Originally posted by: silverpig
Just watched the replay. Dayum England choked. Sat on their asses all 2nd half and ended up getting it handed to them.
Yeah, it was pretty bad. They tried to kill the game off at 1-0, but made so little attempts at counterattack. And Beckham screwed up the only golden chance they had.
France kept attacking but England crammed most of their players around the penalty box and gave no spaces to any of the attackers. England would clear the ball, then France would pick it up. England clears again, then France picks up again.
They paid for it with another poor clearance in the 91st minute, and gave away a freekick which was converted into a vital goal by Zidane. Then Gerrard committed a crucial error for which he has no excuses.
Henry was far from effective because, I think, England played the kind of game that he (and Arsenal) really dislikes. I wouldn't be surprised if there were some input from Campbell and Cole on how to shut off the pace of Henry. He had almost no space to play around, and England never pushed forward enough for Henry to make effective use of his pace and burst through any holes in the defense.
Disagree all you want, but please just take it easy. And it would be nice if my words are not misinterpreted or taken out of context. Gosh, I can't believe I have to add these silly disclaimers in ATOT nowadays.