For me Clarke was well over-rated up to and around Euro 2020 simply on the basis of qualifying for a tournament. Scraping into a 24-team continental tournament is no real achievement and, had it been a 16 or even 8 team set-up like in previous...
Yeah Ferguson deserves a couple of starts given how regularly influential he is at the top level. Agreed on Shankland - he's comfortably our best goalscorer and is playing with a swagger the other forwards aren't. Didn't get the Dykes selection...
English managers took the same view in the 90s - how did that work out for them?
I’m not sure it worked out that well for France either given Lloris looked like he’d never practiced saving a penalty in his life at the World Cup in 2022.
Clarke’s control of the game has its merits but does lack the shape and personnel to break down weaker teams. He tends to prefer lots of runners supporting a lone forward. This is backed up by his decision to keep a creative 10 in Gauld away...
First impression was that the peak versions of Laudrup and Henry would over-stretch the just-about-ageing duo of Dortmund Kohler and Real Ruggeri. But I think that turns the tables where I could see the wily old stager Kohler get to grips with...
Granted he has played well in the big tournaments and is particularly valuable at that level where it's more of a set-piece game. However, international managers often run into trouble when they persist with their declining stars from previous...
Only game Italy weren't clearly the best team in was the Spain semi-final. That was even and could've gone either way. But up to that point Italy had been the best team in the tournament from the start of the opening game against Turkey...
Managers
Round 1
Round 2
Round 3
Round 4
Round 5
Round 6
Round 7
Round 8
Round 9
Round 10
Round 11
Round 12
Michaelf7777777
D. Maradona
B. Vogts
E. Figueroa
R. Keane
D. Džajić
I. Chislenko
R. Bonhof
T. N'Kono
R. Dias
Injury (R9)
J. Fontaine...