Euro 2004

[G-O-D]

Gerrard + Lampard in the central midfield positions = bad idea.  Gerrard is someone who needs to attack as is Lampard, but England also need someone to sit in front of the defence as well.  Personally, I'd play Lampard on the left and let him cut into the middle, with Carragher moving up to put in crosses.  Gerrard at the head of the diamond, with Nicky Butt holding in front of the defence.

←

I would put Butt at the end of the diamond, if he had enough first team action.

Problem is, he's not. I fear that he may lack match fitness and we need every single player to be in tip-top condition to be able to beat France. Gerrard can tackle, as he has shown when playing for Liverpool, and I think he could do well to sit in front of the defence and hold up the midfield.

If I was Sven, I would have chosen Scott Parker instead of Butt. He is a great tackler and will do well just in front of the defence in central midfield.

[botchedpiledriver]

I'm shocked that Scott Parker isn't a definenite inclusion in the England squad. He's played far more football this season than Nicky Butt and had a Multi-Million pound move to Chelsea.

[TheArsenal]

I would say the best formation for playing against France would be an attacking 5-3-2 formation.

-------------------------James------------------

-------------Neville---Campbell---Terry-------

Hargreaves--------------------------------Cole

----------Beckham--Lampard--Gerrard--------

----------------Rooney-------Owen-------------

That would leave Ashley Cole, a natural left footed player, free to get forward when needed without leaving us short at the back. Owen Hargreaves on the other side has played at right wing-back before so he is the best bet for that position as he has experience. With three at the back we can have terry marking Henry and Neville marking the other striker (possibly Saha). That leaves Campbell free to clear up any balls that come through, or even double up with Terry to take on Henry.

Beckham has been playing centrally all season for Madrid, but playing him in the righthand side of the three means we can still make the most of his crossing and runs down the right as he can drift in and out. Gerrard can also drift in and out on the left, like he's been doing for Liverpool this season - and Sven has been considering putting him on the left anyway. At least we can still make the most of his central strength with him in a three. And of course with Lampard where he is, going right down the middle, we have his strength in spliting the defence.

[G-O-D]

I would say the best formation for playing against France would be an attacking 5-3-2 formation.

-------------------------James------------------

-------------Neville---Campbell---Terry-------

Hargreaves--------------------------------Cole

----------Beckham--Lampard--Gerrard--------

----------------Rooney-------Owen-------------

That would leave Ashley Cole, a natural left footed player, free to get forward when needed without leaving us short at the back. Owen Hargreaves on the other side has played at right wing-back before so he is the best bet for that position as he has experience. With three at the back we can have terry marking Henry and Neville marking the other striker (possibly Saha). That leaves Campbell free to clear up any balls that come through, or even double up with Terry to take on Henry.

Beckham has been playing centrally all season for Madrid, but playing him in the righthand side of the three means we can still make the most of his crossing and runs down the right as he can drift in and out. Gerrard can also drift in and out on the left, like he's been doing for Liverpool this season - and Sven has been considering putting him on the left anyway. At least we can still make the most of his central strength with him in a three. And of course with Lampard where he is, going right down the middle, we have his strength in spliting the defence.

←

Seems like a good formation, but i think France would roll through the midfield. You have no good tacklers in central midfield, with the exception of Stevie, who's playing on the left. France's Zidane and Makelele would gain control of the midfield with ease.

[TheArsenal]

Seems like a good formation, but i think France would roll through the midfield. You have no good tacklers in central midfield, with the exception of Stevie, who's playing on the left. France's Zidane and Makelele would gain control of the midfield with ease.

←

Stevie is in central midfield. Those three are all central......with Cole and Hargreaves overlapping. I think Lampard is a good tackler and he would be able to get control.

The thing is Zidane and Makelele are going to get past anyone with thier skills. So a strong defence like that would be able to stop them. Then you have an unbelieveably quick offence (with Hargreaves and Cole included in both sides of that obviously)

Edited May 18, 2004 by TheArsenal

[G-O-D]

Stevie is in central midfield. Those three are all central......with Cole and Hargreaves overlapping. I think Lampard is a good tackler and he would be able to get control.

The thing is Zidane and Makelele are going to get past anyone with thier skills. So a strong defence like that would be able to stop them. Then you have an unbelieveably quick offence (with Hargreaves and Cole included in both sides of that obviously)

←

Stevie is on the left of central in that formation. (Does that even makes sense?)

He needs to be in the center of the three midfielders to be able to break up Zidane and Makelele. Actually, Makelele shouldn't be in the starting XI for France. Vieira should be. A Zidane-Vieira partnership takes more than Gerrard to break up.

And, IMO, Hargreaves should not be overlapping. He's not fast enough, he'll prolly get caught out at the back. And if France get past the midfield, (and they prolly will), the defenders would be stretched, with Terry and Neville having to move to the flanks to mark the wingers, leaving Campbell open to Henry and Trezeguet/Saha.

[TheArsenal]

Stevie is on the left of central in that formation. (Does that even makes sense?)

He needs to be in the center of the three midfielders to be able to break up Zidane and Makelele. Actually, Makelele shouldn't be in the starting XI for France. Vieira should be. A Zidane-Vieira partnership takes more than Gerrard to break up.

And, IMO, Hargreaves should not be overlapping. He's not fast enough, he'll prolly get caught out at the back. And if France get past the midfield, (and they prolly will), the defenders would be stretched, with Terry and Neville having to move to the flanks to mark the wingers, leaving Campbell open to Henry and Trezeguet/Saha.

←

Yes that makes sense. The formation would still work with Lampard on the left of the three - but I feel Beckham, Lampard and Gerrard would be able to cope with Vieira and Zidane. Ok, they wouldn't stop them everytime, but no midfield in the world would!!

As for Hargreaves, I think the idea of him overlapping would work, the whole point of the back three is so the box is crowded with defenders, they don't have to go to the wingers. As wing backs, both Hargreaves and Cole have some defensive duties, but the idea of win backs is to get a attacking advantage when breaks come your way. Otherwise you might as well play a flat back five. And if Hargreaves were to run the length of the pitch, Beckham, Gerrard or Lampard would stay back in midfield, that's the way a team works. Then if a break occurs there is still more than adequate cover.

[G-O-D]

As for Hargreaves, I think the idea of him overlapping would work, the whole point of the back three is so the box is crowded with defenders, they don't have to go to the wingers. As wing backs, both Hargreaves and Cole have some defensive duties, but the idea of win backs is to get a attacking advantage when  breaks come your way. Otherwise you might as well play a flat back five. And if Hargreaves were to run the length of the pitch, Beckham, Gerrard or Lampard would stay back in midfield, that's the way a team works. Then if a break occurs there is still more than adequate cover.

←

The box would be crowded with defenders, but the wingers would be able to strike just outside the penalty area. And the risk of having men in the box would be when a striker tries to muscle his way through, but the defenders crowd around him, he could just decide to take a dive at the slightest contact, and a penalty could be awarded.

And Hargreaves is not suited to being a wingback. He lacks one of the most important quality of a good wingback: speed. Hargreaves should just stay back in your formation and attacks should be coming from the left flank, with Cole overlapping. However, attacking from our weaker flank is not the best idea.

Of course, we could be playing the ball down the middle, but I don't think we should run the risk of having Zidane and Vieira getting the ball. Once these guys have the ball, it'll be hard to get it back.

[Asuka's Gonna Kill You]

Inzaghi won't really be a loss when you have players like Di Vaio, Vieri, and Del Piero to take his spot. Italy's attack seems really strong on paper.

And my best XI for England:

----------------------Robinson----------------

---G.Neville--Terry--Campbell--A.Cole----

------------------Gerrard-------------------

---Beckham---------------------J.Cole----

------------------Lampard------------------

-----------Owen-------------Rooney------

←

A solid Italy team. Inzaghi is a pretty big loss still, yet not huge. Luckily Cassano and Totti will be in the team as them two work magic together for Roma, hopefully they do it at the Euro.

[G-O-D]

Eriksson voices England concerns

LONDON, May 19 (Reuters) - England coach Sven-Goran Eriksson says his squad for next month's European championship in Portugal has shortcomings in goal and up front.

'David James has done well and I have great faith in him but we don't have a Gordon Banks figure in goal,' Eriksson was quoted as saying in British newspapers on Wednesday. Banks was the goalkeeper when England won the 1966 World Cup on home soil.

The Swede said there was a gap in class between first choice James and his deputies, Paul Robinson and Ian Walker.

'Beyond James there's something of a void in the position, which is unusual for England, who have a tradition of great goalkeepers,' added Eriksson.

Eriksson, who named strikers Michael Owen, Wayne Rooney, Emile Heskey and Darius Vassell in his Euro 2004 squad on Monday, also believes England lack depth up front.

'It's our attack which is our weak point. We don't have as much cover as in other positions,' he said.

'Owen is our top man. He's had injury problems and was not scoring for a while but he has recovered and he's at his best in the big games.

'Then we have Rooney, with his imagination and intelligence. But apart from those two, we don't have world class strikers.'

However, Eriksson said his squad was strong in defence and midfield.

'Our defenders are strong and our midfielders brave and skilful,' he said.

'Steven Gerrard is an excellent left-sided midfielder and we have seldom lost with him in the side.'

England, who fell at the first hurdle at Euro 2000 but reached the World Cup quarter-finals two years later, open their campaign in Euro 2004 Group B against holders France on June 13 before facing Switzerland and Croatia.

Eriksson must submit his official squad for Portugal by June 2

Source

There is definitely a lack of quality in attack. If either Owen or Rooney gets injured, I don't think there is a striker of their quality to replace them.

[therockbox]

'Steven Gerrard is an excellent left-sided midfielder and we have seldom lost with him in the side.'

Good job Sven, you've wasted one of your best players.

[fineintent]

Wow that must make the other strikers and goalkeepers feel great. I mean David James isn't a good goalkeeper (he can be, he makes a lot of mistakes) I personally don't trust him, so how must Robinson and Walker feel? Never mind those who didn't make it.

[evertonfan]

Czech Republic Squad:

Czech Republic coach Karel Bruckner named striker Miroslav Matusovic in his provisional 24-man squad for Euro 2004.

Bruckner has opted to take an extra player to his one-week training camp in Seedfeld, Austria.

"Matusovic is not the 24th player," Said Bruckner. "His performance recently speaks strongly for a place."

Bruckner was also able to name all his key players, including Vladimir Smicer and Tomas Rosicky, who have recovered from injury problems.

Liverpool forward Smicer had been doubtful with an Achilles injury that saw him sidelined for two months, while Rosicky had a broken arm.

Also included in the squad are Juventus midfielder Pavel Nedved and Liverpool striker Milan Baros.

The Czechs finished top of their group in qualifying for the finals.

But Bruckner's team suffered a 1-0 defeat at home to Japan in April, their first defeat in two years.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Goalkeepers: Petr Cech (Rennes), Jaromir Blazek (Sparta Prague), Antonin Kinsky (Ramenskoye).

Defenders: Rene Bolf (Banik Ostrava), Zdenek Grygera (Ajax Amsterdam), Tomas Hubschmann (Sparta Prague), Marek Jankulovski (Udine), Martin Jiranek (Reggina), Pavel Mares (St. Petersburg), David Rozehnal (Brugge), Tomas Ujfalusi (Hamburger SV).

Midfielders: Tomas Galasek (Ajax Amsterdam), Pavel Nedved (Juventus), Karel Poborsky (Sparta Prague), Tomas Rosicky (Borussia Dortmund), Jaroslav Plasil (AS Monaco), Vladimir Smicer (Liverpool), Roman Tyce (Munich 1860), Stepan Vachousek (Marseille).

Forwards: Milan Baros (Liverpool), Marek Heinz (Banik Ostrava), Jan Koller (Borussia Dormund), Vratislav Lokvenc (Kaiserslautern), Miroslav Matusovic (Banik Ostrava)

[Summers]

Sven's great. He just killed Robinson's, Walker's, Vassell's and Heskey's moral.

[Guest MystikalityIX]

There is definitely a lack of quality in attack. If either Owen or Rooney gets injured, I don't think there is a striker of their quality to replace them.

See: Defoe, Smith.

[G-O-D]

Czech Republic Squad:

Goalkeepers: Petr Cech (Rennes), Jaromir Blazek (Sparta Prague), Antonin Kinsky (Ramenskoye).

Defenders: Rene Bolf (Banik Ostrava), Zdenek Grygera (Ajax Amsterdam), Tomas Hubschmann (Sparta Prague), Marek Jankulovski (Udine), Martin Jiranek (Reggina), Pavel Mares (St. Petersburg), David Rozehnal (Brugge), Tomas Ujfalusi (Hamburger SV).

Midfielders: Tomas Galasek (Ajax Amsterdam), Pavel Nedved (Juventus), Karel Poborsky (Sparta Prague), Tomas Rosicky (Borussia Dortmund), Jaroslav Plasil (AS Monaco), Vladimir Smicer (Liverpool), Roman Tyce (Munich 1860), Stepan Vachousek (Marseille).

Forwards: Milan Baros (Liverpool), Marek Heinz (Banik Ostrava), Jan Koller (Borussia Dormund), Vratislav Lokvenc (Kaiserslautern), Miroslav Matusovic (Banik Ostrava)

←

Czech looks to be a dark horse. They can go far in this tournament with guys like Nedved, Baros, Cech, Grygera and Koller.

[G-O-D]

See: Defoe, Smith.

←

Smith is way overrated IMO. His goal scoring stats aren't really impressive. The only redeeming quality he has, IMHO, is his combative spirit on the field. But he is far from being on the level of Owen and Rooney.

As for Defoe, he seems promising, but the jury is still out on him. He hasn't proven himself at international level yet, although I do rate him highly. He should be ahead of Vassell and Heskey in the pecking order, but he still has to prove himself.

[pigeon]

Dutch squad:

van der Sar (Fulham), Waterreus (PSV), Westerveld (Real Sociedad); F de Boer (Rangers), Bouma (PSV), van Bronckhorst (Barcelona), Heitinga (Ajax), Reiziger (Barcelona), Stam (Lazio); van Bommel (PSV), Cocu, Davids (both Barcelona), Seedorf (AC Milan), Sneijder, van der Vaart (both Ajax), Zenden (Middlesbrough); van Hooijdonk (Fenerbahce), Kluivert (Barcelona), Makaay (Bayern Munich), van der Meyde (Inter), van Nistelrooy (Manchester United), Overmars (Barcelona), Robben (PSV)

[fineintent]

Dutch squad:

van der Sar (Fulham), Waterreus (PSV), Westerveld (Real Sociedad); F de Boer (Rangers), Bouma (PSV), van Bronckhorst (Barcelona), Heitinga (Ajax), Reiziger (Barcelona), Stam (Lazio); van Bommel (PSV), Cocu, Davids (both Barcelona), Seedorf (AC Milan), Sneijder, van der Vaart (both Ajax), Zenden (Middlesbrough); van Hooijdonk (Fenerbahce), Kluivert (Barcelona), Makaay (Bayern Munich), van der Meyde (Inter), van Nistelrooy (Manchester United), Overmars (Barcelona), Robben (PSV)

Their defense is weak. Goalkeepers aren't great, de Boer and Reiziger are way past their best.

Just trying to reassure myself. Just look at that midfield and those strikers. Damn...

[TheArsenal]

Smith is way overrated IMO. His goal scoring stats aren't really impressive.

←

That may be becaue he's at Leeds.