ben revealed that if he weren’t a footballer, he would likely be working with his dad, who was a gardener.
This revelation provides insight into Ben’s upbringing, where there was never any pressure on him because he would have been content with a career in gardening.
Ben’s passion for football goes beyond personal satisfaction; it’s about making a positive impact on those around him.
He plays not just for people who trust him, knowing that their happiness depends on his performance. He plays not just for individuals but for the fans and the people who love football, always seeking to bring joy to those who support him. His selfless approach to the game is a testament to his dedication and love for the beautiful game.
Ben White: “I’d probably be working with my dad if I wasn’t a footballer. He used to be a gardener. I think that’s why there was never any pressure on me growing up, because I would have been very happy with that.”

Some people might call that lack of professionalism or lack of ambition. I call it self care and preservation and good mental health

I see that Serbia won 3-0 in Sweden so they are in good form going into next Sunday.

Jacks, one of our spinners, bowled one over early on and went for 22 runs, need I say he took no wickets and no further part in the bowling. He almost half made up for it by hitting ten runs of ten balls before being caught by Stoinis. Frankly, I could not care less, it’s not proper cricket is it?

I’m a traditionist, Rico. 😉

Good morning Rico and all

It seems that Havertz is going to be Germany’s focal number 9. I really hope he does well and scores a good number of goals, has a good amount of assists and is a good all round focal point. I think that Germany and Italy will be the surprise package of the Euros.

Martinelli and Haverts have scored for their respective countries. And both played well again.

So going onto next year will our attack remain Martinelli, Havertz and Saka, with Trossard, Nketiah, Nelson and Jesus as backups?? Arteta might go out and buy a well established CF but where does that leave KH??? If Sesko arrives Kai will not want to play 2nd fiddle and I dont see Sesko coming to play 2nd fiddle. I think that eventually Nketiah, Nelson and Jesus will be sold and two other forwards will be bought unless Arteta promotes someone like Biereth from within. I think that Arteta will use Biereth during pre season to check on Biereeth before making a decision. Jesus and Nketiah are similar imo so I guess one (or may be both) will be sold and another forward bought as an alternative.

It all depends on whether or not Arteta trusts the players enough to rotate.