England are off to the World Cup finals !

So England have made it through the qualifying stages and are off to the finals of the World Cup in Brazil. As a football fan, I cannot help but be chuffed at this prospect. Had England failed, then the whole tournament would have seemed rather like a damp squib to me. The qualifying group has been at times painful to watch. There is no doubt that players such as Hart, Gerrard, Rooney, Lampard and Cole are world class and that on their day England are a match for anyone. It's just that until last Friday, they really haven't been "on their day" at all. What is more surprising is where the spark seems to have come from. Andros Townsend, a player virtually unknown outside of White Hart Lane until Friday seems to have lit the blue touchpaper that  set Englands campaign on fire. Although Rooney was deservedly man of the match tonight, Townsends fearless attitude seemed infectious. His shot that rattled the bar in the first half seemed to be the turning point for England, after an at times shaky start.

It was great that Rooney and Gerrard should score the goals that wrapped up the group. They are both proven big game players and both had outstanding games. I am not a fan of the Gerrard/Lampard midfield pairing and I think it was noticable that with Carrick and Gerrard, England looked far more balanced. I am not a fan of Chris Smalling as England right back, although he had a solid game. I'd like to see Micah Richards given another opportunity once he's fully match fit. I think he gives a manager other options and is also capable of playing as a centre half in an emergency. I was pleased with the contribution of Baines as left back. I believe he is the man to take England forward, even though Ashley Cole is proven at the international level. Baines also brings a wider dimension with his talents at dead ball situations.

In the centre of defence, Jagielka looked solid and assured and worthy of his selection. Up front, Sturridge looked lively, if at times his first touch let him down. I am not so much a fan of Welbeck. He looks a tad lightweight.

Having said all of that, it is one thing to beat Poland, who were out of the tournament anyway, at Wembley. When we get to the finals, we're talking about a different league of player. I can't see England coming close to Germany, Argentina, Brazil, Spain or Portugal. Assuming England get out of the qualifying stage and with a lucky draw and the rub of the green, I could see us scraping into the Semi's although the quarter finals is more realistic. I can't see too many England players who will set the teams mentioned above quaking in their boots. As Steven Gerrard said, England have a good mix of youth and experience and our best hope is if Townsend continues his stellar rise and if another player comes from nowhere to set the tournament alight. However unlikely it may seem, I didn't think I'd be writing a blog mentioning Andros Townsend last Thursday, so who knows. I am firm believer in players of genuine pace. They unsettle opponents and if they are fearless can change games. At international level games can be tight and turn on a single moment of brilliance. I was four when England last won the World Cup. I met Roy Hodgson when I was in Sweden in the early 1980's. At the time he was an unknown (in England) coach. He told me that he thought England were twenty years behind nations such as Holland in their approach to coaching. He said that we were falling steadily further behind in our main rivals. Roy was the first person I had an intelligent conversation about football with. He asked me about my experiences of football coaching at school. I hadn't actually had any and had no appreciation at all of the game. He said this was typical and was the root of the problem.

33 odd years later, those two expats having a conversation are both celebrating in our own different ways. I doubt Roy thought he'd be England manager then. I certainly never thought I'd be writing things which anyone would bother to read about England. Roy is a genuinely decent bloke and I sincerely hope that he proves us all wrong and brings the World Cup home. It is true to say that I've never been more sceptical of our chances, but in truth, is that such a bad thing. I will sleep happily tonight.

In praise of Roy Hodgson

Unlike the tabloid press, I was extremely pleased to hear the news earlier this week, that Roy Hodgson had got the England job. I met Roy when I was living in Sweden in the early 1980's. It was unusual at the time to meet other English people in the dark Baltic winters and so if you did you ended up having a chat. At the time I was 19. Football has always been my second love behind music. Roy was probably the first person I ever had an intelligent conversation about football with. Roy explained many of the flaws in the English system. He explained the Dutch are so much technically better players and why England were unlikely to ever win the world cup without a long term plan to improve the technical quality of players. He estimated that it would take a minimum of 16 years to address they problems in England, if they started tomorrow. I wonder if his views have changed and he shared them with the FA.

At the time Roy had managed a couple of clubs I'd never heard of in a foreign country. He was just a bloke I'd had an interesting chat with when I was having a night out. I was struck by the fact that he could explain the technical issues surrounding football to a 19 year old who'd only played park football, in a way that made perfect sense. He was clearly very clued up on it, yet was passionate enough to want to ensure I understood the issues. He didn't talk down and listened to what I had to say about my own experiences of football at school (which I'd recently left). He was also interested to hear about my experience of meeting former Manchester City and England manager Joe Mercer. I was just a kid then, it was 1970 and I was totally overawed. Joe Mercer was like a nice uncle. At the time I was a goalie and he gave me a couple of tips, signed a rosette and bought me a cake. My dad had arranged for me to meet him at the "football hall of fame" as a birthday treat.My Dad knew someone at the FA. Also present was ex England star Billy Wright and his wife, a Beverly sister. My Dad wasn't a football fan but was totally made up to meet a Beverly sister. He also talked cricket with Billy Wright.

I hope that Roy was wrong about England. I hope he wins the European Championships and then the World Cup with us. The abuse managers such as Graham Taylor and Glen Hoddle got from the press was sickening. These were both honest, decent men doing their best. I would suggest that anyone who is interested in Football reads Paul McGraths biography about how Graham Taylor managed him and protected him from the press, through his alcoholism. Taylor is a thoroughly decent man. The vile press coverage simply made his job untenable. I doubt that Roy would even recall the meeting. I did invite him to see the False Dots when they played in Stockholm, but he didn't make it down. He said "punk rock isn't really my thing but I'll stop by if I can". The man is a gent. He deserves our support, whatever happens. The destruction of decent men, doing their best to get the team to perform is perhaps the most off putting thing about football. That is reason number one that I'd never buy the Sun. Maybe we should get the 100 other reasons?

I agree with Alex

The words I never thought I'd say. Yes it is true. I agree with Sir Alex Ferguson. Speaking yesterday, he suggested that Roy Hodgson should be named manager of the season for his achievements leading Fulham to the Europa League final. Look at the pedigree of the clubs they've knocked out. As regular readers of this blog will know, I spent a bit of time in Sweden in the early 1980's and actually met Roy having a drink. We had a brief chat about football and he seemed like a really nice bloke. Bear in mind that at the time he was completely unknown and I knew nothing of Swedish football, I thought his team was the equivalent to the Royal Scot FC, who I played for occasionally at the time. One of the Swedish guys with him told me that he was the best thing ever to happen to Swedish football.

It certainly looks like he's the best thing ever to happen to Fulham Football Club.I for one will be an honoury member of the Fulham FC supporters club on May 12th. It's my sons birthday and I think he may well be allowed a late night to stay up and watch the match.