Svensson devastates while Lambert elates

Originally published in The Sports Pink and dailyecho.co.uk

An ex-Saint has ruined my plans for next summer, but a current one may just have sorted out yours.

In Dublin, 37-year-old Anders Svensson popped up to beat David Forde at the near post and condemn Ireland to a 2-1 defeat which pretty much kills of any hopes of the boys in green getting on a plane to Brazil next summer.

To make it worse, I even have a signed shirt of his from 2003. Still, can always use an extra rag. Not that I’m bitter or anything.

About 300 miles away at Wembley however, Rickie Lambert Esq. was busy scoring and creating goals against a rather limited Moldova.

This may have led to a number bemoaning the fact that it’s only Moldova and that Lambert is still not good enough for international duty, but the fact remains he is scoring goals in an England shirt.

Without his contribution in three of the four goals England scored, the result would have been rather more underwhelming – and in international football, you don’t get to play the big boys without dispatching the minnows first.

Lambert’s call up by Roy Hodgson has had a remarkable effect across the country. Since I was a small boy, all the English football fans I know have always put their club ahead of their country.

Personally, I put this down to firstly the clever marketing of the Premier League over the last 21 years, the bloating of the European Cup into the Champions League and finally the constant overhyping of the Three Lions (Golden Generation, anyone?).

In England, England is no longer the pinnacle of the game. Yet, Rickie Lambert seems to have reminded people that it should be.

His progress from the fourth tier to International football seems to have galvanised belief that it is possible to survive the influx of foreign talent and make an impression on the closed shop that is the England national team.

Suddenly, Champions League experience is not a pre-requisite to play international football – lest we forget, Gary Hooper, now at Norwich, has Champions League experience at Celtic, but I don’t see a clamour for his call up.

In Southampton especially, more people suddenly seem concerned, even emotionally invested in what England can do. That’s what international football should be about. Petty club rivalries are left at the door for the greater good as all and sundry come together in hope and expectation.

I had the good fortune to go Euro 2012 last year. The football was abysmal. Giovanni Trapattoni’s atrocious tactics and gameplans saw Ireland humiliated. Regardless, it was one of the best experiences of my life.

Poznan, a city of 600,000 people was invaded by 50,000 Irishmen and women there for the craic and unlikely dreams of glory.

Ignoring the financial realities for a moment, it now looks like I won’t have the opportunity to repeat in Rio the delights of Gdansk – in reality, it just means I won’t have the chance to sell a kidney to fund such a trip. Every cloud and all that.

Should England make it however and you’re lucky enough to be able to afford it, I can only urge you to look at heading to Brazil next summer.

If however you, like most people, don’t have a spare few grand to throw away on a football jolly, throw yourself into International football.

Enjoy the dreams, wallow in the disappointment, but above all remember how Rickie Lambert made it acceptable to care about your country once again.

Euro 2012 – a few musings

Expectations in football are seldom managed well and rapidly swing from one extreme to another.

The giddiness of hope can cause expectations to soar wildly before a ball has even been kicked, while a single mediocre performance can plunge supporters into despair, as they anticipate disappointment and heartache.

At International level, that gets amplified by an incredible amount – not least as more casual fans come out and get carried away with the belief that Andy Carroll is indeed the man to strike fear into the hearts of Europe’s top defenders.

Euro 2012 is slightly odd however – England’s chances are being played down. That is not something I have ever seen in my 20 odd years or so of following football. But weirdly, the very fact the England team are not expected to do well is seeing expectations rise. It’s as if thinking the team is poor actually makes them brilliant, in a kind of bizarre reverse psychology.

That said, it would be foolish to write England off completely before the tournament has even started. In the form of Greece in 2004 and Denmark 1992, the European Championships has shown us that with a bit of momentum, anything can happen.

Injuries are causing a massive problem for Roy Hodgson, but I think with the players at his disposable, he is a better choice than Redknapp and his previous successes have come from teams you would otherwise think ordinary.

However, France seem to have recovered after the debacle of 2010, whereas Sweden at least seem the equals of England. Ukraine are a bit of a wild card – unfancied, but as hosts you never know. Who can forget Korea in 2002? If England make it out of the group, I fancy it to be on a skin-of-the-teeth basis, especially with talisman Rooney unavailable until the final group game against Ukraine. A likely meeting with Spain however would suggest the adventure would end there.

Despite the earlier quip, Carroll and Young will need to be at their best to see England in a position to progress when Rooney returns. The Liverpool man could provide so much – if he can recapture the form from Newcastle whilst Young will need the midfield to provide the ball quickly to his feet for maximum effect. Man United can do it, but the England midfield doesn’t look quite as accomplished.

Meanwhile, in group C, the Irish are even more unfancied than the English. Over 45,000 are expected to flock to Poznan – yours truly included. Mercurial talent is at a premium in Trapattoni’s squad but the work rate is phenomenal. A sequence of 14 games undefeated is something to be very proud of, but Spain et al present a very different test.

You would have to imagine Ireland will lose to Spain in Gdansk – most teams would. But against Croatia and Italy, things are a lot more open. Getting out of the group may prove slightly beyond us but the Greece and Denmark analogy surely applies more to Ireland than England. The Italians look ripe for the taking – they are in disarray with injuries and the match fixing scandal and in three games, Trapattoni’s Ireland have yet to lose to the Azzuri. However, they were written off in Germany in 2006 and ended up being champions.

Croatia are technically superior to the Republic, but the rigid 4-4-2 system employed by Trapattoni has only faltered once – against Russia in Dublin.

Ireland’s chances rest with hitting teams on the break after being able to soak up huge amounts of pressure. Duff and McGeady need to break fast and get the ball forward to the likes of Keane, Doyle and Long to get on the end of. In fact, it’s not a dissimilar approach to the one used by Gordon Strachan during his time at St. Mary’s. The inclusion of James McClean could be the trump card – he’s had a great few months at Sunderland and few in Europe will know much about him.

What price Keith Andrews and Glenn Whelan being Euro 2012 winners, I wonder? (80-1, if you’re interested).

Trap’s travelling army keep saying that after 10 years away from the top table we’re just glad to be back. Inwardly though, you can guarantee we’re all dreaming of getting to the knock-outs, at which point anything could happen. Hopefully it’s not completely based in fantasy.

The tournament as a whole though would seem to belong to Germany, Spain or Holland. Three titles in a row may be a bit much for the Spanish, not least because of the domestic season they have had. They certainly have the most talented squad but going all the way might just be a bit too far for tired legs.

The young Germans thrilled in South Africa and are probably the popular choice to win with many tipping them. With many of their squad plying their trade at Bayern Munich, they will be eager to win something this season, having missed out in both the Bundesliga and Champions League.

Arjen Robben and Robin van Persie’s form over the year means the Dutch have to be fancied. Don’t be surprised to see them exact revenge for the World Cup loss two years ago.

So, if I have to make a prediction, I’m going for Germany to win it, a rejuvenated Fernando Torres to be top scorer.

Now I’ve done that, whatever you do, don’t put money on either of those suggestions. Trust me.

Oops.

So, does this splash now look like such a good idea?

Admittedly, I enjoyed France’s abysmal performance far more than I did England’s (schadenfreude) but the English national media do have a tendency to big up the football team’s ability, before overreacting to ordinary performances painting them as the coming of the apocalypse.

And it is for reasons like this gem from The Sun that last night’s draw with Algeria raises a wry smile.

Rooney’s reaction is either being described as replica hublot bigbang tutti frutti linen petulant or indicative of a frustrated warrior, depending on your point of view (seemingly fans think the former, pundits the latter) but what does seem universal is how Capello, in the space of 180 minutes, has gone from the man who could guide England to World Cup glory (which to my mind, was always optimistic in the extreme) to a cold, ruthless dictator whose methods are sapping the confidence from his players (again, a bit unlikely).

I think England will still make it through to the second round – although I disagree that results between sides comes before goal difference and goals scored as a tie breaker.

The reality is that England are a good side. Not a bad one, but most certainly not a great one. That has long been the case, but as long as jingoistic hyperbole continues, most patriotic football fans will be swept up in the bipolar https://www.coolvapesshop.com/product/torch-phantom-blend-disposable-3-5g-bubblegum-haze/ condition that sweeps the nation.

Hell, we battered Algeria 3-0 a few weeks ago!