Special report, why does England’s national football team disappoint
Apparently England’s national football team is full of superstars yet they have not won a major trophy since the 1966 FIFA World Cup. Since 2000, many people have been classifying the players as the golden generation of England but to the dismay of the frustrated
English fans, the national team has been nothing but a huge disappointment.
The so-called English golden generation has failed to progress beyond the quarter final stage of any major tournament. They did not even qualify for the 2008 UEFA Euro championship.
Many English supporters blamed the respective managers for the dismal performances. Currently one of the most successful managers in World football, Capello is at the helm. Even his experience and tactical understanding of the game did not help England in
the 2010 FIFA World Cup, where the team was thrashed by Germany 4-1 in the round of 16.
So what is the problem? Why does England disappoint? The answer to this question is complicated yet simple. Many of the English superstars are perhaps over rated. The English media creates undue hype after merely one good performance.
English clubs such as Arsenal, Manchester United, Chelsea and Liverpool have been extremely successful in the European competitions lately. Now this success has been attributed to English players such as Rooney, Gerrard, Lampard etc.
The media overlooks the fact that these players play with some of the best players in the World for their respective clubs. This makes them look better than they actually are in reality.
Evidence of this is very evident if you look at the form of Gerrard and Liverpool since the departure of Xabi Alonso. Last season Gerrard suffered a dip in performance. His partner Xabi Alonso was not besides him therefore the creativity was lacking and
Gerrard, supposedly one of the best midfielders could not help Liverpool past even the group stage of the Champions league and the reds could only finish 5th in the English Premier League. The absence of Alonso was felt by Gerrard and the team
alike.
Another factor could be the hectic schedule the English players go through, that means by the time a big tournament approaches, they are burnt out. This though is the case for other leagues too. The Spanish league also has 38 games like the English league
yet the Spanish are the current European and World champions. In fact the Spanish league finishes after the English league giving even less time for the players to prepare for the tournament ahead.
A more viable reason can be the influx of young English talent. There are very few young players coming through the ranks for England. The example of Arsenal can be taken to justify this point. Arsenal is an English team but has wonderful foreign young talents
playing for them. Only Walcott is an Englishman amongst players like Nasri (France), Van Persie (Netherlands), Sagna (France), Fabregas (Spain) etc.
In the past players like Defoe and Jenas have flattered to deceive. Much was expected from Milner and Shaun Wright Philips but they failed to perform on the big stage.
There is no lack of passion in the English players but there may be a lack of technique. Gerrard and Lamapard may be full of running and may have a wonderful shot but they don’t have as smooth a touch as Xavi or Iniesta.
There is not a single player in the England squad, who could go past 3-4 defenders to score an individual goal to turn a game on its head while other teams possess such players. Brazil has Kaka, Spain has Villa and Torres, Portugal has Ronaldo, Germany has
Muller, Holland has Robben and Argentina has Messi.
It is important for the fans to open their eyes and realise their limitations. Unless the team learns to acknowledge their frailties, they cannot move forward. The media should tone down a little so that the young Englishmen can keep their feet on the ground.
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