Sunday, August 13, 2006
Will it be different with McClaren ?
One of the big concerns being voiced when the FA named McClaren as successor to the Swede (who still hasn't been linked with any sort of decent job...not that he needs the cash) was that things may not change too much. In their announcement, FA chief, Brian Barwick said one of the reasons for appointing McClaren was because they wanted continuity after the Swede......oh no we don't cried the supporters !!McClaren's first game is on Wednesday against European Champions Greece at Old Trafford. He's already named John Terry as captain to succeed Beckham who stepped down last month. Lets hope the extra responsibility makes Terry cut out the stupid mistakes he makes with far too much regularity (I write this hours after he gave Crouch a free header in the Charity Shield as Liverpool beat Chelsea 2-1).
When the squad was named last Friday, there were a few surprises, not least the omission of David Beckham. Now if McClaren thinks the way forward is without Beckham then far enough. However, he has also chosen to recall Phil Neville. I hope it's not the sign of things to come. Beckham still has a lot of offer England. His legs may not be what they used to be but he did score 1 and was involved directly in 3 other of our goals in the World Cup. I think it may just be a statement by McClaren to say "I'm my own man and not afraid to drop anyone". I expect to see him back in the squad for Andorra.
Another senior player who was left out was David James. Unlike Beckham, I really can't see a way back for him. Robinson is clearly first choice and long-term rivals need to be found. Chris Kirkland is a decent keeper but has been plagued by injuries and now fit again, he has been given his chance. The 3rd keeper is Ben Watson who was on-loan with Watford all last season from Man U.
Up front Dean Ashton and Darren Bent are given the opportunity to reform their U21 partnership. Rooney is suspended for the next 2 competitive matches so has been left out of the squad. Crouch and Defoe are the other forwards as Owen is also unavailable through injury.
Overall, the squad isn't too bad and ultimately, the style of play and approach to matches will be far more important than the individual players. Parts of Steve Gerrards new book were published today in a Sunday paper and he, like other players, raised points that showed all was not well in the England camp over in Germany. He has admitted the players were over-confident, thinking they just had to turn up to win it. He also disagreed with the striker selections. 5 strikers should have been taken and Walcott, however promising a player he is, had no right to be at the World Cup. None of this is any consolation. Lets just hope that the players and coaching staff have learned from these mistakes and we go into the Euro 2008 campaign with a clear message about our intent to win the tournament.
Next post will be after the Greece match.
