As Euro 2016 approaches and the media fuels the frenzy that ‘this is England’s year’ again, it comes as no surprise that the announcement of Hodgson’s provisional squad has brought about flurry of media attention for all manner of reasons.
One inclusion that has gathered more attention than most is that of Manchester United’s breakthrough 18-year-old star, Marcus Rashford. With four goals in his first ten games for the club alongside a string of impressive performances, the young striker has found his way into the provisional squad for England’s trip to France. This may seem exciting for young Rashford and United fans across the country, but through this decision we see a key flaw that has held back the England national team and will continue to do so until wholesale changes are made in the FA.
Despite only making his Premier League debut around three months ago, Rashford finds himself in electric form, especially considering his age and lack of experience. Those who have watched him play will have little doubt that he has significant potential which must be managed and nurtured carefully.
However, if he is picked for the squad based on form, as many have suggested, this raises a range of questions about Hodgson’s selections that have left many scratching their head. After a phenomenal season for West Ham, two key English players, Mark Noble and Michail Antonio, find themselves omitted from the squad despite their top class performances.
Whilst a reluctance to allow new talent to break through just before a major tournament may be the logic behind Hodgson’s decisions here, this simply serves to raise more question marks about the inclusion of Rashford. This unproven young striker finds himself in the squad ahead of timeless goalscorer and international veteran Jermain Defoe after a wonderful season in which he almost single-handedly kept Sunderland in the Premier League.
Decisions like these are what may define Hodgson’s reign as England manager, yet the real problem lies much deeper as Rashford’s inclusion portrays a symptom of the British footballing culture that is throttling the development of young talent.
It is so rare that exciting young English players emerge in the Premier League that any player demonstrating a glimmer of ability is burdened with media hype and fan expectation. Whilst it is easy to throw blame at the media, it is simply a lack of upcoming talent that creates media frenzies as well as meaning the international side rarely has a solid base of youth to build upon, instead relying on veterans.
Academies are standing by antiquated methods of player development and stunting the growth of young potential by failing to adapt to the changing way in which the modern game is played. Coupled with this is a lack of investment in grassroots football, the real core of professional football and seemingly forgotten as the environment in which the future stars of international football are nurtured.
This disconnect between grassroots football and the professional game is growing and as long as the FA continues to pour money into the higher echelons of the game, youth football will continue to suffer and the Premier League will grow more and more reliant on foreign players to maintain its quality.
This does ultimately improve the standard of the Premier League which many argue is a good thing not only for the local fans and the worldwide market of football as the league seeks to maintain its status as the ‘best league in the world’. However, this is coming at the expense of bringing quality British players up to the top level standards as the finances, coaching ability and patience is simply not there.
With Englishman Harry Kane winning the Premier League’s Golden Boot – the first Englishman to do so since Kevin Phillips in 2000 – we can see hope is not lost for young British footballing talent. Yet it is time to take a little bit of weight off the shoulders of these emerging players.
Rashford must be respected for his form and inclusion in the provisional squad and training with the England camp could be an invaluable experience. However, Hodgson must see sense and omit him from the final squad of 23, for both his and England’s sakes. He represents a desire amongst British coaches to rush players into first team action too young and too soon and to compete with the powerhouse of European football and the growing prowess of the Americas and Asia. It’s time for a widespread evaluation of the academy system of British football.
