Martin O’Neill for England? No thanks…

Memorable victories over Manchester City and Liverpool during this run have added to O’Neill’s lustre, with the atmosphere at the Stadium of Light at the former game being described by one English tabloid as a ‘footballing Krakatoa’. Who could argue that O’Neill was not responsible for this, that the limp and tired football of the Steve Bruce years had been banished by the King motivator himself? Surely a similarly disillusioned England squad, with ageing stars like Frank Lampard and nervous youngsters like Danny Welbeck, would benefit from some of this O’Neill stardust?

A look at previous evidence will tell even the casual observer that this motivational magic is a temporary and somewhat distracting effect, and one which is completely unsuited to someone taking charge of an international football team. At Celtic, O’Neill took over from the Dalglish/Barnes regime which had finished a massive 20 points behind Rangers in their final full season in charge, and inherited a fabulously talented striker in Henrik Larsson; at Villa, he arrived to take advantage of the heavy investment of the new owner Randy Lerner, with the soaring spirits of the fans after the retirement of Doug Ellis and the banishment of David O’Leary.

Add this to the situation at Sunderland as he arrived, and it can easily be argued that O’Neill is not so much of a magical motivator as very astute at picking situations where his limited tactical abilities can be masked by the desire of new and old players to preserve their employment at large and well supported clubs. Would this really work with the limited involvement O’Neill would have with the English national side?  Would players like Rooney, Hart and Walcott, all playing at huge clubs with successful and respected managers, really be seduced by a man who has merely been the recipient of enormous good fortune in his new employment on more than one occasion?

Put simply, Martin O’Neill is horrendously unsuited to being manager of England. Tactically and personally, he would be found out very quickly – there would be no change from the usual English mode of pretty straightforward qualification for a major tournament followed by a swift exit once the first decent opponent had been faced.

To O’Neill’s credit, it is likely that he knows his limitations and will decline the media clamour for him to be interviewed for the job. Surely, at some point, English football has to make a break with the past and tell itself that, from the grassroots to the pinnacle of the game, a change has to be made. The English FA needs to take a deep breath, and announce that this is the time for a root and branch reform of the way English football works to be made. FA coaching – from the lowest level to the national team manager – needs to focus on ball retention, tactical fluidity, and the regeneration of a tired and simplistic system which has produced just two major tournament semi finals in 46 years.

The riches produced by English football need to put to good use, and this can be started by getting a young coach who is given a cast iron ten year contract, with the goal of a Euro 2020 or WC 2022 final appearance. Who should it be? Not Redknapp, not O’Neill, not Mourinho, not Joachim Low…. someone who has proven he can set up a project and stick to it, someone who has an eye for technique, for talent, for youth and good football. Step forward Brendan Rogers of Swansea City, and rebuild English football.

If you agree, disagree or want some football chat, I’m on Twitter – @robsmith2011. Remember what your mother said though: “If you can’t say anything nice, don’t say anything at all”.

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