I think there's a larger percentage of us playing Holland in the Round of 16. Yet I think it's a big mistake to look too far ahead based on how we're playing, it doesn't matter if we're better on paper than Holland or even Belgium (though it's close in the latters case), and that their vulnerable defenses and lack of midfield balance with tons of available space suits us, we're playing poorly and look dreadful.
Need a huge match vs France where we show actual quality with a proper starting XI, then build on from that.
I mean, look at the positioning of both Danilo/William:
Shocking.
. Danilo should have dropped in between the Cb's, freeing one of them up to mark further outside which in turn pushes the fullback onto the opposing teams wingback, which is how you play vs a 3-5-2.
Santos came out yesterday and said that was his initial plan, and it got "lost in translation". Which screams to me he's attempting to cover his ass after the fact. Still no explanation in regards to how he set us up to not even pressure them and allow them to pick passes at leisure through our final third?
Semedo isn't great, he plays far too narrow defensively and should have adjusted his positioning after the first 15 minutes where any profesional should see whats happening when being over loaded, teammates should have spotted it as well. Yet a lot of this rests on Santos getting eviscerated tactically and the DM's not covering the spaces they should have been.
Danilo isn't the player he was after blowing his achilles, no where near as quick or mobile, which is a shame because he was a beast defensively who covered every blade of grass on the pitch. And William doesn't even dribble out of the press or circulate play the way he used to a few years back, he's done. Or at the very least needs a lot more consistent playing time at a high level to recapture his form and confidence.
Changes need to be made, energy and hunger need to be injected in the XI. Felix, Nuno Mendes ( if it), Sanches, and I'd risk throwing Palhinha in there. Unseasoned, no experience, but he's an absolute tank and dog who covers km's on the field and wins tons of 50/50 balls. Useless on the ball but with Felix/Bruno Fernandes/Bernardo Silva/Sanches he just needs to keep it moving while covering the backline. We might still lose because France is a fantastic team, but if we do we need to make it close and show a lot of what we can play as well.
