Come anticipate Fabio Capello's two years as England manager with me

xp yeah I think it's and indicator he's dropping some challops. And I think Lawro was attempting irony there.

"substitutes are a big part of the game these days!"

partnering rooney has been a poisoned chalice today

So is Rooney the only fit English striker left in the country?

i've been calling for lampard-rooney partnership for ages

meanwhile, UFO spotted in Belfast:

http://newsimg.bbc.co.uk/media/images/45612000/gif/_45612138_atrouble.gif

Surely just play Rooney as Gerrard's Torres w/ Lamps and Barry behind (and Young/Joe Clole on the left and whoever's playing best out of Lennon/Theo/SWP/Beckham) and you'd finally have everyone playing where they play best together? There is no striker in the country bar Rooney who is actually of an international grade, although if Ablongahor/Defoe have good seasons next year they can be back-up to him.

Rooney isn't very good as a lone striker though. You never see him play that role for Man United and he's never done it very well for England. Not that we'll have any choice against Ukraine barring a recovery from one of the others.

Maybe Owen will get a call up

True but I think with a very attacking, fast midfield behind him that's encouraged to go join him and be part of the action, Rooney could be a very good lone striker. The only times I ever really seen him in the role it was McLaren's insipid side with Lampard and Gerrard getting confused who should go forward with neither actually doing so + no real help from the wings, or a United side that's kind of slow (Scholes, Giggs), likes to sit back and do the playmaker thing (Anderson, Carrick) or just isn't focused in the art of attacking because he's busy doing the other stuff (Fletcher, Park) and Ronaldo having a free role.

A fast, attacking minded midfield - hell even Barry is a box to box guy trying to get in on the action when he plays at his best - would be a lot different.

This is going to be a bit embarassing, isn't it?

stream i'm on is totally fuxored since the goal

another boring goal hurrah!

God, this is the shittest rout ever.

totally ok with not watching or listening to this

frame 1 - Spain comfortably in possession on the halfway line
frame 2 - Xavi gets the ball midway inside the England half
frames 3 to 7 - sideways passes as the white shirts are pulled about in pursuit of the ball, red shirts interchanging at will
frame 8 - red shirt turning on the edge of the box
frame 9 - forward breaking past last man
(unseen - last-ditch tackle)
frame 10 - white shirt on the ball, looking for options
frame 11 - as frame 1

this is a blow-by-blow description of the champions league final as well

if Croatia v Ukraine stays a draw looks like England could qualify by beating Croatia in September with two games remaining but i'm sure it won't be as easy as that

IRIOT!

RIO! RIIIIO!

One of the best center backs in the world.

Rob Green, you got merked.

lol twice

Maybe they just dont like Rob Green

WILL'EM DEFOE

The idea of Carlton Cole and James Milner looking totally comfortable on the international stage would have been hilarious three years ago. Carlton Cole is a thing. Carlton Cole is better at Didier Drogba than Didier Drogba.

It may have been hilarious one year ago to be fair. It also might just have been a friendly to be fair.

I was wondering what wing demon the fuck that was laying on Defoe's 2nd (a friend and I watched most of the 2nd half in a pub after a cricket match). Then, the glimpse of an impossibly jutted chin, set-back eyes, expression of grim determination...it could only be he

lololol "Carlton Cole is a thing"...to use Pro Evo parlance, he did Post Player better than almost anyone else I've seen today

It's just a friendly. Luckily for both Carlton Cole and James Milner both are in a position with half-decent clubs where there'll be able to play pretty much every game this season, fitness permitting. Be interesting to see how they turn out, Cole especially.

Overjoyed at Defoe goals obviously, good to be going into the season with an in-form striker for once.

His first goal had such a ridiculously small margin of error, but it was just three touches and in.

Cole's miss was my favorite thing in the game.

What's a post player?

Defoe's first was classy.

very dissapointing performance from our boys. ;) Englad actually seemed a much better team. this cannot be true. (seemed to me Capello played with a lot better players in 2nd half, he should stick with those)

Post Player in Pro Evo is a skill some strikers have; generally big target men who knock it down or hold it up for little quick dudes to run onto and score.

I was actually really impressed with Cole's first touch and control, there was one shot he made with just a couple of swift touches that was great. I'd kind of assumed he was a bit of a joke before but hey you never know...

Yeah Matt, that's the miss I'm talking about.

"Post player" a basketball term, too. I wonder if Pro Evo borrowed it from that? There are a lot of basketball roles that also exist in soccer IMO.

5. Bring in Glen Jonno Johnson at right back, he would have been up against Kranjcar tonite

lol

johnson was fucking things up literally from the first touch

Pretty much all of the established big players looked like they were playing at walking pace and making wilfully bad passes in protest at having to play.

Rooney and SWP more in their traditional no I'm the best player let me do it I can skin all of them me modes.

Wayne Bridge has pulled out of the squad - his position is "untenable and potentially divisive" apparently.

Says who? He himself, or Capello? It would be quite funny if it was JT mouthing off.

wow.

England's defence at the World Cup is going to be embarassing if things continue this way. A seemingly-permanently-injured Ferdinand, an off-form Terry, a shit Glen Johnson and a just-back-from-injury Ashley Cole/some other loser. Oh also lol English goalkeeping.

hibbert, dawson, johnson, baines

Terry must now carry with him the additional burden of knowing his own actions have resulted in someone he used to class as a close friend missing the biggest tournament any professional can be involved in.

yes this is bound to weigh heavily on the famously introspective and considerate john terry.

Calling Ryan Shawcross (xp)

tbh i'd love to see a capello led defence of hart; hibbert, dann, johnson, baines/warnock - not exactly milan 91 but for 10 games or whatever? it could be great. or yeah, shawcross xpost

warnock is easily england class.

dawson is a liability, though. would fuck you at first opportunity under a high pressure situation.

most of the players here could easily perform defensive duties as a unit for capello, as long as the press/pundits didn't start to get on his back about the (secondary) consideration of their 'footballing' abilities.

lol spurs, basically

any chance of lol woodgate being not-dead?

never a chance of him being back match fit- sorry england, because he is class.

Phil Jagielka plays tonight, btw- is he any better than Dawson as a player that people see every now and again and think 'he's not as bad as I thought'

Whither LOLean Lescott?