James Barclay

[Drizzt]

Thoughts?

I only caught the BBC highlights but it didn't look too bad. 3-0 on a bad pitch against a banana skin is always good, even if the opposition haven't scored for 20 months...

Job done. Nowt flash, but a win's a win. Keeps us in touch with the leaders.
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Pagan Music

[Parmenion]

after 2 games i sit back in smugness at my constant support of Becks, he has proved why he should never have been dropped, them man is awsome

[Drizzt]

4 decent crosses in 90 minutes? Wow...
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Pagan Music

[James]

When you win 3-0 and two of them are made from those 4 decent crosses, what more do you want?

Fact is, he was injured after 10 mins and was still everywhere on the pitch, tackling back, releasing play, being an outlet. Took a couple of fine free kicks too. It was a very good performance indeed.

I'm not sure what more people expect from the man. Owen only scored one goal in 90 mins, so did Crouch, and yet they don't get damned with faint praise. And rightly, cos that's what a striker should do, get a goal.

to expect DB to put in a dozen perfect crosses in a match is like expecting a striker to be on the end of every single one and put it in the net every single time. Give him a break, I say. And name me a player who performed better than him on the night.

Venting my spleen a bit here but highlights are just that. You don't get the whole picture. And the facts speak for themselves. Out of the four goals we've scored in the last two matches, Becks has crossed for three of them.

Tell me that's disappointing.

I do not understand why he is run down so much. No one, but no one is as accurate passing and crossing as he still is. No one works harder or shows more passion.
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'A human with a hand outstretched in friendship carries the fangs of a taipan in his palm.' A TaiGethen saying.

[Drizzt]

Oh he's fine at delivering the ball, that can't be argued. As you say, three assists from four goals isn't bad going at all.

I don't have a problem with Beckham when he keeps to what he does best. It's when he starts coming inside and starts to take up positions Lampard and Gerrard are in and we end up with nothing out wide and start pinging long balls to Crouch all the time. And this was against Estonia. If he could be more disiplined and shackle himself to the right touchline, I'd be a lot happier.

He played well, but everyone should be playing well against a team ranked below Ethiopia and Hong Kong.

If he can keep this level of performance up for England while he's in LA, I'll be impressed. And happy!
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Pagan Music

[Parmenion]

what did lampard do all night? nothing, when becks went off the pitch where did the invention come from? no where. we regressed back in to a bunch of plodders, becks does not just provide passes he provides cohesion, ideas and heart...something we have lacked while he was not picked.

[Futre4]

Smug Rant :-

I love being right , i love it , check any old entries , I ALWAYS said becks should be in there , not easy come easy go form footballers, Becks even when not at his best should be in the squad , for his endeavor alone, I could have quite easily have just pasted an old entry here and re-entered it .

Parmenion is right he should never have been dropped , but if it has served to do anything hopefully it has made that idiot Mclaren realise was an idiot to drop becks.
Sorry i hate being smug but i had to say it!. ;v)

The most important thing however is that we win all the rest if the games and that Mclaren also realises that however ungainly crouch scores goals, for me the jury is out on Owen , im afraid i still dont think hes all that anymore.

Furthermore , I agree Lamps didnt do alot , but that is more because we are spoiled in midfield and he likes to be the main man , if lamps was from any other euro nation he'd be the main man . What is more worrying is that there is ONE guy in the squad with the ability to skin anyone , and that is Joe Cole , if he gets injured we are trouble , and why oh why do people persevere with Dyer , he is in a word - Dire !.
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I always knew Chang was Chinese Intelligence.

http://richardpmurfin.wordpress.com/

[Max Power]

Three points, not unduly threatened at the back, no-one was a major disappointment. Job done.

Beckham showed he still has the quality with set pieces/crosses etc, but I worry that he will want to play when in America - as long as he is playing at a good level, we should have him in the squad; I just don't know enough about American football to say if he will still be good enough for us. I guess not, but then if there's no replacement in England we are in trouble!

And as for Own not being able to do it. Please! People say that after every injury and he keeps coming back and scoring goals.
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If you strike me down, I shall become more powerful than you can possibly imagine.

[Parmenion]

hey F4 im feeling as smug as you i never lost faith with becks and have been given so much crap for it...no i feel smug... as for crouch...12 goals in 19 games and a fair few as a sub....how is he not picked every time??

[Futre4]

Id love to be proved wrong on the Owen front , indeed Id happily eat my words, I just havent seen the same player of old, people always argue " ahh but he still scores", maybe he does but he is no longer the first name on the team sheet like the old days, indeed if crouch is banging them in and rooney is free from suspension I simply cannot see how Owen can demand a place, and I am a newcastle fan !, it reminds me of shearer post injury - granted he was still good , but he was no longer amazing............. I feel he has the fear now!.
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I always knew Chang was Chinese Intelligence.

http://richardpmurfin.wordpress.com/

[James]

I dunno. Owen is a name early on the team sheet. trouble is, he's injured a lot. Don't forget, this was his first full international since the World Cup. Didn't do massas BUT he was in the right place and scored a good goal. If he did that every time he pulled on an england shirt, we'd be knee deep in trophies. It's all he has to do...

With you, Drizzt, becks is THE man on the right and less impressive in central midfield. And talking of the midfield, one day we must bite hte bullet and accept that Gerrard is the better player so Lamps should be dropped. We need a holder behind Gerrard and Ledley King showed he can do that. So can Hargreaves.
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'A human with a hand outstretched in friendship carries the fangs of a taipan in his palm.' A TaiGethen saying.

[Max Power]

I agree with James regarding Lampard. Against smaller nations he and Gerrard can play together as they don't need to track back, but England need Hargreaves or King as a defensive midfielder against better opposition. Gerrard performs at a more consistent level than Lampard, and is more involved in driving forward a team than Lamps. As much as I admire Lampard, he hasn't played well for England in the last year, and I think Hargreaves needs a long run in the team after convincing me of his quality in the last World Cup. It pains me to say it, but ManYoo have signed a quality played there and he will be a real asset next season.
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If you strike me down, I shall become more powerful than you can possibly imagine.

[Parmenion]

i think hargreaves has proved he is the top of the list when it comes to holding midfielder... i think after becks he has the most heart on the pitch, after the abuse he got (and deserved) he took it on the chin picked himself up and grew as a player.... i see great things for him ahead... he may well be a future captain

[Max Power]

He certainly went through a rough patch with England fans (me included), but looking back it's because Sven played him anywhere but as a defensive midfield player. I look forward to seeing how good he actually he is next season.
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If you strike me down, I shall become more powerful than you can possibly imagine.