Source: Daily_Mail
Sir Trevor Brooking tells top clubs... give our kids a chance!
Last month Fabio Capello attended a World Cup workshop in Madrid with Sir Trevor Brooking when members of a UEFA coaching committee made a point of complimenting them on the football being played by the England team. Only it was Brooking they addressed and England's Under 17 side that they were so excited by.[LNB]Unbeaten in 22 matches and victorious in the European Championship in the summer after beating Spain in the final in Liechtenstein, England's kids certainly do seem to be a bit of all right. So much so that many of John Peacock's young players have now been promoted to the Under 19 side Brooking went to see train earlier this week.[LNB]The Under 19s are an impressive bunch, even in the absence of the two Jacks, Rodwell and Wilshere, who were missing at West Bromwich Albion's training ground in Walsall for very different reasons. Rodwell is injured, but Wilshere will represent the Under 21s at Carrow Road on Friday before joining England's senior players for next week's European Championship qualifier against Montenegro.[LNB] Plea: Sir Trevor Brooking, the FA director of football development, has told top clubs to give their English kids a chance[LNB]But Brooking watched the players who have stepped up from the Under 17s and could not help but look ahead with a mixture of worry and excitement. He could not help but wonder if the potential they have all shown as teenagers will be realised.[LNB]For a moment Brooking dares to dream of what might be, should England win the 2018 World Cup bid in December. [LNB]With 17-year-old Josh McEachran starting to break into the first team at Chelsea and Ross Barkley (Everton), Connor Wickham (Ipswich) and Andre Wisdom (Liverpool) also progressing nicely, there is reason to be optimistic. [LNB]But then the Football Association's director of football development voices his concern that the progress of these lads could be hindered by a lack of first-team football in the Barclays Premier League.[LNB] London lights: Arsenal midfielder Jack Wilshere (left) and emerging Chelsea starlet Josh McEachran[LNB]Brooking said: 'When I first came into the job it was a shame that everyone thought of us as a country that played a physical style of game. There was this idea that an English coach couldn't go abroad and adapt. [LNB]'But I got really complimented by people last month on the way this group of players passed the ball. It is unusual for people at UEFA to come up to us and say that. 'Where have you got this group from?' they were asking.[LNB]'I would be very excited with this group if we won the 2018 bid. But it would put a lot more emphasis on how on earth we get these lads playing first-team football. If we win the bid in December then you would have to really give it some thought; on how to channel this group through because they can be a really good group.[LNB]'A tournament at home in 2018 could be big for us. Much of the disappointment with South Africa is because we realise South America in 2014 is going to be tough for the European teams.[LNB]'But by 2018 this little group and one or two in the 17s and 16s could be really interesting. They are coming from the same clubs that have developed our players in the past but, technically, this group is as good as any we have had.[LNB] All smiles: England players celebrate after scoring against Austria in the European Under 19 Championship[LNB]'It's also important they get as much tournament experience as they can, because it is different. But the main challenge is to establish where these players are going to play their first-team football in the next three or four years.'[LNB]Brooking says there are other challenges, too, and with the establishment of a centre of excellence at Burton by 2012 he hopes to see more full-time coaches for the younger age groups. [LNB]'The fact is you won't get the number and depth of quality young players unless we invest in full-time specialist coaches in the younger age groups,' he said. 'It is something other countries have already addressed.'[LNB]But the system has produced a group of kids capable, seemingly, of making an impact in 2018 and the man entrusted with their development at international level is quietly optimistic. [LNB]As a player, Noel Blake was an uncompromising centre half. [LNB]'People referred to me as the destroyer,' he said. 'Managers would say to me, 'you're there to destroy. If you pass one good ball in 90 minutes it's a bonus'.' [LNB] Helping talent flourish: Noel Blake (centre) is charged with bringing the best out of England's promising crop[LNB]But Blake is now the coach of England's Under 19s and trying to educate them in a more cultured, continental football style. [LNB]'The better club academies are now doing that anyway, which makes the job easier,' said Blake. 'But the one thing we emphasise is that as a nation we can't look after the ball and we don't know how to retain it. We put in a lot of work on that. We are very demanding.[LNB]'We say to them it's a challenge to look after the ball. We tell them if it's not on, don't force the pass. At international level you have to be more patient. [LNB]Not interested: The FA appear to have ruled out any pursuit of Bundesliga-based Lewis Holtby[LNB]'Within this group there are some very good players. Take the boy McEachran from Chelsea. He's talented. And there are others who can open the door with a pass. [LNB]'You have to probe. Just because you see a pass straight away, that doesn't necessarily mean it's the one you should play. We'll bide our time and then go for the jugular. It takes time to develop that mentality, to want to be patient in possession rather than look for the killer ball straight away. [LNB]'A lot of international football is played on the counter-attack. So we try to impart that as well.' [LNB]Blake considers Wilshere one of the best he has ever worked with. [LNB]'Jack's a man,' he said. 'And he understands the game. And when I look at this group of players, we've got boys being elevated to the senior ranks. But we need more qualified coaches and we need to see these players getting opportunities.'[LNB]The FA do not seem to think they need Lewis Holtby, though. The captain of Germany's Under 21s has made it pretty clear that, despite his English father, he wants to represent Germany. Brooking has no problem with that.[LNB]'We knew about Lewis and the feeling was that he wants to play for Germany,' he said. 'It would have also been unfair to people who are committed here. And remember, Germany's Under 21s haven't made the play-offs.'[LNB]Unlike England's. [LNB] Martin Keown's insight: Lewis Holtby reminds me McEachran and WilshereLewis Holtby: How did England miss a boy with the Midas touch?MARTIN SAMUEL: It's good to talk, Fabio (especially when your players really need it)FA set to miss out on Lewis Holtby, the Germany U21 captain who still qualifies for England[LNB]
