For many Premier League footballers today marks the start of pre-season, the painful few weeks where the brief excesses of their holidays come back to haunt them as running, drills and fitness tests await. However, for the England Under-21 side last season has yet to finish, the latest sign of the all year-round nature of the modern football calendar. I doubt you will hear many dissenting voices among Stuart Pearce’s young charges though as their final game of the 2008/09 season is the European Under-21 Championship final against, who else, but Germany.
It is perhaps fitting that after finally banishing one big tournament hoodoo – the semi-final penalty shoot-out – another arch nemesis lies in wait in the final. They have already met in the Championships of course, when a much changed England side earned a 1-1 draw thanks to Jack Rodwell’s header. Expect a different team to take to the field in the final, though England will be hurt by the suspensions of Gabriel Agbonlahor, Fraizer Campbell and Joe Hart.
The opposition has certainly added more spark to the occasion and to kick off the mind games ahead of kick-off Germany have chosen to wear their red away strip despite being designated as the home team – we all know what happened the last time England wore red against Germany in a major final.
Boss Pearce has remained focused throughout, refusing to get carried away with England’s progression, something we are all guilty of when watching England compete in major tournaments. He barely celebrated when victory was sealed against Sweden; instead he switched his attentions immediately to Monday’s clash with the old enemy. Perhaps spurred on by his previous encounters – and eventual defeats – against Germany, Pearce’s level of focus should ensure his young charges do not get carried away with themselves. Maybe the shock of conceding a 3-0 lead in the semi-final gave them a stern reminder not to take anything for granted.
England have blown hot and cold in this tournament, ranging from the superb to the sloppy. They know what they will get against Germany: organisation, aggression and no little skill, but if England perform like we know they can there is no reason why they cannot go on and claim the trophy for the third time in their history, bringing their long 2008/09 campaign to a successful conclusion.
Monday, 29 June 2009
Monday, 15 June 2009
England under-21s ready for challenge
While their senior colleagues jet off on their holidays after a job well done last week England’s youngsters are in Sweden preparing for the Under-21 European Championship.
There seems to be more interest in the competition this year, I think partly down to the brave effort of the side in the last European Championships two years ago.
Then, after an gruelling match with hosts and eventual winners Holland, Stuart Pearce’s side took part in one of the most epic penalty shootouts I have ever seen. The sight of an injured Steven Taylor limping up to the spot and burying his penalty I brought back visions of Stuart Pearce against Spain in Euro 96. But sadly for me and England Anton Ferdinand’s miss brought back memories of Chris Waddle in 1990 and the side crashed out agonisingly 13-12 on penalties.
The side may have changed since then but it is still packed full of talent determined to erase the memories of that night. Micah Richards, Gabriel Agbonlahor and Theo Walcott have all had senior caps while James Milner is the most experienced England Under-21 players of all time with 42 caps. Kieran Gibbs came on leaps and bounds to wards the end of the season, finishing he year as first choice left back for Arsenal while Jack Rodwell at Everton has been labelled the next Rio Ferdinand.
They have a tough group with Finland, Germany and Spain all waiting, but I see no reason why they can’t progress in the tournament. Experiences of big matches is vital to these players development – manager Stuart Pearce has already suggested that if the team is to win it they will have to win on penalties somewhere down the line. How we could do with a penalty shoot-out win given our past experiences!
Many of the players will also have their eye on a place in the squad for next years World Cup. This is their chance to show they can perform at the highest level and deserve a place on the plane to South Africa next year whatever their age. If the player can use that motivation and perform as we all know they can, I think they can go all the way.
There seems to be more interest in the competition this year, I think partly down to the brave effort of the side in the last European Championships two years ago.
Then, after an gruelling match with hosts and eventual winners Holland, Stuart Pearce’s side took part in one of the most epic penalty shootouts I have ever seen. The sight of an injured Steven Taylor limping up to the spot and burying his penalty I brought back visions of Stuart Pearce against Spain in Euro 96. But sadly for me and England Anton Ferdinand’s miss brought back memories of Chris Waddle in 1990 and the side crashed out agonisingly 13-12 on penalties.
The side may have changed since then but it is still packed full of talent determined to erase the memories of that night. Micah Richards, Gabriel Agbonlahor and Theo Walcott have all had senior caps while James Milner is the most experienced England Under-21 players of all time with 42 caps. Kieran Gibbs came on leaps and bounds to wards the end of the season, finishing he year as first choice left back for Arsenal while Jack Rodwell at Everton has been labelled the next Rio Ferdinand.
They have a tough group with Finland, Germany and Spain all waiting, but I see no reason why they can’t progress in the tournament. Experiences of big matches is vital to these players development – manager Stuart Pearce has already suggested that if the team is to win it they will have to win on penalties somewhere down the line. How we could do with a penalty shoot-out win given our past experiences!
Many of the players will also have their eye on a place in the squad for next years World Cup. This is their chance to show they can perform at the highest level and deserve a place on the plane to South Africa next year whatever their age. If the player can use that motivation and perform as we all know they can, I think they can go all the way.
Thursday, 11 June 2009
England 6 Andorra 0
On a night where travel to and from Wembley was difficult due to the Tube strike, England virtually guaranteed qualification for the World Cup Finals in South Africa in 2010. England are 10 points clear in the table with the nearest teams Croatia and Ukraine only having 4 games remaining and 12 points to play for. In terms of qualification games Croatia (home) and Ukraine (away) are the next fixtures.
Goals came from Rooney 4min, Lampard 29min, Rooney 39min, Defoe 73 and 76min and Crouch 81min. Can anyone remember the England Goalkeeper? ........ Robert Green.
Goals came from Rooney 4min, Lampard 29min, Rooney 39min, Defoe 73 and 76min and Crouch 81min. Can anyone remember the England Goalkeeper? ........ Robert Green.
Saturday, 6 June 2009
Kazakhstan 0-4 England
The "tiredness" did not show! With Andorra next this must be qualification in the bag.
Monday, 1 June 2009
England look to end the season in style
The league and cups may have been decided and we may be into June, but the football season isn’t quite over yet.
Two crucial World Cup qualifiers lie ahead for England – a trip to Kazakhstan on Saturday and the home game with Andorra four days later.
With Fabio Capello’s men five points clear at the top at the halfway stage of qualifying, six points from these fixtures would almost certainly guarantee a place at the 2010 World Cup – especially as two of the final three fixtures are at home.
On paper two wins should not be a problem, these are the two weakest sides in the group. But the Kazakhstan fixture in particular has ‘banana skin’ written all over it.
It’s a long trip for starters, longer than any of the other destinations. The facilities will not be what our pampered Premier League stars are used to and, after a long hard season, fatigue may be a factor.
That long season has already led to a number players pulling out due to injury. The Three Lions are without Michael Carrick, David James, Ben Foster, Phil Jagielka and Stewart Downing. Injuries, of course, offer opportunities for others and the likes of James Milner, Paul Robinson and, most surprisingly, veteran Gary Neville have all earned recalls.
Because of the timing of the fixture and the number of injuries, I don’t expect it to be a classic – England need to just do enough to get the points and get out. It’s very much like a FA Cup tie away at a lower league club, England need to do just enough to avoid a giant-killing.
The home game with Andorra should be a formality, though in the reverse fixture England toiled 45 minutes before finally breaking their stubborn resistance. If England can get an early goal it should open things up for them.
Any slip ups will pile the pressure on their remaining fixtures, against the strongest sides in the group, Belarus, Ukraine and Croatia. I think Capello will be aware of this and will not allow his side to take the game lightly, undoing all their hard work in the first half of the campaign.
I predict that England will not upset the football odds and will record two wins, with plenty of goals against the Andorrans, meaning we can all go on our summer holidays satisfied at a season's work well done.
Two crucial World Cup qualifiers lie ahead for England – a trip to Kazakhstan on Saturday and the home game with Andorra four days later.
With Fabio Capello’s men five points clear at the top at the halfway stage of qualifying, six points from these fixtures would almost certainly guarantee a place at the 2010 World Cup – especially as two of the final three fixtures are at home.
On paper two wins should not be a problem, these are the two weakest sides in the group. But the Kazakhstan fixture in particular has ‘banana skin’ written all over it.
It’s a long trip for starters, longer than any of the other destinations. The facilities will not be what our pampered Premier League stars are used to and, after a long hard season, fatigue may be a factor.
That long season has already led to a number players pulling out due to injury. The Three Lions are without Michael Carrick, David James, Ben Foster, Phil Jagielka and Stewart Downing. Injuries, of course, offer opportunities for others and the likes of James Milner, Paul Robinson and, most surprisingly, veteran Gary Neville have all earned recalls.
Because of the timing of the fixture and the number of injuries, I don’t expect it to be a classic – England need to just do enough to get the points and get out. It’s very much like a FA Cup tie away at a lower league club, England need to do just enough to avoid a giant-killing.
The home game with Andorra should be a formality, though in the reverse fixture England toiled 45 minutes before finally breaking their stubborn resistance. If England can get an early goal it should open things up for them.
Any slip ups will pile the pressure on their remaining fixtures, against the strongest sides in the group, Belarus, Ukraine and Croatia. I think Capello will be aware of this and will not allow his side to take the game lightly, undoing all their hard work in the first half of the campaign.
I predict that England will not upset the football odds and will record two wins, with plenty of goals against the Andorrans, meaning we can all go on our summer holidays satisfied at a season's work well done.
Monday, 18 May 2009
World Cup 2018 – England’s turn?
It may be eight years from now but the bidding to host the 2018 World Cup is underway and England launched their bid on Monday, in the spectacular surroundings of Wembley Stadium.
David Beckham will front the bid, rather unsurprisingly. Well-known throughout the world Becks is the obvious choice even though he will be well into his 40s by the time the tournament starts!
Bidding is also taking place simultaneously for the 2022 competition. Given the high level of politics involved in the bidding process I suspect that deals will be made between countries in order to back each other for the respective tournaments.
Already, it is rumoured that the USA’s 2022 bid, fronted by President Barack Obama, will be supported by England in return for their support for 2018 to be held across the Atlantic.
So who are the other contenders bidding for both tournaments?
Well in Europe we have Belgium-Netherlands (joint bid) Portugal-Spain (joint bid) and Russia. Given by 2018 the previous two tournaments won’t have been held in Europe (for the first time ever) it is expected that a European country will get the nod now FIFA’s rotation policy has been scrapped.
England must then be fairly confident of heading the European vote - particularly as FIFA boss Sepp Blatter has said he prefers bids from a single country rather than joint bids, especially when both countries have the ability to host a tournament on their own (Spain and Portugal have both hosted tournaments in the recent past).
With Russia there would be questions about its infrastructure and stadia, though both have made great strides in recent years and would no doubt be improved by 2018.
Outside of Europe we have Australia, Indonesia, Japan and Mexico while Qatar and South Korea are just bidding for the 2022 competition. The main threat would probably be from Australia. The country has developed a new passion for football since the rise of the Socceroos in recent years. A sports mad country anyway, it would certainly have the facilities to host the tournament.
Given my own bias I think it should be England’s turn to host the World Cup. It will have been over 50 years since the World Cup was last here by 2018 and I think that is too long for such a football mad country. We have the facilities in place to host it straight away - we just have to play the political game and make the right noises.
The bidding team have admitted they made mistakes in their failed 2006 bid, with much of the world viewing England as arrogant. I think it will be different this time round. With the successful Olympic bid behind us and the committee having learned from their mistakes I hope by the time the 24-man FIFA committee make their decision in December 2010 we will have done enough to earn their vote.
My World Cup prediction is for England to host the 2018 World Cup and Australia to play host in 2022.
Fingers crossed!
David Beckham will front the bid, rather unsurprisingly. Well-known throughout the world Becks is the obvious choice even though he will be well into his 40s by the time the tournament starts!
Bidding is also taking place simultaneously for the 2022 competition. Given the high level of politics involved in the bidding process I suspect that deals will be made between countries in order to back each other for the respective tournaments.
Already, it is rumoured that the USA’s 2022 bid, fronted by President Barack Obama, will be supported by England in return for their support for 2018 to be held across the Atlantic.
So who are the other contenders bidding for both tournaments?
Well in Europe we have Belgium-Netherlands (joint bid) Portugal-Spain (joint bid) and Russia. Given by 2018 the previous two tournaments won’t have been held in Europe (for the first time ever) it is expected that a European country will get the nod now FIFA’s rotation policy has been scrapped.
England must then be fairly confident of heading the European vote - particularly as FIFA boss Sepp Blatter has said he prefers bids from a single country rather than joint bids, especially when both countries have the ability to host a tournament on their own (Spain and Portugal have both hosted tournaments in the recent past).
With Russia there would be questions about its infrastructure and stadia, though both have made great strides in recent years and would no doubt be improved by 2018.
Outside of Europe we have Australia, Indonesia, Japan and Mexico while Qatar and South Korea are just bidding for the 2022 competition. The main threat would probably be from Australia. The country has developed a new passion for football since the rise of the Socceroos in recent years. A sports mad country anyway, it would certainly have the facilities to host the tournament.
Given my own bias I think it should be England’s turn to host the World Cup. It will have been over 50 years since the World Cup was last here by 2018 and I think that is too long for such a football mad country. We have the facilities in place to host it straight away - we just have to play the political game and make the right noises.
The bidding team have admitted they made mistakes in their failed 2006 bid, with much of the world viewing England as arrogant. I think it will be different this time round. With the successful Olympic bid behind us and the committee having learned from their mistakes I hope by the time the 24-man FIFA committee make their decision in December 2010 we will have done enough to earn their vote.
My World Cup prediction is for England to host the 2018 World Cup and Australia to play host in 2022.
Fingers crossed!
Monday, 4 May 2009
Glenn Johnson stakes his claim
It’s been a difficult season for Portsmouth, incorporating three managers, European disappointment and a poor run of form that has seen the 2008 FA Cup winners embroiled in a relegation battle.
But a shining light amongst the South Coast gloom has been full-back Glenn Johnson, who finally looks to be realising his enormous potential.
It’s surprising to consider Johnson made his Premier League debut six years ago, though even then it took him no time to adapt to the rigours of top flight football.
But unfortunately for Johnson he came into a West Ham side struggling against relegation - a battle which they would ultimately lose.
But despite the Hammers' relegation Johnson’s performances were good enough to attract the attention of Claudio Ranieri at a newly cash-rich Chelsea, and he became an early piece in Roman’s revolutionary jigsaw.
With Gary Neville’s injury troubles increasing with age, a right-back slot in the England side also emerged and Johnson proved an early contender to replace him.
The move perhaps came too soon for Johnson as a loss of form eventually saw him lose his England place and the Chelsea right-back berth to Paulo Ferreira as the Blues, under Jose Mourinho, swept past all before them.
But Pompey boss Harry Redknapp, always with a keen eye for a bargain, took Johnson to Fratton on a season-long loan in 2007. It proved an inspired move as Johnson, benefiting from regular first-team football, regained his early West Ham form. An FA Cup winner’s medal and a permanent move to Pompey showed that he had finally settled and was beginning to realise his potential.
Despite the upheaval at Fratton Park this season Johnson has upset the football odds by being consistently outstanding and looks to be enjoying his football again, picking up the club’s player of the year award in the process. His form didn’t go unnoticed by new England boss Fabio Capello who has restored Johnson to the England squad and he appears much more at home at International level then he did when he first broke into the side.
It is a big ask to replace such an established and respected fullback as Gary Neville, who played for England for over a decade, but Johnson finally looks like the man to do so.
But a shining light amongst the South Coast gloom has been full-back Glenn Johnson, who finally looks to be realising his enormous potential.
It’s surprising to consider Johnson made his Premier League debut six years ago, though even then it took him no time to adapt to the rigours of top flight football.
But unfortunately for Johnson he came into a West Ham side struggling against relegation - a battle which they would ultimately lose.
But despite the Hammers' relegation Johnson’s performances were good enough to attract the attention of Claudio Ranieri at a newly cash-rich Chelsea, and he became an early piece in Roman’s revolutionary jigsaw.
With Gary Neville’s injury troubles increasing with age, a right-back slot in the England side also emerged and Johnson proved an early contender to replace him.
The move perhaps came too soon for Johnson as a loss of form eventually saw him lose his England place and the Chelsea right-back berth to Paulo Ferreira as the Blues, under Jose Mourinho, swept past all before them.
But Pompey boss Harry Redknapp, always with a keen eye for a bargain, took Johnson to Fratton on a season-long loan in 2007. It proved an inspired move as Johnson, benefiting from regular first-team football, regained his early West Ham form. An FA Cup winner’s medal and a permanent move to Pompey showed that he had finally settled and was beginning to realise his potential.
Despite the upheaval at Fratton Park this season Johnson has upset the football odds by being consistently outstanding and looks to be enjoying his football again, picking up the club’s player of the year award in the process. His form didn’t go unnoticed by new England boss Fabio Capello who has restored Johnson to the England squad and he appears much more at home at International level then he did when he first broke into the side.
It is a big ask to replace such an established and respected fullback as Gary Neville, who played for England for over a decade, but Johnson finally looks like the man to do so.
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