The Kids Are Alright...

As the end of the domestic season looms it’s time to look beyond Manchester and to Poland and Ukraine. Newly appointed ‘Uncle Roy’ has a tough few days of decision making before the 16^th May when his squad is announced. However, who the hell is he going to take!?

In many ways Hodgson’s decisions are being made for him with Chris Smalling now out as well as Jack Wilshere and Rio Ferdinand is also a serious doubt not to mention Rooney’s two match suspension. There are massive questions in nearly every position apart from perhaps a Goalkeeper, a position that since Seaman’s retirement has been filled by over 10 different goalies with only David ‘calamity’ James staking a real claim for the position until now. Joe Hart has cemented himself, as not only England’s No.1 but also that of Manchester City and has been one of the consistent performers this season. The other position is left-back which will be filled by Ashley Cole, another solid performer this season and possibly one of the best in the world right now.

Personally, I see this contest as a write off. This doesn’t mean that our performance is not important but surely Hodgson can relax that no one is really expecting much from him or the players he selects. Therefore I see no reason why Hodgson should not take some more risks with his selection. If Harry Redknapp had been selected I can only presume he could have selected his old mates Frank Lampard and Steven Gerrard to head his midfield with no doubt selecting Terry and Ferdinand. However, Hodgson was not just appointed for this tournament. He was employed because of his strengths in youth development and his experience for over-looking the new Footballing Centre of Excellence in Burton not to mention his wonderful organization and ability to work with… ahem…over/under rated players. Therefore I say scrap Lampard, scrap Gerrard and even scrap Terry. Lets start how we mean to go on! The gap left by Rooney and Ferdinand creates a massive chance for somebody to make a serious claim for their spots in the furture. We have the likes of Phil Jones, Kyle Walker, Micah Richards, Danny Welbeck, Tom Cleverley, Daniel Sturridge and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain who have all had spells of wonderful form this season and deserve to prove their worth. 

I have no doubt that experience is needed and I would definitely include the likes of Scot Parker, Ashley Young and maybe even Paul Scholes in my squad but England’s problems in the last four international competitions (one we didn’t even qualify for) have stemmed from the Eriksson club of Beckham, Owen, Ferdinand, Gerrard even Heskey and the reliance that the Manager and fans had on them despite rarely any of them having stand performances on the big stage. What is harm in playing hungry young players who are yet to get sucked into the pressure of wearing their countries shirt, which seems to have diminished so many English players performances. 

The most recent example of this was the Germany team of 2010 in South Africa which was made up of many of their U21’s with the likes of Ozil, Khedira and Mueller all excelling and are now stalwarts for their club and country. Why can we not do the same? There is no doubt we have the talent. It seems that playing for England is a mind-set that many players can not get their head around, be it pressure from the media, the fans or just themselves, something stops these players performing. Hodgson needs young minds and bodies that he can nurture and mould and can be told what to do, not players who think they know best!

In the end I have no doubt that the likes of Lampard, Gerrard and Terry will go to Euro 2012 and I have no problem if there is some real example of youth being integrated around them. In the way that Sir Alex Ferguson has been a master at blending youth with experience so too should Hodgson. I have no idea how to predict our chances in this year’s tournament but I think I speak for us all when I say we just want them to play well. 

My England XI

Hart

Cole                            

Lescott

Jones

Walker

Parker

Scholes

Cleverley

Young

A Johnson

Bent

Why not?