That’s the story of England’s lauded Golden Generation. As we gear up for Saturday’s Wales clash, it’s sad to acknowledge that a whole generation of top class talent has failed so miserably.
You have to wonder how managers can pick up squads replete with the likes of Gerrard, Beckham, Rooney, Scholes, Owen, Ashley Cole, too many world class centre backs to mention, and have them achieve nothing in a decade. It’s like being given a Ferrari and losing a drag race to a Skoda. With a broken wheel. And no engine.
For a start, I couldn’t pick a better all round midfielder on the planet, than Steven Gerrard. From tough tackling, bursting in to the box, incisive passing and dribbling to covering as right back in the 2005 Champions League final against AC Milan (and doing a stellar job). Beckham, the world’s best crosser of the ball on the right, Lampard, a dynamic midfield presence with an eye for goal. Joe Cole, Ashley Cole, Rooney, many more and rock solid defenders and goalkeepers.
And they play like Scunthorpe. No offence to Scunthorpe. Every tournament the country holds it’s collective breathe as we expect them finally, finally, COME ON YOU CAN DO IT FINALLY to come good. The talent is there, but something is missing.
I couldn’t put it down to technical inferiority. Sure, standout teams like Spain’s current outfit are a cut above, but they’re the making of an all time great. England’s Golden Generation is certainly no worse, player for player, than Italy’s 2006 winning squad. Or even Holland or Germany’s sides from the previous World Cup.
It’s hard to pin it solely on the managers either. A well known story, to refer to the 2005 Champions League final again, is that at half time Rafa Benitez had lost control of the dressing room, and it was Gerrard’s tactical instructions on the pitch that changed Liverpool’s fortunes. There’s certainly no lack of on the pitch leadership, from Campbell, Ferdinand, Terry, Lampard, Beckham and Gerrard to Rooney.
So what is it? To me it’s mentality. I remember being amazed at the quality of PSV’s play against AC Milan in the 2005 Champions League semi finals. They lost 3-3 on aggregate, with Milan scoring in injury time of the 2nd leg. But more so than the result, it was the fact that they actually outplayed a Milan side full of world beaters in their prime. It was magnificent football, coupled with motivation and enough talent to pull it off. As I said England certainly have had enough talent to do the same with our generation of stars.
It’s not just that we lose to great sides, it’s that by and large we don’t even put up a fight. We don’t play good football. We play to a standard several notches below that expected of the caliber of our players. Whatever the reason, we have to wave goodbye to much of that generation and look to the future to rebuild.
Theo Walcott, Jack Wilshere, Martin Kelly, Andy Carroll, Danny Welbeck, Daniel Sturridge – there’s a bright future mixing that lot in with our older talent, but is Capello the man to do it? National sides don’t need a tactical genius, they need a great motivator and organiser. Someone who can get the best out of the players. A Harry Redknapp rather than a Rafa Benitez. England’s performances have been as sluggish as ever under Capello, to be frank. Saturday’s game is an opportunity to showcase the emergence of some of our young talent, but I have a feeling we will breeze past Wales, as we tend to beat the average sides, and positivity will engulf the national side. Which only serves to cover up the high probability that we will fail against the next decent side we come up against (see: Brazil; Holland; Spain; Germany; France; the entire 2010 World Cup).
Bottom line – we need a hungry, passionate English manager.
