Umm Pause???

Wayne Rooney out on a jetski but obviously it is a pink one. Him and his family are on vacation in Barbados enjoying the sun and being much more of a role-model than Ashley Cole who was seen smoking and hawking down groupies who would flash him at any moment (Ashley Cole, professional athlete: Is it any wonder our World Cup Campaign went up in smoke?). So good on Wayne for spending time with the fam. Just man that jetski up a little bit.

Respect is Due..

(That is a big watch by the way)

Alright, I have called this man out millions of millions of times but we all know that this is a class footballer and I will pay respect when it is due. With a 40 goal season with Manchester United, leading them to Champions League glory and exceeding expectations at Real Madrid, he deserves all the respect that is given to him.

Most of us might not like him because of his brass cockiness. We cannot dispute that he is one of the best players of the world and on the rate he is going, he could potentially be one of the greatest legends.

You could say that his lifestyle choices aren't the best and he is an avid party animal. Unlike Ronaldinho and the real Ronaldo, he seems to grow stronger with every award he's received. Ronaldinho steadily dropped off once he won his FIFA World Player of the Year award. Ronaldo had the unlucky fortunes of getting injured time after time that caused his decline (even though I still think he could ball in the highest level). Even though he is at the tender age of 25 and probably still hasn't hit his prime yet (that is a scary thought) he will only get better if there is any way that he could be better.

This man has all the best qualities of a legendary footballer. He can strike a ball, has quick legs, can take free-kicks, is tall, and can head the ball. What more can you ask for? The only knock that I can think of is that he isn't the greatest passer but there are only a couple of great passers in the game right now. But he isn't a creative playmaker, he is more of a finisher. He is a Kobe Bryant compared to Xavi and Iniesta who are like Steve Nash.

He has won every award in the English game and will probably do the same (with the help of the Special One) in Spain. The only thing that allude this footballer is accolades in the international game. Like Messi and Rooney, he needs a signature performance in South Africa that will put him with the likes of Zidane, Pele, and Maradona. I think he is due for one. After getting to the semifinals in 06, it is time for him to make that next step.

I don't know if the quality of players in the Portugal National Team setup could help him (especially with his mate Nani being out of the tournament) but I am sure he will do everything in his power to keep his country in this tournament. He has done it with club. Why can't he do the same with country? I'm calling it! He is going to have a strong tournament. Portugal winning the World Cup? Well Michel Platini had one of those performances in 86 and he didn't leave with Jules Rimet Trophy. *Shrugs*

Backtracking??? and what to do with gerrard and lampard

So I remember before the England-Croatia game yesterday. Everyone was trying to talk about how the players on this England team wasn't world-class and they are just not good enough to make other leagues or other national teams and the fact that Croatia will wipe the floor with them in Zagreb. And I would tend to agree with them and that maybe some of these players are the product of the foreign talent that they have on the clubs. Yeah, England has talented players but still they might just be as good as the players that are around them on their club teams. For example Jon Terry has his best performances with Chelsea and the portuguese Carvalho and the same with Ferdinand and Manchester United with the Vidic.



A day later after a Theo Walcott hat trick and a demolitioning of Croatia. Everyone is talking about this tean like they are going to win the World Cup and they have everyone in the media just peeing in their pants talking about this team. It was only a day ago where people said that they did not have a chance of winning and would probably be grateful with a point out of this game. Now they are currently on top of the world in their terms, but i'm going to stay cynical because there could be one game that brings back in the England sucks chants for the media. And don't forget you have to re-incorporate Steven Gerrard back on the team once he gets healthy or do you? I don't know these questions will be answered by the next year when qualifying will end and hopefully for football (aka soccer) sake that England will be in this world cup and prove the doubters (and that includes me) wrong.

Steven Gerrard and Frank Lampard; that is the real question. What to do with him? Should you put him back in the lineup as an outside player or try to get him inside or to just leave him out of the starting 11 altogether. I think most England manager would be scared of leaving one of their "world-class" players on the bench but I don't know about Capello. He seems like he would be the kind of guy who would keep egos in check. I would think about doing this, when Gerrard gets healthy and they keep on with these results, leave him on the bench, because he should not be playing out wide I like Cole, Walcott, or Bentley being out there. They are natural born wide guys and they should be the ones playing their over just star guys. Maybe if Lampard isn't playing up to his capabilities you switch them on and off because it's obvious that they cannot play together, we've seen it many of times and it just doesn't work. And they play the same way with their club teams and probably both are on form with their club teams, then Capello should base what he should do with those two on national team training sessions and the games that they play with England. The best chance of England winning is either having one or the other on the feld not both.