Gadsby's England Bog RSS

The Rooney conundrum

2011-10-19T11:11:00.002-04:00

As if things weren't perilous enough for an England team already ridden with flaws, what on earth does Fabio Capello do now with Wayne Rooney? The problem -- assuming his three-match ban is upheld -- is that should England somehow get through the group stages (an unlikely scenario, one must say, based on England's previous European Championships record, general form, Rooney's absence and the fact that the Euros live the cliche of not throwing up easy games), then the team which did so would be, in a way, 'punished' by being dismantled. In short, at this point it looks like it would be some achievement to get out of the group, and the reward for that: one of you who helped England do that loses your place. The alternative is to not take Rooney, but, honestly, can Capello even dare to consider not taking the only English player with the natural ability to turn a match on its head?

Capello, and England, have a nightmare of a dilemma in front of them. What's worse is that it's one which is all so unnecessary.

England 2:2 Switzerland post-match reaction

2011-06-07T08:56:00.002-04:00

Post-match reaction after another dire England performance.

Capello concerned by lack of energy:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/13656569.stm

and Terry admits England looked tired:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/9504895.stm

Have Joe Hart, Darren Bent and Andy Carroll Solved England's Goalkeeping Problems?

2011-04-26T17:00:00.002-04:00

On this week's Gadsby's England roundup, have Joe Hart, Darren Bent and Andy Carroll solved England's goalkeeping and goalscoring problems? And, like the rest of Britain, Gadsby's is readying himself for the big event on Friday which is captivating the nation, indeed the world: the Surrey Village Fete.
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On This Week’s Gadsby’s England Roundup...

2011-04-12T23:56:00.003-04:00

On this week’s Gadsby’s England roundup, Paul Scholes says Wayne Rooney has been made a scapegoat for England’s World Cup failure, and Spanish club teams show just how big the gulf in class is between continental football and the Premier League.
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A Gadsby’s England Matchweek Special

2011-03-29T11:54:00.000-04:00

A Gadsby’s England Matchweek Special as Gadsby reports from Cardiff on Wales vs. England, previews the Ghana friendly at Wembley and discusses the latest heated exchanges between the English press and Fabio Capello

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Capello Loses Last Ounce of Deference

2011-03-26T08:48:00.005-04:00

If Fabio Capello was under any illusion that the English press still had an ounce of affection for him, that was wiped out in one 30-minute session in front of the media in Cardiff yesterday. It wasn't so much a press conference as an acrimonious divorce proceeding.

The straw hanging from the camel's back was as flimsy as a piece of dental floss anyway, but the recent handling of the captaincy issue, in particular the Rio Ferdinand snub, ensured that the relationship between Capello and the English media, and possibly most importantly England's fans, is now irreparable. Even straightforward qualification for Euro 2012 will not change this. Only the most improbable scenario of England winning Euro 2012 or some kind of glorious, unjust semi-final exit a la Italia '90/Euro '96 will allow Capello to leave the England job with any kind of good wishes from the English.

More to come as England face Wales at the Millennium Stadium...

- Gadsby, in Cardiff

England rule out any possibility of a friendly in May...

2011-02-22T15:46:00.000-05:00

On this week’s Gadsby’s England roundup, England rule out any possibility of a friendly in May, Holloway and Lampard add their support to Harry Redknapp for next England manager, plus a special appeal.

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Gadsby looks back at the first half of 2010, England’s annus horibilis.

2010-12-22T01:49:00.000-05:00

In the first of two special Gadsby’s England roundups, Gadsby looks back at the first half of 2010, England’s annus horibilis.

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FIFA Hands Football Polonium 210

2010-12-02T21:16:00.006-05:00

I was in the air on a flight from Zurich to Tokyo when the World Cup vote was called. My heart pounded as the captain strolled over, piece of paper in his hand. "I think you're going to need whisky, not champagne," he sighed, as he showed me that Russia and Qatar had been awarded the 2018 and 2022 World Cups by the Fifa Executive Committee, respectively. I looked at the Airshow moving map on my TV screen, and out the window, to a brutal irony: Moscow was below. Moscow, the now official host of the 2018 World Cup Final. Nine hours later, I looked at the Airshow again. We were still over Russia. FIFA has awarded a World Cup it pledged to Europe to a country whose reaches are further from the centre of Europe than Johannesburg or Rio de Janeiro.

But that is just the tip of a Siberian iceberg. This World Cup voting process has been the most despicable in a despicable history of the abominable organisation known as FIFA. English sour grapes? Not on your nelly. Let me be clear: Russia and Qatar have bought the FIFA World Cup. When Vladimir Putin appeared on Larry King on Wednesday night, instead of in Zurich, our first thoughts were that this was a blunder by the Russian bid. How wrong we were. Putin stayed away because he already knew it was in the bag, and his seemingly ambiguous statements on television were an eyeball-to-eyeball reminder to the possessors of the FIFA pockets he and his rotten rabble have lined that despite giving the England bid the highest rating in every category FIFA uses as criteria to select a World Cup host, it was the devil who owned their souls. Hard cash for the ugly Exco members, Polonium 210 for the beautiful game.

As to the football-passionate country of Qatar? Qatar, where women and homosexuals are given about the same rights as in England; England in the 15th Century. FIFA's selection of Qatar is at least the closest thing to an honest admission that they are an organisation which warmly welcomes bribery, law-bending, and moral bankruptcy. Panorama, your work's been done for you on this one! But don't worry fans, the stadiums will be state-of-the-art air-conditioned palaces. You supporters only need to worry about the 50C/130F June/July temperatures when you're not spending that long ninety minutes inside the stadium. And players, don't worry about the dehydrating effects of air conditioning pumping out to cool an area the size of...well, a football stadium.

So, the World Cups go to the largest country in the bidding, and the smallest. Little and Large, but in terms of size of 'brown envelopes delivered', and navigating around what those other annoying countries couldn't, like laws, your World Cup hosts couldn't be larger.

This is as black a moment to the administration of the game as hooliganism is to the actual game. It is now time not just for the English, but the world media to probe, expose and slice FIFA open so that every football supporter can see its rotten core. One must be careful of that great line from The Who, "Meet the new boss/ Same as the old boss", but FIFA in its current form must be disbanded, and replaced with an organisation which is transparent, accountable and lawful.

Some of the persons named below are honourable, decent and incorruptible. It is time to arrest, charge, prosecute and imprison the rest. We already have irrefutable evidence that Warner, Hayatou, Leoz, Teixeira, Temarii and Adamu are guilty. Do not forget this committee. It has been spitting in your face for years.

Joseph S. BLATTER President

Jérôme VALCKE Secretary General

Issa HAYATOU Cameroon

CHUNG Mong Joon Korea Republic

Jack A. WARNER Trinidad and Tobago

Ángel María VILLAR LLONA Spain

Michel PLATINI France

Reynald TEMARII Tahiti

Geoff THOMPSON England

Michel D'HOOGHE Belgium

Ricardo Terra TEIXEIRA Brazil

Mohamed BIN HAMMAM Qatar

Senes ERZIK Turkey

Chuck BLAZER USA

Worawi MAKUDI Thailand

Nicolás LEOZ Paraguay

Junji OGURA Japan

Amos ADAMU Nigeria

Marios LEFKARITIS Cyprus

Jacques ANOUMA Côte d'Ivoire

Franz BECKENBAUER Germany

Rafael SALGUERO Guatemala

Hany ABO RIDA Egypt

Vitaly MUTKO Russia

Gadsby Makes Way for Gadsby Jnr.

2010-11-19T13:40:00.002-05:00

Nick Basannavar, my younger brother, has moved to Japan to teach English. He just sent this to me, and I thought it was so good it deserved to go up on the site. Take it away, Gadsby Jnr.:

In Japan I'm playing futsal regularly with a mixture of Japanese guys and (mainly English) foreigners. Every time I play it's like experiencing a microcosm of respective footballing cultures. The English are crushingly predictable. There's the dangerous, northern clogger who is all elbows, high feet and rushed clearances. A completely depressing fish out of water. Then there's the all-action box-to-box guy who I suppose has great heart, energy and spirit. He is quick, direct, shoots from everywhere, and can't pass the ball accurately (think Liverpool's captain). There's also the single-minded poacher who plays simply to score goals. He has no interest in build-up or fannying around with the ball. Head down, leather it, hope for the best. He scores loads of goals but each one feels completely vacuous. All of these players have a distinct, pigeonholed role and they are terrified to try new things.

Then there are the Japanese players. What a pleasure they are. There is a quiet humility to their play that is so different to the English mentality. They have an innate appreciation of space, and are selflessly thoughtful with their passing. To them, a pass is not about the pass itself. It is about the advantages and opportunities it can create for the recipient. In that respect each pass is like a chess move, considering all possible futures. The Japanese style is without ego and completely geared towards bettering the team. When they have a decent scoring opportunity, they tend to pass it up in favour of putting it on a plate for a teammate. They prefer one-touch or two-touch moves and goals rather than the individual having too much time on the ball. And they are right to. The key to their good football is playing simply and making the right decisions. Decision-making is everything. Above all, though, the Japanese don't worry about positions. A good footballer should be able to play in any position, and they understand this. Contrast this to the English who insist on adhering to their set roles. It's simple-minded, scared stuff that England churns out, geared towards winning at all costs, and it is completely true that the only solution is a total overhaul at youth level, and patience.

The Japanese are fucking terrible at finishing, though.

England vs. Russia World Cup 2018 Spat

2010-11-04T12:13:00.000-04:00

On this week's Gadsby's England roundup, the England vs. Russia World Cup 2018 spat, Graham Taylor reiterates next England manager must be English and can Rooney ever get back his form of 2003/2004

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This Weeks Show: England vs. Montenegro

2010-10-14T09:54:00.000-04:00

On this Gadsby's England Matchweek Special, Gadsby previews England vs. Montenegro at Wembley. Gadsby will be reporting on England vs. Montenegro for CSRN.

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Gadsby Previews the Beginning of Another Qualification Campaign

2010-08-31T10:22:00.001-04:00

This week on the Gadsby's England Round-Up, Gadsby previews the beginning of another qualification campaign as England prepare to face Bulgaria and Switzerland. The road to Euro 2012 begins, but is England's journey likely to be any less bumpy?

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New Podcast - England vs Hungary Preview

2010-08-10T14:05:00.000-04:00

Gadsby and partner-in-crime Nik Goldman preview England vs Hungary as things seem to be going from bad-to-worse around the England camp

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Scurrilous Scudamore And His Premier League Apologists

2010-08-06T15:54:00.001-04:00

Oh, how Richard Scudamore needs his bulls to start tearing around again. Periods between the end of failed World Cup campaigns and the beginning of the domestic season are slightly odd: the fans' disappointment and anger almost reaches its rightful target, but then the domestic season seems to be the ultimate distraction, a eradication of recent memory.

Scudamore's admission that the Premier League may not be helping the England team is as grotesque as Marlboro saying its product isn't really aiding lung cancer sufferers. One thing the Premiership has helped is Scudamore's bank balance, rest assured of that. As if his stewardship wasn't enough of a treacherous thorn in the side of English football already, this scurrilous attempt to somehow crudely endear himself to those passionate about English football by offering this post-World Cup pre-Premiership 'filler' tells you all you need to know about Richard Scudamore, not to mention the set of cronies and crooks around him who have all done their part to poison the England football team.

You can add Sam Allardyce to that list. Yesterday, he demanded Prime Minister David Cameron lower income tax so that more foreign players could come to the Premier League. The same Sam Allardyce who said getting the England job would be "the greatest honour of his career". As bad as things have been, thank goodness he never achieved that "honour". I've never been a fan of Allardyce; he is to classy footballing technique what Walmart is to Harrods. It seems the same thing can be said about the class of his character now, too. Never mind British society, education, infrastructure and the health service, let's lower taxes so Sam Allardyce's new Icelandic defender can keep more of his paltry fifty thousand pounds a week, the poor soul.

Just hold on, Big Sam and Little Richard, your beloved Premier League begins again in one week; you can merrily continue the ongoing sale of your souls.

New Podcast - England Youngsters' Performance at the U-19s European Championship

2010-08-04T18:03:00.000-04:00

Gadsby looks at the England youngsters' performance at the U-19s European Championship, plus Gazza the Hostage Negotiator. No joke. This week on Gadsby's England.

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Gadsby's England Podcast Just Released - England Players Need to Go Abroad

2010-07-20T19:12:00.000-04:00

The discussion continues; what should the FA do to move England Football into the future. He's banging his stick and screaming for English players to play abroad.

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Official: Joe Cole And Steven Gerrard Opt For Mediocrity Rather Than A Final Chance At Glory

2010-07-20T17:09:00.004-04:00

For Gerrard, it was virtually too late anyway, though the typically-tiresome commitment of his future to Liverpool Football Club is yet another nail in the almost-fully-formed coffin of his international career; yet, at 28, Joe Cole still had a chance to better himself by taking the outstretched hand of Jose Mourinho, and signing for Real Madrid, or indeed one of several other come hithers from various Spanish and Italian clubs. Instead, he joins that perpetual, minuscule mindset that is the English player, and consigns himself to Saturdays and Sundays playing the total footballers of Wigan, Blackburn and Bolton. For Joe and co., football outside of England's blessed plot isn't really proper football, and England would win everything if they just played more like Premier League clubs. And the £90,000 per week? Oh, no -- not about the money! Apparently, to slot firmly into the grooves of mediocrity when football history looks back on you is well worth the £90,000 per week. Glad to see you doing your part after England's worst ever World Cup, Joe. Cheers.

But does the English media point out how these English players are twisting the knife into their own country? Surely there is a huge debate going on? Surely the back pages of The Guardian, Telegraph, Times, the BBC football site et al are filled with journalists commenting on the abject lack of English players playing abroad destroying the England team? I mean it's as obvious as the sun in the sky, isn't it?

Nope. Since the World Cup, I have seen two side columns in English newspapers, and one posting on the BBC website, and they merely asked the question whether or not it might be good for the England team if English players played abroad. Hmm, I wonder.

What on earth is going on? Have English journalists' brains dropped out? In fact, it's probably much more down to journalistic cynicism rather than ignorance. If the best English players left the Premiership, the interest in their columns and articles and commentaries would diminish. They need a certain "Englishness" during the domestic season as they do during a World Cup, and had Rooney, Terry, Gerrard and Lampard gone to play abroad, the edge to many of their on and off field stories might be taken away.

It seems English players and English media want nothing more than for England to do well -- as long as it doesn't get in their way.

New Podcast Just Released - We have new World Champions, What's next for England?

2010-07-16T10:11:00.000-04:00

Gadsby talks about new World Champions, Spain and what's next for England?

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ENGLISH FOOTBALL IN CRISIS

2010-07-04T21:08:00.004-04:00

Gadsby discusses the debacle which was England's World Cup. What is next for England Football?
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All The Post-Mortems And Inquests, Yet Only Chris Waddle Says It: English Players Must Get Out Of England

2010-07-02T07:17:00.012-04:00

"They weren't good enough, they were too tired, the formation never worked, the manager got it completely wrong, they looked like they didn't care, they were defensively awful, Rooney did nothing, Lampard and Gerrard never performed."

All probably true, none getting to the crux of the matter. I have been banging a drum for nearly 20 years now but no one seems to listen to the beat, except for Chris Waddle in his welcome outbursts over the last week, and the South Africa debacle has proved it above and beyond doubt: England will never win anything while their players play in the Premiership.

A sobering fact for you: since France '98, Premiership players, no matter from which country, have flopped at World Cups and European Championships. Which Premier League players have truly starred at major tournaments? The vast majority of World Cup and Euro semifinalists over the last ten years have come from the Spanish and Italian, German and French leagues. 2010 is going to be no exception. The Premiership's finest have again bombed in South Africa -- Drogba, Ronaldo, Evra, Carvalho, Torres so far, and, oh, yes, not to forget the entire England team.

The Premier League may be supercharged entertainment, but it is basically an exhibition league that has the tactical and technical sophistication of a three-legged rhinoceros. For Bolton Wanderers (new FA clairvoyant Phil Gartside's club) vs. Blackburn Rovers, read Sevilla vs. Real Zaragoza for example, both likely mid-table clashes in the Premiership and La Liga. Spot the difference? Exactly.

Not to mention the crude physical nature of the Premier League. Players are just more injury-prone in England. Just ask Essien, Ballack and Torres. Beckenbauer might have been stirring it up, but we know now it was the right dish all along. "Kick and rush" and "burnt out" perfectly sum up the Premier League and its players.

What about the Champions League successes of Manchester United and Liverpool, no doubt you ask? Excesses, more like. Yes, they, plus Chelsea and Arsenal have been just about able to sustain a good enough technical level in Europe due to the salacious gluttony of Abramaovich, Glazer et al in coaxing foreign mercenaries who have already attained a high level of technical skill in their own countries' far superior levels of football development, but these are papering over cracks. The cracks reveal a level of technical ability utterly inferior to that of the rest of Europe, borne out in no clearer way than at the highest level, international football. And do not be surprised if Premier League clubs' European success begins to dwindle over the next few years as the world's top, top players more and more choose Europe over England.

We cannot really blame Lampard, Gerrard, Terry, and Rooney for simply not being good enough in Bloemfontein last Sunday, but we can blame them completely for not getting good enough. They had the basic talent, but it could simply not be nurtured in the provincial little mindset of their Premiership bases. They have all turned down offers to play in Italy and Spain time after time, often when Barcelona and Real Madrid beckoned. Simply unforgivable. By doing so, they have cost their country a semi-finals place at least. That should be looked upon virtually as high treason.

Unfortunately, the fans -- yes, the fans -- must bear some of the blame. They rightfully hammer the England team, yet how many of them will be back at their Premier League club in six weeks, supporting the organisation which has been the greatest cancer on the England team they are supposedly so passionate about. Ask the supporters of Bayern Munich, Stuttgart and Dortmund if they put club above country...not in a million years. It's one of the savagely bizarre contradictions of the English football supporter. But now, after what your club's league has done to England, if you support your club over your country, in my view you are no longer a true England supporter.

If the Football Association has any sense, it will pay for Messrs. Wilshere, Rodwell, Adam Johnson, Walcott, Hart plus any other young English player with a modicum of promise, to leave England and its dreadfully-inhibiting football league, and play in Spain, Italy, Germany, Holland or South America. The Premiership can then continue to crock overseas players till its heart's content until it collapses in on itself.

While we try to fix the long-term problems of why England is not producing and developing world class talent within its own shores, never has there been a more obvious short-term fix than to send the best that we have got to just about anywhere else.

Gadsby Visits Soccer City Stadium

2010-06-29T12:10:00.002-04:00

The Death Of English Football As We Know It

2010-06-29T07:13:00.003-04:00

It was THAT moment. The England football team, as we thought we knew it, came to a grotesque end in Bloemfontein yesterday. All the arguments -- "these England players will surely show their potential against Germany", "on paper they are man-for-man better than the Germans", "against the better teams England will show their mettle", and blah blah bloody blah -- were settled. Utterly.

Germany tore England apart, and with it all the bravado (which I confess I am equally guilty of drumming up) that paraded around this excuse for a football team. We now know the truth once and for all--these players simply aren't very good. Frank Lampard, John Terry, Steven Gerrard, Gareth Barry, Glen Johnson and Wayne Rooney, able to cover up errors which can be covered up in an error-ridden, godforsaken, Premier league, have been found out at the highest, international, level.

So, ashes-to-ashes, dust-to-dust, English football as we know it, rest in eternal damnation.

England's World Cup Exit, Gadsby and Goldster Give Their Analysis

2010-06-28T18:57:00.003-04:00

Gadsby and Goldster's England World Cup 2010 exit analysis.

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Goldster is Eagerly Awaiting the Start of England - Germany

2010-06-27T09:47:00.000-04:00