England vrs France preview.
I know it's just a quarter-final but it feels bigger than that. Given the standard of the two teams, this 'deserves' to be a semi-final and upsets elsewhere mean that whoever wins this will be made narrow favourites to win the damn thing. Sometimes you get an unlucky draw and England got an easy path to the semis last time so I guess it balances out.
The England team of four years ago did get to the semis because of that draw but it was markedly inferior to the current side in most respects. Now we have better players in midfield, wide-attack and full-back. The only problem is that France is pretty good too and maybe even slightly better. I think England would even be marginal favourites if France didn't have Mbappe but France does have Mbappe and he is the best player on the planet. England does have Kyle Walker, who is a pacey and defensively capable right-back. There aren't many other players in the world I would want to put on Mbappe ahead of Walker but whether it is enough, only time will tell. England has a stronger midfield on paper and we need to make that advantage count on grass.
I'm glad that Southgate has named an unchanged team. Normally he goes with a 5-3-2 in the big games but the team's midfield and attack were strong against Senegal and it would be hard to leave any of them out. For tactical reasons, it would also harm us to play 5-3-2 against them because we would be easily overloaded on the flanks.
I think this game is 45% England and 55% France in terms of chances. Whoever loses can consider themselves unlucky not to go further. A quarter-final defeat can be seen as a par for England, especially when so many other world powers have done worse. England could lose to France, lose in the semi, or the final or win the World Cup. All outcomes are possible. High stakes and fine margins.
Enjoy the game.
The England team of four years ago did get to the semis because of that draw but it was markedly inferior to the current side in most respects. Now we have better players in midfield, wide-attack and full-back. The only problem is that France is pretty good too and maybe even slightly better. I think England would even be marginal favourites if France didn't have Mbappe but France does have Mbappe and he is the best player on the planet. England does have Kyle Walker, who is a pacey and defensively capable right-back. There aren't many other players in the world I would want to put on Mbappe ahead of Walker but whether it is enough, only time will tell. England has a stronger midfield on paper and we need to make that advantage count on grass.
I'm glad that Southgate has named an unchanged team. Normally he goes with a 5-3-2 in the big games but the team's midfield and attack were strong against Senegal and it would be hard to leave any of them out. For tactical reasons, it would also harm us to play 5-3-2 against them because we would be easily overloaded on the flanks.
I think this game is 45% England and 55% France in terms of chances. Whoever loses can consider themselves unlucky not to go further. A quarter-final defeat can be seen as a par for England, especially when so many other world powers have done worse. England could lose to France, lose in the semi, or the final or win the World Cup. All outcomes are possible. High stakes and fine margins.
Enjoy the game.
41-45, M
