Jun

Unmagnificent 7 for those missing out on England World Cup dream

Is Walcott the big omission from the World Cup squad?

Naming an initial 30 man squad was always going to lead to disappointment for some players but most of the 7 players who were left would have had an inkling.

The omission of Theo Walcott is of interest, especially when you consider his shock inclusion in the 2006 World Cup squad.

Back then, English manager Sven Goran Eriksson believed that taking Walcott to the tournament would bring benefit to England for years to come but thats clearly not the case.

Fabio Capello is not a manager to worry beyond the current tournament. The approval of Gareth Barry’s fitness, if not for the initial game, indicates that Capello has his eye on the later part of the tournament but clearly he feels the inclusion of Barry is worth the wait.

Should Shaun Wright-Phillips and Aaron Lennon have been included in the squad? On their day, there are no doubts that the players have the ability to terrorise defenders and turn games but more so than Theo Walcott or Adam Johnson?

You only have to think how Walcott came off the bench to bring Arsenal back into the game in their Emirates game against Barcelona. Add that to the hat-trick he grabbed in Croatia which signalled the true starting point of Capello’s reign and you can say that Walcott had a great shout of getting onto the plane.

The same with Johnson, who fitted in well to life in the top flight at Eastlands but clearly Capello felt there was more to be gained other players being taken along.

Only four strikers means that Darren Bent has been omitted from the squad, despite comfortably outscoring Defoe, Crouch and Emile Heskey.

Goalkeepers: Joe Hart (Manchester City), David James (Portsmouth), Robert Green (West Ham).

Defenders: Jamie Carragher (Liverpool), Ashley Cole (Chelsea), Rio Ferdinand (Manchester United), Glen Johnson (Liverpool), Ledley King (Tottenham), John Terry (Chelsea), Matthew Upson (West Ham), Stephen Warnock (Aston Villa).

Midfielders: Gareth Barry (Manchester City), Michael Carrick (Manchester United), Joe Cole (Chelsea), Steven Gerrard (Liverpool), Frank Lampard (Chelsea), Aaron Lennon (Tottenham), James Milner (Aston Villa), Shaun Wright-Phillips (Manchester City).

Forwards: Peter Crouch (Tottenham), Jermain Defoe (Tottenham), Emile Heskey (Aston Villa), Wayne Rooney (Manchester United).

Dropped from the 30 man squad:
Theo Walcott (Arsenal), Leighton Baines (Everton), Michael Dawson (Tottenham), Scott Parker (West Ham), Darren Bent (Sunderland), Adam Johnson (Manchester City), Tom Huddleston (Tottenham)

Do you feel strongly that Fabio has got it right or wrong?