His boss Sir Alex likes to talk about United having "match-winners"--players of great skill or cleverness who are a consistent threat to score game-winning goals. Wayne is using the same talk regarding why England could win the World Cup:
"We have a lot of match-winners, which can only help, and the spirit is certainly the best it has been since I have been involved in the squad." (BBC 2006.04.25)
But having match-winners alone is not going to help England lift the trophy this summer in Germany. The game is just not that simple and that is why I've never been a big fan of Sir Alex's approach to managing. Buying big name players and having them try to win through all-out attack is not my idea of good managing. United's tactics and defensive approach are naïve I think. And those are also two areas in which England will need to improve if they are to win this summer. While a bunch of goals at the right time from Wayne Rooney will certainly help England, it won't be enough.
2 comments:
There has been far to much emphasis given to Rooney. Typically we've gone overboard and now he's expected to win the world cup single-handedly. There;s a serious issue with our midfield - accomdating Lampard and Gerrard together - and the form of Cole and Beckham will need to be at its best. Also our defence might not be as secure as everyone assumes, particularly given Ferdinand's form this season and Campbells exploits. But I think our biggest weakness is up front - Owen is not as good as is made out. He can and often does score in internationls, but I think any player of quality would and should given the same service. But if Owen gets injured, which he seems rather prone to these days, then I think we're well and truly buggered. They should have tried to get Defoe into the setup properly ages ago, but now it's a little late.
Yes, Rooney can't do it alone. Speaking of hype, will England itself be able to match it's ranking as second favourites given all of those concerns that Kieran highlighted?...
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