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Change in England set up needs to be immediate
With England’s World Cup campaign coming to an absolutely shambolic end, the potential ramifications are now being digested and acted upon - whether Fabio Capello will remain as England’s manager seems to be the most pertinent question given his lack of success in guiding England to the previously expected quarter-final stage. Indeed, England’s inability to reach the same levels as they did under the up till now maligned Swede Sven Göran-Eriksson is a damning indictment of Capello’s ability to lead England to any form of success. For that, regardless of Capello’s obvious talent as a coach, there needs to be an investigation as to why England failed so drastically.
But, of course, Capello only failed as England manager because the players failed him. There is an obvious retort in that it was Capello’s omission of new blood and his misguided trust in experienced players that resulted in England’s exit but essentially, England’s undoubtedly talented players were unable to produce the form they do for their respective clubs or indeed the form they showed in qualifying for the tournament. Eventually, England’s core group of players that includes John Terry, Steven Gerrard, Frank Lampard, Ashley Cole and Wayne Rooney, all let Capello down. It is not the first time they have let their Coach down and perhaps it is now time for the Football Association to recognise English football needs a change in direction and that should begin with encouragement in bringing new players into the international fold. That core group, Wayne Rooney and Ashley Cole excluded, have probably experienced their last World Cup,along with David James, Michael Carrick, Gareth Barry, Emile Heskey, Ledley King, Rio Ferdinand, Shaun Wright-Phillips and Peter Crouch. After the debacles English football has witnessed in the last three major tournaments (2008’s European Championship qualification failure included), this can only be a good thing. The change from a group of players that were unable to rouse a performance worthy of their collective reputations to a new squad must be the next step.
That step should be taken (although it will be highly unlikely if Fabio Capello remains) with the next squad to be announced for England’s qualification campaign for the European Championships in 2012. That first fixture which arrives on the 3rd September against Bulgaria should signal the start of something new for England. Players such as Gabriel Agbonlahor, Adam Johnson, Micah Richards and Michael Dawson should all now be trusted to spearhead a revitalised England. There is absolutely no sense in keeping any continuity with the current squad - they are old hap that have failed to produce too many times now and as a result, they should be thanked for their service and omitted from future England squads. John Terry et al are not the future for England and prolonging their international careers would be fruitless. Indeed, it could harm the progression of England’s younger players. The upcoming qualification fixtures should be viewed as a project for the national team and one that tests our inexperienced players - we have seen them all play in the Premier League and they are far from incompetent and it is not unreasonable to suggest they would be able to qualify for the Euros. By then, with two years of time together and a successful qualifying campaign (coupled with two extra seasons at club level to add experience), England may be able to bring something different to a tournament.
It is remarkable how often England’s talent is forgotten or merely dismissed as not good enough. It is quite conceivable to think up an England team based around players under 25 years of age that could have gotten to the last 16. Joe Hart, Micah Richards, Michael Dawson, Adam Johnson, Ashley Young, Jack Wilshire, Ashley Young and many others are all very, very competent players that would offer England something different to the tiring squad picked by Fabio Capello. Of course it would have been reckless to choose this kind of squad this time round but it should certainly be considered for the qualifying stage beginning in September.
The main talking points from this early exit will be the goal that never was, Wayne Rooney’s apparent inability to play basic football, Capello’s squad selection and whether he will remain but in the long term, the question of whether it is now time to remove England’s ageing squad and replace most of them with a new breed of English players. Perhaps the benefits would not become immediately apparent but success should be a gradual process and that process should be begun as soon as is feasibly possible.
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