We’d Rather Be Damocles Than Dionysius: Denmark, 1992 Was Only 18 Years Ago

The tournament may be underway, but there’s still a chance to preview another of the sides that will hope to fly under the radar and navigate their way through their group and shimmy past more illustrious opponents. The underdogs for this time are the only representative from Scandinavia; Denmark.

Denmark

Form for this: Failed to qualify for Euro 2008 and the World Cup four years ago. Last appearance at a major tournament was 2004 where they progressed through to the quarter finals before coming up against a wonderful Czech side.

Why they’ll get through: They won their qualification group which featured Portugal, Sweden and Hungary forcing Portugal to settle for the playoffs, a qualification group that was arguably the most challenging of the 9. Their group at the world cup, whilst not being easy by any stretch of the imagination is not “the group of death”. Few would expect them to finish ahead of the Netherlands but Japan and a Cameroon side that is all too reliant on Eto’o should be teams the Danish can get the better of. And if things go their way the second round could be even easier than their group.

The side itself features players representing some top sides in each of Europes top leagues but has no obvious world class players. Tomasson, Rommedahl, Gronkjaer and Jorgensen are still around and doing the business for the national side and will have a wealth of experience to draw from. The centre back pairing of Kjaer and Agger is one that could easily feature for any top side in Europe. Both are excellent on the ball for defenders (capable of more than no-nonsense defending) and well disciplined players. Kjaer has had an outstanding season for Palermo and has drawn the attention of numerous top clubs and Agger is widely accepted as one of the few good things at Liverpool these days. Denmark can simply play the ball from the back all the way to the front unlike many of the other nations at the World Cup. Up front they have a maverick in the form of Bendtner who frustrates Arsenal fans consistently with, well – his inconsistency, but is capable of rubbing shoulders with the worlds best on his day. Aside from anything else, they are well organised, well managed and have enough quality to at least enter the knockout stages (something they have never failed to do when at the World Cup).

Why they’ll crash out: They lack that little extra. The absence of a genuine world class talent is something that sticks out when looking at the Danish. A well balanced and rounded team they are but should they come up against a real talent they may be found wanting. Cameroon have Eto’o, the Netherlands have a number that can be classed as World Class, the Danish have… Bendtner, who will rank himself as a world beater, but he is in the minority. In addition those listed as being experienced; Tomasson, Rommedahl, Gronkjaer and Jorgensen are all past their best and long gone are the days at Milan, dominating the Dutch leagues in an excellent PSV side, flying down the wing for Chelsea and being the creative spark for Fiorentina. The pace that some of them once relied on has gone and now they are just ageing names. Their group is difficult and if they aren’t at their best then they could and probably would go out without so much as a whimper.

Prediction: The second round is probably the end of their journey but progressing from their group would have to be a success nonetheless. But should they avoid Italy then there’s no reason a quarter final spot isn’t beyond them.

How The Mighty Might Fall: Germany, a Tournament Too Soon?

Germany

Form for this: Third place (as hosts) last time, runners up in 2002. Never failed to reach the quarter finals since reunification. A poor performance would be a real shock.

Why they’ll crash out: Joachim Löw has proven himself to be a top coach in the role, but a series of rows with the German FA over his new contract earlier in the season could leave a cloud of uncertainty hanging over the squad.  Luckily he now has a contract which extends beyond the quarter finals, but after the tournament he may have burnt too many bridges for a coach who already attracts negative press attention second only to whomever the English tabloids blame for ‘our lionhearted heroes’ going out this time.  This is a very young squad, with only three players over 30, and inexperience could be a weakness. Up front they could be found lacking: Miroslav Klose has scored just three league goals in 25 appearances for Bayern Munich all season, Mario Gòmes scoring an only slightly more respectable 10 in his first season at the same club, Lukas Podolski appears to be lazily squandering the talent he was so hotly tipped for at the last tournament, Cacau is in decent form for Stuttgart but has only eight caps and two of his three international goals came against Malta, with Thomas Müller even less experienced and a deeper lying player in any case. The absence of captain and talisman Michael Ballack means the usual heart of the team is missing – probably bigger news for them than were, heaven forbid, Steven Gerrard, to be ruled out for England.

Why they’ll get through: Löw’s already shown by coming runner up to a phenomenal Spain in Euro 2008 that he’s a great manager, and he appears focussed on the job in hand. There doesn’t appear to be any rift between players and coach, which would be the real undoing (see France), and qualification was managed without defeat – so the arguments at the top probably won’t really impact the team.  The youth of the squad doesn’t mean they haven’t done all this before: it’s easy to forget that players like Bastian Schweinsteiger, Per Mertesacker and Philipp Lahm are only 25 or 26 having each amassed well over 60 caps and starred in three tournaments already. Lahm becoming captain with Schweinsteiger his deputy raised eyebrows, but they are practically the elder statesmen of the side, and are playing fantastic football at Bayern. The new generation of players currently coming through the ranks like Thomas Müller, Mesut Özil, Arne Friedrich and Jérôme Boateng look good enough to be a dominant force in world football for some time to come, and this is a great place for them to announce themselves on that stage. Although that’s what many said about Podolski… For all the lack of goals he and Klose have suffered domestically, they scored six and seven respectively in qualifying, and were the two top scorers on home soil four years ago.  They and the spine of the team come from Bayern Munich, giving a familiarity between many of the players already, useful in a side who are suffering from injuries.  And it shouldn’t be forgotten that seven of the team played in the Champion’s League final, including the young Müller and Badstuber. Group D isn’t the easiest in the tournament, but Serbia, Ghana and Australia shouldn’t pose massive obstacles to overcome and they should comfortably finish top, although the difficulty could begin against England or the USA in the second round – both potentially strong sides.

Prediction: Would be a massive shock to exit in the group stage, but for all the youth and the lack of goals there’s a lot of talent and a very good manager to see them through.  Topping the group could lead to a very tough game and perhaps an early exit for a side who are considered outside contenders for the main prize.  If they are to crash out, it will most likely be the fault of their experienced but potentially toothless strikeforce.

We’d Rather Be Damocles Than Dionysius: Mexico, World Cup Wonders?

On the other side of the fence to the big sides, we’ve got the nations who no-one expects anything from. The underdogs, the David’s, the un-fancied, the Chuck Wepners if you will. Or in the case of this; Mexico. Ridiculed and abused for years, Mexico have been the butt of jokes in all variety of media sources for as long as I can remember. But whilst the sword of Damocles hangs over the favourites the Mexicans at least can just get down to business and see what happens, even enjoying themselves on the way.

The Mexicans are an interesting side with an interesting story and some interesting players. So I’ll try not to bore you as we discuss  how they aren’t that bad and at least worth looking at.

Mexico

Form for this: Knocked out in the Round of 16 to a wonder strike from Argentina’s Maxi Rodríguez in extra time saw their run end in 2006. But winning the CONCACAF Championship in 2009 and defeating their biggest rivals 5-0 in the final is a nice confidence booster (I shall gloss neatly over the fact that the US had a second string side out.)

Why they’ll get through: A lot was made of England’s recent struggle against them, Italy fell to them and they put in a very decent shift against the Dutch all of which lends itself to one thing; the Mexicans are pretty damn good. They’ve got an incredibly tactically astute manager in Javier Aguirre getting them to play very neat, tidy and aesthetically pleasing football. Anyone who witnessed the England game can testify that at times, their build up play and one touch football was superb. Excellent at holding the ball and playing around with it, they are a far cry from the underdogs who hit on the counter and hope for the best. Mexico have a few very exciting players in their side. Firstly there is Guardado, arguably their best player (who didn’t play in that England game) whom as well as being blessed with pace is also pretty decent with a ball at his feet. Carlos Vela and Dos Santos are names that familiar to Arsenal and Tottenham fans and whilst both have yet to really make their mark at club level, both are already experienced international players. They have big strong strikers to lead the line in Blanco and Franco allowing the trickier smaller players to operate around them. Marquez will be patrolling the back as part of the 3 man defence moving forward and striding into midfield. Being extremely accomplished on the ball this gives the Central Americans that extra dimension to their play that will perhaps catch more rigid teams off guard.

Mexico also have an interesting group; with the host nation, whom usually rise to the occasion regardless of their position in world football, Uruguay, a nation whom they would perhaps consider their equal on the international stage, and lastly France, perhaps the laughing stock of the big nations. It’s a group that the Mexicans can play their way out of, and should they do so there’s the prospect of the unpredictable Argentineans again in the second round or a challenge in South Korea, Nigeria or Greece. Again, all of whom Mexico can beat. In truth the system Mexico operate with will be their biggest strength. Players who are willing to adapt for their manager and play how he wants, exploring an exciting formation and approach to the game

Why they’ll crash out: Whilst we ridicule and berate France frequently at The Vuvuzela View, they could always rise to the challenge and surprise us all. Domenech could be fooling us all and simply deflecting pressure away from his team (although one suspects he is in fact just a moron). Nonetheless, the French have world class players in their ranks, Uruguay do also; in Forlan and the stupidly prolific Suarez, and South Africa no matter how poor they are, are hosting the World Cup, which will inevitably give them some lift. Mexico lack any real world class players in their side; Marquez aside and whilst the system works very well for them they struggle to get an end product.

None of their attacking players are particularly prolific and they appear to lack that cutting edge that is necessary at the top level. Franco is not renowned for having an excellent goal scoring return and Hernández (who recently joined United) is maybe too soon into his career to really judge. Dos Santos and Vela have both been touted as potential world beaters but as of yet have not shown just how good they can be. Efficient and tricky yes, but Dos Santos was the next in line to Messi at Barca, whilst Vela is one of the players on the conveyor belt of youth production that is Arsenal. Stepping up to the big stage is something they can both do but haven’t as of yet. This lack in genuine world class talent could be their undoing.

Prediction: To progress through to the second round at least and baring meeting Argentina could even get as far as the Semi finals if they can add goals to their play. That said, the quarter finals should see the end of their adventure meeting one of the bigger nations and it’s a nice target to have.

How The Mighty Might Fall: Portugal, Group of Death’s Casualties?

Continuing our look at the big sides who might struggle this year, it’s the turn of the nation who have put England out of their last two tournaments, who have the world’s most expensive player, and who might not survive the group stage.

Portugal

Form for this: Semi-finalists in Germany, but failed to get out of the group stage in 2002.

Why they’ll crash out: There’s got to be a casualty in the tournament’s traditional Group of Death. Bookie’s second favourites Brazil would be a real shock because it’s highly unlikely, Ivory Coast might not count as a massive surprise after a weak Cup of Nations and Drogba’s fitness in doubt, but surely it would be a big headline for the world’s most expensive player to exit in the group stage. Manager Carlos Quieroz has proven himself as a great assistant, but is yet to achieve success as a first team coach in a big job. Weak in qualifying and needed a 2-0 play-off win over Bosnia and Herzegovina to reach the tournament, plus an embarrassing goalless draw against Cape Verde islands last month, they don’t look too hot at the moment. They’ve found it hard to break down defensive sides, and that might well be a strength of North Korea, as well as a more counter-attacking Brazilian side. Centre forward Liédson has just nine caps and three international goals: not a terrible return, but hardly the necessary experience to lead the line in vital games. Their best player could be their undoing: when Ronaldo decides he has to do everything himself he can nullify his own threat as well as weakening the rest of the team, as shown when he decided to take on Barcelona single handedly and came up empty handed. Deco’s poor form since moving to Chelsea means the midfield lacks its usual creative spark. Inexperience in goal could be an issue – the three ‘keepers have just 17 caps between them. While 14 belong to the decent Eduardo, first choice for over a year now, he lacks tournament experience. Injury to him would throw an unknown quantity into a very high pressure mix. And he’s costing us all a cheap laugh, having forced Quim out of the side.

Why they’ll get through: The team who would take their place, Ivory Coast, might have lost their talismanic main man. And Ronaldo’s skill could well create single handed glory and goals instead of frustrating – though it might mean he requires a more central role which he has become accustomed to at Real Madrid rather than the wide position he has taken up under his mentor Quieroz. The defence isn’t too shabby despite the injury to Jose Bosingwa, covered by his deputy at Chelsea Paulo Ferreira. Ricardo Carvalho might not have looked as solid for Chelsea this season, but still forms a strong partnership with Bruno Alves, while Real Madrid’s Pepe could always drop in having recovered from injury, though he is listed as a midfielder and could well feature in a holding role. Thrashing a decent Cameroon side might well be a good response, and a better indication of their play against quality opposition, after the embarrassing draw against Cape Verde. In Ronaldo and Simão they possess quality, if slightly mercurial, wide forwards who – on form – would be the envy of most nations.  Nani would have been another plus point, but now his injury counts against their chances.

Prediction: Much tougher call if Drogba is absent, but still look weak enough to slump out. Unless they win the group, even qualification would most likely see them play Spain in the second round, so it would take a real surprise to see them reach the quarter finals.

How The Mighty Might Fall: France, 2002 or 2006?

It might be a British thing, looking to tear down the great, but we all love it when one of the traditional big nations crashes out early on. How we tut and berate the coach who can’t see the better systems so obvious from the armchair as one of them is seen limping out at the group stage, or crashing out to the tournament’s surprise package in the first knockout.  After our look at Argentina – for whom anything could happen – The Vuvuzela View looks at the teams who aren’t looking like the world beaters they can be coming into the tournament, starting with France.

Form for this: Shock exit in 2002 when defeat in the first game against Senegal sparked an awful group stage, the holders exiting without scoring a single goal. Made up for it in 2006 by reaching the final, though began group stage unconvincingly, winning only once to scrape through.

Why they’ll crash out: In a name: Raymond Domenech. The coach’s maverick decisions have brought criticism and ridicule, even from his own players. Notoriously admitted to distrusting Scorpios and leaving them out of his squads on little other grounds, he could be laughed out of managing a pub team. The goal which took them to the finals is almost as notorious as the headbutt which closed their last tournament, but being poor in qualifying and struggling against Ireland got them to that situation in the first place.  The French lost to Austria, twice drew with Romania and only managed a 1-0 win in the Faroe Islands, although they made up for that with a home thrashing. The advent of a new 4-3-3 after Lassana Diarra’s withdrawal to get the best out of their attacking talent and dropping captain but Barcelona bench-warmer Thierry Henry brought some new hope, but the friendlies have brought loss to China, a draw with Tunisia and a late winner against Costa Rica, without impressing for the most part.

Why they’ll scrape through: On paper, they’re the best team in the group. Mind you, they were in 2002 as well. Mexico and Uruguay look like decent sides, and even South Africa have got good results in friendlies with home advantage on their side. While that might point to them providing plenty of competition for qualifying spots, it’s the sort of group where teams might take plenty of points off each other and any one could go through, so France might once again only need one decent result. It’s easy to forget that Domenech was at the helm four years ago, but with only a handful of player surviving from that squad, the experience of coming so close is largely absent, and with it any sense of a group revenge mission for the penalties defeat in the final.

Prediction: Could well go out at the first hurdle. But with their recent form, would an early exit even be that surprising?

Uneasy Lies The Head That Wears The Crown

An Argentinean side packed full of talent, with perhaps the best player in the world in their lineup, managed by an Argentinean legend. Remind me why they aren’t favourites for the World Cup?

Oh – of course, it’s the incredible struggle to qualify, the humiliating 6-1 defeat to Bolivia, the fact that the legend is commonly referred to as a madman and that Messi hasn’t really done it for his national side as he has consistently for Barca.

Argentina, third favourites behind Spain and Brazil, are the oddity at this World Cup. In a relatively straight forward group on paper (Greece, South Korea and Nigeria) the logic behind Argentina is that whilst fully capable of winning the World Cup they could just as easily go home without even progressing, such is their unpredictable nature.

 The Team

Firstly it is best to simply look at the team. Ignoring the omission of Zanetti and Cambiasso and moving on to the squad they have in place now will save time on a subject that has been done to death (as interesting as it is). The starting line-up will most probably be a 4-4-2 of sorts and has some surprise players starting as is the way these days.

Romero

Otamendi, Samuel, Demichelis, Heinze

Gutierrez, Veron, Mascherano, De Maria

Higuain, Messi

Considering the wealth of talent available to Maradona there are some obvious shocks. The inclusion of Veron will stun many who are fans of the European game and even more so the presence on the right of midfield of a player who this season featured for Newcastle in the Championship. Both of the fullbacks; Heinze and Otamendi are – well – central defenders, thus bucking the trend of attacking fullbacks. It’s a very defensive outfit, even more shocking considering the wealth of attacking talent available to Maradona; Tevez, Diego Milito, Aguero and Palermo all likely to start on the bench. Surely a 4-3-3 or a gung-ho Bayern Munich 4-2-4 style formation would accommodate all the best players and make Argentina terrifying. But no, 4-4-2, defensive and well organised is the order of the day.

Looking again at the bench it is a wonderful position to be in. Tevez, one of the best players in the world has added an excellent goal return to his game, a star for any other nation. Aguero, a rising talent and one of the most sought after players in the world and fascinatingly, married to Maradona’s daughter (which would be more relevant if he was rubbish, but he isn’t). Martin Palermo, a 36 year old Boca Juniors icon, the ideal target man. Diego Milito, perhaps the best striker in world football. An excellent goal scoring record wherever he has been, proving himself in Spain and Italy and scoring some of the most important goals for his club, netting in the Champions League final and scoring the goal to clinch the title for Inter this year alone. It’s no debate over Heskey and Bent and any nation would be blessed to have those options. Messi and Higuain will start however and few can argue really when looking at their performances this season.

The two central defenders started in the Champions League final this season (albeit against each other) so this would suggest that this is a strong area for the South American’s. However neither is blessed with pace and nippy strikers could very well be their weakness (Owen from ’98 is not available). Samuel also known as “The Wall” offers the typical robust centre back whilst Demichelis will be the more cultured defender with the ability to carry the ball and distribute. An excellent partnership on paper at least and the two supporting centre backs at fullback will provide an even more solid foundation for the side to build on.

“The New Maradona” 

Lionel “World Player of the Year” Messi is the one everyone is looking to. Is he the best ever? This is a common debate amongst pundits, who fail to understand that he is only 22 and has barely even begun. Messi is widely regarded as the best in the world and there are few arguments against. However his international form is not close to his club. Uneasy lies the head that wears the crown, and the pressure maybe gets to Messi. Maybe the set up doesn’t bring out the best in him, despite his free role being the same as at Barca.

Is this his chance to shine on the biggest stage? Or will another Argentinean snatch the glory? De Maria, Maradona touting De Maria as the nation’s next big superstar.  He has had an excellent season with Benfica at the hub of an attacking outfit and will be the most advanced of the Argentinean midfield. Clever, creative and without the pressure that is perhaps burdening those around him, De Maria could be this tournaments breakout player.

All or nothing?

So how far are Argentina going to go?! Who honestly knows. Crashing out in the first round wouldn’t be a shock, but nor would winning it. Maradona has God-like status back home and this would be his chance to become even more than immortal there. For all their talent, for all the madness, all that is left to say about the Argentines is a shrug of the shoulders and a confused expression that tells no-one anything and leaves you scratching your head more after thinking about it than before.

A Fullback of Cards

A position often disregarded as being unimportant, the fullback has been the position of choice for some of the most illustrious players in the history of football. Two of England’s likely starting 11 are no strangers to the common misconception that the position is not valuable; Glen Johnson and Ashley Cole. For all the debate surrounding the 23 and the starting line-up, it can safely be assumed that both will take to the field in SA as the England team battle against the US in the opener of England’s campaign. The Vuvuzela View takes an objective look at the fullback position and the relative importance in world football.

High Fees

Each of the two players in recent times has commanded high transfer fees which to many, seemed over the top and frankly poor business. Johnson the subject of an £18m (for lack of an official figure) move to Liverpool last summer brought Benitez a huge amount of criticism not aided by Liverpool’s pretty dire performance this season. Many asking; what fullback was worth near £20m? Similarly so Ashley Cole four years ago raised similar questions when moving from Arsenal to Chelsea for £5m plus arguably one of the best defenders in football at the time – William Gallas, a defender who was equally adept at playing anywhere across the defensive line. Both deals vilified for being poor business and lacking footballing sense.

Ashley Cole is now simply the best left back in the world – not a popular character, sure, but the best in the world. Glen Johnson however has not enjoyed such glowing reviews, rather unfairly so. Often called up for being a poor defensive player, but an excellent attacking outlet for a side, he has not seen his stock rise quite so highly as Coles. Johnson can defend, it’s a common misconception and one that many agree with, too lazy to form their own opinion. From his debut at West Ham where, granted, he wasn’t brilliant defensively he has matured into a fully fledged attacking fullback capable of holding his own defensively – something not too dissimilar to Cole’s career progression.

The ace in the pack

What an attacking fullback offers is a trick up a mangers sleeve, a throw of the dice that – when using the right players – can come up trumps. It is the ace in the hole, so to speak. An attacking fullback creates space, it creates options going forward. To use Spain as an example would be an idea and as such I shall use it.

In 2008 Spain deployed Capdevilla and Sergio Ramos as their respective fullbacks. Both push forward, both want to have shots, whip the ball in and perhaps even get in the box. Suicide many might say, but what this does is draw out the opposing team, to nullify the threat thus allowing more room for their central midfielders; Xavi, Iniesta and the like. Players who given time on the ball and space will destroy even the best of sides. Also necessary for this tactic is the defensive holding player, in Spains case it was Senna (who rather interestingly won’t be in South Africa), someone to cover the advancing fullback.

Spain aren’t the only example, as many sides will feature fullbacks who operate as wingbacks. Brazil will have Maicon and Michel Bastos (who is really a winger, which tells you all you need to know). Italy will likely feature Zambrotta and another, perhaps Criscito. France will likely feature Evra and Sagna, another two attacking fullbacks. Spain showed how effective using these players can be, winning the Euro’s playing attractive and attacking football.

However an oddity to the system of attacking fullbacks, is that enigma wrapped in a mystery dripped in genius that is Maradona. Argentina will be playing 4 defenders. Defenders, not fullbacks and centrebacks; no mention of a wingback, not at all. 4 reliable defenders who won’t roam or probe, won’t drift past the halfway line. Is Maradona a madman? Who knows, this is another question for the ages. Anything Argentina do should be looked at from a completely different perspective, as they simply make little or no sense (or a lot, depending upon the view).

The Importance

Another point that can’t be ignored is that of Germany recently making Lahm captain in the absence of Ballack. Lahm, an excellent attacking fullback who is only 26 has been given the responsibility of captaincy for one of the most important footballing nations in the world. Clearly he’s important, maybe the most important player for the Germans. Is the fullback so worthless you’d make him your captain? The Germans don’t think so, and if you rule out the Germans then you’re asking for trouble. They had other options; Schweinsteiger and Mertesacker the other two tipped for the role, both central players for the Germans.

At club level; Inter, Barca, Man Utd, Bayern, Arsenal, Chelsea, Milan, Madrid – pretty much any of the big teams use an attacking fullback in some capacity. The old adage says “defend from the front”, maybe now reads “attack from the back”.

Johnson and Cole are important, perhaps two of the most important players we have. Gary Neville was probably the best right back England have ever had, and even he had licence to roam forward, but wasn’t the attacking threat of either of these two. To do the job right you need to be incredibly fit, be gifted with pace and have the ability to defend and attack. There aren’t many in the world that tick all of the boxes, but Johnson and Cole for all their critics, do. Vilify them if you wish, but the true importance of fullbacks like these cannot be underestimated. £18m seems a bargain especially considering that Barca spent over £30m on Dani Alves. And think about the Cole trade-off, did Arsenal really win in that deal? Gallas became a poor captain and Clichy at left back, has taken more steps backwards than forwards since getting his break.

 The top quality fullback wins. The top quality fullback is worth his transfer fee. The top quality fullback could be the star. The top quality fullback could easily be Johnson or Cole. Or we could just start with Carragher, because why not play someone at fullback who hasn’t played there in years and has had a poor season in his traditional position…

What makes a World Cup Striker?

The World Cup striker is a different animal to that often seen at the watering hole of club football, he has only a handful of games in which to prove himself and is perhaps has to be the very best of the best. Having a successful World Cup can of course leave a legacy beyond any other for any striker that succeeds on the biggest stage and the Golden Boot is invariably won by a household name, even a legend (not that the Golden Boot is the only way you can tell if a striker has really taken the world cup by storm); Lineker, Muller, Ronaldo, Suker, Rossi, Eusebio and Kempes just some of the hatful of those whose mark on world football has been forever printed through the award.

The debate over the ability of the strikers available to Capello’s England side rages and won’t come to a head even with the trimming of the squad to 23, which will inevitably see one of Heskey, Bent, Defoe and Crouch being left at home before even gracing African soil. Are any of these even remotely capable of doing a job in South Africa? Rooney is a player that needs no introduction or debate over contributing a steady supply of goals to an already irrepressible natural ability to dominate games, but those around him, what do they offer?

Bent has 24 goals in the league alone to his name this season, a phenomenal return for a player at a side that finished 13^th and scored 48 goals all season. Half, that’s right half an entire sides goal return for the season. Bent however is derived for being one dimensional and has not always commanded faith from previous managers (see Harry Redknapp). Bent is quick, he can get behind defenders playing off the shoulder and has a proven goal scoring record. For England however he has not impressed, the 5 caps have yielded no goals and as someone who is a goal poacher it doesn’t bode well.

Heskey is the polar opposite of Bent. 3 goals in the league a poor return for any striker, but that isn’t what Heskey is about. Heskey brings out the best in others, perhaps he is “the water carrier” of the attacking part of the field. Owen benefited from playing with Heskey and Rooney has as well. But that aside even the staunchest of Villa supporters wouldn’t argue his season has not been great for former Leicester City man.

Crouch divides opinion like few players in world football. He’s tall, he has a great touch for a big man so says pretty much anyone who is capable of speech. This isn’t Peter Crouch, what he does is a little bit different to the others. With a goal scoring record at international level of the highest order (21 from 38) you have to question what it is he does at international level differently. Not known as a predator, but not the subject of ill informed jokes as Heskey is. To best highlight the Crouch influence you’d have to go back to a game in 2005 when England faced Argentina in what was perhaps the greatest friendly of modern times. Coming on from the bench Crouch turned the game on it’s head and caused enough chaos for England to nick two goals. Did Crouch score? No, he didn’t but he was pivotal. Does he still offer the same on the field presence capable of changing a game? Yes, and now he scores a fair few aswell.

 Jermain Defoe has been around for a while now, and has had a fairly decent return at every club he’s been at and similarly so at international level. Defoe is a little bit more tricky, capable of a goal out of nothing and this season has become a more prolific striker to boot (although it should be noted 5 of his 18 league goals came from one match, against an incredibly poor Wigan). A similar style of play to Bent but perhaps a more cultured footballer than the Sunderland man.

Another fair comparison would be to look at a selection of the other “top nations” provisional and final strike forces and see whether on paper at least these would stand up to them.

Italy:

Gilardino, Iaquinta, Di Natale, Quagliarella, Rossi, Pazzini and Borriello.

Spain:

Villa, Torres, Pedro and Llorente

Argentina:

Higuain, Messi, Tevez, Aguero, Palermo and Milito

Arguably, not one of the 4 England hopefuls would feature in Italy, Spain or Argentina’s line up, even if they had the respective passports.

That said though, looking through the past examples of strikers without experience, without a goal scoring record, without a name even have set the grandest stage alight. Toto “Hold the Line” Schillaci became the face of Italia ’90 and the most stunning thing about this was he hadn’t even had a cap before the world cup kicked off. Achieving the golden boot at the end of his first season in Serie A having petered around the lower leagues for around 7 years. Michael Owen scored his first international goal for England in a warm up match prior to ’98 and destroyed an (ageing but nonetheless) well respected Argentinean defence and grabbing another goal in the group stages. Miroslav Klose came to the forefront of international football in 2002 but was previously a solid if unspectacular centre forward who was thought of no higher than Defoe or Crouch. Klose then went on to go one better at his next world cup and get the golden boot.

At the European Championships Baros drew the attention of Real Madrid through his goal scoring exploits in 2004. Baros it can be agreed was a decent striker, but was by no means world class. He played in a fluid and beautifully attacking Czech side and scored a lot of goals, to put it simply. Marco Delvecchio an institution at Roma got his first goal for his national side in the Euro 2000 final. Now, Italy lost to France, but he made his impact and made it for the first time at one of the biggest games in world football.

What makes a successful striker at the World Cup? Anything. Perhaps not being well known, not being world class, not being the expected performer; perhaps this is a good thing. Perhaps the key to becoming the world Cup striker is being a bit – well – rubbish. Any player could make his mark and any player could set the world alight. In truth it’s possible any one of the England quartet vying for the final places on the plane could do a job. A personal choice would be to leave behind Bent, a player who doesn’t seem capable of that step up to the international stage. But then again, the same could have been said for Baros…..

And Klose…

And Schillaci….