mjazzg

And again...teenage angst anyone?

I'm trying to picture how that works...good luck

that takes me back...

I did the same with very similar conclusions. I could have taken some of the bombast (I was a teenage Heavy Metal fan after all) if Washington's playing stood up to it. To my ears it didn't so his solos had the effect of deflating the "atmosphere" that was created by the massed choirs etc. I like that he's popular and everyone and their dog are supposedly listening to him and i'll continue to give it an occasional spin to see whether my reactions change which is the luxury of Spotify.

The pointlessness of the third place play off feels even more acute when your team's involved. It will not be long before no one remembers the runners up let alone third and fourth place. I predict it'll be a Belgian victory but will both manager's play their second XI's as a group match rematch?

resident in the 53rd state

that's what happens when you come from the best country in the world

and thereby betrays a great misunderstanding of the psyche of the nation with regard to that phrase and this competition

Best team won. The skill of the Croatian midfield really shone through Very inexperienced and young England team exceeded my expectations by far

But also Martinez changed formation to make Lukaku the spearhead and therefore became overly reliant on him performing. Against Brazil it was three up front, with Lukaku out wide and they were unstoppable at times going forward Football was always played better in our memories

I like this description and it holds with my impressions of seeing him live too. Next week in London with Five Elements, can't wait

Not too sure who you're referring to here but no-one's making you watch it

Football's a sport not an art. We fans romantically talk about artists on the pitch and the aesthetics but we're only the fans. For the players it's a win or lose competition, not art. I really appreciated both sides' displays tonight. France defended marvellously and also created chances. Belgium failed to take their chances but created some good ones. If you can't appreciate the skills on display tonight from Hazard, De Bruyne, Mbappe, Varane, Pogba, Matuidi, Lloris then you're watching the wrong sport. The fact that there are more French names, and defenders at that, in that list goes some way to explain why they won

We'll see

Terrific match. Well played France. Great to see Mbappe in the final

Really enjoyed that half of football.

Not for me, they're not. Love them all as well as Kikuchi's solo and trio ECM discs

Charles Tyler - Saga Of The Outlaws [Nessa]

Saunier, Halvorson, Miles - New American Songbooks, Volume 1 [Sound American]

Good post. There's invariably sides in these competitions that by teamwork and good coaching play better than everyone expects and Russia have certainly exceeded the initially low expectation of the home crowd No need to apologise. I've said all along that England are a limited side with a lack of midfield creativity which will be an issue when they come across a side that has what we don't - this could well be Modric and Rakitic. But so far an excellent coach has a young, internationally inexperienced team (this seems to be missed by many commenters because the names are known from the PL) playing to their strengths which have been too strong for their opponents, and long may that come to pass. And whilst as football fans we all want to see the beautiful game let's not forget this isn't a beauty contest.

One of the best

I can understand that. As a neutral I want the beautiful game but right now as an England fan I'll take boring and a victory into the semi-final I'm not too sure who I want to win the other match.Croatia are the better side but Russia with home advantage in the semi could be equally difficult?