Roy must abandon the past to move England forward
Instigating change is tough in football. This week has shown the dangers of doing it quickly, with Andre Villas Boas coming under instant pressure at Tottenham and Brendan Rodgers’ Liverpool struggling to come to terms with the new style of football that was the signature of his Swansea team. It is unsurprising then that Roy Hodgson, holder of the poison chalice that is the England manager’s job, has distanced himself from this new fad, insisting that he is in no rush to dispose of the ironically named ‘Golden Generation’, which has never led England to anything like silverware, never mind gold.
At the heart of the issue, as usual, is England’s midfield dilemma. For years the questions in the build-up to England games surrounded which of the 400 players England had tried on the left side of midfield would be given the nod to start the upcoming match. Nowadays another issue is at hand. The centre of midfield the position up for debate, particularly with injuries to steady Gareth Barry and golden boy Jack Wilshere leaving Hodgson with such depleted options in the area that Jordan Henderson cannot be far away from another call-up.
As a result, in the build-up to Friday’s World Cup qualifier in Moldova Hodgson has intimated that he may select Steven Gerrard and Frank Lampard alongside each other in the middle of the park. It would be a disappointing decision by Hodgson, who flatters to deceive by suggesting he is ready to make brave decisions by selecting the likes of Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain and yet continues to follow in the path of his predecessors by sticking with squad players who have previously been found wanting and making tactical decisions such as the Gerrard-Lampard one which are likely to see England move backwards rather than forwards. England have failed to reach the last four of a major tournament since 1996, and yet Hodgson seems to think that nothing is broken and therefore, as the saying goes, he is not going to fix it. In reality, the time has surely come to realise that international success for England can only follow large-scale changes.
Sir Alex Ferguson, the best of the bunch among managers, recognises this need for change to reignite a team, and having suffered the bitter disappointment of defeat to the ‘noisy neighbours’ last year on goal difference, he has drastically altered his attacking options. The futures of key players such as Nani and even Wayne Rooney have been thrown into question, with new blood such as Shinji Kagawa and Robin van Persie providing a new dimension at Old Trafford. Ferguson has never been one to fear cutting ties, with countless superstars like Keane, Beckham and van Nistelrooy able to testify that when he feels a player needs to be moved on for the good of the team, Ferguson is never slow to respond. It is one of the many characteristics that make him arguably the greatest club manager of modern times.
Obviously, the task is significantly less straightforward for Hodgson. If he decides to usher the likes of Gerrard and Lampard from the international set-up, he cannot simply spend an oligarch’s ransom on a world-class midfield player to replace them in the same way that top club sides can. He must look to promote from within, and the number of international standard players in England declining, with the influx of foreign talent that makes its way to the Barclay’s Premier League every summer leaving even those with the most exciting of potential such as Danny Sturridge, Danny Welbeck and Steven Caulker with a tough battle to hold down a first-team place. These three players are all examples of those who have dropped down to clubs of lesser resources on loan to learn their trade , but a mid-table Premier League club does not prepare them for international football in the same way as Champions’ League experience with a club that teaches them the habit of winning. As a result, many of the best young English players are still learning the game at the top level.
But it is too easy to say that picking Gerrard and Lampard in midfield together is the best option because there is no better option. Barry and Wilshere may have been the pair’s closest rivals if fit, but they are far from the only options. Tom Cleverley shone in his last England outing. Jack Rodwell looks to have added an extra dimension to his game in his brief spell at Manchester City, and has also impressed in his fleeting cameos at the heart of the England midfield. Michael Carrick, recently returned to the international scene, has won countless medals down the years but has never been a regular starter for England. Leon Britton had a pass completion rate to rival Andres Iniesta, and yet has never been considered for an England side that was shown to be hopelessly incapable of retaining possession at Euro 2012.
These players may currently be on the rung below Gerrard and Lampard as individuals, but that is not to say that they should be disregarded as options for what is fast becoming a problem position for Hodgson. After all, creating a great football team isn’t about picking the most talented players, but about picking the best team to win the match. Sergio Busquets, for example, is a regular for Barcelona and Spain, there are many other rivals for his place that would be considered more technically proficient. The Gerrard-Lampard axis has never looked natural since Lampard became an England regular in the build-up to Euro 2004. They have had plenty of chances, and have shown what they are capable of. With this pairing in midfield, England might get to the quarter finals of major tournaments, but they are regularly hopelessly outclassed against the world’s elite.
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The conservatives will argue that wholesale changes may result in disaster. England may fail to qualify for the World Cup. They may get knocked out in the group stages. But in reality what is the difference between a first round exit and a quarter final? Both are failures. Both will be greeted with the same feeling of deflation that has become all too familiar to England fans in recent years. England need to improve, and only experimentation and new ideas can lead to improvement. Selecting the same team again and again will lead to continuity, and for England, continuity is no longer the order of the day. So come on Roy. Take a chance, go for glory. Make England exciting again. Make a change.
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