A rather late post this week. Unfortunately personal circumstances and a busy life have prevented me finding the time to provide some sporting opinion. So shall we rewind our mind’s back a week or so? You may remember (if not you can find the quote) in my last post I mentioned how John Terry losing the England captaincy could have been a topic of discussion. Well after the events of last week, it is now an even more key part to the current storyline revolving the England team as Terry’s alleged racial slur has now contrived in the departure of the England manager, Fabio Capello, just months ahead of a major international tournament.
What we must remember is that Terry has yet to be deemed guilty of racist behaviour, and we British, in the main live by the motto, “innocent until proven guilty”. This is also the stance Capello follows, and the FA’s decision to go above him and strip him of the captaincy before the court judgement clearly irked the Italian substantially enough to cause his resignation. This is quite understandable when you consider Capello lost his authority, or it was at least deemed unnecessary to ascertain, on an issue the vast majority of individuals consider the manager to be the sole decision-maker of. Doing so whilst also breaking his moral standpoint obviously led Capello feeling that he lacked support from his bosses at Wembley.
Now I totally agree that Terry is hardly the most moral individual in the world, and his past misdemeanours have made him subject to disgust from football supporters in the past. But surely he is entitled to the same treatment as every member of the public? This viewpoint can be emphasised further when you remember that the player who received the alleged racist comment, Anton Ferdinand, did not even make the claim that has led to the subsequent prosecution. It was actually a member of the public who reported it to the police. Now does this information make Terry potentially more innocent? Or should some questions be asked of Ferdinand and why he did not report it to help us stamp racism out of the game for good?
However, serious questions need to be held at the justice system who have delayed the hearing of this case to a much later date than any other Tom, Dick or Harry would have been permitted. It is ludicrous, and hard to fathom their reasoning for it. It has guaranteed that England enter Euro 2012 with further concerns and scandals surrounding the side, although it happens so regularly now that the players must be accustomed to a disruptive preparation period in the lead-up to a tournament. At least this time it is not accompanied with exaggerated and blinded belief that we are one of the favourites to win the competition! In fact, with a new manager only just entering the fray, and the lesser pressure the team will face from the fans and media, it may provide a feeling of optimism and freedom amongst the squad, leading to them performing at a higher level and going further in the competition than expected. Who knows...
What we do know is that the FA is now compiling a shortlist for the manager’s position. I would throw my hat in to the ring; however I don’t think Football Manager accomplishments along with my minor achievements at youth and university level will gain many admirers! Obviously Stuart Pearce is caretaker until a permanent successor is found, but at what point that will be I am unsure. I think had it not been for the inclusion of Team GB in the Olympic football competition this year the FA may have given Pearce the chance to shine at Euro 2012. His commitments to the Team GB role though make that proposition now hugely unlikely. The fact the FA are not acting super-quick also suggests they want a new man in charge for the European Championships, one who is not the current caretaker. Subsequently, you look instantly look at managers who are already attached to a job. The first name then that everyone is spouting off and who is the clear bookies favourite is Harry Redknapp. The current Tottenham Hotspur gaffer took over with the side bottom of the Premier League, and nowadays they are title contenders and have made their Champions League bow during his tenure. His side play a brand of fast, attractive, attacking football, whilst Redknapp is primarily renowned for his man-management abilities; obviously an important characteristic when dealing with the high profiles and potentially inflated ego’s of the senior England footballers. But he is highly unlikely to leave Spurs at this stage of the season when he is on course to take them to their best league finish since 1989/90 where they finished 3rd.
But the FA has been known to make some crazy decisions in the past and not always followed public opinion. So do not dismiss Roy Hodgson, Alan Pardew or Guus Hiddink. Hiddink is an interesting choice to me and I am surprised his name has not been mentioned more frequently since Capello’s resignation. Practically every job he has ever held he has succeeded in, especially at international level – just ask supporters of Russia, Australia and South Korea! He proved to be a popular manager during his brief stint at Chelsea and has the respect of the media, as well as being currently unemployed. He speaks English extremely well and appears to always make his players raise their game and achieve greater things than the expectations bestowed upon them. The only reason he does not appear to be gaining any attention is because he is not English. Now I too am an advocate of having an English manager leading the England team but let’s just remember how much of a failure our last English manager was. Yes, our two foreign managers haven’t set the world alight, but they’ve done just as well as numerous other managers who held the role before them. In fact, Capello has the best win percentage of any previous England manager!
So one comment has caused a chain reaction of events; one which has culminated in our national game needing to find someone new to lead the country into this summer’s major international tournament. Will the FA make the right decision this time? Will a new manager incite anything more out of our alleged superstar players? Will he get the side to a level that can compete with the likes of Spain, Germany and the Netherlands? The decision is vital, not necessarily for the European Championships (which I still believe we should go for and not just give up on) but for the World Cup in 2014, integrating the new generation of players as well as building the work of St George’s Park in its early years, the site intended to be the hub and promise of all of English football from now on.
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