Sven-Goran Eriksson must have looked at this week's Champions League culling of all but Steven Gerrard and Frank Lampard of his England starters and wished it had happened next year. His players would then have enjoyed the lengthiest of restorative breaks before the World Cup finals.
John Terry, Lampard's in-form Chelsea club-mate, closes fast on regular England action and respectful nods must also be made in the direction of Joe Cole, Jamie Carragher and Owen Hargreaves, but they will be toasting absent international friends in the Champions League from now on.
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Seven of Eriksson's chosen XI - Ashley Cole, Sol Campbell, Rio Ferdinand, Gary Neville, David Beckham, Michael Owen and Wayne Rooney - were evicted from Europe's elite competition in midweek. Yesterday was not a good time for the FA to be trumpeting about how £757 million is being well spent on Wembley rather than national training and coaching centres.
Terry and Lampard, the frontrunners for Footballer of the Year honours, are the obvious and stirring exceptions to the well-established concerns about the true health of English football. Terry was marvellous against Barcelona, brimming with defiance in the teeth of adversity, while Lampard performed as if he knew he really belonged in the exalted company of Ronaldinho, Xavi and Deco.
This season, Terry and Lampard have risen from Shoot! cover-story material to candidates for the coveted front of World Soccer.
Chelsea have shown what can be achieved with the passion of Terry and Lampard when coupled with the technical and tactical sharpness of overseas recruits such as Claude Makelele, Arjen Robben, and Petr Cech, the goalkeeper who can now be talked about in the same reverential tones as Iker Casillas and Gianluigi Buffon.
Steered by Jose Mourinho, Chelsea have fashioned a balanced style that crosses the Channel far more effectively than attack-obsessed Arsenal. Chelsea's combination of strong defence, tireless midfield work and precise counter-attacking is a recipe for success, as AC Milan and Juventus are proving again.
In their present buoyant mood, Chelsea would be happy to be pitted against either of Serie A's top two when the quarter and semi-final draws are made next week. Yet Milan, as Rooney and Manchester United painfully discovered, are definitely worth avoiding.
On the 20th anniversary of Heysel, UEFA will privately be praying that Liverpool and Juventus are kept apart. Liverpool's prospects of progressing are difficult to judge because the side they vanquished in the last 16, Bayer Leverkusen, were modest indeed. Liverpool's back line, Carragher apart, remains a concern. Yet any side boasting Gerrard have a chance. Those fans who criticised his application in the Carling Cup final saw Gerrard's true class on Wednesday.
Like Mourinho, Liverpool's coach, Rafa Benitez, knows the way to European glory, albeit in the UEFA Cup. Unlike Mourinho, Benitez is a wonderfully dignified individual, tough in private (as Harry Kewell may discover) yet relentlessly charming in public. Unlike Mourinho, Benitez has some serious rebuilding to do in the summer.
United and Arsenal are also expected to delve into the transfer market. Another worry for the English game is that Arsène Wenger and Sir Alex Ferguson are likely to turn to continental balms to heal their teams' wounds. Wenger appears distrustful of English talent, particularly after Highbury's painful experience with Jermaine Pennant, so he may again focus on cheaper imports, particularly in midfield.
For all the youthful energy of Mathieu Flamini and Cesc Fabregas, the pistons in Arsenal's engine room have not been operating smoothly. Gilberto Silva and Edu have been missed while Patrick Vieira appears to have left his mind at Heathrow, musing over a cancelled flight to Madrid. Wenger is being linked with Michael Essien, Lyons' prolific midfielder.
If Ferguson is taking his usual summer holiday in the south of France, he could do worse than stop at Rennes and Lyons en route. The 22-year-old Swedish international goalkeeper, Andreas Isaksson, succeeded Cech at Rennes after Euro 2004 and has continued to impress. At Lyons, two African midfielders are earning rave reviews, the Mali international, Mamadou Diarra, 23, as well as the Ghanaian, Essien, 22.
A new goalkeeper and midfield dynamo would stiffen the resistance of a good side laced with talents such as Ferdinand, Gabriel Heinze, Cristiano Ronaldo and, of course, Rooney. It is far too premature and presumptuous to be writing valedictory notices about Ferguson or United.
Ditto at Arsenal, who have a good coach, a sensible board, a promising youth policy (albeit packed with overseas teenagers) and a magnificent stadium rising around the corner. And they have Thierry Henry, who sought almost single-handedly to overcome Bayern Munich on Wednesday. In vain. Henry deserves better support. Unless Arsenal really push for Shaun Wright-Phillips, that support is unlikely to be eligible for Eriksson's England consideration.
John Terry, Lampard's in-form Chelsea club-mate, closes fast on regular England action and respectful nods must also be made in the direction of Joe Cole, Jamie Carragher and Owen Hargreaves, but they will be toasting absent international friends in the Champions League from now on.
Details
Click to enlarge
Seven of Eriksson's chosen XI - Ashley Cole, Sol Campbell, Rio Ferdinand, Gary Neville, David Beckham, Michael Owen and Wayne Rooney - were evicted from Europe's elite competition in midweek. Yesterday was not a good time for the FA to be trumpeting about how £757 million is being well spent on Wembley rather than national training and coaching centres.
Terry and Lampard, the frontrunners for Footballer of the Year honours, are the obvious and stirring exceptions to the well-established concerns about the true health of English football. Terry was marvellous against Barcelona, brimming with defiance in the teeth of adversity, while Lampard performed as if he knew he really belonged in the exalted company of Ronaldinho, Xavi and Deco.
This season, Terry and Lampard have risen from Shoot! cover-story material to candidates for the coveted front of World Soccer.
Chelsea have shown what can be achieved with the passion of Terry and Lampard when coupled with the technical and tactical sharpness of overseas recruits such as Claude Makelele, Arjen Robben, and Petr Cech, the goalkeeper who can now be talked about in the same reverential tones as Iker Casillas and Gianluigi Buffon.
Steered by Jose Mourinho, Chelsea have fashioned a balanced style that crosses the Channel far more effectively than attack-obsessed Arsenal. Chelsea's combination of strong defence, tireless midfield work and precise counter-attacking is a recipe for success, as AC Milan and Juventus are proving again.
In their present buoyant mood, Chelsea would be happy to be pitted against either of Serie A's top two when the quarter and semi-final draws are made next week. Yet Milan, as Rooney and Manchester United painfully discovered, are definitely worth avoiding.
On the 20th anniversary of Heysel, UEFA will privately be praying that Liverpool and Juventus are kept apart. Liverpool's prospects of progressing are difficult to judge because the side they vanquished in the last 16, Bayer Leverkusen, were modest indeed. Liverpool's back line, Carragher apart, remains a concern. Yet any side boasting Gerrard have a chance. Those fans who criticised his application in the Carling Cup final saw Gerrard's true class on Wednesday.
Like Mourinho, Liverpool's coach, Rafa Benitez, knows the way to European glory, albeit in the UEFA Cup. Unlike Mourinho, Benitez is a wonderfully dignified individual, tough in private (as Harry Kewell may discover) yet relentlessly charming in public. Unlike Mourinho, Benitez has some serious rebuilding to do in the summer.
United and Arsenal are also expected to delve into the transfer market. Another worry for the English game is that Arsène Wenger and Sir Alex Ferguson are likely to turn to continental balms to heal their teams' wounds. Wenger appears distrustful of English talent, particularly after Highbury's painful experience with Jermaine Pennant, so he may again focus on cheaper imports, particularly in midfield.
For all the youthful energy of Mathieu Flamini and Cesc Fabregas, the pistons in Arsenal's engine room have not been operating smoothly. Gilberto Silva and Edu have been missed while Patrick Vieira appears to have left his mind at Heathrow, musing over a cancelled flight to Madrid. Wenger is being linked with Michael Essien, Lyons' prolific midfielder.
If Ferguson is taking his usual summer holiday in the south of France, he could do worse than stop at Rennes and Lyons en route. The 22-year-old Swedish international goalkeeper, Andreas Isaksson, succeeded Cech at Rennes after Euro 2004 and has continued to impress. At Lyons, two African midfielders are earning rave reviews, the Mali international, Mamadou Diarra, 23, as well as the Ghanaian, Essien, 22.
A new goalkeeper and midfield dynamo would stiffen the resistance of a good side laced with talents such as Ferdinand, Gabriel Heinze, Cristiano Ronaldo and, of course, Rooney. It is far too premature and presumptuous to be writing valedictory notices about Ferguson or United.
Ditto at Arsenal, who have a good coach, a sensible board, a promising youth policy (albeit packed with overseas teenagers) and a magnificent stadium rising around the corner. And they have Thierry Henry, who sought almost single-handedly to overcome Bayern Munich on Wednesday. In vain. Henry deserves better support. Unless Arsenal really push for Shaun Wright-Phillips, that support is unlikely to be eligible for Eriksson's England consideration.
Saw this one in the Daily Telegraph of Friday. [/i]
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