So, you now run the FA, what will you do?

[Scoffers]

You are putting a plan together to Win the World Cup in 2014, which of these do you do?

Please comment below if you have "other" ideas!

 

[seagull_special]

no players over 25 (at this moment in time)

any player who represents England have to be exemplary - No Terry, No Ferdinand etc

no players with poor discipline records

Capello to be kept on, no point changing managers as there is no heir apparent

all England under 21 players should be encouraged to play abroad

Premier cut to 16 teams

winter break implemented

 

[happypig]

Not sure what the FA can do when it's the PL/SKY/CL money that really runs the show. The problem is that there are 6/7 clubs that are head and shoulders above the rest of the PL and their best players look better than they are because 2 out of 3 games they are playing inferior opponents.
The clubs' focus is the Champions League, you only have to look how Spurs' players celebrated breaking in to the "magic four" compared to getting England Call ups; the players are too focussed on the CL to the detriment of everything else. If you were to ask the players whether they would rather win the CL or the world cup, I'm pretty sure that a majority would say CL.
So the problem, IMO, is that Champions League football every year is seen as the pinnacle for Premiership players and the World Cup/Euros are just something to do in the summer every other year.
Until the players actually feel that the honour of playing for England is the absolute height of their career, rather than thier right as a first team player in a top 4 club, then England are doomed to mediocrity.

 

[Giraffe]

Appoint Harry Rednapp as manager and ask him what he wants, then do it all 100%.

Suspect most of this will revolve around reducing the number of games for players. Most of our players looked completely spent for much of the tournament.

 

[Rookie]

Appoint Harry Rednapp as manager and ask him what he wants, then do it all 100%.

Suspect most of this will revolve around reducing the number of games for players. Most of our players looked completely spent for much of the tournament.

Why? His record of success if not exactly great.

 

[strings]

Other, please state

- Redouble efforts to bring the national football centre online as soon as possible.

- Rearrange the FA budget so that grassroots clubs that are regularly producing youngsters to professional clubs are rewarded.

- Maybe open a couple of regional 'mini-Burtons' to develop youngsters with talent.

- Put a break in the middle of the Premier League season.

- Make the England Senior Mens team play in an all PINK home kit until they get to the Semi-Finals of a major competition. They are no longer fit to wear white.

 

[Gwylan]

The FA have no authority to reduce the number of games - that's down to the PL. And the turkeys are not going to vote for Christmas.

 

[Marshy]

We dont play anymore games than the top sides from Italy or Spain its the physical nature and pace of the premier league that tires our players.
And that will never change.

 

[beorhthelm]

reducing the number of Foreign players would probably be illegal or require UEFA support (i beleive there are new rules for this, ensuring 5 "home grown players" in each team).

splitting *all* of the PL/FL into 5 divisions might help, im sure many top championship teams would be on board, and the poorer Prem teams might go for it if the money was still there in the second teir. but italians and spanish have 20 teams and a couple of cups, so im not sure this makes much difference.

dropping the Leauge cup for the PL would be simple and help a little, make it FL teams only.

 

[Scoffers]

The FA have no authority to reduce the number of games - that's down to the PL. And the turkeys are not going to vote for Christmas.

Good point, of course. So is there any way someone else, like the Sports Minister, could intervene or use their influence?

Something has to change, thats for sure

 

[nwgull]

As has already been said, the game is now run by the rich premier league clubs who could not give 2 shits about how poor the England team is provided that the fans still renew their season tickets and Sky subscriptions. Club football rules, and most club supporters are more concerned about winning the league than England doing well and will happily see their clubs splash out on expensive foreigners to help them acheive this.

 

[Mendoza]

In September, I would pick more or less the squad you want in 4 years time. Then they have four years of playing together, once through a major tournament (Euro 2012) and then hopefully by 2014, they would have bonded (well the core of theam) and then we can soccer them dins out in Brazil

 

[Was not Was]

Other - stop pretending the national team is a priority.

It is (at best) an afterthought in the decisions made about professional football in England.

Just admit it, instead of imagining that a ridiculously high salary for the coach will make up for this.

 

[Gwylan]

Good point, of course. So is there any way someone else, like the Sports Minister, could intervene or use their influence?

Something has to change, thats for sure

I doubt if anyone could have that much influence - maybe if Jesus came back...

BTW, I think this number of games is overstated. We do play more in the PL but we also have bigger squads and there's more rotation. Someone pointed out the other day that Philip Lahm had played more games than England player and I remember one of the commentators saying that one of the Brazilians had played 63 club games in the last season - it doesn't seem to have harmed Brazil or Germany.

 

[Skint Gull]

Coaching Kids, it's gonna take a good decade for that to make a real difference to the England team but quite simply there are not enough qualified coaches in this country.

I reckon probably 75% of kids side will be 'managed' by unqualified coaches and playing on massive pitches with massive goals. All this does is mean teams focus on getting as many big LUMPS as possible with very little focus on actual skills and understanding of the game.

 

[hans kraay fan club]

If I were in charge of the FA, I'd get myself a nice smart BLAZER, and a lovely BOX at Wembley, and appoint myself a nubile blonde P.A. Then I'd travel the WORLD first-class on 'fact-finding' missions, concentrating particularly on the football hot-beds of THAILAND, BALI and VEGAS.

I wouldn't neglect my duties though - I'd make sure my [nubile blonde] P.A. kept my diary all ship-shape, so that I didn't miss any nice DINNERS, or important FIFA conferences in Switzerland or BRAZIL.

 

[Norman Potting]

Not sure what the FA can do when it's the PL/SKY/CL money that really runs the show. The problem is that there are 6/7 clubs that are head and shoulders above the rest of the PL and their best players look better than they are because 2 out of 3 games they are playing inferior opponents.
The clubs' focus is the Champions League, you only have to look how Spurs' players celebrated breaking in to the "magic four" compared to getting England Call ups; the players are too focussed on the CL to the detriment of everything else. If you were to ask the players whether they would rather win the CL or the world cup, I'm pretty sure that a majority would say CL.
So the problem, IMO, is that Champions League football every year is seen as the pinnacle for Premiership players and the World Cup/Euros are just something to do in the summer every other year.
Until the players actually feel that the honour of playing for England is the absolute height of their career, rather than thier right as a first team player in a top 4 club, then England are doomed to mediocrity.

Good points, well made!

 

[perth seagull]

Reducing the number of games probably won't make much difference. The Spanish league and Italian league have 38 game seasons and guess who were the last European and World champions?

 

[¤DãŃn¥ §êãGüLL¤]

If the "big 4" won't play their English youngsters, get them to link up with teams in the Dutch top flight and send them over on long term loans - the standard of coaching there is light years ahead of what we have.

 

[Stumpy Tim]

I would encourage English players to play in other leagues. Not one of our players has done that, and it shows. They're only used to teams battering each other, so as soon as we come across a team who slow the pace down we struggle