Frey is not a bad keeper. He's just fat (sorry to be blunt). He misjudged one jump, that was the tie, and after that he let his nerves get the best of him. The defence lost their trust on him, did you guys see how Thuram waited for Gallas to come back to pass to him when he was marked by Sheva? He didn't want to pass to Frey because he noticed the man was peeing his pants. Yes, poor Seb. After this one, I have a hunch we won't see him in goal for Les Bleus in a long, long time.
If I were McClaren, I'd be driving to Heathrow right now, with a one-way ticket to anywhere in the world outside England.
Anyway, Frey was third in line for the GK spot. There is no mystery: Coupet is #1, Landreau is #2. Who should be the 3rd GK at the Euro? Frey, despite his blunder? Ramé? Mandanda? PS: Who's gonna be the next England manager? McLaren is clearly on his way out...
Frey. But keep him away from the pasta. He's doing ok with Fiorentina, but the defence ahead of him is a lot more solid than the one he had today.
Well, after Morocco, I was complaining about the French defence, but today, frankly, the main worry was the midfield. France hasn't won enough duels, they were incapable of keeping the ball in the midfield, especially during the second half. Obviously, Frey's awful mistakes didn't help bringing confidence to the team, but since Morocco I feel the team is fragile, and that's damn worrying... because on paper, we have an excellent team and that's not what we've seen tonight. This is very frustrating. If the French team doesn't become more solid, more imposing, it will be very hard in June. But anyway, there's no reason to panic, we still have time.
Les Bleus need to go back to the 4-1-2-1-2 system, at least when playing certain teams. We got Nasri, Ribéry and Govou to play 10. Enough of the 4-2-2-2 for all teams. Today, in the second half, it didn't work at all.
Yea i have my panic button safely buried away for the time being. Plenty of time to work out the kinks before the finals. But this performance was supposed to make us feel better about ourselves, but instead it raises more doubts. I am throughly frustrated
Ding ding ding! We have a winner. So much time will elapse between now and the start of the tourny that playing great right now doesn't really equate to much come summer. We are in. You can't win, if you don't qualify.
LOL Firenze does have good food! But to say he's doing "ok" is an understatement. He's played AMAZING for the Viola, barring their last game. GK's have always told me it's tough playing in colder conditions because your muscles are always tight just sitting there and your reflexes slow down.
Pasta is essential, it makes World Champions. Frey, as a GK, probably finds it hard to use all that carb energy in net, but he's really a good keeper this year. Look at where the Viola are sitting in the table.
i thought this match was just fine. c'mon, when you're qualified there's no way you can dig deep to get that last ounce of juice that separates the scotlands of the world from the englands. we allowed a goal before the alarm clock went off, even though we were starting to control the match fairly handily, and that slap in the face provoked two quick strikes. then, we turned over and went back to sleep, and still would have won if the ball had had a little less olive oil on it. frey - mouais. abidal - a very nice first half, the second he phoned in. from the TGV, you kn......where the sig......cuts o....all t...ime. thuram - asleep for the first goal, but pride shows and was good from there on out. you don't get to 136 caps for nothing. gallas - good stuff from front to back, but absent at a couple of crucial moments, and govou can only cover for him so much, he can play at defending but he's no defender clerc - his best match ever in blue. he did a few things even willy doesn't. makelele - besides almost breaking his duck for his 66th selection... not much l. diarra - a lot of running but almost as much garbage. disappointment. ribery - some incredible accelerations in the second half... only to launch his cross into siberia. and i was surprised when he subbed out: i had forgotten he had even played the first half! govou - a fine goal, covered a lot of ground, his habitual pair of vendangeages... not his best match but not so bad either. benzema - except for the sweet 1-2 with sidney, invisible. replaced at halftime by an equally transparent nasri. henry - a goal like no one on the planet can score but him. once you've done that there's not much to say, and he didn't. noteworthy was seeing the new kits: there's a flashy and very attractive version of the legendary red stripe, shorts are more just fontaine than platini or zidane. as for the numbers, some of the numerals are nice and others clumsy, personally i thought the preceding classic adidas ones were just unbeatable.
Olive e formaggio, certamente! I agree with Guignol. Of course, I'd have preferred the victory, but considering the circumstances, a tie was enough (would have been enough to classify had Scotland tied or won over England). The work is cut for Ray now. He tried a few interesting things this time: 1. Ribéry on the left, something I had not seen in a long time. 2. Nasri-Henry paired up front, a first. 3. Frey in goal. 4. Clerc playing as a real wingback, just like Sagnol. 5. Diarra is, I think, the official successor of Kéké. I have no idea who will take Thuram's place yet. Mexès? Squillaci? Givet? I hope it's Mexès. What have we learned so far? Well, I think Nasri doesn't work too well as striker or second striker--he should be attacking middle, a position in which France is lacking. Benzema and Henry can work great together up front. We have several people to take the wings, and too many defensive middles (how many of those are potentially of Kéké's quality though?). Ben Arfa seems capable of replacing Ribéry on both sides, left or right. Although more time is needed to see how effective he is on the left. Silvestre and Boumsong seem to be a memory now. Overall, I like what Ray is doing: methodically, he`s providing secure replacements for every position. The cohesion, though, is lacking. It's a compromise, though: the more you play the same set of players, the more they understand each other. But that means having fewer valid alternatives in case some players retire or are injured. In the coming months Ray has the chance to make fewer players faimiliarize with each other, that's what I expect. Because, at this point, it seems Les Bleus have plenty of quality options for almost every position (#10 is the exception, only Nasri seem to me a player 100% cut for the position--Franck and Sidney can be pushed there, but I'm not too sure). And something has to be done about the keepers. It seems after Coupet, there is a noticeable decline in quality (of course, Coupet is class!). I hope Frey is given a second chance at some point, in a friendly. And I hope he gets more fit and less nervous. Having a good, match ready third goalie is a must, as England learned today.
govou n° 10? no way. i'm his biggest fan, but he4S a dilettante, jack of all trades and master of none. very useful on the wing, but you can't put him in CB, nor at 10. those spots demand specialists.
Yeah, that's why I'm not too sure. With some practice in that position I have the feeling he can be acceptable. But who do we have to take Zizou's position? That's the one place where Les Bleus lack depth. Nasri, that's it. Ribéry, in a pinch. But if both are out for any reason, who? Only Govou, no?
True, but I don't see Ray calling him any time soon. It seems he wasn't pleased with his move to the Milan. I hope to see Yoyo in the team at some point next year, though.
It's funny because this is how seb has always looked in my mind.... When I saw him during the anthems, I thought to myself.... who the ******** is that? Maybe I'm just getting old.