Post England Exit statements...
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Some statements made after England's exit...this is interesting though...by Mcclown himself nonetheless...
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McClaren: My failure will benefit next England boss
Ousted England coach Steve McClaren is convinced his successor will benefit from his failure.
Much to the frustration of Manchester United boss Sir Alex Ferguson, McClaren did not last 12 hours in his job following England's stunning exit from the Euro 2008 qualifying competition.
FA chief executive Brian Barwick has been tasked with finding a replacement but already early favourite Martin O'Neill has ruled himself out, as have Sam Allardyce and Alan Curbishley, who were both interviewed when Sven-Goran Eriksson announced his intention to quit.
Although Barwick has vowed to take his time, it appears increasingly likely he will make another overseas appointment, with Fabio Capello among the foremost candidates if, as expected, Jose Mourinho declares a lack of interest.
But no matter who eventually gets the job, McClaren feels his dismal reign will actually be a major help.
'I believe, one day, we will get it right,' said McClaren.
'The next man may have a huge advantage because of what has been a failure.
'It is an advantage that you are starting from a situation where there is only one way to go now.
'The next manager could be in a far better position because the expectations are not that great.'
McClaren remains insistent he regrets nothing about his time in charge and feels his management abilities have improved because of the time he spent with England.
But for a mad five minutes in Moscow, he could well still be in a job, which is why he does not feel the 'root and branch' examination of the England set-up promised by FA chairman Geoff Thompson should trigger major changes.
'I believe in evolution, not revolution,' he said.
'The margins between success and failure at this level are extremely fine and we have seen that over the last few weeks.
'This time we have been the wrong side but I still believe the talent is there.'
McClaren intends to take a short break from the game before resuming his management career.
After excelling in spells as assistant at Derby and Manchester United, before bringing Middlesbrough their first major honour, McClaren should not be unemployed for long.
And he only need look at the impressive work Eriksson is doing at Manchester City to know redemption can be gained very quickly.
'I still have belief in myself and I believe I can emulate Sven,' he said.
'I have managed at the top level. I have coached. I have won trophies and I have managed England. That is the ultimate.
'Unfortunately, it didn't work out and I didn't have the success I wanted. But that doesn't mean to say I cannot recover, bounce back and learn and be a better person for it.'
The inspiration to emerge stronger for his trauma will come from within.
'There are many people I look to but the biggest inspiration comes from myself, not other people and what they do,' he said.
'It is what is inside that counts. I have had disappointments and failures before. This is huge. But I will recover and I will bounce back.'
However, for all the disappointments and abuse McClaren has suffered during the tortuous last 15 months, he does not believe coaching England is the impossible task many believe it to be.
'There is pressure and maybe there is a lot of expectation,' he said.
'But you have to deal with it and live with it because it is a privilege and honour to manage your country.'
Source: Soccernet -
James blasts Mac over keepers treatment
David James has blasted Steve McClaren's 'ludicrous' treatment of his goalkeepers during his ill-fated England reign.
After sticking with Paul Robinson as his number one for the entire Euro 2008 qualifying campaign, a series of errors prompted the England boss to call on Scott Carson for his competitive debut in last Wednesday's decider against Croatia.
But Carson was guilty of a disastrous early mistake which handed the Croatians their first goal in a 3-2 victory which sent England out - and cost McClaren his job.
James, who was sat on the bench at Wembley, was bemused by McClaren's decision and claimed he should have blooded new talent far earlier.
'At the last hurdle we switched goalkeepers and heaped pressure on ourselves. But we needn't have done. Over the past 17 months there were many opportunities to try out a variety of England goalkeepers. So why didn't we?,' James said in his column for The Observer.
Time and again different goalkeepers were brought into the squad - Chris Kirkland and Ben Foster were selected in the early stages, then Scott Carson and Robert Green and finally myself.
'But until the Austria game, and other than Paul Robinson, only Ben Foster - in the friendly against Spain - started a match.
'In the meantime the number-two goalkeeper sitting on the bench rotated between five of us. It's ludicrous.'
James added: 'Did sitting on the bench prepare Scotty for being in goal against Croatia, five days after his senior England debut, with the fate of the nation resting on his shoulders?
'Gianluigi Buffon made his debut as a 19-year-old in Italy's 1998 World Cup play-off qualifier against Russia and handled the pressure to keep a clean sheet for Italy to reach the finals.
'Scotty is a great keeper and will undoubtedly become England's number one in the future, but he didn't need to be put in that position, he should never have reached the Croatia game so poorly equipped in terms of experience.'
James has also warned that there is no quick fix to England's problems as they look towards qualifying for the 2010 World Cup.
'Whatever we do now is not going to solve the problem of qualification for 2010,' he added.
'With the new Fifa rankings placing us as second-string seeds in the European qualifying groups, the situation is a serious wake-up call.
'We're not going to grow a team in time for the World Cup - we will have to use what we've already got.'
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Indeed. I thought James would be better suited for the game instead of Carson since he wanted to drop Robinson
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yeah really ludicrous he left robert green out time and again....
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He got a more experienced keeper on the bench...and he dunwan to use.Originally posted by The man who was death:yeah really ludicrous he left robert green out time and again.... -
Platini advises FA to choose an English coach
UEFA president Michel Platini has warned England must appoint a homegrown coach as Steve McClaren's successor - or risk losing its football identity.
Platini implies the cosmopolitan nature of the Premier League is having a detrimental effect on his sport in this country.
'England is such a strong country that they have to take an Englishman,' he said, offering the Football Association some free advice.
'If I am looking for the manager of England, I would try to find a good English guy who everybody trusts to make a good team.'
The Frenchman recalls a time when English club sides were full of native players - but points out that is no longer the case.
'You have good players, although when I played against Arsenal or Aston Villa or West Ham when I was with Juventus you had 10 or 11 English players,' he added.
'If you are Manchester United, you need to have some players from Manchester. Children identify with that.
'I like your football, I like the games, I like the fans and the passion - but I don't like the fact that it is too open [in allowing in foreign players].
'When you lose with the national team, that is the soul of your football. It is my philosophy to protect the identity of the clubs and the country.'
Club football thrives when players hail from the town they are representing, Platini believes.
'Football was based on what?' he asks.
'Manchester United against Liverpool, with the players (from) Manchester and Liverpool, from that region. (Robbie) Fowler was from Liverpool; he grew up in that city - it was fantastic.
'But now you don't have the English players.
'In Arsenal now you don't have an English coach, English players, maybe not an English president soon.
'So why are they playing in England? Because of the fans, because of big business, because of the TV, because the clubs like that.
'I like [Arsenal manager] (Arsene) Wenger, I like (Sir Alex) Ferguson; I like their players, and they do what is best for the clubs. But it is not my philosophy.'
Source: Soccernet.com -
'Come and get me', Mourinho tells England
LONDON, Nov 28 (Reuters) - Former Chelsea coach Jose Mourinho has invited the Football Association (FA) to approach him about the vacant England manager's job, British media reported.
The Portuguese parted company with Chelsea in September after three successful years at Stamford Bridge.
'You will have to speak to the FA to see if they are interested in offering me the job,' Mourinho was quoted as saying in the Sun newspaper.
'I cannot say what I think until they say they are interested.
'Tell the FA to come and get me. We will have to wait and see, but I rule nothing out.'
Mourinho won two Premier League titles, two League Cups and the FA Cup after joining Chelsea in 2004, shortly after steering Porto to the Champions League title.
England are without a manager after Steve McClaren was sacked last week following the 3-2 defeat by Croatia which cost them a place at next year's European Championship.
Mourinho remains a respected figure among many fans in English football and would be a strong candidate for a job that would start in earnest with 2010 World Cup qualifying next year.
Italian coach Fabio Capello, Aston Villa's Martin O'Neill and Portsmouth's Harry Redknapp have also been tipped for the job, despite O'Neill ruling himself out of the running. -
In football no point using mouth to talk, it's the result that speak for itself. The player he use, the formation and tactic.
Till today, no one can really pull togather those English players to play as a team, cos they think that they r highly paid big fcuk.