England final squad list and numbers.

Goalkeepers:
1. Joe Hart
13. Rob Green
23. Jack Butland

Defenders:
2. Glen Johnson
3. Ashley Cole
5. Gary Cahill
6. John Terry
12. Leighton Baines
14. Phil Jones
15. Joleon Lescott
18. Phil Jagielka

Midfielders:
4. Steven Gerrard
7. Theo Walcott
8. Frank Lampard
11. Ashley Young
16. James Milner
17. Scott Parker
19. Stewart Downing
20. Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain

Attackers:
9. Andy Carroll
10. Wayne Rooney
21. Jermain Defoe
22. Danny Welbeck

End of Season Review.

So as we bear down on the Euro 2012 championships in Poland and Ukraine (which tonight has struck fear into everyone) we have seen possibly the most exciting Premiership season ever, which we are hoping can be emulated and surpassed with next season! Here is what I believe has been the standout points of the season:

Signing of the season: Demba Ba - Newcastle (Free): Demba Ba's season fizzled out as Papiss Cisse came to the fore as Newcastle's new goalscorer (might be something to do with the number 9 shirt?) but Ba's contribution has been nothing short of phenomenal. He finished the season with 16 goals in 34 games but his overall play was also excellent as he was used as a target man and goalscorer through Newcastle's campaign and then due to the arrival of his compatriot Cisse, he was pushed out to the left wing. Ba's play on the left wing was good but it was also very professional as the light was taken off him and put on Cisse who took up the burden with aplomb but Ba's part in Newcastle's push for European football was one of the most significant. His goals during the early part of the season were key to ensuring Newcastle's 13 game unbeaten start and continuing their form which cemented them into the European football places. They so narrowly missed out on a Champions League place (not as narrowly as Tottenham) and Ba's part in this was key as they missed him quite badly over the time he was with Senegal at the African Cup of Nations.

Worst Signing of the season: Charles N'Zogbia - Aston Villa (£9.5million): N'Zogbia was signed as an attacking midfielder by Villa boss Alex McLeish but his first season at Villa was bitterly disappointing as he only scored 2 goals in 30 appearances and his form was not good enough for Alex Mcleish to give him a permanent starting role. I think Mcleish's style of play was also key in N'Zogbia's poor first campaign as his style isn't exactly that of exciting, fast football.. rather opting for the more defensive-minded approach. Hopefully a new manager and new season will breathe fresh life into N'Zogbia but for now he is seen by me as a bit of a flop.

Overachievers: Newcastle United; 5th place finish. Newcastle's season was predicted as one of mediocrity, after all, they hadn't spent much and yet more boardroom disagreements surely meant a mid-table at best finish? Apparently not. Newcastle's team put together a mix of outstanding spirit and reliability to mount a considerable push for Champions League football which they were unfortunate to just miss out on as it went down to the last day of the season. However, if you had told a Newcastle fan that they would have been pushing for Champions League and would have to settle for Europa League football they would have probably told you to see a psychiatrist. With modest signings Demba Ba, Yohan Cabaye and Davide Santon (later joined by Cisse) slotting into Newcastle's style seamlessly, St James' Park was offered an exciting brand of attacking football which was accompanied by some sturdy defending led by captain Fabricio Coloccini.

Underachievers: Liverpool; 8th place finish. Yes, Liverpool did win the Carling Cup but aside from that triumph they were a laughing stock of the big teams. King Kenny had returned and was just about to begin his first full season back with Liverpool, England's exciting young striker Andy Carroll had signed (for an astronomic fee) and Dalglish forked out £60 million on signings including Charlie Adam, Stewart Downing, Jordan Henderson, Doni, Jose Enrique, Sebastian Coates and Craig Bellamy. However Liverpool's season soon turned to a desperate whimper as they only won half their league games and drew 9 games at Anfield, losing another 4. The Carling Cup win should have signaled an upturn in fortunes for Liverpool but they only won 4 of their remaining 13 league games. They were also beaten finalists in the F.A. cup final but for what was hopeful pre-season feeling somewhat filtered out into an undignified finish which ultimately cost 'King Kenny' his job.

The Premiership saw what was probably it's most exciting season to date as Manchester City won the league after a dramatic late 3 - 2 win over QPR on the final day of the season after a tit-for-tat battle with Manchester United which went right to the wire, Manchester United even believed they had won it at full-time of their 1 - 0 win away to Sunderland, but up popped Edin Dzeko and Sergio Aguero in injury time to give Man City their first league title since 1968. The race for third also went to the final day of the season with Arsenal, Tottenham and Newcastle all pushing for the last automatic Champions League spot with Arsenal clinching it by a point with a 3 - 2 win away to West Brom, while Tottenham had to settle for 4th (which unfortunately didn't even get them a Champions League spot due to Chelsea's Champions League win). The final relegation spot also was decided on the last day with it being between Bolton and QPR and QPR narrowly avoiding relegation despite losing at the City of Manchester so Bolton joined Wolves and Blackburn in next season's Championship.

The Champions League also came to a dramatic conclusion with Chelsea completing their heroics and the players being written into West London folklore as they put the icing on the cake with a 4 - 3 penalty shootout win in Munich. After overcoming the odds to beat Napoli and reigning champions Barcelona they came up against Bayern Munich in the final and with 4 first team players out through suspension and Bayern having a home-field advantage, Chelsea were seen as underdogs, especially after Thomas Muller nodded in the 83rd minute opener and Chelsea seemingly (for the umpteenth time in the competition) down and out, but up popped the talismanic Didier Drogba in the 88th minute to bullet in a trademark header. Drogba then slotted in the winning penalty to send the Chelsea fans into delirium. This had effects onto the Premiership as this meant that Tottenham had to settle for a Europa League spot despite finishing 4th in the league, it also has effects on football with Sepp Blatter reportedly thinking of scrapping penalty shootouts (just because an English team won, boo hoo.)

Premiership Winners: Manchester City
F.A. Cup winners: Chelsea
Champions League winners: Chelsea
Carling Cup winners: Liverpool
Premiership Top Scorer: Robin Van Persie


Here's to another quality season starting in August!

England squad reaction

You know it's a tough job naming any England squad, but Roy Hodgson has been in the job a little over a fortnight and has already been slated left, right and centre for the inclusions in his Euro 2012 squad. There have been trends on twitter of 'Hodgson out' and it seems as if Hodgson has not flattered the English nation. It seems as if we were destined to moan because that's what we do best, but at this current time.. We certainly have reason with a number of disappointing additions to the squad. Hodgson was never going to have everyone's backing because there is too much division at club level for most to agree at international level.. therefore, every time someone thinks Carrick should be in the squad, there will be three people ready to make the case for Gareth Barry's inclusion ahead of Carrick.

The fact that Hodgson has included two uncapped players in Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain and John Ruddy has had no-one bat an eyelid but it seemed fitting that the England gaffer would give these two a chance after their performances at club level, with Ruddy catching the eye between the sticks at Norwich City who had a great season back in the top-flight and Oxlade-Chamberlain showing us what an exciting prospect he is in the second half of the season with some excellent performances both on the wing and in centre midfield for Arsenal.

It wasn't the uncapped that people are arguing about, however, and no-one is complaining about the goalkeeping selections and the defending selections are mostly backed. It seems as though, despite having few caps, that Leighton Baines is a nationally renowned player for his reliability in defence and his dangerous delivery at set pieces, and who better to back up current international mainstay Ashley Cole than the PFA team of the year's left back?

Kyle Walker's exclusion was inevitable as it is not believed he will be back from his toe injury in time for the tournament, but why hasn't Hodgson taken Man City right-back Micah Richards? He hasn't played much recently but that's due to the reliability of fellow City defender Pablo Zabaleta, whenever Richards has been called upon (Even captaining City during Vincent Kompany's absences) he has ably performed, not least in the Newcastle match where he threw his body at a goal-ward shot after coming on to shore up and see out the game. Gary Cahill, Joleon Lescott and Glen Johnson's selections are justified as Cahill and Lescott have had impressive seasons, and with Walker out Johnson was bound to be there if not as a first team choice, then as back up in the right full-back spot. Rio Ferdinand's exclusion has been drawn on and the reasoning is apparently 'footballing reasons', this is blatantly a backlash from the decision to include John Terry as the never-ending race row between Terry and Rio's brother Anton has caused yet another rift in the England camp, which Terry seems to have come out on top of as even with his dodgy recent couple of months (being torn apart by Liverpool and his ill-disciplined sending-off against Barcelona) by boarding the plane to the Euros. Phil Jones is a player who many seem as a bit off a loose cannon in defence after an effective start for Man United caved in to some poor performances but he is probably there for the big tournament experience as he may be a dead-cert to go to the World Cup in 2014.

Midfield selections Scott Parker, Steven Gerrard (who is most people's selection as captain on a permanent basis due to his experience), Ashley Young, Theo Walcott, Frank Lampard and uncapped Oxlade-Chamberlain seem justified after all have had impressive seasons. Gareth Barry's season has been up and down for City but ended in a strong fashion as he played outstandingly in City's run-in and if he had not been in most would have called for Michael Carrick who has had a consistent season in the middle of the park for Man United. Stewart Downing's inclusion has had many fans disgruntled as the Liverpool wide-man endured a tough season, racking up no goals and no assists (if this form gets you into the Euro squad then I could go) for the Merseysiders who had a tough season themselves, despite winning the Carling Cup they finished 8th, behind rivals Everton and consequently got Kenny Dalglish sacked. Many fans would have rather had Aaron Lennon in the squad who is not only more of a threat than Downing, but also has a considerably more effective end product. James Milner's inclusion has batted a few eyelids after all, he can't even get into the Man City line-up (which is more than likely what Adam Johnson's downfall was, resulting in him being a reserve) because we can't doubt that both are good players and Johnson's play and delivery cutting in from the right-wing can be devastating, but Milner's versatility and work-rate probably just nudged him ahead of his club colleague.

The strikers were always going to be a huge talking point, some people were deliberating whether Wayne Rooney should even go due to his two-match ban after picking up a silly red card in the final qualifier, but of course we have to take Wayne Rooney, he is one of few world class players in the England squad and leaving out the second highest scorer in the Premiership would be seen as a fatal flaw in Hodgson's plans had he left him out. The problem was always going to be, who would replace Rooney in the first two games? And also, who would Rooney partner when he returns? Andy Carroll was seen as a bit of a joke in the squad after having a disappointing season for Liverpool after having the £35million price-tag slapped on his head but with his end of season form picking up pace, grabbing a few goals on the way and causing defence the problems he used to, Carroll could be the the thorn in opposition sides we need. Danny Welbeck's inclusion was roundly accepted as the young Man United forward had a decent season, partnering Rooney in attack and keeping both Dimitar Berbatov and Javier Hernandez out of the team, I think with Welbeck this is again a build of experience to get him to the stepping stone of the World Cup in 2014, who says that Welbeck can't spring a surprise on the way because he is a promising young striker who could become a major part of England's future. Jermain Defoe was a good inclusion by Hodgson in my eyes, he scored 17 goals in 38 games for Tottenham this season and most of those came from the bench as Emmanuel Adebayor took on the role of main Spurs striker and Defoe nearly always came on and did what was needed of him, I'm surprised he didn't start more games for Tottenham as Adebayor's form waved at certain points of the season. The shock exclusion for me in the striking department is Peter Crouch, he is a good footballer who can cause opposition problems with his height and his England scoring record tells its own story, he certainly shouldn't have been overlooked.

Hopefully reserves won't need to be called upon but Phil Jagielka is a sturdy addition as he has been Everton's Mr. Consistent at centre-back and I'm glad he got the nod, even if it wasn't in a more first-team basis. Adam Johnson and Daniel Sturridge's selections as reserves are good additions as both are young and exciting players, but it again begs the question, could have they been included in the first 23? Jordan Henderson's inclusion has also caused many fans to be disgruntled as he is another who has had a disappointing season but seems to have done enough to grab a spot in Hodgson's mind.

Do you think Hodgson's squad is justified? Who would you have taken?

EURO 2012 ENGLAND SQUAD

GK: Joe Hart, Rob Green, John Ruddy

DEF: Leighton Baines, Ashley Cole, Gary Cahill, Phil Jones, Joleon Lescott, John Terry, Glen Johnson

MID: Gareth Barry, Stewart Downing, Steven Gerrard, Frank Lampard, James Milner, Alex Oxlade- Chamberlain, Scott Parker, Theo Walcott, Ashley Young

FW: Andy Carroll, Jermaine Defoe, Wayne Rooney, Danny Welbeck

Stand-by: Butland, Phil Jagielka, Jordan Henderson, Adam Johnson, Daniel Sturridge

REACTION TO FOLLOW.

Manager of the season

This season saw many candidates of manager of the season; from Roberto Martinez's overly positive approach (often mocked by many) bearing fruit as his side survived relegation after an amazing turn of form at the end of the season, claiming scalps such as Man United, Arsenal and Liverpool, to Brendan Rodgers guiding his Swansea side to an 11th place finish in their first ever season in the top-flight and playing one of the most attractive brands of football in the league. These are my candidates and who I think should have been the eventual winner:

Paul Lambert's Norwich side have gone about their business in a no-frills fashion. With much of the praise and many of the headlines going to Swansea and their attractive passing game it was easy to forget about Norwich City but they only finished a place below Swansea on goal difference. Their steady run throughout the Premiership season and star man Grant Holt scoring 15 league goals this season (the second highest Englishman in the league behind Rooney). They're not a team of stand-out stars but they are all reliable, hard-working footballers who will give everything for the club and that is the kind of player which will thrive under Paul Lambert's guidance. With 12 wins, 11 draws and 15 losses in their first season back in the Premiership since 2005, all masterminded by Lambert meaning they have been the steady surprise package after the first months of the season, their best results both coming in North London with a thrilling 3 - 3 draw at the Emirates Stadium and a shock 2 - 1 win at White Hart Lane. Lambert's first taste of Premiership management ended well with a 12th place finish.

Brendan Rodgers' Swansea City side have been the best of the bunch out of the promoted teams this season (a season in which none of the promoted sides went straight back down for the first time since 2001-2002). Their attractive passing game being complimented by a hard-working defensive side of play, being helped by the Liberty Stadium becoming something of a fortress; grabbing 7 wins at home including victories over Man City and Arsenal. Rodger's also proved to be astute in the transfer market, grabbing 'keeper Michel Vorm for £1.5million who has proved to be one of the signings of the season and also signing loanee Gylfi Sigurdsson in January whose goals have helped ease the burden from top-scorer Danny Graham. Rodger's led Swansea to an 11th placed finish in their first-ever season in the top-flight which is an outstanding achievement.

Roberto Martinez's nomination by me would probably have been laughed off in February because in the previous months they won just one game from December 10th to February 11th (10 games), however in these games they did draw against Chelsea and Liverpool consecutively but at this time they were firmly in the relegation places. On March 24th however, Wigan's season, along with their fortunes changed. They went to Anfield with many expecting them to be heavily beaten but they managed to dig in and grab a vital, and shocking, 2 - 1 victory, this signaled a change in Wigan's season as they proceeded to win 6 of their last 8 games, including home wins against Man United and Newcastle and a vital 2 - 1 away win against Arsenal. Martinez's side also play an attractive brand of passing football without any real reward up until the last part of the season but Martinez's philosophy (as well as his unerring and unrelenting positivity) was partnered with a new self-belief among the players and a hard-working mentality. Wigan eventually pulled through after being considered down and out to finish in 15th place, 7 points above the relegation zone.

Alan Pardew's Newcastle side were the surprise package of the whole league this season. After being predicted another season of mediocrity and with troubles brewing at the beginning of the season including Joey Barton's dodgy departure and Mike Ashley once again troubling the on and off pitch goings on it was hard to predict Newcastle would do any better than a mid-table finish. With no real cash being spent in the transfer market with only £14million being spent on players such as Davide Santon, Yohann Cabaye and Gabriel Obertan and with free signings Demba Ba from relegated West Ham and Sylvain Marveaux from Rennes, it looked to be an unspectacular season for the Geordies. Fast-forward to May and a 5th-place finish, with them for much of the season battling for 3rd and them beating Manchester United 3 - 0 and Chelsea 2 - 0 to show just how much they improved this season. Their striking partnership of Demba Ba and Papiss Cisse has netted 29 goals in the league between them and both highly regarded as signings of the season; not bad for getting Ba on a free and Cisse for just £10million in January. Their team has shown amazing spirit and a hard-working ethic which has been mastered by Pardew and the team he has built since taking over in December 2010. 

For me,  I have saved the best until last in Manager of the season and I was happy to hear that Alan Pardew has been awarded manager of the season and also LMA manager of the year. He has masterminded Newcastle's highest league finish since the days of the late great Bobby Robson and he also oversaw one of Newcastle's strongest openings to a season by going 11 games unbeaten before losing to Man City. Their signings have all integrated well into the squad and the return to form of Hatem Ben Arfa has been paramount in maintaining their form but Pardew has shown his managerial skills by giving them the man-management and managerial approach the Newcastle players have needed and so far, thrived under.

Cristiano Ronaldo - Tested to the Limit link

If you haven't watched this, you need to! This guy is a machine!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vSL-gPMPVXI

PFA team of the year review

The PFA team of the year has been going since 1974 and is the PFA's way of recognizing the stellar performers over the season, it is often a point of debate where players are excluded despite having notably their best seasons but unfortunately obviously players have done better than them! In this post I will be going through the players who were included, why, and who else could have taken their place.

In goal there was probably no other outstanding candidate than Joe Hart, he fended off (easily, in my opinion) competition from Swansea newcomer Michel Vorm and a late bid from Norwich 'keeper John Ruddy. Hart has been a mainstay in Man City's push for the title this season with 17 clean sheets in 37 games so far which is the highest in the league and he is more than likely going to get the golden glove award for the second season in a row. Swansea goalkeeper Michel Vorm, who like his club, has had a taste of his first season in the Premiership and has taken it in his stride with relative ease. He was a relative unknown until Swansea signed him and he ably took on the challenge, despite conceding four in his first match against Man City he made many saves which stopped the result being a probable cricket score, with 13 clean sheets in his (and his club's) first season in the Premiership he has been a rock between the sticks for Swansea with his cat-like reflexes and ability to command his defence which is always what a defence want from a goalkeeper. In my opinion Joe Hart was the right choice as goalkeeper in team of the year.

Left-back was a difficult one this year and I would have probably opted for Gael Clichy, who has improved immensely in a rock-solid City back four since his move from Arsenal last summer or Manchester United captain Patrice Evra who has had a typically reliable figure at the back for Manchester United this season. The place went to Everton left-back Leighton Baines who has been an excellent player for the blue team of Merseyside since he joined from Wigan in 2007 and has always been consistent in defence as well as attack, he is also capable of racking up assists and goals through his wand of a left foot as he is a dangerous threat from set-pieces, grabbing four goals and two assists this season. Gael Clichy was always a player with huge potential at Arsenal, with lightning pace and the engine to run all day long he is an outstanding athlete but sometimes lacked the defensive positioning and capabilities to be a trustworthy defender. This season he has improved the defensive side of his game alongside the likes of Kompany and Lescott who have given him the stability and confidence he needed to perhaps fulfill his potential. Patrice Evra came through his ordeal with Luis Suarez with his head held high and despite Man United's grip on the title slipping recently he has been the consistent performer for them at the back, he always plays with full desire and energy and is reliable defensively and offensively through making penetrating overlapping runs and his reliability has been rewarded through being given the stand-in captaincy while Nemanja Vidic recovers from injury.

Centre back slots were given to Vincent Kompany (a choice which I have no qualm's with) and Newcastle's  best haircut holder Fabricio Coloccini. Vincent Kompany has been a rock at the heart of the City defence, he was a surprise exclusion from the player of the year nomination category and City seemed to lose stability whenever he wasn't on the pitch. He was missing for a while through injury and it seems to be no surprise to me that the period of time he was missing was City's roughest patch of the season where their title challenge faltered and wavered. Any match I've watched this season with Kompany involved he has been the stand-out defender with excellent defensive tackles and blocks and he barely ever loses a header. On the face of it, Fabricio Coloccini looks like a surprise inclusion to the PFA team of the year but if you delve deeply into it Coloccini is actually a pretty stable addition, the man with the afro bonce has stepped up as Newcastle captain and despite not having his regular partner Steven Taylor, he has marshaled his defence and taught his deputy Mike Williamson excellently, so excellently in fact that Mike Williamson has become a good performer at the back for Newcastle. The only other candidate I can see for centre-back would have been Tottenham rock Younes Kaboul who has been one of the most improved defenders in the league over the past few years.

The right-back spot seemed an inevitability when Kyle Walker was named PFA young player of the year and after grabbing his crown there can be no arguments of his addition in his position. He has been one of the reasons for me that the Tottenham team has looked better as a whole this season with his athleticism and raw pace and power down the right, adding this to his defensive ability and bombarding runs forward which often create chances you have a formula which creates a quality modern day right-back. He has been rewarded recently with a new contract and he celebrated this with his second goal of the season which was an outstandingly struck free-kick in the 2 - 0 win against relegated Blackburn which was his second goal of the season. The only other candidate I see who could have possibly taken this from Walker was Manchester City right-back Micah Richards who has had a good season with some dominant appearances and being named stand-in captain when Kompany was absent through injury or suspension.

The winger spots went to both Gareth Bale and David Silva, these don't come as a surprise to me as both of them were nominations for PFA player of the year. Bale has had another outstanding season for Tottenham and despite looking off the rails in recent weeks his early and mid-season form were brilliant and his 9 goals this season, countless assists and electric performances on left-wing were a huge factor behind Spurs push for Europe and their brand of football being touted as one of the best in England. David Silva's inclusion is justified through him being the most vital component in Man City's forward line, he has racked up 6 goals and 14 assists in 32 appearances and despite his mid-season slump is still one of Man City's most influential players going forward. Other candidates for the wings could have been Man United wingers Antonio Valencia and Ashley Young who have had good seasons, especially Young who has made the step up from Aston Villa to Manchester United admirably. Also Chelsea's mini Spanish winger Juan Mata who has been one of the signings of the season and also probably being Chelsea's best player this year, grabbing 6 goals and 13 assists so far this season, certainly being their most consistently influential player going forward this season.

Centre midfield spots went to Yaya Toure and Scott Parker, Scott Parker's inclusion was made after his nomination for PFA player of the year and despite not having any goals or assists, his first season in the heart of Spurs midfield has seen his performances be rewarded with the England captaincy against Holland (a game in which he shone) and his performances have improved since his move from West Ham, I think this is due to him having better players around him (no disrespect to West Ham) and that is saying something because during his final season at West Ham his performances and attitude were rewarded with the Football Writer's Association Award. Yaya Toure has been the other midfield dynamo for Man City and is another surprise exclusion from the PFA player of the year award nominees after his dominant performances in midfield for City, his presence was missed in January/February when he was away at the African Cup of Nations with Ivory Coast and that was another reason for Man City's dip in form during that time. He is a sheer man-mountain in the midfield for Man City and his box-to-box midfield style as well as his dominating 6"4 frame (he is what we call "a fridge with legs") he has helped City's title challenge with 6 goals, most importantly grabbing a brace in the 2 - 0 win against Newcastle which has more than likely handed City the title, he was also rewarded with the African Player of the Year at the end of 2011 which was an achievement for a midfielder as the crown has only ever been won by forwards. The other candidate for the midfield spot were Clint Dempsey, who could maybe have taken the place of Scott Parker if he had been playing for a bigger club after grabbing 17 goals in the league and becoming the first American to score 50 goals in the Premiership.

The striking spots were always going to go to two men, both of which are the top two scorers in the league this season, grabbing 56 league goals between them this season so far. Robin Van Persie has been the best player in the league this season, despite his club's horrendous start and patchy form this season he has always been the man to drag Arsenal out of the pits this season and his 30 league goals and link-up and assist play have put Arsenal into third place and in the driving seat to grab the last automatic Champions League spot. His performances have been rewarded with the Football Writer's Association player of the year and PFA player of the year. Wayne Rooney has been Man United's best player this season, he has been the spearhead in their attack and the main figure behind their title challenge this season, he has scored 26 league goals this season including two hat-tricks at the beginning of the season. They seemed to be the two most likely additions up front after both having outstanding goal-scoring seasons and both being nominated for PFA player of the year (Van Persie being the obvious eventual winner). Another candidate could have been Sergio Aguero who in his first season in the Premiership so far has 22 goals and is the third highest scorer in the league, also being nominated for both the PFA player and young player of the year awards.

Do you think the choices for PFA team of the year were right?

Home-grown talent

English football over the recent years has become a target for the influx of foreign investors which have been taking over and investing countless millions into clubs and giving managers endless transfer kitty’s to buy talent from abroad. Less and less money is being invested into club’s academies and looking at home-grown talent you could find in your local club or down the park on a Sunday/Saturday morning but it seems as if scouts are more likely to be sent abroad to Europe or the South Americas to find talent than to a semi-professional club in London – which surely seems to be the easiest and best route for the club and most importantly which could boost home-grown talent’s reputation which is only just on the up due to the emergence of players such as Daniel Sturridge and Chris Smalling.

Speaking of Chris Smalling, his story is probably the most interesting. In 2008, he was playing for local club Maidstone United, after a series of impressive performances for both Maidstone and next club Fulham, two years later he signed a pre-contract agreement with none other than Manchester United. So in the space of two years, Smalling went from turning out for his local club to impressing so much at Fulham he was signing for the most successful team in England and one of the most followed clubs in the world, he is a shining example of what England can really do if investment and effort can be put into looking for home-grown talent. At the age of 22 and just completing his second full season at Manchester United, he has gone onto make more than 30 appearances for the club and he has represented England at multiple levels but most importantly gone onto make three appearances for the full national team and is surely a candidate to be on the plane to the Euros in the summer. Not a bad career rise in four years is it?

“It’s a dream come true, to be able to contribute to one of the world’s best teams is most definitely something I have to pinch myself about, at Maidstone there was a lot of players who were at a higher level and dropped down and I was just breaking through at that time and I was still in school. But I think in terms of learning more, they had a lot of experience which made it a lot easier for me in playing alongside them.” Smalling told Soccerbible.com in a 2011 interview.

The Premier League took obvious steps in helping English talent in time for the 2010-2011 season when they introduced the ‘home-grown’ rule which determined that clubs in the Premiership must have at least 8 players trained in England and 3 trained by the club for three years between the ages of 16-21, this was announced in 2009 after Premier League chief executive Richard Scudamore said the majority of clubs in the league voted for the implementation of the rule. The flaw in this rule was that clubs could sign from abroad at the tender ages of 16 and 17 and nurture them as their own, the most obvious example of this is former Arsenal captain Cesc Fabregas who was classed a ‘home-grown’ player. He has now subsequently returned to Barcelona but at the age of 15 he was taken from Barcelona’s youth academy by Arsenal and this saw him count as a player who came under the ‘home-grown’ rule. Not only has the home-grown talent got to compete with players who are bought for upwards of £10million from abroad but they also have to compete with the young prodigies from foreign clubs who can be classed as home-grown themselves.

The implemented rule has meant English clubs have had to put more faith into home-grown talent, whether they liked it or not. Optastats say that last season over a third (35.4%) of all players who started in the Premiership over 38 league games were English, this is not such a bad statistic at first glance but considering this is the English league and that was after the home-grown rule was applied this could have been a significantly less figure in seasons gone by.

With the investments of businessmen such as Chelsea owner Roman Abramovich who seemed to set a trend in 2003 when the Russian billionaire invested in the West London club and they proceeded to spend £112million in that summer on footballing stars such as Claude Makelele and Hernan Crespo, only three players of that 11 man spending spree were English. Since Abramovich took over, Chelsea have spent just over £600million on players and only £55million of that was invested on eight English players. This has set a worrying trend as new Manchester City owner Sheikh Mansour has quickly followed suit since his acquisition of the blue half of Manchester in August 2008. Since taking over in 2008, the Man City owner has not only spent money on getting the club out of the debt which previous owner Thaksin Shinawatra had got them in but he has also spent £359million on players in four years (with £88million being spent on six English players, a better record than Chelsea) which is set to overtake Abramovich and Chelsea’s record which stands at £600million in 9 years.

It seems that English football has now become a land where wealth has put on trophy laden seasons; since Chelsea’s injection of cash and stars they had won six trophies in three years between 2004 and 2007 and this included their first league title in 50 years in 2005. Since Manchester City’s takeover in 2008 Champions League football has become the least fans expect; they also won their first trophy in 35 years in winning the 2011 F.A Cup and also putting on a considerable title charge this season which could see them beat rivals United and win their first top-flight title in 44 years. The problem with spending absurd amounts of money on players is that yes, clubs may be able to afford to but this has ramifications down the scale; do the big clubs not look towards the clubs down the other end of the spectrum? If you take £500,000 of the multi-millions which is spent on players it could help clubs like Portsmouth and Port Vale to get out of the financial rut they found themselves in. My eye is cast towards my local team, Windsor & Eton F.C. who had to fold not so long ago due to money worries but they managed to pick themselves back up and reformed as Windsor F.C in 2011, the money would have probably helped them as well as many other semi-professional and grass roots clubs no end.

The biggest problem which stems from this is the English National team itself. If so many millions are being spent on foreign superstars then the future (and sometimes present) England team will suffer as a result through lack of quality. I think a reason that manager’s don’t trust English talent is something to do with the so-called ‘Golden Generation’ which failed England so spectacularly in crashing out in the quarter-final or earlier of every international competition since 1998 – even failing to qualify for the Euro 2008 competition. Here was England’s most talented group of players since the likes of Hurst and Moore, boasting worldwide stars like Gerrard, Lampard and Terry but they failed to shine in nearly every competition they played in – most recently just scraping through the group stages of the 2010 World Cup with lacklustre performances in all games.

Admittedly the future does look brighter for English football’s home-grown talent through the home-grown rule being applied to the Premiership but the problem still lies in manager’s and clubs wanting to throw money left, right and centre to get the world’s best talent when in fact their respective clubs could be helped by a home-grown player who with the right training could shine just as much as someone from Santos or Barcelona. I believe a reason for the highly noted recent success for the Spanish National team is because most of their team ply their trade in the Spanish league or have been in one of the top Spanish teams, at the moment 15 recent call-ups play for either Real Madrid or Barcelona (the rest playing in the Spanish league besides Mata and Torres, who are Chelsea partners too) so this means they have forged a close bond not just at national level but club level too, meaning a greater chemistry amongst the team, the problem with England is that all too many of them play for different clubs and rivals causing too much bitterness amongst the camp.

Top-flight teams need to start taking a greater look into our own pastures for talent instead of jumping to the quickest conclusion and drawing out their chequebook because their answer could literally be just around the corner.