New Zealand Men's U-20s

Yeah, I'm not a betting man and I never beat against my own teams..but this is almost too good to ignore.

On the flip side, USA were allowed to play cause we had this huge hole in the midfield because Dyer was somewhere else and Tuiloma was trying to cover everyone that failed at their own job. I don't know where to place his performances yet because on 1 hand, you can say 'just do the job you are assigned to do' but then on the other, considering he is probably NZs best talent, he is running about trying to help everyone else in their role and clean up cause his team mates have been inept at theirs. He is trying to be a captain that leads and getting around to try do it all.

I would like to see Dyer dropped, Ridenton a little deeper, Rufer in the attacking spot, or a central distributer and Messenger for the our of sorts Edge. Edge has been the most disappointing for me of all of them.

NZ have not shown anything that suggests they can get up for it. Would be nice if we could look like getting some shots on goal...

And that was a notable thing about Brazil's game yesterday - their willingness to shoot from 30 yards. I'm not sure I saw any strike from distance in either NZ game until Dyer's late effort against the USA.

                     Sail

Dyer  Brotherton Mitchell Wynne

      Ridenton  Tuiloma   Rufer

  Patterson    Stevens   Lewis

How I'd start this one

Bill T & Patterson have tried from distance.

I'm surprised people haven't talked about Bazely's tactical naivety against USA. The USA lined up with a 4-1-4-1. Our 4-2-3-1 was never a good fit as our midfield get's outnumbered. 

I don't think the players in the USA game were as much to blame as the tactics employed. 

haven't seen the other Myanmar games... how have Myanmar lined up tactically?

He is not 100% is why, in response to Bill T's performance.

Man, it's humiliating when Fiji got their first win in an u-20 World Cup before us.

And they didn't fluke it by one goal or a lucky penalty.

An emphatic 3-0 win.

Fiji have now scored four goals in two games in this comp and NZ zero.

Serious questions have to be asked about the competency of the NZ coaching staff based on the hapless performance against the USA.

NZ offered little in attack or defence and seemed to have selected the wrong players especially in midfield and up front.

Tactically hopeless with no plan to stop the faster more technically-gifted Yanks nor to get the ball forward effectively into scoring opportunities.

Still, if the Junior All Whites can draw with Ukraine, then there must be some hope of beating Mynamar.

Acccording to the Mynamar coach's estimation, even a team on beaten up mopeds or scooters could outperform his:

 http://www.fifa.com/u20worldcup/matches/round=2716...

Gerd Zeise, Myanmar coach:

"We are cyclists, not racing drivers...and blind ones at that..."

"Obviously we only had the power for one match. The European teams play in another league and we cannot follow. We are too blind and we do not have the experience, that's absolutely clear. It was a disaster and this tournament has come too early for us. We cannot follow these teams, no chance. My team was too poor. It was just like the USA game, in the first 15-20 minutes of the second-half we gave the game away. We must be realists, the party is over. I must apologise to the Myanmar fans, I am responsible for this disaster, but I can't turn a cyclist into a racing driver."

I have a small feeling that there will be a big shake up in the team lineup this evening

Actually 4231 v 4141 is pretty much the same, just the central midfielder combination is flipped between the two and match up with each other.

An example, not taking into account the players, of France playing 4231 and Spain 4141. 

Though it's not just the system it is how you play within that system

We need an offensive-minded strategy so I wouldn't like to see again a 4-2-3-1, prefer a 4-3-3 or even a 3-4-3, as I said before:

               Tzanev

       Mitchell   Brotherton

Edge                            Wynne

                Tuiloma

      Rufer          Ridenton

Stevens                      Patterson

               Billingsley

Perhaps we'll get to see players playing in their usual/natural position tonight, rather than fitting square pegs to round holes, eg the defensive mid to striker that we saw in the Ukraine game.

Ghana or Portugal/Columbia if they made it to the R16

I think its pretty well accepted that he has not much of an idea. The general trend of the comments on the forum is around who is actually running this team and making selections. Rufer as a striker is not grounded in any logic at all considering he is a ball playing midfielder yet it is made. I don't think a single person with any clue about football saw that one coming.

Five changes. Tzanev, Messenger, Patterson, Hudson-Wihongi and Rufer in, Sail, Edge, Mitchell, Stevens, Ridenton out

I'm no expert on these players but this seems like a strange line up?

Why would you drop your keeper because of one mistake and drop your best player into CB? wtf?

Looks like my small feeling was quite a big one...5 changes for tonights big game!! Big risk...Big reward?...Big mistake? lets wait and see!

Aaaand Rufer is again as CF

Knowing the amount of NZ scouting going on before the world cup my guess is the side is reacting to what opposition will be doing.

MFW???

Changing 3 players in your defensive 5 is a big risk! Not sure how Moses & Te Atawhai will cope in the middle of midfield, big responsibilities on their shoulders to get hold of the ball & control the game! 

Stream anyone...please!!!!!

Come on you young kiwis

Strange selection IMO. Bazeley is going to live or die on this.

The changes tonight show how much the cheese has slipped off Bazeleys cracker.

anyone got a live stream????

Dyer is awful.

Not in English.

http://www.yopika.tv/20150604/v-haha_sport_1_name-1085663-55707469952450.94748672.html

yea anyone got an english stream?

http://firstrowi.eu/soccer/first-u20-myanmar-vs-new-zealand-row5b8678

We are not going to win this game I feel. We look so hopelessly incompetent in front of goal.

I thought Mitchell would have been a better option at CB. He was strong against Ukraine. 

But then again, what do I know, I'm not a tactical genius like Bazeley. 

So far this looks very much like a game between two teams that deserve to be knocked out.

Took the post right out of my keyboard...

Lets be fair, if we somehow clinch one of the best third place team spots, we are going to get destroyed in the next round by any team in the tournament. The only team we could beat is Fiji, but they know how to score and win games. 

Lost count the amount of balls our back four have smashed forward with no accuracy or intent.....

Who dropped our keeper? -.-