The England Thread

[Interpolic]

The quote in question:

 

If you put Michael Owen in an England shirt, he would still score goals. I don’t think it will happen with this manager [Capello]. I would be surprised if it did. But then again, Michael isn’t playing every week, is he? If you’re not playing, you can’t expect to be playing for England.

 

It’s going to be very difficult for Michael to get a starting place at Manchester United. He seems content with that. That’s his decision. I wouldn’t have been happy sat on the bench. I’d want to play. But that’s him. But that doesn’t mean to say he’s not a good player any more.

 

He’s at the biggest club in the world, with the best manager in the world [sir Alex Ferguson]. I’m sure he could go to any club outside the top six and play week in, week out, injuries permitting, and still score goals in the Premier League. He’s not as quick as he was. You can see that. But you’ll always get a goal from him. He has that built in him. Right place, right time. You can’t teach that.

 

You're talking about what he's implying Ronaldo, but what he's implying more than anything is that no matter how much he's trying to big up his mate, you don't get in the England squad if you're not getting into your club side.  He's certainly not saying he would pick Owen if he was in charge.

[Ronaldo]

You shouldn't expect to be playing for your club if you're putting in crap performances for them week after week. Big Al still selected him, mostly.

[Interpolic]

Even Shearer was talking about being England manager the other day. Owen would be in his side, apparently.

 

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/football/8804616/Alan-Shearer-I-would-still-love-to-manage-England-one-day-but-there-are-experienced-candidates-in-front-of-me.html

 

Where does he say Owen would be in his England side if he was manager?

 

It's apparent.

 

You shouldn't expect to be playing for your club if you're putting in crap performances for them week after week. Big Al still selected him, mostly.

 

Righteo man, you're wandering from one point to the next.  Shearer's implied heavily he wouldn't select a player for England that wasn't playing for his club, simple as.

[Pilko]

It took Shearer far too long to drop Owen when he was in charge of us. The little cunt should have been out of the first eleven pretty much immediately. Shearer spoke the usual relegation battle stuff about needing players who were tough or would fight for the cause - and yet selected this wanker who makes Danny Guthrie look like Braveheart's bolshier cousin for nearly every fixture.

[Interpolic]

And I wouldn't want Shearer near the England job btw.

[Ronaldo]

We all know he's daft enough to play him, man. He's daft enough to think he'd still score goals at international level.

[Dave]

He probably would, the standard of football in general is tripe; just look at Peter Crouch's record. Not that I'd pick the dickhead.

[Interpolic]

It took Shearer far too long to drop Owen when he was in charge of us. The little cunt should have been out of the first eleven pretty much immediately. Shearer spoke the usual relegation battle stuff about needing players who were tough or would fight for the cause - and yet selected this wanker who makes Danny Guthrie look like Braveheart's bolshier cousin for nearly every fixture.

 

It wasn't that simple at the time though, a lot of people still had (unwarranted) faith that we had a top class player on our books that could pop up with a goal.  I know his performances were terrible but Shearer clearly thought he could get the best out of him.  There's a lot of hindsight bullshit going on with Owen and the relegation season imo - the other options weren't brilliant either and we weren't so aware that he had the heart of a pea at the time.

 

Wrong as I'd have been I'd have generally put Owen in my first 11 and hoped I could get the best out of a player that was the best striker in the country not that long ago.

 

Where I share Ronaldo's concerns about Shearer is that he appears to have limited football knowledge with regards to other leagues and other approaches, much like most of the pundits you see on telly.  I'm starting to think he should have went straight into management to stand a chance of doing it in the long run.

 

Still don't agree with Ronaldo's general jumping on Shearer at any opportunity though, the agenda he has negates any point he makes on Shearer imo, you can't take it seriously.

[Sifu]

It took Shearer far too long to drop Owen when he was in charge of us. The little c*** should have been out of the first eleven pretty much immediately. Shearer spoke the usual relegation battle stuff about needing players who were tough or would fight for the cause - and yet selected this w***** who makes Danny Guthrie look like Braveheart's bolshier cousin for nearly every fixture.

 

It wasn't that simple at the time though, a lot of people still had (unwarranted) faith that we had a top class player on our books that could pop up with a goal.  I know his performances were terrible but Shearer clearly thought he could get the best out of him.  There's a lot of hindsight bullshit going on with Owen and the relegation season imo - the other options weren't brilliant either and we weren't so aware that he had the heart of a pea at the time.

 

Wrong as I'd have been I'd have generally put Owen in my first 11 and hoped I could get the best out of a player that was the best striker in the country not that long ago.

 

Where I share Ronaldo's concerns about Shearer is that he appears to have limited football knowledge with regards to other leagues and other approaches, much like most of the pundits you see on telly.  I'm starting to think he should have went straight into management to stand a chance of doing it in the long run.

 

Still don't agree with Ronaldo's general jumping on Shearer at any opportunity though, the agenda he has negates any point he makes on Shearer imo, you can't take it seriously.

 

Agreed. Considering that Owen and Shearer were mates at the time, Big Al rightly thought he could motivate Owen to step it up. Of course in the end, this didn't happen.

 

I still have a feeling that Shearer is still let down by Owen's contribution in those 8 games so for him to big up Owen in that article is a bit weird like.

[Ronaldo]

You'd have had Shearer down as a great pundit a few years back. He certainly didn't care who he pissed off on the pitch, and he put everything into his performances - even when he couldn't run, for two years. On the sofa he's lazy and even placatory.

[Pilko]

It took Shearer far too long to drop Owen when he was in charge of us. The little cunt should have been out of the first eleven pretty much immediately. Shearer spoke the usual relegation battle stuff about needing players who were tough or would fight for the cause - and yet selected this wanker who makes Danny Guthrie look like Braveheart's bolshier cousin for nearly every fixture.

 

It wasn't that simple at the time though, a lot of people still had (unwarranted) faith that we had a top class player on our books that could pop up with a goal.  I know his performances were terrible but Shearer clearly thought he could get the best out of him.  There's a lot of hindsight bullshit going on with Owen and the relegation season imo - the other options weren't brilliant either and we weren't so aware that he had the heart of a pea at the time.

 

Wrong as I'd have been I'd have generally put Owen in my first 11 and hoped I could get the best out of a player that was the best striker in the country not that long ago.

 

In fairness, I was saying for a while before Shearer took over that we should be starting the likes of Carroll, Viduka, whatever instead of him purely because they'd contribute more to general play - games passed Owen by because our side just wasn't creating the chances, and on the odd occasion we did, he fluffed them (see Pompey and Boro at home). He was also very weak on the ball and his number of touches was minimal. I'd had enough of the little cunt by then, the Portsmouth miss was the absolute final straw for me.

[Interpolic]

It took Shearer far too long to drop Owen when he was in charge of us. The little cunt should have been out of the first eleven pretty much immediately. Shearer spoke the usual relegation battle stuff about needing players who were tough or would fight for the cause - and yet selected this wanker who makes Danny Guthrie look like Braveheart's bolshier cousin for nearly every fixture.

 

It wasn't that simple at the time though, a lot of people still had (unwarranted) faith that we had a top class player on our books that could pop up with a goal.  I know his performances were terrible but Shearer clearly thought he could get the best out of him.  There's a lot of hindsight bullshit going on with Owen and the relegation season imo - the other options weren't brilliant either and we weren't so aware that he had the heart of a pea at the time.

 

Wrong as I'd have been I'd have generally put Owen in my first 11 and hoped I could get the best out of a player that was the best striker in the country not that long ago.

 

In fairness, I was saying for a while before Shearer took over that we should be starting the likes of Carroll, Viduka, whatever instead of him purely because they'd contribute more to general play - games passed Owen by because our side just wasn't creating the chances, and on the odd occasion we did, he fluffed them (see Pompey and Boro at home). He was also very weak on the ball and his number of touches was minimal. I'd had enough of the little cunt by then, the Portsmouth miss was the absolute final straw for me.

 

The Portsmouth and Boro matches were the 4th and 3rd last matches of the season though.  The chances fell his way, he fucked it up, the 'gamble' failed.

 

I know what you're saying, I'm just saying Shearer had 8 games and probably wanted to stick to what he knew.  If you were wanting us to play Martins and Viduka up front then fair enough I suppose but I'd be surprised if you were genuinely wanting to see Carroll in the side ahead of Owen versus Portsmouth and Boro.  If you were then fair do's.  We all know we were pretty much doomed whatever happened man, the whole season was cursed after having started with so much hope with Keegan in charge.  I seem to recall The Mag's summer special having a picture of KK in sunglasses on the front, with the headline "Future's so bright, gotta wear shades".

[Pilko]

I actually started the Andy Carroll thread when Kinnear was in charge saying we should play him ahead of some of the others. Yes, that's right, I'm officially ITK.

[JH]

Shame you didn't make £35m out of it...

[Guest Heneage]

It's abundantly clear Capello is phoning it in till next summer when he can leave and retire to a sunny climate. His team selection, his squad selections of late - they all point to a man who couldn't give a flying wig wam about the job he's undertaking.

 

The FA deserve as much criticism as the man in the job. After a heavy defeat to age old rivals how the man kept his job is beyond me. Last summer should of seen the scrapping of most of the squad and a building job begin. Instead there's smatterings of young talent mixed in with past it players or the media favourites like Scott Parker. Add to the mix that the team plays with no real tactical style and that all the pressure is put on a man who at 26 still has the temperament of a hand-grenade and you're bound to fail.

[Guest gggg]

Good side Montenegro. Ahead of all the embarrassing smalltime UK we iz tiny teams already with a pop bout the same as Newcastle metro.

[Mowen]

You'd have had Shearer down as a great pundit a few years back. He certainly didn't care who he pissed off on the pitch, and he put everything into his performances - even when he couldn't run, for two years. On the sofa he's lazy and even placatory.

 

He was good when he started as well. For some reason he's made a choice to be lazy, it's a shame. I play every saturday but when a [formerly] world class player is offering his opinion I have to hope for something more than a cliché, offer some insight into the game you played so brilliantly week in week out. I feel like I could offer more at times and I'm both stupid and shite at football.

[Guest thenorthumbrian]

I DON’T know about you, but where I live there will only be a passing interest in England’s decisive Euro 2012 qualifier in Montenegro tonight. Just like Fabio Capello’s reluctance to visit Newcastle.

 

You could probably say the feeling is mutual.

 

England might have done quite well in the qualifiers, but the way the FA present themselves these days as a corporate package does not excite me in the slightest.

 

Games at Wembley show the embarrassing image of a half-full main stand for the first 15 minutes of the second half as the prawn sarnie brigade continue to get stuck in, but in a different sense.

 

Steven Taylor is the latest Tyneside native to be linked with an England call-up.

 

Taylor’s stats have been as impressive as the likes of Phil Jones, Gary Cahill and Chris Smalling at Man United, and on par with John Terry and the now dropped Rio Ferdinand.

 

Still no place for Taylor, and no visit to Tyneside from Fabio.

 

Sadly, a continued refusal by the England manager to visit Newcastle means Toon players are unlikely to find a way into the side without a fair crack of the whip while Capello does not bother to make it so far up north.

 

Last month Alan Pardew made a plea to England when he said: “The England staff would be very welcome at St James’ Park to come and have a look.”

 

At the moment, we probably all accept it, when it comes to English players who could realistically play in Euro 2012, there are notmany ready to do so at Newcastle – but it hardly sends out the right message for the future or the next generation who may opt to play elsewhere when it comes to being noticed by England – certainly it could be a factor for Carroll quitting Toon after conversations with Steven Gerrard.

 

There has always been an uneasy relationship with England and Newcastle and clearly our friends in the south seem to think they are somehow superior.

 

 

 

Read More http://www.chroniclelive.co.uk/newcastle-united/nufc-news//tm_headline=comment-england-no-longer-the-attraction-in-toon%26method=full%26objectid=29557222%26siteid=72703-name_page.html#ixzz1aAbyH16z

 

 

 

[teohgk]

It took Shearer far too long to drop Owen when he was in charge of us. The little c*** should have been out of the first eleven pretty much immediately. Shearer spoke the usual relegation battle stuff about needing players who were tough or would fight for the cause - and yet selected this w***** who makes Danny Guthrie look like Braveheart's bolshier cousin for nearly every fixture.

 

It wasn't that simple at the time though, a lot of people still had (unwarranted) faith that we had a top class player on our books that could pop up with a goal.  I know his performances were terrible but Shearer clearly thought he could get the best out of him.  There's a lot of hindsight bullshit going on with Owen and the relegation season imo - the other options weren't brilliant either and we weren't so aware that he had the heart of a pea at the time.

 

Wrong as I'd have been I'd have generally put Owen in my first 11 and hoped I could get the best out of a player that was the best striker in the country not that long ago.

 

Where I share Ronaldo's concerns about Shearer is that he appears to have limited football knowledge with regards to other leagues and other approaches, much like most of the pundits you see on telly.  I'm starting to think he should have went straight into management to stand a chance of doing it in the long run.

 

Still don't agree with Ronaldo's general jumping on Shearer at any opportunity though, the agenda he has negates any point he makes on Shearer imo, you can't take it seriously.

 

[Cronky]

We've seen so many managers with a good record at club level struggling when they get the England job. There's quite a few underlying problems that haven't been completely ironed out.

 

I often wonder whether the whole concept of the game that youngsters grow up with is a bit unhelpful in the long term. Foreign teams seem much more comfortable with improvising combination passing movements that open up a defence. We seem to rely a bit more individuals beating their man, or the specialist playmaker producing that one, 'defence-splitting' ball. It seems to be a conceptual / mental problem as much as a question of technical skill.

 

Arsenal seem to be trying to embue their younger players with that more collective approach to opening up a defence. Wenger keeps statistics on how long each player keeps possession of the ball, and confronts those who hang on to it too long. He wants them to release it early and then move into space, relying on each other's ability.

 

The player last night who epitomised what is mentally limited about the traditional English game was Scott Parker. Yes he has great energy levels, but he hangs on to the ball too long and is a poor passer. When he started running backwards to take the ball from his defenders and exchange aimless passes instead of getting the ball forward quickly we lost all momentum. And he was voted Footballer of the Year. What a joke.

[Guest BEN BEN BEN ARFA]

0 - 11  :frantic:

[Guest BEN BEN BEN ARFA]

:frantic: :frantic: :frantic: :frantic: :frantic: :frantic: :frantic: :frantic: :frantic: :frantic:

 

[Ishmael]

Last summer should of seen the scrapping of most of the squad and a building job begin.

 

Picked this out from as a highlight post that was frankly pretty easy to pick holes in.  Only 7 of the WC squad featured in recent England games...

 

Some people...

[RupertCommunicator]

7 too many.

[alpal78]

It's abundantly clear Capello is phoning it in till next summer when he can leave and retire to a sunny climate. His team selection, his squad selections of late - they all point to a man who couldn't give a flying wig wam about the job he's undertaking.

 

The FA deserve as much criticism as the man in the job. After a heavy defeat to age old rivals how the man kept his job is beyond me. Last summer should of seen the scrapping of most of the squad and a building job begin. Instead there's smatterings of young talent mixed in with past it players or the media favourites like Scott Parker. Add to the mix that the team plays with no real tactical style and that all the pressure is put on a man who at 26 still has the temperament of a hand-grenade and you're bound to fail.

 

This. Especially in regards to rebuilding. One only has to look at Germany and what Lowe has done there to appreciate what an important effect rebuilding the national team can have upon football and player development in a country. The same needs to happen here - I mean young, in form players are hardly going to be incentivised when it's the same old faces being picked playing the same brand of football. The FA would do well to replicate Germany's model IMO.

 

And in regards to Capello, I still find it utterly astonishing that after 5 years in this country and £6 million a year, he can only just manage a sentence in broken English.

 

Nonsense! You never heard any of his interviews then? Sure his English could be better but "one sentence in broken English"? Bet you're the type who would prefer a McClaren coz at least he speaks immaculate English never mind that he's rubbish