"I'm very surprised at the timing of it - two days before their opening game - but they still have an excellent, experienced squad with some top players in it.
Will it affect them? We'll have to see. As a player, I wouldn't have liked it - you've worked for so long with a system, with a manager and you're all prepared, and all of a sudden he's gone.
There's huge attention on them now, huge questions. Without doubt, there's more pressure on the players now."
Dear BBC, I feel I must object in the strongest possible terms to this.
Dan Walker's an immature waste of space and a shite presenter. Stop wasting my licence fee on his wages immediately.
The guy's also, of course, the male anchor (yes, you heard that correctly) on BBC Breakfast. I struggle with this in as much as I would struggle with being told anything decreeing itself as 'fact' by any creationist.
Am I missing something or is there nothing between the full replays and the 3 minute mini highlight packages?
I've not seen anything longer than about 3 minutes. I assume it's because people have no attention spans any more and some expensive marketing wonk has told them three minutes is the "optimum duration to drive user engagement".
The guy's also, of course, the male anchor (yes, you heard that correctly) on BBC Breakfast. I struggle with this in as much as I would struggle with being told anything decreeing itself as 'fact' by any creationist.
I had the Nigeria v Iceland match on at work with the sound off, but it looked to me at the start if there was some skit with Walker dressed as a secret agent. At that point I was mightily glad we had to employ the mute button.
On the games I have seen, when there is no punditry, the format seems to consist solely of these weak comedy segments or the interminable England updates.
This article on the Guardian suggests they've decided that what people want is "fun" and "feel-good factor" and "freshness", hence the introduction of The Robbie Savage Memorial Hour. Us serious people always get ignored when it comes to these things. Why can't I have a detailed analysis of Morocco's tactical short-comings with my morning toast?
The fun factor seems to have got to Dotun Adebayo. That or the overnights. He usually does the Up All Night weekend 0100-0500 slot but is doing a World Cup phone in during the week at the moment. While he often gets a bit full on, even zany on his weekly football chat he's gone over the top recently with comedy Mexican accents and bellowing at a Korean like a Brit abroad trying to overcome a langauge barrier. Even his regular sidekick Tim Vickery is sounding slightly exasperated with him.
Like the rest of the media, the BBC just follows the numbers, where it has no real need to. Evidence the number of viewers & streamers of the Tunisia match being used as a measure of success. That said, I think it's been that way for at least 20 years.
I assume the hype is now at max after the 6-1? Glad I am going to be in a non-qualifying, relatively ex-pat area of the world for the next three weeks, but can't guarantee I won't bump into Ingerlund cling-ons.
Matthew Upson has just mistaken Panama for Tunisia, and made a terrible comment about their - Panama's - defending being something like you'd find in a kebab shop on a Saturday night (it wouldn't even have worked if he'd got the team right). Not picked up by the presenter and co-summariser. WTF, as they say.
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