After months of speculation, it appears common sense has prevailed as Jack Wilshere and Andy Carroll have been left out of the U21 England squad to compete in this summers UEFA U21 European Championship.
Over the past few months, debate over whether Jack Wilshere and Andy Carroll should be included in England’s Under 21 squad for the European Championship has been at fever pitch. Many people were on the side of Jack Wilshere, who said on numerous occasions that he would never say no to his country. There’s also the theory that the likes of Mesut Ozil played in the Under 21s for Germany, U21 FIFA World Cup in 2009, and then came on leaps and bounds in the 2010 Fifa World Cup, so surely we need to mimic this successful formula.
However Jack Wilshere and Andy Carroll are now senior England internationals, should they be allowed to drop down into the Under 21s just for the sake of one tournament? What about the players that have played in the qualifying games to get there, is it fair that they get brushed aside by two players that have been in the senior England squad all season? Surely this would hurt the likes of Jordan Henderson and Danny Welbeck who could well find themselves on the bench with Carroll and Wilshere coming into the squad.
Many people have said that Wilshere and Carroll need the experience of a big competition if they’re going to be successful in the England National side, I don’t see this as an issue. With Wilshere apart of the Arsenal team, he’s already played and shone in the UEFA Champions League this season, in the first leg tie against Barcelona he was praised for his performance, with many comparing him to the likes of Xavi and Andres Iniesta when they were younger. Along with this, Andy Carroll is now playing for Liverpool who before long, will be back competing with the top European Clubs now that they have owners that are willing to back the club, and a manager that has the respect of the players.
The players that need the experience of playing in a big competition are the likes of Fabrice Muamba of Bolton Wanderers, Scott Sinclair of Swansea and Connor Wickham of Ipswich Town. These are players who will never have been a part of a team performing in a big competition, these are the players that need to have this experience to develop in the hope that one day they will be a permanent fixture in the England national side. Some may argue that Kieran Gibbs of Arsenal, Danny Rose of Tottenham Hotspur and Chris Smalling of Manchester United also gain the same experience of Jack Wilshere and Andy Carroll in having the opportunity to play for a big club in big competitions. The difference between these sets of players are that Wilshere and Carroll are central figures at their respective clubs, Rose, Gibbs and Smalling are bit part players who get the odd start every so often, so having the experience of being a central figure in a squad could be of a great benefit to the players in question, possibly bringing out the leadership qualities that you may not see in them when they’re playing in a team of seasoned veterans.
As you can probably sense from what I’ve written so far, I’m glad that Carroll and Wilshere have been omitted from the Under 21 squad. I feel it would have done more damage than good to the England set up had the two been selected. First of all I don’t believe Carroll and Wilshere would benefit from stepping down a level, we all saw what happened when Theo Walcott played in the Under 21 World Cup for England, he flopped big time, the lack of a rest over the summer resulted in an injury plagued campaign, resulting in him being left out of the senior England squad for the 2010 FIFA World Cup due to a disappointing Premier League campaign.
I feel most of the damage would be done to the players that would miss out, due to the inclusion of Wilshere and Carroll. The likes of Jack Rodwell and Daniel Sturridge have worked hard to get England into the Under 21 European Championship, I feel it could have been had a negative impact on the development of any players omitted at the expense of two players, who contributed very little to the qualifying campaign.
To top it off if you look at the squad, it’s very strong anyway, I feel it would have been unnecessary to include Wilshere and Carroll. Stuart Pearce has the likes of Danny Welbeck, Daniel Sturridge and Connor Wickham to choose from to play up front. The midfield could include Jack Rodwell, Jordan Henderson and Marc Albrighton, all established performers in the Premier League, players who deserve their chance to shine after such promising Premier League campaigns.
Good luck to the England Under 21s, I hope you do us proud, looking at the squad that’s been announced I can see many of these players lining up for the senior side in the near future, hopefully this generation will be able to deliver what the current generation hasn’t, starting with this summer in the Under 21 European Championship.
England U21 Squad for 2011 U21 European Championship
Goalkeepers
Frankie Fielding (Derby), Jason Steele (Middlesbrough), Alex McCarthy (Reading)
Defenders
Ryan Bertrand (Chelsea), Kieran Gibbs (Arsenal), Phil Jones (Blackburn), Mancienne (Chelsea), Richards (Man City), Smalling (Man Utd), Kyle Walker (Spurs)
Midfielders
Marc Albrighton (Villa), Tom Cleverley (Man Utd), Jack Cork (Chelsea), Jordan Henderson (Sunderland), Henri Lansbury (Arsenal), Fabrice Muamba (Bolton Wanderers), Jack Rodwell (Everton), Danny Rose (Spurs), Scott Sinclair (Swansea City)
Strikers
Nathan Delfouneso (Villa), Daniel Sturridge (Chelsea), Danny Welbeck (Man Utd), Connor Wickham (Ipswich Town)
1 comments:
Loved this post. You have made me think of the other side of the argument as I do believe they should go to the u21 championships
You make a very valid point here that these players should be rested after what has been a busy season for Wilshere and an injury plagued one for Carroll. The fact that they do or will play regularly for their clubs does beg the question why should they play.
But I do still think they should have gone espcially after Wilshere stating that he wanted to go and play. You make a point that it could ruin his chances of his future England career but I do believe you have to take into account Theo is a very injury prone player as it is and that to be fair Capello made the wrong decision not to take him anyway.
But i think we are missing out on this one although it isn't fair to put these players in when they haven't played the qualifiers I think that the u21 squad are missing out on competition for places which will only make them a better player.
Players such as Wickham and Rodwell will benefit from having the competition for the place in the team and especially Rodwell who most Everton fans believe has had a bit of a hit and miss season.
Still liked this one a lot mate.
x
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