Something just struck me about the whole “Beckham dropped” story. David Beckham was in Brazil today, promoting one of his soccer academies. Why would Brazilian youths need to learn about football from an Englishman? What in god’s name is he going to teach them?
“Alright lads, now we’re going to learn about thumping a long [...]

Fabio Capello’s first England squad selection is out, and it’s everything I’d hoped it would be. Here’s my position-by-position analysis:
Goalkeepers:
Scott Carson – Aston Villa
David James – Portsmouth
Chris Kirkland – Wigan
It was a foregone conclusion that Paul Robinson would be dropped from the England lineup, given his recent form, but it’s still amazing how quickly he’s [...]

Beckham all the way…
The Guardian: “Look, Fabio: he really, really wants his 100th cap. And here’s a video of him holding an African baby with HIV. How can you not play him against Switzerland?”
Fabio Capello (in Italian): “But his match fitness…”
The Guardian: “Look at the baby? He must be some sort of saint, because he [...]

Scott Carson should be Fabio Capello’s number one. Hands down, no question. And he should be in goal against Switzerland next month. Here’s Carson talking to the Times about his howler against Croatia – but before you blame him for it, ask yourself: who in their right mind would play a 22-year-old goalkeeper in his [...]

Several newspapers are reporting today that England manager Fabio Capello will not name David Beckham in his squad for England’s upcoming friendly match against Switzerland. Since Beckham hasn’t played regular competitive football since he moved to America (did you spot the obligatory snobbish European MLS joke?) Capello apparently feels that Beckham won’t be match-fit for [...]

Not a huge amount going on in the England camp at the moment – just lots of speculation about the new manager. The Times has a good piece today about why Mourinho is the best choice. Some highlights:

It all comes down to Mourinho’s colossal, almost ludicrous sense of self-esteem. That is his strength. It is [...]

Part II of my statistical analysis of Peter Crouch takes a look at his European record, and reveals that conventional wisdom on the player is flat out wrong. Part I, on Crouch and the Premier League, is here. The conventional wisdom:
Rafa Benitez operates a rotation system, with some players appearing more in the Champions League [...]

I just finished writing a comment in response to one of my readers (Jeff) calling into question my description of Peter Crouch as a “perpetual late-game substitute.” Jeff’s view – shared by a lot of people – is that Peter Crouch only plays so few games for Liverpool because Rafa Benitez operates a rotation system [...]

First up: Croatia.
Croatia:
Goalkeeper: Stipe Pletikosa, a regular in the Croatian national team and the first-choice goalkeeper since the 2002 World Cup (although he was injured for much of Euro 2004). Hasn’t made many mistakes since his Under-21s days.
Defence: On the right, Manchester City’s summer signing Vedran Corluka will turn out for Croatia. He’s 6′4″, athletic [...]

Steve McClaren still won’t reveal his starting 11 for tomorrow’s match against Croatia, but that isn’t going to stop me speculating.
Goalkeeper: The Times is reporting that Paul Robinson has performed abysmally in training, which probably means Scott Carson will get his first competitive start for England. The Guardian has the same story, but goes further [...]