England

[VivaBarca]

What about the Canadian lad? Is he injured again?

The Canadian lad that plays for England ? If you are reffering to Hargreaves then yes.

[Lemmi]

His touch is poor, in the air SEE SATURDAY he isn't great at attacking the ball and getting it goalbound. They guy really shouldn't be near the international squad. This getting the best out of Rooney thing is nonsense, Rooney has just been in good form.

[AnfieldEd]

Rooney wasn't in good form when he has had Owen, Crouch, Vassell, your mama, etc as his partner.

Capello think of the team first, individuals second.

[Lemmi]

Erm? Euro 2004? His debut? His hot most recent hot streak for England didn't come with Heskey being the main man.

[blueduck]

I think Heskey is a hopeless donkey.

He doesn't even get into the first team at Villa ffs.

[AnfieldEd]

Actually Rooney plays best with his mate Gerrard next to him on the left. When they both swap positions frequently. It works well.

[Lemmi]

Yeah so whats the need for Heskey? We will do sfa without a goal threat up front.

[Metaphysical]

Well I can't say I respect Rafa's opinion too much.

yeah but don fabio is one of the two greatest managers of the modern era, so y'know, it kinda ratifies rafa's thinking in this instance.

Gerrard is a CM, just because he is playing more advanced now doesn't mean that it isn't his position. He shouldn't play further forward for England because Rooney is the number 10.

yeah but he's not a CM though, is he? all his best moments have come from AM/SS. his good moments in the CL final were played in AM and at RB, in CM he was horrible and got completely owned by milan. for england he's horrible and gets completely owned by everyone except andorra when he plays there.

he could have evolved into a perfect CM, but liverpool were shite so indulged his ego too much and he eventually just took control of the side. he empties the midfield too much and doesn't use the ball intelligently and patiently enough to be a CM. he's puuuuure AM material, which is why don fabio gives him that LW/AM free-role thing with him and weezy constantly swapping positions and all that. s'awesome.

Carrick is off form and I like Scotty P but he isn't in the reckoning, Cattermole and Muamba have shown how well they can play the holding role; Barry is too slow to impose himself on international football, then so is Carrick- those two and Lampard got rings passed around them against Spain so it is imperitive that Hargreaves gets 3 months minimum before the world cup.

I was taking the piss with scott parker, he should never be near an england shirt. my point was, carrick has been gash so far this season. although on form he's awesome and should be one of the starting CM's, alongside hargreaves really who's totally radical.

I refute the Heskey makes the team click notion. There is no proof of that, he isn't a player so gifted he brings other people into the game, he isn't a great target and doesn't worry the opposition. Cole is the form big striker and from his scarce runouts for England has shown he can cause problems (Spain, Holland and the other day) because he has the pace to run onto Rooney's flicks and get behind the defence. Something which Crouch and Heskey can't offer.

there's no proof?

he's been england's starting CF for pretty much all the good football played under capello. and the last time england looked awesome, rooney's cockslapping euro 2004 aside, was when heskey and owen were up-front.

yeah cole and crouch can get onto rooney's flicks, but rooney can get onto heskey's flicks. heskey also moves the ball around with a lot more intelligence and guile than crouch and cole. he doesn't score enough himself, but everyone else seems to score when he plays. it's a team game.

Micah is Johnson plus the ability to defend. Brown doesn't signify the future and Micah is every bit as good and more, just lacking confidence and experience.

and how to defendence, as well. brown isn't the future but micah isn't the present. and brown is much better than johnson in defence, so brown gets the vote for me. but micah should definitely be in the squidad.

[Lemmi]

So gerrard playing well when being forced about was indulging his ego? That is serously up there with the biggest load of crap I have ever heard in the entireity of my life. You hate for him leads you to go from an unobjective view underrating him to mind boggling based on no fact and untrue crap like that and when you said Lady Gago and Altintop were better midfielders. Not to mention saying his long range shooting ability was down to luck through the practice of trying to kick it hard towards the vicinity goal.

Heskey's intelligence and guile in moving around? Throw me the other one. That is the most feeble attempt at trying to find an attribute to praise someone for in the history of the world. Heskey doesn't make England play well, he can be useful but he offers so little compared to the other options and can be tragic to watch sometimes.

[Metaphysical]

So gerrard playing well when being forced about was indulging his ego?

what? no.

liverpool were crap, so when he did what he wanted (i.e. charging forward from CM all the time) liverpool didn't say "oi, lad, stop that. play your position." they just let him do what he wanted. this indulgence ruined him as a CM because now he doesn't have the patience and mentality to play that position.

it's transformed him into a top-class AM, though, so I suppose it's a bit of door closed-window opened scenario.

That is serously up there with the biggest load of crap I have ever heard in the entireity of my life. You hate for him leads you to go from an unobjective view underrating him to mind boggling based on no fact and untrue crap like that and when you said Lady Gago and Altintop were better midfielders. Not to mention saying his long range shooting ability was down to luck through the practice of trying to kick it hard towards the vicinity goal.

I said they were better CM's. and in my defence I did say that before last season even started so gago was still looking pretty decent as far as CM's go.

and that remark about the range shooting was also made before last season (where he showed skill and placement in shots, rather than just whacking them goalward as he had done most of the times before that).

I don't underrate him. I think he's an awesome AM/SS (I hate the fucker but his skills are obvious). he's just never a CM. not now, not ever.

Heskey's intelligence and guile in moving around? Throw me the other one. That is the most feeble attempt at trying to find an attribute to praise someone for in the history of the world. Heskey doesn't make England play well, he can be useful but he offers so little compared to the other options and can be tragic to watch sometimes.

dude, you don't have to believe me. just look at the results when he plays. yeah, he doesn't always play brilliantly in front of goal but does the team do well? more often than not, yes, it does. crouch is awesome for battering shit teams or for troubling better teams as a gigantic substitute (only if becks comes on at the same time) but to start games against most opposition heskey is the main man.

cole can depose him, but he has to step it up and start scoring more regularly. he won't bring heskey's linkplay to the party so he has to bring goals and lots of 'em.

[Lemmi]

So Gerrard never scored beauties before last season? Mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmnnnnnnnn...

England have been doing well because of Crapello not Heskey, and Cole has to show he can score on a regular basis but Heskey doesn't? He's not even playing! 2 goals in 16 games for Villa and less than 1 n 5 when he refound his form at Wigan.

1994–2000 Leicester 154 (40)
2000–2004 Liverpool 150 (39)
2004–2006 Bham City 68 (14)
2006–2009 Wigan Ath. 82 (15)
2009–Pres Aston Villa 16 (2)

Cole showed awesome link play against Holland, he brings people into the game and then can move on whereas Heskey will win something then is such a carthorse he is rendered useless. Crouch is better in the air, Cole is a better athlete and more of a goal threat. I really fail to see how he is still number one being so mediocre in every department.

[Metaphysical]

So Gerrard never scored beauties before last season? Mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmnnnnnnnn...

he scored beauties but a lot of them were just rockets.

particularly his two in the fa cup final, which he admitted to just "hitting as hard as I could" and I thought, that's just his attitude all the time isn't it?

and then he bent that cocksucker in against marseille (?) and I hadda re-evaluate things.

England have been doing well because of Crapello not Heskey, and Cole has to show he can score on a regular basis but Heskey doesn't? He's not even playing! 2 goals in 16 games for Villa and less than 1 n 5 when he refound his form at Wigan.

1994–2000 Leicester 154 (40)
2000–2004 Liverpool 150 (39)
2004–2006 Bham City 68 (14)
2006–2009 Wigan Ath. 82 (15)
2009–Pres Aston Villa 16 (2)

Cole showed awesome link play against Holland, he brings people into the game and then can move on whereas Heskey will win something then is such a carthorse he is rendered useless. Crouch is better in the air, Cole is a better athlete and more of a goal threat. I really fail to see how he is still number one being so mediocre in every department.

on the one hand you say england are doing well because of capello and then on the other hand you diss the guy that capello says is fundamental to england's structure.

lol.

[JALJM]

yeah but don fabio is one of the two greatest managers of the modern era, so y'know, it kinda ratifies rafa's thinking in this instance.

What is this modern era you are referring to?

I also tend to think Carlton Cole would a better job than Heskey..only thing is his workrate isn't quite as good.

[Lemmi]

Capello is doing well because he isn't Steve MClown for the most part. England are being effective and winning albeit against shitty sides but Heskey is at best an outlet which really doesn't offer much if you are looking to play a slick and fast game and create opportunities which don't include him backing in and falling over and hoping the ball lands at a teammates feet.

[yusuf]

capello is making you win cause he aint stupid.

i have to agree with ryan here, hesky is shit