First off, I don't rate Fabio 'Postman Pat Lookalike' Capello as a manager and don't believe that he should have been given the job in the first place.Only now in the current qualifying games for the Euro 2012 championships has he started to pull his act together and try a variety of different things with the squad. However what I will be analysing in this post is the 23 man squad he chose for that world cup, In my eyes one of the biggest mistakes he has made as the manager of England.
These were the 23 apparent 'best fit players for England' who Fabio decided to take on that wonderfully successful trip to the World Cup:
Goalkeepers - Joe Hart, Rob Green, David James
Defenders - John Terry, Rio Ferdinand, Ashley Cole, Glen Johnson, Ledley King, Matthew Upson, Stephen Warnock, Jamie Carragher
Midfielders - Frank Lampard, Steven Gerrard, Joe Cole, Michael Carrick, Aaron Lennon, Gareth Barry, James Milner, Shaun Wright-Phillips
Strikers - Wayne Rooney, Emile Heskey, Peter Crouch, Jermain Defoe
Right... where to begin? I honestly believe the only part of that squad selection that Mr Capello picked correctly were the 3 goalkeepers he chose. I believe they were the 3 most reliable goalkeepers at the time so I guess he deserves some credit for getting one part out of four right, Its not like we would expect him to pick the best possible squad available to him is it?
Jamie Carragher. Definitely should not have been selected, a couple years past his best and decided to come out of retirement to try and make the squad, how he made the 23 I will never know. He was seen as the replacement to Glen Johnson at right back but sadly lacked the pace and ability to do the job properly. Why someone such as Micah Richards, who also can cover as a centre back or right back, didnt get the nod ahead of him is beyond me. Leighton Baines should have been ahead of Steven Warnock as Baines had easily established himself as the number 2 left back behind the impressive Ashley Cole. I also think taking Ledley king with his dodgy knees was a bit of a risk when a rully fit Michael Dawson would have done just a good a job.
The wingers. Capello picked 3 out and out wingers and he had a big range of players to choose from: Walcott, Johnson, Lennon, Cole, Wright-Phillips, Young, Downing. 7 good wingers but In my opinion Fabio Capello picked the wrong 3 to take, I too would have chosen Lennon but I personally believe Joe Cole didn't have the ability he once did and Wright-Phillips has always been hit and miss at international level. The major talking point was that Walcott was axed when the squad was cut from 30 down to 23 and I think Mr Capello was definitely right when he later admitted it was a mistake not to take Theo to the World Cup. In my personal opinion the biggest tragedy was not picking Scott Parker. I don't rate Gareth Barry at all and would have Parker in my team ahead of him any day of the week. I believe he is better on the ball, much fitter and a better athlete, and all round is just genuinely plays the game of football at a higher standard than Barry does. I am one the of people who believe that Lampard and Gerrard cant play together, and I never liked the idea of playing Gerrard out on the wing. I feel that they are too similar players and do pretty much the same job for the team, I dont think Fabio had the bottle to resign one of them to the bench as admittedly they are two of the biggest names in English Football. I think someone like Parker would have been a lot more effective in midfield along side either Gerrard or Lampard.
And finally to the strike force. If I was an opposition manager and saw those strikers, I wouldn't feel any genuine sense of fear, there is not enough fire power. Rooney does a brilliant job off the front man but if he isn't scoring then I cant see Mr '7 goals in 60 odd games' Heskey stepping up to the plate and firing us to the final. As much Heskey does offer the team in the way of setting up other player, if I wanted someone to get assists I would have just played an extra creative midfielder. Crouch does pretty much the exact same job as Heskey and chips in with more goals, why Capello took both of them I have no idea. Darren Bent should have gone, a proven goal scorer with a good track record and only now in the present games is he beginning to get his chance.
So what 23 players would have I chosen? Well, if they were all fit I would have taken this lot:
Goalkeepers - Joe Hart, Rob Green, David James
Defenders - John Terry, Rio Ferdinand, Ashley Cole, Glen Johnson, Leighton Baines, Micah Richards, Michael Dawson
Midfielders - Steven Gerrard, Frank Lampard, Theo Walcott, Aaron Lennon, Michael Carrick, Scott Parker, James Milner, Ashley Young
Strikers - Wayne Rooney, Darren Bent, Peter Crouch, Jermain Defoe
I only picked 7 defenders compared to the 8 that Mr Capello chose as I think that Micah Richards would have been able to do a sufficient job as a spare right back and at centre back. This also allowed to me to pick another creative player to give us more options in attack, I chose Ashley Young as he can play as an out and out winger or in a classic no. 10 role behind the striker, I believe Darren Bent should be taken as his added firepower to the attack would have made us more of a threat, I feel that he should have been the one to partner Rooney up front in the matches at the world cup as well.
Out of the 23, This would have been my personal preferred starting XI in a 4-4-2 formation:
1.Joe Hart
2.Glen Johnson
3.Ashley Cole
4. Scott Parker
5. Rio Ferdinand
6. John Terry (C)
7. Theo Walcott
8. Steven Gerrard
9. Darren Bent
10. Wayne Rooney
11. Ashley Young
Honestly I feel that Fabio Capello's squad choice and then team selection at the World Cup was the main factor behind England premature exit.
Matt Cooper
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