Well, England's World Cup is over after Sunday's second-round loss to Germany. It was a hugely sad end to a disappointing campaign.
Here's my verdict below:
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South Africa 2010 will be John Motson's 10th World Cup with BBC Sport. John will be filing regular video reports from Cape Town, offering expert insight and opinion as well as recalling his own fond memories of previous tournaments. You can watch World Cup Motty on the BBC Sport website and the Red Button. John will also be using Twitter. You can follow him @worldcupmotty.
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Comments
You are right Motty they were woeful.
Tired? Other PL players are at the WC and they didn't look tired.
The WC has suddlenly come alive Motty! It really is a great feast of football.
Also it seems that the 'young prince' Harry is a bit sore about England's defeat according to some papers Motty! Strange that, I thought his family's team won! Some people are just never happy but look on the bright side: we all get to read the endless inquests now.
Just fabulous Motty! Looking forward to so much more.
4 abject performances Motty from the best players in the world!!! Do you think Wayne will go on TV again putting his hand on the WC!?!
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when i was just a little boy i asked my mummy what will i be. will i be famous? will i be rich? Here's what she said to me.
Son, your English. when you grow up, you'll get paid for 1 weeks work what most people earn in 10 years. You'll drive a ferrari and live in a big mansion and marry a supermodel. So yes you will be rich and you will be famous but unfortunately you will lose your grip on reality and inexplicably never really understand what it means to wear an England shirt with pride and passion.
A friend of mine's Dad played for Northern Ireland in the late 60's and when you used to get "capped" for playing for your country you used to actually receive a cap. To this day each and every one of them caps are proudly displayed. He wasn't a rich super star but playing for his country meant everything.
Steven Gerrard said at 3-1 the belief had gone. What's all that about. It doesn't when he's in a Liverpool shirt.
Believe it or not i'm a die hard England fan and i'm totally at a loss and really don't know where we go from here...
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Well motty on the issue of the fans, we are English and proud of it and yes everyone is very dissapointed wih this world cup but next England game we will be there behind the lads once again, and thats why England fans are some of the best if not THE best fans in the world.
Video technology is a must. Sepp Blater needs to be removed from his post because for me he is keeping this sport in the dark ages. Football is one of the richest sports in the world and yet we are falling behind sports like tennis and cricket. Football needs a shake up and to be moved forward.
Wih the players i say yes to a winter break but that is still no excuse. We are a passionate nation and yet our players showed none of that great trate they were born with. No passion, no heart, no desire and no cohesion within the team. And i dont think it is the managers fault i admit in the heat of the moment i was calling for his head but lets look at the past. McClaren had some relative success as middlesbrough boss, but he was a failure as England boss, but now he has just won the dutch league and is now looking for more success in Germany. Sven again won things in europe but as England boss didnt deliver. And then we come to Fabio Capello one of the best managers in the world today has won things all over europe but again come up short in the hotest seat in football and this a man who has been Real Madrid boss. So for me its not the coach its the players and until we stop bringing in all these overseas players to make the Premiership the so called best league in the world and start developing our home grown talent we will not win anything in my life time and im only 21.
Sir Alex said at the begining of last season on the amount of Brazilian players registered to play in the champions league, around 90. Compare that to around 20 odd English players it jus shows you that English players are just not coming through to reach the biggest stage in club football. So how will we win the biggest prize in world football?
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Germany ran the show yesterday, plain and simple. However, I don't think that they'll find it quite as easy against Argentina. I personally can't seem to understand why England cannot play as a team - as individuals they are very talented, but get them together and it seems as though the individuals want to be just that - individuals.
I can't go along with the end of season tiredness factor, I'm afraid. Players say that they want to play all the time, then when a big tournament comes around, what happens? The same old excuse - we were tired. The conditions in South Africa were supposed to have suited the English, as it's winter. It's quite honestly a pathetic excuse, I really don't think that a mid-winter break would make any difference, it's about being a team and as I've already stated, England aren't a team, they're a team of individuals.
As for Capello? Well, the FA have to take huge responsibility here. They wanted the manager to sign a contract prior to the tournament, so he was committed up to Euro 2012. Well, they certainly love to make mistakes. If they sack him and have to pay out in the region of £16m, who will end up suffering, will the players suffer, Capello himself? It'll more likely be us, the fans. How will the FA recoup the £16m? No doubt from the fans, we'll have to pay over the odds even more for games at Wembley. If the FA had held off until after the tournament, then they wouldn't have the problem of coughing up £16m, should they let the Italian go.
I'm sure we can talk until we're blue in the face about the lack of English quality, but it'll all happen again come Euro 2012, should we qualify. Nothing will happen now, it'll be brushed under the carpet - English players don't have the technique, can't play together, or it's either too hot, too cold, or they're tired. I doubt if they're tired when they see all that money going into their bank accounts.
I hope that come the friendly game in August the fans boycott the game at Wembley, especially if it's the same old players. I'm sorry, but for their teams, the likes of Gerrard, Rooney, Lampard & Terry are magnificent, come to the big stage and they're not the players we see week in, week out, it's time for change. I for one can't be bothered with the national team, so why should others be after the rubbish in South Africa.
Enjoy the rest of the World Cup Motty. I still miss your commentary!
Perhaps you should manage England?
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I agree with Motty regarding Goal Line Technology, in this instance England would have been given the goal and 2-2 at half time but his reservations are well founded. Where would it stop everybody would push for a little bit more - and a little bit more, before long we would be in the same position as American Football with matches lasting 4 hours most of which is taken up by reviews.
It`s hard to believe that if England want a change of manager that it will cost £16M in severence payments to Fabio capello and his staff. That to my mind is a sad reflection on where the game is to-day - not that long ago people would have begged to get the England Manager`s job.
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Motty,
Completely disagree with you about technology. Football at the highest level is a farce because of this.
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Don't worry Motty it'll be three lions till we die, and past that too.
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Tiredness doesn't explain the shambles against Germany, nor does it explain Terry and Upson's positioning for the first goal or the unbelievable mess the back four got into for the second goal.
Also Sunday's inept display highlighted the lack of preparation by Capello. Read what the German coach said after the match:
Loew explained that he had intended to make the most of England's frailties at the back, particularly by forcing defender John Terry out of position.
"Today we were dominant," Loew said. "We were successful in luring Terry out of defence with (Thomas) Mueller and (Lukas) Podolski penetrating the wide defence.
"We knew that the midfielders (Steven) Gerrard and (Frank) Lampard always support the forwards, and that their midfield would be open," Loew continued.
"So our objective was to set Terry up with Klose to force him to come out of the defence. We knew that the full-backs would be very much to the sides and create spaces between the England defenders that would help us penetrate their defence.
"We wanted to do this and we were successful there."
It would appear that Germany had prepared thoroughly, and we were hoping that a few crosses by Milner would swing it our way. I say, hire the German coach!
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Prior to England winning the world cup in 1966 our best striker without doubt was jimmy Greaves of Tottenham.As the world cup tournament got closer Sir Alf Ramsey told anyone who would listen that England would be the eventual winners.We did not have Pele and we did not have Eusebio or the great Gerd Muller.Bobby Moore was too slow to catch a bus and nobby stiles looked like he needed to be nourished in order for his life to continue.Jack charlton was called many things as a player but no one ever thought he was skillful.Alan Ball ran non stop for ninety minutes as they do in the premier league and was the star of the game.
As the final approached the media went into a frenzy as Sir Alf dropped Greaves.How were we going to score a goal without Jimmy Greaves?Well a certain Geoff Hurst came on and scored an hatrick.The only one ever scored in a world cup final incidentally by a player who lacked skill compared to the so called super stars.
You see it is a team game gentlemen you dont need superstars or prima donnas.You need belief and the will to win first and foremost.That is how England won the world cup withiut one of the greatest goal scorers of all time.....Jimmy Greaves.
The last I heard of Terry and Lampard they were in a night club throwing twenty pound notes on the floor while giggling like two schoolgirls as they watched to see who would pick them up.They are a disgrace to their profession and play for themselves instead of the team.
It is not Fabio Cappellos fault that John Terrys ego is bigger than the whole team.I am not trying to knock John Terry,I am merely trying to point out that he is not a very gifted footballer as was George Best but he also does not have the class of Bobby Moore .He is a stain on the reputation of everything Sir Alf Ramsey wished for his beloved England team.Perhaps they were not the most gifted team in the world but every man on that team was a superstar.
The present day players are grossly overpaid grossly over rated and have no pride in the England shirt.Fabio is surely disgusted with Rooney sulking and John Terry speaking out when he should be listening.The lack of fighting spirit and walking off the field as if they are proud of their display.Then Rooney has the audacity to chastise the very fans who spent four years savings to watch the worst England display I have ever seen.
Terry,Rooney.and a few others should never be allowed to wear the cherished shirt of England ever again.
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Tired.How the bloody hell can they be tired?They only work ten months in a year and train no more than four hours a day playing at most two games a week,on 180,000 pound a week.
I support a team called Workington Reds from over the hill in Cumbria.We experienced some terrible floods this past winter causing a lot of games to be cancelled.In November we were mid table with a backlog of fixtures which required seven games to be played in fourteen days.We won all seven and reched the playoffs.These boys play for little money and work full time jobs. Some travel halfway across the country on match days.We dont have a single Messi on the team but
we do have a team who play for the love of the game and with pride for their team shirt.
Bloody tired huh.
Every player who pulls on a workington shirt,no exceptions would put them bloody England players to shame when it comes to playing for the cause.
Rooney pouting like a schoolboy,Green not even non league standard Glen Johnson the worst fullback ever to pull on an England shirt.Fat Frank with his ego and John terry to slow to catch a bloody bus.Surrounded by average players such as Gareth Barry Lennon and Milner.Ive worked twelve hour shifts for forty bloody years now thats what bloody tired is.I would walk to Anfield after work and have the stamina to give Shankly a good ninety minutes just to say I played for him. No pay no expenses,The dream would be worth more than a cheque.Bloody tired Huh.
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Am I the only one that can see why England keep on failing time and time again? I am sure that there are many factors that have played there part in our latest woeful performance in South Africa, but the one factor that was clearly present, was England’s complete lack of movement “off” the ball. To me this has to be the single largest contributing factor to why England finds it so difficult to play open, attractive attacking football, and why we are so easy to play against.
I am certainly no football expert, but it is so evident from watching England’s performances and comparing them to others in the World Cup, that we seem incapable of stringing together enough attacking forward movement, necessary to create the opportunity to score in or around the box. To me at least, this seems such a basic requirement of the game, but one that almost all pundits reviewing England’s games never seem to pick up on. In our last game, I think I heard Mark Lawrenson mention in passing, “we need more movement off the ball”, and he was of course right.
The reason that England’s so called “world class players” can play well for their club teams but not for England is simple. In their club teams they are largely surrounded by overseas players, whose movement off the ball is far superior to England’s, and where the teams general approach to moving the ball forward into goal scoring positions, is far more dynamic. As such there is so much more movement off the ball, as team mates continually move around, making themselves available to receive a pass. You only have to look at any England matches from the World Cup, when England were in possession, and the player on the ball was being closed down by the opposition, on almost every occasion, every single England player ahead of the ball was largely static, making no attempt to make themselves available to receive a forward pass. As a result, time and time again, England was forced to play a negative pass backwards, putting unnecessary pressure on the defence and playing so much of the game in our own half. Forced continually into these positions, it’s not surprising that we revert to the “long ball” game.
You only have to look at the best national and most successful club sides to see that how much more flowing and dynamic their movement is “off” the ball. It is not as if as individuals English players do not have the necessary skills, it’s just that they do not for some inexplicable reason play as a “team” when they play for England. Clearly we have skilful players, clearly when having created a goal scoring opportunities in or around the box, we have players that can score goals. You have to question how and why, the England teams seems incapable of playing, what is for most a simple positive passing game, that will create the goal scoring opportunities needed to win games.
Surely, it can’t be a simple is as, just telling them that’s what they need to do, to move, to make yourself available to receive a pass, and when you’ve pasted the ball, run into space to maybe receive the ball back again, can it? Look at any other quality team, the player on the ball, even the most closely marked payer, within a few seconds will have an option of two or three passes, and more often than not a forward pass, as his team mates make runs and movement off the ball.
It’s not “rocket science”, two teams, a ball, and a pitch with goals, the team that moves the ball around his team mates, and progress it “up” the pitch towards the oppositions goal, is going to create opportunities to score goals. The team that can create the most opportunities to score goals is going to have a much better chance of scoring goals, and therefore, win the game.
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Motty, heard you say that Football is a game of continuity. I agree, but video technology can actually speed the game up! Simply make the on-pitch referee carry out the instructions of the video-ref. This means the on-pitch ref doesn't blow his whistle until the video-ref tells him to.
The game just keeps flowing until the video-ref says stop. At worst it would be like a late whistle, and we see these all the time anyway.
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Dirk Kuyt didn't look very tired did he........and I'm damn sure prozone would show he'd covered more yards than Stevie G during the season.
As for Capello suggesting he'd look at 'up and coming' players........and then mentioning Hargreaves and Zamora(58 years combined) is a joke!!
Players to promote and rebuild with:
Hart(must get the No1 shirt)
Jagielka,Rodwell in a brand new CB partnership(Shawcross and Mancienne drafted in too).
Cashley and G.Johnson still have a part to play at full back.
Lampard and Gerrard in the middle still.....and Gerrard TOLD that he's the HOLDING MIDFIELDER.Delph,Gosling,Wilshere,Noble all given a look.
A.Young(any competent fantasy football manager will know he gets more goals/assists than SWP or Lennon) and Adam Johnson the width in midfield.
Agbonlahor,Wickham,Carroll,C.Cole and Rooney(the 5 strikers).
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