World Cup Baxter Baby!

[Esablade]

Ok. Bit of fun!
Someone sent me this 2007, Daily Mail 'prediction' of England's 2014 World Cup team...and look who's leading the line....!

Come on Nigel...the striker is already here !!!

 

[SESKU Blade]

Wow, what happened to most of that lot? Did Johnson have to retire? Remember he looked awesome when he burst onto the scene

 

[sheffielder]

Wow, what happened to most of that lot? Did Johnson have to retire? Remember he looked awesome when he burst onto the scene

Johnson turned into a Blow Fish and left football. One too many knee injuries

 

[davidpinder]

Good to see most made it to Brazil, there is only Theo had he been fit that would of made it.

 

[TonyAgana]

Wow, what happened to most of that lot? Did Johnson have to retire? Remember he looked awesome when he burst onto the scene

This photo of him did the rounds a while ago followed by this story:

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/art...dmits-defeat-gambling-alcohol-addictions.html

 

[GRUMPY BLADE]

Ok. Bit of fun!
Someone sent me this 2007, Daily Mail 'prediction' of England's 2014 World Cup team...and look who's leading the line....!

Come on Nigel...the striker is already here !!!
View attachment 8684

That's all Harry needs to see to realise that leaving now is his best option.

What's on offer now might not be in six months time.

 

[TonyAgana]

That's all Harry needs to see to realise that leaving now is his best option.

What's on offer now might not be in six months time.

...or he could look at Phil Jagielka...

 

[wizadry]

Good to see most made it to Brazil, there is only Theo had he been fit that would of made it.

Disagree there david as i think micah richards would be our right back when back to full fitness.Glen Johnson is too dodgy at the back and even his forward play is deserting him,his crossing the other night was awful and thats been nice to the bloke

 

[JOEYDEE]

Very interesting post,just had a quick look thro Wiki,and this is what I found,
Ben Amos..On loan to Carlisle
Sam Hutchinson.been at Pigs last year on loan
Micah Richards,injured all the time at Man City.
Gavin Hoyte,struts his stuff at Dagenham & Redbridge
Rob Threlfall,just been released from Morecambe.
Dean Parrett,at Stevenage.
Michael Johnson,last at loan at Leicester,got mental/Alky issues
James Henry,Wolves
Scott Sinclair,WBA loan last season..
Other two we know about.
Mixed bag,but mainly failure to progress,wonder why ...?

 

[puppet]

premier league full of 100k+ a week foreigners at shit teams

 

[Sirius]

premier league full of 100k+ a week foreigners at shit teams

Spot on mate. There is an ever diminishing pool of English players in the top English League, We are improving other National teams at the expense of England. Little wonder we win fuck all.

 

[SwissBlade]

You just need to look at U21's to see that not everyone thats a superstar at that age makes it to the World Cup by their peak.

On the flip side, where were Sterling, Jags, Cahill, Baines, Lambert and Lalana in 2007?

 

[grafikhaus]

Spot on mate. There is an ever diminishing pool of English players in the top English League, We are improving other National teams at the expense of England. Little wonder we win fuck all.

So how come, apart from the near-mandatory home side winning the WC in 1966, have we won fuck all, ever? People hark back to 'greats' like Matthews, Lofthouse, Finney etc. but what did we ever win back then? USA beat us in (I think) 1950. Hungary stuffed us at Wembley.
Fact is, only the press and a few delusional fans think we're ever going to win anything. Losing to Italy last Saturday put one foot on the 'plane home. Expect the other foot to be on it after Thursday.
Our demise (if ever there was a period of glory) probably mirrors the decline of this nation. Stuffy meeting-attenders - in both football and politics - have just drifted towards retirement while blithely ignoring the emergence of many other outside forces.
On the news this morning they're still obsessing about where Wazza will play. And, of course, Stevie G will see us to victory. Yesterday's men, elevated way beyond their abilities by the 'blazers' who will always dominate football in this country.

 

[SwissBlade]

We were discussing in the pub here last night. It started as a discussion on how Portugal were hitting their peak in 2006 and how their side has changed. It ended up as a Rooney v Ronaldo (the little winker) and how since that game Ronaldo has gone from strength to strength at club and international level, but Rooney has stagnated. In fact at international level, Rooney is nothing like the player that burst onto the scene.
I think England’s time was 2004-2006, since then we’ve failed to qualify for a Euro’s then barely got moving at the World cup in 2010 and the Euro’s in 2012.
The big thing for England, in my opinion is that the Seniors seem disjointed from the u21’s and u19’s, plus with the change of manager every 2-4 years, we get no continuity. Personally I’d love to see an English manager in the job, but a young guy, working alongside a strong team of experienced heads to set up a better system of bringing English players through.
Looking at the current crop. It proves that they don’t have to be sitting warming the stands(not even the bench in many cases for U21’s and below) of teams like Man U and Man City, but they can be plying their trade in mid table sides and even Championship clubs. Young players need games.
I also think attitude is a major thing. I personally like the approach that Clough has brought in, getting players with the right mindset not just ability. Brandy v Brayford for example.
Rooney has had a chequered England career. A few memorable games, but too many forgettable ones. Gary Neville said that Rooney loves playing for England. That maybe so, but his petulance to getting booed previously shows that he has a chip on his shoulder. Ronaldo got booed after the winking incident, came back and had a fantastic season. Beckham, after his petulant red card reacted the same.
Obviously its not about just Rooney and England may indeed recover, but for me its papering over the cracks. The FA need to look at better ways to improve the England set up, B teams in the conference is not the answer.

 

[IOM Blade]

[QUOTE="SwissBlade, post: 615637, member: 1985"Personally I’d love to see an English manager in the job, but a young guy, working alongside a strong team of experienced heads to set up a better system of bringing English players through.[/QUOTE]

Gary Neville?

 

[wizadry]

[QUOTE="SwissBlade, post: 615637, member: 1985"Personally I’d love to see an English manager in the job, but a young guy, working alongside a strong team of experienced heads to set up a better system of bringing English players through.

Gary Neville?[/QUOTE]
As long as its not fucking phillip.

 

[SwissBlade]

Gary Neville?

As long as its not fucking phillip.

He seems to talk sense, but being a pundit is different to managing a whole overhaul of the national set up

 

[Balham]

You just need to look at U21's to see that not everyone thats a superstar at that age makes it to the World Cup by their peak.

On the flip side, where were Sterling, Jags, Cahill, Baines, Lambert and Lalana in 2007?

• Sterling was a 12 year old, two years later he was making waves in QPR's academy: http://bit.ly/SSGS7p
  
  
• Jagielka had just had a great season for United in the Premier League and had signed for Everton for £4m, widely regarded as a steal.
  
  
• Cahill signed for us on loan in September 2007, performing well enough to convince Bolton to sign him for £5m in January 2008. There was surprise that Villa a) wouldn't play him and b) let him go.
  
  
• Baines moved to Everton from Wigan for £6m in summer 2007, he was highly rated at the time
  
  
• Lambert is the oddity - in 2007 he was playing for Bristol Rovers having joined for £200k from Rochdale in summer 2006
  
  
• Lallana was playing for Southampton's first team in the Championship.

Glad to be of service Swizzler

 

[Esablade]

I think Woy has attempted to address many of the issue's of the past, such as the ego's, squad unity etc...and he's pretty good tactically( well apart from the baffling sub against Italy)

We're just ' not good enough' are we?

I just think it comes back to coaching/set up at youth levels, the cost etc...and the 'English game' of progressing 'giant athlete's rather than footballer's, which explains a lot if the kids on that list.