Posts Tagged ‘International Retirement’
Neville criticises England selections
Gary Neville isn’t one to withhold his thoughts on football issues. This has been the case for a number of years now. He is a passionate professional who often has something to say, mainly on matters concerning Manchester United and England.
On this occasion, it is the latter that has attracted Neville’s attention, in particular, the provisional World Cup squad selected by Fabio Capello last week. The defender has questioned the decision to include only one right-back for the World Cup.
Glen Johnson is the only player in the 30-man squad that plays regularly in the position and Neville thinks that this is a mistake. He said he is very “surprised” because in a tournament such as the World Cup, cover in every position is needed. Anyone with a betting system could be put off backing England because of a lack of depth.
As for his own chances of making the squad, Neville says that although he though there was a chance he could get in, he wasn’t “overly disappointed” by the omission. Instead, he was more annoyed with the fact that his team-mate Wes Brown wasn’t included.
The main reason that Brown and Neville missed out of course, was due to the versatility of Jamie Carragher who was pick. The Liverpool man can play at centre-back or right-back and this would have influenced Capello’s decision. England remain many people’s football tips for this year’s tournament, but it remains to be seen if the squad are up to the job.
Neville was also keen to give his opinion on another talking point of the World Cup squad - the attempt to lure Paul Scholes out of international retirement. He said that he “wasn’t surprised” by Capello’s attempt, but believes it was a “bit desperate” of the Italian.
Many would suggest that Neville’s outspoken views on the squad are just a backlash on his part for missing out on a seat on the plane to South Africa. It does probably mean that he will never get to add to his 85 England caps, after all.
The 35-year-old is just being honest though and it would have hardly sat well with him that Carragher - a Liverpool player who he has clashed with in the past - was picked ahead of him and his Manchester United team-mate.
Tags: Backlash, England Caps, Fabio Capello, Football Issues, Football Tips, Gary Neville, Glen Johnson, International Retirement, Jamie Carragher, Liverpool, Man Squad, Manchester United, Omission, Outspoken Views, Provisional World, South Africa, Team Mate, Versatility, Wes Brown, World Cup Squad