‘Insta Stories’ man Jude Bellingham has ‘got a bit of the Ronaldos about him’

Editor F365 03 Jul 2024 2:25 PM

Jude Bellingham and Ronaldo

Do we like what we are seeing from Jude Bellingham or does he have the Ronaldo arrogance? Plus, do England need an Mbappe?

Send your mails to theeditor@football365.com

Hey Jude, you are a Bell
Thoughts on the Euros from a Welshman:

1) The first tournament I remember watching was Euro 96. I’ve always wanted England to do well since. Not against us, but anyone else, yeah go for it.

Until the other night when Bellingham scored and my heart sank. I was going to have to watch more of this shower. God you’re bad, and the discussion around you makes you worse. You’ve always swung between sycophancy and psychopathy, but, I think coming into this tournament as ‘favourites’ has sent you all off the edge.

2) Anyone else been put off by Bellingham this tournament? I’ve quite liked him up to now but he’s got a bit of the Ronaldos about him. The celebration, the “who else” of it all. The petulance, moaning at his teammates, plus he looks like he’s wearing concealer while playing actual football. Everything about him seems like he’s doing this for the insta stories. Idk.

Great player, obviously, can’t wait to see him ruin your chance at the Euros in 20 years’ time.

3) Speaking of Ronaldo. I see a lot of talk about Martinez refusing to drop him, but I reckon he doesn’t have a choice.

Ronaldo makes the Portuguese FA so much money. The sponsors, the shirts. Many of them global brands. And the fans love him.

When the hat-trick whosat? started ahead of him two years ago, I can bet none of those sponsors were very happy. And the fans, as f365 pointed out, chanted for Ronaldo the whole game.

The Portuguese FA has not, historically, been particularly rich. And one could make an argument that the cash he’s brought them has helped to develop the team around him at this tournament. Portugal have always produced great players, but never with the volume or consistency as they have over the last 10-15 years or so.

Anyway. I think Robbo needs to be let off the hook. If Ronaldo is fit, or he says he is, he plays.

4) Lamine Yamal is ridiculous.
G, Swansea City

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Spain would batter England
To all the English fans saying that lucky Southgate is somehow going to fluke England to a Euro victory have clearly not been watching the Spanish team in action.

The 4-0 trashing they handed Italy at Euro 2012 will be nothing in comparison to the hammering England would receive if they were to somehow miraculously get past Switzerland and then Austria (spoiler alert – they won’t).

Gary Oldman’s character in Leon the Professional said it best when asked who’d be a better England manager than Gareth – “Everyone!”
Sanjit (literally everyone) Randhawa, Kuala Lumpur

Georgia on my mind
I think we can stop with the Southgate mails now. I can comfortably scroll past almost every mail now knowing I’ll read nothing new.

He is shit and every criticism is definitely valid but y’all are repeating the same thing every day like angry Alzheimer’s patients.

There’s a bunch of other teams (all of which are more likely to win then England) why don’t we discuss them for a bit?

Personally I thought the way Georgia played was really admirable , they tried to play quickly and had some great movement at times. I imagine they’ll be that one country from every tournament that outperforms expectations and so many of their players get bought by big teams in the summer who inevitably end up being shit save for that one tournament.
Lee

The darkest of dark horses
Well I guess the horses are dark for a reason.
TGWolf (Andy Brassell will be absolutely buzzin) THFC

England need an Mbappe
I ended up watching a bit of the France v Belgium game on Monday, and I noticed a thing. Nearly every time Mbappe received the ball on the left, near the edge of the penalty area, he stopped. He waited, calm, knowing he had the pace and skill go left or right, and the defenders knew they couldn’t commit alone. It immediately relieved any pressure. And then he’d act, fast like a snake.

That is what we’ve been missing. That is what a pacy left wing-forward can offer. It’s not just the ability to get behind the defence, but the threat that pace gives. It pushes the defence back, it buys space for other players to move up. It’s what Saka does on the other side. The difference it makes is huge. It widens and lengthens the space available for the other players to make something happen. It draws defenders out of their positions to deal with it so that any of the other players can do something. We have two players in the squad who can offer that on the left, neither of them have been given much time to do it.

We can talk about whatever Kane is up to, our right-back being unable to defend or pass, our left-back not being able to pass forwards let alone put a wonderful chance even on target, but if we put Gordon on from the start, it absolutely changes the shape. It gives us that out-ball on the left. It gives pace and running. It gives threat.

I’m sorry to Foden. He’s a wonderful player but he’s been shafted by being put out left in this shape. Yes, he can play out wide, but not with this kind of structure around him. At City he has runners, and a full-back willing to overlap. He can’t beat his man for pace on the outside, and he can’t come in-field to crack a shot. It doesn’t work. It hasn’t worked. Literally nothing successful has come from it.

Drop Foden for Gordon. Then you can deal with Bellingham/Foden and Saka/Palmer, because any of those options are fine.
Badwolf (I hate that I still give a damn)

READ: Euro 2024 Not Turned-Up XI, featuring Cristiano Ronaldo and Kylian Mbappe

Another 3-2-4-1 suggestion
So England are struggling to function without a left back. Two of their best players both play at No. 10. Walker’s getting old and can’t get forward as well any more.

So what you need is a system which doesn’t require full backs, a system that’s proven to be successful, a system that allows Bellingham and Foden to play in their best positions.

There’s only one answer, it’s 3-2-4-1, the system that City won the treble with

A back 3 of Walker, Stones and Gomez

Rice and Mainoo sitting ahead of them offering protection in defence

TAA on the right as a wing back/RM, Saka opposite for the width

Foden and Bellingham playing as No. 10s off Kane.

It’s solid defensively, with two defensive midfielders where needed and two wing backs, the wing backs are both great attackers who’ll offer as much in attack as defence, and you’ve got your best players in their best positions. It’s a little harsh on Saka, who’s done nothing wrong, but it’s ideal for everyone else.
Kieran

No, Southgate has not learned
On Monday, I asked the question, has Gareth learned the lesson having stared down the precipice on Sunday. Unbelievably, the answer appears to be no.

In comparing a near disaster against Slovakia, where we were saved from utter ignominy only by virtue of a world-class strike, to nearly drawing with Scotland, and scraping past Spain in the quarter finals in 96, appears to show a total and complete lack of awareness. The first half of the Scotland game was excellent, and the game that proceeded Spain was one of the greatest performances in my 56-year lifetime.

We nearly lost to Slovakia Gareth, in a truly awful game. You were 30 seconds from losing your job. Wake up!!

I am beyond despair.
Rob (a man who normally hates using exclamation marks, except when visiting Westward Ho!)

Defending Southgate
MK (Dubai) and Andrew -Canada are the very embodiment of the reactionary tabloid reading hysterical England fan. Sack the manager with a few days to go before quarter-final in a major tournament. Crazy. Then put team selection to the public vote of armchair fans. Even more crazy. Southgate is driving some England fans completely insane. Judge him after our tournament.
Dan, London

…Sarah Winterburn opines that Turkey put England and France “to shame”. Neither England or France played particularly well in their last 16 ties yet like Turkey they are in the quarter-finals. England and France didn’t lose and go out and Turkey have only done what they have done, albeit in slightly more convincing fashion.

So have they really put England and France to shame? No. If Turkey play and beat England and France (which would mean them winnjng Euro 2024) then they would be putting them to shame. But they haven’t, as of yet and they haven’t put them to shame just by only doing the same as them in a more convincing manner.

“England’s embarrassing win over Slovakia”. England’s win over Slovakia wasn’t pretty and it certainly wasn’t comfortable, but embarrassing? What would have been embarrassing is if England had lost. They didn’t play well but they got through in the end. Unconvincing but hardly embarrassing.

I think every time another side plays better than England in a game that England aren’t involved in Football 365’s writers are using that as a stick to beat England.
Dan, London (again)

…England are in another quarter final and the supporters(ha) are talking about how terrible the manager is and wanting him sacked mid tournament, booing and whistling at the players, throwing paper cups at the players/manager, England might win this tournament, but if they don’t, the rest of the world can see it’s more the fans fault than anything else.

Imagine not expecting to win a tournament, then getting so angry about losing a semi final or final? What exactly are the expectations? What does success look like? Whatever success is, one thing that’s for sure is that not many fans are cheering on their team/country and I would imagine that is seriously affecting the players. They’re probably thinking, we’re in another quarter finals, surely the country will be behind us now ….

Mailbox Headline very next day ‘Southgate ‘bottled it’ but should drop at least three players – and two ‘should never play for England again’ – England won.
Dave, Chile (were truly awful in the Copa America)

Thank you F365
‘Oooh, do you think we should write critically about England? We could maybe try that… – Ed’

And that in a nutshell is why I’ve read your magnificent site daily for more than two decades.

Don’t ever change.
Graham Simons, Gooner, Norf London

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