Shadow Scholar Syndicate: FWM 2019--Day Eight Recap

Your “Syndicate Hangover” is proudly presented by “Perrier”

Your friendly bookie remains more of a San Pellegrino man, but we’ll accord the hosts some respect for their second-rate club soda. Along with La Croix, it’s an acceptable option when the only other alternative happens to be Seltzer Water.

Day 8: Recap

Bookie’s Stats—

Spread: 9-11

Straight up: 14-5-1

Bookie has little choice but to reward the Italian contingent with yet another day. Boy, you guys are really making up for lost time. Thanks to a Girelli hat trick and a Galli brace, it looks like you’re riding a “Five-Star-Movement” to the knockouts!

Get it? Because…five goals…and then….nevermind. Just enjoy your picture.

S.S.S. Tactical Breakdown

We’re going to profile all of the winners today as they’ve likely all booked passage to the knockouts. Much was learned over the course of the day. The fact that these countries proved they can hold their own necessitates a closer look.

Poor Argentina appears to be the guinea pig for the Group D bigwigs. They won’t share their best against a program no one truly takes seriously. Fair enough, but too many changes in tournament football can be risky. A team needs rhythm. They have to click. Jill Ellis didn’t waver in putting her best behemoth forward against Thailand.

England and Japan are thus downgraded. Yes, Azzure lovers, we’ll get to your team. Scroll down.

Lineup—Japan—PROJECTED (4-4-2) (5/31/2019)

Kumi Yokoyama Mana Iwabuchi

Yui Hasegawa Emi Nakajima

Yuka Momiki Mizuho Sakaguchi

Aya Sameshima Risa Shimizu

Saki Kumagai Rumi Utsugi

Sakiko Ikeda

Lineup—Japan—Match One (4-4-2) (6/10/2019)

Kumi Yokoyama Yukia Sugasawa

Yui Hasegawa Hina Sugita

Narumi Miura Emi Nakajima

Aya Sameshima Risa Shimizu

Saki Kumagai Moeka Minami

Ayaka Yamashita

Clearly an experimental deployment. Takakura opted to test drive some of the newbies against an almost irrelevant opponent. This was a bit excessive. Sugita and Sugasawa rarely linked up, burying Nakajima that deep ensured that most of the forward traffic would be long balls, and neither Minami nor Miura gained much valuable experience.

Your friendly bookie predicted changes when releasing the Round Two Lines. Here they are.

Lineup—Japan—Match Two (4-4-2) (6/14/2019)

Yukia Sugasawa Mana Iwabuchi

Jun Endo Emi Nakajima

Hina Sugita Narumi Miura

Aya Sameshima Risa Shimizu

Saki Kumagai Nana Ichese

Ayaka Yamashita

Still more experimentation. Now we’re test-driving Nana Ichese and Jun Endo. Nakajima returns to a more a higher position, but Sugita, Miura, and Endo are rotating heavily on that left wing. Iwabuchi returns, but now Sugasawa and Sugita have flipped. Hmmm….

Results were actually rather lame. Unable to produce much beyond Iwabuchi’s stunner and that completely preposterous penalty, Takakura’s one meaningful substitution didn’t appear to exhibit any urgency. Kobayashi came on for Endo a little after the hour mark. Another “test drive”. It’s almost as if this team isn’t designed to compete in this particular tournament at all. It’s a field squad for the 2023 Women’s World Cup in Japan.

Give them a few years and they’ll be experienced world beaters. Another mediocre performance today implies they are content not to try too hard here.

Lineup—England—Match One (4-3-2-1) (6/9/2019)

Ellen White

Beth Mead Nikita Parris

Keira Walsh Jill Scott Fran Kirby

Alex Greenwood Lucy Bronze

Steph Houghton Millie Bright

Karen Bardsley

Lineup—England—Match Two (4-2-1-3) (6/14/2019)

Beth Mead Jodie Taylor Nikita Parris

Jade Moore

Jill Scott Fran Kirby

Alex Greenwood Lucy Bronze

Steph Houghton Abbie McManus

Carly Telford

I had looked forward to seeing some other players, but four changes and a major tactical shift seems a bit much. I actually had Jade Moore running central midfield in my initial projection, but her presence seemed to contribute to Parris, Kirby, and Scott's decline. All of them dipped in form.

Evidently Millie Bright’s injury was more serious than initially indicated. McManus seemed an odd choice with Daly clearly in better form. Where is Toni Duggan? Looks like the bookie simply scouted the wrong talisman. Thought for sure we would see her today.

Though the grades aren’t so hot, I’m generally well-pleased with the play of my favored “Princesses of the pitch.” Not the most exciting stuff today. Still the favorites. They had a low energy game against a very good Argentine keeper.

No subs a factor in that brain-dead final fifteen minutes.

Grades—England (Match Two)

Beth Mead	A+
Jodie Taylor	A
Fran Kirby	A
Jade Moore	B+
Jill Scott	B
Nikita Parris	B
Abbie McManus	B
Carly Telford	B
Alex Greenwood	B-
Lucy Bronze	C
Steph Houghton	C

All that experimentation killed the rhythm. One area that sent me through the fucking roof was the set pieces, particularly the corners. What the shit was that? Phill Neville testing out “Plan D” from the flag made me so sorry I opted to watch the match in the first place.

Houghton, Bronze, and Greenwood looked exhausted. Parris was moving quite slow too for much of the match, but she found her second wind eventually. Keeping my fingers crossed that Neville didn’t rest the wrong players. Four days rest before the Nadeshiko on Thursday. They’ll do fine.

Lineup—Italy—PROJECTED (4-4-2) (5/28/2019)

Ilaria Mauro Daniela Sabatino

Barbara Bonansea Christiana Girelli

V. Bergamaschi V. Cernoia

Elisa Bartoli Sara Gama

Celia Salvai Alia Guagni

Laura Giuliani

Lineup—Italy—Match One (4-3-2-1) (6/9/2019)

Cristiana Girelli

B. Bonansea I. Mauro

Valentin Cernoia Manuela Giugliano Aurora Galli

Sara Gama Alia Guagni

V. Bergamaschi Elena Linari

Laura Giuliani

Bonansea and Mauro did indeed play that narrow during the first half of the Australia match. Giugliano initiated most of the traffic in the center of the park; mostly backward triangulation. I observed plenty of rotation on the back line. Gama spent maybe a little less than half the time center. Guagni pulled inward too as they sought to kill of the Aussie attacking prowess.

Gradually they opened up, finally transitioning to the full 4-3-3 after the Sabatino substitution. Giugliano really came into her own when it came to some creative moves. Cernoia and Sabatino took turns in attack. I spotted Linari and Baroli up high as well. A lovely attack they have. We got a better look at the full-throated 4-3-3 today.

Lineup—Italy—Match Three (4-3-3) (6/14/2019)

Barbara Bonansea Cristiana Girelli Daniela Sabatino

Valentina Cernoia Valentina Bergamaschi

Manuela Giugliano

Elise Bartoli Elena Linari

Sara Gama Elena Linari

Laura Giuliani

Now they just don’t give a shit. No more toying around with defensive rotation. No center-of-the-park choking. Hell, you can even throw the centerback forward for the killer “Valentina Axis”. I actually had that projected, not that high up! Sara Gama definitely went back center, where she picked up most of Giugliano’s duties in the opening fixture.

Anyone could have a go after the Galli substitution. By that time the Reggae Girlz had quit anyway. Overall, I like an attack-mined 4-3-3 for this team, because they actually do have the depth and confidence to pull it off. I think even putting moving Bergamaschi or Galli all the way up top would be a great way to snap the Brazilian spine quickly. Those girls proved they were ready.

Looking good for our “tournament sweethearts”. Top of the group and a trip to Quarterfinals is the bookie's tip.

“Riffs of the Day”—Day Eight

Reader: White girl keeper is getting swarmed!

Vicey: (guffawing). Syndicate member 16-M refers to Jamaican keeper Syndney Schneider getting repeatedly chest-punched by all her teammates after saving a penalty. Vanina Correa got similar treatment when she stopped Nikita Parris from the spot in the England match. This phenomenon seems perfectly normal in the men’s game, but it’s funny as hell to watch the women do it.

“You go girl! Here’s a fist to straight to the tits!”

Reader: These Italian women know how to sing an anthem.

Vicey: Oh the Italian anthem is a good ol’ racist stomping war march. If memory serves correctly it has some lines in there about disemboweling Pollacks, drinking Austrian blood, and burying Cossacks alive. For some reason they don’t sing those stanzas anymore.

Reader: Alex Greenwood has broken a nail!

Vicey: Stop the match! We need to bring in VAR. Who broke that nail? That’s a fucking automatic red.

Reader: Is that Qatar or England out there today?

Vicey: Thank you, 55-M. What’s with the damn maroon uniforms? St. George don’t play that.

DAY NINE--PREVIEW

The Netherlands vs. Cameroon

vs.

Another early wake up call, but I assure you that Lieke Martens is well worth it. We only got a small taste of what’s she’s capable of in that slow-roll start. As for my Lady Lions…well…the Day Four tactical review tells you about all you need to know. It’s just not going to work. Nigeria are our African hopes now.

THE LINE: The Netherlands +3 Goals (rolling up soft from Netherlands +2)

Canada vs. New Zealand

vs.

We debuted a low line here for a good reason. Bookie detects some serious chemistry problems on one of the tournament’s highest-ranked sides. Though an upset here appears out of the question, we need to see these Canuck players stop playing for Sinclair and start playing for themselves. We may have to eliminate another favorite.

Bookie rolls up slightly.

THE LINE: Canada +2 Goals (rolling up soft from Canada +1)

Venezuela vs. Peru