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Shaun Lawson

@shaunjlawson

5 Jul

"Women’s singles players have to return on Tuesday each year to contest the quarter-finals and so they usually play earlier in the day on the second Monday. No women’s fourth round has been scheduled as the third match since the roof was erected on Centre Court in 2009...

However, Raducanu has been the transcendent story at the Championships so far and the Wimbledon scheduling team include the requests of broadcasters...

The decision meant that Raducanu and Tomljanovic were placed as the third match on Court One, with their prospective opponent, Barty, facing Barbora Krejcikova in the first match before Felix Auger-Aliassime beat Alexander Zverev in five sets...

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Shaun Lawson

@shaunjlawson

4 Jul

THREAD: Semi-finals.

Let's start with one of Shaun's Alternative Laws of Football:

- Host nations are uniquely vulnerable in semi-finals.

Many host nations in football reach the last four: swept on by pride, passion and sometimes, referees. Few lose the final itself.

If they reach the final, momentum has built up to such an enormous degree that it's likely to carry them over the line.

Of course, it doesn't always happen: look at France in 2016 or Portugal in 2004. Though both were facing fantastically streetwise, gnarled, grizzled opponents.

Both France and Portugal had more than hinted at fragility at different points in those tournaments. The French were pretty pants in the 2016 group stage and rattled by Ireland in the last 16; Portugal 2004 weren't a patch on Portugal 2000, and lost their first game. To Greece.

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Shaun Lawson

@shaunjlawson

4 Jul

@GaryLineker

In the peerless All Played Out, the best book ever written about football, @GaryLineker told @PeteDavies2006 that the Uruguay side of that time "were all very nicey-nicey, but no punch". That description was perfect.

The coach? Oscar Washington Tabarez.

For whatever reason, he just cannot coach effective attacking football. His team was punchless in 1990, punchless in 2019 and punchless in 2021.

It's football as coitus interruptus. And Uruguay - traditionally defensive and pragmatic - are like a man rejecting a heart transplant

They are absolutely right to be changing their style. Godin, Cavani and Suarez are all coming to the end; all the emerging talent is in midfield.

But he's the wrong coach to be overseeing it. It's too passive and too tepid by half. There's no edge, no X-factor, no crunch.

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Shaun Lawson

@shaunjlawson

3 Jul

That was the eighth quarter-final I've seen in my England-watching lifetime. It was the first regarding which I had not the slightest concern before or during the match.

And that's all because of these players and this manager. Composure, calm, intelligence and balance. Superb.

Every football team is an extension of the manager's personality. Everything this team is doing is coming from the manager - a national treasure.

England - ENGLAND! - conceding 0 goals in our first 5 matches at a major tournament!

England - ENGLAND! - winning a major quarter-final 4-0 while cruising through most of it at walking pace!

And here's the most exciting thing. We've not peaked yet. There's loads more to come.

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Shaun Lawson

@shaunjlawson

3 Jul

It's a long way off yet, of course - but just looking at possible finals:

Italy v Denmark - Italy owe the Danes one for what happened in 2004 (the 2-2 v Sweden which put the Azzurri out)

Spain v Denmark - the Danes owe Spain like you would not believe. It's a curse, a jinx

Everyone remembers that sensational Danish team of the mid-80s: probably the closest thing international football's seen to the Dutch of the 70s.

Denmark rampaged their way through Euro 84... until a dull, sterile Spanish side lucky to be there stopped them on pens in the semis.

Then came '86 - when Denmark were brilliant in qualifying (if you ever get the chance, check out their 4-2 win v the USSR in 1985: an absolutely sensational display), won all three group games (including 6-1 v Uruguay and 2-0 v West Germany), while Spain flattered to deceive.

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Shaun Lawson

@shaunjlawson

20 Jun

THREAD: National anthems.

There's many things I love about major sporting tournaments. In my opinion, nothing in the world is better than the World Cup: during which, I'm like a child on Christmas morning every day for a month.

Sporting tournaments are also great for... anthems

The 1988 Olympic Games first introduced me to a good number of them, and 10-year-old me was captivated. In this list of my 20 favourites from around the world, two of them make it because they had such an impression on me at those Games in Seoul.

Before I start, a few addendums:

1. God Save The Queen is an appalling dirge which should be disposed with forthwith and does not make this list. There's bazillions of reasons for the England football team's endless failures - but GSTQ must be one of them. It's awful.

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