Nailed on PNE win then. It's the Rovers way. I hope not but history tells me otherwise.

I read that article too, it was pretty good. Ruddock and Shearer were (still are?) good pals. They lived close to each other during Shearer's time at Ewood. Dwight Yorke complained of the same regarding Souness. Yorke accused him of trying to break his leg during a 5-a-side game. It's a shallow comparison but Gerrard is the closest there has been to Souness. He had it all, and a nasty streak too. Anyway, back on topic. I had to watch Boys from the Blackstuff at school. Looking at it through my teenage eyes the grittiness of it stood out. A similar style was used by Alan Clarke. He did a few cracking films. Scum. Made in Britain. Rita, Sue and Bob too. All brilliant.

There's a bit in the article I posted saying that Southgate played not to lose in the awful 0-0 against Denmark as he didn't want a loss to add negative fuel to the Greenwood/Foden situation. WC 2018 results were built upon set pieces. The exciting 4-3-3 is riskier. Euro 2021 is anybody's. There is usually a clear favourite (whether they ended up winning it is a different story), but not this time.

I like this article on Southgate; Trials and tribulations of being England manager In my football watching lifetime the FA has tried every idea around to try and win something to no avail. Southgate has brought some pride back to the job. I do wonder how either Venables or Hoddle would have done if given more time. Venables left due to the ghost of off field issues, and although Hoddle wasn't everybody's cup of tea he had was a very good coach at the time.

There has always been an anti-England sentiment on here. It's a Rovers board so I understand that the national team isn't topic number 1. I am an eternal optimist when it comes to England, which never works out as the one consistency is that they always disappoint. Which is why I don't understand the negativity. Comparing team from different times is nigh on impossible but post WWII England teams are remarkably similar. Cases of arrogance, bad luck, and stupidity reign. 1950's - little Englanders at the FA thought that they were the best team in the world. They weren't. 1960's - winners in 1966. Caveats; the tournament was played at home. Pele got kicked to pieces and limped out of the tournament early. 1970's - unlucky at Mexico '70 but it signaled the end of an era. Failed to qualify for '74 and '78 despite a strong Division 1 (Leeds, Liverpool, Derby, Forest) all won in Europe). 1980's - mediocre. Odd knockout rules cost the Spain '82 team. Maradona's genius/cheating ended Mexico '86. 1990's - Up and down. Unlucky at Italia '90. Missed out on USA '94. Cut off at the knees at France '98. 2000's - the "golden generation" had a chance and blew it. Losing to 10 man Brazil in '02, and Rooney's daft sending off in '06. 2010's - Awful start, good end. 2020's - Looks promising but need to be able to beat the big boys.

Not strictly football league but it looks like Wrexham are on the verge of being taken over, by 2 actors no less. Seems like a strange one to me, but it's real; Hollywood to Wrexham

I agree with you. Grealish is a very talented player, but is he right for what England currently have? I said yesterday that it looks like Southgate's preferred plan is to use pace to beat teams. Grealish doesn't have that, but he does have a wonderful ability to keep possession.

The switch back to 3-4-3 is baffling. More so that Kyle Walker is now back at the right side of the 3. He is a good player, but he looks lost playing further inside. 4-3-3 is much more suitable for the payers that Southgate has available. I assume that Southgate's preferred front 3 is be Kane partnered by 2 from either Sterling, Rashford, or Sancho. Grealish is a talent but playing him means a shift in tactics. Maybe use him as a sub, he comes on if England up to keep possession and get free kicks. I've not seen much of Rice so can't really judge. He looks OK, but nothing special. Although plenty like him. He is still young, is captain of West Ham, and Chelsea are rumoured to be willing to spend big money to sign him. As to the game. Whilst acknowledging England's lack of shots on target and sometime pedestrian play Belgium's first goal was a deflected effort and the second was a great free kick - which should never have been given. I thought that the referee was poor too. Plenty for Southgate to ponder. Kane is yet to get is annual injury too.

I listened but thought that it was going to be a 10 parter. There is enough material for one. Nothing new for me that I haven't read on here. Maybe it helps the wider world understand as the press never really reported any of what was discussed, which has all turned out to be true. Good that it was done, a follow up episode would be nice.

The 8 group world cup is good but the expanded Euros has diluted competition. The international breaks are also annoying. It seems that there are too many and they last too long.

It's mesmerising. Even Peter Kay wouldn't have dreamed it up.

I don't pay much attention to the early group stage matches as it's usually a foregone conclusion. However the 2020-21 start has been interesting. Lots of goals, some surprise results. Oh, and Man U got beat tonight.

I thought that Venus was a fullback. Either way a defender. A blind man on a galloping horse can see that Mowbray cannot set up a defence. I said a couple of seasons ago, probably during one of Mowbray's dismal runs, that he should get rid of his coaching staff and bring in new ones who have different ideas and defensive nous. Mowbray isn't going anywhere, neither are Venkys.

It was a compliment! All is good over here. Life goes on. COVID is rampant but with a bit of vigilance you can steer clear of it.

I had you down as someone in their 20's. Congrats.

Mowbray's constants since promotion from L1 have been his inability to set up a defence, form averaging out to be 1W 1D 1L, with wild swings within that; 6 match win streaks followed by 6 losses, or a blinding performance followed by an absolute dud. I think that he is a decent manager, he's not Prem class, nor is he a specialist like Warnock, but he has slowly improved Rovers. Will he get the club up? Who knows, but with the attacking talent he has this season he needs to make an effort.

I hope not, but money always wins. Round 2; Euro Super League proposal backed by FIFA and JP Morgan Sounds iffy, but FIFA are involved. They specialise in iffy.

Dalglish's strength was his aura. Harford did the leg work at Rovers, Evans and Moore at Liverpool. The coach was an FA staff coach who had direct dealings with Rooney whilst he was on England duty, but this was when he was first coming through. Zidane and Roy Keane are two others who had immense talent as players. They have had wildly different managerial careers. Rightly or wrongly I'm putting Rooney in the Keane camp.

Me either. I think it has been on the cards since he arrived at Derby though. He was a wonderful player but doesn't strike me as the manager type. I think it would be really hard for someone with his talent and natural footballing ability to be able to transfer that knowledge and expertise to others. Years ago I was on a coaching course. One of the instructors told a story that trying to explain a concept to Rooney was pointless. He couldn't figure it out. However, if you drew it for him he'd light up and get it straight away.

I too missed the first but agree with you on the others. Maguire needs a rest. He's had a rough few months. He's a shadow of his Leicester self.

Yes. He allegedly told pals via WhatsApp that he was going to Atletico Madrid before it was public knowledge. Said pals allegedly then placed bets on where Trippier would end up and cashed in.

The Manageress? Ex US women's boss Jill Ellis allegedly on shortlist for DC Utd job in MLS. My money is on a publicity stunt here. It's one thing to manage a country with the largest and best selection of women's talent in the world over a tournament. It's another to jump into the grind of a pro job.

I noticed it and it should be a non-starter. Along with the voting changes, and the playoff format changes. Although the CL clubs will always have a much larger revenue the relatively even distribution of TV money keeps it somewhat straight. Grealish would not have signed a new Villa contract without it.

Gartside died a few years ago. He was the one spouting for a 2 tier no relegation Premier League, including Bolton of course. Irony still exists. There has been talk of a European super league for decades. I don't think that it will ever happen. The Champs League is close, and the revenue generated from it suits those involved.

I thought about them but my memory of Euro 2016 - aside from England's Iceland disaster - had France been odds on favourites. They were at home and were firing on all cylinders. Germany were reigning world champs but they weren't the same side. They got lucky against Italy in the quarters. Zaza's penalty in the shootout is one of the worst I've ever seen.