Tuesday 3 April 2012

The Impossible Job

So Stuart 'Psycho' Pearce is the interim manager of the England national side. He himself has said he doesn't want the job on a full time basis, for now anyway. He is in charge during Euro 2012 but then a successor to Fabio Capello will be announced.

Many have suggested Harry Redknapp to take the reigns of the England national squad after a very impressive spell at Tottenham Hotspur, where he claimed a top four finish last season and has almost clinched one this season too. He would be mad to leave the Tottenham job currently, where they are close to being real top of the table challengers for the title, albeit on much lesser resources than Manchester United and even more so Manchester City. He knows this. This is why he has been diplomatic in saying it would be an honour to manage the squad at some point, yet he is fully committed to the Tottenham job at the moment.

Other names have been banded about, including ex England manager Glenn Hoddle, sacked after controversial comments in an interview where he expressed his religious beliefs that he believed disabled people are suffering for misdemeanors in previous lives. It was not due to poor England performance, and I believe his comments did not deserve a sacking. Alan Shearer, the iconic England, Newcastle and Blackburn striker has spoken of his support for Hoddle, and claimed there is no reason for Hoddle not to be given a chance.

Roy Hodgson has been suggested too, however there has been less coverage of this. Hodgson would be more likely to leave his current club, a bottom half Premier League outfit, West Bromwich Albion, however to the younger generation not much is known of him past his impressive run to the UEFA Cup Final with Fulham. He has previously taken Switzerland to the 1994 World Cup and Euro 1996 (Their first major tournament qualifications since the 1960's) and taken Finland to their highest ever FIFA ranking of 33rd in the world. He has domestic honours too, having improved a faltering Inter Milan team, and guided Blackburn Rovers to a 6th placed Premier League finish with qualification for Europe after a dismal season prior to his employment at Ewood Park. He was even previously offered the England job before Sven Goran-Eriksson was hired as he had already signed to manage Copenhagen, although he is most remembered currently for his failure at Liverpool.

I personally, although I cannot see it happening, would like to see something different. I agree England need an English manager, but I think one of the main reasons we always seem to fail on the big stage is that there's too much pressure and it's all too serious. I know of one manager who would not only give England a different way to play but would also liven up the squad and get rid of some of the suffocating pressure, however he is not as experienced as the men I have mentioned, with only domestic clubs managed, and little top flight experience, although his Blackpool picked up a good haul of points in the first half of their 2010-11 season in the Premier League, although it ultimately ended in their relegation. They achieved these points through an entertaining emphasis on attacking play; almost always with three attackers in a 4-3-3 system, with the aim of 'We'll score more than you'. While effective for a while, they were soon found out and the lack of quality and depth in their squad meant they suffered. With the England squad, you would imagine it could be more effective.

The man I am talking about of course, is Ian Holloway.

I don't suppose he will be chosen, or barely considered for the role for his lack of experience, but I honestly believe a man like him could achieve success with the England squad by alleviating the pressure, putting the emphasis on attacking play (unlike in Fabio Capello's reign where it was almost a chore to sit through an England game for boring defensive displays) and putting the control back in an Englishman's hands.

We will see who is chosen, but I for one would love to see Holloway chosen.

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