Realistic expectations of England’s chances

I think on reflection my only expectation is that we win the group, don't get knocked out by a lesser nation, and don't disgrace ourselves if we go out to a 'big team'. I won't set a target for exactly what round.
 
Corcaigh_the_Cat said:
Second phase is our norm, I think it could be this year too, if we do well in the group stage.

I can't understand what Southgate has been playing at in the warm up games. His first XI should have been out there getting used to each others game. To play that line up yesterday in the final warm up is poor. I hope he proves me wrong.
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This is my concern. It's a worry to think we're going into Sunday's game unsure what team he's going to select.

You can guarantee whoever he selects it will be the first time that combination of players has been selected.
 
I would give us a 10% chance of winning it - no value in the betting markets on backing us as usual.
 
We have a very good record in home international tournaments and our form recently has been patchy enough to temper expectations, in Kane we have a player who has experienced tournament football and thrived on it, we have a lot of good up and coming players who could further raise their profile and have a massive impact on the competition, we have a bunch of players who are tactically adaptable, my concerns are finding the system that extracts the best out of the team rather than accommodates the 'best;' players and if Pickford is first choice then we have a goalkeeper who is consistently inconsistent, with luck both with injuries and VAR, and if Southgate can find the right formation and personnel then as World Cup semi-finalists playing as de facto hosts we should be looking to at least reaching the semi finals.
 
Beat Scotland and get past the round of 16 and I'm not unhappy.

We could win it, but so could plenty of nations.
 
I think it's a bit of a lottery with England in this tournament. I wouldn't be surprised if we got knocked out convincingly in the quarters, but equally i wouldn't be that surprised if we made the final. I don't think many of the other big sides are that convincing at the moment but France look the strongest.
As most have said the quality at the back is an issue. Stones can be quality at times, hopefully we see that in the tournament.
I love Gareth and i think he's done very well in recovering England to a decent level and bringing in the young players, but i really wish we had a top tactician for the tournament who could make the most of our strengths.
 
There are lots of reasons to be optimistic I think our squad is better than the one which reached the Semifinals of the World Cup, we have some exceptional young players, our form is good, most games would be played at Wembley which we have a very good record at....but you never know with England!
 
It all depends on if the young lads step up to tournament football or not. Some players will thrive on it, others might be fearful of it.
If we gel and play to our ability then I think we can win it, but as we've seen with the likes of very good French, German and Dutch sides in the past, talent doesn't guarantee anything if you aren't a cohesive unit.
If Kane, Foden and Grealish have good tournaments then I don't think our weaknesses at the back will be too expensive.
 
Stunned to see that England are favourites. Squad is very exciting but some huge gaps especially at the back. Will get out the group but the first decent sides get face will put them out
 
LowMoorBoro said:
I forgot until looking recently how bad the group performances were too. 1-1 against Russia, 2-1 with a last minute winner against Wales and then 0-0 with Slovakia.
The Iceland match is so bad you forget how bad the 3 previous performances were too.
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It still surprises me we managed to win the group in 2012 with France, Sweden and Ukraine (hosts). The forwards in that team will make you very grateful for what we have now.
 
Here's an interesting stat. England have played in 9 tournaments but only won 12 times from 35 games.

That record must be improved at some point!
 
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LowMoorBoro said:
I forgot until looking recently how bad the group performances were too. 1-1 against Russia, 2-1 with a last minute winner against Wales and then 0-0 with Slovakia.
The Iceland match is so bad you forget how bad the 3 previous performances were too.
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Yeah, fair to say 2014 and 2016 were both absolutely grim.
 
festa5 said:
Yep, people get carried away by our attacking options (which is fair enough) but it's hard to win any tournament, let alone an international one, without a good defence.

Attackers might get the headlines, but most world cup winners have 2 or more top drawer defenders in their ranks. We don't really have any.
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My thoughts precisely. (y)
 
festa5 said:
Yep, people get carried away by our attacking options (which is fair enough) but it's hard to win any tournament, let alone an international one, without a good defence.

Attackers might get the headlines, but most world cup winners have 2 or more top drawer defenders in their ranks. We don't really have any.
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Playing devils advocate a little bit here because I do agree there are issues in defence but in the Champions League Final which is accepted as the worlds toughest club competition there were 4 English defenders playing. Also the UEFA cup final would have had 2 defenders who are in the England squad if Maguire had been fully fit, surely you dont reach European finals if your defenders aren't top drawer?
 
The Card Cheat said:
Playing devils advocate a little bit here because I do agree there are issues in defence but in the Champions League Final which is accepted as the worlds toughest club competition there were 4 English defenders playing. Also the UEFA cup final would have had 2 defenders who are in the England squad if Maguire had been fully fit, surely you dont reach European finals if your defenders aren't top
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I agree, an embarrassment of riches at right back, CL winning and EL runner up LB’s and John Stones who is as good as anyone if he’s on form.

The problem is that final CB spot if you’re playing 4atb, as we know Mings is error prone, but overall I don’t think it’s as bad as made out.

The problem is we’ve been blessed with some fantastic CB’s over the past 3 decades, and that maybe skews people’s views a bit
 
festa5 said:
Yep, people get carried away by our attacking options (which is fair enough) but it's hard to win any tournament, let alone an international one, without a good defence.

Attackers might get the headlines, but most world cup winners have 2 or more top drawer defenders in their ranks. We don't really have any.
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Well, it’s not the World Cup. Greece didn’t have any top drawer players full stop when they won this thing…..
 
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