This assessment comes in three parts: vs. Germany; the tournament as a whole; and the future. As with my last post, I am very keen to get a discussion going at the bottom of the article. As I have experienced this afternoon, everyone has an opinion on what has happened and where to go – there is no right answer, so have a read of what I think and then I want to see what the World Cup Statistic’s readers think. We’ve been accustomed to England Football Jokes over the years, now we want to know what you think!
Vs. Germany:
It’s very simple, England were not good enough. Both individually and as a team, England did nothing to suggest they should have advanced instead of Germany.
Frank Lampard did hit the bar and have a goal wrongly not given, but by the time Lampard’s shot crossed the line England should have been four goals behind anyway.
Fabio Capello picked the same team that got so much praise for their performance against Slovenia but yet the team couldn’t gel today. To criticise the starting XI would be hypocritical after the lavish praise of the press for picking Milner and Defoe post-Slovenia. England lost chasing the game, most of Capello’s substitutions were irrelevant, the game was already lost.
I believe the Germans were spot on with their tactics. They pressed England on the ball and targeted in particular the English centre backs, forcing them to play long balls. They identified a lack of pace in the middle and hit England hard on the counter attack, playing some excellent football. Schweinsteiger, Ozil and Muller stood out. In particular it is refreshing to see so many attacking players given the freedom to play their natural game and express themselves.
England suffered from too many individual errors whilst not looking like a team. They were outplayed and outclassed.
The tournament:
The biggest problem with England at a major tournament is the press. The press are excellent at influencing the mood of a country. The press are outstanding at defining England’s chances and identifying players who should perform, whilst crashing down and destroying the players who didn’t perform.
Going into this World Cup once again England had a ‘golden generation’ with one of the world’s best players – Wayne Rooney. The expectation on England to deliver was immense. Quite true however was the fact that England had some fantastic individual players, a top coach and had qualified for the tournament with relative ease. The ‘Golden Generation’ tag never helped England but fuelled the expectations of the fans. As Frank Lampard said post-match today, “The golden generation tag was stupid, it was something that we never believed, it was something the media came up with”.
As it played out, England couldn’t have performed worse and having sneaked through to the knockout stages they were outplayed by Germany.
England’s preparations were hampered before the World Cup with the injury to Rio Ferdinand. As it played out, with the defence looking shaky at times I think the injury to Rio was more important than first thought. England lost a very very good defender as well as their leader and captain.
England’s qualification to the World Cup arguably was part of the downfall. England qualified with such ease that the formation and personnel became the clear way forward for Capello. After the draw with Algeria I questioned why England don’t play a different way – upon reflection I understand that the time to try a new formation is not in the middle of a World Cup but with the players at his disposal it does seem strange Capello never tried a change of formation in any friendlies.
As I’ve said, individually England are brilliant. However, there are so many egos in the side. The noises coming from the camp suggested something wasn’t quite right. The atmosphere amongst the team didn’t appear that relaxed and I think that was reflected by the team’s lack of coherence and togetherness on the pitch.
Too many players did not deliver individually. It is hard to know why. The system may be the reason but it had worked before. I have previously suggested that Rooney is the most feared England player and therefore it was important to play to his strengths which England did not do. Of course it is impossible for me to defend Rooney or the other players for poor touches or for not being able to string passes together. I can’t explain that or get my head round it.
I feel that fatigue was a huge factor for England. The players looked drained. I warned against this before the World Cup when so many players were getting injured. I would stress again that I believe that the Premier League has become the elite form of football. Players have to be so conditioned and fine tuned for it that when it comes to international football, it is a step down and is hard for the players to adjust to it.
I feel that the FA must consider what the World Cup means to them and where it ranks in their priorities. I feel the answer is that it ranks highly, in which case, it baffles me that the FA have not tried to create an environment for the best possible achievements at the World Cup. By that, I mean they have not adopted the proven ‘winter break’ and they did not start the season early enough so that the players would have a suitable rest before the World Cup. It meant, Rooney for example was thrust straight in to training with England after the season had ended. I choose Rooney as my example because he in particular could have done with the break having been injured at the back end of the season when he was thrust back into the Manchester United side whilst not fully fit. More drastic still, the FA could scrap the League Cup – a competition which many of the top sides in the country don’t take that seriously.
The set-up of England as a whole seemed good. There were leaders, experienced players, younger players, good coaches, a fantastic role model (Beckham) but one thing left me confused – the press. I know the press had been kept further from the players than ever before but I wish there had been a gag on them. Sometimes you just want the coach to be left alone with his players to get on with it. The press are much more real and approachable these days due to Twitter. There are so many journalists and ex-professionals offering their own ‘expert’ opinions that footballing journalism just became saturated – it must be so hard to avoid it entirely for the players and the coaches. I have to admit I am intrigued to see the tone the journalists adopt tomorrow – pretty much all of them were so confident of an England win today.
Confidence is an interesting thing. Typically, England fans get overconfident. I think English expectations really need to be re-aligned a bit. England are a good footballing nation but there are a lot of teams who play better, are better and critically, have the experience or ‘know-how’ of how to win on the biggest stage. England play with fear at times, it’s not healthy. This can and should be addressed by throwing in some of the new generation.
The tournament was a disaster. Players played badly, the tactics were strange at times, the team didn’t appear to be playing together, and England in my opinion got what their performances deserved. I don’t believe in scapegoats, you win and lose as a team – every player and member of staff is culpable for what has happened.
The future:
Firstly, importantly, for me, Capello must stay in charge. This isn’t truly his side. Scars still exist from McClaren and Eriksson. Capello has the same core to his team that they had. Continuity is great but coaches are too scared of messing with the core. Capello’s experience and qualities mean he is still the right man for the job. I don’t think he’s scared of egos or change.
Capello must sort out the Lampard/Gerrard mess and plump for one or neither. There are older players in this team who should now be exiled. As Gary Neville has always suggested, players should not retire from international football but accept when they are no longer having a positive effect – they should always be available for consideration.
Capello must start to bring through the next generation of England players properly. There needs to be a total overhaul. Capello should keep Beckham close as he is the ultimate role model. Capello must be given the freedom to do it all his own way. Capello must pick a team, he must not be afraid of leaving players out, the South American heavyweights are showing the world that route.
The English youth teams have had enough success lately, playing good football, using technically gifted players and that won’t have been missed by Capello. It’s time to make Joe Hart the clear number one whilst I would like to see a lot of the younger players thrust in to the squads and at the deep end. I’m thinking along the lines of: Gosling, Micah Richards, Gibbs, Rodwell, Wilshere, Agbonlahor, (more of) Milner, Shawcross, Lennon, Walcott, Adam Johnson, Huddlestone, Ashley Young, Cattermole, Sturridge etc. These players can come in and play with no fear – England need that. The England squad and starting XI should not be chosen based on ‘names’, sometimes you need players who are good at performing a certain role, such as what Gilberto Silva still does so well for Brazil.
Importantly, Capello must not be scared of realising that it wouldn’t necessarily be a mistake to build a team around Rooney (who will turn only 25 later this year). Rooney can be vital to the future success of the England team. Capello must also however consider life without Rooney. There is no one else really who can come in and play like we know he can up front. Hence Capello needs a good Plan B. England are in what should be a straightforward group for Euro 2012 (Switzerland, Bulgaria, Wales and Montenegro). If England qualify with games to spare it may be important for Capello to try his Plan B in a real game.
Just as a final thought, I wonder if the FA have distanced themselves and the team too far from the fans. I feel like the FA are a little out of touch with what the national side means to the supporters. The FA have to repair some bridges and build some new ones over the Euro 2012 qualifying campaign.
The future of the England national team can be a bright one. Capello must first make some bold calls and then really focus on a squad that works together and plays as a team. The English brought the game to Brazil, but now might be the time to learn from them.
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Tags: Capello, Doron, England, Rooney, SA 2010, South Africa 2010, WC 2010, World Cup 2010
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At the end of the day, we will never be as good as these teams as long as youth football stays the same and our players refuse to go abroad and learn how to actually pass the ball
So many times we made 10 passes today and then got worried that we werent going anywhere so tried to lump it forward or switch it-its so frustrating
I think there are two main problems with English football in its present form.
Firstly, the sport has become far too commercialised. How much are players paid these days? Most of the English players’ salaries range from 40k to more than 100k per week pre tax. How much are the likes of the Algerian, Slovenian or USA team paid? Minimal in comparison. These teams played with their hearts and had an understanding that was so evident in the nature of their play. This was lacking in the England side.
The game has rested too much on egos and these ridiculous salaries only enhance these egos; the players can rest on their laurels knowing that they are still going to paid so much money a week no matter what. They aren’t paid for playing in internationals and rightly so but the enormous salaries mean that they play with no passion.
I propose that a salary cap should be introduced so that the passion that has not been shown at this world cup can shine through. In comparison to the English rugby union side (who admittedly have not been on great form in recent years), at least they have played with passion and perseverance that shows promise for the forthcoming world cup. They do not get paid these ridiculous salaries.
My second point somewhat related to the problems with the over-commercialisation of the football industry is the fact that we have so many foreign players in our national leagues. The Premier League is the English Premier League and that should be respected with some kind of cap. It is most unfortunate that as mentioned in the above article, the Premier League is seen as one of the best in the world and yet in return for this prestige, our national side cannot represent England and the Premier League well on an international stage.
It is time not to look to international players but to promote the homegrown players. I welcome the introduction of the minimum number of ‘homegrown’ players that is being introduced into the game. However, it is questionable whether they will have any effect. The managers could easily sidestep these rules by placing the minimum number in their team’s squad but rarely use them in the team week in week out. Stricter regulations regarding foreign transfers are thus needed to save the future of English football.
The English team was embarrassingly abismal. We scored two goals in total against the easiest teams and against Germany who posed the greatest danger, we failed to show up. The above recommendations are two steps that are needed to solve this predicament.
I think you have raised some good points Will.
It is important to encourage homegrown talent and importantly to encourage homegrown players to be given a chance. Alex Ferguson’s mantra is: if you’re good enough, you’re old enough. More managers should take this viewpoint.
A salary cap is an interesting proposal, the argument against it, is that no other European leagues have it and that it would make the Premier League less desirable to foreign players…it would no longer be the best.
It is important to attract the best foreign players. The english players can learn from them. The impact that Zola, Bergkamp and Cantona had on english football cannot be ignored. New regulation shouldn’t discourage foreign players but should encourage better and more english players so that managers can choose between foreign or english and hopefully choose english as they will be better. Foreign players provide diversity, new skills and new ideas – it would be bad to overlook that.
i agree with pretty much everything written here, however its hard to say that the issue truly comes down to egos. For a start noone know enough players personally (if any) to really know how a certain personality affects the desire and play of a player. Also, many countries such as argentina and spain have players on similar wages, and players who are notorious for having attitudes, yet still do a lot better. Tevez playing for city is clearly money over immediate success or desire to play for a side with more of a distinguished history, and cristiano ronaldo, if he were english would be seen in the same way as the rest of our group.
What i think is the problem is the desire for teams to bring in foreign player as quickly as possible, as scouting is becoming more and more competitive. This has stopped top teams, who are the most likely to teach this passing football (as it is the football the first team play) teaching this to English talent. Also, English talent may get put off by the ridiculous level of competition and decide to try their luck somewhere less competitive. This is not just a lower level of football, but a completely different style, being the reason why we have so many average central english central midfielders in the premier league. If something isnt done about this influx, then we need to reestablish a centre of excellence again, so that more continental type english players like joe cole do not remain anomalies, but the norm…
*not noone, i meant the average person who is going to comment on this page
Nice to see you plagiarising my tweets! (joking) Agree with the majority of this, and with Nath’s comments too….Joe Cole is a prime example. Why go to Spurs/Arsenal where it’ll be the same as at Chelsea….look abroad, try a new culture, both footballing and lifestyle and get 1st team football and confidence. ‘cos to quote James Corden, he is “really, really good at football”
Crux of what you said is the way forward: Capello to stay, drop Green, James, Upson, Carragher, Gerrard (imo too wasterful for international football and inihibits lampard), defoe, heskey, SWP, and a few others – including rio if he’s not properly fit this season.
build a new team (with many of the players u mentioned) based on ball retention and intelligent athleticism (ie not hoof and chase). Don’t think a totally overhaul is needed….cashley for example is good enough to stay, Gibbs will have his chance in the future. But I’d take more of the successful U21 side and give them a chance
Have to say, I agree with much of your analysis Doron.
On the press – in this tournament in particular I think the Green howler in the first match and the press reaction to it (Hand of Clod e.c.t) only served to remind all players how they would be treated if they attempted anything unconventional, serving to stifle creativity.
Also, with England, as a whole we put too much emphasis on each individual players performance in every single game. Marks out of ten happen all the time, but somehow seem a lot more important in England matches.
We are also waay too quick to jump on the back of anyone not performing in attack positions. In the Premiership we think little of top players not scoring for 3-4 matches. Bearing in mind that in the whole of the 08-09 season Anelka managed to win the golden boot with 19 goals (in 37 games) we need to accept that one or two middling performances don’t necessarily mean we need to drop a player.
In tactical analysis we also need to stop deluding ourselves that a single player who is left out will solve everything. Between the USA match and the Algeria match Barry turned into the most important player in the team. Also those not seeing the logic behind not picking Joe Cole can’t have seen much of his Chelsea performances this season.
The Germany game was poor, but a far bigger problem was the previous three. We should have been able to sleepwalk past teams like Algeria and Slovenia who are arguably at about Championship level in terms of quality.
I agree that we should play 4-5-1, although back Capello didn’t switch mid-tournament. The World Cup isn’t the place to switch your entire approach mid-tournament, especially when another method had seemingly worked pretty well for the last two years.
Young players – Agree that now is the time to start bringing some of them through. Whilst I would really have like to have had Adam Johnson in the squad, I back Capello in not throwing in Hart/Dawson mid-tournament – Throwing in defensive players with little international experience at the deep end of a world cup is very risky, the time to start playing them is now.
Gerrard / Lampard – It’s been a tragedy for England that two of the finest midfielders we have ever produced came along at the same time and couldn’t work out how to play together. With Lampard being 34 at the time of the next major tournament, age will probably make the decision for the next England manager.