Wilshere - worth the gamble, he's quality. I would take Cork or Noble over delph or Henderson. To be honest, Hodgson has done what he can with not a great amount of talent to choose from. His biggest crime is not having a centre back pairing that has played together very much. I hope Rooney doesn't play.
Are you serious? Would not get anywhere near an England team if I was the manager. And if I was Arsene Wenger I would see which PL teams would be stupid enough to buy him by placing him on the transfer list. I suppose my dislike comes from his behaviour last year and the year before with his childish insults directed towards Tottenham but he is a professional footballer and should be above that. What kind of example is that to young Arsenal supporters as it can only instill in them a dislike of Spurs where there should be none!
Whether I agree with you or not, which part of your paragraph portrays his ability or not as a footballer? *Heaven forbid he was naughty towards the Spuds*
I just think he lacks intelligence all round! And to my mind he does not behave like a professional athlete should, so I would dump him regardless of the "talent" that some think lies at his feet!! I am happy to be proved wrong and who knows he may go on to steer England to the Euro Championships in which case I will do a sponsored run between Fratton Park and St Mary's!!
Tbf, Wilshere demonstrates his abilities enough when he plays. Whenever that is. Which means I wouldn't take him either.
I'd take Wilshire - he could be the Rooney of 2004 - so I'll eat my words when he breaks his ankle in the last group game! (and I'll present my next 50 entries on this forum in my underpants)
So on this basis you would never have selected Gascoigne? Just one among a lot of suspect characters who happened to be really gifted in an area outside the norm. Sometimes we need to accept the foibles of people to be able to really enjoy their talent. The only reason I would consider not taking Wilshire is on the basis of fitness, not on his off the field antics - unless it upsets the applecart.
The problem is that even though Henderson is played as DM he is no good at it. Problem is that Brenda put Gerrard and Henderson as DMs and both of them are no good at it. They are both normal old fashioned CMs with the former (Gerrard) not being too shabby and the latter (Henderson) being bang average. When was the last time Saints had a first choice (thats the top 2 in your eyes) DM that was at Henderson's level? I think Cork and Chaplow are better. They should have just stuck with Barry until someone that can actually play DM arrived.
You cannot compare Gascoigne or Wilshere. The former was a genius. Wilshere is an average player at best!! I'd pick Jack Cork over Jack Wilshere any day!!
I appreciate everyone will have their own views on the specific qualities of individual players, but I think it's unfair to knock Roy for sticking with players who have either played a part in the qualifying campaign or who he knows/trusts in terms of their style of play. I think it's right to try and create some stability in the squad at international level. In fact, I find the general level of animosity towards Hodgson from football fans quite baffling. Overall I think he has done a pretty good job with the players available to him.
Not sure you can call the world cup a pretty good job but I get your point. He doesn't get judged on beating San Marino 6-0, but 1 point from 3 games in Brazil, rightly or wrongly.
James Ward-Prowse is currently captaining the u21's. Playing in the deeper role, he looks very good so far. He is still playing the safe option every single time though - I really want him to try some riskier through balls occasionally. (Although I imagine he has been instructed to keep it simple by Gareth Southgate)
Given that discussion is kicking off on other threads, is it timely to get a thread started on the football festival in France this summer? I tend to support Saints players in these tournaments (how narrow can you get?) and hope they do well. This summer I'm hoping that, e.g., Steven Davis enjoys his summer, but that his personal form takes a temporary dive so that other clubs don't notice him. Saints players not doing enough for Liverpool to buy them is my rather pathetic ambition! Predictions: England beat someone and everyone gets excited. Bale to be a star, and Wales go out in controversial circumstances. The two Irish teams to show they deserve to be there. France and Germany boss it.
