I read in the press that Terry Venables, the assistant to England manager Steve McClaren, is opposed to the reinstatement of David Beckham in the England team. By all accounts El Tel was right behind McQuiff’s original decision to jettison the DB circus upon taking over the England reins after the disastrous World Cup and you get the impression he believes McQ should stick by his principles even, or perhaps especially, when the going gets tough. About the DB decsion by McQ, he’s quoted in the NotW yesterday ‘Whether you think he’s right or wrong at least credit him with making the call’. Hmm, I think we know what you think Tel. It’s all starting to unravel before the FA’s eyes.
Of course, the decent thing for Vegetables to do would be to resign on a point of irreconcilable difference with his boss. But this is football and Tel will be on a tasty earner no doubt. So for now he’s sticking with the McComb-over. By all accounts they aren’t on speaking terms now. That’s good and should help cement comraderie in the England dressing room. At least McClaren has his good friend to help him, Bill Beswick the renowned mind specialist and sports psychologist, who sounds like a bus driver from Dewsbury. He’s also on the FA pay-roll. He’s the guy who helped the balding one turn Middlesbrough into the force that they are in European football. Do me favour, I was there when Boro literally did play a brand of Brazilian football courtesy of the little genius Juninho. The brand of football Stevie and Billy served up was more prosaic – don’t let them score and maybe we can nick it. They won a Cup and but it was hard to watch. No wonder Steve Gibson offered ‘full co-operation’ with the FA when they came calling for the two after they botched the fat Phil appointment.
So we have a management team in place at odds with each other. That other brainiac Brian, Barwick, must be starting to sweat a bit now. We’ve a showcase event at the new Wembley against Brazil this week on a pitch that’s going to look like the Somme. They’ll be hoping that Beckham’s selection fills the place. You can taste the sense of greedy pleasure at the FA on commercial grounds but will the DB media circus overwhelm the occasion? Course it will. And wait another minute, McQ will now be selecting an England team which is virtually the same as Sven selected in the World Cup and which performed so ineptly. That’s precisely El Tel’s point. We’re back to square one a week before a critical must-win qualifier against mighty Estonia away in Tallinn. And England’s confidence is already fragile under the Quiff. The press boys must be sharpenning their pencils and licking their lips at the prospect of another FA bloodletting.
I wouldn’t be shocked to learn that Dagenham Terry is already discreetly negotiating his exit package with Barwick – that’ll be another million quid of the fans’ money. Meanwhile Brian busdriver Beswick is four square behind Steve in the preparations for these two matches. What theme shall we adopt for the players with these two matches, Brian just to get them mentally up for it? Let me think Steve, umm, wait a minute, wait a minnnute, how about ‘when the going gets tough; the tough get going’ Brilliant Bezzer, you little beauty. I’ll go and feed it to the press boys now. Next day back page of the Star, Brian Woolnough asks….
‘When you going tufty? Tufty get going!’
Which he does the day after the Estonia match with £5m between him and Bezzer no doubt. Quo vadis Barviccus?
pp
Pasta Paulie 