Now that he is playing a little deeper, winning tackles and creating quick counters he looks a much more threatning player than when he tried/tries to lead a line.
All Whites v Egypt | Sat 23rd March | 9:00am | FIFA+
Now that he is playing a little deeper, winning tackles and creating quick counters he looks a much more threatning player than when he tried/tries to lead a line.
What a world we live in, when we can name 12 players on the field and Tim Payne should still be nowhere near that team!
I don't think that there can be any argument that Rufer is a better Holding midfielder than Lewis. So clearly they don't want to play with a Holding midfielder.
But then I don't know anything about Bell or Garbett.
Based on club experiences I’d look at having another defensively strong midfielder and pushing Garbett to that LWF position. Old can then have an impact off the bench…
Hmm- though Just/Waine/Kosta are all also not chopped liver.
Long story short I’d like to have Rufer there! Southgate ain’t wrong and Chief wasn’t wrong until Melbourne.
Maybe
Crocombe
Payne Boxy Bindon Cacace
Bell Stamenic Old
Singh Garbett
Wood
Which leaves Cacace and Payne providing width, so Bell/Old need to cover their respective sides. Again I’d be worried about our midfield getting in each others way. I’d want Bell and Singh dropping deep to get the ball and to keep it moving.
And about Old dribbling from deep. Though that’s what’s potentially great about him too.
Alternatively:
Crocombe
Payne Boxy Bindon/Surman Cacace
Bell
Singh Stamenic Garbett
Kosta Wood Waine
Leaving impact subs McCowatt/Old/Lewis/Just
Probably with Payne and Cacace not getting as far forward and looking to hit early crosses some of the time with Singh and Garbett getting into the box late from midfield.
Playing 12 will help.
I was a little worried at first that it might make things cramped, but apparently the pitch is on the larger side.
Hmm Garbett/Waine? Which is not ideal. I much prefer the balance of the 12.
Or alternatively Bell/Stamenic which makes it crazy attacking.
I was in the Egyptian capital 26 years ago, and the place drips with history. But from memory the air quality is awful (well it was in 1998, and doubt much of it has changed). Some stat like breathing the air daily there, is like smoking a packet of ciggies per day for it's 10M (Greater Cairo 22M) inhabitants.
Maybe the AWs will be lodged & train out of the city. But a world away from clean, modern & functioning UAE. I'd say the game is now a hell of a lot harder to win. More so given Egypt's squad are mostly domestic based, and already apparently in camp - now they don't even have to move.
https://www.stuff.co.nz/sport/350211682/all-whites-match-against-egypt-moved-cairo
I was in the Egyptian capital 26 years ago, and the place drips with history. But from memory the air quality is awful (well it was in 1998, and doubt much of it has changed). Some stat like breathing the air daily there, is like smoking a packet of ciggies per day for it's 10M (Greater Cairo 22M) inhabitants.
Maybe the AWs will be lodged & train out of the city. But a world away from clean, modern & functioning UAE. I'd say the game is now a hell of a lot harder to win. More so given Egypt's squad are mostly domestic based, and already apparently in camp - now they don't even have to move.
https://www.stuff.co.nz/sport/350211682/all-whites-match-against-egypt-moved-cairo
Yip no change, if anything it's worse. Even smells bad
Egyptian crowds are pretty raucous!
Last time a NZ side played in Egypt from memory would have been our first ever appearance in the FIFA u-17 World Cup way back in 1997 where we got shellacked by Spain 13-0 and ended up GF: 0 GA: 22
We've made so much progress since then at all levels, that thankfully we'll probably never see those sorts of results again.....
The All Whites have played Egypt twice in friendlies before - all in one week in 1999 in Mexico.
They were preparing for the FIFA Confederations Cup.
A draw (Harry Ngata scored) and a narrow loss:
10 July 1999 | Club Necaxa Training Ground, Mexico City |
15 July 1999 | Las Chivas Ground, Guadalajara |
Should never have been left out in the first place.
👀 Match details for our game against Egypt have now been confirmed.
— New Zealand Football 🇳🇿 (@NZ_Football) March 16, 2024
🆚 @EgyptNT_EN 🇪🇬
🗓️ Sat 23 March [NZ] / Fri 22 March [local]
⏰ 9am / 10pm
📍 Cairo, Egypt
🏟️ Cairo International Stadium
▶️ Watch live and free on FIFA+ at https://t.co/4ACo0NlbIE pic.twitter.com/jYeF2cO9XP
the 2024 FIFA Series which will be the first edition of the FIFA Series, an invitational association football competition promoted by FIFA that features friendly matches between national teams from different confederations. The inaugural edition will feature five different series, taking place across five host countries from 21 to 26 March 2024.[1][2]
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2024_FIFA_Series
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2024_FIFA_Series#Egypt_(ACUD_Cup)
Egypt (ACUD Cup)
The FIFA Series: Egypt, also known as the ACUD International Football Cup, will be held in Cairo on 22, 25 and 26 March 2024, and will involve the hosts Egypt (CAF), Croatia (UEFA), New Zealand (OFC) and Tunisia (CAF).[16]
The tournament was originally not part of the FIFA Series, and was called the Winsunited Cup (W Cup).[17] It was scheduled to be played in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates.[18] However, due to sponsorship issues, on 14 March 2024 the tournament was moved to Egypt,[19][20] and became part of the FIFA Series.
__________________________________________
It is sponsored by the ACUD (the Administrative Capital Urban Development Company) but due to the new Administrative Capital Stadium not being yet ready, will be held in Cairo at the Cairo International Stadium and the suburban "30 June" club stadium.
The New Administrative Capital Stadium (capacity 94,000) situated in the New Administrative Capital outside of Cairo is nearing completion and will replace the currently used Cairo International Stadium as the home of the Egyptian national team later this year.
https://theniche-cache.com/football/2024/3/14/all-whites-at-the-w-cup-squad-yarns-amp-preview
Fun fact: Since the start of the Danny Hay Era, Chris Wood and Sarpreet Singh have been in the same starting team on 7/23 occasions. Excluding the five Oceania World Cup Qualifying games from this equation, here’s what that looks like...
Wood + Singh: 7 GM | 2 W | 2 D | 3 L | 8 GF | 11 GA | 1.14 goals per game
He can't achieve more than he already has, just maintaining that level for a couple years is all he can hope for. He must be preposterously wealthy by now, there's no way he can't be set for life. Why wouldn't he want to head to an environment like the A-League where the smaller number of games helps him prolong his career, and give him the best chance possible for himself and for NZ to be successful at the '26 World Cup, and where his presence would make a profound difference, rather just being one of many excellent but not quite "world class" strikers in the PL. He wouldn't even just be a boost to the Nix or Auckland FC, it would be huge for the game in NZ and for the whole of the A-League.
Maybe he needs all the extra money to spend on horses. What a fudgeing waste.
Just wasted 30 seconds of my life I won’t get back
Just wasted 30 seconds of my life I won’t get back
Is he still paying the price for being one of Hudsons out of nowhere picks??
Just wasted 30 seconds of my life I won’t get back
He can't achieve more than he already has, just maintaining that level for a couple years is all he can hope for. He must be preposterously wealthy by now, there's no way he can't be set for life. Why wouldn't he want to head to an environment like the A-League where the smaller number of games helps him prolong his career, and give him the best chance possible for himself and for NZ to be successful at the '26 World Cup, and where his presence would make a profound difference, rather just being one of many excellent but not quite "world class" strikers in the PL. He wouldn't even just be a boost to the Nix or Auckland FC, it would be huge for the game in NZ and for the whole of the A-League.
Maybe he needs all the extra money to spend on horses. What a fudgeing waste.
You are basically asking the Woodsman to give up $10M a season or whatever Forest pay him, because you are unhappy he's missing a few AWs friendlies. Lets be honest barring some big upsets, the AWs are likely to get 3 games at the next WC, and that will be their lot. Wood playing in the less taxing ALM as opposed to the EPL, ain't going to change that probability at all.
Then aside to the big cash, there is also the career satisfaction aspect for the Woodsman. You get the feeling he loves playing in the EPL, and everything he was doing in the EFL lower levels earlier, was with the aim of cracking agruably the world's biggest league. He will rightly take enormous pride in having scored 63 goals at that level. A few months back he got a high quality hat trick in front of 52,000 fans at St James Park. He's probably still partly pumped from that game. What a buzz it would have been. Why come the ALM, when you are still capable of huge days like that, watched by millions around the world.
He seems a bit driven by records (he's made mention of most AWs goals & caps stats). 100 EPL goals is unlikely, but yeah I can see him playing at that level as long as he can. All power to him.
He will do that in about 5-7 years. He's still scoring regular goals in the EPL... no need to come back to the A-league yet.
With luck he's still be EPL quality into 2025/2026 (two more seasons) - but can see it being touch & go. He'll need to manage his body, have some luck and a coach that believes in him (like Nuno seems to).
Playing in the ALM post 2026 WC makes alot of sense.
Mods can you please update Thread title.
All Whites v Egypt | Sat 23 March [NZT 9am] / Fri 22 March [local 10pm] | Cairo International Stadium (Cairo, Egypt)
Edit: right on queue
Edit: right on queue
His "injury" occurred a day after Payne's, so I'm guessing the announcement will come a day after as well.
Alex Rufer has been added to the #AllWhites squad for the upcoming matches against Egypt and Croatia/Tunisia 🇳🇿
— Wellington Phoenix 🔥 (@WgtnPhoenixFC) March 18, 2024
Congratulations Alex! 👏#COYN! 🔥
Read more 👇
He got there in the end.
Very much a well deserved call up for Rufer.
Alex Rufer has been added to the #AllWhites squad for the upcoming matches against Egypt and Croatia/Tunisia 🇳🇿
— Wellington Phoenix 🔥 (@WgtnPhoenixFC) March 18, 2024
Congratulations Alex! 👏#COYN! 🔥
Read more 👇
He got there in the end.
Very much a well deserved call up for Rufer.
Interesting swap for Payne and Wood.
Alex Rufer has been added to the #AllWhites squad for the upcoming matches against Egypt and Croatia/Tunisia 🇳🇿
— Wellington Phoenix 🔥 (@WgtnPhoenixFC) March 18, 2024
Congratulations Alex! 👏#COYN! 🔥
Read more 👇
He got there in the end.
Very much a well deserved call up for Rufer.
Interesting swap for Payne and Wood.
Is Rufers inclusion more to do with a formation change due to Payne been injured? Maybe a revert to 5 at the back and McCowatt playing a RWB role etc?
Is Rufers inclusion more to do with a formation change due to Payne been injured? Maybe a revert to 5 at the back and McCowatt playing a RWB role etc?
Is Rufers inclusion more to do with a formation change due to Payne been injured? Maybe a revert to 5 at the back and McCowatt playing a RWB role etc?
Would like to see more options at RB/RWB than just Ingham if I'm being honest... Roux? Wilkins?
Callan Elliot and James McGarry probably too short of a gallop for an international call up at this point.