Reyna hit the right-side post from 25 yards, with his left foot. Would have opened the scoring. This was the best video I could find in a quick search:
Wales/England would be a fantastic matchup. Lots of drama there within the teams themselves as well as sociopolitical, historical, and cultural drama. Ramsey and Bale, etc. I’d prefer that honestly, because it will take all of the attention off of us and Iran. Iran can get points off of England just as well as we can. That’s not an exaggeration. Iran can get points off of England. Wales can get points off of them and so can the USA.
They’ll be rooting for Ukraine because it gives them extra virtue signal power to tell everyone else how bad player X and coach Y are.
What a great hit and all-time great goal that would have been…similar to Jermaine Jones against Portugal.
It literally already happened. Wales and Scotland should step aside and let Ukraine go to the World Cup - however hard it may be / @jimw1https://t.co/7vdTV6zrFu— Telegraph Sport (@TelegraphSport) March 25, 2022 Also a rep for the Ukranian FA did hint that they might not be able to put out a side for the qualifiers in June, which doesn't really pass the smell test and was most likely said to plant a seed. Now of course what Ukraine is going through is much more important than a corrupt soccer tournament, butttt, the tournament does mean a lot to lots of people. So while I agree that accommodations should be made to let Ukraine compete, and I am glad FIFA were forced to kick out Russia, I don't think Ukraine should just be given a pass.
It’s the most English thing ever to tell their subjugates to forego their own interests so that England can continue to make fake-virtuous appeals to others to save English wealth/imperialism. They can and will try to shame Wales and Scotland into allowing Ukraine in. The games need to be scheduled now, or Ukraine should forfeit. Put the game on a calendar if Ukraine cannot make it on that day, then even though it is unfortunate and sad, the show must go on.
The games are going ahead according to the Ukrainians. Initially they weren't sure but most of the stuff coming out of Ukrainian football last month has suggested it will go ahead. Interestingly there has however been talk that discussions had taken place to make the Ukraine vs Scotland Home game a winner take all style double jeopardy Nations League and World cup qualifier game all in one which I suppose would take the pressure of Ukrainian players reducing the games they have to play. Scotland too for that matter.
What on earth are you on about . I didn't realise Jim white represented all England now. People in England want the games to go ahead don't pretend its any other way. This years a little different because of the situation in Ukraine but generally English people like to see all Home nations and Ireland and Northern Ireland getting through to euro and world cup finals. Your not one of those fans getting butthurt at a few tabloids making clickbaity headlines saying England got an easier group are you. Anyhow looking forward to our game against you guys. Think it'll be a tough matchup but hopefully we can come out on top. Reckon you guys should come second although the group is quite close to be honest especially if its Wales, USA and Iran. IF its Wales they would likely being the biggest threat for 2nd place. Especially if Ramsey and Bale are playing and rested they could be a match for anyone barring Brazil France Spain Argentina. England should progress just hoping we don't get done on counter attacks. Think this team should have enough to brake down teams in low block.
You’ll see. I fully expect the politicians and multinationals in your country to go hard after that Ukraine cash. I could be wrong, I could be right. I could be blaaack I could be white. As for the group, I think that the margin between England and the US, Iran, and Wales is razor thin. This could be the group where everyone draws and those who advance do so with 4 points.
Feels a lot like the 2010 group for obvious reasons with 2 of the four being the same, and Algeria-Slovenia being similar to Iran and any of Wal/Sco/Ukr. I expect England to advance but don't think it will be straight forward and also have a sinking suspicion that the expectations after a semi and a final, might catch up with them. But probably in the knockouts not the group. If the US is healthy and our big guns are firing then we're the second best team in the group, but we weren't that great offensively in the qualifiers. If weren't not firing we could lose to anyone though and struggled against the low block. Wales is my "second" team since I went to uni there for a year so hoping they qualify. Bale could be a handful but could also be hurt or rusty as hell, same for Ramsey so who knows, but would love to hear "Hen Wlad Fy Nhadau" sung at a world cup either way. Basically anyone could get out of the group if they can ride the virtuous circle of good finishing, good chemistry, and a little bit of luck.
Well, we’re out of the gates with a bunch of injuries and benchings. The tournament is in 7 months. No joke.
I know I’ll probably get in trouble for this, but when I hear Welsh I think of a cross between the Swedish Chef and that Dutch announcer screaming “Dennis Bergkamp” at the 1998 World Cup………
The Northern European languages are the most unsettling and awkward for me to hear, probably because they’re so close to English phonetically but are slightly off.
Guys outside the rotation I’d like to see given a legitimate shot to make the roster: 1 Alan Sonora 2 Paxton Pomykal 3 Joe Scally 4 Alex Mendez 5 Johnny Soccer Alan Sonora is a connector, a ball control player who can finish. He is playing regularly at an excellent club in a quality league. Of all the players who have not been called in, I think that he is clearly the best with the highest potential to improve the teams performance. Paxton Pomykal is still getting up to speed after surgery but this year he is actually looking like his trajectory is upward. He has the ability to pass from deep and to break lines from multiple places on the field against multiple defenses. Could he play the 6? He has all of the tools. Joe Scally adds size and boldness to the outside backs. Alex Mendez is a guy who has been overlooked after his injury, but by all appearances is doing well in a good league and has a ton of skills as a left-footed midfielder. Set pieces, distance shooting, slick passing…he can do all of those well. Johnny Soccer has all of the tools we need at the 6 as well as some extra tools…his height, strength, and athleticism are top-level. Having him on the field helps on set pieces and helps in general in dealing with big, strong teams which we will see in the World Cup. England, Ukraine, and Wales will all have strength, athleticism, and size.
Johnny Cardoso is an interesting prospect that we don't hear much about. He's a potential backup for Adams and McKennie. Alan Sonora is a new face who should definitely be called in, as he has expressed interest for playing for the USA.
I'd cut off after #3 personally, but I wanted to say that Alan Sonora is super intriguing to me. I can't speak to much more than highlights, but he has fantastic ball control. Like it sticks to his foot. That does not mean he's any good at anything else, and I've only seen his good plays, but holy cow, it's impressive.
Johnny Soccer doesn’t speak English well, which I think has really slowed his progression with the national team. I really feel for him because that makes it tough on the field when you are isolated from communication. Hopefully someone in the staff speaks Portuguese. He has one of the highest ceilings of anyone in the pool because he’s such a fantastic athlete. Big, athletic guys like that with skill are the types who the top clubs favor, especially in places like England. Hopefully he has an English tutor. Sonora is not like Reyna, where Reyna wants to dominate the ball and make the plays…he’s more like other guys like Lleget (who is also Argentine). With the way he plays in Argentina, he looks like a perfect player to get in our midfield rotation now.
I'll look for the Sonora highlights. He sounds like an exciting player. I've never understood some of the negative feedback on this board for Johnny Soccer... I've seen a lot of potential.
Its because the Olympic team flopped so hard and he didn’t really stand out on the team. However, it would take a special kind of narcissist to come out and boss a bunch of guys around in a language they don’t speak. He appears to be a somewhat reserved, hard-working guy, not the type to dominate the ball. I saw in person him when the Yanks came to LA and played Bosnia. He is a much smoother and fluid player than you would expect of someone his size. He “tries sh*t” (thanks Bruce) and hits ambitious passes that sometimes don’t come off. I have been most impressed by his play when he plays “up” with the top guys in the pool. He can dominate his area on the field when he doesn’t have to be the best guy out there, and he did in one game I remember. I can’t recall the game, but I was very impressed by the ease at which he disposed of other big guys. He uses his head well and brings the ball under control well. He also cycles the ball well and makes good advancing passes…very much like Kyle Beckerman used to. I would expect Johnny to come out of his shell more as he matures. He’s one of those guys who could be a stalwart at a club like Man U should he begin asserting himself.
At this point, Ukraine should just withdraw from qualifying. It's not fair to them or to the other two teams in this playoff, as the Ukrainian team won't have the time to adequately prepare and the Ukrainians themselves will not be in the right mental state to play those matches. Expecting Ukraine to be a competitive side right now is, to be frank, unreasonable.