[ad_1]
There was a school of thought before taking up the job that Gareth Southgate was too kind to handle England wrote James Olley .
Rather than being obedient and complying with the tournament's usual failures, the 47-year-old has cleverly transformed this young group of players into a street side 90 minutes into the first semi-final of the Cup of Nations. 39, England for 28 years.
They were not the best team at these finals. They were not even the best team in their group. But England only knew that Sweden would be their opponent in the quarterfinals for three days, but even before, at the National Football Center, St George's Park, many of the 19 time coaches employed there produced a detailed record on them for possible reading of Southgate. An environment to maximize the perspectives of England has been created.
The execution of a plan has often been difficult for England, but here the pressure and paralysis caused by the weight of expectations have been, until 39; Now replaced by an impressive level of game management. [19659007] John Stones, one of those to flourish under the tutelage of Southgate, said, "We are an intelligent team, I would say, at the For knowing when to do certain things in games. [For example] when we just concede, I played a ball around the corner trying to put pressure on our opponents. Things like this show that we are smart and that we have made progress in these two years of collaboration with Gareth.
Colombia's post-match annoyances in Moscow Tuesday were, in part, an attempt to distract their own skulduggery, but also the recognition of Southgate's influence.
"Maybe we are getting a little smarter," said the manager in response to accusations of foul play. England is the second worst team at the finals, with 60 decisions in its favor. They conceded only 46 free kicks and teams remained in the tournament, only Brazil conceded less (36). England hardly represents the dark arts, but the naivety of the past has disappeared.
"The boys know when they are in a situation where they can not go out and look to buy a fault," adds the center-half of the stones. "It's a clever game, I've been at the end of smart players between their body and the ball and get faults on my part." Sometimes you can not complain.
"I say smart, I think it's about having a good football brain, knowing when to do that without diving and being called a cheater. I do not think there is anyone in our team who does that or who wants to do it. Being smart and buying a convenient foul is something we have as a team and it can help us through the tournament. "
The mind and body will be tested on Saturday." Temperatures in Samara will be around 30C at the send-off and Sweden is a stubborn opponent. </ P> <p> Their attackers, Marcus Berg and Ola Toivonen, n & # They have nothing to do with Zlatan Ibrahimovic's goal threat or star quality, but they set the tone for a tough style and counterattack that Southgate called "bloody." 19659002] Only the Brazil and Uruguay have conceded fewer goals than the two of Sweden, both against Germany.The goals of open play remain a problem for England but their understanding of VAR is unmatched – still an aspect that Southgate analyzed and sought to use to the benefit of his teams.
"You know you're going to get snatched if you're stained the ball or anything in that regard" , said Stones. "Nothing should be missed now, although some things are happening or the radar, a blatant the other day. When it comes to playing differently, no, we must always have our own beliefs and bring to the games what we do on the training ground. We have always had little reminders at the back of the head that if you are dirty and you do not see it, you can always bring it back for VAR. "In the opposition box, we have some penalties that the referee saw, but I remember that in the second game [against Panama] Harry [Kane] won a penalty but at the same time he was transported to the ground and if he had not noticed it, he would have been handed over to VAR and given as a penalty. "
England banished his demons from penalty shoot-outs against Colombia – again, in part, because of the work done previously in practice and planning, even by extending notes on Jordan Pickford's water bottle informing him of how kickers were likely to & # 39; To go – so the last resort path should not contain fear. Indeed, fear has given way to opportunity. Sweden has endured its own last-ditch drama – succumbing to Germany and Toni Kroos's superb free kick in their second group match – to get into history, reaching the last eight for the first time. time since 1994.
A semi-final place would exceed expectations on both sides. If the form allows, England has rarely sought in a better place to give everything on Saturday.
Source link
