Football Food For Thought / Dan Fitch / 29 June 2010 /

England's 'Golden Generation' has failed again. Dan 'The Betting Man' Fitch thinks it's time to throw most of that gold on the scrapheap and start again.

The players from the Portuguese team that won the FIFA Youth Championships in 1989 and 1991 were hailed as the 'Golden Generation' and great things were expected of them.

Unfortunately for the Portuguese, that generation of gifted players didn't include a single decent striker and though they came close on several occasions, they failed to get their hands upon any actual gold.

Portugal did at least come a lot closer to achieving something than England's so-called golden generation. England haven't got further than a quarter-final in recent years, despite having been blessed with players like Michael Owen, Paul Scholes, David Beckham, Sol Campbell, John Terry, Rio Ferdinand, Ashley Cole, Steven Gerrard, Frank Lampard, Joe Cole and Wayne Rooney.

Some of those players have now retired from international duty, while others were on the pitch during England's abysmal performance against Germany on Sunday. Is it now the moment to call time on what is increasingly becoming a generation of golden oldies?

This England team might have some great players, but they have failed to add up to anything more than an average team. There seems little point in keeping faith with them, when in all likelihood they will flatter to deceive once more at Euro 2012.

Starting at the back, Rio Ferdinand will be too old come 2014 and after an injury-hit season, might struggle to even make the next European Championships.

John Terry is still only 29 and theoretically could still be around in four years time. He's not the player he once was, but he's still good enough for England. Do we want to continue to employ a player though who has quite clearly disrupted the harmony of the squad?

Lampard is now 32. I expect he will play brilliantly for Chelsea for the next couple of seasons, but he's never really translated his club form for his country and is unlikely to start now. If he doesn't retire from the international game voluntarily, then bin him.

Then there's Steven Gerrard. At 30 he's still got at least a couple of years left, but unless he's played as a second striker behind Rooney, there's really no point in trying to accommodate him.

For Gerrard has been lord of the manor at Liverpool for so long, that he no longer has any tactical discipline. When he first broke through at Liverpool and for England it was as a defensive midfielder. Nowadays no manager would play Gerrard in a two-man central midfield, because they know that he'd leave his partner exposed.

Ashely Cole is the one member of the generation who can leave this World Cup with their head held high. He may have no class as man, but he is certainly a classy player. I don't expect that a better left-back will emerge in the next four years.

So for those that weren't keeping up, that's Ferdinand, Terry and Lampard on the scrapheap and they can be joined by David James, Matthew Upson, Ledley King, Jamie Carragher and Emile Heskey

Being an international manager is not all about picking the best team for every game. You also have to give opportunities to young players so they're experienced enough when a major tournament comes along.

We haven't been doing this and we need to start now. We should arrive at Euro 2012 with a young, humble team who don't think that they've already arrived.

Without the weight of expectation, maybe England will surprise some people... but then you notice that we're priced at just [9.2] to win the European Championships.

England never learns and always expects. Which means that it will take a very brave manager to wave goodbye to that golden generation.

'.$sign_up['title'].'

'; } } ?>

:

:

:

?

: