Source: Daily_Mail
EXCLUSIVE: GARY LINEKER - Rooney and Defoe can be as good as Beardsley and me
I have had a brilliant week getting married in Italy. What I didn't bargain for was every Italian waiter and hotel receptionist telling me England are going to win the next World Cup. That is the respect and faith they have in their countryman, Fabio Capello. My first reaction was that slightly defeatist way of England fans: 'Let's wait and see.'
After all, there is a concern about a lack of strength in depth, the need to stay clear of injuries - and we have been conditioned to 44 years of disappointment.
But I must admit the optimism of the Italians has put a spring in my step because if any nation knows what it takes to win the biggest prize in football, it is the reigning world champions. And we do have six genuine world-class players - John Terry, Rio Ferdinand, Ashley Cole, Steven Gerrard, Frank Lampard and Wayne Rooney. That's as many as the other big nations.
England squad
Competitive field: Rooney simply must start, but a role as his support striker is up for grabs, with a number of candidates
I think Capello will consider finding the ideal strike partner for Rooney his single most important job over the next few months.
And after last night's win against Slovenia, he has a real dilemma for Wednesday night. Does he go for the tried and trusted Emile Heskey, who hasn't let his country down in this campaign? Or does he choose Jermain Defoe, who is in the form of his life?
I think this could be the time to pick Defoe for an important match like Croatia. We have been searching for Rooney's ideal partner and it would be good to find out if Defoe is the answer. His goal last night means he has scored three times for England in 90 minutes of action this season.
Some strikers never adapt to international football so it is extremely tempting to give a player like him, bursting with confidence, a proper try.
You can't write off Heskey altogether because he takes the weight off Rooney so well with his strength, but at 31 he's not getting any younger and is less likely to be the long-term answer.
If Defoe can bed in now, who's to say he can't go on and form the partnership with Rooney in South Africa we've all been looking for?
Rooney
Ahead of the pack: Rooney is England's main man, and the attack must work around him
I know from personal experience that having the right strike partner is vital. And it is quality, not size, that is the most important thing. Target men were important when English teams played a direct style of football. But there has been a transition in our game and the most successful sides don't go for the flick-on off a big centre-forward.
The reason I had a great partnership with Peter Beardsley - it worked at two World Cups in 1986 and 1990 - is because he was a wonderfully gifted player.
He dropped off and made it easier for me to find space in the box. It worked better for me than playing with more traditional centre-forwards like Mark Hateley, Luther Blissett and Kerry Dixon. And I believe Rooney and Defoe can easily play together in a similar fashion.
Yes, there will be those who think hav ing two smaller forwards will leave us a bit light physically. But against that I would point out that Spain are current European champions and their best players - Fernando Torres, David Villa, Andres Iniesta and Xavi - are not the biggest.
Capello
Question time: Capello will have options, and decisions, ahead of the World Cup
Rooney is England's one indisputable world-class forward, so finding a system and partnership that suits him is paramount. ONE of the best things Capello has done as England manager is stopping him from charging all round the pitch and running back to the halfway line to put pressure on opponents. Although that workrate can be seen as a strength, it is also a weakness if it stops him from doing what he's best at, finding space in the final third and threatening the opposition goal. He would benefit from someone like Defoe making runs behind the defence.
The Spurs man has been electric this season and deserves his chance of a starting place. Having said all that, I don't think Defoe is the finished article yet and to take the next step for England, I would like to see him do more inside the penalty area.
There is no doubt he is a scorer of great goals but he is not yet a great goalscorer because he doesn't gamble enough on space in the box. His style during his career has been to drift a little bit deeper, turn and run with the ball.
I like him as a player but think he could add even more goals to his game and make his partnership with Rooney truly explosive. If Defoe studies the best goalscorers like Alan Shearer and Owen, they regularly attacked space throughout a game. They might make 30 runs into space, and 29 of them might not come to anything, but if it got them a tap-in on the 30th run, they were suddenly the hero.
Rooney/Defoe
Fine partnership: If Defoe really works on his game, he could be a perfect foil for Rooney
Defenders tend to wait to see where a cross is going before making their move. So a striker can steal a march on them by guessing where the cross will end up. If they guess right, they have a good chance of scoring.
I accept that a lot of it is down to instinct but intelligent players never stop learning and to be fair to Defoe, I think he has started to do that a bit more this season. It is why I liked his second goal against Holland last month - a close-range finish - even better than his first, even though that was a great individual effort.
One thing is for sure, any striker in this England side shouldn't be short of service with Lampard and Gerrard in midfield. Hopefully, we have Theo Walcott to come back as well and we should not forget Joe Cole. He has almost become the forgotten man but was probably our best player at the last World Cup in Germany.
England have the personnel to take on anybody. Not too many other countries will have six world-class players in their team.
The big question is strength in depth, in the goalkeeping position, obviously, and among the strikers. You need a squad rather than just 11 players to get anywhere in major tournaments, particularly for a country like England who have not been able to keep their best players fit in the past, because of the pace of our game and the fact that our clubs are very successful in Europe.
We have a nice group of strikers with Defoe looking stronger, Peter Crouch offering a different variation and Owen also remaining an option if he starts playing and scoring on a regular basis for Manchester United.
But you are still left with the truth that Rooney is the one world-class forward we have. The others have to prove themselves. I think Defoe deserves the opportunity to do that against Croatia. If he can show he can play with Rooney, those Italian waiters might be right after all.
