The Mid-Field Connundrum

Much has been made about England’s International football abilities over the last decade so and even more so now since they have strung together five successive wins. Fabio Cappello has instilled the discipline in his team that is often seen on his rather phlegmatic face. Probably Cappello has promised the FA to flash a smile on his face only after he gets England to WC 2010. Assessing England from the performances so far under ‘Don Fab’ they might as well end up being the first team to book their hotels in South Africa.

 The major difference between Cappello and his predecessors has been that Cappello is not afraid to give a kick up the butts to some of his so called ‘untouchables’. Under McLaren and Sven these untouchables were guaranteed a place in the side, all they just had to do was come out in public and support their manager. Fabio Cappello on the other hand has not only changed the team ethics but changed the way England plays its game. One can associate a more continental approach to their game now. It is in stark contrast to the huff-puff, end to end stuff seen in the EPL. They are more firm with the ball, they are decisive and they now believe in possession play.

 This brings us to the topic that I would like to discuss. England have a plethora of mid-fielders but the problem lies in selecting the most balance combination. Each of the mid fielders who are in contention of a starting berth such as Gerrard, Lampard, Carrick, Barry and Hargreaves are different from one another and different set of attributes to the team.

 While Gerrard comes across as the all action mid-fielder who can play anywhere across the mid-field , Lampard comes off as the more disciplined of the two and a promise of translating his goal scoring form for Chelsea onto the International stage.

Hargreaves is the no nonsense traditional style of central defensive mid-fielder who’ll get stuck in the tackles and will never give opponent players an ounce of space. But unfortunately for him and England he has had persistent injury problems. Hopefully the surgery on his knee which will keep him out of the entire season will come back a stronger player. Barry on the other hand is a different type of defensive mid-fielder who keeps things simple, he is more of an anchor man someone who doesn’t try to do anything flashy. He also possesses an excellent left foot and can bend a few.

 But one man whom I always thought of as the perfect mid-fielder for the International set up is Michael Carrick especially even more when Cappello wants one of his mid-fielders to slow down things and keep the ball moving in the mid-field. Carrick and Barry were excellent against Germany and England mid-field never looked so balanced.  The advantage and different set of skills that England will have when Carrick is on the pitch is that he is a naturally gifted passer , some one who has an eye for a pass and who can shift flanks with consummate ease. Carrick is not an all action mid- fielder like Gerrard , he is not a natural goal scorer like Lampard , he is not a ferocious tackler , but he offers something different from them. He provides an assured presence in the middle , someone who is very good in slowing down the tempo of the game and someone who has always been touted as a good reader of the game.

 The best Combination : I would personally pick Lampard and Carrick, Carrick for the above mentioned reasons and Lampard for his superior tactical sense than Gerrard. Gerrard is quick , direct but is not a natural playmaker and for me personally Lampard is better at dictating the tempo of the game better than Gerrard .

 I'm ending the post a little rather abruptly due to some issues at work and I would even incur the wrath from a few of you as some might accuse me of looking at things through my red tinted glasses but I would really like to hear about the mid-field combination that you would prefer.

 PS : Not that I care about England