Fabio capellos first match

[LFCMadPaul]

i agree with you to a point but rooney brings more to a team as a whople, he works harder, he holds the ball up, he hassles defenders and pushes them around- owen just can;t do that!!!

Here is a caption from an article I read regarding Owen and England:

 

 

He is by far and away England’s current playing highest goalscorer, 4th in the all-time lists with 36 goals in 80 games, a very good record at International level. He is also still only 27 which means he will probably go on and break the record. He is the only England player to have scored in four major international tournaments; World Cup 98′, Euro 2000, World Cup 2002, and Euro 2004. This could’ve been extended had he not got injured against Sweden.

 

One other stat which is most improtant however is his goals in competitive games for England, matches in qualifiers and major tournaments. He holds the joint record with Gary Lineker on 22. This is particularly important now as it is clear that there have been a distinct lack of goals for England in the reign of Steve McClaren. England have scored 9 goals in 6 competitive games, though it must be remembered that 8 of these were in the 2 games against Andorra. There have been no goals against Macedonia (home), Israel (away) and Croatia (away).

 

Whether or not Owen can hold the ball up better than Rooney, or who infact works the hardest, the fact is that had Micheal Owen been fit during the Euro qualifiers, England would have qualified!!!!

 

Now why Guddy (or anyone else) thinks that what i'm saying is rubbish is beyond me, the facts tell the story as it is!

[NEKRO138]

Would he score more consistently than Micheal Owen? I doubt it very much. Is Agbonlahor a better prospect than Rooney? I doubt it very much!

On that basis I fail to see how playing Agbonlahor would benifit or improve England at all!

 

Luckily Michael and Gabi have taken the thinking out of it for you.

 

He IS scoring more consistently than Michael Owen!

[LFCMadPaul]

Luckily Michael and Gabi have taken the thinking out of it for you.

 

He IS scoring more consistently than Michael Owen!

This is about International football, not the Premiership (just to take the thinking out of it for you)!

 

I meant - Would Gabi score more consistently FOR ENGLAND? I answered no, but I think you knew that anyway!

[NEKRO138]

This is about International football, not the Premiership (just to take the thinking out of it for you)!

 

I meant - Would Gabi score more consistently FOR ENGLAND? I answered no, but I think you knew that anyway!

 

I think he would at this stage, yes (if fit). That's not to say that Owen won't be good enough again. I know he's a good striker, his record is brilliant, but he isn't at his best at the moment.

 

Capello is picking the form players, not just the 'best' players.

 

What's he supposed to judge them on if not their premiership performances?

 

How can he judge Agbonlahor at international level without seeing him play?

 

Should he just put Owen in the team because he scored a hatful of goals for England a couple of years back?

 

No.

[tosh13]

Why didn't Gerrard deserve to wear the shirt? Ok he wasn't MOTM but he was one of the better players on the night! And what exactly does Rooney do when playing for England, run his socks off? He is there to score goals, something he consistently fails to do! The mere fact that people on here are debating who should start upfront for England suggests that Rooney isn't doing something right doesn't it?

 

And why Tosh does Gerrard seem to be the main focal point after every England match when many other players have under-performed at a much larger scale? Could you explain to me and the whole country, mainly from Liverpool though of course.

 

Because Gerrard was the captain on the night, do you honestly believe he did enough as a captain because me and most of the country said different.I like Gerrard but for England he doesn't seem to do it & of course if you read my post I said Brown & Cashley Cole should never wear the shirt again they were the worst on the pitch,Gerrard played well for the last 30 minutes but that is not what you require at International level you have to play for the 90 mins or so,Rooney ran his heart out even getting back defending how many strikers do that in the PL,not many.

[NEKRO138]

I would have left Gerrard out of this match just to see how it went.

 

Ok, we know Jenas, Bentley, Young, Wright-Phillips etc aren't as good as Gerrard, but if they play effectively in the system used by the team, you can't argue with it.

 

I still think Gerrard will come good for England. It says a lot about him as a player that despite not being at his best, they continue to try and base the midfield around him.

 

If Capello can get it right, England really will be a very good team.

[LFCMadPaul]

Because Gerrard was the captain on the night, do you honestly believe he did enough as a captain because me and most of the country said different.I like Gerrard but for England he doesn't seem to do it & of course if you read my post I said Brown & Cashley Cole should never wear the shirt again they were the worst on the pitch,Gerrard played well for the last 30 minutes but that is not what you require at International level you have to play for the 90 mins or so,Rooney ran his heart out even getting back defending how many strikers do that in the PL,not many.

Do you think John Terry did enough as captain considering the fact that we didn't qualify for the Euro's under his leadership and that we were absolutely awfull during the qualifying games?

 

Do you think that Rooney has done enough as our leading striker when you consider the fact that he hardly ever scores which as a result means that England will not be taking part in the Euro's this summer?

 

I'm not saying Gerrard has been great for England, for from it, but the finger has to be pointed at the whole England team, not just Gerrard, which is often the case because of his level of performances for his club! People say Capello picks the players that are playing well for their respective clubs. Well if that is the case then Gerrard will be an ever-present while Capello is in charge. For Liverpool Gerrard is confident, he is the driving force and he is the boss on the pitch. For England Gerrard is a player amongst other players that when put together just can't perform. The confidence of the England side is gone and it shows with the performances of the big players such as Gerrard and Rooney etc.

 

The fact is though mate that England didn't qualify for the Euro's because we couldn't score the goals against the weaker sides in our group. Goalscoring is ultimately the responsability of the strikers and Rooney and Co have to be held accountable for that. Is it a coincidence that when Owen was fit and playing alongside Heskey England looked far better and were scoring goals, compared to when Rooney returned and the poor results and performances returned, just like they were prior Owen/Heskey? I still believe strongly that had Owen been fit and playing instead of Rooney, England would now be looking forward to a summer of football and booze instead of watching the Euro's on the TV thinking what might have been whilst slurping on a warm flat Shandy!

[LFCMadPaul]

Capello is picking the form players, not just the 'best' players..

To an extent he is but how do you explain the inclusion of Wes Brown at RB. Or the fact that Capello played Rooney (who hasn't scored many goals recently in the Premiership or for England) as a lone striker before moving him out to LM with the introduction of Crouch upfront?

Should he just put Owen in the team because he scored a hatful of goals for England a couple of years back?

But it wasn't just a while back was it? Owen (after a massive injury lay-off) came back recently for England and what did he do? He scored. Even when not playing at club level Owen always scores for England. At International level there are not many strikers better than Owen, he just knows how to score goals in that arena!

 

Ok Rooney might come off the pitch at the end of a game sweating like a Russian Shotputter, whereas Owen might look like he could run another 5 miles, but if England win 1 - 0 from a Micheal Owen goal giving England all three points in a very important qualifier, instead of England drawing 0 - 0 with Macedonia with Rooney walking off drenched in sweat - which would you rather have?

 

Give me the 3 points every day mate!

[freyasdad]

Owen is a terrific goal scorer there is no doubt but he has one fundamental flaw at the momnet and that is his fitness.

He hasn't been fully fit for many years form my point of view so do you base the spine of the team on a player that hasn't been fit for many years ? no you dont.

We were a totally different force when Crouch came on so should we include him in the spine of the team?

Is Gerrard influenced by his bimbo when on international duty?

[LFCMadPaul]

Owen is a terrific goal scorer there is no doubt but he has one fundamental flaw at the momnet and that is his fitness.

He hasn't been fully fit for many years form my point of view so do you base the spine of the team on a player that hasn't been fit for many years ? no you dont.?

No but do you play a striker that when fit will almost garauntee you goals? Yes you do. If Owen is available for selection then he should be picked. If Owen is not available for selection then he shouldn't, it's that simple!

Is Gerrard influenced by his bimbo when on international duty?

Again i'll ask what Gerrard has to do with this considering how he was one of the better performers the other night?

 

Another one to add to the 'Anti Gerrard' bandwagon hey