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*Official* Knockout Stages

Furball

Evil Scotsman
Feel pretty calm just now, but did for the Slovenia game til about half twelve and was then ****ting bricks for the next 4 hours.

Try to look at it logically (we're more experienced, player for player have the better team, won the last time we played, etc) but can't get past the defeats of yore. Weirdly, in my mind, 1996 seems like yesterday but 2001 seems like an age ago despite us still having 3 players who featured that night, including two of the goalscorers.
This part is complete rubbish IMO. A few pundits have come out with similar guff in the past few days, and it can only be based on the fact that the Bundesliga is relatively low profile in the UK.

England are a team choc full of average players, with a sprinkling of top talent which has made a career out of underperforming internationally. Germany on the other hand have a side who have reached the semis of the last World Cup and the final of the last European Championships, which is a far more proven recent tournament pedigree. They've also got 4 of the side which won the U21 European Championship - so this side know how to win things.
 

Pratters

Cricket, Lovely Cricket
This World Cup needs an Argentina-England match. C'mon the Poms tonight tbh.
As much as I would like an England-Argentina match, I just don't see England winning against Germany today. They are a team full of hyped stars and lack team ethic which is essential in football.

Can't wait for the football to start.
 

Goughy

Hall of Fame Member
For some reason, and I dont know what (maybe Fedor losing last night), I am very relaxed about the game today. Having a que sera sera moment. Im not even going to the pub. I decided I will watch at home.
 

Matteh

Cricket Web: All-Time Legend
Given it descends down into the average English person as well, the national pride thing just isn't there.
 

grecian

Cricket Web: All-Time Legend
Given it descends down into the average English person as well, the national pride thing just isn't there.
Is it though? Never has the term "lowest Common denominator", meant more then for the readers of the Scum and the Star.

If your talking about the WWII thing, I don't note it much. Personally the German rivalry is all about the two pen shoot-out defeats, for most football fans that is. Three Lions is sung 500 times more then that silly "two world wars and one world cup" thing, which I haven't heard all tournament TBH.

Same with Argentina not being about the Falklands, more Rattin, and the two Diegoes.

I'm sure other countries have unpleasant jingoistic elements to their support too.

There are ***** in our country, but then that's the Human Race...............
 

BoyBrumby

Englishman
...been worse than Germany in four of six tournaments since 1998...
Whilst I'm sure that's true, the only time the two sides met in those tournaments we actually won, despite being hamstrung by having a manager that makes the current Argentine incumbent seem like a cross between Herbert Chapman & Alf Ramsey.

Anyway, notwithstanding that, football is decided on the pitch not by the statute of precedent. I don't expect to win (have tipped Jerry on pens, ftr), but that's because of the underperformance of our overpaid, overrated, etc players rather than the ghosts of the world cups past.
 

Matteh

Cricket Web: All-Time Legend
Is it though? Never has the term "lowest Common denominator", meant more then for the readers of the Scum and the Star.

If your talking about the WWII thing, I don't note it much. Personally the German rivalry is all about the two pen shoot-out defeats, for most football fans that is. Three Lions is sung 500 times more then that silly "two world wars and one world cup" thing, which I haven't heard all tournament TBH.

Same with Argentina not being about the Falklands, more Rattin, and the two Diegoes.

I'm sure other countries have unpleasant jingoistic elements to their support too.

There are ***** in our country, but then that's the Human Race...............
Given the amount of flak i've had over the years, will have to hugely disagree on that. Have seen the "two world wars" thing quoted a hell of a lot on Facebook since it was obvious the game was going to be played the other day as well.
 

Magrat Garlick

Global Moderator
Anyway, notwithstanding that, football is decided on the pitch not by the statute of precedent. I don't expect to win (have tipped Jerry on pens, ftr), but that's because of the underperformance of our overpaid, overrated, etc players rather than the ghosts of the world cups past.
Make your mind up. :p If England's players are overrated, how come a correctly rated team would still be better than Germany man for man?

Looking at it

Neuer >> James

Lahm >>> Johnson (basically the same going forward, one of them not a positional liability at the back)
Friedrich = Carragher (neither World Cup winning calibre)
Mertesacker < Terry
Jansen/Badstuber << Cole (either a left winger or a central defender...ugh)

Schweinsteiger < Lampard
Khedira < Barry (not much in these, given them on basis of international experience)

Özil < Gerrard (experience again)
Müller > Milner (neither particularly proven, Müller has some good CL games under his belt though)

Klose < Rooney (even a half-fit Rooney is better than Klose)
Podolski = Defoe (Morton's fork)

So pretty close. Six English better to four Germans I suppose.
 

Jarquis

Cricket Web: All-Time Legend
Yeah, did well enough against Slovenia IMO to warrant keeping his place. Especially when Carragher is genuinely horrific.
 

Scaly piscine

Cricket Web: All-Time Legend
Unchanged side for England. No Carragher... thank **** for that.

I will say however that Upson did give away far too many cheap free kicks against Slovenia, it may have just been the referee but then it sounds like we've got a picky wanker for this game anyway.
 

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