or has he played a clever game?
I’ve been struggling to figure out what Roy Hodgson is playing at since his squad for the forthcoming Euros was announced.
Is the list just a 23 – or 28 with the standbys – name resignation letter, or has he picked a squad that has been met with so much disdain to make it easier when England fail miserably. I mean with that lot if you’re expecting great things in Poland and Ukraine then there’s an email from Nigeria in your inbox needs your immediate attention.
I expect it’s the former. I wanted Roy to have the job, for years now, I wanted him to succeed but now I see the error of my ways because what we’ve got is the new boss… same as the old boss.
It’s the same old usual suspects, it’s the same old usual failures, it’s the same old usual picking players who are neither fit or in form, it’s the same old story, same old song and dance.
Yes Roy was hamstrung by certain players being unavailable, such as Walker who is injured. But other exclusions are of his own making. Picking Parker, who along with being vastly overrated and useless is struggling to be fit to play, in the squad and having Jordan Henderson who has been hopeless for his club, while ineptly out of his depth in his previous England outing as the standby. That’s why Carrick ruled himself out and can you blame him, being picked behind that pair. While they ooze about Spain etc. keeping the ball the one player we’ve got that can actually keep possession and pass to a team mate is expected to sit on the bench while either of them take the field.
Another are was the defence where Roy said it was a straight choicer between Phil Jones and Micah Richards. But why? Oh that’s why you’ve got Glen Johnson in there. There shouldn’t have to be a choice, Johnson shouldn’t go the other two should.
And then there’s Downing.
You’d think such a scholar as Roy would learn from history. Pick Downing and fail. He’s bringing great form with him ain’t he, no goals, no assists, no bleeding point. Adam Johnson, may not have been playing as much as Downing but when he did come on he created chances and scored goals. Lennon, same tired old clichés come out about final ball but it’s more about who hasn’t bothered to get onto the end of them for Spurs of late and the fact they never play him properly – we never get triangles and balls behind the fullback, no he gets Gerrard smacking cross field, glory, balls that make the little fella jump up to stop the ball going out of play and stop all momentum, or it’s simply just played behind him.
Brings us to Gerrard guaranteed his place now he’s captain. Here’s another one, win percentage with his club is nearly half when he’s playing than when he’s missing. No one pointing until with Dalglish’s dismissal from the manager’s job that Liverpool were on a good run and then he came back from injury and stopped it in it’s track. He’s got 90 caps NINETY! How many great games? Hell, how many half decent ones?
Can just see that midfield if Roy goes 4-3-3. Lampard, Parker and Gerrard. Remember when the ran past the midfield in the last World Cup for fun, well two of ’em are going to be two years older and the other one isn’t exactly Usain Bolt compared to Barry.
Well Roy did get some things right, Rio Ferdinand shouldn’t be on the plane, what he and the media got wrong is it shouldn’t have been either him or Terry. It should be neither. Just look at the way Terry’s been destroyed on the pitch lately. Never mind the fact he’s a loathsome individual.
It’s right that Oxlade-Chamberlain is going you just feel it’s going to be like Walcott in ’06 where he won’t actually get on the pitch. Yes he hasn’t played that much but this tournament should have been the start of using such players with a view to having them ready for the next World Cup. A springboard, not a retirement home day out.
Roy seems to think this is going to be some last hurrah for the Golden Generation – you know the ones that have won bugger all while performing piss poorly for years – but can you see the other countries in England’s group, France, Sweden and Ukraine, quaking in their boots? It looks like a last whimper.
It’s just so disappointing, Roy could have been different, he could have been a breathe of fresh air but what we’ve ended up with looks like the kind of squad ‘Arry, Fabio, McClown, Svennis, Keggy would have come up with.