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England: Can't win. Won't win?...I know nothing!

For those of you who have read my last England blog post, you would be forgiven for thinking I'm a 'glass half-empty' kind of guy.

For an Englishman to say that his country would have little to no chance of winning the most coveted prize in international football is pessimistic, disloyal and bordering upon treason.

However, my emotions toward England are far more complex than mere pessimism. Yes, there are shades of cynicism, but I can't help feel the adrenalin rush of belief and hope, that comes with every play of '3 Lions' by Skinner and Baddiel. Yes, "thirty years of hurt, never stopped me dreaming", and I still feel the same now that tally has reached forty-four.

The cynical part of me expects the same ant-climax. Sitters missed, a catastrophic error from the goalkeeper or two, followed by a key player getting himself sent off. Then, after all that, we'll have to play our second group game!

Then, there's the hopeful part of me that still wants to believe.

Some of my greatest memories in football are attached to England games.

The moment Gazza dinked the ball over the Scottish defender's head then drilled the volley in the bottom-right hand corner.


Stuart Pearce's psychotic shouts to the England crowd as he finally put away that cathartic penalty, a moment of pride and redemption from six years prior; and of the great tenacity that sums up the English spirit.

Then there's Owen's majestic run in France 98, terrorising the Argentinian defenders before driving the ball beyond the keeper, the whole world's mouth agape, as we relies just was a star-in-the-making this young lad was.


And who could forget Beckham's contribution to World Cup 2002? First, he saves the best goal to the (very) last minute, with one of his trademark free-kicks against Greece allowing us to qualify, followed by retribution against the very team he was sent-off against back in 98, with his penalty the only difference between us and the Argentinians.


Finally, there was Joe Cole's wonder-volley from thirty yards out against Sweden in 2006 - something only a player at the peak of form would even contemplate.


Those are the memories that stand out for me. No doubt some of the older readers willl have countless others since 1966. I have missed out the majestic skill of Charlton, Gordon Bank's save against Pele, proving that the greatest player had a match. There was Geoff Hurst's hat-trick, David Platt's volley, David Seaman's penalty saves, the moments to be savoured are many.

We have given so many players and moments of significance to the beautiful game of football, that we have every right to believe this year is our year, that 2010 is when we lift the Jules Rimet Trophy.

So why can't we? Is it really all just hype and wishful thinking? No, it's not.... And here's why this year, really should be our year.

1 . The Manager – At last, a leader!
England seems to have had a reputation of bringing in managers who were not ready for it. Graham Taylor, Glenn Hoddle, Kevin Keegan. Things changed with Sven-Goran Eriksson, he did have a successful run (considered the 2nd most successful manager after Alf Ramsey) and was quite popular, if not for his managerial duties on the pitch, then for his scoring abilities off, with the likes of Nancy Dell'Olio, Ulrika Jonsson and Faria Alam making us wonder what the hell attracted them to him. This, however, was in stark contrast to the next manager, Steve McLaren. To put it simply, he had the worst run in the history of English management, in charge for just eighteen games, failing to lead England into Euro 2004 in a group where he should have cruised through in second gear.

So it is with great relief that when Steve was booted, the F.A took time to consider the options for the role and came up with a winner, which sums up Fabio Capello perfectly. This man has managed the likes of AC Milan, AS Roma, Juventus and Real Madrid, winning titles at every one of them. He is a man who has thrived under tremendous media scrutiny and pressure.

He has a no-nonsense style of management, showing himself as the boss and in total control, which should bring a level of discipline to the England squad that is probably needed for a team whose previous performances suggested they were nothing but overpaid prima-donnas that weren't fit enough to tie Jack Charlton's laces. Finally, he seems the kind of manager who will give opportunities to players when they are deserved, which brings me to my next reason.

2 . Depth of the England Squad
We may not have the “best eleven” in the World Cup, for that I would have to go with Spain. But we still have depth in a number of spots which many other countries can only wish for.

Let's take the strikers, for example. We have Rooney, simple to see why, he's viewed as one of the top players in the world. His work ethic, strength and power is complementary to his ability to drift past players and pass with pinpoint accuracy. But what if he should get injured? Who can we rely on?

Despite his lack of regular appearances, Jermaine Defoe has been on a heater this season in the Premier League and should have gotten Capello's attention. Darren Bent has also scored 14 goals already and seems to be looking for his first 20-goal season with Sunderland of all teams. Peter Crouch may not be a prolific scorer at club level, but he has certainly been reliable on the international stage with 18 goals in 35 appearances. We also have Gabriel Agbonglahor looking to get into the ranks and let's not forget one Michael Owen, who could be a late addition as he starts to return to full-fitness (….I guess Heskey can be considered after that, he does lovely assists, he's a great target-man zzzzzzzzzzzzzzz.)

I had already covered the midfield in my previous article, its depth may be our biggest disadvantage, but seeing as Capello has shown that to play for the country you need to be performing rather than relying on past accolades, I expect him to be tinkering with the team to find the strongest possible formation.

The central midfield is where the real competition is, with the likes of Gerrard, Lampard, Jenas, Huddlestone, Barry and Carrick fighting for the place (and lets not forget, Joe Cole is questionable and Hargreaves is injured, so if there is any positives from that, it's that Capello's choice is a little easier!)

Then on the right wing we have Ol' Grandpa Beckham looking to take on the young guns Wright-Phillips and Lennon, while Downing, Milner and Young will probably look to secure the left side. Most of these players would probably walk into any England side of any era, so this should make them put in the effort whenever a chance arises.

Yes, it is a problem, but like so many of you said, it's the kind of problem you would love to have. Too many is better than not enough on this occasion.

In defence, the rocks of Terry and Ferdinand will be flanked by perhaps the greatest left-back in football today, Ashley Cole and whoever can secure the right flank between Glen Johnson and Luke Young, which I believe Glen has preference for. Then, we have the likes of Lescott and Upson for the central role, Bridge for the left (although if recent scandals have suggested his full positional role would be “left back.......Home because if he goes near Terry he'll......You get the point!) and Brown for the right should any injuries occur. If that wasn't enough choice, Warnock, Baines and Jagielka want to be in the twenty-four heading to the tournament.

The only questionable position we have is whoever plays in goal. While one thing we can say is that we have at least three goalkeepers with substantial experience in the role, with David James, Robert Green and Paul Robinson. You can't say they really made the Number 1 jersey their own, and Ben Foster is highly inexperienced, being third in the pecking order at Manchester United.

But a lot of you reminded me of another goalkeeper, one I cannot believe I had forgotten. He is young, like Foster, but has played regularly in the Premiership, first for Manchester City, and now on loan to Birmingham. His performances have been sensational for the Blues and he is the key reason why they are 8th in the league, despite an obvious lack of goals from the club. Yes, he may be a little young for the jersey, but I say to you pessimists, that Iker Casillas was given the international jersey at just eighteen years of age, and look at him now, he turned out alright!

What we have here, for the first time in quite a while, is a team with cover. Should a player get injured, we have a back-up that we can rely on to fill that void. This can prove crucial in a competition where players are fatigued from their club run, where some players may not be performing at their peak and where one injury can turn a superstar into just a casualty.

3 . The Inconsistencies of the Opposition
This reason has been brewing for awhile.... Greece couldn't have won Euro 2004 alone through just their spirit, and the same can be said of this year.... The elite teams have been starting to fade in quality for some time now.

France, ever since their miraculous run in the 98 World Cup and Euro 2000, have had to resort to under-hand tactics (twice) to qualify against Ireland.

The Argentinian team shouldn't be having these problems, well, shouldn't if it wasn't for the Argentinian F.A employing a former cokehead who now seems to have his head in the clouds, fielding such a variety of players that each match they have makes them look like Diego seemed to have pulled their names out of a hat at random.

Italy still haven't replaced the veterans with any new blood and even the likes of Brazil, seem to have players creeping in from lesser leagues (Gilberto Silva plying his trade at Panathinaikos and Elano of Galatasary, with the Greek Super League and the Super Lig being 12th and 11th in the European league rankings respectively.)

Simply put, they just don't make them like they used to! Whether it's the top teams dropping standards, or the smaller teams pushing the bar up, there is a more level playing-field than ever before. With Cameroon, the Ivory Coast, Nigeria and Algeria looking to be the first team from the CAF to reach the semi-finals. And with the quality of Asian football, most notably from South Korea and Japan constantly increasing after every competition, the elite are going to have to watch their backs now that teams, once looking just to limit the damage, are now looking to steal points in the group stages. Any teams who go out against underdogs with complacency had better ready themselves for a nasty surprise.

Then we have England, who under the control of McLaren, meant that we really were team that had hit rock bottom. And as Yazz said, 'the only way is up', from there. Capello has done something which finally bolsters true confidence in the squad's chances. We qualified comfortably, there were no moments of nail-biting suspense, our only loss arriving after we had guaranteed qualification. At every moment, we just seemed more comfortable and in control. The media pressure and the public scrutiny that comes with the role of being an England player seems to have little effect on their nerves this time around, and real focus truly seems to be there finally.

A squad with strength, and depth! A manager for the job! Every other nation lacking! What was I thinking? This is the best chance we've had for years. Bring out those flags, put those kits on a 40 degree wash and give those trumpets a damn good polishing boys. Do not be surprised when we see John Terry holding that trophy aloft this summer. In the meantime, in the absence of an official world cup England song, I'll be listening to this on full blast for most of the summer.


This blog post was contributed by a footytube member and does not necessarily reflect the opinions of footytube and/or their partners

Perrygarl is a staff member and supports FC Seoul