Tuesday, November 27, 2007

Live Blogging: Fox Football Fone-In


Bitter are the boys tonight. Bitter over England's ouster from Euro 2008; naturally they have to recap since it's their first show since Wednesday's 3-2 loss to Croatia.

Some interesting observations from Nick Webster; mainly that David Beckham's entrance into the game was a sad statement that England is no longer a football team, "but a set-piece team."

Another great line: "Shaun Wright-Phillips couldn't deliver a pizza. Shocking."

More interesting observations:
  • Not even Wembley is immune from their barbs. To their credit, the boys are crapping on the American football lines showing through on the field leading them to postulate that the FA is all about the money (duh).
  • Tonight's poll question: Should England's next manager be foreign?
  • England doesn't have the technical ability any longer, that kids don't get enough touches compared to other countries and the fundamentals aren't instilled from the outset.
  • Caller makes a good point: Can you make a proper English team from the top 4 in the Premiership? Rhetorical question? Well, no. And the answer is, No.
  • Who's next for England? (McClaren's was the shortest tenure in England history) After calling the FA incompetent, Stephen stresses the importance of finding someone before some key jobs open up, especially Liverpool
  • Mourinho's name comes up first, naturally. The England job would enable him to not save a club, but an entire nation, Stephen says!
  • Fabio Capello wants the job too, and says he can fix the mental aspect of England's game, which is more crucial than repairing its technical chops. Capello is a winner, including the Champions League; he might be the man, especially for the longterm, unlike Mourinho, who has called coaching internationally an "old man's game." BTW, Capello doesn't speak English!
  • Louis Van Gaal. Doesn't represent what England needs? 12 major trophies, including the Champions League. Nick say yes, Stephen no.
  • Luis Filipe Scolari. He can beat England! But Scolari's unavailable until after Euro 2008, which doesn't fit for England.
  • Stephen has 3 World XIs sans English players. Nick says Rooney gets in there.
  • The callers want a foreign coach, 4-1 so far. "Playing Crouch in the middle without service is like jumping off the Empire State Building." Huh. I get it, but....

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