Steve McLaren is LETTING this England disaster happen...

[withdeanwombat]

I'm sure Mr McClarren will be very pleased to be manager of the world cup winners.


But will Brazil want him?

 

[Easy 10]

Fair enough. I still think Crouch is good enough to play up there with someone off him, just look how well it works at Liverpool with Gerrard playing up with him. You can bemoan the choices all you want but it is very unfortunate that we have lost Rooney, it's akin to Brazil losing Ronaldinho.

Yes, it is unfortunate. But Svens job is to come up with some VIABLE options to accomodate this. There's never going to be an ideal solution to this problem, because Rooney and Owen are pretty much irreplacable. So in that case, you go to the next best thing. You at least take the Premierships top english goalscorer. You take along a couple of extra strikers with pace, who will fll Owens boots as best they can. You take players who give you OPTIONS, toc cover the (high probability) that we'll be without our two main forwards.

Playing Crouch as a lone forward will mean we have absolutely NO PACE in our attack whatsoever. None. Alternatively, playing him alongside Walcott in a 4-4-2 is nothing more than pissing in the wind and hoping to christ it comes off. But THATS the choice we're left with if Owen is still nursing that injury. And anyone who thinks that really is the best England can come up with in this situation is either completely deluded, or just isn't looking hard enough.

 

[CHAPPERS]

Yeah, Joe Cole and Gerrard are WELL slow aren't they.

 

[Easy 10]

I wouldn't exactly call them out and out speed-merchants. CERTAINLY not as quick as Bent, or Defoe, or SWP. Who will all be twiddling their thumbs at home. Unbelievable.

I think squad goes beyond basic rank bad planning. Its actually bordering on SABOTAGE.

 

[enigma]

Gerrard is no slouch. I think the one up front system would work well. Its just a question of what happens to the strikers really.

 

[Kinky Gerbil]

Defoe has been shit all season and doesnt deserve to go.

 

[Easy 10]

I mentioned Ronaldinho because he went with Brazil as a 17 year old, and didn't play a game. It was experience for the goofy Brazilian lad. Nobody thinks Walcott is going to win us the World Cup, but nor is Bent or Defoe. But he might win it for us next time....

But Brazil have got world class forwards growing on trees, they can easily afford to take a few passengers along in the striker department for the experience.

With our two main strikers struggling to be fit, can we REALLY afford to use up another one of our strikers places just to take Walcott along for "the experience" ? This is the World Cup, not a school trip to Dungeness.

 

[Icy Gull]

But Brazil have got world class forwards growing on trees, they can easily afford to take a few passengers along in the striker department for the experience.

With our two main strikers struggling to be fit, can we REALLY afford to use up another one of our strikers places just to take Walcott along for "the experience" ? This is the World Cup, not a school trip to Dungeness.

The world cup is supposed to be fun, something tells me you are going to have bright red Stuart Pearce like bulging veins, mad starey eyes and be hurling abuse at the tv during this tournament. This is not going to be good for your health. Just accept the inevitablity of glorious failure, it's what England do....and enjoy what you can

 

[34064 Fighter Command]

I'd have picked Bobby Zamora or Dave Kitson over Theo Walcott any day.

I'd have been appalled if Andy Johnson had made the 23 tho' !

 

[Stumpy Tim]

But Brazil have got world class forwards growing on trees, they can easily afford to take a few passengers along in the striker department for the experience.

With our two main strikers struggling to be fit, can we REALLY afford to use up another one of our strikers places just to take Walcott along for "the experience" ? This is the World Cup, not a school trip to Dungeness.

There are always 5 or 6 players who go along for the ride in reality. In every team. Do you think Robert Green is going to play? Or Jenas? I don't. Nor do I think Walcott will, unless a game has been won.

And Brazil may have loads of forwards, but their defence is dodgy. I'm backing Italy this year

 

[REDLAND]

There are always 5 or 6 players who go along for the ride in reality. In every team. Do you think Robert Green is going to play? Or Jenas? I don't. Nor do I think Walcott will, unless a game has been won.

And Brazil may have loads of forwards, but their defence is dodgy. I'm backing Italy this year

The ONLY reason Walcott is going is because Sven feels with his pace, he may be able to swing a game result for us.

and I totally agree its a gamble but its got to be better than Vassel or P. Neville coming on for the last 10mins !!

 

[FamilyGuy]

As part of his coaching staff, I'm sure Sven will have spoken to Steve McLaren about the disastrous decision to take two injured strikers, a schoolboy reserve, and Peter Crouch as the sum total of our "strike force" to Germany. Now, will McLaren have tried to actively dissuade the deluded swedish simpleton from this horrifying, cataclysmic cock-up ? Or will he have smiled smugly and let Sven walk straight into it ?

Think about it. The LAST thing McLaren wants is to take over an England side that has just been crowned World Champions. If the pressure and expectation of the job wasn't already sky-high, just imagine if England have won the World Cup, how the hell do you follow that ? The only way is DOWN from there. It would be an impossible act to follow.

Naah, what McLaren needs is for England to crash and burn next month. Badly. As assistant to Eriksson, he is detached from the disaster. Ultimately its not him making the decisions, so when the full horror of this striker crisis comes home to roost during the tournament, and we survey the charred and twisted wreckage of Englands utterly botched campaign, Sven will (quite rightly) get absolutely slaughtered by all and sundry from all angles (not that he'll be bothered as he fucks off into the sunset, dragging his enormous, oversized suitcase stuffed to the seams with his ill-gotten cash behind him).

Come August, McLaren comes in with that smug little smile to pick up the pieces. The new man for the job, can't do any worse surely, lets all give him a chance to sort out the shocking mess that Eriksson left behind him. Surely things can only IMPROVE now after that last fucktard.

Taking charge of World Champions ? Thats the last thing McLaren wants or needs. He'll be laughing up his sleeve at this squad.

....and that's EXACTLY why McLaren is tainted by the Swede's ridiculous decisions and also why he should NEVER have been given the job.

 

[FamilyGuy]

Well, I'm not sure about his bone-headed insistance of not bothering with a holding midfielder, persisting with the Lampard/Gerrard misfunctioning combo for two years, playing the likes of Rooney and Gerrard all over the shop, showering England caps on one-cap wonders, playing 22 players in one match, playing injured players, his non-existant motivation, complete lack of a back-up plan, inability to make effective substitutions or tactical changes, and now taking a player to the World Cup who (a) hasn't played a single match at the top level, and (b) who he hasn't even actually seen play, other than a couple of roundups on Sky Sports News when Wenger bought him. And only taking 3 other strikers with him, one of whom currently has his foot in a cast and sleeps in an oxygen tent, another who has played half an hour in the last 4 months. And Crouch.

Other than that though, don't get me wrong. Svens great.

Yup, what he said!!!

 

[Easy 10]

There are always 5 or 6 players who go along for the ride in reality. In every team. Do you think Robert Green is going to play? Or Jenas? I don't. Nor do I think Walcott will, unless a game has been won.

Some will be along for the ride yes, but not in positions where we've not actuallty got any decent cover !
I don't expect to see Jenas play (at least I bloody hope not). But it doesn't matter - we've got plenty of decent midfielders. But the one position where we simply CANNOT afford a passeneger right now is in the striker department.

 

[Easy 10]

The world cup is supposed to be fun, something tells me you are going to have bright red Stuart Pearce like bulging veins, mad starey eyes and be hurling abuse at the tv during this tournament. This is not going to be good for your health. Just accept the inevitablity of glorious failure, it's what England do....and enjoy what you can

its going to be an ordeal.
I'm putting ALL the ornaments away, I know that for sure.

 

[Stumpy Tim]

But the one position where we simply CANNOT afford a passeneger right now is in the striker department.

Depends whether we're playing 4-4-2 or 4-1-4-1 as is expected

 

[Easy 10]

Depends whether we're playing 4-4-2 or 4-1-4-1 as is expected

I think we have to assume theres a very real possibility that Owen just won't be fit (I've already written off Rooney). In which case we've got a choice.

If its 4-4-2 then it'll have to be Crouch and Walcott.
If its 5-4-1, and Walcott is just "there for the experience", then its Crouch on his own up front.

Both of those scenarios are the horrifying reality of what we are left with if Owen stays crocked, or is off the pace. The only other thing that he can do is start converting midfielders into strikers. In other words, a complete dogs dinner of a lineup with players in unfamiliar roles. Against the best in the world.

If Owens not up to it, then its suddenly going to dawn on a lot of people just what an almighty f***-up this squad is. If the Crouch/Walcott experiment just isn't working out, and we're losing, and we need to change it, then you look at the subs bench. What options are we going to be left with ?

I'm all ears.

 

[CHAPPERS]

CHRISTMAS TREE

 

[Easy 10]

Well I suppose we can all start pulling various random unpracticed formations out of our arses (such as the Christmas Tree), with uncapped strikers/midfielders scattered to the wind, throw it all on the pitch, and basically hope it all works out somehow. Maybe all the other teams will have an "off day" when they play us too, lets hope so. Thats largely what Sven will be doing anyway.

£4.5m a year eh. Worth EVERY penny.
Genius.

 

[CHAPPERS]

I'm bored of you and your critical ways. I shall leave you to spend the build up to the world cup effing and blinding about the selection process as we embark on our WORLD CUP ADVENTURE.

Farewell.