Top 5 reasons why England lost
5. What the hell was that penalty spot made of? Fibreglass? Play-Doh? It doesn't excuse England blowing yet another penalty shoot out, but it makes for a good whingy intro.
4. Sol Campbell's disallowed "goal" - I can see how the ref disallowed it, Terry and Campbell were in pretty hard on the goalie. Borderline.
3. Beckham, off the back of a disappointing season with Real Madrid and too much publicity, looked jaded. His penalty was arse and his play throughout the tournament was uninspired. I expect more of the captain who takes the first spot kick, at least Gareth Southgate hit the target when his penalty was saved in '96. Overhyped; underperformed.
2. Losing Rooney early on led to a tactical problem which Sven, again, failed to deal with. I'd have replaced Rooney with Heskey when he went off after 25 minutes - Like for like - one big strong lad for another. And I'd have kept Scholes on for another 10 minutes. Eriksson has managed the squad well, but his tactial thinking leaves a lot to be desired and I wouldn't be surprised if he moves on soon.
1. The England squad were, with the exception of Rooney and Hargreaves, grossly unfit after overly long seasons with their clubs. Having few players with real skill, england rely on working hard and being organised. When they lost their legs, usually around 75 minutes, they got dicked upon royally.
Well that's that. Maybe I won't see so many of those wank looking flags stuck to the side of people's cars. Time to get back to enjoying the games as a neutral.
PS - Kajun. What's the Gallic for Schadenfreuede
---
Please replace the handset, and try again.