England - Revelling in Mediocrity?
English football, no doubt, has some of the biggest superstars in the world. In Gerrard, Lampard, Terry, Rio, Owen, and of course, Rooney, England can pride itself of a individuals par excellence. But then, why do they suffer in almost all major championships? Is it the absence of a strong coach, or the failure to play as a team?
Analyzing England's performance at this World Cup would shed some light on the problems plaguing the England national team. Firstly, they have as their coach a man of questionable integrity - a person who seeks out to potentially financially better opportunities when he holds the apparently the highest managerial position in world football.
After 6 years in charge and 3 quarterfinal appearances in major championships, England for all its world-class players, are nowhere near the top rung of teams. Sven has never had the guts to make critical decisions and his insistence to continue with a lackluster Beckham apparently had other players revolting. Sven never had a system in place and used the system that suited the players, so that he could accommodate his stars in the lineup.
Lampard and Beckham were among the worst performers. At least, Beckham had a hand in most of the goals England scored, even if only a few. But Lampard, coming after a title-winning season with Chelsea, never found form. Sven never had the guts to replace Lampard. And why the hell did he take Jermaine Jenas if his job was just to warm the bench. Perhaps, Defoe would have been a much better choice, given the shortage of strikers with all the injuries.
I applauded Sven for picking Walcott but then, Sven's gamble has turned out to be one of his worst ever mistakes. If he wasn't fully convinced, why did he ever take him to Germany? Walcott could have been given a run-out at least in the group stages. Sadly for Walcott, it may have even damaged his confidence, going into the new season.
England is among the best supported nations in any major championships and I look at them in awe for the tenacious support they provide. But then, booing at Owen Hargreaves, their own player was disgusting. It was a wonderful sight to see Owen prove them wrong with a terrific man-of-match performance during the loss to Portugal. It is also ironic that he was the only person to score his penalty when the big guns such as Lampard and Gerrard failed at it miserably.
Sven's win-at-all-costs stand may have led to another quarterfinal appearance but their game was repelling to say the least. Even teams like Germany and Italy, who aren't exactly renowned for their beautiful or attacking game played some great football.
The endless wait for a major title will continue to torment the English supporters until the English FA appoint a manager who is strong enough to take tough decisions that might even hurt some of the superstars in the team. Is the new coach Steve McLaren capable of that? I do not know but we will have to wait and watch.
As they say, you can plot the passage to the quarters with your mind. But after that, it is all heart. And, it is in the heart and mind that Sven was found wanting.
Analyzing England's performance at this World Cup would shed some light on the problems plaguing the England national team. Firstly, they have as their coach a man of questionable integrity - a person who seeks out to potentially financially better opportunities when he holds the apparently the highest managerial position in world football.
After 6 years in charge and 3 quarterfinal appearances in major championships, England for all its world-class players, are nowhere near the top rung of teams. Sven has never had the guts to make critical decisions and his insistence to continue with a lackluster Beckham apparently had other players revolting. Sven never had a system in place and used the system that suited the players, so that he could accommodate his stars in the lineup.
Lampard and Beckham were among the worst performers. At least, Beckham had a hand in most of the goals England scored, even if only a few. But Lampard, coming after a title-winning season with Chelsea, never found form. Sven never had the guts to replace Lampard. And why the hell did he take Jermaine Jenas if his job was just to warm the bench. Perhaps, Defoe would have been a much better choice, given the shortage of strikers with all the injuries.
I applauded Sven for picking Walcott but then, Sven's gamble has turned out to be one of his worst ever mistakes. If he wasn't fully convinced, why did he ever take him to Germany? Walcott could have been given a run-out at least in the group stages. Sadly for Walcott, it may have even damaged his confidence, going into the new season.
England is among the best supported nations in any major championships and I look at them in awe for the tenacious support they provide. But then, booing at Owen Hargreaves, their own player was disgusting. It was a wonderful sight to see Owen prove them wrong with a terrific man-of-match performance during the loss to Portugal. It is also ironic that he was the only person to score his penalty when the big guns such as Lampard and Gerrard failed at it miserably.
Sven's win-at-all-costs stand may have led to another quarterfinal appearance but their game was repelling to say the least. Even teams like Germany and Italy, who aren't exactly renowned for their beautiful or attacking game played some great football.
The endless wait for a major title will continue to torment the English supporters until the English FA appoint a manager who is strong enough to take tough decisions that might even hurt some of the superstars in the team. Is the new coach Steve McLaren capable of that? I do not know but we will have to wait and watch.
As they say, you can plot the passage to the quarters with your mind. But after that, it is all heart. And, it is in the heart and mind that Sven was found wanting.
posted by Lucas @ 9:40 PM
6 Comments:
I see the following reasons:
1. The British media. THey put so much Pressure on their own teams that thy dont perform.
2. Selection problems. Do u play Lampard and Gerrard together? The dont play well together and the whole system gets screwed up.To get the proper balance 1 of them has to sit out and i think that choice should be made on the basis of form. Yes both are world class but hard decisions have to be made.
3. Chokers. I think that the English choke too easily. They do not have the mental strength.
Lastly i feel Steve Mclaren might not do the job.
I agree with u...and yes, the reason y England flopped was the manager was afraid to make tough decisions....he should have dropped Beckham and Lampard after the group stages at least.
I too am not convinced by Mclaren...he will succeed only if he does not go by reputation while picking his team. I am already looking fwd to the Greece game in August.
Too much hype is always dangerous...perhaps, the England team is unable to handle such pressure from the media. Probably, England needs a manager like Jose 'special one' Mourinho to shield the players.
I think England has put their hopes too high on Rooney. Without him, it seemed, was all over for them. Sven should have actually revise the mentality when he selected the WC squad. It's not his job to please fans but to take care of the team's welfare at heart. Choosing Roon, who was still injured then, but left out on-form Defoe and Bent was one costly mistake.
And yes, that's one major issue McClaren must address once the post is his...
Rooney was obviously very eager to play...Sven made a stupid decision to play him...Fergie was right all the while abt Rooney being unfit, wasn't he?
Lucas:
No doubt. Ferguson should know the player inside out... and he's had quite a good job in subduing Rooney's temper, too. Well, to a certain extent, I guess.
Ronaldo's supposedly leaving Old Trad and so is Ruud. I must guess Rooney's hoping that will not happen. Even with his alleged animosity with CRon, they do play well with each other, and if they can clear doubts of each other, we could likely see a more-than-fruitful partnership come next season. ;)
ManU is indeed in some sort of a crisis with star players linked to other clubs...Ronaldo's would be a much bigger loss especially considering his age. Rooney has to step up and clear out things if he really loves his club.
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