Why these ex-Manchester United stars were right to CONDEMN England’s footballers:

Paul Scholes hasn’t been a man of many words throughout his glittering career at Manchester United; in fact he is famed for his shyness towards the media. But following the announcement of his retirement in May, it was surprising to hear that Scholes had given the press the rarest of commodities, two interviews in the space of a month. Arsenal were first to feel the lash of his tongue by expressing his feelings on everything from how Arsenal play, strategy employed by Wenger  and lack of silverware in the last 6 years. More recently Scholes has gone on to give another interview, during which he gave a brutal and honest assessment regarding the players for the national side and their inability to produce at the highest level.  Just this week Scholes recent teammate for both club and country, Gary Neville has reiterated the statements made by his former colleague.

Can an argument be made for or against these claims made by a man that in his 15 years as a professional has won every trophy club football has to offer and won 66 caps representing his country?

The interview by Scholes was extraordinary, the honesty in which Scholes delivered his responses was remarkable and when put into context it was actually confirming what the majority of English football fans already knew.  In recent years it has become obvious that a lot of the English players that represent the nation are selfish and only invested in their own brand. The national team no longer play as a team but rather a collective bunch of individuals. But how has this come to be and why?

England has one of the best if not the best football leagues in world football and all the best, most talented English players are the backbone of the established top teams in the division yet at major international tournaments England fail to gel as a unit, play with no intensity and don’t have any chemistry.

They have the talent in abundances and are great players individually and when they play for their club sides in the Premiership or Champions League they prove they are among the best footballers in the world. The rivalry that comes from the Premier League has to be a factor. When the FA announce their players from Chelsea, Liverpool, Man City and United, I can’t shake the impression that because the hostilities are so intense at club level that they just don’t like playing with each other, instead of a team unity they are competing with each other to prove they are a better more talented player and will sacrifice the team to obtain personal glory.

Over the next few years more and more players from the golden generation will retire from international football and a new generation will be ushered into the national setup. Exciting and technically gifted youngsters are starting to emerge from the Under 21’s, Rodwell, Wilshere and Jones to name a few have shown they are technically proficient and have the potential to succeed with the senior squad.

But unless they match their abilities with what in recent years has deserted the English senior team, determination and passion and leave their egos at the door, the national team will forever be condemned to repeating the mistakes that has plagued their predecessors for the past 20 years.

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