Pre Match Thread: England vs USA Semi Final 2nd July 2019 20:00hrs

[MK Shrimper]

Not at all confident. USA seem a step above.

 

[RHB]

the Yanks are certainly the fastest, strongest team England have faced in this tournament and for the first 20 minutes there was only one side in it. To their credit they have dug in and are now competing. Big second half coming up, it depends how much England want this game now.

 

[RHB]

2-2, get in!! Or maybe VAR is going to bugger it up. Yep, offside.

 

[Floval Flyer]

I actually hate VAR!

 

[Another Surrey Shrimper]

2-2, get in!! Or maybe VAR is going to bugger it up. Yep, offside.

gutting
both our goals have been due to great attacking moves, both their's have been due to sloppy defending

penalty!

 

[Another Surrey Shrimper]

gutting
both our goals have been due to great attacking moves, both their's have been due to sloppy defending

penalty!

****

 

[Floval Flyer]

FFS!!

 

[RHB]

We've certainly had our chances, but it looks like it's not going to be our night.

 

[southendkid]

Do we not practice penalties? We've only scored 1 out 4 in this world cup.

 

[GBJ]

No need for the lass to be too disheartened with that penalty miss.

There’s always Pizza Hut commercials for her to look forward to.

 

[RHB]

All over. The stronger side won but England didn't disgrace themselves.

 

[Bearded Shrimper]

Bloody hell that USA are good, those goals were absolute quality

 

[Spaceman Spiff]

I thought England were fantastic! I did against Norway. 100% effort, put their bodies on the line, superb touch, excellent movement on and off the ball - and the skill! Tough to lose, especially to a professional foul in the box that in my view wasn’t an accident - and as such a red card - is so cruel. But what an effort. Well done girls!

 

[Tangled up in Blue]

Thought it was a thoroughly enertaining game.Only the USA were better and luckier.

 

[EastStandBlue]

Odd game. Thought the US only just shaded it but without looking truly stretched or tested, save for a five minute period surrounding White's disallowed goal.

A shame to lose Bardsley to injury (again) at a crucial moment of the tournament, but it's the same old story for Neville's England; good in the attacking third, average in the middle but really quite poor in the defensive third. In the end, the US were just fitter, more proficient technically and tactically intelligent to see the game out. Would've loved to have seen how they'd have reacted if they'd gone behind though...

I really do appreciate how Neville has put his own stamp on this side and instilled an elite philosophy, but as long as Millie Bright's one of your centre-halves then you can't expect to play out from the back with any great success. I also think Keira Walsh has had a really underwhelming tournament and her support play in possession has been dreadful. Rarely is she offering support behind the ball when we've got it and it just leaves us so imbalanced in transition.

Some excellent Bronze has Bronze, and is England's only truly world class player. White's been a revelation in the 9. Jill Scott's had a great tournament. Beth Mead showed glimpses of what she might be capable of, and it was good to see Stanway get minutes.

On the other hand Parris and Kirby were both really underwhelming for me, especially the former who can be so much more effective than she was throughout the tournament. I never have quite understood the fascination with Bright, other than the fact she's excellent physically.

Overall, the tournament can only be considered a success. Neville's moved the women's game on leaps in a relatively short timeframe and that kind of progress is exciting. He's building a tangible legacy. But they'll no doubt wonder how far this side could've gone if Duggan and Nobbs were both fit.

 

[kaymac]

Quite poor in defence? Yep, must be bad to have done so well in recent years and reached such a high world ranking.....the other teams rated below them must be utter cr*p.

 

[southendkid]

I wouldn't say the defending itself is crap but Lucy Bronze aside it's clear that the defenders aren't used to playing it out from the back, we kept inviting pressure on ourselves because of misplaced passes in dangerous areas and getting caught out of position as a result.

I suspect this is largely because women's football only turned professional a couple of years ago in England, and semi-pro sides rarely encourage their defenders to do anything except hoof it upfield, so our players likely aren't used to it. The next generation will probably be a lot more comfortable with the system Neville wants us to play.

 

[kaymac]

Believe the USA team have had significant funding for the last 20 years enabled them to build up to such high standards. Yet to see any womens' team completely comfortable playing out from the back, often ends in putting themselves under unnecessary pressure far too close to their own goal. If momentum can be maintained then every chance the England sides will push on again, they must already be a favourite for the Euros here in 2021. Asides VAR and the reffing, this has been an entertaining tournament to date.

 

[EastStandBlue]

Quite poor in defence? Yep, must be bad to have done so well in recent years and reached such a high world ranking.....the other teams rated below them must be utter cr*p.

Saying England were/have been poor in the defensive third doesn't just limit the criticism to out of possession (although both Bright and Houghton have been poor in this area, as has Stokes - look at how many chances Norway created in the second half against us), but also when we've got the ball. Houghton and Bright couldn't pass water last night and Demi Stokes was rarely successful driving out of defence.

Just to be clear, I'm not advocating for England to revert to the kick and rush countering Sampson favoured, not by any stretch, but if Neville's philosophy's going to stick then this squad will have to improve or he's going to have to find players that are capable of doing it with greater success. It's not even a technical error really, especially for Bright and Houghton last night it was more to do with reading the US coverage and selection of the most optimal pass.

 

[kaymac]

Have you watched all of England's games,did you see the defensive impact Houghton had against Norway? I'd agree there is inconsistency in their play, maybe all through the team, but not 'poor' which is what you stated in respect of the 'defensive third', not just playing out from the back. Teams create chances. Did Norway win, no. As England won their previous 5 matches can only assume those other teams were even worse than poor in defence.