45 minutes is a short amount of time, even in footballing terms, but the second half of England’s game in Oslo seemed to last an eternity as age-old problems resurfaced and time after time England squandered possession to their hosts. A clean sheet and a victory in his first game in charge will mean Roy Hodgson will certainly come away satisfied from their scandinavian sojourn. The first half display and performances of the likes of Ashley Young and Andy Carroll were encouraging, but the solutions to England’s problems appear to lie outside of those who will travel to Poland and Ukraine.
When the 23 man squad was announced, there were two notable absentees, but while one was expected, both players omitted could have provided the antidote to England’s problem. Euro 2012 will certainly not be the last major tournament for Jack Wilshere, but along with that of Michael Carrick, his presence is sure to be missed. Whether you agree or not with Carrick’s decision to turn down the chance to be on stand-by, in the absence of Wilshere, this should be of an irrelevance, as Michael Carrick should not be a bit part player for England. Very comfortable in possession and defensively astute, Michael Carrick is the sort of player who is undervalued in the English game which is, unfortunately, is to the detriment of the national side.
>Roy Hodgson looks set to stick to his belief in 2 banks of four when he takes charge at the Euros, with Ashley Young expected to start in behind Andy Carroll against France and Sweden in a 4-4-1-1 formation. But while England looked dangerous going forward at times when the two forward men linked up, it is when England play from deep where they appear to struggle.
Despite enjoying much of his success at Liverpool in an advanced role, England managers seem determined to play Steven Gerrard in different positions, with Roy Hodgson looking set to deploy him in a central midfield role alongside Scott Parker. Today in an interview the England Captain hinted that Frank Lampard’s injury may well restrict him to this role for the whole o the tournament, which is not good news for England.
While Gerrard and Parker will bring an abundance of desire, drive and guts, there is a dinstict lack of creativity within the axis of the England side. Parker is fantastic at what he does, but he is not going to set the world alight going forward, and I fear Gerrard will have similar problems. The Liverpool Captain’s partnership with Fernando Torres was one of the most feared in European football, but the system Liverpool played allowed Gerrard a sort of freedom he will not enjoy when part of a midfield 4. The protection and creativity provided by Javier Mascherano and Xabi Alonso respectively not only provided Gerrard with the freedom to roam but the creativity from deep which allowed him to exploit the space manoeuvred by Alonso, particularly.