We don't know who our goalkeeper is, Johnson is a good attacking defender but not a defending one. Don't know if Cole will be fit or possibly Ferdinand as he has been out for most of the season. Lampard & Gerrard are nothing like the players they are for their clubs. Defoe and Rooney have never scored when playing together. Carrick is either very good or very poor. the fact that many think Beckham will be missed says it all for teh quality in depth. Ever since I can remember people have put England as one of the favourites to win the world cup and the result a 3rd in 1990. I would love them to do well but just saying the word Rooney is not enough.
You're being way too pessimistic. Have you not been watching England play for the past 18 months? Lampard has been fantastic for England, as has Gerrard. Ferdinand is fine.. the only thing we should be worrying about is whether Lennon and Cole are fit in time, which it looks like they will be. Noone in their right mind thinks that Beckham is a big miss in terms of our playing squad.. and I don't agree with you on depth.. we have players like Carrick, Hargreaves, Joe Cole, Walcott, Milner, Defoe, SWP e.t.c all trying to get into the first team. Brazil don't have a LB or a good midfield, but I don't see their fans being so pessimistic?
I am grateful to you replying and actually putting an argument forward and most pople never do plus being honest about Beckham. To even get near the final you need a strong, familiar, set line up and I cannot blieve we can achieve that. Apart from Rooney there is no one who can claim to be playing up to their club level. The Lampard/Gerrad partnership is certainly less than the sum of their parts. The Team looked so much freerer against Egypt when lampard went off. You say depth in the squad but there is no certainty that many of these will even get there as they are so injury prone. I like Joe Cole and Walcott but their club form recently is hardly inspiring for the level we are aiming for. Whereas Defoe and lennon are way better for Spurs than England. I still say this Defoe and Rooney never having scored when played together is a major factor. Potentially we had a better team for Germany but I can confidently say it was the most disappointing set of performances I have seen from them at a WC and not all can be put down to the irritating swede.
But against Croatia, Lampard and Gerrard started in the same team, as well as most of the other qualifiers. That match was some of the best football we have played for a long time, and we could have scored 8 or 9 easily. Lennon was the star of that night, and that was the match that got people really hyped up about our chances. Against Egypt, Lampard had an off night, but let's not forget that Egypt would give most teams problems, they are a decent well organised team. Defoe and Rooney do not start together anyway, but anyway I think Defoe has scored with Rooney on the pitch..the first goal against the Netherlands back in August.
No, let's for once actually get a sense of reality. Just look at Barcelona last night they passed Arsenal to death and the only one who could match them for Arsenal was a Spaniard who also had fantastic control. Yes I know you will say but Woolcott, an englishmen who changed things, well yes his pace with 20 minutes to go was always going to make a difference in any game but can we ever see Engalnd play like the Spannish or the Croatians at wembley in 2009. We play too loose, too long and the team is not a tight unit. I only stress all this because people every tournament automtically people say we can get to semi finals or Final and I cannot at all see this and hope someone might tell me how. Turning up would certainly be the elementary step.
If I were Spanish, I'd be terrified that after two years of silky effective soccer, they miss out on the grand prize and are consigned to the dustbins of history yet again. I disagree. Albiol, Antonio Lopez, Marchena, Iraola, Riera, Mata, Pablo, Busquets, Guiza, Llorente, Capdevila, Negredo -none of these players are anything remotely special at this stage. Brazil and Argentina have superior squads to Spain. If I were choosing a mishmash of Argy/Spaniards: ------------------Casillas Puyol---Samuel----Milito--Zanetti -------------Cambiasso-Banega --------------------Xavi -----------Tevez---------Messi ---------------------Villa Brazilians/Spaniards: -------------Cesar Maicon--Lucio--Juan---Puyol ---------Xavi---TBA Pato--------Kaka-----Ronadinho --------------Villa As you can see I don't understand the fuss about Spain's supposed squad superiority. It's just a bandwagon that seemingly everyone has hopped upon.
Good manipulation. You basically chose a formation to suit Argentina's players... Yes... Argentina has more good DMs, but I see no difference between Banega and Senna. If I were to chose it would be: -----------Casillas Puyol---Samuel----Milito--Zanetti --------------Cambiasso--------- ----Xavi-------Fabregas-----Iniesta ---------------Messi--------------- ---------------------Villa Given that Ronaldinho isn't even going, Pato is nowhere near as good to make such a squad and Kaka has been below par all season this squad is ridiculous. Brazilians/Spaniards: -------------Cesar Maicon--Lucio--Juan---Puyol ---------Xavi---Senna Fabregas-------------Iniesta ------Torres------Villa
So what? Everybody seems to idolise that pass pass pass style. How many teams actually play that internationally? ONE. Possibly two, depending on if the Argies get thier shit together. And secondly, the Barca-Arsenal match is the worst example you could possibly come up with. Arsenal are NOT AN ENGLISH TEAM. They are an international XI with a couple of token Englishmen who barely even play. And even then, when an Englishman actually did take to the field, he changed the game. Infact do you even bother with the English forum? Do you actually bother getting opinions from fellow England fans? Who has said we will win? Who actually expects that? I think perhaps you pay too much attention to the media, which simultaniously seems to perpetuate the myth that all English fans expect to win the World Cup every 4 years along with regurgitating the same old crap that England cannot win because "we aren't technical". My advice is to pull your head out of that little Barcelona-Spain box that the media has tried to pen us all in during the past few years and start thinking for yourself. The best team- as in technically- very rarely wins the World Cup. Italy are a prime example. Pass pass pass is not the only way to win the World Cup, infact NOBODY in the past 20 odd years has won the World Cup with that style of play. I don't EXPECT a semi-final appearance, but I do think that, if we have the majority of our squad available, that it is not out of our reach.
No I didn't. I choose the best players-I'm sorry that they are not Spanish but flattery is not my forte. Banega is better this season. Valencia fans adore him and he is possibly the player of the season at the Mestalla. Senna is old and not even Spanish. Dunga told you that did he? Ronaldinho is better than any Spanish attacking player this season. Check the stats. You're on drugs. Fabregas, Iniesta, Senna and Torres haven't been very impressive this year yet that doesn't stop you railroading them into the team. My team is clearly better. Spaniards need a grip on reality; thinking you have more talent than Italy, Argentina &Germany is one thing but deluding yourselves into thinking that you lord it over Brazil... good grief! That second rate Euro title has gone to your heads! The editorial teams of Marca and ASS are probably going to commit collective suicide when Spain are dumped unceremoniously off their pedestal this Summer!
Preach on, brother. On another point, the closer we get to the World Cup, the more I'm dreading it is going to suck worse than a Greece Euro 2004 victory dvd. Germany-Frings, Kuranyi omitted. Ozil, Ballack, Trochowski, Klose, Podolski off form? May be mistaken? Squad uninspiring anyway. Italy-Cassano, Balotelli, Giovinco, Miccoli omitted. Nesta, Gamberini, & Totti injured. Cannavaro, Camoranesi, Iaquinta, Grosso, Marchisio, Rossi, Gattuso off form. Aquilani wasting career. England-Gerrard, Terry, J. Cole, Barry, Walcott, James Lescott, off form. Beckham, Lennon injured. Argentina-Diego Maradona in charge. France-Henry, Benzema, Anelka off form. Gallas injured. Domenech in charge. Portugal-Deco off form. Pepe, Bosingwa injured. Brazil-No Ronaldinho!? Robinho, Kaka, Diego, Felipe Melo off form. Luis Fabiano injured/off form. Spain-Not in bad shape, but it's Spain-we can't rely on the gel-haired, tippy-tappy, namby-pamby midget brigade to save the WC! All the African nations looked terrible in Angola. No Russia or Croatia. No Saudi Arabia to provide laughs. So I'm quite pessimistic about SA 2010 right now.
You did the two things I hoped you would not. a.) get in a strop about it and b.) not at any point tell me what England's actual strengths are that we stand an earthly. You also conveniently missed the Croatia at Wembly reference because it should a team with such a good team ethic and great control and ability to pass and even they would not win the thing. The reason I mentioned Arsenal was because despite having almost entirely foreign team they are the best passing team in the Premier League and even they could not string two passes together for the first hour and this is what Spain, Brazil & Argentina will do. I have never rated Gerrard or certainly not up to the god like status many do his passing is often too long and loose and if we do it against these sort of sides we won't get it back for 10 minutes despite a lot of effort in doing so. I would love to be proved wrong but stronger England team have gone to World Cups and produced less and until someone actually gives me the strengths of teh team then I won't believe it. Blind faith does not cut it.
Didn't England just stuff Croatia twice? Argentina were probably the best passing side at WC 2006 but Mexico and Germany gave them a lot of problems- England have better players than both Mexico and Germany. Greece won Euro 2004 with hopeless possession stats. Possession is not everything. Why do you mention Argentina anyway? They were a disaster in qualifying and their manager hasn't a clue how to rectify the situation. Their only hope is if the players can sort the tactics out themselves like France seemed to do in 2006; but Argentina don't have the experience or know-how of French players like Viera, Henry, Zidane, Makelele. England have arguably the best manager, best striker, best left-back, best central defender, a cake first round draw, favourable weather conditions and most fans going to SA, so I think your being far too pessimistic. This is surely England's best chance of success since home advantage in 1996. Do you believe in omens? In 1966, this group was drawn: France, Uruguay, Mexico, hosts. In 2010, this exact group has been drawn again. So there you go, proof positive.
Croatia at Wembley is a complete moot point because a) We have since utterly humiliated the exact same team home and away and b) We were at the lowest point we could possibly be at that stage, both in terms of morale and coaching. Steve McClaren should have been nowhere near the England job. What point are you trying to make about Arsenal? They are a foreign team with a French coach and have no correleation whatsoever with the English game. Yes they were dominated by Barca. But that's more to do with the fact that they are a lightweight team with nobody that can tackle and a poor defense. Why do you think they haven't won the Premier League in donkeys years... So what if they are the best passers in the Premier League? You're trying to say that because the best passers in the league got out-passed by the best team in the world that England are a weak side because we don't play the passing game? If every football team in the world had to play that one style, then yes, you might have a point. But as it is, Arsenal's weaknesses lie elsewhere. I see the points you're trying to make, but you're using examples that don't make sense. As for England's strengths... have you not watched England play at all during the past two years? Or do you live in a cave? It's a fair question. I'm not saying we are close to the top 2-3 teams in the world, but after our qualifying campaign and several decent results against some of the top teams (Drew Holland, Beat Germany and Egypt, narrow losses to Spain and Brazil with our 2nd/3rd string teams) I have no idea how you're still trying to make a case for us being a weak team. Some people just are never happy. Here's an idea: sit back, be happy, and appreciate how good we have been over the past two years when contrasted to the Euro 2008 cycle (and the latter Sven years, come to think of it).
But yet you dropped better Spanish players to put in worse Argentinian and Brazilian players... Check Fabregas's stats... Anyways... you put in a player that according to all signs in heaven WILL NOT BE AT THE WORLD CUP! Fabregas and Torres haven't been impressive this season? What drugs are you on? Torres has been injured a lot, but still has 18 goals in 21 matches... He is better than ANY BRAZILIAN striker by far! Fabregas with 15 assists and 15 goals hasn't been impressive this season? I'm sorry but putting Pato in a team when you have Torres available is madness! Iniesta is having a worse season than last. But that's a drop from one of the 5 best players in the world to one of the best 25 players in the world. Clearly not. I'm not Spanish. I'm not even a Spanish fan, but the only person deluded is you.
While I think having the arguably the best manager, striker, etc is very important. Just looking at the teams in the World Cup who have made it to the finals (or semis) -- they've had almost always had a very important piece. A goalie who was playing on a whole different level than the majority -- 06 - Buffon, Barthez (although his status as a starter was debatable); 02 - Marcos, Rustu,Kahn; 98 - Taffarel, Barthez, Van der Sar; 94 - Taffarel, Pagliuca, Ravelli; 90 - Zenga, Goycochea, Ilgner. Etc. So usually...3 of the teams had great keepers. Obviously you have some exceptions (Germany and Portugal in 06; Korea and Croatia in 02 and 98)...but usually. I mean these are just the more recent World Cups but it's where you need a keeper (66 with Banks). And I'd say with some of these guys it's a bit revisionist. At the start of some of these tourneys, people didnt give much credit to Goycochea and Pagliuca, for example...so perhaps James will break out at 39...or Green will be the guy. I dunno. England have lacked a #1 for a long time and honestly, it's a reason why a lot of teams go down - Seaman vs. Ronaldinho for example. Although I guess even a keeper on top of his form in the WC still can cost his team the game (Kahn's fumble against Brazil). I guess it's a lot of the reason why I rate Brazil and Spain...and even France with Lloris. And the Netherlands -- well, van der Sar still has it and I reckon he should un-retire. Buffon's form is off, but you can never count him out. Obviously having quality elsewhere is necessary, but I think what usually puts you above the rest is an "on fire" or quality keeper.
I agree with you leonidas but think you should watch more of Birmingham's Joe Hart. He is the best goalkeeper we've had in years IMO but he is just lacking in experience, which will come with time. Sadly Capello will go for Green or James because of that experience, but I believe Hart should get a chance... In general, I think the others would be decent but they all seem to be so error prone, the bad run we are on is unbelievable at the moment. It's strange because we used to have some great ones, such as Gordon Banks, Ray Clemence and Peter Shilton. David James is a fantastic shot-stopper but his decision making is so unpredictable and he has made too many high-profile errors in the past to be trusted in a World Cup. Paul Robinson on the other hand is poor positionally and very velnerable to long shots. We just haven't had a keeper that is consistant for a long time. I wouldn't mind, if we had produced one that was solid if unspectacular, I mean I'm not asking for anything world-class, just somebody you know won't make stupid errors. Perhaps it's coaching that's failing somewhere?
Yeah I have heard good things about Hart. I guess ultimately it's just about giving him a chance as you say. And I think that depends on the coach. As much as people rip on Domenech, the fact that he's giving the keys to the goal to Lloris with 9 caps and 22 years of age is surprising -- although he's no doubt a talent. Although I guess the English problem in goal probably has more to do with all the clubs in the EPL and their obsession with foreign keepers.
------------------Casillas Puyol---Samuel----Milito--Zanetti -------------Cambiasso-Banega --------------------Xavi -----------Tevez---------Messi ---------------------Villa The top three have more goals than Torres, and quite possibly more assists. I cannot fit him into the team and frankly, if I were to drop Villa I'd replace him with Higuain or Milito who have scored more than Torres this year too. The only other Spaniard worthy of my wonderful world-beating XI is Pique; I suppose you could put him in there if you want, but I prefer tougher defenders; young gerard is more of a perfumed, nail polishing type. Fabregas has done nothing in the big games this year and has padded his stats with performances against Mickey Mouse teams. I already have Xavi so there is no need for a virtual duplicate and I prefer the steely creative combo of Banega and the tactically astute, intelligent, vastly underrated Esteban Cambiasso. Meanwhile I forgot about Mascherano entirely, so I'll have Javier and Cesc as my back-up midfield if it makes you feel any better. Nevertheless the point stands, look at some of the non-entities in Spain's squad... Arbeloa for example. A nothing player. First of all, there are no signs in heaven. If the virgin Mary is informing you of Dunga's tactical mindset in the lead-up to South Africa 2010 then I suggest you consult your local psychiatrist. Secondly, if Ronaldinho is not at least called as an impact sub for Brazil then I believe it will be a fatal error; he has been outstanding for Milan and until the squad is named there is always a chance he will make the plane. Pato 12 goals in 21 matches. Big difference. Brazilians/Spaniards: -------------Cesar Maicon--Lucio--Juan---Puyol ---------Xavi---TBA Pato--------Kaka-----Ronaldinho --------------Villa Again, I am not replacing the best Spanish striker with Torres, and I am certainly not sticking him on the right wing, so there is no room. Again, Pique could replace Juan if you want. To be announced...there isn't really any strong candidates for the berth alongside Xavi so I suppose Busquets or Senna shall suffice. Therefore, we have: Brazilians/Spaniards: -------------Cesar Maicon--Lucio--Juan---Puyol ---------Xavi---Senna Pato--------Kaka-----Ronaldinho --------------Villa Three Spaniards and eight Brazilians. Wait, oh Senna's Spanish isn't he? *Cough* Four Spaniards, seven Brazilians. Fabregas on the right wing? Three players who do almost the exact same job in midfield? My team has more width, pace and variety. Again, the point stands. Brazil's squad> Spain's squad. He was never top five. In fact, Andres Iniesta is probably the only player in history to go from the most underrated player in the world to the most overrated in a few seasons; he rarely scores, he rarely provides an assist, he can't tackle, head or shoot; his long range passing is almost non-existent and his reputation is based purely on his dribbling ability, short range quick spurt passes, a high profile goal against Chelsea and two good performances in CL finals. This is not to say that he is not a quality player but true football analysts like myself understand that his main appeal is the aesthetic nature of his individual and team play. Nowadays, when people discuss the greats of the game, they'll mention Iniesta alongside Xavi and Messi as in 'the Xavis, Messis Iniestas of this world'. In truth, he doesn't belong in the same sentence as Messi or Xavi for whilst they are Paul McCartney and John Lennon, Iniesta is Ringo Starr. If the balding midfielder played for Inter, no one would put him in such exalted company. It is my opinion that his partnership and interplay with the immeasurably superior Xavi makes Iniesta look better than he actually is and bestows legendary status by association. He cannot dictate play like his teammate, Alonso or Fabregas. For a player who has played in an advanced role, sometimes as far forward as the left wing in a front three, alongside some of the greatest players and goalscorers of all time, his goals/assists record is truly shocking. A list of active midfielders that were or are more effective thus better if not so pleasing to the purist's eye than the diminutive Spaniard includes but is not limited to: Xavi, Pirlo, Fabregas, Ballack, Lampard, Gerrard, De Rossi, Beckham, Vieira, Deco, Riquelme, Arshavin, Sneijder, Juninho P, Xabi Alonso, Seedorf.
I agree. What do you think of Ashley Young's omission from the England set-up? I think he should be in the squad. I think it is much more important to have at least three world class backs or at least three backs playing at world class level. Whether or not this includes the goalie is not essential. Germany do not have that, which is why I feel they have NO CHANCE of winning. Marcel Jansen, I believe, is out for the season and had being playing at a high level apparently so that is a blow. Neither Portugal, Serbia, Denmark, Holland, Mexico nor the African countries fit the three world class backs criteria either so I'm ruling them out. That leaves the following: Brazil Italy England France Argentina Spain The U.S. Gnats Soon I will whittle it down to one and reveal the WC 2010 winner here first, exclusively.
I'm sorry, but Torres was injured most of the season and has 18 goals from 22 games, which is a better rate than any of the strikers you mentioned (save for Higuain). When he has played he has been brilliant. BTW: Milito has not scored more goals than Torres. Given how pathetic he has been all season it really makes me question your knowledge. Much like Mascherano this season... Until he makes the squad he has no place in any best XI. Brazilians/Spaniards: -------------Cesar Maicon--Lucio--Pique---Puyol ---------Xavi---Xabi Alonso/Senna Fabregas---------------Iniesta --------Torres------Villa 8 Spaniards and 3 Brasilians. This selection is much better, much more sound, more pace and variety. Optionally put Villa on the right wing and Fabregas in center mid. Kaka on current form has no place in the first team of Spain... Hell... I could even put in Casillas for Cesar and easily have 9 Spaniards... In both cases the point stands: Spanish squad > Brasil's or Argentina's Lol... this is where I get off
Ashley Young is a contentious issue. Many think he is good enough to be in the squad, but that we have too many good wingers with more experience that are ahead of him. On the right we have Lennon, Walcott and SWP, and on the left we have James Milner who is also excellent. But we also have the uncapped Adam Johnson of Man City who could force his way in. So there is plenty of competition there for Young, and so he will find it difficult to get in. Nontheless, I feel his time will come sometime. It's just tough for him as we are very deep on the wings.