NFR - England's new golden generation

[Big Martin Jol]

It might sound laughable given the recent performances at the Under-21 European Championships our struggle to get to the top of our World Cup qualifying group, but I can't help but feel that there's every reason to feel optimistic about the future of the England senior team.

In the past two years, we've beaten the likes of Spain, Belgium, Italy and Brazil (albeit in friendly matches) and have only lost one of our seventeen competitive matches under Hodgson. Obviously we've found it a little more difficult to secure outright victories, but then it's been very rare for us to have a full squad at our disposal - and when we have, we've shown some real promise.

Right now it's difficult to pick out a twenty-three man squad, but we've got numerous possibilities in every position. I've even left some notable talents out of this selection:

Goalkeepers - Hart, Forster, Butland, Foster, Ruddy etc.
Defenders - Cole, Baines, Smalling, Jones, Cahill, Walker, Richards, Lescott, Gibbs, Jenkinson, Jagielka, Caulker etc.
Midfielders - Wilshere, Cleverley, Gerrard, Lampard, Young, Rodwell, Carrick, Oxlade-Chamberlain, Walcott, Sterling etc.
Forwards - Rooney, Sturridge, Defoe, Carroll, Welbeck, Bent etc.

As for the future, we've got a fair number of promising young players - Butland (20), Gibbs (23), Shaw (17), Jones (21), Caulker, (21), Smalling (23), Walker (23), Richards (24), Jenkinson (21), Wilshere (21), Cleverley (23), Rodwell (22), Walcott (24), Oxlade-Chamberlain (19), Sterling (18), Sturridge (23), Carroll (24), Welbeck (22) – and then the guys who haven't even broken through yet, like Zaha (20), Hughes (17), Ince (21) and Wickham (20).

Sorry to flatten you with all that information, but it just goes to show that although we haven't got the largest talent pool in the world there's still some real potential in the team available to us. Try picking a your favoured starting eleven or even twenty-three man tournament squad from the players listed above and whatever your configuration it looks a decent line-up - even taking into account injuries and withdrawals we should have enough depth to at least be mildly competitive on the biggest stage.

I'm not one to take any notice of the FIFA rankings, but I do firmly believe that we have a decent team at our disposal. When we're injury-hit and drawing with countries like Montenegro and (with the greatest respect) Ireland it may feel quite gloomy, but there's evidence to suggest that even a depleted England can grind out a result - see 1-1 with France, 0-0 with Italy or 2-2 with Brazil.

I suppose my point is that to date we've very rarely been able to assembly the best players in one place at one time. If we can get prospects like Wilshere, Oxlade-Chamberlain and Sturridge to the World Cup in 2014 and intergrate them with players like Cole, Gerrard and Rooney then there's no reason that we can't at least put in a RESPECTABLE performance.

Again, sorry to go on and on. It just depresses me to hear of England being consistently talked down when in reality there's reason to be cheerful. Of course we're no Spain, but at our best we're nowhere near as calamitous as the press (and I'm a journalist) likes to make out.

Would be interested to hear your World Cup squads - should we make it. :)

[jarv]

Disagree on a couple of points. The seeding is the main reason only one game has been lost since Roy has been in charge. Of course, his coaching system helps, big fan of Roy. It is managed sort of tennis style to make sure the big guns get through. This means very few, if any, of England's opponents  in the group stage are actually any good. I doubt if any in their group would win games in the premier division.
The problem comes when they actually have to pay a top team, quarter final exit has become very predictable.
Friendlies, they don't really count any more. Exhibition, practice games, that's all.

The future does not look bright if most English lads have to be developed in the championship diivision. Instead of loan to say, Blackburn, perhaps to a Spanish club might help.

[bill taylors apprentice]

I am afraid the system will prevent England from developing a team that will play intelligent, thoughtful football that will challenge the very best.

There will always be young talent coming through but that's a different thing to creating a conveyor belt of teams that can win.
Any success is in spite of the system, the best we can hope for is a one off success like the Greeks had at the Euro's.

I have little faith, but it can be done, look at a bankrupt sport like British cycle racing who in the space of about 15 years went from not being able to kit their teams out properly and being a laughed at by other countries.
They now dominate the sport thanks to lottery funding and other sponsorship which is dwarfed by the funds available to the FA, its a scandal that the England team fails at the highest level.    

[Frankie-Peter Taylor]

It's pointless having 11 good individuals if they can't be a good team. We've had the squad in previous years to win International trophies but the team could just never do it. Wasting years stupidly putting Gerrard on the left wing ruined it for me at England stayed dependent on a 442.

We do have good players, but if they don't adapt in taking the same quality to the National team, it's fairly pointless. I'd love to Arsenal but Wayne Rooney and for him and Jack Wilshere to develop, what could be, a disgustingly good partnership.