Southgate.
A couple of walk overs against poor teams to get out of a weak group, where England didn’t exactly play well, will see Southgate double his salary when no one else wants him.
It’s the sacking season for Premier League managers and through it all none of the teams have for a second thought of trying to pry Gareth Southgate away from the England job.
They say Levy liked Southgate but no, it was straight for Conte and even if that worked out he wouldn’t have gone for the F.A.’s dullard in chief. Three relegation fodder teams were looking for a new man and Southgate never rated a mention. Newcastle would rather go for someone who was previous side was relegated and hasn’t worked in over a year. Villa went for someone with whose only managerial experience is in the backwaters of Jock football. While Norwich went for someone just sacked by one of the other sides.
Southgate. Nowhere. I did read that if and when Potter leaves Brighton, for a bigger team, that might be the level Southgate would find himself at in the Premier League. Why? Why would Brighton, now they’ve found out what fun it is to have a go forward manager want to revert back to their old ways of dull, backwards, hold on for a draw rubbish that this dullard would bring?
Because putting a few past the likes of Albania and San Marino really doesn’t cut it, no matter the orgasmic rantings of the ITV commentator. Boy does he really want to pleasure “Gareth”.
I mean, would anyone want to watch a half a of football like the second one against Albania? No matter what had happened in the first, that was one of the worst 45 minutes of football ever seen – what does he do to them at half time? While I can’t see much enjoyment in watching the manager take off attackers for defenders when the opposition can’t get out their own half, as he did against San Marino?
Would they want to watch a team that could see how to score and how not to score but repeatedly did the latter?
The clue came in the second goal of the first game. Henderson got to the byline and stood a cross up for Kane to head in. Simple. But what followed? Yup the usual trying to go through the congested middle.
Maguire had scored the first which came from a free-kick from wide. My god, his celebration was embarrassing. Keane was right, the pearl clutchers weren’t. Another indication of Southgate’s ineptitude on show there. Maguire and Shaw have been a laughing stock this season, yet for an injury to the latter they probably would have played both games – Chilwell didn’t really grab his chance to impress, too safe, didn’t play like he does for his club. Scared on his own or fear instilled by Southgate’s lack of adventure?
The same for the second game the goals were coming from keeping it wide and getting it across, yet they kept coming inside and all the decent stuff was coming from the left, with nothing form the right. With that congestion the answer is to spread the pitch but where was Foden and TAA, in the middle cramming everything up. Providing no width and certainly not getting anywhere near the byline, or getting a decent cross over. Foden’s scissor kick got a penalty and when he stayed wider in the second half TAA provided something more but it looked like another blown opportunity for him.
Not that James was any better in the first game, no matter what the pundits said. His usual back passing routine, with one decent ball.
Throughout all the goal scoring in both games it was funny that Sterling didn’t register. God, he was getting desperate showing his true non-team player mentality, as he ran repeatedly into cul-de-sacs looking for a shot rather than play a team-mate in. Can only imagine how pissed off he was when Kane score from on of his balls that went wide.
Unfortunately Saka was in full Sterling mode for the second game. He views the player as a mentor and hero and is now just copying all of Sterling’s selfish faults. Get into space, have opening to get a ball into someone else but no, I’ll cut back, then cut back again then I might cut back yet again, meanwhile a wall of defenders has appeared from nowhere.
Will be interesting to see how Smith Rowe – weird looking critter – and Gallagher view the under 21s now. Will it be beneath them now they faced the might of San Marino?
Interesting to see if Kane now scores those goals for Spurs, rather than missing them as he has of late.
So we’re gonna be stuck with Southgate, he’ll lose to the first decent team they’ll face i the World Cup and this usual farce of beating Albania, Andorra and San Marino will be back and ITV commentators will be creaming themselves over records scorelines against the worst team in World football, hell even the women’s team might beat ’em…