The night after the night before and I still can’t believe quite how badly we played, where does Capello start after a performance like that. There was no fight, no desire and no skill.
Positive thinking
Positive thinking is our only saviour right now….it could be worse, we could be France. Let’s look on the bright side we are unbeaten – Spain, Germany and France have all lost a game. It’s in our own hands, we win against Slovenia and we are through - it’s effectively knockout football.
A draw could be good enough too, if USA and Algeria draw we can go through but it would have to be a higher scoring draw that USA by a couple of goals, so let’s not count on that. Furthermore, as Adrian Chiles pointed out yesterday if we draw 2-2 and USA draw 0-0, England and USA would have to draw lots to see who goes through. To go through with just three points would be a bit ridiculous anyway – but would make it possible to become the first team to ever win a World Cup with actually winning a game. That would however require four penalty shoot-out wins, so we all know that’s not going to happen anytime soon.
Rooney
OK, so Rooney was terrible last night, maybe he’s been taking tips off Emile Heskey. And his outburst to the camera at the end of the game, while “in the heat of the moment” and clearly showing his frustration (probably at himself), was a bit out of order. Afterall I bet you if Wayne Rooney was just a regular footie fan in that stadium last night, we would have booed the team off. I’m absolutely against booing your own team, I never have and never will do it, but it was somewhat understandable last night after one of the most abject England performance in a while, and I hope Wayne appreciates this.
My team to face Slovenia
Heskey has to go, I like Crouch and he has an amazing scoring record for England, but I don’t think he is the answer right now. Rooney is out most dangerous player, so let’s put him where he can really hurt teams, and have Gerrard in a free role supporting him, running from deep, getting crosses in and being a general playmaker – both Rooney and Gerrard will revel in those roles. Barry allows Lampard to venture forward to try and score those deflected goals he’s renowned for, and Joe Cole adds a bit of flair to the proceedings. The defence pretty much picks itself and James looked solid in goal against Algeria. Whatever team he picks it will definitely be a nervy 90 minutes.
My pick:
GK: James
RB: Johnson
LB: Cashley Cole
CB: Upson
CB: Terry
RM: Lennon
LM: Joe Cole
CM: Lampard
CM: Barry
SS: Gerrard
CF: Rooney
Gallic and German misery
Anyway, that’s enough about England, we can take comfort in the misery of two of our big rivals, Germany and France.
Germany, who we could yet face in the ‘Round of the Last 16’, inexplicably lost to Serbia. Their main striker, Klose, was sent off (wrongly), they missed a penalty and generally had a bad day – it would be ‘a real shame’ if they didn’t make it through. It was refreshing to see Germany play less well after their opening game mauling of Australia, maybe they aren’t so good afterall, time will tell. Germany are in a very similar position to England as it’s in their own hands - all they need is victory against Ghana in their final game to qualify.
And now some real revelling is others misfortune….yes it’s those cheating Gallic frogs, France. How beautiful it was to see them look absolutely awful against Mexico. And Anelka has been sent home after allegedly arguing with his manager at half-time. Even a win in their final game might not be enough for France to progress. That group could get quite complicated. Uruguay and Mexico play each other, and a draw between those two will see them both through. However if there is a winner, France must close a goal difference gap of four to Mexico and five to Uruguay. Either way, it’s not looking good, and that’s assuming France can beat South Africa, who will be desperate to put on a performance for their home fans.
Saturday 19 June 2010
Wednesday 16 June 2010
Going Green
So all the teams have now played one game and despite being in it’s infancy the 2010 FIFA World Cup has thrown up a talking point or two. Here are a couple of the key ones and not a vuvuzela in sight.
The Green factor
I feel so sorry for Rob Green, OK it was his fault, but we probably can’t imagine what he’s gone through since Saturday. But the question is should Capello play him against Algeria, I think he should for a number of reasons.
1. The Scott Carson factor – look what happened to Carson after the ‘wally with the brolly’ game against Croatia at Wembley, that moment basically ruined his career. He has been terrible ever since and it is now what he will be remembered for. I don’t want to Green's career ruined in the same way and if you play him against Algeria it gives him the chance to put to bed the USA ghost.
2. The howler factor - What happens if Green’s replacement makes a howler. If Capello brings in James, what if he makes a mistake (and let’s be honest, that’s very possible), does he then drop him for Hart? It can’t work like that.
3. The fear factor – if Green is dropped then all the goalies know it’s one mistake and you’re out, putting even more pressure on them, and that’s not conducive to good performances.
4. The Algeria factor – OK maybe I’m being arrogant, but Algeria are unlikely to greatly trouble England’s rear guard, I think it’s a great game for Green to come back into.
It’s time for Capello to earn his money, but I think it’s a straightforward choice, he’s gone Green and he has to stay Green.
Boring games
So many games have failed to ignite the imagination, teams are playing defensively, playing not to lose. It hasn’t been a great advert for the World Cup. Several reasons have been banded around, the number of poor teams, the ball etc. Who knows why but I don’t think it’s the number of poor teams, take Portugal v Ivory Coast, two decent teams but an awful game, they were both so scared to lose that neither tried to win, but I think that if either had tried to win, they would have. I blame Sven.
The other argument against the many smaller teams spoiling the spectacle is North Korea, probably the smallest team at the tournament, they had to train in public gyms, dodging South African fitness fanatics in the process for goodness sake! But they made their game against Brazil good to watch, OK so they played defensively, but they passed it around confidently and with a little more luck and without some Brazilian magic (what a goal!) could have snatched an unlikely draw – one of the best games of the tournament so far
Mixed performances for big teams
So Spain lost Brazil won but the most interesting result was Germany, they were simply brilliant, albeit against a 10-man Australian team. Despite having a young team they have set the marker down for others to follow in terms of attacking and scoring goals. They just have to hope that they have not peaked too early, just ask Holland about peaking too early. Holland by the way played well against a good Danish side, they could be real contenders come the business end of the Cup, however they will need to sort their defence out and get a kind passage to the latter stages.
Despite Argentina’s poor qualification campaign (OK they still qualified so it wasn’t that poor) they looked quite good against Nigeria, but you would expect that of a team including Messi. Maradona provided entertainment on the sidelines, with the maverick manager dancing, jumping and being generally boisterous around the technical area.
Hopefully the football will improve with the second round of games, and if Uruguay v South Africa is an indication, they will, so keep the faith.
The Green factor
I feel so sorry for Rob Green, OK it was his fault, but we probably can’t imagine what he’s gone through since Saturday. But the question is should Capello play him against Algeria, I think he should for a number of reasons.
1. The Scott Carson factor – look what happened to Carson after the ‘wally with the brolly’ game against Croatia at Wembley, that moment basically ruined his career. He has been terrible ever since and it is now what he will be remembered for. I don’t want to Green's career ruined in the same way and if you play him against Algeria it gives him the chance to put to bed the USA ghost.
2. The howler factor - What happens if Green’s replacement makes a howler. If Capello brings in James, what if he makes a mistake (and let’s be honest, that’s very possible), does he then drop him for Hart? It can’t work like that.
3. The fear factor – if Green is dropped then all the goalies know it’s one mistake and you’re out, putting even more pressure on them, and that’s not conducive to good performances.
4. The Algeria factor – OK maybe I’m being arrogant, but Algeria are unlikely to greatly trouble England’s rear guard, I think it’s a great game for Green to come back into.
It’s time for Capello to earn his money, but I think it’s a straightforward choice, he’s gone Green and he has to stay Green.
Boring games
So many games have failed to ignite the imagination, teams are playing defensively, playing not to lose. It hasn’t been a great advert for the World Cup. Several reasons have been banded around, the number of poor teams, the ball etc. Who knows why but I don’t think it’s the number of poor teams, take Portugal v Ivory Coast, two decent teams but an awful game, they were both so scared to lose that neither tried to win, but I think that if either had tried to win, they would have. I blame Sven.
The other argument against the many smaller teams spoiling the spectacle is North Korea, probably the smallest team at the tournament, they had to train in public gyms, dodging South African fitness fanatics in the process for goodness sake! But they made their game against Brazil good to watch, OK so they played defensively, but they passed it around confidently and with a little more luck and without some Brazilian magic (what a goal!) could have snatched an unlikely draw – one of the best games of the tournament so far
Mixed performances for big teams
So Spain lost Brazil won but the most interesting result was Germany, they were simply brilliant, albeit against a 10-man Australian team. Despite having a young team they have set the marker down for others to follow in terms of attacking and scoring goals. They just have to hope that they have not peaked too early, just ask Holland about peaking too early. Holland by the way played well against a good Danish side, they could be real contenders come the business end of the Cup, however they will need to sort their defence out and get a kind passage to the latter stages.
Despite Argentina’s poor qualification campaign (OK they still qualified so it wasn’t that poor) they looked quite good against Nigeria, but you would expect that of a team including Messi. Maradona provided entertainment on the sidelines, with the maverick manager dancing, jumping and being generally boisterous around the technical area.
Hopefully the football will improve with the second round of games, and if Uruguay v South Africa is an indication, they will, so keep the faith.
Saturday 12 June 2010
Of dung beetles and men
France could really have done with the giant dung beetle from the opening ceremony up-front for them after they disappointed in their opening game.
Open sesame
Sadly there was no ‘Diana Ross moment’ (see http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WXjCKwBtG0I) at this year’s opening ceremony, but I think it will be best remembered for that giant dung beetle rolling a giant World Cup ball, not least because it showed more skill than Emile Heskey. The colourful opening ceremony was full of African spirit and went down without a problem, and as far as opening ceremonies go it was fairly enjoyable. The only part missing was Nelson Mandela, who sadly couldn’t be there, I’m sure he’ll be there at the final.
Lack of cutting edge
So we had our first glimpse of one of the big-boys in the shape of France and they were not-that-surprisingly disappointing given all their in-fighting. There was no cutting edge and they really didn’t really look too much like scoring, Les Blues could have problems qualifying from their group yet again. Anelka, who looked brilliant when up-front by himself for Chelsea this season (ie when Drogba wasn’t playing) hardly got a sniff and Govu wasn’t any better missing their best chance. Ribery looks like he wants to do everything himself, Malouda is on the bench and Henry is too old, although he did look class when he came on. They need to sort themselves out if they want to have a chance of being back in Soccer City on July 11.
Vuvuzela nation
So I take back what I said about Mexico v South Africa, it was a really exciting game, and oh how agonisingly close were the African team from nicking it right at the end. OK, so Mexico outplayed them in the first half, but Bafana Bafana really came back into it, and what a strike to put them into a lead and to put the continent of Africa in raptures.
I think the whole world was cheering them on and it certainly sounded like the whole world was inside Soccer City yesterday afternoon. South Africa are bidding to not become the first host nation to not qualify from the group stages of a World Cup, and they equipped themselves like it they could escape from Group A. They will need to start better against Uruguay and France, because Mexico should have buried them by the half hour mark, but with those fans, with those vuvuzelas anything could be possible.
One final note, because he deserves praise…how good was the Japanese referee Yuichi Nishimura who was in charge of the Uruguay v France game, he has set the bar for refereeing in this tournament, and long may that standard continue.
Open sesame
Sadly there was no ‘Diana Ross moment’ (see http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WXjCKwBtG0I) at this year’s opening ceremony, but I think it will be best remembered for that giant dung beetle rolling a giant World Cup ball, not least because it showed more skill than Emile Heskey. The colourful opening ceremony was full of African spirit and went down without a problem, and as far as opening ceremonies go it was fairly enjoyable. The only part missing was Nelson Mandela, who sadly couldn’t be there, I’m sure he’ll be there at the final.
Lack of cutting edge
So we had our first glimpse of one of the big-boys in the shape of France and they were not-that-surprisingly disappointing given all their in-fighting. There was no cutting edge and they really didn’t really look too much like scoring, Les Blues could have problems qualifying from their group yet again. Anelka, who looked brilliant when up-front by himself for Chelsea this season (ie when Drogba wasn’t playing) hardly got a sniff and Govu wasn’t any better missing their best chance. Ribery looks like he wants to do everything himself, Malouda is on the bench and Henry is too old, although he did look class when he came on. They need to sort themselves out if they want to have a chance of being back in Soccer City on July 11.
Vuvuzela nation
So I take back what I said about Mexico v South Africa, it was a really exciting game, and oh how agonisingly close were the African team from nicking it right at the end. OK, so Mexico outplayed them in the first half, but Bafana Bafana really came back into it, and what a strike to put them into a lead and to put the continent of Africa in raptures.
I think the whole world was cheering them on and it certainly sounded like the whole world was inside Soccer City yesterday afternoon. South Africa are bidding to not become the first host nation to not qualify from the group stages of a World Cup, and they equipped themselves like it they could escape from Group A. They will need to start better against Uruguay and France, because Mexico should have buried them by the half hour mark, but with those fans, with those vuvuzelas anything could be possible.
One final note, because he deserves praise…how good was the Japanese referee Yuichi Nishimura who was in charge of the Uruguay v France game, he has set the bar for refereeing in this tournament, and long may that standard continue.
Tuesday 8 June 2010
All eyes on Soccer City
The stadiums have been built, the tickets sold and the squads picked, now the big game action can commence.
Opening games
On Friday all eyes will be on Soccer City Johannesburg for the first taste of World Cup action in South Africa, for what will surely be an exhilarating, exciting and much anticipated game…oh no wait, it’s Mexico v South Africa. No disrespect to those teams, but it’s not the glamour first game you would normally expect. However it is competitive football and that’s what the average footie fan has been craving since the domestic season finished last month.
A much more exciting prospect is the Friday evening game between Uruguay and France. I will certainly be watching and I have no shame in openly supporting the South Americans in that encounter after France handballed their way to the finals. Uruguay have a very capable team including the likes of Diego Forlan fresh from breaking Fulham hearts in the Europa League final. You can definitely brace yourself for a minor shock in that one, France have only won once in the group stages of the last two World Cups, and that was against African minnows Togo.
England
The build up for England’s game on Saturday has not been without talking points – pointless friendlies, Rio’s knee, the Lampard/Gerrard combo and Emile Heskey have all got fans talking, disagreeing and speculating. The country will be at a standstill at 7.30pm on Saturday hoping that we can get our campaign off to a flying start. It’s vital not to loose to the Americans, it is likely to be important to win our group, so that we avoid the Germans in the second round – assuming they see off Serbia, Australia and Ghana.
The big question is are we ready, does Postman Pat (Capello) know who his best team is, will Barry be fit, who will play in goal, have we practised penalties, can Lampard and Gerrard play together, Emile Heskey…WHY, will we cope with the altitude and will the ball cause havoc.
And the answers: Have faith in Capello – he will have prepared the players properly and he knows who the best TEAM is (not individuals). Barry would not be in the squad if he wasn’t nearly fit, Rob Green has been preferred in all the warm up games – he will start. Lampard and Gerrard can play together if they are told how to play together by Fabio, one just won’t be able to play their ‘natural’ game and hold, but they are top footballers surely they can manage that! Emile Heskey can ‘create’ space for Rooney, Gerrard et al, I’m not convinced, I hope Crouchy plays. The ball and altitude will be the same for all teams I say stop complaining and start playing.
The waiting is nearly over and a month long feast of football will begin on Friday. It will throw up heroes, villains and talking points aplenty, brace yourself it’s going to be a rollercoaster ride!
Enjoy!
Rich
Opening games
On Friday all eyes will be on Soccer City Johannesburg for the first taste of World Cup action in South Africa, for what will surely be an exhilarating, exciting and much anticipated game…oh no wait, it’s Mexico v South Africa. No disrespect to those teams, but it’s not the glamour first game you would normally expect. However it is competitive football and that’s what the average footie fan has been craving since the domestic season finished last month.
A much more exciting prospect is the Friday evening game between Uruguay and France. I will certainly be watching and I have no shame in openly supporting the South Americans in that encounter after France handballed their way to the finals. Uruguay have a very capable team including the likes of Diego Forlan fresh from breaking Fulham hearts in the Europa League final. You can definitely brace yourself for a minor shock in that one, France have only won once in the group stages of the last two World Cups, and that was against African minnows Togo.
England
The build up for England’s game on Saturday has not been without talking points – pointless friendlies, Rio’s knee, the Lampard/Gerrard combo and Emile Heskey have all got fans talking, disagreeing and speculating. The country will be at a standstill at 7.30pm on Saturday hoping that we can get our campaign off to a flying start. It’s vital not to loose to the Americans, it is likely to be important to win our group, so that we avoid the Germans in the second round – assuming they see off Serbia, Australia and Ghana.
The big question is are we ready, does Postman Pat (Capello) know who his best team is, will Barry be fit, who will play in goal, have we practised penalties, can Lampard and Gerrard play together, Emile Heskey…WHY, will we cope with the altitude and will the ball cause havoc.
And the answers: Have faith in Capello – he will have prepared the players properly and he knows who the best TEAM is (not individuals). Barry would not be in the squad if he wasn’t nearly fit, Rob Green has been preferred in all the warm up games – he will start. Lampard and Gerrard can play together if they are told how to play together by Fabio, one just won’t be able to play their ‘natural’ game and hold, but they are top footballers surely they can manage that! Emile Heskey can ‘create’ space for Rooney, Gerrard et al, I’m not convinced, I hope Crouchy plays. The ball and altitude will be the same for all teams I say stop complaining and start playing.
The waiting is nearly over and a month long feast of football will begin on Friday. It will throw up heroes, villains and talking points aplenty, brace yourself it’s going to be a rollercoaster ride!
Enjoy!
Rich
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