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Before England’s downfall to Croatia, the thought of McClaren sneaking off to the toilet crossed my mind. It certainly works for the Israelis. Wouldn’t it be great if we can replay the entire scene, with the game tied at 2-2, and McClaren excused himself to visit the gents, it may be an inspired England who miraculously scored the winning goal, and he comes out to receive a hero’s ovation…

Yes, I know it is the stuff made of fantasies, but what else is there that England fans can hanker for? Israel threw them a lifeline and put them in the driver seat, needing only a draw against Croatia (with home advantage) to ensure qualification, yet this “simple” hurdle proves too much for McClaren and company.

At Wembley, England were dumped out of Euro 2008 finals unceremoniously when they lost 3-2 to Croatia after pulling level from conceding two early goals. This is the first time since 1984 that England miss out on the European Championship finals.

Frank Lampard converted from a penalty in the 56th minute after defender Josip Simunic had fouled Defoe. That was his only notable contribution, else this performance only confirms that England cannot rely on him to score from open play.

The one-dimensional strategy of Lampard making deep runs from midfield after the strikers knocked on the ball for him is a failure. It may work wonders for Chelsea but time and again, for the national team, he shows an ineptitude in finding the goal despite having an abundance of opportunities at his feet.

Moral of the story: the strikers should just take the chances themselves and let Fat Lamps have his shot when all else has failed. Let him perform his defense splitting passes and do not let him anywhere near the six-yard box. His records after the World Cup campaign for missed shots is high and if we allow him the honor, he will push it through the roof.

For England’s second goal, Beckham who came on as a substitute, delivered his perfect, trademark cross from the right which Crouch chested down before volleying wide of keeper Stipe Pletikosa.

That would have been a happy result for both teams but Croatia had other plans up their sleeves. At a time when England sat back and defend, Croatia pressed for a winner and they were rewarded when Petric delivered his low, angled left-footed drive flying past Carson into the far post.

The wisdom of fielding Carson, an inexperienced goalkeeper, is debatable. In a match of such significance, we have to choose players on form but also with a mental toughness. Owen and Rooney are drafted to play at the highest level at an early age because they display a fearlessness in their approach. They thrive in big matches and are not awed by the opponents.

A bad judgment in fielding an inexperienced striker will result in the team not scoring but at the very least, not lose if the backline holds firm. On the other hand, a goalkeeper who is not self-assured will cost the team dearly.

This brings us to the question of a safe pair of hands. England has outstanding midfielders and strikers, a so-so defense but a dearth of world-class goalkeepers. This should be the first problem for the youth academy to address before England can revive its championship cause.

Since the days of Gordon Banks and his understudy Peter Shilton, to the recent David Seaman, England did not fare too badly in this department. In fact, it was one of the strongest and because a quality shot-stopper is so hard to dislodge, there were other able goalkeepers who never had a chance to shine.

Today, we have Paul Robinson, Chris Kirkland, Robert Green, Scott Carson and ‘Calamity’ James as choices. They present selection problems to the coach not because each is better than the others but rather each represent a massive gamble that the faint-hearted should never attempt.

As for Steven Gerrard, there have been discussions that he should be displaced in favor of Lampard. To that, my only response is: Bollocks.

He has witnessed a dip in form and did not perform any magic for England in this match. But to use that as an excuse to build a team around Lampard? Unbelievable. Gerrard has more techniques to his game than Lampard who cannot defend, tackle, retain possession, dribble or play on the wings. He can only play in his favorite middle of the park role (passing and taking pot shots) and that is a two-trick pony.

The crux of the problem in midfield is the individual contest between super-inflated egos who are vying for personal glory than to close ranks and fight as a team. This problem plagues even the successful teams. Just ask Frank Rijkaard who is trying to juggle Ronaldinho, Henry, Eto’o and Messi into Barcelona’s outfit.

Meanwhile, the latest news is that McClaren was sacked but this is going to be another long post which I will discuss later. Till tomorrow.

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