h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

I am bloody sick of all the negativity! Sick, sick, SICK! We are among the best 8 teams in the world, and still people criticise, criticise criticise. Every man in England's team tonight has been rated lower than Ecuador's squad on the BBC Sport Player Rater. Hansen, Lawrenson and bloody Ian Wright spent far too long picking holes in Gerrard and Lampard (players who, three months before, they said were world class and would win us the World Cup).

Truth is, England have played progressively better in every match they've played, we've made stars out of Joe Cole, Carrick and Rooney, we've matched and negated opposition tactics through skilful coaching and leadership, Sven's looking more excitable and aggressive than I've ever seen him, the squad are undefeatewd in 11 matches, and yet people are still determined that we can't bloody win anything.

Stop the negativity people! Get behind England and for God's sake we might actually win the damn thing.

B

... and Owen Hargreaves was pretty useful as well.

See, I told you

Yeah, I've been impressed with the bloke.

Hear, hear! I wholeheartedly agree. This time round, if tonight's match was anything to go by, we ought to beat Portugal (especially Portugal without Deco/Ronaldo/Costinha and maybe Figo), and then it's up to Ghana, France or Spain to do us a favour and get rid of Brazil somehow

And the Player Rater... don't get me started. *Every* weak or unknown team gets fantastic marks on it with no excpetions whatsoever (in fact, the results are likely being biased somehow by negative ratings given by non-English supporters) So unless England won by more than 3 goals, it was unlikely that they were going to get better ratings...

Lampard - once he gets a goal, he'll be better. I hope for his sake that it happens in the next match. Gerrard's had a pretty good tournament so far, I think. More to come there, I hope. And another good thing - it's nice to see Beckham scoring from a direct free kick again.

I agree, I must say though, the A-holes in the pub I was watching it in (O'Neills in Harborne, Brum) made it very difficult for us to not support Ecuador. I think Phil, my Irish partner, started getting just a little insulted at the fifth chorus of No Surrender to the IRA. I won't be watching another England match down there