Thetownend.com

Just listened to the lead story on SSN

'Good news for new England manager, Roy Hodgson, when Darren Bent says he will be fully fit for Euro 2012'

And there are still deluded fans up and down the country who believe we are with a chance of winning this tournament,

 :suicide:

Are there? I haven't come across any.

I think you may be right!

I haven't heard anyone talk positively (with or without Hodgson). Having no expectancy is genuinely the greatest thing that could happen to the national team for decades.

Stop watching Newsround ;)

Hodgson has nothing to lose.  If we do shit then it isnt his fault as he has only been here 5 mins, if they do well he can take the glory.

No doubt some media will want him gone if we dont make it out the group stage i suppose.

 Bent has scored a hundred goals in the Prem, so is up there Rooney and Defoe as an available Englishman, to have achieved this.

 In 2008,  Spain won the Euros with Daniel Guiza, often up front or coming off the bench. A journeyman striker with Getafe and Mallorca...he scored a couple of crucial goals.

 So you never know...

Grant Holt it is then...

More likely to be Bobby Zamora....

You're probably right.

Paul Benson

I'd consider taking Michael Owen. Seriously.

I know he hasn't played much (if at all this season, mainly due to injury), but it's not like we're blessed with a plethora of decent English strikers.

I'd have taken him to SA...but Capello doesn't like him, (see Real Madrid).  Too late now though I think

When you look at his career stats, it's very clear that Owen's heyday was the period from 1997 to 2003.  In 5 out of these 6 seasons (the exception being 1999/2000, when he was out injured for long periods with hamstrong problems) he scored between 23 and 28 goals/season for Liverpool.  Since 2003, he has never come close to this total.

So quite sad, in a way, that a player who peaked more than a decade ago is still under consideration for Euro 2012.

Michael Owen's decline is an unfortunate one. Bobby Charlton's goalscoring record would have been his if it wasn't for injuries.

Michael Owen is easily the best English player of his generation.

Wrong.

Paul Scholes

Why?

When the ball hits your head

When you're sitting in row Z

That's Zamora

He's won more. He's played at the top much longer. He's revered by most top professionals. And he's a much better player in his position than Owen was in his.

Can't fackin' tackle though can 'e.

I'll throw in Gary Neville then.

I'd say Gary Neville was better than Owen, in their respective positions. Barre Zannetti, Cafu and perhaps Thuram, I can't think of any better right backs who played through the 90's and the 00's in the world.

I meant best of his generation though.

But Owen was the best performer for England was my point

Paul Scholes was doing what everyone praises Xavi and Iniesta for doing before they were doing it!

Phone him up Roy!

Oh right, I misunderstood. I can't really disagree with that. Owen always seemed to be England first - club second throughout his career.

Would be interesting to speculate if he came through now whether he'd be as successful as he was. The way teams are set up now, and the strikers have to contribute much more than just goals, I doubt he'd have scored anywhere near as much. The last of the great goal snatchers.

Slightly disagree with that.Todays formations would not help him i agree but ironicly say he was at liverpool this season owen would have a field day. Never understood the stick bent gets either.

He'd still net in the domestic game, but I doubt he'd be as prolific in an England shirt now. Same as bent and, to a lesser extent, Defoe - top premiership goalscorers but not done much special on the International stage.

If I was Roy i'd be on the phone begging Scholes to come out of retirement for the Euros...

No please no. Go young or its a waste of time

Go young after the euros imo.Nice mix for the euros i reckon.

bit harsh on Owen-40 goals in 80 games,scored in 4 seperate major tournaments and that hattrick v Germany.

Also, I don't care how many Argies were on bookings, that Owen goal in '98 was a great moment :)

The best

Yeah, I meant to say that Owen was prolific, but wouldn't be now - and would perform similar in vein to the likes of defoe and bent. But my words are broken tonight

I miss Brian Moore.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BFcTVlLj8Q4&feature=related

...and can you believe that this was a friendly!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=830klQBbHGc

That 3-2 was the best friendly ever

The only friendly where I've leapt off my seat to celebrate the winner! Fucking argies!

For all you deluded young ins who believe that it's the best manager and team that win these international knock out competitions, please take note.

Denmark never qualified for euro 92. Then the war in Yugoslavia broke out and Denmark replaced them by default.  They went in to win the fucking thing!
A team so poor that they didn't even qualify......won it!

AND....remember Greece!!!

Fuck me I agree with Adje, one of the few blokes who has always really wanted it as well.

That goal against the Argies as an 18yo pup gets more remarkable every time I see it. What a fucking goal.

I've heard plenty of old-timers spout this over the years.

Sol Campbell did more in an Engalnd shirt than any of the others mentioned

Not Owen.

That's bollocks but is an argument that can never been proven right or wrong! Owen was/is a goalscorer when fit. In his pomp he was a quality striker (particularly for country). He'd still score goals today no doubt. Football hasn't changed that much in the last 10 years.

I have no recollection of that friendly at all, weird!

Still think he could do a job, he's only 32. His first game this season was against Leeds United in the Carling Cup and he scored two goals in the first half.

Curse Shearer's elbows, curse 'em to hell!

Owen was world class, its just a pity he has suffered with injuries.

His hatrick against the Gerrrrrmans was brilliant, as was his goal against the Argies and the way he finished against Brazil.

Its sad to think he probably never reached his true potenial.

I remember going to quite a few England games during the Sven era and looking back on it now it was so much more enjoyable than it is now. The fans were more up for it, players seemed more up for it and also playing friendlies and qualifiers in different parts of the country did wonders for the atmosphere at the games. I remember going to England vs Jamiaca just before the World Cup in 2006 at Old Trafford and it was surprisingly probably the best England game I've been to in terms of atmosphere, feel good factor etc. These days at Wembley it's painful to watch.

I liked it when England were 'on the road'.

they still are.to nowhere

Owen was/proabably still is a class finisher, one of my favourite players in an England shirt because he seemed to care IMO.

Interview with Joey Barton on bbc sport website somewhere where he was saying that he thinks England should play all over the country and not just Wembley. Agree wholeheartedly with this, Wembley is soulless and more fans would be interested if they played in different locations. People from up north arent going to travel down to Wembley to watch a friendly on a Wednesday eve are they?

Let em play in Scotland I say

yeah but, 'on the road' meant old tradford for competitive games and others for friendly games. that was a bit shit

i quite agree with going on the road,  but do it properly. will never happen, the fa have got a mortgage to pay..

true, i think i'll stuggle to find a handful of names in the current setup who i think care.

I think it was fair to give the northern based fans a bit of a mileage break for a few years.

yeah that wasn't the FA's reason though, only financial reasons and its this culture thats ingrained into the players. they could have used st james park, stadium of light, there are loads up north.

My memory of it is it was only the WC 06 qualifying that was all at old -trafford. the rest was split evenly. I remember a crucial game against turkey being played at the stadium of light

i think you're right, i remember macedonia scoring past james (maybe?) from a corner at st marys - that was a qualifier but cant remeber what for

Pretty sure that was Seaman.

ah yes, i wasn't very confident with my guess, didn't sound right.

I've only seen 2 competitive England games, and that was one! Alan Smith got sent off at the end too.

I was there that night, wasn't that Seaman's last game for England?

I always really look forward to England games down the pub during major tournements. Lots of happy memories with my mates such as England 5 Germany 1 and the game against Brazil in the 2002 world cup. Being in Japan, it was a 9:00 am kick off. I had 9 pints and then went and finished work after the match ! Couldn't do it now.

I never enjoy watching England in the pub over here. Apart from the handful of English ex-pats including myself, everyone always wants England to lose!!

How the pony-tailed wazzock ever got the jersey again after his despicable performance against Brazil is one of lifes great mysteries.

It's depressing to think we used to have Shearer, Sherringham, Becks etc.

England are shit now.

Despicable? Mystery is it really?

He was the best english goal keeper - all the others were shit.

Beat me to it!

Was earlier than that mate, i remember having a beer at 7 in the morning

You're right, i also remember beer and bacon rolls at 7am for the Nigeria and Brazil games  :D

I watched the brazil game got hammered,smoked a massive spliff and threw up in my college class 8)

Where's "here" ?

Saw this on msn, its an interview with PDC about the england job

http://sport.uk.msn.com/exclusives/di-canio-gentleman-hodgson-the-right-choice-for-england