Roy Keane: The Voice Of Reason?

1st up, I recognise this blog is fast becoming a football blog, which was never my intention. The title of the blog could only fit that topic but I will endeavour to write about something more interesting in the near future.

But for now it's all about the week's main talking point - the Hand of Frog. I think given the view I'm going to take I should first qualify a few points:

I am not Irish, but have always enjoyed an Irish big tournament appearance for the fun, ridiculous optimism and spirit they bring, and was gutted that they did not beat the ageing and frankly SO 1998 French. I do not agree that just because 'everyone does it' that the handball was 'ok', and in fact this incident has started to make me believe that technology should possibly be brought into football sooner rather than later, which is not how I've felt before. The seeding of the play-offs by FIFA was in itself a low and cynical move, and while the games could have been exactly the same, few would have complained had France and, say, Portugal met to rid the World Cup of at least one overblown posturing team of diving, handballing and whingeing cheats. But then for that description you could subsitute England, Spain, Brazil and yes, Ireland. And this is my point...

Ok, so I'm sure everyone's at least read what Roy Keane has said, but if not it is here. I couldn't agree more - GET OVER IT. As I type this John Motson is also talking more sense on Football Focus, and to be honest I think the print media alongside the FAI more than anything else have blown this out of the water more than anyone else.

The incident itself, as anyone who plays football will tell you if speaking honestly, was essentially pure instinct and it's something that most of us would do if the ball was travelling across the body going out of play when you're in the 6 yard box in extra time to go to the world cup. You do it, and ask questions later, or at least wait for them to be asked. I don't believe that the act itself is a moral issue because, especially in the culture of the game as it has evolved in the last 20 or so years, football cannot claim any kind of moral leadership, or indeed character, when every 90 minutes (or 120...) is rife with attempts to win free kicks, whether fouled or otherwise, waste time, steal yards, influence the referee, wind up the opposition and yes handle the ball. I do it in Duchy League Division 4 as much as Thierry Henry does it (yep, I did just include myself in a sentence with Henry, shoot me) in a World Cup Play Off.

I'm afraid that in this day and age football has lost any kind of nobility and yet we still love it. Why? Well for the drama of course. The theatre of it, the passion of it and yes, the controversey. Fair play is at best a side dish, served when it suits people in normally the least important circumstances. If it were any different there wouldn't be the money, the TV coverage and the rainforests of trees taken up by the likes of that idiot Henry Winter at the Telegraph (ban Henry? Then ban anyone else who 'cheated' during WC qualifying) that there is today. Some might say that the big teams/nations get favoured by referees and that may have some weight but that's not the point, at least here. Me and a friend, who I'll refer to as Virgil, were just discussing this and he reckons that if it had been Brazil instead of Ireland the game would have bee replayed. I don't think that's how FIFA work myself, they're far more underhand and wouldn't do it so blatantly. But again, it's not the point. And as I said, morals and decency ain't football's way.

That this has brought so much contraversey is perfect for the game in it's current state, whatever people may say. It show's people care. Even in Ireland where football is probably not the 1st or 2nd sport in the country, they care. I wish they had made it, that Henry hadn't handballed and that Shay Given had gone on to save 5 penalties (and lets not forget that Ireland weren't at the point of going through when the Henry handballed), and that they'd gone on to be drawn with Brazil, Netherlands and Ivory Coast and beat them all to set up a 2nd round tie with England only to be spiritedly beaten by a Rooney hat trick, but it didn't and won't happen.

If we start challenging referee's decisions post match and replaying games based on it then we start losing any shroud or shred of RESPECT the sport has in its on field officials. And that's not counting the amounts of games those poor overworked football types would have to play - probably at LEAST 3 a week, poor dears. The tribal battle, the intense nationalism and the personal pride - all these things would have infuenced Henry's instinct and while we shouldn't congratulate him for it, we have to allow for it to keep the game at the pinacle of international sport.

And if we lose all that, what more does the game have?

Post Brazil Game Follow Up

I just sent the following message to a certain Polish friend which pretty much sums up my feelings after this game:

"well... basically it proved little. A few points to take from it:
1)Darren Bent, Jermaine Jenas, Shaun Wright-Phillips, Wes Brown and Wayne Bridge are not good enough to go to the world cup and if any of them go there better be a shit load of injuries.
2)James Milner might well go and did OK, but lets not start sucking his dick yet.
3)Only when JT, Rio, Gerrard and Lamps are out, and probably Becks too, should Rooney captain England at this stage in his career.
4)We really need to find Vermeulen an English passport.Our reserve centre half options are frankly dire.Can Woodgate get fit and form in time?"

That Is All

Premature World Cup Thoughts...

I've been thinking more and more about the World Cup next summer in South Africa, and more specifically England's chances at said tournament. I know it's a long time away, with a lot of football to be played, injuries to be surmounted and form to be gotten into and out of, but I'm excited as hell and I want to talk about it...

So, my feeling is based on the qualifying tournament and how Capello has transformed the atmosphere around the camp. I think there are 3 sides that are definitely better than England, Brazil, Spain and despite qualifying struggles under the mercurial but flawed Maradona, Argentina. Holland, France, Italy, Germany, Portugal and Russia are all potentially on the same level as England, and the African Nations Cup in January will potentially demonstrate the ever increasing strength that exists in that continent. Of the contenders outside of the top 3, England appear to be finding form and consistency, the match in Kiev aside, and I think that the semi finals are a realistic possibility, and by then its one off matches all the way. Yep, I'm fantasising completely here...

England will have to pray that the form and fitness of their top players are both peaking next June and there are already a few worries that need resolving. Ferdinand's struggle to maintain his high standards, and play more than 1 game in a row could potentially break up England's long serving defensive partnership, but the who else is there? Would you want Matthew Upson or Wes Brown, good as they can be, trying to break down Kaka, Luis Fabiano and co in a pressure cooker quarter final? I'm not sure, but there is time to go. Can Joe Cole be fitted into a talented attacking force? What role may Owen Hargreaves play, if any?

As much as Capello says that no player is safe, I think it's pretty clear that there are a number of players who would struggle to play bad enough to miss out. 10 excluding Heskey, for now...) of Capello's apparent preferred line up must be nailed on to go, and one or 2 others who have excelled from the bench or as viable alternatives to start. So already I think that the following will fly to South Africa, if fit, for sure:

Green
Johnson, G
Cole, A
Terry
Ferdinand
Barry
Lampard
Gerrard
Walcott
Rooney
Defoe
Upson
James

So, that means there are 10 more to find. For me, I think the overall make up of the squad should reflect a combination of the quality of play a player produced in the previous season and quality global football experience, be it Champions League or international tournaments. England do have a number of players available who fulfil this requirement, and of those I would also take:

Robinson
Woodgate
Hargreaves
Beckham
Lennon
Cole, J
Crouch
Owen
Heskey

There's a few that I've left out which may be surprising. Wes Brown isn't naturally first choice for Man Utd, and Woodgate has the sort of game to possibly back up Ferdinand and provide the same kind of balance, and I've gone with no direct right back cover as I believe that Hargreaves (who is obviously massively reliant on keeping is fitness for the season once he returns) can do a excellent job at right back, and would be a contender to start there against certain opposition.

King's fitness is too questionable and against Arsenal looked a shadow of his old self. Carrick is having a bit of scratchy season so far, desperately searching for passes that aren't there and not being allowed to control midfield area as he prefers. Wright Phillips always seems a bit of a headless chicken for England, and the emergence of Walcott and re-emergence of Lennon, plus 'the Beckham Option' means for me he's 4th choice for the right wing. There are probably others who slip my mind just now also...

There is sometimes though room for a bit of a wild card. From those without perhaps that sort of experience, but have emerged more recently I pick only one, Kieran Gibbs, as from what I've seen he has the tenacity, quality and attitude to understudy Ashley Cole, and Wayne Bridge hasn't looked assured in an England shirt for some time.

That means that the likes of Carlton Cole (Heskey has the nod for me as the 'big bustling line leader' category), James Milner (has impressed for England but too soon), Stewart Downing (injured currently anyway, but generally flatters to deceive), Gary Cahill (who?), Joleon Lescott (fails to convince at this level), Ben Foster (a few errors this season and not likely to be a regular at his club), Darren Bent (could make a late run, but unproven at international level), and I'm sure many more, are left hoping for injuries or others' serious form loss to have a chance of making it on the flight.

It's a tough exercise and when I'd first thought about it a couple of weeks ago there were a few differences to the above, but having considered what it takes to win tournaments (guts, quality, experience, an 'x' factor, perhaps?) this is what I've gone for. I'm sure most would disagree somewhere with the selection, and I'm surer I will by the time the squad is selected, but thats how I currently see it, and I think there is the ability within those players to beat anyone on their day, even with one or 2 of those in the squad suffering injuries mid-tournament.

With that in mind, I also had a think about who might be selected to start in that big match quarter final against Brazil, for example, after 4 games already of intense pressure and nail biting drama. I'm allowing for the way that some players emerge from the shadows in big tournaments that may not have started that crucial first group game and become important to the cause. For what it's worth, which is little, my XI for a quarter final against Brazil, fitness permitting, would be:

GK: Green

RB: Hargreaves
LB: Cole, A
CB: Terry
CB: Ferdinand

CM: Barry
CM: Lampard
AM: Gerrard
RM: Walcott
LM: Cole, J

CF: Rooney

The added composure of Owen Hargreaves would be such an asset in this game, and his big match experience for me puts him above the impetuous Johnson, who could though make an excellent impact sub if things aren't going England's way. I struggle to see Capello leaving out the sublime Joe Cole of the starting line up for too long, and while against weaker sides it may be Walcott who misses out allowing Rooney to roam behind Heskey, I think that 5 in midfield, with the wingers charging on where possible, would provide England with the best platform to attack the hapless Brazilian goalkeeper!

What excites me most is that we have some pretty good options to bring on if needs be. Aside from Johnson and Heskey, the likes of Lennon, Beckham, Defoe and Crouch can make discernable claims to be potential game-breakers.

Of course there are many ifs and buts between now and squad/team selection stage, and its almost guaranteed that at least one of the players I've "selected" will be out injured. And yes, it will probably be Owen Hargeaves. But I'm an optimist, sometimes, and am very much living in a fantasy world here, and so therefore I declare that the above will represent a successful method to England's inevitable rise to the post of World Champions!

You'll see...