England at the World Cup 2018

endise 6 years ago

Manchester United, England 0 1

Melestofes, I hope you are right and England Will Win The 2018 World Cup! I am always watching the statistics on 1xbet.com they told that England is already won World Cup.

legends16 6 years ago

Chelsea, England 39 783

Anybody else wonder how bad we would be if we still had Sam Allardyce, let alone how boring to watch?

mancitydude 6 years ago

Manchester City, England U20 B 4 244

Whos up for finishing 2nd place..........if we top the group we get a bunch of tough ones bar japan.......finish second and we stand a decent chance.

Emobot7 6 years ago

543 11477

@mancitydude Nah, go for the win dude, it will be a lot more inspiring for the team and it will make your opponent respect you more, beside, to really stand at the top, you still need to win against those tough team. Also, no team should come to the World Cup with the intention of finishing second, its the kind of thinking who get you eliminated early. ;P

legends16 6 years ago

Chelsea, England 39 783

Optimistic view: it's a win win either way.

Beat Belgium and it's a great result, and we have great momentum.
Lose and it's frustrating but we get an easier run if we manage to beat Columbia.

Either way look at the bright side, there are positives whatever. It's a great position to be in to start with, qualified already and able to rest players on a yellow card so we can avoid suspensions

the_bald_genius 6 years ago

10 1583

Underdogs power can make all this 2nd place tactic useless tho :p

Marcus2011 6 years ago

Chelsea FC, England 277 6501

I am satisfied with the results. I hope we can continue strong.

legends16 6 years ago

Chelsea, England 39 783

Only 8% of FR users voted earlier in this poll that we could get as far as the semis, and the poll did not even include the possibility we could make th4 final. Littered around are expressions like 'ro16 is their ceiling'.

And yet here we are. Immeasurably proud of this achievement, well done Southgate and the boys

liomessi10 6 years ago

Barcelona, Argentina 222 3053

ITS FUCKING COOOOOOMING HOME!!!!!!

raimondo90 6 years ago

Valencia, Argentina 89 2492

@Legends, no doubt. I was one of those that didn't have much faith in England but here we are with them as semifinalist and strong chance to reach the final. This WC has been something else. Regardless of what happens from here on out the team has performed very well and Southgate should keep the squad together and perhaps they could be a real force for the Euros as well.

Emobot7 6 years ago

543 11477

@Legend True, very few of us expected anything from those guys but they proved us wrong. Big credit to Southgate, think he took his experience from managing younger team and embrace it with this young english squad. Which worked beautifully, love all the crazy stuff his squad end up doing in their free time as well. XD Really hope they chose to keep no matter what happen.

iHEARTfootball 6 years ago

Manchester United 38 1000

Pretty sluggish start for England in the first 20 minutes, but it was overall an expected win. I still have my doubts about their finishing (Sterling was an eyesore) but their set pieces were top notch. Making to the semis is a gigantic feat for England. The mental barrier they had to face, tournament after tournament, is a really big obstacle to overcome, and they did it.

How they perform from here on out shouldn't really matter because compared to Hodgeson's garbage team last time, this run has shown the prestige of the Premier League (finally). Huge congrats to Southgate and his team, this marks a real new era for English football (I'll probably say the same thing when they're out soon, but whatever).

Dynastian98 6 years ago

Real Madrid 483 7140

I don't want to burst everyone's bubble, but the progression of the likes of England, Sweden, Croatia, etc. should not be taken too seriously because they've dodged some serious bullets.

Although losing to Germany, Sweden was able to advance because Low and his entire team flopped massively, and then were fortunate to face a defensive-minded team like Switzerland in the Ro16.
Croatia only advanced this far because of two penalty shoot-outs, despite doing very well in their group.
And neither England nor Belgium took their game seriously, but England have only had to face Tunisia, Panama, Colombia without James, and Sweden so far. The teams on this side of the bracket have been very fortunate, and their progression should not be taken too seriously (especially Russia, Sweden, Croatia, and England).

Also, this England team is far too young now. They will peak in the next WC; I expect a far more experienced and formidable team in 2022 and 2024 rather than right now. This is just a precocious team that has had some fortunate matchups.

this run has shown the prestige of the Premier League (finally)

Not really, since only Kane, Alli, and Walker are notable difference-makers on relevant English teams (I don't rate Sterling... a glorified Pedro is basically all he is. He'll look like an average winger in a non-Guardiola side because his inability to make decisions on the ball will be more exposed). Most of the world-beaters on English teams are foreigners. It's been more of a group effort than anything from England. They have performed better than the sum of their parts, much like the Uruguayan team in 2010 or Portugal in 2016.

Credit must go to Southgate for breaking the mental block that had stopped England in recent years, and the players for being able to foster a culture of togetherness. Even if they went out in the Ro16 this year to a more formidable team (Belgium, Brasil, or France), they could have gone out proudly because the signs were very positive thus far. Although I'm still critical of their defense, because I don't think any team they have faced have truly tested it.

raimondo90 6 years ago

Valencia, Argentina 89 2492

@Dy, excuses could be made about every single team left in the cup. Truth is that any team still in the cup in semifinals earned their spot regardless of the competition they faced. People forget you still have to win your games even if you are favorite. If this WC showed anything it's that no team should be taken lightly.
Sum of their parts or individual brilliance (England has shown both) doesn't matter. Winning is what counts in the end. Ask Argentina, Spain, Germany, Portugal, Brazil just how hard winning can be sometimes.

Dynastian98 6 years ago Edited

Real Madrid 483 7140

I am not making excuses for any team. Excuses are for when you lose. I'm just stating the obvious fact that some teams have had an easier path than others, and that it shouldn't be taken as an immediate reflection of their capability as a team.

Fortune is not something you can control. The best thing you can do is ride out every stroke of fortune you get elegantly, and that's exactly what teams like Russia, Sweden, Croatia, and England have done. But whichever of these teams reached the final should not be reflective of their ability in the world, since the competition they have faced are drastically different from the likes of France and Belgium.

Sum of their parts or individual brilliance (England has shown both) doesn't matter.

Yes, it does matter. Teams that have a strong sense of togetherness (England, Croatia) will relatively fare much better than teams that are dysfunctional and broken (Germany, Argentina). You cannot win on talent alone.

Showing previous versions of this text.

2018-07-08T03:14:58+00:00

I am not making excuses for any team. Excuses are for when you lose. I'm just stating the obvious fact that some teams have had an easier path than others, and that it shouldn't be taken as an immediate reflection of their capability as a team.

Fortune is not something you can control. The best thing you can do is ride out every stroke of fortune you get elegantly, and that's exactly what teams like Russia, Sweden, Croatia, and England have done. But whichever of these teams reached the final should not be reflective of their ability in the world, since the competition they have faced are drastically different from the likes of France and Belgium.

_Gonzi_ 6 years ago

Juventus, Argentina 2 2102

i didn't read any other comments, but all i have to say is that it has been a very easy route for england so far.

raimondo90 6 years ago

Valencia, Argentina 89 2492

Again, in this WC there was no easy path. Just because some nation's are looked down on and seen as low skill/ranking yet they've done consistent upsets.
Just because England played Sweden and Colombia meanwhile France played Argentina and Uruguay does not mean it was easier.
Hell France just had 1 really close game against Argentina and the match against Uruguay was pretty straight forward. I say it's even with England having gone to penalties against Colombia (1 really tough game) and then got through Sweden in a similar fashion of France vs Uruguay.
Croatia had a really hard time beating both Denmark and Russia in penalties. Meanwhile Belgium had a hard time against Japan and a decent challenge against Brazil. What's the difference? Caliber of opponents? Like i said, none of these guys should be taken lightly and caliber matters not at this point, only what you can put out in the 90 (or 120) minutes.

You need a combination of team plus individual talent. Can't rely on either 100%. The 4 remaining nation's have shown they have both characteristics at their disposal.

iHEARTfootball 6 years ago Edited

Manchester United 38 1000

I don't think any team they have faced have had their defence truly tested it.

I beg to differ, although it may look as though it was a breeze for England to make it this far in the World Cup, there were plenty of examples of when their defence was tested. The fact that Pickford had made a couple of phenomenal saves so far this tournament is evident to England's defence being tested (and failing the test, I should add).

You're not stating facts, they're just assumptions. We can assume that England's chances would be slimmer, if the likes of France were put in the same bracket as them, but we can't be certain of it because it never happened.

So why should England be discredited for their route to the semis thus far? Sweden were responsible for kicking Italy out of the World Cup (first time in half a century), shouldn't this mean something? Spain were knocked out by Russia who then got knocked out by Croatia afterwards. Should England beat Croatia in the semis and make it all the way to the grand finals against France/Belgium, then I'm sure England's path shouldn't be seen as easy.

There are plenty of examples of the same assumptions you've just made. One that comes to mind in recent years is like you said, Portugal 16. They supposedly had an "easy" route to the Euro 16 finals, but they still ended up winning against France (who had it "tougher"). We should never discredit anyone who made it to the semis, because we'll never know who the winner will be at the end. Like what @raimondo just said, and I stand by it.

any team still in the cup in semifinals earned their spot regardless of the competition they faced

but you are right when you say that those who make excuses are losers.

Showing previous versions of this text.

2018-07-08T04:52:41+00:00

I don't think any team they have faced have had their defence truly tested it.

I beg to differ, although it may look as though it was a breeze for England to make it this far in the World Cup, there were plenty of examples of when their defence was tested. The fact that Pickford had made a couple of phenomenal saves so far this tournament is evident to England's defence being tested (and failing the test, I should add).

We can assume that England's chances would be slimmer, if the likes of France were put in the same bracket as them, but we can't be certain of it because it never happened. So why should England be discredited for their route to the semis thus far? Sweden were responsible of kicking Italy out of the World Cup (first time in half a century), shouldn't this mean something? Spain were knocked out by Russia who then got knocked out by Croatia afterwards. Should England beat Croatia in the semis and make it all the way to the grand finals against France/Belgium, then I'm sure England's path shouldn't be seen as easy than it looks on paper. These aren't facts, they're simply assumptions.

There are plenty of examples of the same assumptions you've just have made. One that comes to mind in recent years if what you've just mentioned, Portugal 16. They supposedly had an "easy" route to the Euro 16 finals, but they still ended up winning against France (who had it "tougher"). We should never discredit anyone who made it to the semis, because we'll never know who the winner will be at the end. Like what @raimondo just said, and I stand by it.

any team still in the cup in semifinals earned their spot regardless of the competition they faced

2018-07-08T04:55:50+00:00

I don't think any team they have faced have had their defence truly tested it.

I beg to differ, although it may look as though it was a breeze for England to make it this far in the World Cup, there were plenty of examples of when their defence was tested. The fact that Pickford had made a couple of phenomenal saves so far this tournament is evident to England's defence being tested (and failing the test, I should add).

We can assume that England's chances would be slimmer, if the likes of France were put in the same bracket as them, but we can't be certain of it because it never happened. So why should England be discredited for their route to the semis thus far? Sweden were responsible for kicking Italy out of the World Cup (first time in half a century), shouldn't this mean something? Spain were knocked out by Russia who then got knocked out by Croatia afterwards. Should England beat Croatia in the semis and make it all the way to the grand finals against France/Belgium, then I'm sure England's path shouldn't be seen as easy than it looks on paper. These aren't facts, they're simply assumptions.

There are plenty of examples of the same assumptions you've just have made. One that comes to mind in recent years if what you've just mentioned, Portugal 16. They supposedly had an "easy" route to the Euro 16 finals, but they still ended up winning against France (who had it "tougher"). We should never discredit anyone who made it to the semis, because we'll never know who the winner will be at the end. Like what @raimondo just said, and I stand by it.

any team still in the cup in semifinals earned their spot regardless of the competition they faced

2018-07-08T04:57:00+00:00

I don't think any team they have faced have had their defence truly tested it.

I beg to differ, although it may look as though it was a breeze for England to make it this far in the World Cup, there were plenty of examples of when their defence was tested. The fact that Pickford had made a couple of phenomenal saves so far this tournament is evident to England's defence being tested (and failing the test, I should add).

You're not stating a fact, you're just making an assumption. We can assume that England's chances would be slimmer, if the likes of France were put in the same bracket as them, but we can't be certain of it because it never happened. So why should England be discredited for their route to the semis thus far? Sweden were responsible for kicking Italy out of the World Cup (first time in half a century), shouldn't this mean something? Spain were knocked out by Russia who then got knocked out by Croatia afterwards. Should England beat Croatia in the semis and make it all the way to the grand finals against France/Belgium, then I'm sure England's path shouldn't be seen as easy as it looks on paper.

There are plenty of examples of the same assumptions you've just made. One that comes to mind in recent years is like you said, Portugal 16. They supposedly had an "easy" route to the Euro 16 finals, but they still ended up winning against France (who had it "tougher"). We should never discredit anyone who made it to the semis, because we'll never know who the winner will be at the end. Like what @raimondo just said, and I stand by it.

any team still in the cup in semifinals earned their spot regardless of the competition they faced

2018-07-08T04:57:25+00:00

I don't think any team they have faced have had their defence truly tested it.

I beg to differ, although it may look as though it was a breeze for England to make it this far in the World Cup, there were plenty of examples of when their defence was tested. The fact that Pickford had made a couple of phenomenal saves so far this tournament is evident to England's defence being tested (and failing the test, I should add).

You're not stating a fact, you're just making an assumption. We can assume that England's chances would be slimmer, if the likes of France were put in the same bracket as them, but we can't be certain of it because it never happened. So why should England be discredited for their route to the semis thus far? Sweden were responsible for kicking Italy out of the World Cup (first time in half a century), shouldn't this mean something? Spain were knocked out by Russia who then got knocked out by Croatia afterwards. Should England beat Croatia in the semis and make it all the way to the grand finals against France/Belgium, then I'm sure England's path shouldn't be seen as easy as it looks on paper.

There are plenty of examples of the same assumptions you've just made. One that comes to mind in recent years is like you said, Portugal 16. They supposedly had an "easy" route to the Euro 16 finals, but they still ended up winning against France (who had it "tougher"). We should never discredit anyone who made it to the semis, because we'll never know who the winner will be at the end. Like what @raimondo just said, and I stand by it.

any team still in the cup in semifinals earned their spot regardless of the competition they faced

but you are right when you say that those who makes excuses are losers.

2018-07-08T08:20:19+00:00

I don't think any team they have faced have had their defence truly tested it.

I beg to differ, although it may look as though it was a breeze for England to make it this far in the World Cup, there were plenty of examples of when their defence was tested. The fact that Pickford had made a couple of phenomenal saves so far this tournament is evident to England's defence being tested (and failing the test, I should add).

You're not stating a fact, you're just making an assumption. We can assume that England's chances would be slimmer, if the likes of France were put in the same bracket as them, but we can't be certain of it because it never happened. So why should England be discredited for their route to the semis thus far? Sweden were responsible for kicking Italy out of the World Cup (first time in half a century), shouldn't this mean something? Spain were knocked out by Russia who then got knocked out by Croatia afterwards. Should England beat Croatia in the semis and make it all the way to the grand finals against France/Belgium, then I'm sure England's path shouldn't be seen as easy as it looks on paper.

There are plenty of examples of the same assumptions you've just made. One that comes to mind in recent years is like you said, Portugal 16. They supposedly had an "easy" route to the Euro 16 finals, but they still ended up winning against France (who had it "tougher"). We should never discredit anyone who made it to the semis, because we'll never know who the winner will be at the end. Like what @raimondo just said, and I stand by it.

any team still in the cup in semifinals earned their spot regardless of the competition they faced

but you are right when you say that those who make excuses are losers.

2018-07-08T08:25:14+00:00

I don't think any team they have faced have had their defence truly tested it.

I beg to differ, although it may look as though it was a breeze for England to make it this far in the World Cup, there were plenty of examples of when their defence was tested. The fact that Pickford had made a couple of phenomenal saves so far this tournament is evident to England's defence being tested (and failing the test, I should add).

You're not stating a fact, you're just making an assumption. We can assume that England's chances would be slimmer, if the likes of France were put in the same bracket as them, but we can't be certain of it because it never happened.

So why should England be discredited for their route to the semis thus far? Sweden were responsible for kicking Italy out of the World Cup (first time in half a century), shouldn't this mean something? Spain were knocked out by Russia who then got knocked out by Croatia afterwards. Should England beat Croatia in the semis and make it all the way to the grand finals against France/Belgium, then I'm sure England's path shouldn't be seen as easy as it looks on paper.

There are plenty of examples of the same assumptions you've just made. One that comes to mind in recent years is like you said, Portugal 16. They supposedly had an "easy" route to the Euro 16 finals, but they still ended up winning against France (who had it "tougher"). We should never discredit anyone who made it to the semis, because we'll never know who the winner will be at the end. Like what @raimondo just said, and I stand by it.

any team still in the cup in semifinals earned their spot regardless of the competition they faced

but you are right when you say that those who make excuses are losers.

2018-07-08T11:25:25+00:00

I don't think any team they have faced have had their defence truly tested it.

I beg to differ, although it may look as though it was a breeze for England to make it this far in the World Cup, there were plenty of examples of when their defence was tested. The fact that Pickford had made a couple of phenomenal saves so far this tournament is evident to England's defence being tested (and failing the test, I should add).

You're not stating a fact, you're just making an assumption. We can assume that England's chances would be slimmer, if the likes of France were put in the same bracket as them, but we can't be certain of it because it never happened.

So why should England be discredited for their route to the semis thus far? Sweden were responsible for kicking Italy out of the World Cup (first time in half a century), shouldn't this mean something? Spain were knocked out by Russia who then got knocked out by Croatia afterwards. Should England beat Croatia in the semis and make it all the way to the grand finals against France/Belgium, then I'm sure England's path shouldn't be seen as easy.

There are plenty of examples of the same assumptions you've just made. One that comes to mind in recent years is like you said, Portugal 16. They supposedly had an "easy" route to the Euro 16 finals, but they still ended up winning against France (who had it "tougher"). We should never discredit anyone who made it to the semis, because we'll never know who the winner will be at the end. Like what @raimondo just said, and I stand by it.

any team still in the cup in semifinals earned their spot regardless of the competition they faced

but you are right when you say that those who make excuses are losers.

Croatian 6 years ago

Bayern Munich, Croatia 23 1323

England absolutely deserves to be in semis, you take what is offered to you and they did get easier side of the draw (aswell as Croatia) but Colombia and Sweden are still good teams, of course, Colombia didn't have James and Sweden didn't do well as I thought they would, but England showed discipline and intelligence in toughest situations, now they are in semis with squad some expected to go out in round of 16 and with young manager. So really, no one can claim they don't deserve this.

Emobot7 6 years ago

543 11477

I think both are true to certain degree, England didn't faced the toughest team they could to reached the point they are right now but they still deserve credit for making it this far in the way they did. Not sure England of Euro 2016 could have made it thats far for example. I still don't love everything about that side, the way they complain a lot about fault and waste time despite winning for example, I mean, I understand it but its isn't very nice to watch. Also, their defence is very inconsistent, at time, they will be very disciplined and then sometime, you'll see Maguire pushing opponent just next to the box and getting a fault. :s Not really reassuring.