Showing posts with label milan. Show all posts
Showing posts with label milan. Show all posts
A crisis in the development of world class players
Do we have a crisis in developing world class defenders?
Why we don’t develop world class defenders.
After Wednesday night many questions are being raised regarding the captain, the manager and how we can solve the Rooney ban problem. Many questions have been raised yet this screams of the same short termism that has plagued this country for years.
The real issue that should be addressed is a crisis for the England team in defence. After the "golden generation" we have been left with a new generation who lack the necessary qualities and experience needed for top level football.
Lack of English talent?
In the Premier League in the past 5 years there has not been enough top quality English defenders playing for the big teams. You will say what about Ferdinand, Terry, Neville, Ashley Cole, Carragher and Campbell. Yet where are they all now? We have suffered from taking the same players to tournaments and continually losing and we now have a serious issue where we have not sought to evolve our national side.
Club teams have relied on foreign players or continued with the old trusted players without giving potential players opportunities. Players like Vidic, Vermaelan, Kompany, Agger, Carvalho and Kompany are all excellent defenders, yet why do the top teams in England feel they have to buy from abroad instead of bring through English defenders?
This has been the big problem with the golden generation; it restricted important opportunities for the young, up and coming players. For too long Terry and Ferdinand have led the line in the centre of defence resulting in many players not gaining the necessary experience to improve; Michael Dawson, Phil Jagielka, Joleon Lescott and Gary Cahill have all been around a long time and not being effectively bled into the side.They also have lacked the necessary competition of playing in the Champions League, thus stunting their development.In tournament football we have failed to give players an opportunity to develop. It was Matt Upson who replaced Ferdinand in the World Cup and even Jamie Carragher was recalled from retirement, this was simply madness. Does this mean we over rely on the experienced players or is there a problem with the quality of our defenders we are producing? We have a real issue in trusting new and young players to come on to the scene believing they don’t have the required experience. This is a vicious cycle where players don’t get the experience they need to become experienced.
Quality defending, cultural?
Who are the best defenders in the past 10 years? In my opinion they are Puyol, Carvalho, Nesta, Maldini, Cannavaro and Ferdinand. These players are regarded so highly because they possess the biggest attribute needed for top class defending; intelligence. These players had an ability to read the game, to anticipate and assess where the game and importantly the ball were going, thus allowing them to be in the right positions to intercept the ball and regain possession.
Is this ability of anticipation valued in England as much as in Italy or Spain. Have we had a player like Baresi, Nesta? I cannot argue against how immense Terry and Ferdinand have been for club and country. They possess the necessary attributes required to be world class; reading of game, excellent passing (Terry is very good), heading, tackling and positioning. These are key attributes for defenders and I wonder now that Terry and Ferdinand’s international careers are effectively over, do we have the quality to replace them?
In England we value hard work and determination overtechnical skill and intelligence. This is important to realise because what we value is what our children value. We value those last ditch and crunching tackles where the ball flies out of play. We love our defenders when they boot the ball into the stands. Do we consider that actually they could have controlled the ball and started an attack, perhaps, but we have a fear in England of playing too close to goal. Is the reason we are not developing world class players due to the way we view football?
What is needed to be a world class defender?
Ability to play
Being able to pass and receive effectively is essential for a top level defender; they must be able to start attack. Look at Pique at Barca; he is accomplished on the ball which allows him to drive out and be part of the attack. If we require this as a necessary skill in our players then we cannot consider players who do not play this style for their club. Gary Cahill was not playing this style at Bolton, it was far too direct for what is necessary for international football. His pass completion rate this season is 74.4% compared to Terry (91%), Lescott (87.6%).
Perhaps his move to Chelsea will improve this attribute, if not then he may not be good enough for top level football. Top level football is different, it requires more from its players. People talk of Ryan Shawcross as a player for England, however he lacks the technical skills and composure on the ball to play out from the back. We could not build attacks with a player like him in our side.
And so is it important that more teams through all the leagues look to play and get the ball down more. The reason being is that if a player at a lower level is doing well then could they not look to move on to the next level? Chris Smalling is an excellent example as he possessed the required attributes needed for a top team. Imagine if this was the norm and not the exception? Too many players are suited to one type of football which restricts their chances of progressing up. If it is only the top teams developing top level footballers then this means the pool of talent is too small.
It will be difficult to change these ways, however we are seeing more football being played in the lower leagues. The results have shown that good football is actually a remedy for success. Look at Brighton, Southampton and Blackpool as great examples of good passing sides. Swansea are showing it in the Premier League and doing well because of it. The key is that the managers have a philosophy and bring in players who are able to perform a certain way and from this the top teams can look to bring through these players to the next level.
Ability to read the game
Normally in England the types of defenders who are memorable are those who often make last ditch tackles and clearances. However, making last ditch challenges suggests a poor reading of the game as they see the opposition’s attacks late. Surely a good reader of the game can prevent these attacks without having to resort to a last ditch challenge. Watch Thiago Silva play, he reads, knicks and stops attacks with ease. His Milan team are champions of Italy.A good defender needs good positioning, composure, anticipation acceleration and importantly intelligence to read and understand the game. Is there a lack of intelligent English defenders in the league? Are our players reactive or proactive? A defenders ability to read and anticipate the game is critical. It restricts the number of chances the opposition could potentially have. So having centre backs who can effectively read the game is priceless; it gives them an edge over their opponents as they can foresee what their opponent is planning. Are we developing smart defenders or just powerful reactive ones?
The new partnership
And so we get to the present day, a time of definite transition and we wonder, who is going to be our defence in the Euro’s this summer and beyond? This question has made me consider if we have neglected players in the past 5 years or if there is simply a lack of high quality English defenders.
Players like Jagielka, Dawson, Cahill and Lescott are not world class. They are defenders in their late 20’s who have spent their careers with mid table sides in the Premier League. Perhaps it is only Lescott who can be considered top level and this has a lot to do with his partnership with Vincent Kompany, who is arguably the best defender in the Premier League.
Now that Cahill is playing for a big side, it would make sense that Lescott and Cahill should be our defensive partnership, yet does this not worry you?
Could Lescott and Cahill be a good partnership? Bolton have conceded 54 goals this season and Cahill was a big part of that defence, a club who have only kept 11.5% clean sheets this season is a worry. Man City have conceded just 19 goals this season with a clean sheet record of 46.2%, This is excellent and testament to the quality of Lescott along with Kompany. Of course they also have an excellent goalkeeper, midfield and forward line which occupies the opposition well and retains excellent possession. This is necessary for a top team.
For Cahill, people will expect him to stabilise Chelsea’s brittle backline. Not only this, Chelsea are expected to win every game and keep clean sheets. If Cahill costs Chelsea a sloppy goal or even the game, the pressure will well and truly be on Cahill as his mistakes will be recognised on a much wider scale. The real reason could be, as the stats show, Cahill is no where near the the top level defenders in the Premier League. Perhaps, Villas -Boas wants to give Cahill time to settle and adapt to Chelsea's style. Cahill’s application defensively should improve with the better players he now will immerse himself with around in training with yet there are still major question marks against him.
Let us look briefly at the ability this season after 19 games regarding tackling and interceptions. Interestingly, the best interceptor this season has been Laurent Koscielny with 67 interceptions. Koscielny is often subjected to many criticisms, but the reality is he is one the leading covering centre backs in the Premier League. The second highest interceptor was Chelsea’s John Terry with 47, third was Kompany with 46. Of our two England centre backs Cahill has 43 and Lescott only has 26 interceptions. Does this mean that Lescott lacks the anticipation required for top level football? Does he require a world class defender next to him in order to play better which Cahill is certainly not?
Interceptions are a good indicator of top level defending, however tackling is also a big part of the game. How do Lescott and Cahill compare to Terry and Kompany this season?
- Cahill has only made 14 tackles in 19 games this season and his success is only 71.43%, this is worrying considering Bolton conceded so many goals this season.
- Lescott has 29 tackles with a success rate of 93.1% which is excellent
- Terry has made 43 tackles with only 69.7% success, which is an indicator of how porous Chelsea have been this season
- The leagues best defender in Kompany has made 43 tackles with 88.4% success
Is it any surprise that Man City have the best defensive record this season, they have two consistent tacklers who are able to read the game well. For Chelsea, Terry and Cahill may struggle together this season if they are turned as they appear to be poor at timing their tackles.
Full back positions
Ashley Cole has been excellent for England and is one of our only real world class players, perhaps we haven’t valued him as much as we should yet we should be worried as he gets older. We have had Leighton Baines, Kieran Gibbs and not long ago Stephen Warnock challenging Ashley Cole for the position. Is this good enough? Simply, none of these players are good enough for top level international football. They lack the consistency in possession and their positioning can be poor also.
And this opens another issue, his fee. Baines is a £10 million player, yet will be quoted at £20 million; this is detrimental to Baines and to England. The issue of inflated figures restricts the movement of potential stars to move to the next level. Without the quality of competition, experience around them and quality of coaching a player will not get better. Quite simply more of our English players should be playing for sides playing Champions League football. If we want our national side to improve then this is essential.
At right back we believe we are blessed with talent however when we look closer it is plain that we have three similar players who are a cross between a winger and a full back, where unfortunately they are not great in either. Looking at the attributes of Glen Johnson, Kyle Walker and Micah Richards one cannot question their athleticism; speed, strength and spring. However they all appear to lack the defensive mentalities; positioning, anticipation, discipline and understanding required to be considered world class.
At Man City have you noticed that Mancini trusts Zabaleta in certain games, especially European games. Zabaleta is smart, disciplined and can be relied on to give security to the defence. Richards was touted as a potential England centre back, yet he lacks the necessary mental skills to be accomplished in this position. And the more we assess the new generation of England players; Jones, Smalling and Cahill, they all lack the real qualities to be world class defenders, they do not lack the physical skills, it is their mental abilities.
The future?
In the under 21’s last summer Phil Jones and Chris Smalling had an excellent tournament even if the team didn’t do well. Of those who came out with any credit was these two. It appeared the future looked very bright. Especially as they both play for Man Utd and so their exposure to quality players like Ferdinand and Vidic would be a key asset for their development.
This season however they have shown that they are not there yet; Jones in particular has shown a naivety in his positioning and lacked the necessary concentration and anticipation for top level football. However he is 19 years old and is under the best guidance in England with Ferguson. Perhaps playing at right back and midfield has helped him get the pace of the game, although I would not be surprised if Ferguson does not trust him at this time in that key central defence position. He has made mistakes, which is natural, yet a team like United cannot afford to make regular mistakes.
We cannot rush these two players, they are not good enough yet to be considered starting players for England, yet these are the types of players who should be bled through, playing for the 21’s to develop their leadership skills. These two may be the future, yet they will need time to develop and we must give them that.
How do we develop more? The key is talent identification.
So why do we not have enough players of the required quality for the top teams. Why are foreign players considered better than our own? As always it comes down to what are doing at the youth levels. The fault lies with the type of players developed at academy level. There is too much of a reliance on strength, speed and power over everything else. Watch these players, they are reactive, not proactive, they do not read the game, they react to it.
At a young age when they are the quickest and strongest they can get away with poor positioning and a lack of concentration because they can recover. Yet when others are fully matured they may not have the advantage of recovery speed.
How we identify talent needs addressing. Physical attributes are a major part of football; speed, strength, spring and stamina will be more essential in the coming years, yet what is also important are the mental skills of intelligence, anticipation, composure, decision making and positioning. I don't believe we look for this in young players or do we coach it enough.
Have you been to a youth game? Notice the differences? Scouting in England is one of the most superficial practices in football; he’s bigger, stronger and faster than the rest, so he must be the best. Scouts are seeing players who are literally dominating games and it is this emphasis on physical attributes which has restricted the development of world class players. Often these players are not smart enough to be coached to become top level players.
We need to be coaching the art of defending and developing readers of the game, it is essential that they possess intelligence. I believe we are overlooking and thus missing out on players who may be excellent yet who lack the physicality which propels average players forward. This needs addressing.
What is issues really affects the England national side? I believe it is a mixture of coaching, talent identification and development of intelligence and technical skill over power and speed. If we fail to sort out the root of the problem then will not produce world class players.
We need to be coaching the art of defending and developing readers of the game, it is essential that they possess intelligence. I believe we are overlooking and thus missing out on players who may be excellent yet who lack the physicality which propels average players forward. This needs addressing.
What is issues really affects the England national side? I believe it is a mixture of coaching, talent identification and development of intelligence and technical skill over power and speed. If we fail to sort out the root of the problem then will not produce world class players.
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If you think the English league is the best then you are deluded
We are told by our media through papers and TV that the English league is the best in the world! Whether for unpredictability or for dominance in Europe, we are constantly told like some Nazi propaganda machine that we are the best. Keep saying it enough and they’ll believe it. Since the start of the Premier league only 4 teams have won it, in the last 10 only 3 have. To say it is unpredictable is nothing short of madness. Perhaps the past two years there has been a change in with the emergence of Man City and Spurs as challengers for the top 4, yet at this time there is a boring nature to the Premier League. In Europe the statistics don’t indicate total dominance; in the past 10 years the Champions League has been won by Liverpool (fortunately) in 2005 and Man Utd (vs Chelsea) in 2008. Liverpool were the last English team to win the Uefa Cup and that was in 2001, since then a Spanish team has won it 4 times. Does this indicate total dominance?
Granted, several years ago there was common trend where English teams were competing in the semi-finals on a regular basis. However as with everything, these things come in cycles. During 2004-2009 the top teams in Italy; through match fixing controversy and major financial issues, Spain; at Real there was transition between the galaticio era and at Barcelona there was a steady build to something great, led by the capture of Ronaldinho. Even in Germany there was a period of transition. Dortmund for instance put themselves in financial ruin in order to win the 1996 Champions League which put the team back years, only now are they recapturing their form and that is through an enforced yet very effective youth policy.
The English sides have come to the end of their cycle, it is clear for us all to see. Arsenal have not been the same side since the invincible season and even a Champions League final in 2006 did not hide their potential inadequacies which have been shown now. I have commented on Arsenaland their problems before and so I will focus more on Man Utd and Chelsea. United have been outplayed twice by Barcelona in the past 3 years and each time you think that Ferguson will adapt, will learn his lessons, will look to change tactics and the gameplan. He spent £60 million last summer in order to compete against Barcelona and aim to win the Champions League yet surely questions must be asked of the players Ferguson bought; their purpose, how they were supposed to add to a team which had been beaten so comprehensively in the 09 and 11 finals and whether buying English talent was the right idea.
If he had learnt his lessons he would have felt that defensive midfielder of someone the ilk of De Rossi or even Scott Parker would have given United more stability in a game that now looks to overload the midfield with a three man midfield or with a no 10 dropping in. In the top games the need for a defensive cover is imperative in order to prevent top players dropping into the holes and dictating play. Owen Hargreaves appeared to be that man, yet injuries curtailed that. This was not the wrong decision to buy a player like Hargreves though, so a replacement should have been bought. The problem appears to be that Ferguson doubts himself in the transfer market, and it is only British players who have really been successful when he pays a lot of money. No wonder he believes there is no value in the market.
Yet this policy is not good if United want to continue to challenge for top honours. The signings added nothing to the squad which was in need of replacing ageing players in Scholes, Giggs and those not up to scratch in Berbatov, Anderson and Evans. A young GK was not required, everyone knows that experience is key in this position, there is just too much pressure on young shoulders at this club between the sticks and mistakes were bound to happen.
As for Chelsea, they dominated Europe without ever winning it the past 10 years and through a slight of luck on many occasions the European trophy was not won. After Mourinho left his replacements kept his style, why, because the players liked it and it was successful. This season AVB believed he could change this team and produce Barcelona overnight, this was folly. Chelsea have been a shell of their previous selves. A team who I believe were the team that Guardiola feared the most, which I believe was the reason he brought in Zlatan, after seeing the force and power that Drogba brought. Now this current Chelsea team lack any of the strength, resilience or determination that characterised the previous sides. Like Arsenal, they are just not the intimidating force they once were. In order for AVB to succeed this year he needs to go back to the old way.
Of all the teams equipped to challenge in Europe this generation it appears that Man City appear to be the most suited to compete. What they lack at this time is the experience required to challenge regularly. Experience of playing in Europe, the travel and schedule differences, balancing league and cup effectively and being able to compete on both. What City need is to win their domestic league first; by winning that they build confidence, learn how to win and develop the mindset of being winners. It may be a few years till this team wins a Champions League, however they appear the best placed to succeed. This season Man City struggled because Mancini got his tactics wrong, especially away; playing too attacking and looking to dominate too much exposed them to counter attacks which in the Champions League results in a goal more than in the league. They will learn from this however and be stronger for it next year.
Now it would appear that the cycle has come around, that those teams who were struggling this past decade have now steadied their-selves and are ready to show their force in Europe again. Milan’s performances this season have not always been as good as last night yet last night indicates that they are a team who can play on the big stage again. With their forward three of Zlatan, Robinho and Boateng and with a defensive block which includes the excellent Thiago Silva and Mexes, they have a balance which could be formidable in Europe. Possessing three attacking players who possess speed, skill, intelligence and precision are key to being a successful team. Added to this a defensive block which is organised and disciplined and there appears to be a remedy for success.
Looking around the top teams in Europe at this time, a three pronged attack appears to be conducive to success; Napoli, one of the most exciting teams in this years Champions League possess excellent players in Cavani, Hamsik and Lavezzi. Madrid have Ronaldo, Benzema and Ozil, Barca possess Messi, Sanchez and Fabregas. Bayern have Muller, Robben and Gomez. With these kinds of attacking players, there is not a need to abandon a defensive position and seek to overload the attack leaving the defence vulnerable, a team can be more balanced. These teams base their tactics on the 4-2-3-1 which has become such a potent tactic to success. Yet it is only Man City who adopted this formation in England and they currently sit top of the league.
Has the so called success or dominance of the past decade restricted the top English teams from adapting and evolving in their tactics and their personal? I believe so and I also believe that we have a new period in European football where the Germans in Bayern and Dortmund along with the Spanish of Barca and Madrid and in Italy, next season especially from Napoli, Milan and a very impressive and reformed Juventus all are showing signs of getting back to where they were pre 2000. When watching all these teams they show ingenuity, solidity and they mix attack and defence to perfection. In England this season the top teams have struggled to balance attack and defence and this has resulted in the crazy scorelines that indicate not improved attacking teams but very much poorer organised defensive teams. This is not good for European football and it has showed in the performances of our domestic teams in Europe this season.
As always with good teams, they often possess the best players. And what is of note is that there appears more and more better players around Europe than in England. To mention a few; Gotze, Kroos, Muller, Cavani, Hamsik, El Sheeraway, Thiago Silva, Ozil and Benzema! As for possessing world class players, can England say we own the best? I believe only Rooney, Van Perise, Silva, Aguero, Kompany and YayaToure are genuine world class and of those I can see a few of those leaving these shores in the coming seasons.
Fifa are not deluded and their World XI is dominated by players from the top 2 Spanish sides. This is because these are simply the best sides in the world at this time. When people say the Spanish league is not competitive they are correct, there is such a gulf between those two and the rest. In the past several seasons the English league has seen real quality leave, Ronaldo and Fabregas in particular have been huge losses to the league. The English sides have shown a gulf between Barca and Madrid as United, Arsenal and Tottenham will confess. With the emergence of Italian football again and the youth policy of Germany beginning to blossom, then as a fan of foreign football, the coming years are very bright, yet for those want to see their team succeed in Europe in the coming years, I think you should be happy with a quarter final.
If you still believe the English league is the best then you are deluded. Perhaps you enjoy it because the league is competitive, yet isn’t this an indication of greatness, it is an indication of mediocrity, with teams filled with mainly average players playing very average football. English sides have done very well for a long time now yet there is a change upon us, some of the teams have not adapted quick enough, yet there is time to improve and adapt. What is required is more quality coming to the league, not leaving. Without Man City I worry what the standard of player would be like here. It is important that English teams address their needs and quickly, we do not want a generation where we miss out on playing on the big stage. We should not look to change our culture completely, strength and determination are great characteristics of the English game, yet what we are lacking is players with real skill and creativity who can perform on the highest stage, we need this through players from abroad and more importantly coming through our youth Academies.
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