Lineker went to Spain to see how they had turned around their own misfortunes.  It’s difficult to see how, now they are currently European & World Champions but before this latest wave of success, Spain had an even worse record than England for underachieving in the big competitions.

Comparisons were drawn to the way La Liga attracted some of the best players in the world in the 1980’s while ignoring the importance of nurturing home-grown Spanish talent.  Gary Lineker himself was a success at Barcelona, as was English manager Terry Venables; and though Spain have only conquered Europe and the rest of the world in the past four years, it was a revolution that allegedly started when Dutch maestro and former player, Johan Cruyff, returned to manage Barcelona in 1988.

Cruyff stated that the national side would be perennial underachievers if the top teams in La Liga continued looking to foreign players for short-term success. Cruyff’s model was to produce better quality indigenous players by a matter of inclusion and focus on a longer term strategy that started at grassroots and ended with national success.  This coupled with the fact that when boys are coached to play football at an early age, they should be learning the skill of playing with the ball, not simply competing to win.  A criticism levelled at English football.

Jurgen Klinsmann kick-started a German revolution after replacing Rudi Voller as manager of Germany in 2004.  Klinsmann initially attracted criticism from some quarters with some poor results leading up to the 2006 World Cup.  He had axed many aging stars and attempted to change the way Germany play.  He wanted Germany to be less rigid, offensive and less constrictive in their play.  For change to take place Klinsmann, like Cruyff at Barcelona, needed to think long term and have the backing of the German FA to see it through.

England wasn’t the only nation to have a poor World Cup in South Africa.  Italy and France had shockers too.  But England’s last and only glory was 44 years ago now; and the England crisis is far deeper than other nations.

While English Premier League teams continue to enjoy European Champions League success the England national team have become worse.  So, as Jose Mourinho said, look at the clubs that have done well in Europe over the past few years (Arsenal, Chelsea, Liverpool & Manchester United) and count their English players.  That is definitely a factor in England’s demise.  But England was failing to qualify for the World Cup and European Championship finals long before the Premier League and English football was filled with top foreign players.

Another cause for England’s poor standing in European and world football is a more entrenched problem.  Boys are told to compete and win over learning to be skilful. I left secondary education in 1981 and I remember way back then we were being told the reason every Dutch football player looks so comfortable and skilful on the ball, is because he is; and England players hoof the ball around and get the ball into the opponents’ penalty area as quickly as possible because that’s what they are taught to do from an early age.

Italy and France relied on past glory and older players, and England juggled unrealistic hope and expectation once again.  All were found out in South Africa, while Spain and Germany, along with Holland, were the best and most exciting teams in the World Cup finals.

Tonight England host Montenegro in a Euro 2012 qualifying game at Wembley.  Look at their squad and ask yourself, how many of those players would get into the Spanish or German starting eleven?

Will England win the next World Cup?

The short answer to ‘will England win the next World Cup?’ is definitely not. Furthermore, they won’t win it again until these deep-rooted problems are addressed; and that can only be achieved with a long term plan and strategy in place. By appointing Sven Goran Eriksson and Fabio Capello, the English FA has put its head in the sand and attempted to buy the World Cup in the same way as the Premier League buy the best players in the world. So, the only thing England fans can do right now is be grateful they’re not Scotland!

The likes of Wayne Rooney, Cristiano Ronaldo, Kaka, Fernando Torres and Lionel Messi failed to deliver on the biggest stage of all, though it’s worth noting the close attention Messi received that stopped him and that Torres was not match fit.  France, Italy and England above all other nations had a shocking World Cup and should all learn from Germany who gambled with a more youthful team.

The final was not a goal fest but I personally really enjoyed it.  Yes 4-3 would have been more exciting but apart from Holland’s bully-boy tactics, the match was brimming with attacking world class talent. Snyder, Robben and Van Persie for the Netherlands and Iniesta, Xavi and Villa for Spain.  The match was like a game of chess, each team attempting to outwit the opponent and building up play rather than toe-punting the ball around like headless English chickens.

As with each major football tournament where some players fail to deliver, a star or two are born.  Mezut Ouzil who apparently was courted by Manchester United before he signed to German club Werder Bremen in 2008 was as good as anyone in the 2010 World Cup and was unheard of outside Germany before the tournament began.  They will be lucky to hold on to him and resist the big money offers.  By contrast, David Villa had been touted as a world class striker for the past few seasons but he chose the World Cup stage to deliver.  No doubt Barcelona was very pleased to complete the signing before he scored five goals to share the Golden Boot.

I was surprised to see both Argentina and Brazil lose to Germany and Holland respectively at the quarter-final stage and am sure both countries will do better and be led by new managers at the next World Cup which is to be held in Brazil.

So by way of a 2010 South Africa World Cup roundup, here are a few awards:

My favourite goal of the World Cup was Giovanni Van Bronckhorst long range thunderbolt for Holland against Uruguay.

Best players of the tournament: David Villa, Diego Forlan, Wes Snyder, Mezut Ouzil & Andres Iniesta

Most surprising team performance: Ghana & Germany

Most underused commentary: “that was a great touch by Wayne Rooney”

Best team: Spain

And finally, here’s my 2010 World Cup XI

Goalkeeper: Castillas (Spain)

Defenders: Lahm (Germany), Lucio (Brazil), Puyol (Spain), Van Bronckhorst (Holland)

Midfield: Van Bommel (Holland), Ouzil (Germany), Iniesta (Spain), Snyder (Holland)

Forwards: Villa (Spain), Suarez (Uruguay), Robben (Holland)

World Cup 2010

According the the Castrol Performance data, Spain should take their chances at goal from distance in the World Cup 2010 final in South Africa, as the stats show that Holland goalkeeper Maarten Stekelenburg has been guilty of conceding most goals (3) in the finals from shots taken from outside the box.

Stekelenburg has conceded five goals in total in his six World Cup appearances, compared to just two conceded in the same number of games by Spain’s Iker Casillas.

Casillas appears to be a more reliable goalkeeper than Maarten Stekelenburg, having saved a higher proportion of shots than his Dutch counterpart.

The Real Madrid player has so far kept more clean sheets than any other goalkeeper at the 2010 FIFA World Cup (four) and proven decisive on many occasions including a penalty saved in the quarter final against Paraguay, despite UK TV commentators constantly telling viewers how shaky he looks!

In defence Carles Puyol’s headed goal against Germany has powered Spain to their first ever World Cup final, the Catalan centre half has won a greater proportion of aerial duels than Johnny Heitinga and his passing accuracy has also been superior. However the Everton defender has displayed great fighting spirit, making more defensive actions than Puyol.

Many of us expect the game will be decided in midfield where many key battles will take place on Sunday. Castrol Performance data suggests that midfield general Mark van Bommel has made more tackles (31) than Xabi Alonso (18) but the Real Madrid schemer has shown more attacking intentions with 14 shots, compared to just two for the 2010 Bundesliga champion.

Despite playing in midfield, Wesley Sneijder is the joint top scorer at the FIFA World CupTM with five goals, the Inter Milan playmaker has attempted 22 shots, compared to just five for Xavi.

However the Barcelona player has created far more goalscoring chances for his team mates, setting up 25 shots, a tournament record so far. Xavi has also delivered more passes than any other player at the 2010 World Cup (509).

The new Barcelona signing David Villa has become the all time Spanish top scorer in World Cup history with eight goals, five of these coming this summer.

Having recovered in time from an injury, Arjen Robben has managed to score three goals and assist another in just four appearances at this summer’s finals. The Bayern Munich winger has been more clinical in front of goal than his Spanish counterpart and has completed a higher proportion of his dribbles.

According to Castrol Performance data, central to the Netherlands’ path to the 2010 World Cup final has been their accuracy in front of goal, with the Dutch posting a competition-high 58.2% accuracy rate while only Germany can better their conversion rate of 17.9% (both including only quarter-finalists).

But the Dutch midfielders will need to stamp their authority early in the game if they don’t want Spain’s midfield to dictate the game, as they did in their semi-final win over Germany.

The Spanish midfielders completed 131 more passes than their German counterparts in Durban on Wednesday. On average, Spain’s midfield were distributing the ball to one of their teammates every 16 seconds compared to one pass every 27 seconds for Germany.

Unsurprisingly, Spain also dominate the possession ranking at the World Cup with a 67% average, a full 11 percentage points better than the Netherlands (56%).

Xavi, who teed up Carles Puyol’s goal, was the second player to complete more than 100 passes in a game at the 2010 FIFA World Cup after Argentina’s Juan Sebastian Veron. Interestingly, the Catalan schemer comfortably leads the tournament for successful passes, with over 200 completed deliveries more than the most prolific Dutch player, Mark van Bommel.

As a neutral fan watching the first African World Cup it is impossible not to be delighted with Ghana’s progress through to the last eight. Coming in to the tournament it was the Ivory Coast most people tipped as Africa’s strongest nation, with Didier Drogba, Salamon Kalou and the Toure brothers all filling their line-up with European club pedigree.

However Ghana, without their own superstar in the injured Michael Essien, have played attractive football and backed it up with solidity in defence.

Individually, there have been players such as Anthony Annan, who has been outstanding in shielding the back line and breaking up play, and Gyan Asamoah, whose industrious efforts up front have been rewarded with three goals, in particular that memorable effort to clinch the tie against South Korea.

We have also seen Kevin Prince Boetang flourish in Essien’s absence, driving from midfield and always looking for the ball and his efforts fully deserved that excellent opener against South Korea. Yet, much as there were excellent individual performances, it is collectively that Ghana shone.

Despite their cruel defeat to Uruguay, tarnished in part by Luis Suarez’s cynical hand ball and Gyan’s subsequent penalty miss, they have been an excellent part of this World Cup.

The way that the Ghana Football Association has placed an emphasis on youth can be seen as an example to some of the failing nations in this tournament, notably England, France and Italy, all of whom have either left young players unused or simply not included them in the squad.

As an English fan, I would like to see the national team overhauled in the aftermath of this tournament and the older players who will be in their mid-30’s by the next World Cup dropped altogether. This would mean Gerrard and Lampard, good as they are, no longer have a place on the international platform.

Bringing in youngsters such as Adam Johnson, Jack Rodwell, Theo Walcott, Lee Cattermole, Tom Huddlestone, Jack Wilshere, Joe Hart and Kieran Gibbs is a controversial option and could even hamper our chances at the European Championships in 2 years, but it would certainly be for the long term benefit of English football.

Ghana have taken this option and it has paid dividends for them, as it has for Germany who, without their high profile name in Ballack, have brought through some excellent young players in Muller and Ozil as well as the more household names such as Schweinsteiger and Lahm.

Much has been said about England’s inability to bring through players from successful youth teams and transpose this form into the senior team. The argument always goes back to the fundamental problems within the FA and our youth system.

We are not allowing young players to express themselves or enjoy the game, right through from Sunday youth-leagues to the academies at professional clubs. On top of this we have such a lack of faith in young players.

Looking at the Germany team again, one will see that some of their stars of the tournament were almost untried at this level. Thomas Muller, who has been outstanding, only had 2 caps to his name, both in friendlies, and yet the faith shown in him has reaped huge rewards for Joachim Low and his team.

Likewise, Mesut Ozil has just earned only his fifteenth cap and has received plaudits from all corners for his performances to date.

We will never know whether youngsters such as Adam Johnson would have made a difference to England’s catastrophically bad World Cup but maybe it is about time we found out. By putting faith in those who will be in their prime in 4 years we are allowing a team to start playing together from a young age and maturing as a unit.

This can only benefit England’s chances at the next World Cup.

World Cup 2010

The Castrol Performance analysis suggests that we are in for a fantastic World Cup quater final game between Brazil and Holland, with the South Americans posing most threat from their attacking defenders and the Europeans relying on pacey counter attacking football.

So far in the World Cup 2010 finals, Brazil’s defenders have been attacking more than those of any other side, with full-back Maicon making more touches in the opposition half than any other defender.

Indeed, the Internazionale defender has made an impressive 59% of his touches in the opponent’s half. Joining Maicon in the top five in this ranking is team-mate and fellow full-back Michel Bastos while Spain’s Gerard Pique (69) is the only centre-half in the tournament to make more touches in the opposition half than Brazil’s captain Lucio (65).

Maicon has also created nine goal-scoring chances so far, a tournament-high for a defender and with he and fellow centre-half Juan both scoring in the tournament already,  the Dutch midfielders and indeed forwards will need to do their fair share of tracking back if they are to make it to the last four.

On the other hand Holland have been the most dangerous counter-attacking side in the 2010 FIFA World Cup so far, netting a joint-high two goals from fast breaks while also firing in a tournament-high seven shots following fast breaks.

While it is a far cry from the total football demonstrated by the Dutch in the seventies this ability to turn defence into attack led to goals against Cameroon, courtesy of substitute Klaas Jan Huntelaar’s second-half strike and Arjen Robben’s superb strike against Slovakia.

Robben’s goal came after a Slovakia attack was nullified by the Dutch defence before playmaker Wesley Sneijder played a superb long ball to the Bayern winger who cut inside before firing home past Ján Mucha in the Slovakian goal.

With the likes of Maicon, Lucio and Bastos all enjoying regular excursions forward, counter-attacking play may well be the Netherlands’ best hope of success against the South American giants.

The table below compares the two playmakers in midfield, Kaka and Sneijder showing their contribution to their relative teams so far in the competition.

Data supplied by Castrol Performance.

Kaka v Sneijder

Many of the matches have reminded me of a lot Premier League games over the years. In the sense of small, technically limited but hard working teams have attempted to stifle and strangle the breath out of inferior opposition. Switzerland, North Korea and Japan have been similar in their approach to Stoke City, Bolton Wanderers and Blackburn Rovers when they came up against teams like Arsenal, Manchester United and Chelsea compared to Spain, Brazil and Cameroon.

What you have to do though is understand why these matches have been predominately poor. This is because teams have been more afraid to attack as they become paranoid about being vulnerable defensively; even the sides well renowned for out and out attacking football have failed to penetrate their usual liquid football to the fans who crave for their genius.

It’s almost as if the more humble sides like Switzerland and North Korea have performed better because of their desire to work for each other rather than individuals. Every top side can learn from this. However it could be said that in a team you need individuals like Robinho, Messi and Rooney to make a team go that level up which is so vital in International football.

Other issues that have been flagged up in this World Cup so far include the un-needed hype and too many people reading into the Jabulani ball. At the end of the day the game is called football, the players are playing football which is round and has air in it so what is the problem?

The problem is there are people with too much time on their hands, or countries in this World Cup are preparing to write a diary full of excuses, or there are teams who aren’t fully prepared for this prestigious tournament at all which in my mind is a total disgrace. It’s not what type of ball you have; it’s what you do with it on the pitch that matters. Yes the ball may swerve here and there but every ball does this.

The skill of the players curling it like Maicon or the talent of the players striking it like Xabi Alonso determine the outcome of the World Cup, not the ball. It makes no bones whether or not greedy manufacturing companies bereft of ideas tinker with a ball aerodynamically. What matters is the quality of the players, the camaraderie of the team in question passing with it.

That’s the beauty of football though, different footballs for different competitions, different opinions and debates which arise from it. Fundamentally though you won’t see small teams beat inferior opposition because of the ball, but because one team either played better, worked harder or stopped the other team from playing. Each team is playing with the same ball so let’s top hearing from people moaning, and let the players get on with it.

The Vuvuzelas have been a major talking point. The majority of the discussion has been surrounded by people who have never been to South Africa before and never will do because they aren’t interested in going. So what gives them the right to call for the ban of the Vuvuzela because there is a loud bee like noise coming from their 40 inch, HD ready, LCD Samsung TV?

It may have escaped my mind but the whole point of having the first World Cup in Africa is not only the opportunity to allow a major and fantastic continent to show their greatness, but a chance for the whole world to embrace their culture. So embracing African culture means embracing the Vuvuzela and therefore understanding why the local and most importantly happy support in South Africa uses them. It would be like England hosting the World Cup and foreign fans saying alcohol should be banned. It’s in Africa so let Africa stage it on their terms and no one else’s.

What hasn’t been really discussed is how immaculate the pitches have been in South Africa. The FA should hang their old dilapidated heads in shame. Much is made of in this country of the outer football events held at Wembley stadium such as concerts, gigs, rugby and American football. What people have failed to understand though is that a ground like the Emirates Stadium has gigs on it as well but has the pitch been affected?

No because they have invested proper money, proper time and most importantly commitment to wanting a surface that allows for pure, passing football, just like in South Africa.

These are the aspects of running a ground which the FA need to address otherwise they will make an even bigger mockery of this old, out of touch and sleazy organisation than they already have done. An example to prove this is, is something which may seem obvious to the ordinary football fan but they fail to comprehend.

Near Wembley are two fantastic grounds with great pitches in White Hart Lane and The Emirates. Hasn’t it occurred to the bumbling hierarchies about gaining local advice or even getting the grounds men themselves to do the pitch? Wouldn’t it make sense? I’ll tell you what it would do, it make our dreadful Wembley pitch better.

So as the opening week comes to a close despite the opening group matches being cagey, there are promising signs with Argentina scoring goals that the first stage of matches was a minor blip. The new ball manufactured for this tournament they use is another sheer money making scheme and completely irrelevant as every team is playing with the same ball anyway.

And the South African supporters should be allowed to make any noise they wish as the Vuvuzela is a part of their lives and their culture which the whole of the World Cup viewing audience should embrace for the greater good.

A shock 1-0 defeat to Switzerland sees Spain being the only seeded team to lose their opening match, though Italy and England gave less than convincing performances in their 1-1 draws with Paraguay and the USA respectively.

Brazil spluttered past North Korea while Argentina made hard work of beating Nigeria 1-0; and the most boring game of the six days so far was most definitely Ivory Coast 0 Portugal 0.

Nobody fancied Germany before they kicked off.  But after a 4-0 thrashing of Australia they are the only team that have decided to go for it from the outset.  Never one to dismiss Germany, I was pleasantly surprised in how they played ‘the beautiful game’ instead of offering a methodical utilitarian approach to winning a match.

So with South Africa beginning the second round of matches tonight, against Uruguay, they have the chance to top Group 1 and possibly seal their place in the knock-out stages.

In a pre-World Cup Finals article I suggested the following nations would qualify from each group:

Group A: Mexico to win, South Africa – runners-up
Group B: Argentina to win, Nigeria – runners-up
Group C: England to win, USA – runners-up
Group D: Germany to win, Serbia – runners-up
Group E: Holland to win, Denmark – runners-up
Group F: Italy to win, Paraguay – runners-up
Group G: Brazil to win, Ivory Coast – runners- up
Group H: Spain to win, Chile – runners-up

I am sticking by my original predictions though Spain are going to have to have a plan b if they are going to progress.

To me, it seems as though people are trying to list reasons why England will fail. Ledley King and John Terry haven’t got a good understanding, Frank Lampard and Steven Gerrard can’t play together and the latest one – Wayne Rooney’s temperament is going to cost us.

Every single team will have some issues ahead of the World Cup. Every single team will have selection problems and injuries to deal with. This is what we have a management team for though and in Fabio Capello, England have one of the best in the business.

Do we trust Capello to ensure King and Terry work well together? Do we trust Fabio Capello to play a formation that suits Steven Gerrard and Frank Lampard? Do we trust Fabio Capello to get the best out of Wayne Rooney?

If, like me, you answer yes to all three of these questions, then stop your worrying. For those of you that don’t trust Fabio Capello, I point you towards his record for England so far – in qualifying the team were fantastic.

What are these negative vibes based on anyway? Three warm-up games? England didn’t perform at their best during victories against Mexico, Japan and Platinum Stars and suddenly everyone is panicking.

How about we focus on how Capello’s England have performed in the real crunch games of his reign. Home and away to Croatia – the team’s biggest rivals for winning their qualifying group – for example. A 4-1 win and a 5-1 win helped Capello’s men top the group with ease. Anyone who has placed a free online bet on England winning the World Cup shouldn’t be too worried.

If England are serious about winning the World Cup, they won’t be at the peak of their powers right now. They might not even be at their best in the group stages. However, there is no doubt that this team has the potential to turn it on where it really matters.

It is all about getting the job done against certain teams, then really lifting it in the tougher games. Look at the game that preceded the excellent victory in Croatia – a hard fought win against minnows Andorra. This is how international football works.

Basically, I just want people to stop expressing their concerns so regularly. Let’s focus on the positive aspects of this England team of which there are plenty believe it or not.

The fixed odds betting makes England among the favourites for the tournament and they have a genuine chance of glory this summer. However, every time they are criticised publically or questioned about their poor performance, it makes the chance smaller and smaller.

Come on England, most of us believe in you!

Africa United: How Football Explains Africa by Steve Bloomfield

Africa United: How Football Explains Africa

Steve Bloomfield has written a very detailed and interesting, sometimes shocking, account of the African continents’ overwhelming love of football and how everyday people use it as an escape from reality, while governments use football to make money or as a distraction from war, famine and social problems that Africa has to deal with on a daily basis.

For the past twenty years or so the quality of African footballers has gradually increased, and now it is not a surprise to see top African football players playing for the very best European teams.  Didier Drogba (Ivory Coast & Chelsea), Michael Essien (Ghana & Chelsea), Samuel Eto’o (Cameroon & Inter Milan), Yaya Toure (Barcelona & Ivory Coast), Steven Pienaar (South Africa & Everton), Emmanuel Adebayor (Togo & Manchester City) to name a few.

But Bloomfield’s book suggests that because of the corruption throughout the continent, football in Africa has still got a long way to go.  African football leagues and national sides are often disrupted by infighting or political agendas that in some cases are unbelievable.

Football teams playing for their lives, quite literally, while dodging sniper fire or militias.  The danger seen only to clearly at this year’s 2010 Africa Nations Cup when the Toga team coach was attacked in Angola. Reading this fascinating book puts everything here in the UK, in perspective.

Steve Bloomfield spent 13 years as a foreign correspondent in Africa writing for The Independent.  His knowledge of the political corruption across this turbulent continent, coupled with his love of football makes Africa United an interesting, if not disturbing read as he travels across 13 of the poorest or most troubled nations in Africa.  He looks at both football and politics in each country and examines the interrelation between the two.

With the 2010 World Cup starting this week, the book appropriately ends in South Africa, a country that is still plagued by poverty, crime, racial tension and corruption.  But compared to other African countries such as Sierra Leone, Zimbabwe, and Somalia et al when FIFA decided to hold the World Cup in Africa, there was only really one place it could be.

Africa United: How Football Explains Africa is a very absorbing, insightful book that paints a depressing picture of a continent that is in love with the game of football but riddled with political corruption and unrest.

Hosts South Africa have been going through some troubled times on the pitch and sadly some fans are already deciding what team to back after their beloved Bafana Bafana have bowed out of the competition.

But World Cup 2010 Betting suggets that they are no certainties to exit in the opening round, despite a relatively tough draw against France, Mexico and Uruguay which sees them as Group A outsiders.

Although their squad lacks top level experience, especially in the absence of the omitted Benni McCarthy, they have home advantage, a massive fan-base and in their two Central/South American rivals, face two teams with just as many question marks.

While it might be difficult for them to progress, they will certainly give it a fight, as will Nigeria in Group B, a team who find themselves in a position as almost even-money shots to go through with most World Cup betting odds.

A really solid team with plenty of top-flight European experience, if they can get the goals they will need from the likes of Obafemi Martins and Yakubu, they have every chance of seeing off the challenge of Greece and South Korea, if you assume that a somewhat fallible Argentina should progress.

Group C looks far too tough for an Algeria side that has little in the way of form or star quality, and in Group D it is going to be difficult for Ghana to make it through when they are up against strong teams in Germany, Australia and Serbia – that is a four-team race if ever there was one and the loss of Michael Essien was a big blow.

Cameroon should go well in Group E but again it is not an easy group they find themselves in – two European powers in Holland and, to a lesser extent, Denmark, while Japan should not be overlooked based on their pre-tournament performance against England, albeit eventually in unlucky defeat.

And that leaves us with the Ivory Coast, who should really be the continent’s best hope of glory but who have been handed what has to go down as a nightmare draw.

Their Group F opponents basically mean that a win over either Brazil or Portugal is going to be needed to get through to the second round where there is every chance they could come up against Spain! And that is just the opening two rounds – what a story it would be if the Elephants went all the way.