With England set to kick off their campaign to qualify for the 2014 World Cup this weekend, Captain Steven Gerrard has been in front of the media in force, claiming that England do have the potential to win the world cup – well yes, in theory but so do San Marino – it doesn’t mean that they will.
Of course as England fans we have been subjected to many campaigns of nearly misses, goals that should have been and downright wretched performances not to mention the curse of penalties on more than one occasion. Whilst Spain’s biggest problem may be the logistics of expanding their trophy cabinet before another tournament, after having the wally with a brolly at the helm during a particularly bad couple of years England fans worry about qualifying for a tournament full stop.
Under Fabio Capello qualifying was about as much of a given as we are prepared to bet on, but the Italian never really took to England, the team, fans, language or players and jumped ship at the first available opportunity leaving Roy Hodgson at the mercy of national media who rather crassly mocked his speech impediment and indeed the not so forgiving fans.
During the Euros the team got about as far as most would agree they deserved to, with fans willing to give the manager a little bit of leeway due to the fact he hardly had any time to impress how he envisioned the team should play, but as the World Cup approaches, this is no longer an excuse and fans expect to see plenty more from Hodgson’s England.
The manager may have a decent reputation – Liverpool aside, but then again managing the Mersyside team seems to be the club of death for most managers these days – but Roy has been accused of playing it too safe and even boring on more than one occasion, and quite validly as well.
Yes there have been chances given to youngsters such as Oxlade Chamberlain – who was given more of a chance than Walcott when he was a surprise inclusion in Sven’s squad – and now Ryan Bertrand who could well start the game on Saturday, but more due to a lack of anyone else – but bringing Jordan Henderson to the Euros and indeed Downing made the majority of men under the age of 35 feel like they had a decent chance of putting on a pair of florescent boots and turning out for their country, and the side looked pretty much as average as ever.
It is obviously hard to allow a team to go through a period of transition, with players such as Terry, Rio – well pre choc ice gate – Lampard and Gerrard seen as fixtures in the team – at least in years past – but now it is time for change and the youngsters have to be given a chance to come through and find their feet at international level if England and indeed Hodgson want any chance of significant success in the future.
Hodgson may not be seen as the most exciting or indeed daring of managers, and was not the first choice for the job in the eyes of the fans or the media, but is here now and does deserve a chance before the vultures descend. Already having made the choice between JT and Rio Ferdinand, Hodgson has weathered that storm albeit using a pathetic excuse of ‘footballing reasons’ and does have a decent foundation of a side to build on – providing he picks the right players of course –and avoids getting back into the dreaded Lampard / Gerrard debate. It is not easy managing a nation that expects the best when it so often produces the worst, and after a bedding in period during the Euros now the heat is really on for Hodgson and his England team.
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