Welcome to the Jungle

The draw for the 2014 World Cup has been and gone, with England finding themselves placed in Group D alongside Uruguay, Italy and Costa Rica. Before the draw many within the media had shared their thoughts on the 'best' and 'worst' case scenarios, the same way they would have four years prior. Back then we would have been feeling pretty pleased with ourselves after being drawn a relatively problem free group on paper. Once again England expected, once again England disappointed. We scraped through that 'problem free' group, finishing second to the USA before being torn apart by a young, vibrant German side in the second round. Expectations should not be as high going into next years finals, it will be more of a case of 'England Hopes' than 'England expects'. Throw in the fact that no European team has won a world cup in South America and I would hope that logic will prevail within the media this time around.

The opening game of the group sees Roy Hodgson's men take on Italy in the Amazonian city of Manaus. Not an ideal location to play by any means, but I feel it is a good thing that we are at least playing a European nation in this game. Italy too will have to acclimatise to the tremendous heat and humidity in Manaus, don't expect to see a World Cup classic played out here. Temperatures are likely to reach around 30 degrees and a humidity level of around 80%, Hodgson had himself described Manaus as 'the place to avoid'. As you may all have read, this went down an absolute storm with the local Mayor, Arthur Virgilio, so at least we will have the locals backing...

Last time the two teams met in a major tournament, it was Euro 2012, which saw England camp out in their own half for the majority of the game before their customary exit via the penalty shoot out. Ball retention against the bigger nations has always been a problem in recent years, something which could cause massive problems in Manaus. Remember 'the ball doesn't sweat', one can imagine the Italians will try to dictate the game by dominating possession once again. Chasing the game in this kind of humidity does not sound like a recipe for success and is something Hodgson will have to think about when picking his starting XI.

Next up, England find themselves taking on 2010 semi finalist Uruguay in Sao Paulo on the 19^th June. Luckily this is closer to their Rio camp, meaning a similar climate. Unfortunately, we find ourselves facing a South American side (already used to this climate) with an undoubtedly strong yet ageing squad. They do boast two of the worlds most prolific strikers in Edison Cavani and a certain Luis Suarez (I think some of you may have heard of him), who England will have to contain in this second, crucial game if they want to progress. Uruguay are a team who have played together for some time and will be the last chance of glory on the international stage for the elder statesmen in their squad. Uruguay are a team who know how to play their strengths, often with the defence and midfield playing close together, then looking to utilise their strike force on the break. Don't be fooled by the fact Uruguay had to qualify via the play-offs either, the South American campaign is a long and gruelling one with some fantastic games occurring in varying climates. They will be a handful and I'm sure Suarez will be reminding us of just how good he can be whilst playing for Liverpool in the coming months.

So this leaves Costa Rica, in what could be a must win game depending on what happens against Italy and Uruguay. With wanting to be positive and all, lets not even discuss the possibility of a dead rubber being played out here! The final penultimate game of the group will be played in Belo Horizonte on the 24^th June, another game not too far from England’s base in Rio. England played in this city at the last world cup in Brazil, famously losing to the USA back in 1950. Lets not dwell on that fact though, Costa Rica are the weakest team in the group (on paper at least) and many would have already marked this down as a win, with the first two games shaping England's chances. Many people won't know a great deal about Costa Rica bar the name Paulo Wanchope and I can clarify today that there is a no chance of him making the squad this time around. In all seriousness, they are not a team that should be taken for granted, just look what happened when we played Algeria at the last World Cup. Yes, it is a game we should win but they will no doubt be fired up for causing an upset as massive underdogs in Group D. Just ask how easy the Scottish found their game against them at Italia 90, not that Scotland find any game easy these days (sorry, couldn't resist!). Los Ticos finished second behind USA in the final qualifying stage of the CONCACAF section, with outstanding performances from Fulham play maker Bryan Ruiz and Arsenal's Joel Campbell assisting them in the process. They will be somewhat of an unknown quantity to England and will certainly be more accustomed to the sort of climate the players will be facing.

Overall, this is going to be a tough group without question, based on ranking it is actually the second toughest group behind Group G. But as they say, 'if you want to be the best, you have to beat the best'...and Costa Rica. The most important thing for England is ensuring that they give themselves a chance going into that final game. We are massive underdogs to win (rightly so), so why not use this as a basis for getting a positive atmosphere within the England camp and the country. Everybody loves an underdog remember? We breed this very mentality more than anyone in the world within our domestic leagues. Just look at the FA cup, more specifically that famous 3^rd round of fixtures where on the day, anybody can beat anybody. This would be a breath of fresh air from the standard 'build them up, then knock them down' approach we have seen in previous world cups. Its not going to be easy, I just hope that for a change we don't hear the usual hype that goes hand in hand with England entering a World Cup. Let's take it one game at a time and see what happens from there, get yourself out of that group and you should be fearless and brimming with confidence. Roy Hodgson will not just have to manage the squad, he will also have to manage expectations within the media, not something an England coach is historically given the chance to do. This maybe considered a 'group of death' but what we as fans will get to see, is three exciting games that really could go in any direction. This is why we watch football.

A National Problem

The transfer window has been and gone, Jim White has survived another deadline day without physically bursting due to excitement. Over £630m was spent by English teams as managers thrashed out deals to strengthen their squads where necessary. Arsenal left it late but it was a signing worth waiting for. Ozil is without doubt the signing of the summer in the Premier League, he oozes class and still looks a bargain when you compare his fee to other transfers this summer around Europe.

Elsewhere, after 3 months of chasing, Real Madrid inevitably got their man in Gareth Bale. Spurs were quick to act in using these funds to sign new recruitments, bringing in seven new faces. A good bit of business on Spurs behalf, effectively balancing their books for the summer with the sale of Bale. One noticeable transfer out apart from Bale, was the sale of Steven Caulker to Cardiff for a reported fee of £9m. He was quickly replaced with Vlad Chiriches, a 23 year old Romanian for a similar fee. Spurs historically are a club who are willing to blood young, English talent and allow them time to nurture and develop their skills. Players like Aaron Lennon, Michael Dawson and Kyle Walker were all snapped up as youngsters and are now first team regulars. But for how long remains to be seen. Andros Townsend has shown glimpses of the player he could become, but with the arrivals of Erik Lamela, Paulinho, Christian Errikson and Nacer Chadli in the attacking positions, how many first team chances is he now likely to get at Spurs?

 

In the pursuit of glory comes the need for instant results, a team capable of competing and succeeding now, not in 5 years time. Managers in the Premier League can no longer afford to be patient with their younger players and allow them an opportunity to learn their trade at the highest level. Just a few poor results can lead to a manager losing their job, so why take the risk? This pressure not only comes from the board but from us, the fans. You just have to take a look at the the fact that Brendan Rogers, having been in charge of Liverpool for just over a year, is now the 5^th longest serving manager in the league. The prize money for competing in the Premier League is greater than ever, there is no room for patience and loyalty when money is involved.

So lets go back to that £630m (a new record for the Premier League by the way), of that figure only £60m was spent on English players. 35% of the players in the Premier League qualify to play for the national team, a figure that has been in steady decline in the last 15 years. In 1998 when Glenn Hoddle was deciding on his squad for the World Cup, 49% of the players playing in the Premier League were English. This is not a problem that has crept up on us overnight, yet only now are the F.A thinking of acting.

The problem is we have a conflict of interest between the F.A and the Premier League. The Premier League want to provide the best 'product' to a global market, having to live up to their own 'best league in the world' hype thats drummed into the fans at every available opportunity via Sky's coverage. The Premier League define themselves as:

'the organising body of the Barclays Premier League with responsibility for the competition, its Rule Book and the centralised broadcast and other commercial rights.

However, we do not operate in isolation, instead we work proactively and constructively with our Member Clubs and the other football authorities to improve the quality of football both in England and across the world'

There can be little doubt that the Premier League has improved the standard of football displayed in our top division. With a new broadcast contract introduced last season, clubs in England now have more financial muscle than ever to attract the worlds top players to the league. Add a flurry of foreign investors into the mix, some wishing to change historical aspects of the club they have owned for about five minutes. Although there will be some resistance to these changes initially by the fans, as long as you deliver success, the change from blue to red or city to tigers will be quickly forgiven. This begs the question, do the ever increasing foreign owners in the Premier League have any real interest in producing home grown talent in their pursuit for a return on their investment? Why wait for the next golden generation to develop in the youths when you can buy world class players now?

Unfortunately it is this phrase, 'world class', where we come unstuck as a nation. How many truly world class players have we produced over the years? If you look at the current England squad, how many of them would slot into the Spanish team for example? With Spain being the current bench mark, I could think of maybe only Ashley Cole. Love him or hate him, Cole is without doubt a world class left back. He is one of the few full backs who has managed to mark Cristiano Ronaldo out of a game on numerous occasions. This is not to say that we don't have good players, overall we are a solid side. If the game against Ukraine recently showed us anything, it's that our strength still lies in defending. Being 'solid' will only get you so far however and is not enough to win you the big games in international football.

There is no one single solution to the English problem. Greg Dyke is the man charged with finding this solution, not an enviable job by any means. We have a 9 year plan to reach the final of the 2022 World Cup and Semi final of the 2018 European Championships. I completely agree with Dykes assessment that you have to measure your success against a goal, the finer details of achieving this goal are being looked by the F.A. Its also reassuring to hear the Premier League clubs have agreed to assist the F.A in their pursuit of this goal, this will hopefully make the process as smooth as possible whatever plan the F.A decide to implement.

There are so many things for them to consider in order to ensure we achieve that goal. At the moment one of the fundamental reasons that English players aren’t dominating Premier League teams is because they simply aren't good enough. Foreign players are usually drafted in by managers because of their quality and value for money. Young English players often come at a premium if they show even a glimpse of talent, why pay £50 million for Andy Carroll when you can get Christian Benteke for £7 million? The crème rises to the top and I don't buy into this myth that foreign players are holding young English talent back. Ferguson didn't pick the likes of Beckham, Neville, Scholes, Butt etc, because they were young and English, he picked them because he believed they had they were good enough to put on the shirt of Manchester United and perform to the level expected of a player in that red shirt.

Pre-Premier League, we weren't exactly setting the world alight in International tournaments during an era where English talent was ever present in the top flight. We need to revolutionize the way we coach our youngsters and develop them through those all important early years. Its not that long ago that kids as young as 7 or 8 were playing competitive games on full sized pitches, with the emphasis being placed on height and strength from an early age. Get the ball to the big lad at the back who can kick it the furthest, he whacks it forward as quick as he can to get the team into attacking positions and the opposition on the back foot. Play the percentages you were told and winning was the most important thing. Not possession, nor skill technique...winning. Hell when I was a kid, skill was often frowned upon by youth managers and the kid was then labelled a bit of a show off. It's probably because of this emphasis on winning from an early age that the England national team have won so little, ironic huh?

We are many years behind the likes of Spain, Holland and France ( I could go on, it may depress you if I do, so I will stop) in terms of developing our youth and implementing a style of play from the grass roots up. This is not a problem that is suddenly going to solve itself over night because Greg Dyke has held a press conference, far from it. We need to be patient and ensure that the right measures are put in place to make sure that English players are dominating starting XI's up and down the country. Not just because they are English, but because they are good enough. Spain didn't become world beaters in just a few years, for decades they couldn't win a trophy for love nor money. It is not an impossible dream, we need to accept maybe just maybe our way isn't right and who knows, we could be the worlds envy come 2022...