Euro 2008, we can win it. All we need to do is start a limited war in Europe.
Not straightforward, I know, even in the Balkans. A lot could go wrong.
Fritz Fischer, a brilliant historian, identified this strategy as part of
German policy under Kaiser Wilhelm II and Dr Theobald von Bethmann Hollweg,
his chancellor, in the build-up to the First World War. Sifting through
thousands of government documents, Fischer constructed his theory that
Germany had deliberately instigated the conflict as a way of increasing its
power in Europe and had drafted plans to annex Belgium, parts of France and
most of European Russia as a result. The aim, he said, was to fight a
limited European war. Got away from them a bit there, didn't it?
Even so, having learnt from history, we are destined not to repeat it and some
form of minor conflict - ticking off the Norwegians for a little local
difficulty in Scandinavia, perhaps, or something temporarily nasty in the
south, where Turkey and Greece are always looking to give somebody a
right-hander - could be our making as we enter the Fabio Capello years.
Remember the Danes in 1992? Off the beach as a late substitute for the warring
Yugoslavs, they did not look back. England could return from the Caribbean
on Monday, pitch up at an Alpine training camp and crack on from there. This
is the moment for English footballers to take the European stage by storm;
we just have to devise a way of getting a foot through the door.
Over the next five days Capello will tinker and fine-tune his team for the
last two friendly internationals of the season. Key players will be rested,
novices promoted, as he attempts to prepare a squad capable of taking
England to the 2010 World Cup. Too late. The time is now. Strike while the
iron is hot.
Last week, the best club teams in Europe met in the Champions League final in
Moscow and they were English. More significantly, despite the negativity
that surrounds the staffing of the Barclays Premier League, roughly half of
the starting line-ups (and both teams were almost at full strength) were
made up of Englishmen, ten in total.
Now, without making this too simplistic, if these are the best teams in the
Champions League, and the Champions League is the pinnacle of club football,
and there are ten Englishmen playing, is that not the basis of a rather good
international team? Paul Scholes, the Manchester United midfield player, no
longer wants to participate and the England management will not attempt to
change his mind until next season, so strip Capello's options to nine.
Still, not a bad start on a rainy day, is it?
From the Champions League final, England could turn out a back four of Wes
Brown, Rio Ferdinand, John Terry and Ashley Cole, a tight midfield three,
right to left, of Owen Hargreaves, Michael Carrick and Frank Lampard, with
Wayne Rooney as the striker and Joe Cole to his left. Only two positions
would not be covered, goalkeeper and right-sided forward, and only a single,
undeniably world-class player would be missing, Steven Gerrard, who could
fit into the place to Rooney's right. David James would be the goalkeeper,
as now.
Not half bad, is it? And this theoretical XI follows the oafishly simple logic
that any player who can regularly make the team at United or Chelsea has to
be worth his England place. It may be harsh on Gareth Barry, of Aston Villa,
or David Bentley, of Blackburn Rovers, and many believe such strict
demarcation is impractical. But at least it proves one thing: we are not in
as much trouble as we think.
We are going to get very down over the next month or so. We are spectators at
a leading international tournament for the first time since the 1994 World
Cup and while that competition came at a time when few were shouting the
odds for the domestic game - midway between English clubs lifting the
European Cup in 1984 and 1999 - England's present failure comes at a peak
moment for the leading clubs in the Premier League. We should be there; we
know that.
At the training ground yesterday, Capello was asked about England's failure to
qualify and said he did not comment on the past. If he did, however, the
phrases “Jesus H. Christ”, “half the bloody European Cup team” and “muppet”
would surely not be far behind. Even in the halcyon days of English
domination in Europe, the number of home-produced players in the final did
not hit double figures. Villa used nine when defeating Bayern Munich in
1982, but that was an exception. When Nottingham Forest beat SV Hamburg in
1980, six Englishmen started, three more than for Liverpool in Rome in 1984.
Since then, the numbers have remained low: four Englishmen started for
Manchester United in 1999, two for Liverpool in 2005.
So only in Moscow did the full horror of England's failure to qualify for next
month's European Championship become apparent. The job done by Steve
McClaren, the former head coach, looks increasingly poor in perspective,
although he was not helped by an injury list more in keeping with the St
Moritz Tobogganing Club than an international squad of footballers. McClaren
was denied Terry, Ashley Cole and Hargreaves in Russia and Terry, Rooney and
Ferdinand (who was suspended) against Croatia. Yet as England were in a
position to succeed in both of those games and failed, the case for the
defence can extend only so far.
The longstanding argument has been that any victory for English clubs in
Europe is at the expense of, rather than to the advantage of, the national
team, because of the numbers of foreign players. That was not true this year.
United is a roughly equal partnership, balancing Ferdinand with Nemanja Vidic,
Brown with Patrice Evra, and every other English midfield and front player
with Cristiano Ronaldo. But the English contingent is key at Chelsea: Terry
at the back, Lampard in the middle, Joe Cole's creativity up front. The
clubs most often cited when it is claimed that the Premier League is English
by location only, Arsenal and Liverpool, were eliminated at the knockout
stage. Anyway, take two Englishman from Liverpool, Gerrard and Jamie
Carragher, and Rafael Benítez's team would not even be the best on
Merseyside, let alone among the finest in Europe.
Another theory is that English players look good against each other but are
found out beyond these shores. Again, it is outdated. It once was that
home-grown players shone in the hurly-burly of the domestic league because
they responded to the work ethic and, when technique let them down, simply
chased 50 yards and made a crowd-pleasing blood-and-thunder tackle to get
the ball back. This is no longer true. Nobody gets in the team at United or
Chelsea simply by grafting hard. Lampard, Carrick, Rooney, Joe Cole and
Hargreaves have a range of creative attributes to compete with any in Europe
and while England have no equivalent of Ronaldo or Lionel Messi, neither do
many others.
When Ronaldinho came up short for Brazil at the previous World Cup there was
no production line of creative geniuses waiting to take his place. A handful
of wizards exist at any given time and the rest look on in envy. That is
where English football is now, wishing Ronaldo was ours, but Capello is
still in charge of a collectively strong team with tournament-winning
potential.
Oh, yes, we have heard all this before. Bentley made a similar statement on
Monday and was met with sneers from jaded individuals for whom the dismal
2006 World Cup campaign was one false dawn too many. Yet it is an
inescapable fact that while England had ten starters in the most prestigious
match of the club season, France had three, Portugal two and no other
country more than one. Those who mocked the FA when it set a last-four
finish as the minimum requirement for Capello's World Cup campaign were
misguided. How can we hope to get to the semi-finals of the World Cup when
we have not even qualified for the European Championship, they chorus. The
answer is simple: because not qualifying for Euro 2008 was the biggest
cock-up since defeat by the United States in 1950, and Moscow was the proof.
There are some managers who are a nightmare to succeed - Sam Allardyce at
Bolton Wanderers, for instance - because they have consistently punched
above their weight for so many years. McClaren, by contrast, is a dream. He
took the basis of the two best club teams in Europe and came third to
Croatia and Russia. And while Slaven Bilic, the Croatia coach, may look on
this stance as yet more arrogant English posturing, the fact remains, how
many Croats were on the pitch in Moscow? None. How many Russians? None. How
many Englishmen? Ten. What is wrong with this picture?
Capello will attempt to mix and match, as all managers do. He did not even
pick Carrick in his 30 - although this has more to do with wires getting
crossed on the medical side than any appraisal of his ability - and players
such as Bentley and Dean Ashton would feel justifiably slighted to be
overlooked merely because they play for less than fashionable clubs.
Yet even using the most simplistic criteria, Capello could right now pick a
team that could hold their own against any in Europe; and if we could only
get Archduke Ferdinand back in the motor, we could prove it.
It is defenitely not going to be a proper championship without the good old rival England. I really hope by 2010 there won't be 11 big egos on the field but a team that deserves to have those fans. The CL was about money, the Euro will be about pride. But it might get quite boring this summer...
Felix, Berlin, Germany
We didn't qualify, The manager (Mclaren) doesn't kick the ball about on the pitch, That is down to the players.
That is the players that HE chose, ultimately its the manager and players fault.
We dont deserve to be there, but thats past, lets all look to the future and support England for WC2010..
adam, bradford, england
My friend, we just do not have the quality & class to win any major foortball competition with home-grown players, so please do not start a war on our account.
ian cheese, london, uk
I've never gone along with the pundit mantra of lack of skills: more a case of lack of nerve, self-belief & willingness to play to the top of your game. That's why Beckham has been so important. Like the look of Gareth Barry at this level. Plus you've got to have a manager who knows what he's doing
Martin Hardman, Guildford, england
well, I'm glad they showed up when getting paid under gross contracts, but unfortunately their pride for their country could not match that of the Croats in November.
Anthony, , Canada
Everyone, especially Samuel, is missing the point, which is that European football as a whole is pants. The Champions League Final proved this, with a penalties lottery determining the outcome instead of open play performance.
Euro' 08 will merely replicate this dysfunctionality.
Terry, London, UK
Most of the comments completely miss the point of the article. The England TEAM was dire, and nobody disputes this. However, the CL shows there was nothing wrong with the players. 10 Englishmen in the CL final was no accident - they were there by merit. So you have to look at the management....
Nick, France,
We could always dress McClaren up as the Archduke. And I'm sure there would be no shortage of volunteers to play the assassin. I think you're onto something here, Martin.
Philip, Cheltenham, UK
Top notch journalism- but you can't blame McClaren,after all we all knew he wasnt up to it before he even took charge, didnt we?
Rob, Melbourne, australia
So we have a team of 10.....beyond that is where it gets shaky.
I don't think McLaren had this ten available for even 1 game or even for get togethers (maybe a dinner!)
The FA have a packed schedule that doesn't help England, get a 2nd choice manager and rely on lower quality squad players
Bill Foster, ebbsfleet, kent, uk
Very good article, never really thought about it like that before but the team makes sense! carrick n hargo gettin the ball and feedin lamps and gerrard further up the field - often they have been criticised for comin too deep! MS the next England manager (not that he'd bloody take it!)
Drew, Manchester,
Statistics statistics statistics
Yes there were 10 english players in Moscow
and no Croats !
But in Euro 2008 finals - there will be 11 Croats on the pitch
and --- Englishmen - big zero
So Mr Samuel - DO THE MATHS AGAIN
and come up with another theory
Ray, Aylesbury, England
Here we go again with this golden generation nonsense. Did you actually see the Croatia game? England were played off the park by a country with no world class players and a population of 4 million. You can't blame McClaren for everything, England were just as bad under Sven and he's a good manager
Jim Fitzgerald, Beckenham, Kent
that was the most upbeat thing said about the english team in years , your article was very intresting and I cant agree more about your article .
James , carmarthen , Wales
Strange isn't it that those who can't see the wisdom or logic in Martin Samuel's brilliant articles DON'T LIVE IN ENGLAND but all have opinions about the england team...nearly all hostile!
But then I couldn't get excited about football in Malta, India, USA or Australia either!
Ian, Wokingham, england
Good God, get a life will yer? England's OUT!!
Shaun , Hong Kong,
Mr Samuel is spot on as usual. I detect no arrogance, just a simple stating of facts. Why shouldn't the English be positive? Moping ain't gonna do much good, is it? One of these days they just might get it right!
Ken Moore, Niagara Falls, Canada
more narrow minded, cant see the wood for the trees analysis from samuel. how many germany players were in moscow? who will no doubt be in the final of euro 08?
clearly banging his england drum in a vain attempt to get supporters behind the team, just to tear them apart again down the line.
ivor, london,
You have to remember is its been a weak champions league in terms of the foreign challenge! Barca had been in dissaray all season, AC Milan were worse and finished fifth domestically, Real Madrid are in transition under Schuster and Bayern weren't even in the competition. Next year is the true test
David, Perth, United Kingdom
You have to remember is its been a weak champions league in terms of the foreign challenge! Barca had been in dissaray all season, AC Milan were worse and finished fifth domestically, Real Madrid are in transition under Schuster and Bayern weren't even in the competition. Next year is the true test
David, Perth, United Kingdom
Amazing, a week ago, Samuel and his colleagues wrote that "English" football dominated Europe and the world. Now, minus the foreigners, you find where English football truly is these days...playing a friendly against the colonies while the rest of the world is watching the real thing.
Ilja, Sliema, Malta
Ah I love the English, they always think they can win (yes win !) a world cup or a european championships even when they have failed to qualify for the previous tournament, and such arrogant thinking allows (perpetuates even) the spiral of failure to continue....dear oh dear
Jee Mojney, Dublin, Ireland
The problem is this attitude of seemingly belonging at the top of football.When Greece won the European cup their football was slated in England, despite them beating Portugal twice & France (who England lost to) & the Czechs who were the form team. We should learn to win before passing judgement.
Michael Clayton, Swindon,
The fault was McClaren, the FA and those who still think that England teams have to play old-fashioned blood and thunder football when the game has moved on.
Coincidentally, USA94 was the last decent World Cup. Bulgaria! Romania!
J. Wilkes, Gloucester,
Well said mate. Class article, all of it true.
Josh Dickson, Preston, UK
At the moment, the rest of Europe is quite happy to have a tournament without the 'home nations' in attendance, not least because English football's highly inflated view of itself needs to be knocked down from time to time, lest it rise too far into the stratosphere.
Jos Meijer, Maastricht,
English players are talented; the England team is poor. Good players thus don't always equal a good team.
To have a good team, however, you do not need good players (see Bolton: circa 2006-7). You do need good tactics and winning attitude. Something England lacked in 2008 qualification.
Dunc, Sheffield, UK
Yes, we have some excellent players, but we are still missing the decent players in the two most important positions in the team - a reliable keeper and a prolific goalscorer. These are the 2 positions at the sharp end that make the biggest difference, and we are badly lacking in both.
Paul, London,
We got what we deserved for being too arrogant. McLaren was the scapegoat for underperforming, overpaid, pampered players and the sham that is the FA. I couldn't care less about the England team anymore; they've let us down too many times.
Paul, West Midlands,
Poor Mr Samuel...
You're not in, that's all. You will do better the next time.
Set your english players free for a while and appreciate Euro 2008 behind you TV.
Platoche, Rouen, France
Slavan bilic deserves more praise because even without the greatest players in the world, Croatia still mopped the floor with England at Wembly. English stars ARE overrated!! If you can't even take a penalty, why talk?
sibhi, bangalore, india
Yes of course, we have 'world class' players,but it's all the managers fault if we don't succeed.Same old media mantra.
Strangely,we have had 'world class 'players for over 50 years but no success.Fast forward 4 years,no success,but our players are still 'world class' ,and Capello called useless.
chris dee, london,
James Cole Ferdinand Terry Brown Carrick Lampard Gerrard Hargreaves Cole Rooney
Not far from the team that failed to impress in World Cup 06, to qualify to Euro 08, or to perform in Paris recently...
Clear potential yes but the group did not mature together and misses quality back up on the bench
Pierre75, Paris, France
Agains't Croatia at Wembley the stand out mistake that McLaren made was the goalkeeper. With Sol Campbell brought back the obvious choice was David James, the idea being that they play week in week out together, both with vast international experience and the ability to marshall a makeshift defence.
Michael, London,
However bad a job McLaren did, we must appreciate that the Barry-Gerrard axis that he stumbled upon (injuries necessitated Barry's inclusion) catalysed the most fluid England displays in recent memory. It was only lapses from a makeshift defence against Russia and Croatia which halted that momentum.
Dan, Cambridge,
And if you believe that, you'll believe anything.
Steven, East Kilbride,
*Only 300 letters*English players problem seems to be a lack of adaptability.They can only play in England.They only play well for their club team.Because of its familiarity?As soon as they pull on an England shirt its like rabbits in headlights.This is not the coaches fault - its the players.
Ally, Auckland, NZ
Some of England's key players put in more effort for their clubs than for the national team. England is an optiional extra to them. Club football comes first. Their managers also tell them to take it easy. Unless we learn to put International football at the very pinnacle we will not compete.
Mark, Grangemouth, UK
the arrogance never ceases to amaze me. you lot lost home and away to Croatia with all of your "superstars". maybe they just aint as good as you, and they, think they are.
Andrew, Rosyth, Scotland
The problem with the England set-up isn't the 1st X1, it's the lack of quality in the rest of the squad. This was highlighted by the performance of the defence when we lost at home against Croatia, and by the fact that we brought on Darren Bent for the last ten minutes to score that elusive goal!
James, Sydney,
Some truths are self evident - McClaren was a disaster waiting to happen.
Strange that it took so long for anyone to recognise the mistake.
The FA is distracted from international priorities by its greed in seeking to milk the PL for every last cent it can get. Reform has not gone far enough.
Dan V, london, UK
Theres a big difference between playing with someone beside you for 40+ games a season to having a get together for a couple of days several times a year then playing a competitive international, isn't there? How many times have Ferdinand and Terry played together for example?
Ally, Auckland, NZ
We've got some great players but no team can succeed if the players play badly and for some reason,there are always at least 8 or 9 England players who play to about 20% of their ability when they put on an England shirt and unless Capello can somehow stop this happening,we will always fail.
Fergus Sira-Lexon, England,
So Mr. Samuel according to you players like Torres, Mascherano, Alonso who knocked out Inter & Arsenal & just about got beaten by Chelsea, are nothing without Stevie & Carra. Your dislike of Liverpool couldn't be more apparent.
Pauline Barbara, Marsascala, Malta
There you go again! The players Samuel mentions are the very players you did not qualify for Euro 2008. Sure, some players missed games but England failed to win games it should win. Maybe if Ronaldo and Drogba get British citizenship England would win something.
Simon, saint louis, usa
Another BRILLIANT article!!! Samuel for England!!!!
Chidi, London,