Euro 2012 Preview - England!
Nickname: "The Three Lions"
Absurd FIFA ranking: 7th
Coach: Cosmopolitan journeyman Roy Hodgson
Match Schedule:
June 11 – England v. France (Donetsk, 12 p.m. EST)
June 15 – England v. Sweden (Kiev, 2:45 p.m.)
June 19 – England v. Ukraine (Donetsk, 2:45 p.m.)
Prospects: Our boys have the advantage of going into this tournament somewhat under the radar, as no one really rates them. This includes former French manager Raymond Domenech who recently commented that Sweden were more of a threat to Les Bleus. Ouch - that hurts. Still, although I don't expect England to light up the tournament with sparkling form, we could surprise a few people. Woy's hand has been forced by the early withdrawal of Gareth Barry and Frank Lampard, which means that youth will be pushed to the fore. That helps, as I don't think that our opponents will have expected to line up against old lions such as JT, Lamps, Stevie G. and Roon and won't have sussed out the likes of Gary Cahill, Jamie Milner and Danny Welbeck. Let's hope not!
Key Player: Given the relative youth and inexperience of this squad, the leadership duties will fall even more heavily on skipper Steven Gerrard; his link up play between the back four and our pacy forwards will be key.
Youngster to watch: 18 year old Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain is still raw but could just be the live wire needed to break the deadlock in a tight match.
Who Will Get the Goals: Ashley Young has the best strike record of the current squad - six goals in his last ten caps.
Who Will Get the Cards: Given the position he plays, Scottie Parker is always good for a yellow (but let's hope not two yellows!).
Prediction: An opening 1-1 draw with France will set the tone of England's tournament - good, not great. Second to France in the group stage, which sets up a titanic Quarter-final against the current champions on June 24. Taki taka-ed to death, sadly. Another quarter-final exit.
posted by The Blue Devil @ 10:00 AM
8 Comments:
I will probably predict England to finish group runners up and lose out to Spain in the quarters , but I want it on record that I would not be surprised to See England eliminated in the group stages. They will qualify only because they are in such a weak group. Underestimate the Swedes at your peril as they were the best group runners up and that was with Holland in the group. I will go for an upset and predict that England will finish third in the group. Ox will be the youngster to watch if he starts. I say that because as close as we are to the Euros I still believe that Woy has not decided upon his starting lineup or is is something from the Fergie School of Psychology?I definitely agree that Scottie will get the cards. Just look at the Belgium match. Who will get the goals? I have a felling it will be spread it amongst several players rather than one player dominating the scoring. Based on your predictions, will we need to run another Young vs Nani pool?
It's a decent shout, MUR, but I'm trying to be hopeful. England doesn't expect - but it hopes. Roll on June 11th!
Btw, where are those predictions, mate - don't make me beg!
Ruddy Norah! I've just seen a newsflash that Gary Cahill has been ruled out of the Euros after that clash with Joe Hart with a fractured jaw. Joe must have had his Hulk gloves on during the match - crikey!
Martin Kelly has been called up in his stead. Meanwhile, John Terry has gone for a scan on his hamstring. It's looking more and more likely that the Jagielka and Lescott partnership that kept Spain at bay in the recent friendly will be the starting pair for France.
Too much turmoil in the preliminaries for England this time. Even by English standards, this has been a terrible run up to the Euros with many injuries, Roon's 2 game suspension, a change of coach/manager, and even the threat of a bit of stir hanging over Terry.
I see the French edging England in the first match and either a draw or another loss to Sweden. The win against the Ukes will come too late and it's towels on beachchairs early for England.
Might be for the best. Get it over early so we can enjoy the football in the later rounds.
The later rounds are always my least favorite element of major tournament, mainly because England are rarely involved but also because it's apparent due to the off days between the quarters and semis and then the final itself that the whole thing is winding down to another inevitable Germany win (sigh).
Fortunately, no further injuries to the England camp or call-ups today.
Good grief, another set-back. Now we have Sol Campbell calling Rio's continued banishment a racist act. We've had metatarsals and sex scandals before, but this must rank as the most calamitous lead up to a tournament for England, ever. Cameroon get to a final with less drama. FFS.
Another set-back - Jermain Defoe has flown home today after the death of his father. No call-up from Woy but the front-line options are looking mighty thin at this point.
Post a Comment
<< Home