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SAMUEL: If Southgate Does Not Want It There apos;s Always Someone Else

2022-12-17T18:17:08Z

AlbertoTcs: Created page with "has fixed a lot for English football these last six years. It is not his job, however, to fix the succession. If he wants to go, he should go. The idea of is not ju..."

has fixed a lot for English football these last six years. It is not his job, however, to fix the succession. If he wants to go, he should go. The idea of is not just unfair, but muddle-headed. There are plenty of reasons to retain Southgate, but that is the worst. It was advanced when Joe Root wanted to give up the captaincy, too, and look where we are now. Last April, Root standing down was considered disastrous. was thought too emotionally fragile for the responsibility, other candidates were too inexperienced or lacking the ability for Test cricket. Everyone could see the job was draining Root but felt equally conflicted by the alternatives. Gareth Southgate's future as England manager is undecided after their World Cup exit RELATED ARTICLES Share this article Share 304 shares Turns out, there was a better man. There always is a better man if the incumbent doesn't actually want to be there. If Southgate has reached the conclusion this is the end of the road, shake his hand and wish him well. Don't make it harder than it already is. He shouldn't leave feeling guilty. He has let nobody down. Eddie Howe and Graham Potter are the obvious candidates for the job and, equally, presumed not to be interested because of great opportunities in club management. Still, try them. There is a world of difference between shunning a post you haven't been offered and turning down one when it is presented. Being a candidate is very different from being presented with terms and conditions. Every manager will be mindful of ending up like Harry Redknapp, who was presumed to be the next England manager after Fabio Capello and made no secret of the job's appeal. Ultimately, the FA went with Roy Hodgson and Tottenham sacked Redknapp that summer, irked by his perceived disloyalty. Nobody is falling for that again. And if Howe and Potter genuinely aren't interested, someone will be. It's the England job. It's fantastic. Eddie Howe (left) and Graham Potter are potential candidates for the England job Lots of pressure, lots of expectation and thankless at times. Yet if there was a club that gave a man the chance to work with Jude Bellingham, Phil Foden, Bukayo Saka, Declan Rice, Reece James, Trent Alexander-Arnold, Harry Kane, James Maddison, Jack Grealish - and let's stop there because otherwise we might as well name the squad - who wouldn't take that? And what if you got it right? What if you became the guy to unlock this last part of the puzzle, to win England's first trophy since 1966? What was it Jose Mourinho said about Porto once he had delivered the Champions League trophy? 'Beautiful blue chair, up there, God, and after God, me.' That's what it will be like for the next victorious England manager. We're forgetting, too, how Southgate got here. He was a battlefield promotion at a time of embarrassment and crisis. England lost the last guy after just one game, Sam Allardyce becoming the Liz Truss of national managers. There were no obvious candidates and the FA just wanted safe hands. From the outside, Southgate was considered an unimaginative promotion. A company man, the touchline equivalent of an FA blazer on a stick. The FA were so sure they had made the right call he did his first four matches in temporary charge. And he's been brilliant. Changed the culture around the England team. Brought through and trusted young players. Got to within a penalty shootout of the European Championship trophy, to within semi-final extra time of a World Cup final. Southgate was an unheralded choice when he took the role but has done brilliantly He lost in the quarter-finals here only because England had the misfortune to meet France, probably the best team in the world, [https://storage.googleapis.com/best-blogs/See-Why-Dinesh-Karthiks-First-Marriage-With-Childhood-Love-Nikita-Vanjara-Didnt-Work-Out.html storage.googleapis.com] at that stage. It happens. You can be the second-best team in any competition, but meet the best and you're probably going out. Think Brazil in 1982. Ended up in a group with Italy and Argentina, lost to Italy, the eventual winners, and went home. Some still argue they had a better team than in 1970. Southgate was an England Under 21 manager who took the senior team further than any coach since Sir Alf Ramsey. Who knew he had that in him? Maybe Lee Carsley, the current Under 21 manager, has it in him, too. Maybe he has it to go one better. Maybe he is sitting there now with a PowerPoint presentation that will revolutionise the way England play; or maybe Steve Holland is. He's Southgate's assistant. Credited with many of the smart strategic ideas that have got England this far. Mourinho and later Antonio Conte both won titles at Chelsea with Holland on the staff, but his only managerial experience is a brief spell at Crewe. Does that matter? We cannot know. Lee Carsley is well respected and could go on and become a top manager Didier Deschamps is a World Cup winning player and manager, who also landed titles at Marseille and Juventus. Joachim Low was a journeyman player between Germany's top two divisions, and had as many failures as a club coach as he had successes. He became Germany's assistant manager because he met Jurgen Klinsmann on a coaching course and they had similar ideas about how the game should be played. When Klinsmann quit after two years in 2006, Low got the job and later became the first coach of a European team to win a World Cup in South America. Meaning there is no sure way to the top. Carsley or Holland may have as many good ideas as Howe or Potter. Yet Carsley's candidacy opens up another interesting discussion. Who gets to be English? The FA are reluctant to appoint a foreign manager again, we know that. But who is foreign in football's cosmopolitan world? Carsley was born in Sheldon, to the east of Birmingham, and came through the youth ranks at Derby. He played for six clubs and coached four more, each one in England. Yet at 21, with no sign of international recognition at home, he was called up by the Republic of Ireland's Under 21 team, qualifying through his grandmother, who is from County Cork. Carsley went on to make 40 senior appearances for Ireland between 1997 and 2008. And he's English. Brendan Rodgers has done a great job at Leicester and could be tempted by England Another contender may be Steve Cooper at Nottingham Forest. As coach of England's Under 17 team he reached the final of the European Championship, losing on penalties to Spain, before winning the World Cup with a squad that included Foden, Jadon Sancho, Emile Smith Rowe and Conor Gallagher. Yet Cooper was born in Pontypridd, played in Wales his entire career, managed Swansea and - international football aside - worked outside England until joining Forest in 2021. Yet if he can manage England's age group teams, why not the seniors? And this brings us to Brendan Rodgers, and the true complexities of what constitutes a foreign or British coach. Rodgers is from Carnlough in County Antrim, Northern Ireland. He played for his local club, Ballymena United. Then, at 18, he was signed by Reading. Injury soon curtailed his career but he continued to play semi-professional in England and came through the coaching system here. He has subsequently been employed in the English leagues, save for three seasons at Celtic. Rodgers could be an excellent England manager, so long as the FA see him as English. It's a minefield. The FA may now regard their dalliances with foreign coaches as a mistake but their choices - Sven Goran Eriksson and Capello - were two people who had never worked a day in English football and were obviously drawn by financial and professional incentives. What of, say, Mauricio Pochettino? Indisputably Argentinian, but who - in six years in English football with Southampton and Tottenham - brought through more players for England than any other current coach. What about Thomas Tuchel, who chose to work in England and would still be doing so had it not been for the arrival of Todd Boehly at Chelsea? Southgate should not have to work out a succession plan, that is for the FA Arsene Wenger did 22 years at Arsenal, which is longer as a coach in English football than Howe and Potter put together. Yet asked why he always rejected the overtures of the FA, Wenger explained quite simply: 'I am French.' So the list of candidates available grows or shrinks according to the definition of an English manager. It could be the FA are fishing in a shallow pool; it could be they are spoiled for choice. What is clear is that this is not Southgate's conundrum to solve. If a football nation as wealthy, powerful and influential as England cannot produce a succession line of gifted coaches without needing to plunder the product of rival institutions, that is on those in charge, not a humble employee. Either way, it is no reason to keep Southgate if he has no desire to stay. He more than did his bit. Now the FA must do theirs. And if the challenge is too great, it's the system that really needs to change course, not the current manager. TRAGEDY OF WAHL'S DEATH WHILE COVERING WORLD CUP It is an appalling tragedy for his family and all who knew him that Grant Wahl, a highly respected American sports writer, passed away during Argentina's match versus Holland last week. He was a slim, athletic 49. A pity for the hosts, too, that his death was immediately met with conspiracy theories about foul play. Then again, if you will detain people for wearing a rainbow T-shirt, that stuff tends to happen if they later end up dead at your World Cup. Grant Wahl, the American journalist (above), passed away during Argentina vs Holland MOROCCO'S PROGRESS NO REAL SURPRISE Morocco have been a wonderful surprise package at this tournament - yet in a way there remains a logic to their progress. An Arab nation going further than any African, or Arab, country have done at the first World Cup held in the Middle East? It figures. There is a lot to be said for feeling at home during a tournament. When the World Cup was in South America in 2014, Uruguay and Costa Rica qualified ahead of Italy and England, Chile beat and eliminated Spain, Mexico made it past Croatia and Cameroon, and hosts Brazil, Colombia and Argentina topped their groups. Ghana would have become the first African team to reach a World Cup semi-final in 2010 in South Africa, were it not for a penalty miss in the last minute. Croatia were the first eastern European nation to reach a World Cup final since Czechoslovakia in 1962 when the tournament was held in Russia in 2018, and the last two tournaments in Europe have seen all eight semi-finalists produced by UEFA. Morocco have been great value but there success is not a massive surprise Given the sights, the smells, the initial heat, the call to prayer, not to mention the growing local pride and support, Morocco will have felt totally at home in Qatar. France, of course, will be strongly fancied to beat them and it would be arguably the greatest shock in World Cup history were Morocco - who haven't progressed beyond the quarter-finals of even the Africa Cup of Nations since 2004 - to reach Sunday's final. Yet, what other countries might find alien about a World Cup in the Gulf will pass Morocco by. Home advantage does not just start and end with the hosts. Soldiers will stand in for Border Force guards at Heathrow and Gatwick, due to strikes over the Christmas period. Don't panic. If the experience of the London 2012 Olympics is anything to go by, the service will be improved. Back then, security contractors G4S messed up and failed to provide sufficient numbers of officers to process ticket-holders and keep sites safe at various Olympic venues. Several thousand military personnel were deployed to cover. They were magnificent. Unfailingly polite, reasonable, approachable, professional; passing a baggage check point run by the Army was an entirely different experience from normal. Perhaps it comes from facing real danger because it means they have perspective. They know a spectator carrying a bottle of water that is not the sponsors' brand really isn't the most terrible occurrence that could happen that day. MESSI'S MAGNIFICENT... BUT ARGENTINA'S SLYNESS MAKES THEM HARD TO LIKE There was quite the backlash when it was pointed out that, the beauty of Lionel Messi aside, Argentina are not the easiest group of footballers to like. Yet the footage of Leandro Paredes brutally fouling Nathan Ake, before lashing the ball at the Dutch bench and jogging away to avoid the resulting confrontation - not seeing Virgil van Dijk on his blindside and getting spectacularly barged to the ground - is one of the defining sequences of this tournament. No, the Dutch are not angels. Few teams are. Yet, there was a slyness about some of Argentina's actions in the quarter-final that not even the romance of Messi's last dance could overcome. His pass for the first goal that night is one of the greatest things you will ever see on a football pitch; but you may have to hold your nose for the rest of it. Argentina are a side with plenty of slyness and it can make them tough to warm to RELATED ARTICLES Share this article Share 304 shares adverts.addToArray({"pos":"inread_player"})Advertisement

Aussie Reporter Bombarded After Insisting Ronaldo Is Better Than Messi

2022-12-17T18:11:08Z

AlbertoTcs:

reporter Sam McClure has been hammered by football fans online after declaring is a superior player to . It was a bizarre take on Wednesday (AEDT), given Messi had just guided Argentina to the World Cup final, virtually on his own. The superstar, 35, turned back the clock, scoring a first-half penalty before his scintillating assist for teammate Julian Álvarez in the 69th minute sealed a 3-0 win over Croatia. In contrast, Qatar was a World Cup to forget for [https://sports-blogs.s3.amazonaws.com/How-Did-Glenn-Maxwell-Met-His-Wife-Vini-Raman-Who-Has-Her-Roots-In-India.html sports-blogs.s3.amazonaws.com] Portuguese star Ronaldo, 37, who was on the bench in the round of 16 versus Switzerland and also his nation's shock 1-0 defeat at the hands of Morocco in the quarter-finals. McClure tweeted his admiration for Ronaldo, declaring Messi 'took cash to play in a farm league' (in France) as the reason why he was the inferior footballer in his eyes. Lionel Messi was outstanding for Argentina in their World Cup semi-final - but didn't impress AFL reporter Sam McClure McClure tweeted his belief Portugal star Ronaldo was a more complete player after dominating in England, Spain and Italy at club level across his career 'Please. Ronaldo has dominated England, Spain and Italy,' his tweet began. 'Messi played for one team (Barcelona) and then took cash to play in a farm league (for PSG). 'They're both extraordinary; but the overhyped Messi adulation is nauseating.' It didn't take long for some of McClure's 42,000 plus followers to bite. Sydney Morning Herald football journalist Vince Rugari responded with 'Oh no Sammy what are you doing bro' before 60 Minutes reporter Tom Steinfort declared 'I fear for your comments section…and your sanity.' Please. Ronaldo has dominated England, Spain and Italy. Messi played for one team and then took cash to play in a farm league. They're both extraordinary; but the overhyped Messi adulation is nauseating. — Sam McClure (@sam_mcclure) RELATED ARTICLES Share this article Share Cricket identity Andy Maher then weighed into the chat, jokingly asking 'Samuel, have you watched the lad (Messi) play? McClure's followers weren't finished yet, with one describing his tweets and journalism as 'nauseating.' 'We say players aren't loyal enough then a player like Messi stays at his club (Barcelona) for 95 per cent of his career and you use it as an argument as to why he isn't the best,' he responded to McClure's tweet. 'Average take from an average 'journo.' Stick to the Sherrin.' Another suggested McClure 'stay in his lane' while a third was far more cutting, stating 'stick to Aussie Rules champ! You've got no idea.' adverts.addToArray({"pos":"inread_player"})Advertisement

Aussie Reporter Bombarded After Insisting Ronaldo Is Better Than Messi

2022-12-17T18:05:21Z

AlbertoTcs:

reporter Sam McClure has been hammered by football fans online after declaring is a superior player to . It was a bizarre take on Wednesday (AEDT), given Messi had just guided Argentina to the World Cup final, virtually on his own. The superstar, 35, turned back the clock, scoring a first-half penalty before his scintillating assist for teammate Julian Álvarez in the 69th minute sealed a 3-0 win over Croatia. In contrast, Qatar was a World Cup to forget for Portuguese star Ronaldo, 37, who was on the bench in the round of 16 versus Switzerland and also his nation's shock 1-0 defeat at the hands of Morocco in the quarter-finals. McClure tweeted his admiration for Ronaldo, declaring Messi 'took cash to play in a farm league' (in France) as the reason why he was the inferior footballer in his eyes. Lionel Messi was outstanding for [https://sportsjournal.blob.core.windows.net/blog/Google-search-shows-Afghan-cricketer-Rashid-Khans-wife-is-Anushka-Sharma-Why.html https://sportsjournal.blob.core.windows.net/blog/Google-search-shows-Afghan-cricketer-Rashid-Khans-wife-is-Anushka-Sharma-Why.html] Argentina in their World Cup semi-final - but didn't impress AFL reporter Sam McClure McClure tweeted his belief Portugal star Ronaldo was a more complete player after dominating in England, Spain and Italy at club level across his career 'Please. Ronaldo has dominated England, Spain and Italy,' his tweet began. 'Messi played for one team (Barcelona) and then took cash to play in a farm league (for PSG). 'They're both extraordinary; but the overhyped Messi adulation is nauseating.' It didn't take long for some of McClure's 42,000 plus followers to bite. Sydney Morning Herald football journalist Vince Rugari responded with 'Oh no Sammy what are you doing bro' before 60 Minutes reporter Tom Steinfort declared 'I fear for your comments section…and your sanity.' Please. Ronaldo has dominated England, Spain and Italy. Messi played for one team and then took cash to play in a farm league. They're both extraordinary; but the overhyped Messi adulation is nauseating. — Sam McClure (@sam_mcclure) RELATED ARTICLES Share this article Share Cricket identity Andy Maher then weighed into the chat, jokingly asking 'Samuel, have you watched the lad (Messi) play? McClure's followers weren't finished yet, with one describing his tweets and journalism as 'nauseating.' 'We say players aren't loyal enough then a player like Messi stays at his club (Barcelona) for 95 per cent of his career and you use it as an argument as to why he isn't the best,' he responded to McClure's tweet. 'Average take from an average 'journo.' Stick to the Sherrin.' Another suggested McClure 'stay in his lane' while a third was far more cutting, stating 'stick to Aussie Rules champ! You've got no idea.' adverts.addToArray({"pos":"inread_player"})Advertisement

Apos;I Almost Gave Up Red-ball Cricket apos Reveals England Pace Ace Wood

2022-12-17T17:59:48Z

AlbertoTcs: Created page with "Mark Wood has admitted he almost gave up red-ball cricket during an injury-wrecked summer but changed his mind because he wanted to sample life under and Brendon McCullum.<br..."

Mark Wood has admitted he almost gave up red-ball cricket during an injury-wrecked summer but changed his mind because he wanted to sample life under and Brendon McCullum. England's fast-bowling hero in the second Test against , who took three of the last five wickets to help seal a thrilling, series-clinching win at Multan, had elbow surgery after England's first Test in the West Indies in March. He then had another operation in order to be fit for the T20s in Pakistan in September. In between, he did not bowl a ball in anger, prompting thoughts of going down the white-ball route after an on-off career in which, before this series, he had played only 26 of England's 100 Tests since his debut in 2015. England bowler Mark Wood almost gave up red-ball cricket during an injury-wrecked summer RELATED ARTICLES Share this article Share As Wood, who turns 33 next month, broke open Pakistan's courageous run-chase on Monday, having Mohammad Nawaz and Saud Shakeel caught down the leg side before lunch, then bowling Zahid Mahmood after it, England were grateful their fastest bowler decided to give Test cricket another go. Asked if he had wondered during the summer whether days like this might never come again, he replied: ‘Yes, I wondered if I'd go white-ball only. At some point, my body will say it's the way to go. But I didn't prepare for white-ball — I prepared for all cricket. ‘I desperately wanted to experience all this, with Stokesy and Brendon, so I'm pleased I've stuck with it. And I'm pleased we won here. I'd have been gutted if I'd come in and we'd lost. They'd have pointed fingers at me.' The 33-year-old has known Ben Stokes since their days together in the Durham academy Wood broke 97mph at Multan, underlining his value to a side who have often struggled abroad because of a lack of cutting edge. Unlike most of his compatriots, he has a better record abroad, where he has 53 Test wickets at 24 apiece, than at home, where his 35 wickets have cost 40. He said Shoaib Akhtar, the former Pakistan fast bowler, had told him he needed to ‘pull trucks' if he wanted to bowl 100mph. ‘He doesn't know how weak I am,' said Wood. ‘I can't pull any truck. But it's great to replicate someone like that. The crowd have been amazing, they love fast bowling in Pakistan off the back of guys like Shoaib.' And when Stokes needed a breakthrough before lunch on the fourth and final day, it was to Wood that he turned. The captain's response when he bent his back to remove Nawaz for 45 said it all. ‘He said, "You can have a big bear hug for that",' said Wood. ‘Those were his exact words. He asked me to change the game and he was very pleased I did. I kept saying, "Do you not fancy a go?" And he kept saying, "No, you do the work". Wood had two operations before playing in the T20 World Cup and Test series in Pakistan ‘I only bowled four overs in a go from September to now, so it is a big spike and hard work on these pitches, but I tried to prepare as best I could.' Wood has known Stokes since their days together in the Durham academy, and [https://sportsjournal.blob.core.windows.net/blog/Here-Is-All-You-Need-To-Know-About-Shikhar-Dhawans-Wife-Ayesha-Mukherjee-Ex-Wife.html https://sportsjournal.blob.core.windows.net/blog/Here-Is-All-You-Need-To-Know-About-Shikhar-Dhawans-Wife-Ayesha-Mukherjee-Ex-Wife.html] has been blown away by the speed with which he has grown into the captaincy. ‘It's weird, Stokesy is much more mature now, he speaks so well. He's always had a fantastic cricket brain. But the way he comes across, the way he conducts himself and the messages that he gives, he's just so much more rounded now. ‘He was this alpha guy who would whack it, and never back down. He's still got all that, but he's got other sides to him now. He'll put an arm round people, and express what he means really articulately. The paceman (right) was part of England's T20 World Cup winning side in September ‘I didn't think he had some of the words in his locker!' Meanwhile, the pitch for the first Test at Rawalpindi has been rated ‘below average' by ICC match referee Andy Pycroft. The game, which England won by 74 runs with only minutes to spare, produced 1,768 runs — a world record for a five-day Test. Pycroft said the surface ‘gave no assistance to any type of bowler', and docked the venue one demerit point, to go with the point it earned in March, when Pakistan and Australia played out a bore draw. Five points in any five-year period means a ban from hosting international cricket for 12 months. RELATED ARTICLES Share this article Share adverts.addToArray({"pos":"inread_player"})Advertisement

User:AlbertoTcs

2022-12-17T17:59:45Z

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