England vs Mexico and my starting 11

Playing international matches 17 days before a World Cup Finals to find out who your best players are seems a bit strange to me.I’d rather rest players and concentrate on the tactics I’ll use against the teams I will face in the groups.  Let’s face it, every player in the line up last night has just played a long hard season for their club and wouldn’t in a million years want to risk getting injured less than 3 weeks before the finals.

If managers haven’t seen enough of the players over he past year then what the hell have they been doing?
This isn’t a “pop” at Capello, it’s another pop at the FA bigwigs.

I can’t believe Rooney, England’s most potent weapon, was risked against the hard working Mexicans. Just coming back from injury Rooney should have been spared this run because unlike several other England players he can’t play half heartedly. Every game is a must win for Wayne and that means he puts himself about and will pick up knocks.

The likes of Theo Walcott however dawdle around the pitch as if they just expect to be on the plane.
For someone with so much speed and ability this boy plays way too passively to be a danger. At some points I feel he’s going to stop mid-run and say “Please can I get past you and take a shot?” , if only he had more venom he could be such a player.

for those of you who think England under performed in this game, think again. Mexico are through to the finals themselves and have some good talent, and as I say it is hard for some of those England players to go flat out in a game like this.

Unfortunately for some, this will be the game that signals the end of their world cup.

Capello will have caused himself more headaches than anything else after this game. Rio Ferdinand and Ledley King were hopeless at the back and classier forwards would have punished England heavily for some of their  positioning last night.

Green did well in goal, but I think Capello has already decided upon James to Start in South Africa. Terry, Ashley Cole, Lampard and Joe Cole must also be down to start in my opinion. Why would you not play them? they’ve just won the league together and know each other inside out. Capello would be mad not to keep them as a unit and build the rest of the team around them.

Glen Johnson, despite an excellent goal continues to worry me. He leaves holes at the back when he goes on his runs and Ferdinand just couldn’t cover last night.

ok it’s hard to read anything into these games  and there’s another friendly to come but I’d look at playing the following as my starters in South Africa:

GK – Green

LB – Ashely cole

CB – John Terry

CB – Jamie Carragher

RB – Glen Johnson

LM – Joe Cole

CM – Frank Lampard

CM – Steven Gerrard

RM – Aaron Lennon

CF – Peter Crouch

ST- Wayne Rooney

I very nearly left crouchy out for Heskey who I think brings Rooney into the game better but Crouchy’s record speaks for itself. It’s not always pretty . .. . . . it’s never pretty, it’s Crouchy, but he is a very effective player. I think Lennon would cover better for Johnson when he goes on a run and Carragher is a better positional player than Ferdinand.
the midfield I would almost diamond as I’d pass more defensive duties to Gerrard than I would to Lampard.

Whatever happens it’s gonna be a great world cup, C’MON!

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