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02 07 2006 The depression sets in: England and Poland out
So another World Cup gone and best forgotten for the teams I care for.
Poland's early exit was not surprising - I was extremely disappointed with the work effort and quality of football played.
Poland had finished second in their qualifying group so I expected them to at least get to the last sixteen, but an
embarrassing loss to Ecuador in the first game set the tone for the rest of the short lived campaign. A tremendous effort
against Germany was tempered by a stupid sending off and an unlucky goal conceded in the last minute. In the final
game, which was tedious to the extreme, Poland scraped a 2-1 win over Costa Rica.
The standard of Polish football has been improving over the years, but the Polish PZPN football federation should be
aiming higher. Poland needs to start success at club level, and until Polish teams qualify for the Champions League I
cannot see the standard of football improving dramatically.
There is hope on the horizon though. In a country not entirely renowned for it's all year round sunny climes, open stadia
are being demolished and replaced with all seaters. Fans will soon feel safer going to matches, and Poland plans to bid
to host the 2012 Euro championships with Ukraine.
Even more disappointing was England's exit. There is no reason why England should not have got to the final of this
year's World Cup. The team has an exceptional amount of talent in the squad, although also it relies too much on two
strikers up front who are injury prone.
The FA should take a lot of criticism for this. They had no guts to get rid of Sven when he brought the association into
disrepute. But then again they probably would have felt hypocritical with all the in-house problems they have themselves.
Sacking a manager in advance has never worked in the past - so why should it work now. And how will players feel
knowing that the manager they play for will not be around after the tournament is over? In any case, I have no respect
for Eriksson. He has been a very astute tactician when it has come to increasing his bank balance. He has always
pushed the boundaries, doing just enough so that the FA cannot sack him without a huge amount of compensation
being owed.
His tactics have been bizarre. Against Portugal Crouch should have played from the beginning to give Rooney support.
Ultimately Sven will be crucified for his selection of strikers. It was a massive gamble that did not pay off. Even if Bent
has not had enough experience at the highest level, he would have been an infinitely superior choice to the England
team than Theo Walcott. David Beckham had a poor tournament and if the manager wanted to take risks he could have
played Lennon in his place on the right wing instead.
The FA has capitulated to the idiots who think only an English manager should manage the country. What nonsense.
The best manager in the world at the moment is Portuguese. McClaren has inherited a brilliant squad of players and he
will probably fare better than Sven - but does he have the experience of managing at the very highest level? Probably
not, but let's wait until England lose in a meaningless friendly to Mongolia before slagging him off completely.
The Chelsea players in this tournament have performed admirably. Drogba was unlucky to see his side knocked out.
Crespo showed what a world class player he is. Joe Cole shined for England (which was not difficult!) although Lampard
was average. Terry played with his heart and was arguably the best all round player for the team. Ballack has impressed
me too, although I have no idea how we are going to accommodate him in the team unless we play a 1-9-1 formation. At
the time of writing, the semi finals are yet to be played, and in those Gallas, Makalele and Carvalho are regular features.
Ferreira is also playing the odd 30 minutes or so, and old boys Tiago and Maniche have been impressive.
So as I sit here with a hangover and a damaged knee from kicking a post in frustration, I shall ask myself yet again
whether I shall ever see my Motherland and my country of citizenship win the World Cup. Having been over there for two
matches, it is an occasion I shall always treasure. The atmosphere was phenomenal and the fans behaved impeccably.
Bring on the new Premiership season!
Poland's early exit was not surprising - I was extremely disappointed with the work effort and quality of football played.
Poland had finished second in their qualifying group so I expected them to at least get to the last sixteen, but an
embarrassing loss to Ecuador in the first game set the tone for the rest of the short lived campaign. A tremendous effort
against Germany was tempered by a stupid sending off and an unlucky goal conceded in the last minute. In the final
game, which was tedious to the extreme, Poland scraped a 2-1 win over Costa Rica.
The standard of Polish football has been improving over the years, but the Polish PZPN football federation should be
aiming higher. Poland needs to start success at club level, and until Polish teams qualify for the Champions League I
cannot see the standard of football improving dramatically.
There is hope on the horizon though. In a country not entirely renowned for it's all year round sunny climes, open stadia
are being demolished and replaced with all seaters. Fans will soon feel safer going to matches, and Poland plans to bid
to host the 2012 Euro championships with Ukraine.
Even more disappointing was England's exit. There is no reason why England should not have got to the final of this
year's World Cup. The team has an exceptional amount of talent in the squad, although also it relies too much on two
strikers up front who are injury prone.
The FA should take a lot of criticism for this. They had no guts to get rid of Sven when he brought the association into
disrepute. But then again they probably would have felt hypocritical with all the in-house problems they have themselves.
Sacking a manager in advance has never worked in the past - so why should it work now. And how will players feel
knowing that the manager they play for will not be around after the tournament is over? In any case, I have no respect
for Eriksson. He has been a very astute tactician when it has come to increasing his bank balance. He has always
pushed the boundaries, doing just enough so that the FA cannot sack him without a huge amount of compensation
being owed.
His tactics have been bizarre. Against Portugal Crouch should have played from the beginning to give Rooney support.
Ultimately Sven will be crucified for his selection of strikers. It was a massive gamble that did not pay off. Even if Bent
has not had enough experience at the highest level, he would have been an infinitely superior choice to the England
team than Theo Walcott. David Beckham had a poor tournament and if the manager wanted to take risks he could have
played Lennon in his place on the right wing instead.
The FA has capitulated to the idiots who think only an English manager should manage the country. What nonsense.
The best manager in the world at the moment is Portuguese. McClaren has inherited a brilliant squad of players and he
will probably fare better than Sven - but does he have the experience of managing at the very highest level? Probably
not, but let's wait until England lose in a meaningless friendly to Mongolia before slagging him off completely.
The Chelsea players in this tournament have performed admirably. Drogba was unlucky to see his side knocked out.
Crespo showed what a world class player he is. Joe Cole shined for England (which was not difficult!) although Lampard
was average. Terry played with his heart and was arguably the best all round player for the team. Ballack has impressed
me too, although I have no idea how we are going to accommodate him in the team unless we play a 1-9-1 formation. At
the time of writing, the semi finals are yet to be played, and in those Gallas, Makalele and Carvalho are regular features.
Ferreira is also playing the odd 30 minutes or so, and old boys Tiago and Maniche have been impressive.
So as I sit here with a hangover and a damaged knee from kicking a post in frustration, I shall ask myself yet again
whether I shall ever see my Motherland and my country of citizenship win the World Cup. Having been over there for two
matches, it is an occasion I shall always treasure. The atmosphere was phenomenal and the fans behaved impeccably.
Bring on the new Premiership season!