EURO2012 Started on June 8th, and I am a big fan of soccer !! Therefore, I would like to share some personal thoughts with everyone. However, I did not upload this post on time, and it turned to be an "old cake " now.
When the continental tournament kicks off in Poland and Ukraine in 24 hours, we will have a very small contingent of Man U players to look at – the smallest in a big tournament in recent years.
Personally, I am struggling to get too excited about the tournament. I think the fog of last season is still hovering over me like a long hangover. The thought of cheering on John Terry who will be beating his chest like the faux warrior he claims to be is a tough one, as Rio should be playing in his place. I have been thinking about the “England ” situation a bit over the past few days.
First, the manager should have been Harry Redknapp. He was the obvious stand out candidate. The issue with England is not ability as we there are some extremely good and World Class players – it’s with attitude. I know that football is very tribal. Clubs mates stick together. We all know that Gerrard and Terry don’t get along and this is the only ones we really know about. They play as individuals been forced to play together for the greater good. I bet JT and Lamps snigger about the fact Carroll is half the player Drogba is. This creates a scenario where unity isn’t there.
Second, the FA is the most incompetent body in the world, bar FIFA.
It is extremely difficult to understand why the FA have decided to go
with Hodgson. I would imagine that Daniel Levy and the compensation was a
big stumbling block.
Also, Hodgson is yes man -speaks many languages and was certainly the safe option. Rednapp, like Brian Clough, would have been more of a risky appointment. We all know that he fell out with Brooking at West Ham which I am sure was also was an influence. They have made numerous mistakes like playing the FA Semi finals at Wembley, paying Capello £4m a season and failing to sack him because of the compensation after the disastrous World Cup campaign.
There is perhaps one thing going for England this time round, and that’s the lowered expectations. There is less pressure on the team than the World Cup in SA, and the media have not made the usual love-ins and erected messiah figures which of course is followed by failure.
Looking at the squad, the lack of technical midfielders like Carrick, Milner and Lampard is a big blow. Ball retention is key against European teams, but countries like Sweden and Ukraine appear to be similarly impoverished of technical players so the outlook in terms of qualifying to the last 8 is optimistic.
Quarter finals and beyond, England could try Chelsea style 10 men defending, but the big man up front won’t be Drogba, it will be Carroll the big useless lump or Welbeck who will be auditioning for Dancing on Ice. Rooney will be playing in midfield essentially which is a terrible waste as he is England’s only world class attacker, and defensive midfielders will gobble him up.
Lets see how the team fares this time. I hope for the best, but I won’t be holding my breath.
When the continental tournament kicks off in Poland and Ukraine in 24 hours, we will have a very small contingent of Man U players to look at – the smallest in a big tournament in recent years.
Personally, I am struggling to get too excited about the tournament. I think the fog of last season is still hovering over me like a long hangover. The thought of cheering on John Terry who will be beating his chest like the faux warrior he claims to be is a tough one, as Rio should be playing in his place. I have been thinking about the “England ” situation a bit over the past few days.
First, the manager should have been Harry Redknapp. He was the obvious stand out candidate. The issue with England is not ability as we there are some extremely good and World Class players – it’s with attitude. I know that football is very tribal. Clubs mates stick together. We all know that Gerrard and Terry don’t get along and this is the only ones we really know about. They play as individuals been forced to play together for the greater good. I bet JT and Lamps snigger about the fact Carroll is half the player Drogba is. This creates a scenario where unity isn’t there.
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| Euro2012 schedule took it from http://euronews2012.com/57-euro-2012-fixtures-1.html |
Also, Hodgson is yes man -speaks many languages and was certainly the safe option. Rednapp, like Brian Clough, would have been more of a risky appointment. We all know that he fell out with Brooking at West Ham which I am sure was also was an influence. They have made numerous mistakes like playing the FA Semi finals at Wembley, paying Capello £4m a season and failing to sack him because of the compensation after the disastrous World Cup campaign.
There is perhaps one thing going for England this time round, and that’s the lowered expectations. There is less pressure on the team than the World Cup in SA, and the media have not made the usual love-ins and erected messiah figures which of course is followed by failure.
Looking at the squad, the lack of technical midfielders like Carrick, Milner and Lampard is a big blow. Ball retention is key against European teams, but countries like Sweden and Ukraine appear to be similarly impoverished of technical players so the outlook in terms of qualifying to the last 8 is optimistic.
Quarter finals and beyond, England could try Chelsea style 10 men defending, but the big man up front won’t be Drogba, it will be Carroll the big useless lump or Welbeck who will be auditioning for Dancing on Ice. Rooney will be playing in midfield essentially which is a terrible waste as he is England’s only world class attacker, and defensive midfielders will gobble him up.
Lets see how the team fares this time. I hope for the best, but I won’t be holding my breath.
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