da winzada777： Assuming you are of the age 20 and over, this article is more than relevant to you. This is because throughout judging your average expected lifespan, I can tell you the very sad, yet expected news that England won’t win a major trophy in our lifetime.
da dobrowin： Why is this, well if like me you have seen England try and fail so many times you start to question whether even watching an England match is just too much to take, join every single other England fan. I will also base this on the fact the last time England won was in 1966, 47 years ago, so if you are 20, you could be 67. Even then it still doesn’t look that likely. Although I must admit a crop of new players statistically speaking will come round every 20 years, and the future may bring with it some luck and talent. I have to be honest and say I have no idea what our players will be like in 20/30/40 years time. I can only go by what players we have no and the emerging talent that is coming through.
So lets start with the players we have currently. Despite having a poor season the Goalkeeping department remains strong in Joe Hart. With youth and a first team slot at Manchester City on his side, Hart will be solid for sometime. After coming out of International retirement, Ben Foster has more than earned his place back in the international fold. He has provided many a sturdy performance and will be seen as a reliable back up for the foreseeable future. The defence however looks in some trouble. At left back all seems positive, Ashley Cole has just won his 100th cap and Leighton Baines has had yet another stunning season at Goodison Park. Right back is less secure, Kyle Walker hasn’t held down a regular place and while Glen Johnson has filled in, he seems to struggle in the defensive department a little. At Centre Back there is a massive gap, with both John Terry and Rio Ferdinand having now retired no one seems to have stepped up to the task. Currently there are three main contenders; Phil Jagielka, Gary Cahill and Joleon Lescott, with only one of these actually holding down a regular starting spot for their respective clubs. This is our weakest point and having a weak defence leaks goals. The midfield is mixed and very inconsistent. Compare it to Spain’s team and you could name their starting 11 in a heartbeat, when it comes to England’s midfield it’s pot luck. Steven Gerrard and Frank Lampard are ageing despite the latter having a terrific season. Jack Wilshere is forever injured and Tom Cleverly just hasn’t shown enough about him to quite make it. On the wings there is more hope with Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain and Theo Walcott. Although I truly believe Walcott is more of a forward, his pace can be used to devastating effect on the wings. His form though is drib drab and doesn’t seem to be regular. Oxlade-Chamberlain can’t tie down a regular spot at Arsenal which is crucial if he is to get a place. In the forward department we according to some, have a world class striker. His inconsistency and his want away from Manchester United do not make him world class. Yet he’s arguably the best we have. Various counter-parts have taken on the task as co-striker, Jermain Defoe, Darren Bent and Andy Carroll to name a few. Again all of these not showing many signs of deadliness in front of goal. More recently Daniel Sturridge has shown excellent form and has deserved his shot in the England fold. Overall our team currently contains a mixture of inconsistency and irregularity with a pinch of just not good enough.
So what slight positives are there for the future? In terms of defence Chris Smalling and Phil Jones offer a partnership which could be testing. If they could hold down regular spots next to each other for United it would greatly impact the national team. We saw this on a larger scale with Pique and Puyol dominating La Liga and the Spain squad. In midfield if Wilshere can mature without injury he could potentially be a world class player. In the friendly win against Brazil at Wembley earlier this year he showed as much flair as any of the opposition. As mentioned earlier Oxlade-Chamberlain is still young and has plenty of time to turn into a menacing winger. If played consistently, the Ox will surely flourish. Interestingly on the opposite flank, a new talent which I’m sure we will see more of in the 2013/14 Premier League season, is Championship Play-Off Man of the Match, Wilfried Zaha. Having signed for United in January Zaha is one of the brightest prospects of English football in recent years. England have never seemed to have that Lionel Messi, Cristiano Ronaldo, Ronaldinho, David Villa or Mesut Ozil that other teams have. Could Zaha finally be a player who can bring more spark and flair into a very traditionally played team. If all these players in a dream world became as good as we wished, alongside in form Jo Hart, Wayne Rooney and Daniel Sturridge it would be a very exciting fast paced team. Still enough to be world beaters? I’m not so convinced.
The future may tell a different tale, with the change of the youth setup introducing 9v9 and junior pitches we may see more skill. However it seems to me unless something drastic happens, it will always be same old England. As far as the manager goes, it’s an impossible task for anyone. The media need to get a vast grip of realisation, we’re not going to be winning World Cups, not when we struggle to qualify for it. We should be happy to be there in the first place. The world rankings do not help admittedly, there are far better teams who should be placed above us. A change in perception is needed, the future may bring happier teams, but unfortunately in our time, no trophies.