Do you honestly believe that apology had anything to do with him, it was just an FA press release attributed to Rooney cobbled together by their PR people

Sadly, I tend to agree.

How can players play the same role they do for their clubs in a system none of their respective clubs play?

Perhaps he's saying the system ought to change.

Yes, but how can Lampard play the way he does for Chelsea if the England side don't play the way Chelsea play?

Same for Gerrard and Rooney with Liverpool and Man Utd.

You can maybe run with one of the systems and hope they adapt (though I don't think England have the players to replicate the systems either of those three clubs play), but I don't think our "star" players have the tactical flexibility to do that, in fact they seem to prove it time and time again.

Gerrard could maybe play off Rooney the way he played off Torres at Liverpool in 08/09, but England don't have players who could do what Mascherano and Alonso did to make that system work.

We don't have anyone remotely Drogba-esque who makes Chelsea's system perfect for Lampard's game, or the personnel in midfield to make it tick.

Erm, if you read my post you'll see that's what I alluded to.

I really wish the commentators and pundits would give up with the patronising nonsense whenever an African team (except Algeria, they haven't seemed to cotton on that they too are African, wonder why?) do anything.

Eto just scored for the whole of Africa apparently, not Cameroon.

Because roles aren't necessarily dependent on a rigid system.

Rooney plays as a lone striker for Man U in Europe
Gerrard has a free role behind Torres at Liverpool
Lampard has the freedom to attack in the Chelsea team because he's got a defensive midfielder behind him.

Did you see it last week where they interviewed a few people in a bar saying how they are really knowledgable here. I can't remember the exact quote but it was extremely patronising, and that comment certainly would not have been said if it was to some English people.


As for this game, can't really look past the draw.

But still in the context of a whole team.

Lampard's freedom to get forward from his defensive midfielder just takes him into the areas Gerrard thrives in with the free role, they'd be getting in each others way more than ever, without a Drogba type bullying defenders and making the space for him.

Gerrard excelled behind a striker like Torres, a totally different player to Rooney, and the team worked because they had Mascherano and Alonso to balance it - they didn't have that this season and Gerrard was disappointing for a lot of it.

A lot of Rooney's goals came from crosses provided by wingers like Valencia hugging the touchline, who does that for England?

The system has to fit the group as a whole, or you have to have players to fit the system, we don't seem to have either capability, and we don't have the technical ability to play too fluidly.