carlyluvsunited
17-11-2007, 02:53 PM
Heroes and Zeros
In the red corner stands the irascible Sir Alex Ferguson, in the other red corner
Arsène Wenger. The managers of Manchester United and Arsenal, whose clubs
top England’s soccer league, epitomise different approaches to sporting success.
One leads a squad with a rich seam of home-grown talent, the other a first team
dominated by foreign players.
The foreigners are in the line of fire – and for entirely the wrong reasons. Sir Alex
favours a cap on the rising numbers of overseas players to give English-born
potential a chance. He has struck a chord with those lamenting the decline of the
national team. The country’s hopes of making the 2008 European Championship
finals hang precariously on Israel beating Russia on Saturday.
But the United manager, and others who share his view, are shooting an own
goal. The labour market for professional soccer players has long been a shining
example of globalisation. That the English team have gone from heroes
to “zeros” has nothing to do with being denied opportunities to compete at the
top. English soccer was hardly stellar in the 1970s and nobody blamed Johnny
Foreigner then. Nor did they when Graham Taylor’s side failed to make the 1994
World Cup.
Imagine if we heard the same clamour from Essex-born bankers in the City of
London every time that trading profits slumped: “Those Russian boys in
commodities are cramping our style,” or “It’s all the fault of the Yanks in fixed
income.”
To introduce quotas for English players would be like banning much of the talent
in London’s financial district. The best professionals would simply sigh and go
where they were paid most. The rest would not necessarily improve in their
absence. A bigger problem in soccer is management and leadership. For England
not to rely on Israel, a better balance has to be struck between the demands of
big clubs and the needs of the national side. More could be done at youth level
and to improve coaching. If all that fails and English players are still not up to
scratch, then perhaps they should be fired from the squad.
Click below to join manutdtalk.com and read all
breaking news on all things United !!!
http://manutdtalk.com/forums/register.php
In the red corner stands the irascible Sir Alex Ferguson, in the other red corner
Arsène Wenger. The managers of Manchester United and Arsenal, whose clubs
top England’s soccer league, epitomise different approaches to sporting success.
One leads a squad with a rich seam of home-grown talent, the other a first team
dominated by foreign players.
The foreigners are in the line of fire – and for entirely the wrong reasons. Sir Alex
favours a cap on the rising numbers of overseas players to give English-born
potential a chance. He has struck a chord with those lamenting the decline of the
national team. The country’s hopes of making the 2008 European Championship
finals hang precariously on Israel beating Russia on Saturday.
But the United manager, and others who share his view, are shooting an own
goal. The labour market for professional soccer players has long been a shining
example of globalisation. That the English team have gone from heroes
to “zeros” has nothing to do with being denied opportunities to compete at the
top. English soccer was hardly stellar in the 1970s and nobody blamed Johnny
Foreigner then. Nor did they when Graham Taylor’s side failed to make the 1994
World Cup.
Imagine if we heard the same clamour from Essex-born bankers in the City of
London every time that trading profits slumped: “Those Russian boys in
commodities are cramping our style,” or “It’s all the fault of the Yanks in fixed
income.”
To introduce quotas for English players would be like banning much of the talent
in London’s financial district. The best professionals would simply sigh and go
where they were paid most. The rest would not necessarily improve in their
absence. A bigger problem in soccer is management and leadership. For England
not to rely on Israel, a better balance has to be struck between the demands of
big clubs and the needs of the national side. More could be done at youth level
and to improve coaching. If all that fails and English players are still not up to
scratch, then perhaps they should be fired from the squad.
Click below to join manutdtalk.com and read all
breaking news on all things United !!!
http://manutdtalk.com/forums/register.php