Steve McClaren England: Sven With a Mask, Only Worse First Team, Latest Mistake

England team to face Greece: Paul Robinson; Gary Neville, Rio Ferdinand, John Terry (captain), Ashley Cole; Steven Gerrard, Owen Hargreaves, Frank Lampard, Stewart Downing, Jermain Defoe, Peter Crouch.

He started with Sven's squad plus 1, minus 1 and that plus 1 got injured so we basically get all the fit and available team that finished the world cup for the next game with 1 change, Defoe in.

Does it not occur to McClaren that Jermain Defoe is frankly not good enough? Spurs can no longer offload him even in an ascending market. He was used as a late substitute by Spurs, as used early in a game his chronic lightweightness means he is liable to just be pushed off the ball. He has lots of ability, obviously, but little of it is practical, his runs off the ball are not aimed at helping the team. There has to be a strong suspision that Eriksson took Walcott because he basically did not want to be in the position to seemingly have to play Bent or Defoe. What baffles me is that Phillips is seen negatively for not getting in Chelsea's power packed team and Defoe is seen positively not getting in Spurs ummh ahhh team. Indeed he was selected behind a player Spurs refused to pay £3 million for in the summer.

Sometimes Crouch's height does allow him to get on the end of a ball, but it has to be said his play in the world cup was mediocre and his lack of mobility criminal. He gave few assets of a tall man bar his 1 goal in 4 games or so against the Caribbean powerhouses Trinidad and Tobago. With Ashton injured Bent surely warranted a place. One must doubt that Crouch with his unique physique will get much better and his overall scoring record and mostly moderate all round play make me wonder if coaches like game triers over better players. Whatever, he ain't good enough.

I know Steven Gerrard often plays right side for Liverpool but picking him there is a cop out of the Lampard or Gerrard question. Like Gallas at Chelsea adaptability counts against you and you get shifted because others cannot be. Lampard may be my favourite player but the drop may be deserved after a poor world cup.

Also how are we meant to stop the palsied football if we have a holding player in Hargreaves? This may help shore us up the defence but England need to score goals or learn how to take penalties. Indeed whilst everyone is tossing themselves off about Hargreaves against Portugal, lets face it they would not have scored if he had been replaced by a cut out but we might with a footballer there. Plus most of his appearances for England prior had been terrible, the fans were not having a go for nothing.

Further just as England and Liverpool suffered early last year from playing an unfit Gerrard and ditto the world cup with Owen and Rooney, so picking Ashley Cole unfit says what to the other left backs? Cole may be the most over rated player of my lifetime.

In summary this is not evolution it is regression: going back to failed players like Defoe: bringing in a poor midfielder to shore up the defence: deference to stars in that they will be accommodated at the expense of alternatives.