So another four years of hurt, another four more years of dreaming. England crash out of the world cup and the press are gathering around The FA HQ like vultures eyeing a dying carcass.
“They should never wear a shirt again” cries one paper, “Embarassing!” reads another. Yet who is to blame for England’s exit? Capello? No. The players? No. The answer is the press themselves.
Yet another world cup and another world cup exit. England were not just beaten they were totally outclassed by a young and passionate German team whose average age was 24 compared to Englands 29. It really was a case of men vs boys and the boys won. The 25,000 England fans who made their way to South Africa stood with heads bowed, looking down as to find the reason why England could not qualify.
Most of the English players were at the end of a very long season, some playing close to 70 games without a break, tiredness was a factor. Rooney was absent for most of the game and the defence were torn apart by a ruthless German attack. But Capello nor the players should take the blame. This lies with the absurd hype from the English press that the players must certainly feel. The way that the English press ridiculed the German team was unfair and rather embarassing. Let’s be honest football is not coming home, England do not have the right to win the world cup simply as they invented the game and the level of criticism thrown Capellos way is down to the press themselves overhyping what is in truth an average team.
This was one of the weakest England teams to ever enter a wprld cup. Only Rooney and Ashley Cole stood out as what I would describe as a world class player. Sure Capello’s tactics were not spot on. Why Matthew Upson was playing was a mystery.
The English fans will no doubt argue that Lampards goal should have been given, and rightly so. But the truth is England were all over the place. It was the old story. Put England in against a half-decent team and they lose.
But this was more than a defeat – it was an apology of a performance. Since 1966 England have never beaten any team of any quality at the knockout stage of a World Cup. The only successes have been against the might of Paraguay, Belgium, Cameroon, Denmark and Ecuador.
So, no more excuses, please. It’s about time the English Press laid off the team and let the manager get on with it. There is nothing wrong with patriotism and the English are one of the most patriotic teams around. But hanging a manager by a noose creted on the press’s expetency to win is unfair.
The Truth of Englands tournament is simple. Drew against a decent USA team, then a poor draw against Algeria. A victory against Slovenia and suddenly it was “Were on top of the world!”, “England to win!”. On these performances I think England got as
Yes,far as they deserved and were thoroughly outplayed by Germany.
Germany played a totally different brand of football. Modern football, moving the ball round the pitch at pace and with technique that shamed England, who looked slow, dull and witless in comparison.
There will be calls for certain players to be packed off into retirement.
And yet where are the replacements? The cupboard is bare.
Capello had a look at Theo Walcott, Micah Richards, Adam Johnson, Gabriel Agbonlahor, Ashley Young & Co and plainly didn’t think them up to it. Those few England supporters who will still rally blindly to the cause will, no doubt, claim we are no worse off than Italy and France.
But, at least these two countries have had a recent glorious past. So it’s time for the press to be honest and truthful. But that will never happen.