England Would Have Made A Better Start Had I Been Playing - Jermain Defoe

Goal.com - 1 hour ago
Tottenham Hotspur striker Jermain Defoe thinks that the England players all support Fabio Capello to remain on as the Three Lions boss, but admits that they would have made a better start to the World Cup had he featured from the offset.
"Personally I wish I could have done more to help the country than just the goal against Slovenia," Defoe told The Mirror.

"I remain convinced that had I played in the earlier two games we would have got off to a better start than we did."

England crashed out after suffering their worst defeat in their World Cup history, a 4-1 thrashing at the hands of arch-rivals Germany in the Round of 16.

The Spurs hitman does not believe that Capello should be sacked despite England’s disappointing World Cup performance.
"[Capello's] CV is second to none and he has won titles and trophies with four top European clubs and with some fantastic players that way," Defoe added.
"For me personally, he gave me an opportunity and I'd like to think I took it in that Slovenia game.
“And I would like to think, despite what is being said, that he has the respect of the players."
Defoe understands the anger and disappointment expressed by English supporters and media after England’s last 16 defeat against Germany.
"I accept it was a bitterly disappointing World Cup campaign from a group of players of whom everyone expected so much.
"I have seen pictures of kids who had been watching the Germany game crying after the 4-1 defeat. It reminded me of when I was young – it would hurt so much to see England losing. I know the feeling from both sides of the fence.
"I take the point that it can't be fatigue, as the Germans in particular have played more games than us.
"Maybe it's because so many players were under pressure to live up to expectations that it affected their normal game.
"There was boredom out there. But then players are used to that from being away with their clubs. And that soon went as well when the games started and we could break up our days by watching them.
"I don't want to get into any other debates that have nothing to do with me. But I will say that I want to keep representing my country. The feeling seems to be to replace everyone in the England team, but who with?
"The same guys who returned from South Africa will go on to prove this season that they haven't become bad players overnight."
The 27-year-old scored the winner against Slovenia in the group stage that got England into the knockout stages, but was substituted after 71 minutes after making little impact against Germany.

From Yahoo Malaysia Sports

Capello blames disallowed goal

Fabio Capello refused to blame his players for England's woeful exit from the FIFA World Cup™ at the hands of Germany.

Instead he focussed on the decision to disallow Frank Lampard's equalising 'goal'.

England had been outplayed and were 2-1 down when Lampard's effort hit the underside of Manuel Neuer's bar and bounced down a clear yard over the line.

Assistant referee Mauricio Espinosa failed to spot it, though, and instead of drawing level at 2-2, England capitulated in the second half to lose 4-1, their worst ever World Cup defeat.
"It was one of the most important things in the game," Capello told BBC1.
"We scored two goals and at that moment, I saw Germany suffer a lot.
"The [disallowed] goal was very important. We could have played a different style.
"We played I think well at 2-1, but after the third goal it was a little bit disappointing.

"Germany is a big team. They played a good game. We made some mistakes. The referee made bigger mistakes.

"Little things decide the result always."

"They scored the third and fourth on the counter-attack and we didn't play after that."

The Italian was at a loss to explain why his players had performed so far below expectations, other than cite their general tiredness after a long season.

"Look, we probably arrived a little bit tired at the end of the season.
"But after the game that they played against Slovenia, we suffered from Germany's speed today.
"But I say again, I am sure that a big mistake from the referee stopped us from going forward."
Capello is now to seek urgent talks with Club England chairman Sir David Richards about his future.
His position is bound to come under intense scrutiny only five weeks after having a clause removed from his £6million-a-year deal that would allow either party to terminate the contract after the World Cup.
"I want to speak with the chairman and then decide my future," said Capello.
"I need to know whether the FA have confidence in me or not."

When asked if he would resign, he replied: "Absolutely not."

The early indications are Capello will remain in his job.
Senior sources within the Club England camp who will determine whether the Italian stays or not have indicated that their stance on Capello - that he is the right man to take the Three Lions forward - has not shifted as a result of one single, albeit controversial result.

From espn.com

World Cup: USA 1-1 England - Man Of The Match

Who was the top player for the USA in their draw with England?
By Allen Ramsey
Jun 12, 2010 4:24:00 PM
It was a solid result for the USA as they worked a 1-1 draw with England to open Group C play. England took and early lead only to have Clint Dempsey level the match just before the break on what can only be described as a major gaffe by England 'keeper Robert Green.
But which player did the most to make sure the USA left with at least a point?
The answer seems to be pretty obvious. American goalkeeper Tim Howard was the exact opposite of his counterpart in the England goal. Howard made several massive stops to keep the Three Lions from ever regaining their lead including one at point blank range off of Emile Heskey.

From goal.com



Steve Cherundolo, who dominated James Milner in the opening 30 minutes before putting the clamps on Shaun Wright-Phillips, also deserves to have his name called as one of the top performers on the night. Cherundolo not only locked down his side of the field defensively but drew several fouls in the first half as he bombed forward.
Another player for the USA who had a fine showing was midfielder Michael Bradley who did very well to help relieve pressure by passing and dribbling his way out of trouble.

Johan Cruyff: Winning The World Cup Will Be 'Impossible' For England Under Fabio Capello

Goal.com - 6 hours ago
Holland legend Johan Cruyff believes that England cannot win the World Cup under Fabio Capello, citing that the way the Three Lions play is too similar to Italy as they are 'only interested in the result'.

The former Barcelona star believes that the influx of Italian managers like Carlo Ancelotti at Chelsea, Manchester City manager Roberto Mancini and Capello has affected football in England.

"With Capello on the bench, all the world knows how England will play. It's a curious situation in England,” Cruyff told The Mirror.

"The Italian coaches are influencing the philosophy. There are the examples of Ancelotti, Mancini and Capello.

"England now have many similarities to Italy. The mentality has changed and now they are only interested in the result.

"After the failure in Germany is 2006, now England needs a great spectacle but that is impossible with Capello as coach."

This is not the first time that the Dutchman has criticised Capello and his attack on the Three Lions boss is one of the few that he has faced since becoming England manager.

Cruyff believes that Spain, Argentina and Brazil are the three teams that will be the favourites to win in South Africa, but he is not as optimistic about Holland’s chances.

"If Spain can show their quality on the pitch then they can aspire to great success. But they must improve with each game without suffering from growing pressure.

"They must show the same pride and quality that they did at Euro 2008 to win the World Cup.

"It would be unfair for Argentina just to rely on Lionel Messi. Their system and team must be strong and they must make changes when necessary to make sure his work is not lost.

"Brazil have incredible talent and they are different now. Now they have a big keeper, a good defence and a more European style. They can be more negative. For me now, Spain is the Brazil in this World Cup.

"Holland has some good players but the stars don't play in Holland. Without playing in Holland, it's impossible for the team to improve long term."

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