are you sure you are not just doubling down? many traders have gone bust doing this

Ukraine have been written off already. They will use that.

Atkins.  Have you laid them for enough to actually want them to lose and are you English ?  Forgive me if i sound obtuse but if the answer to both are yes it seems an odd thing to do

atkins how much ££ are you on for. im going to lay eland for big money as a send off.

Wow.

England are the bankers of the quarter finals.

Ukraine double figures to win in 90 mins.

..they think it's all over..

I'd struggle to make a case against England at this point. People say " yeah but wait till they come up against Italy or Spain"

If you were making an Italian squad of their best 26 players of the last 40 years I don't see the 2021 lot having one player in it. Probably only 5 or 6 of the current Spain squad would have been up to their standard of 10 years ago.

Oddly, although Belgium are currently rated inferior to those two, they are the only ones that could be favs against England IMO. If they really played to their potential and blew Italy an Spain away.

If they didn't they would be favoured vs Italy and Spain, Spain probs still favs overall from that half due to easier passage to semis.

You could apply that same logic to England though, looked average in group and beat a Germany side that is living off name.

Spain at least created chances in those group games, lack of a good striker is a problem, on a diff day they would have beaten Sweden 4-0, they created chance after chance.

San Marino could have created chances against those sides, England look a compact, professional side where every man knows their job, which is something I've rarely seen before with an English side, Spain look like a team really off of their name, Morata is the worst striker for a big nation I can think of at this tournament, I know it's fashionable to knock him but watch him closely and he's very poor with his touch and finishing ability, Italy would definitely beat them, Belgium with a full strength side too

I actually think that Switzerland can even turn them over.

You're exaggerating with San Marino, but I don't agree with the point anyway. Had England been playing Sweden next round, I'd be amazed if we created as many chances as Spain did against them.

obviously I'm exaggerating with San Marino

England have not been set up to create untold chances, they've been set up to be create chances at the right time, not every time like say an Italy who just counter attack every single time they have the ball, it's like schoolboy football leaving gaps at the back for old boys Bonnucci and Chiellini, when fit, to deal with.

I see England biding their time against Spain, playing the long game whilst Spain huff and puff, they wouldn't cause England many problems at all.

Denamrk, Italy, Spain are the top 3 for shots, shots on target and goals in the tournament

I've seen those stats, but I imagine Greece in 2004 and Portugal in 2016 were similarly low in general.

On the flip side, England are yet to let a goal in. Admittedly, it's goal has led a somewhat charmed life.

every tournament winner has luck along the way.

Strange to rely upon stats
from 4 games played between
different teams.

What about quoting shots faced
or touches allowed in box.

If you go fishing you are
unlikely to bring home rabbit
for tea.

The shots stats were all against different sides, yes, but they all played inferior sides in the group and even still England's numbers are remarkably low but not surprising given the way they have played. They also show that the likes of Denmark, Italy, Spain are likely to give England's goal more of a threat out of the remaining teams. I don't have the stats for shots faced, they might be out there, and it's likely those sides have faced more shots than England but it's also likely England aren't going to be the team to trouble their goal as much as other sides too.

'So he takes the view when we come up against more serious opposition to play like a poor side' - he has played consistently throughout - like he's playing a KO match against superior opposition even in group games at home to inferior sides like Scotland and the Czechs. It's not limited to 'more serious opposition', it's the same regardless and I think he's been planning this all along, 1-0 against any team is more than enough for him, even in the warm-up friendlies.

He didn't really play an extra defender against Germany. It wasn't 5 at the back it was more 3-4-3 to mirror Germany and negate their full-backs, who really hurt Portugal, and he did that very well with Shaw and Trippier keeping Kimmich and Gosens pushed back and largely confined to their own halves with Shaw and Trippier getting forward more than they did and had more of a midfield position than a defensive position like the 3 CHs. They were helped by Saka and Sterling, Sterling had a lot more freedom tho as he's not as good defensively as Saka, who has played as a wing/full back at Arsenal (a big factor in his selection imo) and he didn't want them both not providing much of a threat at the other end. Sterling had the freedom to come infield off his wing a lot, which he did for his goal and his early shot in the first half.

I think his intention was to play a more attacking approach earlier with an extra forward thinking player in the side but it just did not work, making it look awful and unadventurous.

Against the Germans it was intended to be more cautious, the Germans were that poor though, they couldn't dominate the ball even when it was handed to them on a plate.

They may not have conceded yet but I still feel that England are soft through central defence.  Stones just can't concentrate totally on defending, often daydreams and always wants to look like a footballer at the wrong time.  Big Maguire turns as slow as a carthorse.  I would imagine other sides will be looking at the move which saw Muller blow the best chance the Germans had and be looking to emulate/repeat it.