*Written before England kicked off their World Cup campaign on Saturday, 12 June 2010
Part Three of SER’s FIFA 2010 World Cup coverage
Special Focus: England’s chances in South Africa
Time for the “Golden Generation” to deliver. Surely a team comprised of some of the world’s best players, including the likes of John Terry, Rio Ferdinand, Ashley Cole, Steven Gerrard, and Wayne Rooney, under the tutelage of Don Capello, the mastermind who guided England to the World Cup, can win the tournament. It is important to note that, yes, while they have not recorded victories against tournament favourites Brazil and Spain, this England squad will have learnt, as will their manager.
Some doubts do remain though, particularly with regards to the final squad selection. Eyebrows were raised (certainly mine) when certain players were announced. That Shaun Wright-Phillips was selected over his City teammate Adam Johnson (who took his place in Robert Mancini’s starting 11) is puzzling. So to is Capello’s option to bring a half-fit Gareth Barry with no substantial backup. Tom Huddlestone did not impress during the warm up games and Michael Carrick looks like a shadow of the player that he is. His poor form and lack of games in the last third of the season worries me, particularly as he seems to be the only English midfielder in recent squads with the ability to retain possession! Why Scott Parker was left behind and not even used in England’s warm up games is beyond me. He has been in absolutely outstanding form this season and of the West Ham players in the provisional squad, he should have been top of the list. I think England will miss him this summer, especially with Gareth Barry unlike to feature until Englands second game against Algeria (and even then…)
Defensively they look solid enough. The starting back four is almost certainly Johnson-Terry-Ferdinand-Cole unless one of them gets injured or suspended. It will be interesting to see how Capello’s gamble on Ledley King turns out. When fit, King is perhaps England’s finest centre-half. Everyone’s said it, but keeping him fit for the tournament will be almost as hard as winning the thing itself! Upson seems to have a decent understanding with John Terry, as they displayed during Qualifying, but I don’t see him getting a game. He is fifth choice at centre half and unless something happens to Ferdinand, King, and Carragher, Upson won’t line up alongside Chelsea’s skipper in South Africa.
Up front is a mess. Heskey may have brought out the best in Rooney during Qualifying, but he was relatively ineffective during the warm ups and I don’t expect any different from him in South Africa. England’s other frontment don’t look likely to add to the tally either. Crouch has a superb scoring rate for country, but I don’t see him getting a game – Capello doesn’t seem to like him. Both Defoe and Rooney finished the season on a dry spell. They will need to recapture the form from earlier in the year that made both of them favourites for this summer’s Golden Boot.
England should top the group; there is absolutely no doubt about that. They should pick up six points against Algeria and Slovakia, and while their opening fixture against the USA in Rustenberg could be a tricky one, I think England should be able to squeeze out a result. Side note here: I actually have two brackets – one with England going all the way, and one slightly more “realistic” with Spain against the Netherlands in the final. I say realistic for lack of a better word. If attacking players like Steven Gerrard, Joe Cole, Frank Lampard, and Wayne Rooney are firing on all cylinders, then England can go far. That said, they must be solid at the back too and cannot afford anymore goalkeeping errors.
Prediction: Semi-Finals
