One suggestion is that the England players have frozen and cannot perform because the expectancy is so high.  But watching England’s first two draws against USA and Algeria you would be forgiven for thinking they had been replaced by look-a-likes.

Wayne Rooney couldn’t control the ball, Steven Gerrard running round like a headless chicken and Emille Heskey??? Well, maybe all the players except Emille Heskey haven’t played as well as they can!

Of course, if England beat Slovenia with a hatful of goals then all this will be forgotten and instead the hype will swing completely the other way.  The media will once again be touting England as likely winners of the competition and the surviving members of the England 1966 team will be wheeled out to give their opinions on how Wayne Rooney, Steven Gerrard, Frank Lampard and player manager John Terry will feel when they are crowned champions of the world!

The truth is that England are amongst the top eight best football playing nations in the world and are therefore expected to get to the quarter-finals in South Africa at the very least. Anything less and the trip to South Africa will be deemed a disaster.

While criticism for the England team performances, Fabio Capello’s strict regime, and debates on whether our footballers are even good enough continue Domino’s Pizza has launched a competition on Facebook to find the current squad’s best lookalikes. Maybe a look-a-like England team could play better than the real players!

To enter the Footballer Lookalike Competition, fans can upload a picture of themselves or their friends via the events tab of the Facebook fan page of Domino’s Pizza UK. Every week, Domino’s will hand out free pizza vouchers to the best Lampard lookalike, Defoe double or other imitation of one of Fabio Capello’s chosen 23. Meanwhile, Facebook users can vote for their favourite picture too by clicking ‘like’ under each picture. After four weeks, the public’s favourite will win a free pizza party (worth £100) for the final.

Football fans can also compete for the Domino’s Cup in the online football game On me ‘ead. Prizes include 25 Domino’s Pizza Parties, each worth £100, and various discount codes. Players have to head footballs from one side of the screen to the other, without letting them hit the ground.

So, will England turn it around?

C’mon England! Do it for Bobby Robson and do it for Frank Sidebottom!

Three Shirts on my Line! Home, Away and Goalie!!!

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.

It’s always difficult to look at England objectively, especially when many of the players they are up against are seen playing so rarely by the majority of us. If you take away the likes of Messi and Kaka, whose reputations precede them, then you are left with international opponents full of players that we know very little of. Taking a look at the current Brazil squad, there are the likes of Grafite, Nilmar, Kleberson and Ramires whom many of us will have only seen play in the occasional European fixture or international friendly. So the average fan comes into a World Cup not really knowing exactly what their team is up against.

This is, of course, one of the greatest aspects of any World Cup. Who can forget the likes of Henry, Zidane and Ronaldo lighting up France ’98? It is the greatest of stages upon which a relatively unknown player can become a worldwide star overnight.

Moving back to the current situation and this has a different effect. Seeing the England squad play week-in week-out for their clubs often leads us to overrate members of our national team. James Milner, Gareth Barry, Peter Crouch and Glen Johnson are just some of a number of players in the current squad who have had good seasons without being outstanding. Milner and Barry, in particular, build their trade on consistency and provide the focal point of their teams’ midfield. This is not to say they are not excellent footballers, but rather that there are players like this in every country.

Take Spain’s Marcos Senna, who was outstanding in the European Championships two years ago but has not even made it into the 23-man squad this time around. Obviously the Spanish midfield is unfathomably strong this year, but it is hard to argue that a player of Senna’s quality would not have at least made it into the English squad. Add to that the omissions of Ronaldinho, Pato, Cambiasso, Fernando Gago and Javier Zanetti from the Brazilian and Argentinian squads and you start to see the kind of quality and depth that England lack.

Another look at the USA game highlights some of England’s deficiencies. Emile Heskey did well for Steven Gerrard’s opener but his ineffectiveness in front of goal was brought to the fore when he missed a one-on-one chance with Tim Howard.  That kind of profligacy cannot be tolerated against the better sides who may only offer up one or two chances over 90 minutes.

Likewise, Jamie Carragher’s lack of pace was exposed by Jozy Altidore, who has failed to make any significant impact in the Premiership this season. He may have got away without any real problems on Saturday but one has to wonder how Carragher would deal with the pace and skill of Arjen Robben, Christiano Ronaldo, Lionel Messi and Angel Di Maria in the latter stages.

Furthermore, Jamie Carragher’s yellow card for a late challenge highlights yet another problem his lack of pace brings and England cannot afford to go a man down again in a knock-out game. On top of this, Glen Johnson, one of the best performers on the night, is stifled by Carragher’s tiring legs, having to track back and help out his team mate rather than pushing forward as he does best.

All of this is overshadowed by the oldest and largest problem that England have with this generation; how to accommodate Steven Gerrard and Frank Lampard. Alan Shearer and Alan Hansen have been singing the virtues of a 4-5-1 over the last few days and I agree with them. The formation essentially solves two of our largest problems in one fell swoop.

Firstly, our lack of a quality striker to partner Wayne Rooney is solved by allowing Gerrard to play off the lone front man, leaving both men in their favoured club positions and allowing Rooney the freedom to operate in the most dangerous positions.

On top of that, with Gareth Barry holding the midfield and having the discipline to sit back and cover the defence, Frank Lampard finds himself in a more familiar role in the centre, dictating the tempo of the game and making his renowned surges into the area at just the right moment.

I, like many England fans I have spoken to recently, would like to see Joe Cole operating from the left hand side to provide the imagination and unpredictability that is so often lacking in our attack. But this is an issue of selection rather than formation and with the 4-5-1 not only would we find that our 3 best attacking players are in their favoured positions but also that there is more of a link between midfield and attack.

This has been one of England’s biggest problems for a long time now and Saturday highlighted it once more. With the midfield dropping back the gap between the strikers and the midfielders widened, prompting Rooney to start coming deeper to get the ball and subsequently lessening his effect in the final third. With Barry covering the defence, Lampard dictating the centre and Gerrard in more of a free-role, there is a continuity running through defence, midfield and attack that is so often lacking.

So there are undoubtedly a few kinks to iron out before we enter the knock-out stages, which, after watching the abysmal Slovenia vs. Algeria game, we surely cannot fail to do.

Fabio Capello’s track record speaks for itself and he has certainly instilled the kind of authority and discipline necessary to win tournaments. Yet this does not hide the fact that as a 23-man squad we lack the kind of quality that Spain, Brazil and Argentina have at their disposal. The most feared scenario amongst English football fans is not that Saturday’s performance was a great team monumentally under-performing but rather an average one slightly off form. Every below par performance is vociferously attacked to help us believe that England really are that much better. But whilst great may be excessive, England are certainly good, and sometimes in a World Cup that is enough, just look at the defending champions if you don’t believe me.

I predicted a 1-1 result so I’m not as shocked or depressed as others might be tonight; and I also strongly opposed taking anyone who is as injury prone as Ledley King, would be a nightmare waiting to happen.  But why does England have to play a donkey?

The biggest surprise of the night was to hear Fabio Capello had chosen to play James Milner over Joe Cole. Personally I would have played them both and left Emille Heskey on the bench.  The best England team would be Wayne Rooney playing the lone striker with Steven Gerrard playing just behind him, in the role he plays with Fernando Torres at Liverpool. Joe Cole on the left, Aaron Lennon on the right, Frank Lampard bossing the midfield, and James Milner filling in as the defensive midfielder until Gareth Barry is ready to return.

Positives to take from tonight’s performance? Well Glen Johnson played well again, and I can’t think of a better England performance by Steven Gerrard.

So, England has played one game and are already down to a 22 man squad. Next Ftiday they play Algeria, a team that are going to keep eleven men behind the ball, wind up Wayne Rooney in true Ronaldo-esque fashion, and hope at best for a 0-0 draw. That will be a much harder game than playing the USA.

landon donavon not one to shirk a challenge

Everton have confirmed the loan signing of Landon Donavon from LA Galaxy on a short term loan deal, with the player arriving at Goodison Park on January 2nd and returning to the USA for the start of the MLS season in March.

Not a great deal of time to make his name at Everton, but I am sure Donavon will fit the team like a glove. He has great pace and scores goals, but he is also an intelligent playmaker and not afraid of the physical side of the game, giving as good as he gets.

At 27 years old Donavon has made a record 120 appearances for the USA and scored a record 42 goals for the national team. He is consistently voted the USA Player Of The Year, which may not count for much but in the Confederations Cup earlier this year, Donavon was very impressive playing for his country, especially in the historic win over Spain, that finished the Euro 2008 winners unbeaten record.

Everton fans should be ecstatic, but I doubt they will be very keen to let him go back to the Galaxy.

In the final game of the first round of the group stages in the Fifa Confederations cup, World champions Italy took on the USA in South Africa last night. Surprisingly, it was USA who had most of the early possession in the game, looking comfortable enough to take the game to Italy, although both teams squandered good chances to take the lead.

Italy found it difficult to live up to their world champions tag, but when Clark was sent of for an over zealous tackle on Gattuso, you felt that the Italian’s would take control of the game. When USA defender Bornstein turned the ball into his own net immediately after the sending off, it appeared that Italy had indeed turned the tide, but the ‘goal’ was ruled out as an Italian player was in an offside position.

With five minutes to half time, USA were awarded a penalty when Chiellini brought down Altidore and Donavon converted to give the US a well deserved lead. The second half continued in the same vein, with USA looking the brighter of the sides and Italy looking rather short of ideas.

The introduction of Rossi for Italy around the hour mark will be seen as  a master stroke from Italian boss Lippi, the former Manchester United striker immediately making an impact with a stonking left foot shot that left Howard no chance. The pace of Rossi gave a new dimension to the Italian game and as the legs of ten  man USA tired, the Italians took the lead through another long range effort, this time from De Rossi.

Even then, as Italy played their boring keep ball to see out time, USA went close to grabbing an equaliser through Davies, before Pirlo found Rossi who sealed the game with another well taken goal on the half volley.

I was impressed with the attitude shown by the US who play to their limited strengths, but Italy, despite a bright final twenty minutes, really did nothing to convince me that they are worthy world champions.  The introduction of Rossi gave Italy some much needed pace in what must be the slowest international team around. I do look forward to seeing more of the young American born striker Giuseppe Rossi, now playing in Spain for Villareal, who reminded me a lot of England’s Joe Cole.

It has been well documented that Shevchenko was not signed and ever wanted by Jose Mourinho and that Russian owner Roman Ambramovich had signed the player who was past his prime, had lost a yard of pace, and was used to the slower game of Serie A.

With Mourinho’s departure I thought Shevchenko would get more starting appearances under Avram Grant, considering he had been brought to Chelsea to help train him. Unfortunately, as Grant has settled into the job, Shevchenko has settled himself back on the subs bench.

But what will happen in January when Chelsea lose Didier Drogba to the Ivory Coast for the African Nations Cup? Will Chelsea turn to Shevchenko or Claudio Pizarro? Neither appear good enough to step into the Ivorian’s big boots.

It was recently reported that Shevchenko was unhappy not to be palying regularly but he was prepared to stay and fight for his place at Chelsea but an article in yesterday’s Daily Mirror has suggested he is planning a move to the MLS in America. This is not the first time Shevchenko has been linked to a move to the MLS. Back in May he told the BBC that he would like to finish his career playing in the MLS.

Shevchenko told Sports Illustrated.com: “Soccer is growing in the US and I would like to be a part of that. “I played there last summer against the Major League Soccer All-Stars and I saw that it is definitely improving.”

The Daily Mirror linked Shevchenko with two east coast MLS teams, New England Revolution and the New York Red Bulls; and in reality it would be more suprising if AC Milan or Dynamo Kiev, Shevchenko’s former clubs, were to show an interest in resigning him.

Personally I feel the slower pace of the MLS and the lower skill rating of defending and goalkeeping would benefit Shevchenko, who could once again shine as the golden booted star of the team, just like when he won European Player of the Year in 2004 and was voted into the FIFAPro World XI team 2005.

Former Chelsea manager Ruud Gullit is expected to be confirmed as the new manager at LA Galaxy, tomorrow. Reports suggest that David Beckham’s management company have been involved in contract talks with Gullit.

Frank Yallop left LA Galaxy earlier this week to join San Jose Earthquakes, but it is generally thought that he would have been sacked after failing to reach the League play offs.

It is reported that Galaxy had approached another former Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho before deciding upon Gullit. Though Gullit’s success as a manager is relatively modest, his achievements as a player will stand him in good stead in the USA.

Galaxy and Beckham are hoping that the Dutch man will bring some excitement to the team and is sure to attract some top quality players to LA.

The German team returned home yesterday after not giving up a goal in the finals. England took them close with a0-0 draw but were never going to be strong enough to beat the Germans. The German team were given a warm reception complete with a rendition of “We Are the Champions.”

With crowds averaging 38,000, the World Cup in China was deemed to be a big success, so much so that the China Football Association said it was now mulling a bid to host the 2018 men’s tournament.

The FIFA president Sepp Blatter was impressed with the quality of the football and the interest it generated. “Generally speaking, it is a big improvement by all the teams from four years ago in the United States,” Blatter said.

The United States took third place and Norway fourth.