2014-04-13 19:35#169342 AS4 : Excellent update mate!It was a HUGE victory, onto the finals now! Cheers for the comment.
CONGRATS ON GOING TO THE FINALS!
YESS!
Just one more step!
Keep it up
England - The Roaring Lions
My new story which will see Roy Hodgson hopefully guide England to World Cup Success
2014-04-13 20:25#169348 EdenHazard17 : AMAZING! That's all I can sayIt was a great win! So happy we won! Yep, one step away from doing a 66' again. Cheers for the comment.
1 step away
Congrats on making the final!! That was a great write up and pre match build up you had put in there.
Gerrard: "This might be my last World Cup."
Current Liverpool and England captain Steven Gerrard told the media ahead of the World Cup Final that this World Cup 'might be his last'.
Speaking ahead of the World Cup Final, the media gathered to ask questions to Roy Hodgson and captain Steven Gerrard and the main focal point was about Steven Gerrard retiring from international football, in which he responded:
"I've enjoyed every moment of my career, hopefully it'll last for longer, possibly up to the Euro's, but honestly, I think this might be my last World Cup, it takes a lot out of you at this age to play both for your club and country. Nothing is for definite currently but it is lucky rather unlikely that I will continue up until the next World Cup."
"I just want to thank Roy for allowing me to take part in this World Cup, he deserves the trophy more than anyone, he's been the reason we've done so well in each of our games, I've really enjoyed playing for him and I really hope we win the trophy for him."
Captain Fantastic: When Gerrard(above) has started for England, they have only conceded 2 goals in the whole competition.
England are set to face Switzerland in the World Cup Final after they beat Portugal on penalties which creates a very interesting final for this year's World Cup. England look to be favourites but the Swiss have been in great form throughout the whole competition.
@LFC Yep, we're almost there! Thanks so much for the nice comment, means a lot!
@BayernAmerica Thanks mate, Hope your enjoying the story!
Awwww, stevie 
hopefully he can cap his career with a WC win good luck in the final mate!
hopefully he can cap his career with a WC win good luck in the final mate!
Nice update Josh, shame to see Gerrard coming to the end of his career but hopefully he can end his career on a high with a World Cup victory!
2014-04-14 13:27#169451 TodayAtTomorrow : Awwww, stevieI know, one of England's all time greats. Thanks man!
2014-04-14 13:33#169456 pompeyblue : Nice update Josh, shame to see Gerrard coming to the end of his career but hopefully he can end his career on a high with a World Cup victory!Thanks man, yeah I really hope we win the World Cup so he finishes his career with the WC trophy.
Part 1 - Match Build-up
GL: 1966. A time when England made history for the first time, winning the World Cup against West Germany 4-2. Tonight, we find out whether Roy Hodgson can lead his team all the way to the trophy as they prepare to face Switzerland to decide who will win the World Cup, alongside me tonight are former Newcastle and England striker Alan Shearer and former Liverpool and England midfielder Danny Murphy.
So, Alan, England are actually in the World Cup final, do you reckon they can win here tonight?
AS: Well, they've proven to us throughout the competition how good they are, beating teams such as France in the previous round and Holland, they'll be facing a tough Switzerland side but for me, Hodgson has done a magnificent job and I see England winning here tonight 2-0.
DM: I agree with Alan, Gary. Although Switzerland have performed really well this year I just don't see them beating England and I reckon a good 2-1 victory for England.
GL: Thanks guys. Now, let us look back at how England got from the group stage of the World Cup to the Final;
- VT rolls showing England's highlights of the World Cup -
When Roy Hodgson's squad arrived in Brazil, they were looking fresh and raring to go, with the shock inclusions of players such as Adam Lallana and Jay Rodrgiuez, we were going to see a different England than what we have seen in previous World Cups.
England were set to face Qatar first and as Roy Hodgson took charge of his first ever World Cup campaign with England, they beat Qatar comfortably 3-0 which gave them a huge morale boost going into their biggest game in the group against Italy.
The Italian proved to be England's strongest opponents by far, and despite England dominating the game, they could not find the break-through and had to settle for a draw against the 2006 World Cup Winners.
Wayne Rooney was prolific throughout the group stage, notching 5 goals in 3 appearances, as England dispatched Morocco 3-1 to send themselves into the last 16 of the World Cup where they would be facing Holland.
Chelsea defender Gary Cahill got the winner against the Dutch and sent England through into the quarter finals where they would be facing the underdogs, Colombia, who at that point, had scored the most goals in the competition.
England had to settle with penalties and produced a shock performance as they beat Colombia on penalties 5-4, with England captain Steven Gerrard scoring the decisive penalty to send England through into the semi finals.
France were England's opponents in the semi finals and young Danny Welbeck scored the goal to send England into their first World Cup Final since the heroics in 1966, the question is, can Hodgson lead his men to World Cup victory? Or will the 48 year wait for World Cup glory have the wait another 4 years?
GL: Astonishing isn't it? Well, we have the team news now from both camps, and boy, has Hodgson picked a blinder of a team:
England XI vs Switzerland
Hart; Walker, Jagielka, Caulker, Baines; Gerrard(c), Jones, Wilshere; Chamberlain, Lallana, Rooney.
Switzerland XI vs England
Benagilo; Morganella, Bergen, Rodriguez, Ziegler; Behrami, Schwegler; Nikci, Stocker, Xhaka; Khalifa.
GL: Thoughts on the teams, Alan?
AS: That's a very strong team for England, Gary. Looking at that, the attack lead by Rooney and both wide men are very creative and pacey, honestly, that's probably the best possible team Hodgson could have picked, however Jagielka should be replaced by Cahill in my opinion.
GL: And Danny?
DM: Very attacking line-up from Hodgson there, looking forward to see what Lallana can produced, he's a gem of a player and he has really impressed me both for Southampton and England. Also Rooney being a lone striker has worked well for England so far, and I reckon he'll cause havoc in between the Swiss centre-backs.
GL: And what's your opinion on Steven Gerrard, we could be seeing him play his last World Cup game for England.
AS: He's been a great servant for England, and it's a shame to see him consider calling time on his international career, however it's understandable as he's not getting any younger and believe me, it gets very hard playing both for your club and country, I think it's the right decision for him, but hopefully he'll put in a great performance tonight.
DM: Yeah, I agree with Alan, he's been great for England since his debut and has been a revelation for them in this campaign. It'll be interesting to see where he is played tonight, but looking at the team, I think he'll sit in front of his defence and play those exquisite passes over the top of the Swiss defence towards Rooney.
GL: Okay thanks guys, and now we have Jonathan Pearce with England manager Roy Hodgson.
JP: So Roy, the big World Cup Final, what are your thoughts for the game ahead?
RH: Well Jonathan, I'm confident that the players will do a good job out there today, but I can't say I'm not nervous. It's a huge game in English football's history, and I hope that we can bring success back to our country and regain the World Cup trophy after 48 years of waiting.
JP: You've not picked Gary Cahill for this match, are there any reasons why?
RH: Well Gary has played lots of games in the competition so far and I don't think he is fit enough to start and that he is in need of a rest. Phil is more than capable of playing at centre back, he has done for Everton for many years and I am very confident he'll perform well today.
JP: What would it mean to you Roy if you won today?
RH: It'd mean everything, Jonathan. The club has had to put up with a very long wait to win the World Cup again and victory today would bring English football back to life. We've prepared to the best we can and I believe in all my players and I know that they will put in their best ever performance in their entire career.
JP: And finally Roy, I'd just like to wish you good luck.
RH: Thank you Jonathan.
GL: That's Roy Hodgson speaking to Jonathan Pearce before the game., and speaking of the game, we are almost ready to join our match commentators for this years World Cup Final, Guy Mowbray and Mark Lawrenson.
- End of Part 1 -
Great update Josh, good luck against Switzerland, I am sure you will win!
Part 2 - The Match
GM: Thanks Gary and welcome everyone to the beautiful Estádio do Maracanã where tonight we will see who will win the 2014 World Cup out of England and Switzerland, alongside me I'm joined by former Liverpool defender Mark Lawrenson, so Mark, as we wait for the teams to come out, how do you see this one panning out?
ML: Well Guy, I can't look beyond an England win, they've been very good throughout the whole tournament and I see them overcoming the tricky task they have in-front of them, Switzerland.
GM: Yep, Switzerland have been in very good form this year and by no means will this be an easy task for England, they will need to continue their good form and be alert to win this match.
And as the teams come out, listen to that huge roar, both sets of fans know that history can be made here tonight, but will it be England or Switzerland holding the trophy at the end of the game? It's time to find out.
For England, Hodgson names a few changes from the game against France, with Kyle Walker, Phil Jagielka, Adam Lallana, Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain and Wayne Rooney being called back up into the first team.
As for Switzerland, they name the same side that beat Portugal on penalties in the semi-finals, however Xherdan Shaqiri is the only forced change as he injured himself during the match against Portugal.
Ovidiu Ha?egan is our official for today's final and is about to set us on the way.
- KICK OFF -
GM: So, here we go, England kick us off for this years 2014 World Cup Final!
2) GM: Adam Lallana receives the ball from Steven Gerrard, Ziegler allows him to turn, Lallana is advancing, Chamberlain is advancing to his left, he needs to pick him out... and does so! Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain is in the space, he plays it back to the advanced Gerrard, Gerrard with the touch, he tries to find the top corner.... oh! A great fingertip save by Benaglio saves Switzerland from conceding an early goal.
4) GM: Jones has the ball, he plays it to Wilshere, if he looks up he can see Lallana in some space, he passes it to Lallana, who taps it back to Wilshere, Rooney is unmarked if he can pick him out, Wilshere lays it off to Gerrard, who precisely plays it to Rooney... Rooney on the turn.... AND ROONEY SCORES!!!!! THE ENGLAND CROWD ARE ROCKING! WAYNE ROONEY HAS SCORED FOR ENGLAND WHICH COULD SEND THEM TO WORLD CUP VICTORY!
ML: What great play by Gerrard, his ability to pick out Rooney from that distance is astonishing, but Rooney still had a lot to do and he got his first touch spot on, and the connection he made with the ball was clean and it was an excellent finish past the keeper.
GM: Rooney's goal could lead England to the World Cup trophy! It's 1-0 England!
12) GM: Stocker is on the ball, he has enough space to look up, and oh, Xhaka has lots of space if he can pick him out, Stocker plays it to Xhaka, who hits it on the volley.... and it's over the bar, good effort from the Swiss winger.
20) GM: England have possession with Gerrard, the captain plays it back to Jagielka, Jagielka to Wilshere, Wilshere dribbles on forward and plays it to Lallana, Lallana back to Wilshere, this is good passing play by England, Wilshere plays it up field to Chamberlain, who taps the ball into the feet of Wayne Rooney, who touches it back to Wilshere who shoots.... ooh! just wide!
38) GM: Switzerland have the ball, Xhaka has dropped deep to collect it, he tries to play it to Nikci, but Phil Jones intercepts, he can play in Lallana if he gets his pass right! He plays it to Lallana, who can knock it round Bergen, which he does, Bergen tries to recover and slides into Lallana... and he goes down! That's surely a penalty! The England players are protesting but the referee clearly says that its not a foul! What a bad decision!
ML: That's clearly a foul! You could even see it from up here! That's an absolute shocker from the referee!
GM: Switzerland have got lucky there! It was a stone wall penalty!
45) GM: And that's the end of the first half, England are ahead but they should have had a penalty, it was so clear!
HT: England 1 - 0 Switzerland
45) GM: And the referee restarts the game for the second half with England leading through Wayne Rooney's goal.
50) GM: Rooney has the ball, he plays it to Gerrard, Gerrard advances on forward and gets hacked down by Bergen, free-kick to England which is at shooting range. Gerrard places down to ball, however Wayne Rooney is stood the other side of Gerrard, will it be Gerrard or Rooney to take this... Rooney runs up and jumps over the ball, Gerrard smashes it and oh! I say! Against the crossbar!
ML: Great technique from Gerrard there Guy, so unfortunate!
GM: That was Gerrard's moment, Mark, if he scored that then England would be in a more more comfortable position.
66) GM: The game has lost its tempo as Phil Jones has possession for England, he plays it to Walker, who plays it back to Jones. Jones passes it to the advancing Baines, who passes it infield towards Wilshere, Wilshere can drive at the Swiss back four, he weaves in and out of the defence before finding Rooney!!!!!! And he drags his shot wide...
ML: Great build up play there but a really disappointing finish my Rooney, he's already got one today which was a much harder chance.
72) GM: Switzerland have possession, they need to do something with it quickly or they'll never get back into this game. Stocker has possession, he decides to ignore his team mates as he runs at the England midfield, he takes it around Gerrard, flicks it past Jones, he's one-on-one with Baines, who he easily beats, Stocker is still going, he cuts inside on his left foot and forces a neat save out of Joe Hart! Great run by Stocker!
ML: England need to be careful, looking at the defending, it was very poor and they must not lose their concentration now at the pivotal moment or Switzerland could easily level up the game.
80) GM: Caulker has the ball in his own half, he plays it forward to Jones but Stocker is lively and intercepts! Stocker is against Caulker, who he beats, he's one-on-one with Joe Hart! Stocker shoots.....! And Joe Hart is able to use his leg and block the shot! Exceptional save by the England number one! Remarkable!
84) GM: Switzerland are really pushing England now, Khalifa is on the ball, but he turns into trouble and Jones gets possession, he plays a lovely ball to Rooney who is only against Rodriguez! The whole of Switzerland defence and midfield are up the pitch! Rooney shrugs off the challenge of Rodriguez! He only has Benagilo to beat! Rooney.....! HE HAS DONE IT! WAYNE ROONEY HAS WON THE WORLD CUP FOR ENGLAND!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! OH MY GOD! I CAN'T BREATHE! WE'VE WON THE CUP!!!!!!!!!!!
ML: OH MY WORD! WHAT A FINISH WAYNE! TERRIFIC!
GM: WAYNE ROONEY HAS SURELY WON THE WORLD CUP FOR ENGLAND NOW!
You can hear the cheers around the stadium! England need to keep their cool and secure the victory, there are only 6 minutes to play!
90+2) GM: Switzerland are pushing, Stocker is on the ball, he's always a threat, he turns and runs against the England midfield, he plays it into the box, Joe Hart comes running out and catches it!
THE REFEREE HAS BLOWN THE WHISTLE! ENGLAND HAVE WON THE WORLD CUP!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
http://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2013/08/15/article-2394453-1B4CE8BB000005DC-655_634x286.jpg
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