Midfield is where international games are won and lost. No one appreciates this more than England’s pragmatic and calculating manager Fabio Capello. Yet almost four years after the turgid World Cup campaign of 2006 England appear to be grappling with many of the same problems that beset Sven Goran Eriksson. Left midfield remains the problem that it has been for well over a decade, while the perplexing conundrum of how to get the best out of Frank Lampard and Steven Gerard is still proving a tactical headache.
Wingers Provide England with Valuable Options.
David Beckham, for so long the face of the England team, is now thirty-four and no longer capable of performing as required for a full ninety minutes. His role in the team will be that of a deluxe substitute, someone who can add guile and penetration late in a game through his range of passing. Whether he will do enough to justify selection may well come down to how he performs on loan at AC Milan in the second half of the season.
Tottenham flyer Aaron Lennon is finally getting a protracted run in the side and his performances have justified Capello’s faith. His pace, penetration and improved crossing have won rave reviews as Spurs have shot into the Premiership’s top four this season. However, there is the nagging feeling that as the junior partner in midfield he will be the one to make way if everyone is fit, especially if Joe Cole forces his way back into contention on the left flank.
Sean Wright-Phillips, despite a goal in his last match, is something of a poor man’s Lennon, neither as quick, direct nor incisive. Unless Manchester City maintain their robust recent form throughout the season there is a chance he will be deemed surplus to requirements when the final squad is tabulated.
James Milner, who exploded into prominence following an exciting second half cameo in the recent 2-2 draw with Holland, is wholehearted, two footed and possessed of plenty of Under-21 tournament experience. Energetic and possessed of a great engine he is capable of playing on either flank. His work rate has been noted by Capello, who seems to like the Villa starlet and he has a chance of booking a ticket for South Africa due to his versatility alone.
Joe Cole: Prosaic England’s Concession to Flair
Cole has not featured for over a year yet he represents England’s one true concession to flair. England’s best player at the last World Cup, he is capable of beating a man, mixing up the tempo and most importantly adding guile and vision to the England midfield. England are not overly blessed with players capable of turning a game in an instant and Cole’s recent triumphant return to the Chelsea starting-eleven is a boon for the manager.
Capello, as his managerial history attests, while not exactly mistrustful of flair players, certainly likes them to perform with discipline, rigidly subsuming their skills within the team dynamic. One need only ask former AC Milan genius Dejan Savicevic how easy it is to fall foul of the somewhat dictatorial Italian. Capello will accommodate élan, though only on his terms. Cole has three quarters of a season to prove that he is worthy of a place in the starting line up. His performances this week against Blackburn and Bolton suggest he will relish the challenge.
The Gerard/Lampard Debate Continues
Frank Lampard, now thirty-one, has suffered this season from a lack of goals at club level. However, his international return of 21 goals in 76 starts appears to highlight him as a potential goal threat in South Africa. He has notched six times in 2009 after going almost a year and a half without an international goal to his name. Lampard has been the subject of fan derision in recent years due to his seeming inability to co-exist with Steven Gerard, as well as a perceived tendency to go missing in important matches. South Africa will probably represent his international swansong.
Much of the nation’s hopes rest on the shoulders of Liverpool captain Steven Gerard. Dynamic, incisive and often inspirational at club level there is a growing suspicion that England have never truly seen the best of him. At twenty-nine Gerard has the chance to lay this ghost to rest. Capello’s enduring problem is where to play him. He can provide penetration down either flank, or dovetail to spectacular effect with Rooney when deployed in the hole behind the central striker. With Joe Cole reminding everyone this week of his enduring ability to conjure something out of nothing the composition of the England midfield has once more been thrown into flux.
Gerard appears fated to never realise his desire of laying down a permanent marker in central midfield. It is likeliest that he will start on one of the flanks. While this may not be to the Liverpool dynamos liking it allows Capello to accommodate the versatile and disciplined Gareth Barry. The Manchester City man appears to be just the sort of player Capello favours. Barry has a good engine, holds his position well and passes the ball with ease. In the continued absence of Owen Hargreaves, Barry looks almost certain to partner Lampard in the centre of midfield.
Options Abound
England can call upon numerous options in midfield, a luxury they do not have in attack. Capello can field wingers with pace, experience, trickery and skill; while in central midfield there are goals and dynamism aplenty. Yet, Joe Cole apart, there is a worrying lack of genuine flair in the side. England still give the ball away far too readily and often revert to a more direct approach when behind or under pressure. Capello has worked long and hard on purposeful movement and ball retention and the recent 5-1 hammering of Croatia suggests that the pieces of the jigsaw are finally coming together. South Africa represents possibly the last chance for the “Golden Generation” to get their hands on some silverware.
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