World Cup 2026

[BH_Saint]

41 minutes ago, Verbal said:

Now that Trump heads FIFA anything's possible. 

Trump's relationship with FIFA is the equivalent of Gibson's relationship with the EFL.

[AlexLaw76]

Henry Winter on the radio at his glorious best. Stones was a rolls Royce when he came on, especially when he 'intelligently' ducked out of heading a ball....

he is such a fluffer...

[Turkish]

2 hours ago, SNSUN said:

Jordan Henderson injured himself and he wasn't even playing. Fell over an advertising hoarding and was stretchered off.

More booking and tournaments ending injuries than minutes played 😂😂

[AlexLaw76]

given the circumstances, was this a better result than anything under Southgate?

I mean, Southgate was incredibly lucky with the draws during his tenure.

[Turkish]

Just now, AlexLaw76 said:

given the circumstances, was this a better result than anything under Southgate?

I mean, Southgate was incredibly lucky with the draws during his tenure.

One of the best results ever given the circumstances. Glad I stayed up for it very jealous of the lads who were there, groups of Saints fans were and leader of the Saints trust Steve Grant 

[BotleySaint]

Just watched game on catch up. Absolutely amazing match. England warriors came through under intense pressure.

Hope we can recuperate for the next game.

Thought the Ref should have been more liberal booking Mexico players for the constant harassment. 

[Lighthouse]

Good job we were playing Mexico and not USA, otherwise two of our goals would have been suspended for a year.

[benjii]

3 hours ago, whelk said:

Most excited I have been at 4am on a Monday morning. Although there was that time I was kidnapped by the Swedish netball team

[Window Cleaner]

3 hours ago, SNSUN said:

Norway then. Haaland vs Kane. Rice vs Odegaard. Will be a banger. 

Norway's best player last night plays wide left.Hope we can sort out our RB problems before next saturday.

[Stripey McStripe Shirt]

3 hours ago, SNSUN said:

Jordan Henderson injured himself and he wasn't even playing. Fell over an advertising hoarding and was stretchered off.

Broke his wrist falling over a coca-cola advert. Now that's what I call a hydration break.

Boom boom!

[Badger]

I wonder what the lead news item is in Scotland this morning 

[AlexLaw76]

This is a direct result of powering through at the pub until 5am. It is like he is having some sort of breakdown.

 

[coalman]

29 minutes ago, AlexLaw76 said:

This is a direct result of powering through at the pub until 5am. It is like he is having some sort of breakdown.

 

I particularly loved the wave of dribble at the end. If ever you wanted an example of why social media is a bad thing you need look no further than this video.

[64saint]

What a brilliant night, and I don't often get chance to say that nowadays at my age 🙄 
Brazil can also take comfort from their game in knowledge that although not making the quarter finals their  beautiful ladies were responsible for making a lot of semis amongst the male population. 🙄🤣🤣🤣

Edited 6 hours ago by 64saint

[Patrick Bateman]

Just watched the re-run on BBC2 ... bloody hell that was good! Ridiculously good, that is this team's defining moment of togetherness, no reason to not go all the way now. Brilliant!  Now I must work ...

[skintsaint]

[Football Special]

2 hours ago, Turkish said:

One of the best results ever given the circumstances. Glad I stayed up for it very jealous of the lads who were there, groups of Saints fans were and leader of the Saints trust Steve Grant 

Watched the game in the night, then got kids up early so they could watch before going to school,  well worth it for that game. 

They might as well just hand us the trophy now, Its Coming Home 

Cant see much work being done today 

Edited 5 hours ago by Football Special

[skintsaint]

On 01/07/2026 at 08:57, skintsaint said:

Congo, then Mexico - piece of piss.

Brazil will be the tasty game.

Embarrassed to say I got that wrong.

[S-Clarke]

That was well worth staying up for, a tremendous game which had a bit of everything. One for the ages!

Those players were literally out on their arses in the last 20 mins, given the 10 men for a good part of the game and the lack of conditioning at that altitude, it was sheer grit and determination which got us through - they were all playing for each other, this isn't a team of 'golden balls/generation' anymore, it looked like a real gelled side (and it has done for years tbh). Great subs as well at the times we needed it, Stones made us stronger and so did Burn for the 'just head it' approach. 

Defensively I'd say we looked a bit iffy, but then in the final throws of the game we did hold out well and defended very well. I think we got our head to the ball first in the closing stages, although Mexico were a bit predictable I felt - get it wide, cross it in. Get it wide, cross it in.

It's been a really fun world cup despite all the initial reservations, I think it's been a decent specacle.

[Lord Duckhunter]

TT said all along that this would be a World Cup of moments, and he’s picked a squad for those moments. This morning showed exactly what he meant. Dan Burn, right man at the right moment. Experienced pro to come on in that atmosphere to kick, head & block in that area. All the substitutions were well timed & everybody contributed, real backs to the wall stuff. The keeper needed a big game after DRC and he produced one. Bellingham different class, let’s hope it didn’t take too much out of him. 
 

I thought the ref got all 3 big decisions right. 
 

Although he’s a bit of a cock, you have to feel for Henderson if that’s his WC over with. It’s bad enough suffering an injury playing, but getting injured like that in your last WC is pretty soul destroying. 

Edited 5 hours ago by Lord Duckhunter

[Zorba]

6 hours ago, Whitey Grandad said:

Sweet Caromine. 

close..

🎶  Swede Car Online  🎶

 

.

Edited 5 hours ago by Zorba

[Saint NL]

 

 

If Sepp Blatter says the suspension of the red card is fishy then you know it must be bad 🤣

[Window Cleaner]

37 minutes ago, Football Special said:

 

They might as well just hand us the trophy now, Its Coming Home 

We shall see, think we have the easier hypothetical path to the final. Norway won't trouble us overmuch, Argentina look like the old side that they are.

On the other side there are still France, Morroco and Spain.

Edited 5 hours ago by Window Cleaner

[Zorba]

2 minutes ago, Window Cleaner said:

We shall see, think we have the easier hypothetical path to the final. Norway won't trouble us overmuch, Argentina look like the old side that they are.

On the other side there are still France, Morroco and Spain.

Famous last words..

[Patrick Bateman]

5 minutes ago, Window Cleaner said:

We shall see, think we have the easier hypothetical path to the final. Norway won't trouble us overmuch, Argentina look like the old side that they are.

On the other side there are still France, Morroco and Spain.

Not sure about that. Haaland is on top form ... he has that ability to almost lumber around looking useless, but he's in the right positions with that killer accuracy to score - he's a ridiculous player. I can't see a clean sheet, we just need our attack to be better. 

Maybe it's another match for Dan Burn!

[Colinjb]

Am I alone in finding the 'One of the Greatest results in our world cup history' a little over the top?

Bloody brilliant win, and certainly fantastic. But, greatest ever? 

[Saint NL]

12 minutes ago, Window Cleaner said:

On the other side there are still France, Morroco and Spain.

You forgot a USA team with Trump pulling the strings 🤣

[whelk]

6 minutes ago, Colinjb said:

Am I alone in finding the 'One of the Greatest results in our world cup history' a little over the top?

Bloody brilliant win, and certainly fantastic. But, greatest ever? 

There is an inevitable need for social media content to always run these sort of questions. Ridiculous need for many to rank every occasion or event. Given recency bias and lack of reference from younger people make it all pointless. Just enjoy the fucking moment

[Stripey McStripe Shirt]

21 minutes ago, Colinjb said:

Am I alone in finding the 'One of the Greatest results in our world cup history' a little over the top?

Bloody brilliant win, and certainly fantastic. But, greatest ever? 

Not really. Think we've played something like 17 knock out matches in world cups since we won it in 66.

Obviously a good chunk of them have been losses where we've been knocked out. The majority of the others have been relatively routine last 16 matches that we probably expected to win. Don't think it's that much of a stretch to say that this is one of the best amongst the remaining handful that we've actually won.

Edited 4 hours ago by Stripey McStripe Shirt

[Turkish]

2 minutes ago, Patrick Bateman said:

Not sure about that. Haaland is on top form ... he has that ability to almost lumber around looking useless, but he's in the right positions with that killer accuracy to score - he's a ridiculous player. I can't see a clean sheet, we just need our attack to be better. 

Maybe it's another match for Dan Burn!

 i agree, Norway wont be easy at all. They are much like us in a way, an okay team with a couple of star players who can win you the game. No way to we keep a clean sheet but we do score goals

[AlexLaw76]

 

[Chez]

31 minutes ago, Turkish said:

 i agree, Norway wont be easy at all. They are much like us in a way, an okay team with a couple of star players who can win you the game. No way to we keep a clean sheet but we do score goals

Odegaard is such a good player. If we could stop him playing then that would go a long way to beating them. I've no idea how you stop Haarland. I guess its about stopping the supply to him, but he's a machine.

[trousers]

20 minutes ago, AlexLaw76 said:

 

An un-disabled version... 

 

 

[Chez]

 

Saints fan enjoying himself despite Mexico scoring. 

[Window Cleaner]

13 minutes ago, Chez said:

Odegaard is such a good player. If we could stop him playing then that would go a long way to beating them. I've no idea how you stop Haarland. I guess its about stopping the supply to him, but he's a machine.

He was not the architect of their victory yesterday. The left winger and Halaand are the main dangers. 

[Lord Duckhunter]

UEFA giving FIFA some clog. 
 

Yesterday’s decision to suspend for a probationary period of a year the implementation of the one-match automatic suspension following the red card issued to the player Folarin Balogun crossed a red line.

Football, like any other sports, relies on rules, which are the basis for fair, honest and transparent competition. Sometimes rules are open to interpretation. In this case not. A minimum automatic suspension of one match following a red card is not a discretionary option and does not require the decision of a competent body to be enacted. It is a principle embedded in regulations, which cannot be made subject to exceptions, let alone in the middle of a tournament where several other players have been in the same situation and regularly served their suspension.

When the certainty of rules is no longer guaranteed by its guardians, the integrity of the game is at stake and the credibility of a competition is undermined. Equally, such decision creates a precedent in the ongoing tournament, where similar situations will now require an equal treatment, to the detriment of the competition.

Football is the most loved sport in the world because it is a beautiful game and is trusted because it is played everywhere with the same laws. A tournament is never a pure standalone and, if the tournament in question is the World Cup, it has the power to drive positive or negative consequences on the game as a whole.

We express our disbelief at such an unprecedented, incomprehensible and unjustifiable decision.

[Whitey Grandad]

1 hour ago, Zorba said:

Famous last words..

Their boys are gonna take one hell of a beating.

[Chez]

21 minutes ago, Window Cleaner said:

He was not the architect of their victory yesterday. The left winger and Halaand are the main dangers. 

You are right, those two made the difference when it came to the big moments, but for me, Odegaard runs the game. His ball retention is brilliant. He takes so much pressure off the rest of the side. Everything goes through him and when he plays well the rest of the side follows. As a team they looked outstanding the other night. They took Brazil pieces in the second half. They look very solid. We will have to play very well.

[SWLondon Saint]

6 minutes ago, Chez said:

You are right, those two made the difference when it came to the big moments, but for me, Odegaard runs the game. His ball retention is brilliant. He takes so much pressure off the rest of the side. Everything goes through him and when he plays well the rest of the side follows. As a team they looked outstanding the other night. They took Brazil pieces in the second half. They look very solid. We will have to play very well.

Think it's hard to tell much from the Brazil game other than Haaland is on another planet. Brazil were incredibly passive in a way I can't imagine any other team left in it being. Reckon a lot of it is because Casemiro really can't run anymore so they don't feel they can press in midfield.

[suewhistle]

I surfaced at 11 this morning, but I still can't find my big bunch of house keys which I couldn't find going out to the pub at 01.20, so used the emergency spare. So much for staying up late..!

Worth it though..

[TheAlehouseBrawlers]

2 hours ago, Saint NL said:

You forgot a USA team with Trump pulling the strings 🤣

They hold the Trump card that trumps a red card…

https://www.facebook.com/reel/4238244753172851/?hpir=1

[Patrick Bateman]

One last thought on this morning's match (or last night, whatever, you know what I mean) ... Raul. He is still excellent and now plays for Championship Wolves ... I can't see many Championship defences keeping him quiet ... 

[Window Cleaner]

1 hour ago, SWLondon Saint said:

Think it's hard to tell much from the Brazil game other than Haaland is on another planet. Brazil were incredibly passive in a way I can't imagine any other team left in it being. Reckon a lot of it is because Casemiro really can't run anymore so they don't feel they can press in midfield.

Brazil is an ageing circus. Ancelotti isn't what they need. 

[LuckyNumber7]

2 hours ago, Window Cleaner said:

He was not the architect of their victory yesterday. The left winger and Halaand are the main dangers. 

I agree, I actually think Odegaard has been pretty poor in this tournament.

Aside from Haaland, I've been impressed by Nusa.

[Chez]

10 minutes ago, Patrick Bateman said:

One last thought on this morning's match (or last night, whatever, you know what I mean) ... Raul. He is still excellent and now plays for Championship Wolves ... I can't see many Championship defences keeping him quiet ... 

I was going to post the same thing. I still don't know why a PL side didn't grab him. I know he is getting on, but he scored goals for Fulham last season didn't he? 

[saintant]

2 hours ago, Chez said:

Odegaard is such a good player. If we could stop him playing then that would go a long way to beating them. I've no idea how you stop Haarland. I guess its about stopping the supply to him, but he's a machine.

As someone else said, their guy on the left will be a big danger and probably more so than Odegaard.

[skintsaint]

Hopefully we have James back at right back for the next one, but can't see it.

Edited 44 minutes ago by skintsaint
Meh...

[Chez]

12 minutes ago, saintant said:

As someone else said, their guy on the left will be a big danger and probably more so than Odegaard.

Nusa or Schjlderup? Nusa has looked good, but I think Schjlderup was the guy creating the chances in the second half against Brazil when he came on from Nusa. I'm guessing Spence will play right back, so he's going to havre to play well.  He will need help. Is Saka going to be fit?

[Turkish]

54 minutes ago, Patrick Bateman said:

One last thought on this morning's match (or last night, whatever, you know what I mean) ... Raul. He is still excellent and now plays for Championship Wolves ... I can't see many Championship defences keeping him quiet ... 

i cant believe a premier league team didnt snap him up, he'll score a hatful in the championship

[Turkish]

3 hours ago, Chez said:

Odegaard is such a good player. If we could stop him playing then that would go a long way to beating them. I've no idea how you stop Haarland. I guess its about stopping the supply to him, but he's a machine.

If you had one criticism of Haaland is that he sometimes looks a bit clumsy and his first touch sometimes lets him down. The difficultly with him is if you defend high he's got the pace and power to breeze past most defenders, certainly all of ours and if you defend deep he's got the strength and movement to be a real threat in the box, i guess the only way is to play the percentage game of where he is less of a threat and set up to counter that. I'd be inclined to set deeper, block crosses and hit on the break which is our strengths really, if we set up like we did for the group stages he'll have a field day in behind the back 4.