England’s Young Lions

So, let us be positive; let us forget England’s disappointing showing at the Euros and their ordinary performance against Ukraine in the World Cup qualifier.

Let us assume that England will qualify for the finals in Brazil in 2014, and that the young players showing promise will progress as we hope, and will be injury-free come the big carnival.

Let us also, for the sake of this discussion, take all players who will be over 30 in two years out of the equation, and that includes Joe Cole, John Terry, Rio Ferdinand, Steven Gerrard, and Ashley Cole.

What have we got left to frighten Brazil, Spain, and the rest? Well, here goes: how about this for a team of ten twenty-somethings and one teenager?

Joe Hart (who will then be 27) in goal. A given. A back line of Kyle Walker (24), Phil Jones (22), Gary Cahill (28), and Leighton Baines (29).

A midfield comprising Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain (21), Tom Cleverley (25), Jack Wilshire (22), and Raheem Sterling (19). And a front two of Danny Welbeck (23) and Wayne Rooney (28).

Doesn’t look too shabby, does it? And, while sticking with youth, there’s decent cover at the back with Ryan Bertrand and Chris Smalling; in midfield, with Theo Walcott, Jake Livermore, and Nick Powell, and up front with Daniel Sturridge and Andy Carroll.

England demonstrated against Ukraine that possession for possession’s sake does not get you very far; we need players from front to back who can keep the ball and use it tellingly when and where it matters.

There are signs that the group mentioned above has the skills to deliver. Perhaps it is asking too much for them to light any fires in Brazil, but they will almost all still be in their twenties come the Euros in 2016 and then we may well have a team to go all the way with.

Fans with their hopes planted firmly in the present should take a look at the early betting on Champions League for updates on next week’s games. 

There is also hope for Barnsley fans in the Championship Previews: Tykes to Continue Ipswich's Miserable Run.

Owen can be a big success at Stoke

After what seemed like a lifetime of speculation, Michael Owen finally set his heart on Stoke City in what was an expected move by members of the BetVictor football community.

Media and bookies had tipped Owen to move to the Potters, despite late rumours linking him back to Merseyside with either the Reds or his boyhood club Everton.

Owen, who once featured prominently in Liverpool betting markets, made his first appearance in two years against Manchester City at the weekend, but there’s one huge question overshadowing the move. Can Owen still compete at this level?

Thousands have taken to Twitter to tell Owen just how bad they think he is, as well as some more derogatory comments. They will be plenty more that will agree, but this writer certainly doesn’t.

It’s staggering to think that Owen, who seems to have been around for a lifetime, is only 32. He’s had injuries and lost some of his pace. However as the old saying goes, class is permanent.

He will need a run of games, service and maybe time but give Owen a chance in and around the box and nine times out of ten you will have a goal in your favour. His experience will be invaluable to the dressing room and more importantly Owen knows how to play with fellow striker Peter Crouch.

A first-team chance might not come for some time due to Stoke’s style of play and good form at present. But when it does expect Owen to be firing on all cylinders, and if given an opportunity he could help take Stoke to the next level.

To some football fans, Stoke have taken a risk which will fail. For me they have signed one of England’s greatest ever strikers for one last hoorah.

England still Need a Target Man

A lot was made in the build-up to England’s second World Cup qualifier with Ukraine this week about the national team’s lack of a main striker and, with Wayne Rooney and Andy Carroll injured, forward responsibilities fell on Jermain Defoe’s narrow shoulders.

Although Defoe did a good job and scored a perfectly fine disallowed goal in the first half, he struggled to make himself known in the Ukraine defence and their back four were relatively solid for the majority of the game because of it.

England played a more patient, passing brand of football than previous games and it was nice to see our wing play used to proper effect. Steven Gerrard was given the usual distributer job in midfield and with full-backs, Glen Johnson and Leighton Baines, happy to come forward, England found themselves in very promising situations.

Yet, midway through the second half and a goal down, Roy Hodgson’s side should have equalised when a cross came over for Defoe. The striker rose to meet the ball but his 5 ft. 5 in. frame would not stretch far enough: a golden chance wasted.

It is a simple thing to say but, had a taller striker been there, England would have equalised a lot earlier than they did. The encounter was truly nail-biting for fans betting on football. 

This is not to denigrate Defoe’s clear striking talents, but England do need a physical presence in the box. Three of their Euro 2012 goals came from headers and, with a player like Gerrard able to pick a man in the box, it seems foolish not to harness this advantage.

Hodgson may opt for a bigger front man in future qualifying games to provide this aerial presence. Rooney may be the obvious choice but with Carroll, Peter Crouch, and Darren Bent all more than capable of scoring with their head, there is plenty of choice for Roy to find his perfect front man.

The Carroll conundrum continues

England fans may come away happy with their nation’s 2-1 friendly win over Italy this week, but there are still tactical issues that Roy Hodgson must sort out before the start of World Cup 2014 qualifying.

One particular concern on Wednesday, noted by those who watch live football online at home, was England’s wing play, with the handful of crosses into Italy’s box either over-hit or misdirected. It throws into question the use of a target man upfront if he isn’t going to get the service he needs.

The England squad is littered with wingers, with Adam Johnson, Theo Walcott, Alex Oxlaide-Chamberlain, Stuart Downing, James Milner and Aaron Lennon all vying for contention on the flanks over the last four years.

Yet despite this England struggled to use their width to their advantage on Wednesday night. Johnson and Milner failed to pepper the box with those crosses that generated such success at Euro 2012, while full-backs Leighton Baines and Kyle Walker also appeared conservative in their directness.

Admittedly this lack of service certainly didn’t hinder England in the second half, with nippy Jermain Defoe upfront on his own unable to match the areal ability of Italy centre-halves. It was the first half, with Andy Carroll leading the line, that England were found wanting.

Frank Lampard failed to find Carroll on more than one occasion, while Johnson and Ashley Young appeared more than happy to cut inside and distribute the ball sideways. This desire to retain the ball is commendable considering England’s usual inability to hold possession, but that tactic does not fit Carroll’s game.

If you play Carroll upfront on his own he must be given service by a direct and attentive midfield. England should have played two games last night, testing the Italian defence in the first half with crosses from the wings and leaving the tiki-taka stuff until after the break.

This may only have been a friendly and his live scores as England boss have been encouraging, but Roy must work out the best style for his team to play, and whether or not Carroll’s game can handle it.

GB Experience Future Penalty Lesson

Stuart Pearce was right to comfort his Team GB footballers for the wealth of experience that have gained at these Olympic Games, despite their penalty shoot-out defeat to Korea, last weekend.

The manner of their loss will only come to aid the players when they suffer the same outcome at major tournaments later in their career.

At the end of a dogged encounter at the Millennium Stadium, the scores were tied at 4-4 when Daniel Sturridge stepped up to take GB’s final spot kick. The striker nailed his run-up but could do nothing to prevent goalkeeper, Lee Bumyoung, parrying the strike.

Sturridge and his GB team-mates looked drained and dejected on the Cardiff turf, yet penalty shoot-out deflation will not come as a surprise for these players, but in fact act as a chilling memory for when they suffer the same fate later on in their international careers.

For the England national side are notoriously appalling at penalties. In eight shoot-outs, England have won just one, against Spain during Euro ’96. GB’s current stars will have grown up with England’s recent penalty heartbreaks: 1998 defeat to Argentina and successive 2004 and 2006 losses to Portugal.

Indeed, England’s most recent shoot-out failure against Italy only this summer should have acted as a precursor for last Saturday’s game. Like Italy, Korea dominated large spells of the match and were guilty of not winning the tie in normal time. GB just about scraped into the shoot-out, where they once more fell at the last.

What Pearce’s men can gain from this experience is simply the knowledge of what it feels like to crash out on penalties the next time it comes around, a feeling that supporters placing an England or Premier League bet will have experienced before.

Sturridge, along with successful penalty converters, Tom Cleverley and Craig Dawson, will no-doubt one day be thrown back into this tortuous situation in England colours. Their experience this summer will do nothing but strengthen their fear on that long walk to the penalty spot.

The news currently doing the rounds on Betfair is the fact that Tottenham youngsters, Steven Caulker and Jake Livermore, have been named in an experimental England squad.

Kocic downbeat after another Toronto collapse

Toronto FC goalkeeper Milos Kocic admitted he was left wondering what more he could do after seeing his defence concede two late goals, and let their commanding lead against New England Revolution slip to draw 2-2.

The Canadians have defied soccer betting tips with their dismal MLS form this season, with one solitary win to their name, but could have taken maximum points from their last two games.

Toronto have drawn their last two matches despite being in commanding positions going into the closing stages of both, firstly against Houston and now New England.

Danny Koevermans and Ryan Johnson had given Toronto a 2-0 lead, only to be pegged back by Blake Brettschneider’s 71st minute goal before Chris Tierney popped up in stoppage time to nod an equalizer past the unfortunate Kocic in the Toronto goal.

While Kocic had spent much of the game as a spectator, he was called upon on more than a couple of occasions as the Revolution began to control the game towards the end.

The Serbian stopper was downbeat following the game, admitting he was at a loss to explain why the team continued to come away from games without what they deserved.

“Whatever I do, it doesn’t matter I guess. It’s frustrating,” said Kocic. “I see other goalkeepers in the league make one save and the game ends 1-0 or 2-0. Whatever I do, it doesn’t seem to matter at the moment.”

Head coach Paul Mariner will have been well aware of just how big a job was on his hands when he took over from Aron Winter last month.

Those that bet on soccer games know that drawing games from winning positions will need to be stamped out if Toronto are going to climb off the bottom of the league.

England ‘are Here to Win’- Hart

England goalkeeper, Joe Hart, has given a reminder that England are not at Euro 2012 just to make up the numbers. He feels that, having made an unbeaten start, they are genuine contenders to win the tournament. 

"The whole point in coming here is not to keep people happy and off our backs," Hart said. "We are here to win."  

Hart’s comments presumably refer to pundits and the media, and he was quick to state that, whatever anyone else thought of England’s chances, the team always believed.

"Regardless of what some people thought, that was nothing to do with the camp. There has been a group of people who did not think we would do well but, for anyone who knew the players, it is not a surprise and it is part of the plan," the 25 year old said.

The form of the England team in defeating Sweden and Ukraine, and drawing with France, has pleased Hart, who insists that the best football scores are yet to come from Roy Hodgson’s men. "We're growing with each game.

“We started well with the right ideas and right game-plans and we've executed them well," he said.  "We are not those guys [who settle for reaching the quarter-finals] - we are winners. We want to be successful for ourselves, and make English people proud of their team,” he added.

England face Italy in the final quarterfinal of Euro 2012, on Sunday night, in Kiev. The winner of that tie will face Greece or Germany in the semi-final.

If England are to confound all expectations and win the tournament, then they will have to continue to improve; whilst they have been better than expected so far, they haven’t won anything yet.

England fans who like to watch football live will find a paradise of odds, tips, and news items on the Bet365 website.