Football Matters: England, Where Were They Then? Part One

In a two part blog I look at a prediction made in 2007 by the Daily Mail on who would be in England's XI in 2016 for Part One and in Part Two I look at our current England squad of 23 and look back at where they were in 2007 and what happened in the nine years since.

PART ONE

My best mate Rob sent me this article which really got me thinking about the way we see the potential in English youngsters and where a lot of them end up playing. Back in 2007 someone for the Daily Mail predicted that the England XI would be:

Goalkeeper – Ben Amos (Manchester United)

Right Back – Sam Hutchinson (Chelsea) Left Back – Robbie Threlfall (Liverpool) Centre Back – Micah Richards (Manchester City)

Centre Back – Gavin Hoyte (Arsenal)

Midfield - Dean Parrett (Tottenham Hotspur)

Midfield – Michael Johnson (Manchester City)

Midfield – James Henry (Reading)

Right Wing – Theo Walcott (Arsenal) Striker – Jose Baxter (Everton) Left Wing – Scott Sinclair (Chelsea)

Now it got me thinking about writing this blog in two parts. The first is where are these eleven players now? I remember some of the names from playing Football Manager 2007 and such back in the day where as two or three of them I don't recall at all. The article has a brief mention for each (as tends to be the way for news sites that target the mobile phone audience these days) but I want to put more statistics behind it. The second part will look at the issue retrospectively – England's current 23 – where were they then? If some of these players were ready to break into first team football why weren't they considered for an England future?

The Daily Mail XI – Where Are They Now?

*Statistics courtesy of Wikipedia.com or Soccerbase.com

Goalkeeper – Ben Amos Age – 26 Club Then – Manchester United (1 league appearance)

Club Now – Bolton Wanderers (40 league appearances)

Clubs Between – none but loan spells from United to Peterborough United, Molde (Norway), Oldham Athletic, Hull City, Carlisle United and Bolton Wanderers (60 overall league appearances)

International Honours – Capped at every England level apart from Senior from U16 to U21

I certainly remember Ben from the Football Manager games and in future seasons he would be selected for England when still third choice at United or something. He had a lot of potential in most of the games in that era and his career has gone down a similar path to that of Tom Heaton who ironically has made the England squad after also being released by United so maybe there's still time yet. He's certainly need to move up from League One though which is where he'll find himself next season with Bolton.

Right Back – Sam Hutchinson Age – 26

Club Then – Chelsea (5 league appearances) Club Now – Sheffield Wednesday (45 league appearances) Clubs Between – none but loan spells from Chelsea to Nottingham Forest, Vitesse Arnhem (Netherlands) and Sheffield Wednesday (20 overall league appearances and 2 goals)

International Honours – Capped at England U18 and U19 level

Had the Wembley play off final gone a different way then Sam could have been back in the Premier League next season. Wednesday lost to Hull in the final and will now spend another season in the Championship which will be a lot tougher with two big clubs going down in Aston Villa and Newcastle United. Hutchinson joined Wednesday on a free transfer in the summer of 2014. I remember him as a Chelsea youth player but not one that I would have predicted for an England future.

Left Back – Robbie Threlfall

Age – 27

Club Then – Liverpool (0 league appearances)

Clubs Between – Bradford City (37 league appearances) and loans from Liverpool to Hereford United, Stockport County, Northampton Town and Bradford City (overall 35 appearances and 2 goals)

Last Club – Morecambe (54 league appearances and 2 goals)

Club Now – Unattached International Honours – Capped once at England U19 level Not a name I remember from that era and hasn't made an impression of the top flight since. Unfortunately he was released by Morecambe in 2014 while playing in League Two and hasn't found a new club since. His biggest achievement appears to be helping Liverpool beat Manchester City and Manchester United respectively in the 2006 and 2007 F A Youth Cups.

Centre Back – Micah Richards

Age – 27

Club Then – Manchester City (179 league appearances and 6 goals)

Clubs Between – none but loaned from City to Fiorentina for 2014/15 (10 league appearances)

Club Now – Aston Villa (21 league appearances and 1 goal)

International Honours – Capped by England 13 times with 1 goal. Played 5 times for Great Britain at 2012 Olympics. Capped at England U16 U19 and U21 level.

With the ability to play equally well at centre back or right back combined with pace on the ground and strength in the air Micah is a dream purchase for any Football Manager of FIFA player. Unfortunately his career hasn't been equally as successful in real life but he's fared better than most other players on the list. He was a regular in the City side until 2012/13, falling out of favour with Roberto Mancini and failing to impress new manager Manuel Pellegrini. After an unsuccessful loan spell with Fiorentina in Serie A he joined Aston Villa on a free transfer. I really liked him nine years ago and still do but it's a shame he was at the heart of a relegated team last season. Hopefully we'll see both Richards and Villa back in the top flight in 2017/18. He was once a part of the England set-up and looked to have a bright future but his last appearance was in 2012 under caretaker manager Stuart Pearce. He hasn't played at all under Roy Hodgson and had only played once under Fabio Capello which considering how well he was doing for City at the time is baffling. I personally think being ignored by Capello knocked his confidence and he's never quite recovered.

Centre Back – Gavin Hoyte

Age – 26

Club Then – Arsenal (1 league appearance)

Clubs Between – Dagenham & Redbridge (68 league appearances), Gillingham (30 league appearances) and loan spells from Arsenal to Watford, Brighton & Hove Albion, Lincoln City and AFC Wimbledon (overall 40 league appearances)

Club Now – Barnet (19 league appearances and 1 goal)

International Honours – Now capped by Trinidad & Tobago 3 times (twice in 2014 and once in 2015). Capped by England at U17, U18, U19 and U20 level.

Hoyte is listed as a defender but memory tells me he was regarded as a right back more than a centre back nine years ago. Gavin is one of the players who did have an England future on some versions of Football Manager and it looked like he would have a promising career with the Gunners but it never worked out that way. He was released by Arsenal in 2012, signed for Dagenham & Redbridge and has since had free transfer moves to Gillingham and Barnet who finished 15th in League Two last season.

Midfield - Dean Parrett

Age - 24

Club Then – Tottenham Hotspur (0 league appearances) Clubs Between – None but loans with Aldershot Town, Plymouth Argyle, Charlton Athletic, Yeovil Town and Swindon Town (overall 34 league appearances and 3 goals) Club Now – Stevenage (53 league appearances and 6 goals)

International Honours – Capped by England at U16 U17 U19 and U20 level

This must have been a punt for the Daily Mail writers in 2007 as he'd only just moved to Spurs Academy from QPR in February of that year. He didn't even make his professional debut until 2009 when he played for Tottenham in Europe and he never played for them in the league. I don't even recall him being a promising player on any Football Manager of FIFA game so I'd say this was a swing and a miss. He was capped by four England levels though so I'll give them that at least. He was released by Spurs in 2013 and joined Stevenage FC who finished 18th in League Two last season, 14 points below Hoyte's Barnet.

Midfield – Michael Johnson

Age - 28

Club Then – Manchester City (37 league appearances and 2 goals) Clubs Between – None but loaned by City to Leicester City (7 league appearances) Club Now – None – now retired.

International Honours – Capped by England at U19 and U21 level.

Back in 2007 Johnson will have been one of the most promising players on this list, one that by now many would have expected to be the lynchpin in the England midfield around the time of Euro 2016. His brief career with City is littered with reports of injuries and he was released by them in December 2012 after failing to make any first team appearances since the 2009/10 season. It is reported that he now runs his own estate agent business.

Midfield – James Henry

Age - 26

Club Then – Reading (10 league appearances) Clubs Between – Millwall (121 league appearances and 10 goals). Loaned by Reading to Nottingham Forest, Bournemouth, Norwich City and Millwall and by Millwall to Wolverhampton Wanderers (overall 51 league appearances and 16 goals) Club Now – Wolverhampton Wanderers (97 league appearances and 18 goals)*does not include 2015/16

International Honours – Capped by both Scotland and England at various levels U16 U18 and U19 so could still potentially play for either with Scottish parents and an English birthplace.

Remember when Reading were a Premier League team? They actually finished eighth in the 2006/07 season, their first in the top flight. They were of course back again for a season in 2012/13 but even that seems like a long time ago now. Henry was a promising young player at Reading it seems when the list was compiled but he is not one I remember. His career has been more successful since leaving Reading for Millwall in 2010 and on to Wolves in 2014. He has become one of the Championship's more noticeable players which could lead to more interest from Scotland rather than England at international level. Wolves finished mid-table in 14th place in last season's Championship campaign.

Right Wing – Theo Walcott

Age - 27

Club Then – Arsenal (236 league appearances and 55 goals) Clubs Between - None Club Now - Arsenal

International Honours – Capped by England 43 times with 8 goals. Capped also at U16 U17 U19 and U21 level (where he scored 6 goals in 21 games)

Theo is the only real success story from the eleven players on this list but even his polish has begun to fade with the test of time. Recently omitted from Roy Hodgson's squad for Euro 2016 it doesn't appear that his England career is over but he certainly needs to step up a couple of gears if he wants to get back into the reckoning and that's the problem with Walcott. He has the ability to play better than he is doing so he just needs to get the mentality right. Some players are on the fringe of the squad or miss out because they don't have the attributes needed to play at the highest level. Walcott has the minerals but too often fails to deliver. A lot of his England career has come from 'that' hat-trick he scored against Croatia in 2008 (yes, it was EIGHT years ago). Maybe Arsene Wenger has to take some blame and maybe the Arsenal manager is not managing the England winger well enough to get the best out of him. At least we know for the purpose of this blog though that Theo was someone we all predicted a bright future for back in 2007 and he's one that should still be there for a few years yet.

Striker – Jose Baxter

Age - 24

Club Then – Everton (7 league appearances) Clubs Between – Oldham Athletic (43 league appearances and 17 goals) plus loan from Everton to Tranmere Rovers (14 league appearances and 3 goals) Club Now – Sheffield United (93 league appearances and 20 goals)

International Honours – Capped by England at U16 and U17 level

He will have been only fifteen when the list was compiled but Baxter was one of the promising starlets of Football Manager games at the end of the last decade so it's not surprise to see him here. Of course realistically anyone compiling this list in 2007 would have put another former Everton striker, Wayne Rooney, up front but I get the impression this was more a list of eleven players that might make an England breakthrough rather than a full England eleven for 2016 (especially since they're all between the ages of 24 and 27 now). I remember using Jose quite effectively on the FM games though so it's a shame to see him playing down in League One. At least at one of the biggest clubs down there like Sheffield United he has a chance of Championship football in the near future but the Blades only finished 11th last season when I expected to see them in the play-off positions at least.

Left Wing – Scott Sinclair

Age - 27

Club Then – Chelsea (5 league appearances) Clubs Between – Swansea City (82 league appearances and 28 goals), Manchester City (13 league appearances), loans from Chelsea to Plymouth Argyle, Queens Park Rangers, Charlton Athletic, Crystal Palace, Birmingham City and Wigan Athletic plus loans from Manchester City to West Bromwich Albion and Aston Villa (overall 87 league games and 7 goals) Club Now – Aston Villa (21 league appearances and 2 goals)

International Honours – Capped by England at every level from U17 to U21. Capped 4 times and scored once for Great Britain in 2012 Olympic Games.

At the age of 27 there is still a little time left for Sinclair to get back in the England frame but that's not going to be while he's languishing in the Championship with Aston Villa. He's in the same position as Micah Richards – either needing a move to a Premier League club or an immediate promotion with the team. Unfortunately although Villa and as previously mentioned Newcastle are probably the two biggest teams aiming for promotion next season there are a host of other potential candidates including Norwich City (also relegated), Sheffield Wednesday (lost play-off final), Brighton & Hove Albion and Derby County (made the play-offs), Ipswich Town, Cardiff City, Queens Park Rangers and Nottingham Forest to name but a few.