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An Impossible Man


CFuller

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7 minutes ago, Diego Imposta said:

Still really enjoying this, not got long to catch up with you. House of Flying Daggers looks maybe a bit too long for me to start at the beginning while the new FM is so, well, new. That said, if there aren't any FM18 plans from you then I'll get stuck in soon enough. 

It's hard asking for feedback here and it seems even harder to get it so... I would really like to see some sort of counsel with Catts and his staff about how they would pick the players they do, maybe for an important game. That's not a criticism of who've you've picked as I've not played in a few years, just what sort of alternatives didn't make the grade and why.

England always seem to have a very small pool of players that they choose from and most of them are no more successful than when they broke into the team, so why hang on to them?

That's a lot of stuff to answer, Diego, so I'll start at the top.

House of Flying Daggers is indeed a long read, but feel free to jump in at the start if you want. You might want to read the prequel first, though - "Welcome To Romford", which details the 10 years I spent at my hometown club Romford prior to joining the Daggers. I've linked to a PDF file, because the FMS thread lost a season's worth of story during the forum migration of last summer.

As far as FM18 goes, I've got no story plans, largely because I want to get my impending house move sorted before I begin something new. I'm not even sure I'll buy FM18, to be honest. I've downloaded the demo and will manage Bristol City for a few months, but if that experience doesn't go well, don't get your hopes up about any new CFuller stories arriving before FM19.

I always love to hear feedback, and I'm interested that you feel that Catts' squad selection could be explored in more depth. I've actually already written up some dialogue along those lines, so expect to see more of that over the coming season.

My in-game selection policy at the senior level is largely that I won't pick anyone who's either a) not playing regularly in a top league or b) not in form. I will cut some slack for rotation options at the very best teams (currently Tottenham and Man Utd), but if you're Raheem Sterling and you're just sitting on the bench all the time, then you'd better find a new hobby during the international breaks.

It is precisely because of the lack of options that some players stay in the main squad when perhaps they could be replaced by alternatives. I do want to blood younger players into the senior set-up (Patrick Roberts, for example), but it's difficult when you've got European Under-21s qualifiers to concern yourself with.

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***

 

"Jonjo Shelvey? Are you serious, Catts?"

 

England's assistant manager Michael Burke looked at Mark Catterall with some bemusement. The Three Lions manager was in his office at St George's Park, finalising his plans for November's friendly internationals against France and Argentina.

 

"Newcastle United have done well so far this season, ain't they?" Catterall asked.

 

"Yeah, you can't argue about that. They made a poor start, but now they're unbeaten in seven games and in 4th place. That David Wagner's one hell of a coach, even if he does look a bit like Jürgen Klopp's even nerdier kid brother!"

 

"So you don't have any issue with me selecting their best English players, then?"

 

Burke said, "I'm not saying you shouldn't pick them. Rolando Aarons has been brilliant out on that right wing so far, so I can understand you giving him an opportunity. But Shelvey? He ain't an international player, is he?"

 

"What do you mean? He's won six caps."

 

"Haven't you heard what Danny Mills was saying on the radio?"

 

Burke then brought out his iPad and navigated to find a BBC Radio 5 Live podcast. Former Leeds United, Manchester City and 19-time England right-back Mills was being asked about who he thought should be considered as midfield options for the Three Lions squad.

 

Mills instantly dismissed the credentials of Leicester City's Danny Drinkwater and Tottenham Hotspur's James Ward-Prowse, as well as Shelvey. He argued, "None of them are creative players. They're all midfield players.

 

"Dele Alli is not a creative number 10. He's a strong runner with the ball, he's powerful, he gets into the box. We've got a lot of those players who can sit in that area, but who is the player who can play that killer ball, and do something a little bit different?"

 

Burke turned back to Catterall and said, "I can't disagree with Danny there. Shelvey just isn't that instinctive creator you need at international level."

 

"That's bollocks, and you know it!" Catterall stated dismissively. "Have you even been watching Newcastle closely this year? Shelvey's got as great vision as anyone in the Premier League right now. He can spot an option and thread a pass from miles away!"

 

Catterall then took a sip of water, and continued, "Besides, that's not even why I'm picking him."

 

"Why are you picking him, then?" Burke asked.

 

"Because we need more aggression in the midfield. We need someone who can be tenacious, someone who can win the ball back and move it forward quickly. We need someone other than Jordan Henderson and Eric Dier capable of filling that role for us."

 

"You need more aggression, so you're selecting Jonjo Shelvey. That's like saying you need someone to punish the kid who stole Luke's lunch money at school, and then hiring Charles Bronson to do it!"

 

"He's Charles Salvador now. He changed his surname a few years back."

 

"Mark, I wouldn't f***ing care if he'd changed his name to Orlando Salvador! My point is that the lad's a psycho! Whenever he steps onto the pitch, you always have that fear that he's gonna Ben Thatcher someone!"

 

Catterall laughed, "Shelvey was a bit brash in his younger years, but he's 25 now. I'd like to think he's matured a bit since he returned to the Prem. So how about you let me give him half a chance, eh?"

 

"Okay, but if Danny Drinkwater's picking up his teeth off the training pitch, then you'll have hell to pay. Speaking of Danny, what's he done to stay in the squad?"

 

"He's a solid box-to-box midfielder for a solid Leicester team. That's good enough for me, considering how few options we have. If the Premier League weren't two-thirds foreign, he wouldn't get a look in, but that's the world we live in now."

 

Burke suggested, "Couldn't you show a bit more imagination and promote someone from the Under-21s?"

 

"Who are you offering up? If it's Tom Davies, the kid's nowhere near ready for the seniors. He's not even a regular starter for Everton."

 

"That's a fair point. But what about someone you've left out of your squad? Why don't you give Jack Wilshere another chance?"

 

Catterall immediately corpsed into almost uncontrollable laughter, prompting Burke to sigh, "I guess I'll see myself out, then."

 

ENGLAND squad - for matches vs France (A) and Argentina (H)

NAME                      POSITIONS           D.O.B. (AGE)     CLUB            CAPS  GOALS HEIGHT WEIGHT     VALUE
Jack Butland              GK                  10/03/1993 (24)  Stoke           4     0     6'5"   14st 11lbs £20.5M  
Fraser Forster            GK                  17/03/1988 (29)  Southampton     8     0     6'7"   15st 8lbs  £11.75M 
Joe Hart                  GK                  19/04/1987 (30)  Man City        75    0     6'5"   12st 10lbs £13.5M  
John Stones               D (RC)              28/05/1994 (23)  Man City        19    0     6'2"   12st 1lb   £30M    
Eric Dier                 D (RC), DM, M (C)   15/01/1994 (23)  Tottenham       21    3     6'2"   13st 7lbs  £32M    
Gary Cahill               D (C)               19/12/1985 (31)  Chelsea         54    3     6'4"   13st 7lbs  £3.3M   
Chris Smalling            D (C)               22/11/1989 (27)  Man Utd         36    1     6'4"   14st 2lbs  £27M    
Nathaniel Clyne           D/WB (R)            05/04/1991 (26)  Liverpool       22    0     5'9"   10st 7lbs  £22.5M  
Kyle Walker               D/WB (R)            28/05/1990 (27)  Tottenham       26    0     6'0"   11st 6lbs  £24.5M  
Luke Shaw                 D/WB (L)            12/07/1995 (22)  Man Utd         14    1     6'1"   11st 11lbs £19M    
Danny Rose                D/WB/M (L)          02/07/1990 (27)  Tottenham       14    2     5'8"   11st 6lbs  £25.5M  
Jordan Henderson          DM, M (C)           17/06/1990 (27)  Liverpool       39    0     6'0"   10st 7lbs  £25M    
Jonjo Shelvey             DM, M/AM (C)        27/02/1992 (25)  Newcastle       6     0     6'1"   13st 0lbs  £13M    
Danny Drinkwater          M (C)               05/03/1990 (27)  Leicester       8     0     5'10"  11st 0lbs  £19M    
Theo Walcott              M/AM (R)            16/03/1989 (28)  Villarreal      44    8     5'9"   11st 2lbs  £20.5M  
Rolando Aarons            M/AM (RL)           16/11/1995 (21)  Newcastle       0     0     5'9"   10st 5lbs  £7M     
Demarai Gray              M/AM (RL)           28/06/1996 (21)  Leicester       6     2     5'10"  12st 3lbs  £11.5M  
Adam Lallana              M/AM (RLC)          10/05/1988 (29)  Liverpool       39    1     5'8"   11st 6lbs  £19M    
James Ward-Prowse         M/AM (RC)           01/11/1994 (23)  Tottenham       3     0     5'8"   10st 5lbs  £17.5M  
Dele Alli                 M/AM (C)            11/04/1996 (21)  Tottenham       25    5     6'1"   12st 1lb   £36M    
Harry Kane                ST (C)              28/07/1993 (24)  Tottenham       27    11    6'3"   13st 0lbs  £37.5M  
Jamie Vardy               ST (C)              11/01/1987 (30)  Leicester       14    5     5'10"  12st 1lb   £11.25M 
Callum Wilson             ST (C)              27/02/1992 (25)  Chelsea         9     3     5'11"  10st 7lbs  £32M    

 

Despite losing manager Rafa Benítez to Arsenal in the summer, newly-promoted Newcastle United had enjoyed a fantastic return to the Premier League. New head coach David Wagner had guided the Magpies into the top four after winning five and losing just three of their first 11 games. Newcastle's impressive form resulted in their two leading English talents being called up for international duty.

 

United's cultured, bald-as-a-coot central midfielder Jonjo Shelvey earned a Three Lions recall, almost exactly two years after his last international appearance. Though the 25-year-old from east London had an aggressive streak, Catterall had been impressed by his playmaking abilities and would give him the opportunity to add to his six caps.

 

Also receiving a call-up was Shelvey's 21-year-old team-mate Rolando Aarons. The Jamaica-born, Bristol-bred inside-forward had notched up two goals and three assists in the PL this term, which was no mean feat, considering he hadn't even started regularly in the previous Championship campaign.

 

Suffice to say, this was Aarons' first selection for the senior England side. He had briefly featured at Under-20s level while in the early stages of his professional career.

 

The more experienced pair of centre-back Gary Cahill and winger Theo Walcott returned to the England fold, having recently come back into form with Chelsea and Villarreal respectively. Cahill's Chelsea were still top of the league, thanks in no small part to the goalscoring exploits of Callum Wilson.

 

In contrast, another indifferent start from Pep Guardiola's Manchester City had seen Michael Keane and Raheem Sterling fall out of favour, though centre-back John Stones did retain his place. Southampton winger Nathan Redmond and Arsenal midfielder Jack Wilshere were not quite so fortunate.

 

Daniel Sturridge's excellent scoring from England couldn't save him from being axed, either. Having made just four substitute appearances for Liverpool in the PL this term, Sturridge was replaced with the fit-again Tottenham Hotspur hotshot Harry Kane.

 

ENGLAND UNDER-21s squad - for matches vs Latvia (A) and Azerbaijan (A)

NAME                      POSITIONS           D.O.B. (AGE)     CLUB            CAPS  GOALS HEIGHT WEIGHT     VALUE
Bailey Peacock-Farrell    GK                  29/10/1996 (21)  Leeds           0     0     6'2"   11st 9lbs  £185K   
Ted Smith                 GK                  18/01/1996 (21)  Southend        0     0     6'1"   13st 5lbs  £375K   
Freddie Woodman           GK                  04/03/1997 (20)  Peterborough    6     0     6'1"   10st 12lbs £1.1M   
Joe Gomez                 D (RLC)             23/05/1997 (20)  West Ham        16    1     6'2"   13st 7lbs  £11.75M 
Mason Holgate             D (RC)              22/10/1996 (21)  Stoke           11    0     5'11"  11st 13lbs £11.25M 
Ben Chilwell              D (LC), WB (L)      21/12/1996 (20)  Leicester       13    0     5'10"  11st 13lbs £6M     
Cameron Borthwick-Jackson D (LC), DM          02/02/1997 (20)  Blackburn       3     0     5'11"  11st 13lbs £4.4M   
Brendan Galloway          D (LC), DM          17/03/1996 (21)  Everton         13    1     6'2"   13st 9lbs  £4.4M   
Axel Tuanzebe             D (C)               14/11/1997 (19)  Blackburn       2     0     6'0"   12st 3lbs  £1.7M   
Reece Oxford              D (C), DM           16/12/1998 (18)  Brighton        1     0     6'3"   11st 6lbs  £825K   
James Bree                D/WB (R), M (RC)    11/12/1997 (19)  Burton          0     0     6'0"   11st 9lbs  £500K   
Lewis Cook                DM, M (C)           03/02/1997 (20)  Bournemouth     4     0     5'9"   10st 12lbs £11.25M 
Tom Davies                DM, M (C)           30/06/1998 (19)  Everton         3     0     5'10"  11st 0lbs  £4.6M   
Sam Field                 DM, M/AM (C)        08/05/1998 (19)  Barnsley        0     0     5'10"  11st 9lbs  £7.75M  
Ruben Loftus-Cheek        DM, M/AM (C)        23/01/1996 (21)  Chelsea         26    5     6'3"   13st 7lbs  £4.6M   
Sheyi Ojo                 M (L), AM (RLC)     19/06/1997 (20)  Hull            0     0     6'1"   9st 12lbs  £8.25M  
Josh Sims                 M (L), AM (LC)      23/03/1997 (20)  Middlesbrough   3     3     5'5"   9st 8lbs   £9.5M   
Kasey Palmer              M (C), AM (RLC)     09/11/1996 (20)  QPR             10    1     5'11"  12st 6lbs  £10M    
Chris Willock             M/AM (LC)           31/01/1998 (19)  Leeds           0     0     5'9"   10st 9lbs  £2.8M   
Joshua Onomah             M/AM (C)            27/04/1997 (20)  Tottenham       6     3     6'0"   12st 10lbs £8.5M   
Tammy Abraham             AM (R), ST (C)      02/10/1997 (20)  Reading         16    5     6'4"   12st 10lbs £7.25M  
Dominic Solanke           AM (RL), ST (C)     14/09/1997 (20)  Blackburn       4     0     6'2"   12st 10lbs £4M     
Marcus Rashford           AM (L), ST (C)      31/10/1997 (20)  Man Utd         16    18    5'11"  11st 9lbs  £28.5M  

 

With two theoretically easy away European Championship qualifiers ahead against Latvia and Azerbaijan, Catterall took this as an opportunity to blood some more uncapped players in the Under-21s side.

 

West Bromwich Albion midfielder Sam Field, who'd played for England at Under-19s and Under-20s level, was bumped up another age group after hitting some excellent form on loan at Barnsley. The Leeds United duo of goalkeeper Bailey Peacock-Farrell and forward Chris Willock received maiden call-ups as well, alongside Burton Albion right-back James Bree.

 

Two other uncapped players - Hull City winger Sheyi Ojo and Southend United goalkeeper Ted Smith - had been named in the previous two Under-21s squad without featuring. This time, though, they would surely not have to wait any longer for their debuts.

 

West Ham United defender Joe Gomez returned following a hernia, with Blackburn Rovers striker Dominic Solanke also earning a recall. The latter's team-mate Adam Armstrong was amongst several players who lost their spots in the squad.

 

ENGLAND UNDER-19s squad - for matches vs Portugal (H) and Czech Republic (A)

GOALKEEPERS: Terry Cowling (Leeds), Steve Hilton (Liverpool), Jake Turner (Bolton)

DEFENDERS: Trevoh Chalobah (Northampton), Corey Jordan (Grimsby), Adam Mingay (Mansfield), Alistair Rattray (Southampton), Ryan Sessegnon (Man City), Peter Turner (Chelsea), Josh Tymon (Hull), Jordan Williams (Huddersfield)

MIDFIELDERS: Neil Campbell (Wolves), Sadou Diallo (Raith), Andre Dozzell (Motherwell), Morgan Gibbs-White (Leicester), John Harrison (Liverpool), Jonathan Leko (West Brom), Mason Mount (Ross County), Joe Rankin-Costello (Hibernian), Jadon Sancho (Man City)

FORWARDS: Ben Brereton (Rotherham), Eddie Nketiah (MK Dons), Lawrence Warner (Liverpool)

 

England's Under-19s concluded their year with a couple of friendlies - against Portugal in Dagenham, and then away to the Czech Republic. 16-year-old midfielder Neil Campbell, who'd already played in the Championship for Wolverhampton Wanderers, was in line for an international debut.

 

Liverpool right-winger John Harrison and Manchester City forward Jadon Sancho were also hoping to make their first appearances for the Under-19s. The pair had recently returned from India after their valiant efforts at the FIFA U17 World Cup. In-form striker Lawrence Warner, who finished top scorer at that tournament with eight goals, was also selected.

 

Several players who'd unfortunately missed out on the European Under-19s Championship Qualifying Round were recalled, including Morgan Gibbs-White and Eddie Nketiah, both of whom had been injured. The very highly-rated Arsenal winger Reiss Nelson remained absent after spraining his ankle for the second time in a matter of weeks.

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***

 

England Under-19s faced a difficult task when they faced Portugal in a friendly match at Dagenham & Redbridge's Victoria Road stadium. Portugal were the reigning European champions at senior and Under-21s level, and their Under-19s weren't in too bad a shape either.

 

This Esperanças squad was, unsurprisingly, dominated by players from the three major Primeira Liga clubs - Benfica, Porto and Sporting CP. Arguably the most exciting of the Portuguese players was João Filipe, who featured as an inside-forward for Benfica's B team.

 

The Young Lions' preparations had been beset by an injury to Huddersfield Town right-back Jordan Williams, who pulled his hamstring shortly after the squad was announced. Williams quickly withdrew from contention, and Leicester City's Simranjit Thandi was brought back into the team.

 

As for the match itself, things started off pretty evenly. Portugal captain Daniel Bragança floated a free-kick wide in the sixth minute after Filipe had been bundled over by Young Lions midfielder Andre Dozzell.

 

After eight minutes, England striker Eddie Nketiah skimmed the crossbar from a cross by Peter Turner. The Chelsea right-back would then have a pop at goal four minutes later, though Olhanense keeper Léo easily secured his tame shot in the Portuguese goal.

 

Sporting right-winger Elves Baldé started to cause England problems in the 24th minute, when he was tripped by Neil Campbell, prompting the referee to issue the debutant midfielder with a yellow card. Baldé's next major contribution five minutes later was to whip in a cross that goalkeeper Jake Turner frantically tipped behind.

 

In the 37th minute, another Baldé cross sent Portugal striker Leandro Campos and England defender Alistair Rattray racing after the ball. Campos prevailed, but the home fans would be left mightily relieved when he thumped the post.

 

Despite their best defensive efforts, England could not keep the scoreline goalless until half-time. After Carlos Manuel sent a quick throw-in into their penalty box in the 44th minute, Campos squared it first-time to Gedson Fernandes. The Benfica midfielder's bending effort caught Jake Turner out and broke the deadlock.

 

Portugal had pushed England into their own half for much of the first half, but the Young Lions were ready to bite back after the restart. Jonathan Leko was unfortunate to only find the side netting from fellow substitute wideman John Harrison's cross in the 50th minute.

 

Another opening came Leko's way in the 67th minute, after another Harrison cross deflected off Portuguese centre-half Miguel Lopes' back and into the West Bromwich Albion winger's path. Léo pushed the West Midlander's strike away, and he came to his team's aid again by catching Harrison's header in the 71st minute.

 

Almost immediately after that latter save, Léo was replaced in the Portugal goal by Arsenal's youth-team keeper João Virgínia. He would catch a header from Gunners team-mate Joe Rankin-Costello on 74 minutes before watching Leko flick Jadon Sancho's byline cross against the post eight minutes later.

 

Despite putting in a more encouraging performance in the second half, England lacked the quality to fight back against what was a very strong Portuguese team. The Young Lions went down to a narrow 1-0 defeat, which was - rather worryingly - their fourth reverse of the calendar year.

 

9 November 2017: Under-19s International - at Victoria Road, Dagenham

England U19s - 0

Portugal U19s - 1 (Gedson Fernandes 44)

ENGLAND U19s LINE-UP (4-3-1-2): Jake Turner (Steve Hilton); Peter Turner (Simranjit Thandi), Alistair Rattray (Trevoh Chalobah), Corey Jordan (Adam Mingay), Ryan Sessegnon (Josh Tymon); Sadou Diallo (Jadon Sancho), Andre Dozzell (Joe Rankin-Costello), Neil Campbell (John Harrison); Morgan Gibbs-White (Mason Mount); Lawrence Warner (Jonathan Leko), Eddie Nketiah (Ben Brereton). BOOKED: Campbell 24.

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***

 

As the 2019 UEFA European Under-21s Championship qualifiers reached the halfway point, England got their two longest away trips out of the way in back-to-back rounds. Before travelling to Azerbaijan, the Young Lions paid a visit to Latvia, whom they had thrashed 8-1 at home to kick off the campaign.

 

Latvia had won only one match since their humiliation in Birmingham, and there was little to suggest that they would give England any real problems, even on their own turf. That said, the Young Lions would be under some pressure to keep pace with Group 5 leaders France, who were expected to record an easy home win over Azerbaijan.

 

Southend United goalkeeper Ted Smith and Hull City forward Sheyi Ojo both made their Under-21s debuts for England in this match. There would be no prizes for guessing which one of them would be the busier man in the first period.

 

While Smith settled in for what looked set to be a quiet afternoon, Ojo set about putting England on the front foot early on. After six minutes, he collected a searching ball from Young Lions captain Tammy Abraham and crossed towards the far post, where Josh Sims unfortunately nodded the ball out of play.

 

Sims then set up an 11th-minute opening for Ojo, whose half-volley bounced narrowly past the upright. Two minutes after that, it was Sims' time to go for goal again. This time, the Middlesbrough left-winger was denied by the Latvian goalkeeper Ivans Baturins rather than his own wastefulness.

 

Sims had found the net in each of his first three Under-21s internationals, and it seemed inevitable that his incredible run would continue in Latvia. Sure enough, after 18 minutes, he nodded home from Stoke City right-back Mason Holgate's cross to get England up and running.

 

Baturins bravely denied the Young Lions a quickfire second goal twice within the next five minutes, saving first from Tom Davies and then from Reece Oxford. He also caught a 31st-minute header from Abraham, who - it seemed - was making another slow start to an Under-21s international.

 

Meanwhile, Sarkanbaltsarkanie midfielders Raivis Jurkovskis and Mariss Bite each received bookings for clumsy fouls on Holgate and Abraham respectively. When Jurkovskis upended Davies in full view of the referee in the 37th minute, the FK Liepâja player was booked again, resulting in his dismissal. An unenviable task for Latvia now looked even more daunting with only 10 men.

 

Though Baturins temporarily stemmed the bleeding, he was unable to prevent England from breaking through again just before half-time. Following a clumsy trip on Ojo from Antons Tumanovs in injury time, Abraham lifted a free-kick over the Latvian wall and beyond the diving Baturins' reach to get his game up and running.

 

Latvia hadn't launched a single attack in the entire first period. That changed shortly after the second half began, with Marks Kurtiss knocking an excellent long pass through the England defence and ahead of Aigars Putrasevics. The 19-year-old striker from Spartaks Jurmala advanced forward and tried to beat Smith from the edge of the penalty area, but the goalkeeper diverted his strike behind just in time.

 

The Sarkanbaltsarkanie would only enjoy one more scoring opportunity - in the 71st minute. Kurtiss once again played in Putrasevics, who missed the target completely on that occasion.

 

By then, England had missed a whole host of opportunities to move 3-0 up. Joshua Onomah was especially profligate in the attacking midfield role, though Ojo had also disappointed. They would later be replaced, with midfielder Kasey Palmer and inside-forward Chris Willock coming on again.

 

The two substitutes would link up superbly in the 74th minute, with Palmer playing an incisive pass to 19-year-old debutant Willock. The Londoner, who was on loan to Leeds United from Arsenal, cut inside Latvian captain Kriss Karklins and then bent in a beautiful strike that easily beat Baturins.

 

Davies struck the post for England after 78 minutes, but a 3-0 England lead would increase further three minutes later. After being bundled over by Andris Jirgensons in the Latvian area, Abraham drilled his penalty past Baturins to secure a brace. That was Abraham's seventh goal for England Under-21s, though it was the first time that he'd scored twice in a single international.

 

The captain was also involved in England's fifth goal, which sealed another emphatic win in style after 84 minutes. Abraham laid the ball off to his fellow Chelsea prospect Palmer, and the Queens Park Rangers loanee smashed in what was arguably the best strike of the night.

 

Although centre-back Oxford gashed his head in an 86th-minute collision with Kurtiss, it had been yet another serene performance from the Young Lions. They had tightened their grip on 2nd place in Group 5, leading both Albania and Scotland by five points. France retained their three-point lead at the summit after putting six goals beyond Azerbaijan without a riposte.

 

9 November 2017: UEFA European Under-21s Championship Qualifying Group 5 - at Daugava, Liepaja

Latvia U21s - 0

England U21s - 5 (Josh Sims 18, Tammy Abraham 45+1,pen81, Chris Willock 74, Kasey Palmer 84)

ENGLAND U21s LINE-UP (4-2-3-1): Ted Smith; Mason Holgate, Joe Gomez, Reece Oxford, Cameron Borthwick-Jackson; Ruben Loftus-Cheek (Lewis Cook), Tom Davies; Josh Sims, Joshua Onomah (Kasey Palmer), Sheyi Ojo (Chris Willock); Tammy Abraham.

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12 minutes ago, Diego Imposta said:

Bit of an enigma for you, this Tammy Abraham. Could we see him in Russia?

Unlikely. He is on loan at a Championship club (Reading), and I won't select Championship players for the senior team unless I have a major injury crisis.

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***

 

The 2018 FIFA World Cup qualifiers had been very easy on England, who went through with ten wins on the bounce and only four goals conceded. However, if the Three Lions were to seriously challenge for honours come the finals in Russia, they would need to become a bit more battle-hardened.

 

England's first two friendlies in the build-up to the World Cup would stretch them - and their 100% win record in 2017 - to the very limit. Argentina - officially the best international team in the world according to FIFA - would pay a visit to Wembley on 14 November. Four days before then, though, the Three Lions would cross the English Channel to meet one of their fiercest foes.

 

For any national football team, attempting to beat Les Bleus at the Stade de France - situated in the northern Parisian suburb of Saint-Denis - was about as difficult a task as they came. That was even without considering the blinding run of form France had been on under their head coach - legendary 1998 World Cup-winning captain Didier Deschamps.

 

Since losing the UEFA Euro 2016 Final to Portugal on home soil, France had yet to taste another defeat. Indeed, since drawing away to Croatia in their first game following the Euros, Deschamp's charges had won 12 consecutive matches, conceding only twice in the process. That run had helped them rise to 6th in the FIFA World Rankings, three spots above England.

 

France's squad also happened to contain the two most expensive players in Premier League history. While Manchester United's midfield powerhouse Paul Pogba was slowly but surely repaying his world-record £90million transfer fee, Antoine Griezmann had delighted Manchester City fans with his scoring exploits since arriving from Atlético Madrid for £67million in the summer.

 

England would surely find it nigh on impossible to contain Griezmann and co, especially without one of their star defenders. United centre-back Chris Smalling had dislocated his shoulder in training four days before the match, prompting manager Mark Catterall to call up Schalke 04's Calum Chambers as a replacement.

 

Harry Kane and Jonjo Shelvey each picked up minor injuries in the build-up, though both were able to take places on the substitute's bench. As far as the starting line-up was concerned, 24-year-old Stoke City goalkeeper Jack Butland was given just his fifth cap, while there were also appearances for the likes of Demarai Gray and Callum Wilson.

 

Butland would immediately come under pressure, as France won a couple of corners inside the first minute. He caught the second of them from Griezmann, and then had to push behind a blazing effort from Paris Saint-Germain midfielder Blaise Matuidi a minute later.

 

Butland's opposite number - France captain Hugo Lloris - was first tested in the fourth minute. Gray moved the ball inside to Dele Alli via Wilson, but Alli's strike was met by a typically confident fingertip save from his Tottenham Hotspur team-mate Lloris.

 

Though Lloris wouldn't have a lot more to do in the first half, that couldn't be said of Butland. England's custodian resiliently pushed behind a shot from Kevin Gameiro in the 12th minute, two minutes after the French striker's first effort had been fantastically charged down by centre-half John Stones.

 

Butland would continue to keep Gameiro off the scoresheet with further excellent saves in the 20th and 24th minute. The latter was particularly crucial, as Gameiro had outmuscled Stones to reach Matuidi's weighted pass and race clean through. The Atlético Madrid forward then drove a shot towards Butland's near post, but the goalie was there to push it away.

 

For the first time in a long time under Catterall's management, the Three Lions were seriously struggling to keep possession, against a more technically-gifted French team. They weren't at all coping well with Deschamps' heavy pressing strategy, which led to even more attacks from the hosts later in the first half.

 

Gameiro pushed Stones closer to breaking point on 32 minutes, knocking the ball past the onrushing Manchester City centre-half and ahead of Matuidi. The 30-year-old sensed that he was about to score his 10th goal for Les Bleus, but Butland once again defied him.

 

Gameiro and Matuidi each missed the target with their next shots before the half-time whistle blew with the scoreline somehow still goalless. Matuidi wouldn't return for the second half, as Deschamps instead gave a senior international debut to 22-year-old Monaco midfielder Thomas Lemar. Meanwhile in the England dressing room, Catterall opted to take off Alli and bring on Liverpool's Adam Lallana.

 

England made a rather encouraging restart. After 48 minutes, Theo Walcott's free-kick was headed out of the French area by destroyer N'Golo Kanté and back to the Villarreal winger, whose follow-up cross ricocheted off Griezmann. Wilson latched onto the rebound and dribbled back towards the area, but his strike was hit with far too much power to get near the target.

 

France then picked up where they left off, racking up a few more corners at the Three Lions' expense early on. In the 57th minute, Chelsea midfielder Kanté - who'd scored just once before at international level - struck a long-range effort that was superbly deflected behind by England skipper Jordan Henderson.

 

Lemar's hanging-ball corner was flicked across goal by Barcelona centre-back Samuel Umtiti and to Griezmann, who then evaded the tackle of Nathaniel Clyne and tried to curl in a cross. Much to Griezmann's bitter disappointment, 5ft 10in Gray managed to nod it away before either Umtiti or Gameiro could make a connection.

 

England's defence was barely surviving, but it was their attack that suffered when Lallana twisted sharply on his ankle in the 65th minute. The substitute had to be substituted, with in-form Newcastle United midfielder Jonjo Shelvey replacing him to win just his seventh international cap.

 

Four minutes later, Borussia Dortmund's Ousmane Dembélé moved in from the right wing to kick off arguably France's most frightening attack yet. He sought out Lemar, who then played the ball through space to Kingsley Coman. It looked like the 21-year-old winger would finally break the deadlock, but he could only fire his shot into the side netting.

 

A quarter of an hour before full-time, Catterall replaced the tiring Stones with Chambers, and also sent Jamie Vardy up front at the expense of Wilson. Despite Chambers' fresh legs, England were still unable to keep France's attackers quiet.

 

Griezmann scuffed a shot wide in the 75th minute, two minutes before an even more glaring miss let England off the hook once again. Anthony Martial got ahead of Clyne to knock a Dembélé cross down to Griezmann, whose half-volley soared wide over the English crossbar.

 

In the 83rd minute, Chambers headed away a long ball from France's substitute left-back Benjamin Mendy to send England on the counter-attack. Gray took the ball on and then fed it to Vardy, who bravely charged past French centre-halves Raphaël Varane and Lucas before firing a disappointing shot safely into Lloris' hands.

 

After 87 minutes, Kanté brought Shelvey down deep in France's half, resulting in his receiving a yellow card and England being awarded a free-kick. Walcott's set-piece was quickly returned to him by Dembélé, and Walcott drifted across the edge of the area before playing a deft short pass to Shelvey.

 

Shelvey's hopeful strike deflected heavily off Lucas and bounced against the diving Lloris' left-hand post. Whilst his goalkeeper was getting himself off the ball, Atlético defender Lucas - making his senior France debut at the age of 21 - rushed back and tried to scramble the ball away from goal. Much to his horror, a miscued clearance struck the other post and ricocheted into the net! Despite being on the defensive for virtually the entire game, England had somehow been gifted a 1-0 lead at the Stade de France!

 

France's home fans could not believe what they had just witnessed... but there was still a glimmer of hope for their team. In the opening moments of injury time, Griezmann played a crossfield ball through to Martial on the edge of England's penalty area. The Manchester United forward unleashed a blistering half-volley, but Butland managed to parry it round his post.

 

After Varane sent one final French effort inches wide of goal, it was very much a case of "sacrébleu" for Les Bleus. England had beaten France 1-0 in their own back garden, but hardly anybody knew how they had managed it!

 

10 November 2017: International Friendly - at Stade de France, Saint-Denis

France - 0

England - 1 (Lucas og88)

ENGLAND LINE-UP (4-2-3-1): Jack Butland; Nathaniel Clyne, Eric Dier (Gary Cahill), John Stones (Calum Chambers), Luke Shaw; Danny Drinkwater (James Ward-Prowse), Jordan Henderson; Theo Walcott, Dele Alli (Adam Lallana (Jonjo Shelvey)), Demarai Gray; Callum Wilson (Jamie Vardy).

 

Lallana's injury was assessed by England's medical team at the final whistle, and the news wasn't great. He had sprained his ankle and would miss the Three Lions' next friendly international at home to Argentina.

 

Catterall and his assistant manager Michael Burke pondered their next step as the England team coach drove back to their hotel in Paris.

 

"This is the last thing we need," Catterall sighed as he stared out the window. "Lallana's one of our best attacking midfielders. We don't have much depth in that role once you look past Alli and Ward-Prowse and Shelvey."

 

Burke nodded, "You're right there. You're not thinking about starting Jonjo against the Argies, are you?"

 

"I don't know, Mick. He did well to create that winning goal and all, but I'm not sure he's ready to start. Not against a team like Argentina, anyway. It might well be that I give him another go off the bench."

 

"And what about the other two lads?"

 

"I think James is more suited to a central midfield role than a more advanced one. Dele might be a good shout, but he tends to go missing at time when he's playing for England."

 

Catterall then turned to Burke and said, "You know what, Mick? I think I might have to bring Jack Wilshere back in."

 

Burke expressed surprise upon hearing the flamboyant Arsenal midfielder's name. "Are you sure, Catts? Didn't you write Wilshere off last week, when we were discussing who we would pick?"

 

The England number 2 brought out his phone from his pocket and said, "I've got a transcript of exactly what you said when I suggested his name to you."

 

"What did I say, then?"

 

Burke read the display on his phone, "Ha, ha, ha, ha, ha. Ha, ha, ha, ha, ha, ha, ha. Ha, ha, ha, ha, ha."

 

Coach David Platt, who was sitting behind the pair, said, "That's a haiku, that is. I didn't know Japanese poetry was your cup of tea, Mark?"

 

Catterall scoffed, "I wasn't writing Wilshere off, Michael. It's just... he's a bit like Raheem Sterling, in that he doesn't play enough for his club, and he hardly ever does anything for England. I'm running out of patience with them two."

 

"I think that's a little unfair, Catts," Burke argued. "Wilshere's a brilliant technical player who can make things happen going forward. The only problem he has is staying fit."

 

Catterall nodded, "Okay. I'll give Wilshere another chance. But if we see nothing from him against Argentina, then I'm gonna have to look elsewhere."

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England Under-19s' final match of 2017 took place in Příbram against the Czech Republic. The Young Lions' confidence had been badly shaken by a home defeat to Portugal four days earlier, and things were unlikely to get much easier for Matthew Wells' team here.

 

Though the Czech Republic were considered little more than a decent team at senior level, their youth teams were being talked up as a 'golden generation'. The Under-17s had shown great promise at the recent FIFA U17 World Cup in India, getting all the way to the Quarter Finals before they were unfortunately dumped out on penalties by Uruguay.

 

A number of the Czech kids who'd taken part in those finals - including the highly-rated Baník Ostrava striker Lukas Nemec - had been swiftly promoted to the Under-19s. While England's Liverpool duo of John Harrison and Lawrence Warner had gone a couple of steps further in India, the World Cup runners-up - and their Young Lions team-mates - would look distinctly second-best throughout this match.

 

In the 10th minute, England's Motherwell midfielder Andre Dozzell had a corner cleared out of the hosts' penalty area by captain Martin Michalek. Right-winger Harrison quickly got to the rebound and tried to drive in a shot, only to see Tomas Walter make a superb block.

 

After successfully defending against a couple of England corners, the Czech Republic registered their first shot on target on 21 minutes. Mladá Boleslav centre-half Marek Novotny reached a corner delivery from Patrik Capek and nodded in an effort that England goalkeeper Terry Cowling did well to catch.

 

Cowling's services would be required again two minutes later, after his centre-half Simranjit Thandi pushed Michalek in the Young Lions' penalty area. However, the Leeds United custodian proved no match for Sparta Prague winger Walter, whose clinical penalty made him look like a lemon.

 

The Czechs would increase their lead after 26 minutes, thanks to another excellent Capek corner. Manchester City forward Jadon Sancho - another of England's U17 World Cup finalists - tried to nod it out of the penalty area. It was to no avail, as the clearance fell towards the feet of 1.FC Köln midfielder Tomáš Ostrák, who smashing an outstanding shot beyond Cowling's reach.

 

A very nervy England team would remain 2-0 down at the interval, by which point they had barely even threatened the home goal. Their best chance to grab a goal back had come on 40 minutes, when captain Josh Tymon's cross from the left was flicked into the side-netting by Eddie Nketiah.

 

England brought on no fewer than six substitutes at half-time. One of them - AFC Bournemouth defender Corey Jordan - almost scored in the 49th minute. Alas, the Grimsby Town loanee's header from Sancho's cross was caught by Czech Republic goalkeeper Jassem Koleitat.

 

Chelsea duo Trevoh Chalobah and Mason Mount were two of England's other mid-match subs. An excellent one-two between the pair in the 54th minute resulted in Mount firing a shot just wide.

 

England's most frustrating moment arguably came after 68 minutes. Jordan flicked in a Tymon free-kick that forced the Czechs' substitute keeper Lukas Kalivoda to awkwardly parry it against his post. Warner looked set to stab in the rebound, but Kalivoda retrieved the ball just before the Liverpool striker could reach it.

 

The home defenders remained on top form throughout the match, especially Novotny, who superbly blocked an attempt from Jonathan Leko in the 77th minute. Just like Portugal four days earlier, the Czech Republic had too much defensive savvy for England's attackers to find a way past them.

 

England's Under-19s had lost four of their seven matches since the start of the season. It was clear in Mark Catterall's eyes that this particular crop of youngsters was not strong enough to challenge for the European Championship. Major changes would surely have to be made before the Elite Round in March.

 

13 November 2017: Under-19s International - at Na Litavce, Příbram

Czech Republic U19s - 2 (Tomas Walter pen23, Tomáš Ostrák 26)

England U19s - 0

ENGLAND U19s LINE-UP (4-2-3-1): Terry Cowling (Steve Hilton); Peter Turner (Trevoh Chalobah), Alistair Rattray (Adam Mingay), Simranjit Thandi (Corey Jordan), Josh Tymon (Ryan Sessegnon); Sadou Diallo (Joe Rankin-Costello), Andre Dozzell (Neil Campbell); John Harrison (Ben Brereton), Morgan Gibbs-White (Mason Mount), Jadon Sancho (Jonathan Leko); Eddie Nketiah (Lawrence Warner).

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While the Under-19s were toiling in the Czech Republic, England's Under-21s were having a much easier ride in Azerbaijan.

 

Their latest European Championship qualifier was always likely to be a one-sided contest, with England leading the competition on goals scored, and Azerbaijan yet to avoid defeat in Group 5. There would not be any surprises in Baku.

 

The tone was set after just 14 seconds, when Marcus Rashford's run into the Azerbaijan box was halted by a collision with Milli left-back Aqşin Qurbanli. The referee almost instantly pointed to the penalty spot, from which Rashford fired a lethal strike into the top-left corner of Kamran Ibrahimov's goal.

 

Three England players had been given Under-21s debuts in this match - Leeds United goalkeeper Bailey Peacock-Farrell, Burton Albion right-back James Bree, and Barnsley midfielder Sam Field. The latter, who at 19 was the amongst the youngest of these Young Lions, would play a big part in doubling England's advantage after three minutes.

 

Azerbaijan right-back Elcan Rähimov had upended Tammy Abraham just inside the hosts' half, prompting the ref to award England a free-kick. Field chipped said free-kick long to Brendan Galloway, who cleverly side-footed it for Ruben Loftus-Cheek to drive in the Young Lions' second goal.

 

The rout continued barely a minute later. Rashford drilled the ball into the penalty area for captain Abraham, who took full advantage of Azeri centre-back Ömär Buludov's unsteadiness to tap in England's third goal - less than four minutes after the kick-off!

 

England were running riot, and they even threatened to score goal number four after just 16 minutes of play. Rashford's centre slipped through a crowded Azerbaijan box and deflected off a couple of defenders before falling to Joshua Onomah, whose shot was blocked by the hosts' centre-forward Fähmin Muradbäyli. Field got to the rebound, but the debutant smashed his shot against the crossbar.

 

The England attack continued when Muradbäyli's headed interception only went as far as Loftus-Cheek on the edge of the box. Loftus-Cheek squared the ball to Davies, whose drive squirmed beneath Ibrahimov's gloves and made it 4-0.

 

The only thing more incredible than England's comfortable early lead was that the Young Lions would not add to it before half-time. Abraham, Galloway and Onomah all had chances, but neither of them could convert. Meanwhile, Anton Kryvotsyuk sent a very hopeful opening shot for Azerbaijan well wide in the 30th minute.

 

Onomah and Abraham were replaced by Kasey Palmer and Dominic Solanke during the break. In the 48th minute, a forward run from Rashford ended with him being brought down by defender Salman Cäfärov. Solanke's strike from the loose ball rebounded off his prone team-mate's back and fell to Palmer, who scooped the follow-up over the bar.

 

Palmer's next shot at goal, in the 50th minute, was marginally more accurate. He got a sweet volleyed connection to a cross from Bree, floating it into the net. 5-0 to England.

 

Ibrahimov withstood a powerful strike from Solanke in the 59th minute, but an unforgiving evening's work would get harder for him seven minutes later. When Muradbäyli handled a Palmer free-kick in the box, England were awarded a second penalty, which had the same outcome as the first. Rashford got the better of Ibrahimov, though he opted for a slick low strike rather than a powerful rocket this time around.

 

From his 17 England Under-21s caps, Rashford now had 20 goals, eight of which had come in this qualifying campaign alone. That probably said more about the calibre of England's opponents than anything, but there was no doubting that the now 20-year-old Rashford was a truly amazing talent for his age.

 

Rashford was also proving to be as adept at creating goals as he was at scoring them. After having a cross cleared by Cäfärov, the Manchester United tyro nodded the follow-up on to Loftus-Cheek, who half-volleyed in the Young Lions' seventh goal after 73 minutes.

 

Perhaps much to Ibrahimov's relief, the England onslaught ended at 7-0. Though the goalkeeper denied Rashford a hat-trick in the 80th minute, there was absolutely no doubt that Azerbaijan had been comprehensively outclassed.

 

England's latest demolition job saw them markedly improve their goal difference on Group 5 leaders France, who could 'only' score five goals at home to Albania. The Young Lions now had a +5 advantage in that regard, though they still trailed by three points.

 

Automatic qualification for the 2019 Euros in Italy had long been tipped to boil down to England vs France in Norwich in October 2018. Even with 11 months still to go until then, surely only a fool would tip Scotland or even Albania to provide those free-scorers with any meaningful competition.

 

13 November 2017: UEFA European Under-21s Championship Qualifying Group 5 - at Dalğa, Baku

Azerbaijan U21s - 0

England U21s - 7 (Marcus Rashford pen1,pen66, Ruben Loftus-Cheek 3,73, Tammy Abraham 4, Tom Davies 16, Kasey Palmer 50)

ENGLAND U21s LINE-UP (4-3-1-2): Bailey Peacock-Farrell; James Bree, Joe Gomez, Brendan Galloway, Ben Chilwell; Tom Davies (Lewis Cook), Sam Field, Ruben Loftus-Cheek; Joshua Onomah (Kasey Palmer); Marcus Rashford, Tammy Abraham (Dominic Solanke).

 

2019 UEFA European Under-21s Championship Qualifying Group 5 (After 6 rounds)

                                   P     W     D     L     F     A     GD    PTS
1.          France U21s            6     6     0     0     23    3     20    18
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2.          England U21s           6     5     0     1     29    4     25    15
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
3.          Scotland U21s          6     3     1     2     9     11    -2    10
4.          Albania U21s           6     2     1     3     6     13    -7    7
5.          Latvia U21s            6     1     0     5     5     22    -17   3
6.          Azerbaijan U21s        6     0     0     6     3     22    -19   0

 

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England went into their final match of 2017 on a roll, having won nine matches on the trot. Admittedly, most of them had been somewhat uncompetitive FIFA World Cup qualifiers, but there were a couple of inspiring friendly victories over the likes of Germany and France as well.

 

Four days after their backs-to-the-wall win at the Stade de France, the Three Lions returned to Wembley for what was undoubtedly the biggest test Mark Catterall had yet faced as manager. If his first full year in charge was to end with a 100% record, he would have to topple arguably the strongest team in international football.

 

Just like England, Argentina had breezed through to the World Cup, finishing top of CONMEBOL's round-robin table with 15 wins and three draws from 18 matches. Head coach Edgardo Bauza has reinvigorated the Albiceleste since their agonising Copa América Final defeat to Chile in 2016, taking them to the very summit of the FIFA World Rankings. They would surely be among the teams to beat come the 2018 World Cup in Russia.

 

Argentina's biggest draw was undoubtedly their little left-footed genius Lionel Messi - now 30 years old but still banging in goals on a regular basis for Barcelona. Messi would miss the entire World Cup Group Stage after being sent off for violent conduct during his country's final qualifying match against Peru, but the global interest in him clearly hadn't been diminished by that misdemeanour.

 

Manchester City striker Sergio Agüero was another likely source of goals for the Albiceleste, with Ángel Di María and Erik Lamela proving the ammunition from out wide. There were also some rather less fashionable players that England needed to be aware of - Sevilla's right-back Gabriel Mercado, for example.

 

England were 13 minutes into their meeting with Argentina when the South Americans first weaved their magic. Three Lions captain Jordan Henderson struggled to keep up with opposite number Messi as Argentina's frontman moved outside and hugged the left touchline. Once at the byline, Messi sent a hanging-ball cross over to the back post, where he hoped to find Lamela.

 

England centre-back John Stones did wonderfully to head the cross away from Lamela, but he couldn't foresee what was to come. As the ball dipped towards Mercado, the 30-year-old - only in his second season in European club football - leapt up and met it with a right-footed volley that rocketed into goalkeeper Jack Butland's top-right corner.

 

Butland had produced some outstanding saves against France, but there was quite simply no answer to that mercurial strike from Mercado. It was arguably one of the greatest goals witnessed in the decade-old history of the rebuilt Wembley Stadium.

 

Just as everybody was starting to rave about Mercado, he followed up the 'sublime' with the 'ridiculous'. Three minutes after that sensational goal, the hot-headed wing-back stunned Wembley by cutting into hometown hero Harry Kane with a two-footed tackle deep in Argentina's half.

 

The referee could not get the red card out of his pocket quickly enough. Within a matter of moments, Mercado had transformed from hero to zero. Argentina were a man down.

 

Mercado's recklessness forced all of Argentina's players into defence - even Messi, who hacked away Dele Alli's header from the resultant Jack Wilshere free-kick. Shortly after that, England right-back Kyle Walker saw his cross booted into touch by Javier Mascherano, for whom clearing his lines came rather more naturally.

 

Eric Dier blazed the Three Lions' next chance over the bar in the 21st minute. Eight minutes later, a 30-yard punt from Wilshere ricocheted off Argentine goalkeeper Gerónimo Rulli's crossbar. Mascherano's subsequent clearance only went as far as England left-back Danny Rose, who floated in a cross that Jamie Vardy only just flicked over.

 

England's own bar took a hit in the 35th minute, when a hopeful byline cross from Messi clipped the frame and deflected safely behind. This wasn't the first time that the man who always delivered the goods for Barcelona had struggled to replicate his club form in the colours of his native land.

 

The roars of the Three Lions grew louder three minutes from half-time. After Argentina centre-half Nicolás Otamendi headed away another dangerous cross from Walker, Dier struck a shot that deflected off Mascherano and almost caught Rulli out. Thankfully for the Albiceleste, the Real Sociedad goalkeeper - who, in 2016, was very briefly on the books of Manchester City without playing for them - caught the ball just before it could creep past him.

 

England would go one better in the 44th minute. As Wilshere swung in a cross, Stones got above a crowd of Argentine defenders to nod in his first international goal. The player who was arguably most culpable for that equaliser was substitute Gino Peruzzi, who'd replaced Di María to fill the void left by Mercado's dismissal. The Boca Juniors right-back's failed interception had cost Argentina dear.

 

England then went tantalisingly close to moving ahead just before the interval. Vardy beat Rulli to a delivery from Walker, only to flick it against the post before Mateo Musacchio removed the danger.

 

Despite getting England back in this game, Stones wouldn't return for the second half, under the instructions of Pep Guardiola - his manager at Manchester City. Calum Chambers took his place, while Catterall also subbed Alli and Kane off during the half-time break. On came a couple of fledgling inside-forwards in 21-year-old Demarai Gray, who won his eighth cap, and 22-year-old Rolando Aarons, who made his first senior international appearance.

 

While Aarons' England debut was solid if not particularly noteworthy, it was Gray who almost lit up Wembley for the home fans on 52 minutes. After receiving the ball from Dier, the Leicester City attacker dribbled past Peruzzi on his way into the penalty area, where he fired a shot into the safe hands of Rulli.

 

Another promising effort from Gray was swerved over the crossbar in the 60th minute. Immediately after that miss, Catterall sent on Chelsea striker Callum Wilson for the ineffective Vardy. Wilson was seven minutes into his cameo when he volleyed a Walker delivery into the side netting.

 

England had by far the greater quantity of shots compared to Argentina, but their finishing badly lacked quality. After 76 minutes, the Three Lions would be punished by their more clinical opponents.

 

Having recently come on to replace England's tiring captain Henderson, one might've expected James Ward-Prowse to pick up a through-ball from Juventus striker Gonzalo Higuaín before it could reach Eduardo Salvio. However, Ward-Prowse somehow lost track of Salvio, allowing the 27-year-old from Benfica to race clear and lift his first international goal over a despairing Butland.

 

That late Salvio strike was a real killer for an England team who'd failed to take their chances against 10 men. When they did up their attacking game in the final 10 minutes, they found Rulli in top form. Argentina's number 1 managed to save attempts from Gray in the 82nd minute and Dier in the 86th to keep his team's lead intact.

 

This was Catterall's 16th match as England manager, and it brought him only his second defeat. Almost exactly one year to the day that Belgium won a hard-fought battle with the Three Lions, Argentina had done likewise. What's more, the Albiceleste didn't really need Messi or Agüero to be at their best.

 

14 November 2017: International Friendly - at Wembley, London

England - 1 (John Stones 44)

Argentina - 2 (Gabriel Mercado 13, Eduardo Salvio 76)

ENGLAND LINE-UP (4-3-1-2): Jack Butland; Kyle Walker (Nathaniel Clyne), Gary Cahill, John Stones (Calum Chambers), Danny Rose; Eric Dier, Jordan Henderson (James Ward-Prowse), Dele Alli (Rolando Aarons); Jack Wilshere; Jamie Vardy (Callum Wilson), Harry Kane (Demarai Gray).

 

Catterall shook Bauza's hand at the final whistle, and then told his assistant Michael Burke, "That weren't good enough, Mick."

 

Burke concurred, "Yeah, we looked average. Shall I have a go at the lads in the dressing room?"

 

"Be my guest. It's about time they learned some harsh truths."

 

Minutes later, the England dressing room as Catterall and Burke stood in the middle to address their beaten players.

 

Burke began, "We've been together for, what, 15 months now? You've won 14 out of 16 matches in that time, and you've played some very good stuff at times. Against Belgium last year, you were very unlucky to lose. Tonight, though, was the first time that you really, genuinely let me and Mark down."

 

Catterall continued, "The attacking play I saw from us tonight was very one-dimensional, very predictable. You hardly gave the Argies anything to worry about by shooting from distance when there were clear openings closer to goal. I know the saying goes that you can't win the lottery if you don't buy a ticket, but a load of the tickets you bought were utter crap!"

 

Burke talked about the two Argentine goals, saying, "The first goal they scored tonight was an absolute worldie. You can't legislate for such brilliance. I'm putting nobody at fault for that. Not even you, John."

 

"The second, though... that was very disappointing," Burke sighed before addressing Butland. "Jack, you need to be more decisive in one-on-one situations. We weren't sure whether you wanted to stay on your line or rush forward. In the end, you were caught with two minds, and that allowed the striker time to set up his shot and make a fool out of you."

 

"Yeah, it wasn't great," Butland conceded. "I'll take that on board and do better next time."

 

"Good lad," Burke nodded.

 

Catterall stated, "Now you've seen what the best teams in the world are like. Technically, they're better than us. Tactically, they're stronger. Psychologically, they're tougher. That's the standard you have got to aspire to if you want to reach the business end of major tournaments, if not win them.

 

"I never said that playing teams like France and Argentina would be easy. Now you know how difficult things will be against those elite sides when it comes down to Russia.

 

"I'll talk to you again later, lads."

 

Catterall then left the room, took a deep breath, and brought his phone out of his pocket to ring his wife.

 

"Hi, Jen," Mark said as his wife answered the call.

 

A surprised Jenny replied, "Mark! I wasn't expecting you to phone so soon."

 

"Yeah, I just... I wanted to speak to you as soon as I could. Tonight weren't a good night for us."

 

"I gathered that," Jenny sighed. "Things haven't been great over here either."

 

"Why, what's wrong?"

 

"Luke fell ill at school late this afternoon. I think he's got an ear infection."

 

Catterall groaned, "Oh no, that's not good, certainly not for a kid like him."

 

"That's what I suspect, anyway. I've arranged an appointment with Dr McGrory for the morning, and I'll see what he says about it. At any rate, Luke won't be going to school tomorrow."

 

"So, where's our little lad now? In bed, I suppose?"

 

"He went to bed at 8. He's trying to sleep, bless him, but he cries out for me about every half-hour. It could be a long old night."

 

"Yeah, well, I hope Luke gets bett-" Mark stopped mid-sentence as he spotted two men emerging from the away dressing room. He instantly recognised them as Bauza and Messi, and both men were arguing ferociously.

 

Bauza shouted, "¡Eres una cucaracha arrogante, Leo! ¡Crees que eres más importante que el equipo!"

 

Messi retorted, "¡Vete a la mierda, Edy! ¡No necesito escuchar o trabajar para un entrenador incompetente como tú!"

 

Bauza's face grew a darker shade of red as be bellowed in response, "¡Deberías haberte retirado después de la Copa América! ¡No hay ninguna posibilidad de que estés jugando para Argentina en la Copa del Mundo ahora! ¡No hay posibilidad!"

 

Bauza then returned to the dressing room, slamming the door shut in Messi's face. As Mark stood still, stunned into silence, Jenny asked him, "What was all that about?"

 

Mark replied hesitantly, "I... I think that was Messi." He hung up abruptly, and then approached Messi to ask him if he could record a video message for his son Luke.

 

"Leo?" Catterall began. "Sorry to disturb you, mate. Can you, er..."

 

Before Catterall could finish his sentence, Messi - who spoke barely any English - scowled at him and walked away in disgust. Catterall knew at that moment that he'd blown his chance.

 

"I'll take that as a no, then," he shrugged, before muttering to himself, "Yeah, Luke's gonna be really gutted, Mark. You stupid b******!"

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Translated:

"You're an arrogant cockroach, Leo! You think you're more important than the team!"

"**** you, Edy! I should not have to listen or work for an incompetent coach like you!"

"You should have retired after the Copa America! There is no chance whatsoever of you playing for Argentina in the World Cup! None whatsoever!"

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37 minutes ago, Drogba11CFC said:

Translated:

"You're an arrogant cockroach, Leo! You think you're more important than the team!"

"**** you, Edy! I should not have to listen or work for an incompetent coach like you!"

"You should have retired after the Copa America! There is no chance whatsoever of you playing for Argentina in the World Cup! None whatsoever!"

Perfect. :thup:

A World Cup with Argentina, but without Messi. There's a thought.

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3 minutes ago, Drogba11CFC said:

Got to love Google Translate.

I was actually having some trouble with translating the Bauza-Messi row. I wanted to find an Argentine Spanish or even simply a Latin American Spanish translator for their argument, just to make it more realistic, but I had to settle for just regular Spanish (Castilian) instead. I hope any South American readers of this story can understand that.

Out of interest, what do you make of this story so far?

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On 11/17/2017 at 19:49, Drogba11CFC said:

It's excellent, although the idea of the title going to either Sp*rs or Liverpool is any Chelsea fan's worst nightmare.

As a fan of another London club, I didn't exactly enjoy the outcome either. As England manager, though, I was loving it! :D

Just a heads-up: this next chapter won't contain any match action. We're now building up to the 2018 World Cup, and there's been a major development that will shortly be addressed.

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Chapter 14 - Of Mice And Men

 

Few structures characterised the Russian Federation as much as Moscow's Kremlin - a grand fortified complex inside the capital city. Overlooking the world-renowned St Basil's Cathedral in Red Square, it housed buildings such as the Russian senate and the Grand Kremlin Palace - the ceremonial residence of the President of Russia.

 

Also within the Kremlin walls was the Palace of Congresses, not to be confused with the Grand Palace. It was at this Soviet-era structure, built during the Presidency of Nikita Krushchev, that the draw ceremony for the 2018 FIFA World Cup took place on 1 December 2017.

 

32 teams had earned their places in the first football World Cup to be staged in eastern Europe. Among them were England, who were represented at the ceremony by three leading figures. Football Association chairman Clark Gregory, communications director Ava Leggett and manager Mark Catterall were all in attendance.

 

As the trio entered the palace, Leggett observed, "The Russians do like a bit of grandeur, don't they?"

 

"This is Socialist Classicism architecture," Gregory replied disdainfully. "I think you'll find that it has about as much character and charm as Jack Straw at the British Lawnmower Museum."

 

Catterall said, "That reminds me. I need to buy David Platt something for Christmas. Any suggestions?"

 

A few seconds of silence followed before Leggett chimed in, "I hear Lionel Messi's involved in the ceremony."

 

"Good for him," Catterall nodded, before saying, "I've got a feeling this will be his only visit to Russia this season."

 

"What do you mean?"

 

"I heard him arguing with Edgardo Bauza outside the dressing rooms after we lost to Argentina. My Spanish ain't all that, but it sounded to me like Bauza was dropping Messi from the World Cup squad."

 

"Bollocks!" Gregory laughed. "You can look around the auditorium today, and you'll be lucky to find a manager who hasn't fallen out big-time with one of their star players. None of them will actually have the balls to drop them come the World Cup. It'd be commercial suicide, not to mention sporting suicide!"

 

"We'll see. You know, I used to really like Messi... but when you see him in the flesh, he just comes across as a bit of a self-centred a***hole."

 

Gregory replied sarcastically, "Really, Catterall? Well, I never! I always thought that all modern footballers were grown-up choir boys who you could share a pint or two with down the pub!"

 

"You see, I tried to get him to record a message for Luke, but he just stormed off in a huff. To be fair, he'd just been told he wasn't going to the World Cup..."

 

"There you go," Leggett interjected. "He was in a foul mood, that was all. I'm sure if you ask him nicely after the ceremony, he'll be more than happy to oblige."

 

Catterall shook his head. "I'm a man of first impressions, Ava. If you p*** me off first time around, that's it."

 

"Good grief, Catterall," Gregory groaned. "If I was like you, I'd have ripped your CV up and thrown it in the bin!"

 

"Besides, I don't give a damn about Messi right now. I'm just worrying about the draw, and about our opponents. No matter who we get, there won't be any easy games."

 

England had qualified for the World Cup with a 100% record, alongside France, and were tipped to go deep into the tournament, especially if they got a favourable draw. Gregory had set Catterall a minimum target of getting past the Group Stage and into the Last 16, thus improving upon the Three Lions' pathetic performance at Brazil 2014.

 

For a while, it had looked like England would be given a top seeding for the Group Stage. Host nation Russia went automatically into Group A, while the top seven teams in the FIFA World Rankings would be kept apart and drawn individually into Groups B-H.

 

Had England avoided defeat to Argentina in their final friendly match of the year, they would've been within the top seven of the World Rankings. However, a 2-1 loss against the Albiceleste meant that they stayed in 8th place - just below the cut-off point.

 

England would instead go into Pot 4, with most of the other unseeded UEFA members. Pot 2 contained qualifiers from CONCACAF (North & Central America & the Caribbean) and AFC (Asia), while Pot 3 featured all CAF (Africa) qualifiers plus Chile and Colombia from CONMEBOL (South America), and the other European team - shock debutants Georgia.

 

All eight groups would contain four teams - one seeded nation, plus one team each from Pots 2, 3 and 4. There could be no more than two UEFA teams in a single group, and no other confederation could have more than one team in a group. To use Georgia as an example, they could only be drawn into a group with a non-UEFA seed; in this case, that meant they would play either Argentina, Brazil or Uruguay.

 

The draw itself was fairly complex to the casual viewer, and it perhaps didn't help matters that FIFA's draw ceremonies were as elongated and extravagant as usual. No expense was spared to showcase anything that could technically be termed as Russian 'entertainment' at various points during this ceremony.

 

The glamourous presenters were also assisted along the way by several 'legends' of Russian football. Among them was Alexei Smertin - a former Bordeaux and Chelsea midfielder who played for Russia at the 2002 World Cup. He was now the deputy executive director of Dinamo Moscow, and the Russian Football Union's 'Anti-Racism and Discrimination Inspector', which some onlookers saw as a contradiction in terms.

 

Speaking ahead of his involvement in the draw, Smertin proudly boasted, "This will be the first World Cup in history that will be completely free of discrimination. We Russians are very tolerant people. Racism, sexism and homophobia do not exist in Russia."

 

Smertin's comments were met by resounding applause from within the auditorium... but not from everyone.

 

"Yeah, and my name's Ivan the Terrible," Catterall scoffed sarcastically. Gregory attempted to stifle a chuckle, which drew a stern look of contempt from a French Football Federation executive who was sitting near him.

 

Leggett rebuked her male colleagues, "Pack it in. You're not making a good impression."

 

"Take it easy, Ava," Gregory said, before whispering, "Most of this lot around us are corrupt crooks who should've been locked up years ago. Do you think I give a stuff what they think of us?"

 

90 minutes after the ceremony began, the World Cup draw was complete, and England had a better idea of what to expect six months hence.

 

2018 FIFA World Cup Group Stage draw

GROUP A: Russia (hosts), Jamaica, Ghana, Croatia

GROUP B: France, Mexico, Tunisia, Switzerland

GROUP C: Brazil, Costa Rica, Georgia, England

GROUP D: Uruguay, Iran, Ivory Coast, Italy

GROUP E: Portugal, Japan, Senegal, Spain

GROUP F: Argentina, Saudi Arabia, Cameroon, Romania

GROUP G: Belgium, United States, Chile, Slovenia

GROUP H: Germany (holders), China, Colombia, Netherlands

 

The big story as far as England fans were concerned was that the Three Lions would be facing Brazil - the five-time world champions, and the only team to have competed at every World Cup.

 

Ranked 7th in the world, one spot above England, the Seleção were likely to be spearheaded in attack once again by Barcelona megastar Neymar. 20-year-old Manchester City wonderkid Gabriel Jesus had scored 11 goals in his first 21 international caps and would surely be among the favourites to win the Best Young Player award.

 

This would be the first time England had faced Brazil at a World Cup since 2002, when Ronaldinho's freak free-kick bamboozled David Seaman and broke the Three Lions' hearts at the Quarter Final stage. Indeed, England had never beaten the South American giants at the big global showpiece.

 

The early favourites to win Group C were obvious, but Costa Rica had the potential to be jokers in the pack. The 2014 World Cup had seen 'Los Ticos' emerge from England's group on their way to the Quarter Finals, where their brave run was halted by a Netherlands team who'd suddenly discovered how to win a penalty shoot-out.

 

Real Madrid goalkeeper Keylor Navas wasn't likely to ship many goals for the Central Americans, while Southampton winger Joel Campbell had shown in 2014 that he could be devastating when fully switched on.

 

Though Georgia would be rated as massive underdogs in Group C, they were actually only three places below Costa Rica in the World Rankings. Led by Slovakian coach Vladimir Weiss, the 'Jvarosnebi' (or 'Crusaders') had qualified for their first major tournament after sensationally topping a group that also included Austria, Serbia and Wales.

 

In terms of personnel, the most familiar Georgian player to English football fans was West Bromwich Albion's right-winger Akaki Gogia. On the left wing would be Spartak Moscow's inside-forward Jano Ananidze, who probably thought he was Brazilian and thus went simply by the name of Jano.

 

England's group phase would begin on 16 June, when they'd tackle Brazil straight off the bat in Volgograd. They would then move on to the capital, playing Costa Rica at Moscow's Luzhniki stadium on 22 June. The Three Lions' final group match - which they sincerely hoped wouldn't be their last of the tournament - would be against Georgia in Nizhniy Novgorod on 27 June.

 

"Bloody hell," Gregory sighed in the lobby after the ceremony. "They haven't made it easy for us, have they?"

 

"I was expecting a tough group," Catterall nodded. "We all know that Brazil and Costa Rica are both brilliant teams, but even Georgia could shock us if we have a bad day."

 

Gregory scoffed, "Georgia? This isn't rugby union, Catterall! Those goat farmers haven't done anything in football since Temur Ketsbaia was kicking sponsor boards for a living!"

 

Leggett looked at her draw sheet and said, "Even if we do get through the group, we're looking at a Last 16 match with either Uruguay or Italy."

 

"Don't write off the Ivory Coast," Catterall argued. "They may not have Didier Drogba or their other big-hitters anymore, but they've still got it in them to worry the Italians."

 

Leggett then spotted Messi across the room and told Catterall, "Hey, Mark. There's your old friend."

 

"I told you, Ava. I'm not interested."

 

Gregory grumbled, "He's a lucky bugger, that Messi. Of course FIFA had to give Argentina the easiest draw possible! You might as well have lumped them in with Swaziland, Turkmenistan and Kosovo!"

 

Leggett hissed, "That's enough, Clark!" She then nudged Catterall's hip with her elbow and mouthed, "Go on, then."

 

Catterall shook his head adamantly, but Leggett insisted, "Just talk to him, for goodness sake!"

 

Catterall sighed, "Well... I did promise Luke that I'd bring something home for him whenever I went abroad."

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22 hours ago, mark wilson27 said:

Some good ties in the group stages Chris.. Brazil isn't going to be easy but the rest of the group should be.

Portugal v Spain and Germany v Holland bet the TV figures will be high for those

I would not write off Costa Rica. That being said, I could perhaps forgive you for forgetting our classic group match against them in 2014. :lol:

Speaking of 2014, Luis Suárez will have another chance to get his teeth into Italy, and it remains to be seen whether the USA can shut out Belgium without Tim Howard. Those ties should be just as mouth-watering as the two you mentioned above.

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***

 

A few days after the FIFA World Cup draw was made, England manager Mark Catterall sat down with FA chairman Clark Gregory and vice-chairwoman Connie Millstone to discuss his team's preparations for the finals in Russia.

 

Catterall wanted to arrange three friendly matches against teams who would be similar in strength and tactical philosophy to the Three Lions' group opponents - Brazil, Costa Rica and Georgia. He had a few teams in mind, but he wanted to gauge the opinions of Gregory and Millstone beforehand.

 

Gregory informed Catterall that the FA had already arranged a five-day training camp in Switzerland, between 19 and 23 March, for the England senior and Under-21s teams. Catterall was grateful for the opportunity to oversee both teams at close quarters, though he was curious as to why Switzerland had been chosen as a training base.

 

"I'd rather not go into too much detail about that, Mark," Gregory said. "Let's just say that Switzerland's got nice weather in March."

 

"And it'll help us with our bid for the 2030 World Cup," Millstone chimed. "[FIFA President] Gianni Infantino will appreciate us visiting his home country and-"

 

"Thank you, Connie," Gregory interrupted. "I can assure you, Mark, that everything's right good and proper. No funny business."

 

Catterall's interest was piqued by Millstone's slip-up. He asked her, "Hold on? Are we bidding to host the World Cup?"

 

Millstone murmured, "I shouldn't have mentioned that yet, should I?"

 

Gregory interjected, "Anyway, back to the matter at hand. Now, we've got a free date on 26 March. Perhaps we could use that date for a game at Wembley."

 

Catterall nodded, "I'm thinking of playing a team similar to Costa Rica, so that would be one of the other qualifiers from CONCACAF. Mexico are always very strong when they're coming up to a World Cup, and it's been a while since England have played them, so maybe it's time to invite them over."

 

Gregory responded, "I can see where you're coming from, Mark, but I think the United States might be more of a test. After all, about half their squad's German."

 

Gregory then turned to his left, and spotted Millstone tapping furiously at her phone. He growled, "Interrupting your Candy Crush marathon, are we, Connie?"

 

A startled Millstone quickly put her phone back on the table and apologised, "Sorry, Clark - got distracted! But no, I was just doing some research on the US."

 

"Go on?" Gregory said impatiently.

 

"You know that the US women's team won their World Cup a few years back, right? Carli Lloyd, Abby Wambach, Alex Morgan, Hope Solo..."

 

"GET TO THE F***ING POINT!"

 

"Well... the US men's team get paid a lot more than the women do, so they must be really good as well."

 

"Adam Sandler earned about $50million this year. That doesn't make him a better actor than Emma Watson."

 

"And there's a free date on 26 March, right? It just so happens that it coincides with Donald Trump's state visit to the UK. If England play the USA on that day, then that'd be a great opportunity to invite President Trump to Wemb-"

 

"Mexico it is!" Gregory interjected, with Catterall nodding affirmatively.

 

Next on the agenda were the two friendly matches immediately leading up to the World Cup. Catterall wanted his England team to play one final home friendly against South American opposition at Wembley on 5 June before travelling out to eastern Europe to play a Georgia-esque team on 10 June. From there, the Three Lions would fly out to their World Cup training base in Volgograd, where they'd make their final preparations for the opening group match with Brazil on 16 June.

 

"It wouldn't be a bad idea to play against Colombia before the World Cup, Mark," Gregory suggested. "They play in yellow and have some fantastic technicians, don't they?"

 

"I'm not sure about Colombia, to be honest with you," Catterall answered. "As I see it, they're not all that different from Chile, and I reckon Chile would be more of a test. Besides, they've won the Copa América twice in a row, haven't they?"

 

"That's a good point, Mark. I think we should play Chile instead, in that case. Now, where would you like to stop off while we're on our way to Russia?"

 

Millstone offered up a suggestion. "The Ukraine?"

 

"Forget it, Connie. That's a non-starter for so many reasons."

 

Catterall had a better idea. "We should go to Romania. They play direct football like Georgia, and they've got a very strong, physical team. If we can do well against them in Bucharest, then there's no reason why we can't cope with the pressure against the Georgians."

 

"What do you think, Millstone?" Gregory asked the vice-chair, who replied, "That sounds... logical."

 

"So there we have it - Mexico, Chile and Romania. Three strong tests before the World Cup. David Whiteman can thrash out the details and get those friendlies arranged once he returns from holiday next week."

 

"Where's he been, then?" Catterall asked.

 

"Dorset - it's a 50th wedding anniversary present for his wife Daphne. Lovely part of the country, Mark. It ain't exactly the Peak District, but you should go sometime."

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***

 

One of the legendary Scottish writer Robert Burns' most famous poems was written in 1785. "To A Mouse" was composed as an apology from a man who had accidentally destroyed a rodent's nest while out ploughing.

 

The penultimate verse contained a verse that, translated from the original Scots dialect to modern English, read as, "The best laid schemes of mice and men often go awry." That was another way of saying that even the most carefully-prepared plans may go wrong.

 

Burns' poem inspired the title of John Steinbeck's iconic 1937 novella "Of Mice And Men". Eight decades later, the Bard of Ayrshire's words would also resonate with the man who'd recently been dubbed the 'Brains of Blackpool' by one tabloid newspaper - Mark Catterall.

 

It was a cold midweek afternoon at St George's Park in December 2017. The England manager had spent the morning conducting a training course for aspiring female coaches. After finishing up, Catterall checked his Twitter feed on his phone. He never posted any updates on the site, though he did have a private account under a secret alias.

 

One of the messages on his feed was from BBC Sport, who tweeted, "OMG! We've just heard some TERRIBLE NEWS about Wayne Rooney! Tap here for more." There was also a string of crying emojis, because BBC journalists apparently now only communicated with cartoon faces.

 

Catterall was no fan of what he viewed as 'clickbait' journalism, so he dismissed the BBC's post as not being worth the time of day. Similarly, he overlooked a tweet from The Sun that simply screamed, "ROONEY CAREER OVER!"

 

Catterall looked to other, more reliable media sources, who provided more substantial details about what exactly had happened to the 32-year-old England captain, and the Three Lions' record goalscorer. Rooney had barely played for Manchester United all season, rusting in the reserves after being shunned by manager José Mourinho. He had all but disappeared from the limelight before this 'shock' news story broke.

 

It turned out that Rooney had undergone an operation on his left knee to treat what had been described by his representative Paul Stretford as "chronic tendonitis". There were now serious doubts over whether he would play in competition again in the current season, if at all.

 

Catterall quickly rushed to his office and instructed his personal assistant, "Rachel, I need you to set me up a meeting with Clark Gregory... and Ava Leggett if you can."

 

Half an hour later, the England manager was in a Skype call with FA chairman Gregory and communications chief Leggett, both of whom were at Wembley.

 

"We need to talk about Wayne," Catterall began.

 

"You and me both," Gregory said. "I've just had a word with his agent, actually."

 

"What did he have to say?"

 

"Well, I couldn't understand about half of what he were saying, but it sounded to me like Rooney would be out for three months - at the very least. That wouldn't be too bad if he were a young pup, but he's 32 now, Mark. A three-month injury might as well end his career."

 

"You sound like you want me to drop him from the team permanently."

 

"Knock it on the head, Mark. Rooney's been past-it for goodness knows how long, and I strongly doubt he'll be having a sudden career renaissance. It's not as if he's Andrea Pirlo, is he?"

 

Leggett then joined the conversation. "It's your call, Mark, but I think you've got to make your decision public soon. We don't really want another media circus over whether Rooney will be going to the World Cup or not. We've had this countless times before, with him and David Beckham and Paul Gascoigne."

 

"I've already decided," Catterall said. "He's not going."

 

An ecstatic Gregory exclaimed, "By the right foot of George Cohen, our man's finally seen sense!"

 

"So you're dropping Rooney... for good?" Leggett asked, with some trepidation.

 

"Yes, I am," Catterall answered. "And as of right now, he's no longer the England captain."

 

Gregory beamed, but a startled Leggett told Catterall, "I hope you understand the risks you're taking. It's one thing to change your captain before a qualifying tournament. It's quite another to change captains between the qualifiers and the World Cup itself."

 

"Basically, Ava, the changeover has already happened," Gregory told her. "Rooney's been out of the team for I don't know how long. Catterall is just making it official. Draw a line under it and move on before - like you say - it becomes a media circus."

 

Catterall responded, "You've pretty much said what I was going to say, Clark. And I've already decided who I want as my new captain - Jordan Henderson."

 

"I'd have thought you'd give it to Joe Hart, given his experience and all."

 

"No, Clark. Henderson is the natural choice. Not only did he almost lead Liverpool to the title last season, but he's our vice-captain right now, and he's led us with distinction since Rooney's been out. Like I said many times, there's a bit of Steven Gerrard about him."

 

Gregory was unconvinced. "Steven Gerrard was an all-round midfield master; he wasn't just a ball-winner who only scored once every blue moon. To be frank with you, Henderson couldn't hold a candle to the bloke."

 

Catterall insisted, "Hear me out. Henderson may not be a 'Match of the Day' highlights player, but he's tough, he's determined, he keeps us ticking over in possession. He's also a true professional who never gives anything less than 100%.

 

"England's old guard is no more - Gerrard, [Frank] Lampard, [Rio] Ferdinand, [Ashley] Cole, [John] Terry, they've all retired. Rooney's finished. We've moved on to the 1990s kids - Harry Kane, Dele Alli, John Stones, Michael Keane. And personally, I can't think of anyone more capable of leading this new generation than Jordan Henderson."

 

Gregory finally nodded in reluctant agreement, "Henderson wouldn't be my first choice, in all honesty, but okay."

 

Catterall then instructed Leggett, "And Ava, I'd like you to put out a press release to announce this change."

 

"I'm not sure I want to do that, Mark," Leggett replied.

 

"I thought you said you wanted me to make my decision public soon."

 

"Yeah, but by soon, I didn't mean 'right this minute'!"

 

"I've made my choice already, so what's the point in delaying the announcement?"

 

"I mean, taking the captaincy away from Wayne just after he's had knee surgery... isn't that like kicking a man when he's already down? Can't you at least hold it off for a few days?"

 

Catterall shook his head. "There's no room for sympathy in top-level football, Miss Leggett. We've got to put it out there as soon as possible. When you're in this job, you can't dither; you have to be decisive."

 

Leggett slunk her shoulders and sighed, "Give me some time to think of something. This statement must be affirmative, but at the same time, it's got to be written in a way that doesn't come across as insulting to Wayne. That's the last thing he and his family need right now."

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***

 

Less than 48 hours after Wayne Rooney had undergone knee surgery, his removal as England captain was officially confirmed by the Football Association. Ava Leggett had carefully written a statement that would clarify manager Mark Catterall's decision without causing any offence to Rooney:

 

Quote

"The Football Association can confirm that, after careful consideration, it has been decided that Wayne Rooney will not be involved with the England squad at the forthcoming FIFA World Cup in Russia.

 

"England men's national team manager Mark Catterall has also determined that Jordan Henderson will take on the responsibilities of the senior team captain with immediate effect.

 

"Mark Catterall wishes to state that he had come to this conclusion following the news that Wayne Rooney had undergone surgery to treat an ongoing knee problem. He now feels that, with Wayne's long-term fitness ahead of this summer's global finals in serious doubt, it is in the best interests of the team to transfer the leadership to the next generation of players.

 

"Wayne has been informed about this decision, which he understands and reluctantly accepts.

 

"The FA would like to place on record our thanks to Wayne for a fantastic 14-year international career, in which he received 122 caps and scored a national-record 55 goals. We wish him all the best for the future."

 

Media reaction to Rooney's axing as captain was mixed. While some outlets were quick to praise Catterall for making a quick decision to drop a player in sharp decline, others expressed dismay that the manager had ruthlessly dismissed Rooney whilst he was still recovering from an operation.

 

The Sun, whose relationships with Catterall and Rooney tended to fluctuate wildly, were especially critical. Their back page depicted Catterall as a surgeon and carried the headline: "CATTS LIKE A KNIFE: Mark removes England captaincy from stricken Roo".

 

Inside the sports pages, chief reporter Russell Whiteman wrote, "I'm sure a lot of you read 'Of Mice And Men' by Steinbeck when you were at school.

 

"For those who didn't, one of the main characters was Lennie Small - a big, strong r****d who killed fragile creatures. Mark Catterall is basically Lennie Small in real life, leaving a trail of destruction in his wake as he pursues his dream.

 

"Spoiler alert: Lennie gets shot by his best friend at the end of the book. Just thought I'd put it out there."

 

Whiteman's comments provoked outrage, not least because of the use of a derogatory word to describe a person with a mental disability. As far as many were concerned, it was outrageous that the England manager could be compared to a disabled person, especially a little less than two decades after one of his predecessors had been dismissed for making similarly offensive comments.

 

The Catteralls were themselves furious with Whiteman's comments, which they discussed at the dinner table later that afternoon.

 

"I can't understand why The Sun would say such hurtful things about you," Jenny told Mark.

 

"And I can't understand why you'd even go to the trouble of reading them, Jenny," Mark replied. "Every man, woman and dog knows that The Sun is just a soapbox for far-right wackos who think they can say whatever they want and get away with it. It's a bit like the US Presidency at the moment, actually."

 

"Oh yeah, of course. I'd never go out of my way to read The Sun, but one of my clients had it lying around while I was fixing their network server, and... I was just curious, you know."

 

"Curiosity killed the Catterall."

 

"You could say that, yes," Jenny smiled, half-laughing. She then continued, "But it's not just those hurtful things they wrote about you, basically calling you a... r****d."

 

"What's a r****d?" Luke asked innocently.

 

"You don't need to know what that word means right now, son," Mark said, but Jenny carefully explained anyway. "Luke, it's a... bad word that bad people say to people who are... you know, special."

 

Luke quickly asked again, "I'm special, aren't I? Does that mean I'm a..."

 

Jenny gently put her hand on Luke's shoulder and - with her voice starting to tremble - interrupted, "No, no, no, you're not! You are extra, extra special! You're NOT a r****d!"

 

"And if anyone calls you that bad word because you're different from them, Luke, then ignore them," Mark stated. "They're not worth your time."

 

Jenny took a deep breath and resumed, "Now where was I? Oh yes, it wasn't just those words I found upsetting. The journalist got 'Of Mice And Men' all wrong."

 

"I never read it when I were a kid," Mark said. "At my school, we couldn't afford much in the way of literature. Thank you very much, Margaret Thatcher and Keith Joseph."

 

Jenny explained, "The whole point of 'Of Mice And Men' is that Lennie doesn't know his own strength. He's powerless to realise how powerful he is, and that's ultimately where he comes unstuck."

 

"Yeah, that's not me at all. Don't worry about that nonsense, Jen. Just remember that you've got more smarts in that beautiful brain of yours than The Sun have in their entire newsdesk."

 

Luke then chimed in with a question that Mark had undoubtedly been expecting. "So is it true what everyone's saying, then? That Wayne Rooney will not play for England ever again?"

 

Mark stressed over what to say for a few moments, and then admitted, "Yes, Luke. Wayne Rooney will not play for England again. I don't think he can play for England now, anyway. He is very old and his knees are not very good now."

 

Luke said sadly, "I like Wayne Rooney. He is a good player."

 

"Yes, he was a good player, but time catches up with all of us. It's been nearly 10 years since I stopped playing football. These days, I get out of breath whenever I run upstairs."

 

"You should never run upstairs, Dad. Mummy says that you might fall over and hurt yourself if you do."

 

Jenny laughed, "He's right, Mark!"

 

Mark conceded, "That's a fair point. If only Russell Whiteman's mum had told him the same thing, eh?"

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20 hours ago, EvilDave said:

Just checking in to say that this is still brilliant, Chris. Love the way that you've dealt with the Rooney situation here - I can imagine the Sun writing something like that - and the fact that you've got Georgia in the World Cup. Keep up the great work!

The plan was to have Rooney in my squad until the World Cup. However, a lack of first-team football at Man Utd forced me to drop him, and that long-term injury pretty much killed any chance of him returning. It took me a while to figure out how I could describe Rooney's axing without making it sound unrealistic, or insulting to one of the greatest England footballers of my lifetime.

I was not expecting to see Georgia at the World Cup, let alone in our group! However, this gives me the opportunity to explore them a bit (and the South Ossetia/Abkhazia disputes will inevitably crop up while they're attending a World Cup in Russia). I hope you'll enjoy that. :)

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Chapter 15 - Battling For Places

 

As 2018 kicked off, so did in earnest the race for places in England's squad for the upcoming FIFA World Cup in Russia. Manager Mark Catterall had given chances to numerous players over the course of his first 18 months in charge, and it was still anyone's guess as to who would make the final 23.

 

Wayne Rooney's knee injury had effectively ruled the now erstwhile England skipper out of what would have been his fourth World Cup tournament. His successor as skipper - Liverpool midfielder Jordan Henderson - was one of the few players who could be reasonably confident of booking a seat on the flight to Russia, barring any serious injuries.

 

Some prospective England players had been left out of most of Catterall's squads due to poor form or simply not getting enough first-team football. The January transfer window presented the likes of Jesse Lingard and Raheem Sterling with an opportunity to move on from the clubs that were neglecting them, and show their talents to Catterall ahead of the finals.

 

Lingard had won three caps for his country, though the inside-forward and occasional winger could've arguably won more were it not for his relative lack of competitive action for Manchester United. He'd played in only two league games for the Red Devils this term, with the £55million signing of Portuguese ace Bernardo Silva from Monaco arguably diminishing his opportunities further still.

 

Lingard was very reluctant to leave Old Trafford. After all, the 25-year-old from Warrington in Cheshire had come through United's youth academy and waited patiently for regular first-team football before making his major breakthrough under Louis van Gaal in 2015/2016. However, van Gaal's later dismissal and the subsequent arrival of José Mourinho - a manager who arguably prioritised short-term and often expensive fixes over long-term squad development - had set Lingard back big-time.

 

Inevitably, the relationship between Mourinho and Lingard would deteriorate to the extent that the latter was made available for transfer in January. Lingard would finally be on the move, but not to another Premier League club. Instead, he went down the Theo Walcott route - and travelled to Spain.

 

Celta Vigo were an ordinary mid-table La Liga club, though one with plenty of money to spend. Celta's director of football Felipe Miñambres had invested millions in exciting young talents such as Ajax striker Kasper Dolberg and Valencia left-back Toni Lato over the course of this season. Lingard was no youngster anymore, but as far as Miñambres was concerned, he had the ability to become Los Celestes' attacking lynchpin.

 

Lingard officially signed for Celta for an initial £9.75million on transfer deadline day. Three days later, he got his La Liga career off to the quickest of starts, firing his new club into a 1-0 lead over Valencia after just 11 seconds. Celta went on to win 2-0, and the home fans at the Balaídos quickly took their hearts to Lingard.

 

While Lingard was starting his new life in Spain, another potentially explosive England wideman was offered the chance to move abroad.

 

Manchester City's Raheem Sterling had become accustomed to being wheeled out only for domestic cup matches. Come January 2018, the number of Premier League appearances he'd made for City during a season-and-a-half under Pep Guardiola had barely passed double figures.

 

Sterling was desperate to regain his England place for the World Cup, so Guardiola graciously offered him the opportunity to go out on loan. There were no offers from PL clubs, though Serie A side Roma and Bundesliga outfit Wolfsburg each offered to take the flamboyant 23-year-old on loan.

 

Much to the amazement of many in English football, Sterling turned down the advances of both Roma and Wolfsburg, stating that he wanted to stay at City and fight for his place. In doing so, however, he might just have jeopardised his hopes of claiming a World Cup spot.

 

The Citizens were still likely to retain a significant presence in the England squad. Goalkeeper Joe Hart was providing a strong challenge to Claudio Bravo at the Etihad Stadium, while Michael Keane and John Stones had each shown excellent form in the centre of the backline.

 

That said, City's expected title challenge had failed to materialise. Instead, it looked increasingly likely as 2018 went on that Manchester United and Arsenal would be going toe-to-toe to take the Premier League crown from an out-of-form Tottenham Hotspur team.

 

Arsenal's best chance of having a player in England's World Cup squad looked to be with Jack Wilshere. The brilliant but often frustrating attacking midfielder would sadly miss the March internationals due to - you guessed it - injury.

 

United had Phil Jones, Luke Shaw and Chris Smalling - all semi-regulars at least in defence - as well as 20-year-old attacking sensation Marcus Rashford. Rather understandably, Rashford had struggled to displace evergreen frontman Zlatan Ibrahimovic - the league's leading scorer at 36 years of age - in the Old Trafford hierarchy. He would perhaps have to wait longer still for a recall to England's senior side.

 

Further down the Premier League table, Watford had surprisingly knocked Liverpool out of the top six, prompting calls for left-back Charlie Taylor and/or striker Troy Deeney to be considered for England duty. Rolando Aarons and Jonjo Shelvey were still impressing for Newcastle United, even though the Magpies' top-four challenge had faltered.

 

21-year-old centre-back Brendan Galloway had caught the eye for mid-table Everton in his first season as a regular starter at Goodison Park. Another strong contender for a maiden senior call-up was Stoke City's Burundi-born goalscorer Saido Berahino - the third-most prolific Englishman in this season's PL, behind the evergreen Sunderland poacher Jermain Defoe and Tottenham's Harry Kane.

 

But what had become of Leicester City, and their bright attacking hopes Demarai Gray and Patrick Roberts? Gray was now an established squad member for both club and country, while Roberts appeared to be on the verge of joining him in the England team when he suffered an untimely hamstring tear in October.

 

Since then, though, it had gone all wrong for Leicester. Şenol Güneş was sacked as manager in December and replaced with Brendan Rodgers, but the former Celtic boss had thus far failed to take the Foxes back into the top half.

 

Though midfielder Danny Drinkwater remained solid and consistent for Leicester, Gray's form had dipped noticeably, and Roberts was not yet up to speed following his three-month lay-off. City's attacking threat in general had been greatly diminished since Jamie Vardy tore a calf muscle after colliding with team-mate Wilfred Ndidi at West Ham United on New Year's Day.

 

As Catterall got into the middle of March, the time came for him to pick his latest squad. The senior team would spend a week at a training camp in Switzerland before facing their hosts on 23 March. They would then return home to entertain Mexico four days later.

 

The Under-21s would also travel to that training camp, playing their Swiss counterparts prior to a home friendly with Georgia at Loftus Road. Meanwhile, the Under-19s would take on Greece, Republic of Ireland and Norway in the European Championship Elite Round, with the winners of their group qualifying for July's finals in Finland.

 

ENGLAND squad - for matches vs Switzerland (A) and Mexico (H)

NAME                      POSITIONS           D.O.B. (AGE)     CLUB            CAPS  GOALS HEIGHT WEIGHT     VALUE
Jack Butland              GK                  10/03/1993 (25)  Stoke           6     0     6'5"   14st 13lbs £20.5M  
Fraser Forster            GK                  17/03/1988 (29)  Southampton     8     0     6'7"   15st 8lbs  £12M    
Joe Hart                  GK                  19/04/1987 (30)  Man City        75    0     6'5"   12st 10lbs £14.25M 
Phil Jones                D (RC)              21/02/1992 (26)  Man Utd         20    0     6'1"   11st 4lbs  £14M    
Michael Keane             D (RC)              11/01/1993 (25)  Man City        9     0     6'1"   13st 0lbs  £28.5M  
John Stones               D (RC)              28/05/1994 (23)  Man City        21    1     6'2"   12st 1lb   £34.5M  
Eric Dier                 D (RC), DM, M (C)   15/01/1994 (24)  Tottenham       23    3     6'2"   13st 7lbs  £33M    
Gary Cahill               D (C)               19/12/1985 (32)  Chelsea         56    3     6'4"   13st 7lbs  £2.2M   
Nathaniel Clyne           D/WB (R)            05/04/1991 (26)  Liverpool       24    0     5'9"   10st 7lbs  £17.5M  
Kyle Walker               D/WB (R)            28/05/1990 (27)  Tottenham       27    0     6'0"   11st 6lbs  £23M    
Luke Shaw                 D/WB (L)            12/07/1995 (22)  Man Utd         15    1     6'1"   11st 11lbs £21M    
Danny Rose                D/WB/M (L)          02/07/1990 (27)  Tottenham       15    2     5'8"   11st 6lbs  £25M    
Jordan Henderson          DM, M (C)           17/06/1990 (27)  Liverpool       41    0     6'0"   10st 7lbs  £25M    
Jesse Lingard             M (RL), AM (RLC)    15/12/1992 (25)  Celta           3     0     5'6"   10st 3lbs  £14.25M 
Danny Drinkwater          M (C)               05/03/1990 (28)  Leicester       9     0     5'10"  11st 0lbs  £16.75M 
Rolando Aarons            M/AM (RL)           16/11/1995 (22)  Newcastle       1     0     5'9"   10st 5lbs  £11.5M  
Demarai Gray              M/AM (RL)           28/06/1996 (21)  Leicester       8     2     5'10"  11st 13lbs £11.5M  
Nathan Redmond            M/AM (RL), ST (C)   06/03/1994 (24)  Southampton     2     1     5'8"   11st 6lbs  £16.25M 
Adam Lallana              M/AM (RLC)          10/05/1988 (29)  Liverpool       40    1     5'8"   11st 6lbs  £17.5M  
Dele Alli                 M/AM (C)            11/04/1996 (21)  Tottenham       27    5     6'1"   12st 1lb   £36.5M  
Saido Berahino            AM (RC), ST (C)     04/08/1993 (24)  Stoke           0     0     5'11"  13st 0lbs  £16M    
Harry Kane                ST (C)              28/07/1993 (24)  Tottenham       28    11    6'3"   13st 0lbs  £37M    
Callum Wilson             ST (C)              27/02/1992 (26)  Chelsea         11    3     5'11"  10st 7lbs  £42.5M  

 

The headline selection for this England team was that of Stoke City striker Saido Berahino. The 24-year-old, who was an explosive figure in more than one way, had scored 13 Premier League goals for Fernando Hierro's Potters and could not be ignored any longer.

 

Another youngish attacker who was making a big noise was Newcastle United's Rolando Aarons. Since winning his first England cap in November, the 22-year-old left-winger had kicked on even more for Newcastle, upping his PL tallies to 10 goals and 7 assists. However, there would be no place in the squad for Magpies colleague Jonjo Shelvey this time around.

 

Southampton winger Nathan Redmond was picked again, though a recall for Saints left-back Ryan Bertrand - which many newspapers had speculated about - did not come to pass. Manchester United centre-half Phil Jones, who hadn't pulled on an England jersey since 2015, was given an opportunity to prove his worth to Catterall after impressing for the league leaders.

 

Also getting back into the England squad were Manchester City defender Michael Keane and new Celta Vigo winger Jesse Lingard. James Ward-Prowse and Theo Walcott were dropped, while injuries ruled Jamie Vardy and Jack Wilshere out of contention.

 

ENGLAND UNDER-21s squad - for matches vs Switzerland (A) and Georgia (H)

NAME                      POSITIONS           D.O.B. (AGE)     CLUB            CAPS  GOALS HEIGHT WEIGHT     VALUE
Harry Lewis               GK                  20/12/1997 (20)  Southampton     0     0     6'3"   12st 1lb   £525K   
Bailey Peacock-Farrell    GK                  29/10/1996 (21)  Leeds           1     0     6'2"   11st 9lbs  £245K   
Ted Smith                 GK                  18/01/1996 (22)  Southend        1     0     6'1"   13st 5lbs  £350K   
Joe Gomez                 D (RLC)             23/05/1997 (20)  West Ham        18    1     6'2"   13st 7lbs  £9.25M  
Mason Holgate             D (RC)              22/10/1996 (21)  Stoke           12    0     5'11"  11st 13lbs £10.5M  
Ben Chilwell              D (LC), WB (L)      21/12/1996 (21)  Leicester       14    0     5'10"  12st 1lb   £5.75M  
Brendan Galloway          D (LC), DM          17/03/1996 (21)  Everton         14    1     6'2"   14st 0lbs  £7M     
Axel Tuanzebe             D (C)               14/11/1997 (20)  Blackburn       2     0     6'0"   12st 3lbs  £2.8M   
Reece Oxford              D (C), DM           16/12/1998 (19)  Brighton        2     0     6'3"   11st 9lbs  £1.8M   
Trent Alexander-Arnold    D/WB (R), DM        07/10/1998 (19)  Wolves          2     0     5'6"   9st 6lbs   £825K   
Jay Dasilva               D/WB (L)            22/04/1998 (19)  Brighton        0     0     5'5"   10st 5lbs  £650K   
Tom Davies                DM, M (C)           30/06/1998 (19)  Everton         5     1     5'10"  11st 0lbs  £3.9M   
Sam Field                 DM, M/AM (C)        08/05/1998 (19)  Barnsley        1     0     5'10"  11st 9lbs  £8.5M   
Ruben Loftus-Cheek        DM, M/AM (C)        23/01/1996 (22)  Chelsea         28    7     6'3"   13st 7lbs  £4.5M   
Patrick Roberts           M (RL), AM (RLC)    05/02/1997 (21)  Leicester       13    4     5'6"   9st 1lb    £17.5M  
Andre Green               M (L), AM (RL)      26/07/1998 (19)  Fulham          0     0     6'0"   10st 9lbs  £2.2M   
Sheyi Ojo                 M (L), AM (RLC)     19/06/1997 (20)  Hull            1     0     6'1"   9st 12lbs  £10.75M 
Josh Sims                 M (L), AM (LC)      23/03/1997 (20)  Middlesbrough   4     4     5'5"   9st 8lbs   £11.5M  
Kasey Palmer              M (C), AM (RLC)     09/11/1996 (21)  QPR             12    3     5'11"  12st 6lbs  £10.75M 
Che Adams                 M/AM (R), ST (C)    13/07/1996 (21)  Birmingham      0     0     5'9"   11st 0lbs  £3.1M   
Joshua Onomah             M/AM (C)            27/04/1997 (20)  West Brom       8     3     6'0"   12st 10lbs £7.25M  
Tammy Abraham             AM (R), ST (C)      02/10/1997 (20)  Reading         18    8     6'4"   12st 10lbs £7M     
Marcus Rashford           AM (L), ST (C)      31/10/1997 (20)  Man Utd         17    20    5'11"  11st 9lbs  £25M    

 

England's Under-21s were taking a break from their European Championship qualifiers, and friendly matches against Switzerland and Georgia would give them the opportunity to experiment a bit more.

 

Four uncapped players were in contention for debuts - Birmingham City striker Che Adams, Brighton & Hove Albion left-back Jay Dasilva, Fulham winger Andre Green, and Southampton's third-choice goalkeeper Harry Lewis. Dasilva was the beneficiary of an unfortunate injury to Cameron Borthwick-Jackson, who'd suffered a season-ending hamstring tear while training with Blackburn Rovers.

 

Right-back Trent Alexander-Arnold and inside-forward Patrick Roberts were back after their long-term injuries, but goalkeeper Freddie Woodman missed out with a broken hand.

 

ENGLAND UNDER-19s squad - for European Under-19s Championship Elite Round

GOALKEEPERS: Terry Cowling (Leeds), Steve Hilton (Liverpool)

DEFENDERS: Trevoh Chalobah (AFC Wimbledon), Corey Jordan (Bournemouth), Alistair Rattray (Southampton), Ryan Sessegnon (Man City), Peter Turner (Chelsea), Josh Tymon (Hull), Jordan Williams (Huddersfield)

MIDFIELDERS: Andre Dozzell (Motherwell), Morgan Gibbs-White (Leicester), Jonathan Leko (West Brom), Mason Mount (Ross County), Reiss Nelson (Norwich), Joe Rankin-Costello (Hibernian)

FORWARDS: Ben Brereton (Rotherham), Eddie Nketiah (MK Dons), Lawrence Warner (Liverpool)

 

Of the 23 players selected for the last England Under-19s squad, 17 were retained for the Elite Round of the European Championship. Neil Campbell, Sadou Diallo, John Harrison, Adam Mingay, Jadon Sancho and Jake Turner were all cut following back-to-back defeats in November's friendly internationals.

 

Star winger Reiss Nelson - now on loan at Premier League strugglers Norwich City - earned a welcome recall after his recent injury woes. Eddie Nketiah - another of Arsenal's loan stars - was among the Championship's leading scorers, having bagged 16 goals for Milton Keynes Dons. Ben Brereton was top of the League One goal chart, with 22 for Rotherham United.

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***

 

The England senior and Under-21s teams did not usually travel abroad together, but the Football Association made an exception here. 46 players from both teams would come together for a week-long training camp in the Swiss town of Aarau, in the hope of impressing manager Mark Catterall ahead of the FIFA World Cup.

 

This large England contingent flew out from Birmingham to Zürich on the Monday afternoon of 18 March. Once they arrived in Switzerland's largest city, they faced an hour-long coach drive to Aarau, where they would set up camp for the next six days.

 

With over 60 people on board, including players and staff members, this coach trip was a loud and somewhat stressful one for manager Mark Catterall. Shortly before the coach's arrival in Aarau, he spent a good few minutes biting his fingernails anxiously. Assistant manager Michael Burke quietly rebuked him, "That's a bad habit, Mark. I'd snap out of it if I were you."

 

"I can't help it sometimes," Catterall admitted. "At least it's better than picking my nose, right?"

 

"Why don't you put on some music instead?"

 

"I can't. My earphones are buggered. I must've caught the cable on summat when we were on the plane."

 

"That's a shame. I would lend you mine, but they're in my suitcase somewhere."

 

At the back of the coach, some of the Under-21s players were getting boisterous. Some initially gentle bantering between Liverpool winger Sheyi Ojo and Everton defender Brendan Galloway got out of hand when Ojo emptied a full Coca Cola bottle onto the latter's head.

 

"HOLY S***!" Galloway screamed. "I just got my hair done last week!"

 

"Soz, bruv, but it ain't as if you got much of it anyway!" laughed Ojo, who was out on loan at Hull City and hoping to add to his solitary Under-21s cap in Switzerland.

 

"That ain't cool, man," tutted Galloway's former Everton colleague Mason Holgate. "It's alright having some fun, but let's not go overboard, right?"

 

"Okay, bruv, sorry," Ojo apologised, before offering a fist-bump. "We cool?"

 

Stoke City defender Holgate accepted the fist-bump and said, "Yeah, we're cool."

 

Ojo then glanced at Holgate's trainers, and remarked, "Those are some sweet creps, man. Mind if I have a look at them?"

 

Holgate nodded, "Alright." He took off the trainer on his right foot and handed it to Ojo, who whistled in admiration. As Liverpool right-back Trent Alexander-Arnold opened a window, Ojo promptly threw the boot out of the coach, like an NFL quarterback would throw a football to a wide receiver.

 

Holgate fumed, "What the f*** did you just do? Those cost me 600 quid!"

 

"Hey, bruv, chill," Ojo said, trying to calm the situation. "You can always buy new ones with your wages!"

 

"It ain't just the money! I've had those since I was a youth player at Barnsley! I'M GONNA KILL YOU!"

 

Holgate then held Ojo in a headlock as several Under-21s players egged them on. A few of the younger senior players got involved as well, with forward Jesse Lingard repeatedly and excitedly exclaiming, "SQUAD!" at the top of his voice as he filmed the incident on his phone.

 

Catterall and defensive coach Ray Wilkins got up from their seats to intervene, with Wilkins screaming, "If you kids can't keep your hands to yourselves, I'm gonna ask the driver to turn this coach around, and there'll be no Switzerland matches for anybody!"

 

"Whatever, slaphead!" Lingard quipped, as uncapped striker Saido Berahino - sitting next to him - duly slapped the back of Wilkins' head from behind him.

 

An incensed Wilkins yelled, "THAT'S IT! BACK TO ZÜRICH!"

 

"Okay, Butch, no need to do that," Catterall whispered gently as Wilkins took a deep breath and sat back down.

 

Catterall then raised his voice to address the players, "When you lot are on England duty together, I expect you to be on your best behaviour at all times. You're not naughty little schoolboys on a day out anymore. You're all basically full-grown men with careers, and this is work, as far as you should be concerned.

 

"That's not to say you can't have a laugh and a joke every now and then, but what I just heard sounded to me like a lot more than that. So pack it in and calm down, else you WILL be driven back to Zürich, you WILL be flying back home, and you WON'T be at the World Cup? HAVE I MADE MYSELF CLEAR?"

 

The players nodded, with some vocally apologising. Ojo himself quietly admitted, "You're right. I was well out of order. It won't happen again."

 

Catterall acknowledged the apologies and returned to his seat. Almost as soon as he had sat back down, Catterall heard his phone ring.

 

"Oi, oi! That'll be the missus, won't it?" senior left-back Luke Shaw chirped, prompting laughter across the coach.

 

Burke bit back, "It's probably your mum, telling you to put a sock in it!"

 

Catterall answered the call. As Shaw suspected, it was Jenny Catterall on the other end, though Mark could barely make out what she was trying to say.

 

Mark asked Jenny, "I'm sorry? What was that?"

 

"Have... the news? There's gonna..."

 

"Sorry, love, but you're breaking up! Could you repeat that?"

 

Jenny bellowed down the phone, but her reply was spasmodically cut off. "READ THE... NEWS, YOU... LOST... CONFIDENCE..."

 

Mark sighed, "Can you call me back later? Ta-ra, love." He then hung up, after which Burke asked, "What was that about? Jenny... sounded... quite angry there."

 

"It's not a domestic, is it, boss?" centre-back Michael Keane asked, tongue firmly in cheek. "Or did you forget to do the washing-up this morning?"

 

Keane's Manchester City team-mate John Stones joined in, "Sorry, gaffer! We couldn't help earwigging that! Ev'rythin' alright in t' barn?"

 

"Okay, that's enough, lads," Burke said as he watched Catterall scroll through The Guardian's website on his phone. He asked, "The Guardian? I thought you were a BBC man, Catts."

 

"I was, until they ran that 'Breaking News' story about Meghan Markle slipping at a skatepark in Hereford," Catterall replied with disdain. He then stopped to read an article headlined: "UK set for snap election after Theresa May loses confidence vote."

 

The Guardian's joint political editor Anushka Asthana reported that Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn had tabled a motion of no confidence in the Conservative government - led by Prime Minister Theresa May - at the House of Commons. Several Tory MPs subsequently rebelled against their leader over her handling of the United Kingdom's turbulent negotiations to leave the European Union.

 

May lost the motion by 345 votes to 272 and was now expected to ask Queen Elizabeth II to dissolve parliament, with fresh elections to be held approximately six weeks later. This was the first occasion since 1979 that a sitting government had been ousted in this manner.

 

After gazing over Catterall's shoulder to read the story, Burke groaned, "Oh for... not another bloody election!" This was the third time that the UK would go into the polls in the space of three years, following the 2015 Conservative win, and the 2017 hung vote, which resulted in a minority Tory government propped up by the Democratic Unionist Party.

 

Catterall was more pleased to come across this news. "At least now we might get an effective Labour government. Those bloody Tories have screwed up the Brexit talks."

 

Burke sighed, "Yeah, they could have got it all thrashed out much sooner if they'd handed Nick Clegg and his wife over to the Europeans, instead of bloomin' David and Samantha Cameron."

 

Tottenham Hotspur midfielder Eric Dier called out, "Is it true, then? There's gonna be another election?"

 

"Sounds like it to me," Catterall replied, with an air of glee.

 

"F***ing hell!" Dier exclaimed. "Does that mean I have to explain that to Harry all over again?"

 

Harry Kane, who was sitting next to Dier, laughed, "Nah, you're alright, Eric! I still remember everything you told me last time, mate! You put the cross in the box next to the guy you don't wanna vote for, right? Oh, man, I love them crosses in boxes, almost as much as I love getting goals!"

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***

 

England's previous tilt at the UEFA European Under-19s Championship in 2017 had ended with a heartbreaking elimination in the Elite Round. However, there was surely no reason why Matthew Wells' Young Lions could not go one step further in 2018, and qualify for the finals in Finland.

 

England had been paired with Greece, Norway and the Republic of Ireland in a very winnable Group 2. Before hosting the latter two teams in Blackburn, they travelled to Greece for their opening group fixture, which was arguably their toughest on paper.

 

Victory in Piraeus would quickly put the Young Lions in the driving seat for qualification. That said, their Greek hosts weren't willing to roll over without a battle - literally. Greece had Thomas Tsiboukas and Kostas Chatzidibas booked within the first 12 minutes for clumsy fouls on England left-winger Ryan Sessegnon and midfielder Joe Rankin-Costello.

 

England's first scoring chance had come in the 8th minute, when right-winger Jonathan Leko's fierce strike was parried wide by Greek goalkeeper Dimitris Skafidas. The Young Lions would go one step further on 24 minutes, after Morgan Gibbs-White's excellent tackle on Greece winger Giorgos Tzovaras started off a counter-attack.

 

Ben Brereton received a direct ball from Gibbs-White on the halfway line and laid it forward to the overlapping Rankin-Costello. After Sessegnon made a run towards the penalty area, 'JRC' squared the ball to the 17-year-old, who was on a high after scoring in Manchester City's League Cup Final victory over Norwich City a few weeks earlier. That was Sessegnon's maiden senior goal for the Citizens, and a simple finish here was his first in an England jersey.

 

Despite playing a key role in England taking the lead, Gibbs-White would not be on the field for much longer. On 29 minutes, the Leicester City midfielder broke his foot in a hefty clash with Chatzidibas. He had to be replaced with Eddie Nketiah, who would partner Ben Brereton up front for the rest of the match.

 

This encounter grew even fiercer as the second half raged on. Midfielder Giorgos Xenitidis became the third Greek player to receive a yellow card, while his English counterparts Rankin-Costello and Andre Dozzell were also cautioned. Dozzell's booking would see him suspended from England's next Elite Round match against the Republic of Ireland.

 

Steve Hilton's left-hand post denied Xenitidis an equaliser for the Galanolefki in the 44th minute, but the Liverpool goalkeeper would be beaten a minute later. A 20-yard stunner from PAOK Salonika midfielder Giorgos Noukaris just before half-time left England's 1-0 lead in tatters.

 

England had several chances to pull themselves back into the lead shortly after the second half began. Substitute midfielder Trevoh Chalobah set up an opportunity in the 50th minute for Sessegnon, whose effort was pushed away from goal by Skafidas. Later attempts from Nketiah and Dozzell proved rather less threatening.

 

The Young Lions then benefited from a massive stroke of luck after 60 minutes. Brereton's attempted square ball to Nketiah instead rebounded off Chalobah, yet still found its way into the penalty area. Chalobah reacted quickly, racing clear of Greece midfielder Sotirios Kokkinis to reach the loose ball and drive it home.

 

Greece's lack of discipline reared its head again after they fell behind for a second time. Centre-half Paraschos Chantzaras and left-back Thalis Foskolos were each handed yellow cards for cynical fouls on Brereton, who would punish them further in the 67th minute. The Rotherham United striker broke clear after running onto Nketiah's through-ball, and a lethal finish made it 3-1 to England.

 

Mind you, the contest wasn't yet over. Substitute striker Alexandros Gargalatzidis made things interesting in the 85th minute, when he got past England captain Josh Tymon to swing in a cross that Heerenveen winger Christos Almpanis nodded home.

 

With the score now at only 3-2 to the visitors, the home fans were becoming more optimistic about an equaliser. They hoped to see one in the 88th minute, when Almpanis struck from the edge of England's area. Chelsea right-back Peter Turner deflected the shot clear, but only to Xenitidis, whose half-volley was somehow kept out by a fantastic reaction save from Hilton.

 

Hilton's heroics were crucial. England would secure a significant and hard-fought victory in the opening seconds of injury time, when AFC Bournemouth centre-back Corey Jordan drove in Tymon's corner delivery. A 4-2 away lead proved insurmountable for the gritty Greeks.

 

Though England were off to a winning start in Group 2, they weren't setting the pace. Norway led the way courtesy of a 3-0 away win over the Republic of Ireland, whose demoralised team would face the Young Lions next in Lancashire.

 

19 March 2018: UEFA European Under-19s Championship Elite Group 2 - at Georgios Karaiskakis, Piraeus

Greece U19s - 2 (Giorgos Noukaris 45, Christos Almpanis 85)

England U19s - 4 (Ryan Sessegnon 24, Trevoh Chalobah 60, Ben Brereton 67, Corey Jordan 90+1)

ENGLAND U19s LINE-UP (4-2-3-1): Steve Hilton; Peter Turner, Alistair Rattray (Jordan Williams), Corey Jordan, Josh Tymon; Joe Rankin-Costello (Trevoh Chalobah), Andre Dozzell; Jonathan Leko, Morgan Gibbs-White (Eddie Nketiah), Ryan Sessegnon; Ben Brereton. BOOKED: Rankin-Costello 35, Dozzell 40, Chalobah 88.

 

The full extent of Gibbs-White' injury became clear in the aftermath. The attacking midfielder had indeed broken his foot midway through the second half, thus ruling him out for the rest of the Elite Round - and perhaps even the finals themselves were England to qualify.

 

Gibbs-White obviously had to withdraw from the squad, leaving space for a new player to receive a call-up. The lucky recipient was Fulham's hard-working midfielder Dennis Adeniran, who was gaining first-team experience on loan at Burton Albion.

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***

 

For England's Under-21s, the week-long training camp in Switzerland presented a unique opportunity. Some of their players hoped to impress manager Mark Catterall enough to push themselves into contention for places at the forthcoming FIFA World Cup.

 

With just two months to go before Catterall named the squad that he would take with him to Russia, the likes of Everton defender Brendan Galloway, Leicester City midfielder Patrick Roberts and Manchester United striker Marcus Rashford were all looking to stand out. Galloway and Roberts had each enjoyed strong seasons with their respective clubs, while Rashford's fantastic scoring record for the Under-21s made him a potential World Cup wildcard.

 

Sadly, West Ham United centre-back Reece Oxford would not feature after spraining his ankle in the first day of training. The teenager was flown back home and replaced with his Hammers colleague Reece Burke, who was spending the season out on loan at West Bromwich Albion in the Championship.

 

In the fourth day of the training camp, Catterall and his Under-21s travelled south from Aarau to Luzern, where they took on their Swiss counterparts for the second time in almost exactly a year. England had won their previous encounter 1-0 in Bristol, but they were expecting a tougher test this time around.

 

Marcus Rashford was the match-winner in that last meeting, and he would open the scoring for England again, after just seven minutes. Debutant goalkeeper Harry Lewis' long drop-kick was nodded on by captain Tammy Abraham to the Manchester United striker, who turned past Swiss midfielder Filip Ugrinic and unleashed a deadly daisy-cutter.

 

Just three minutes after his assist, Abraham pulled up with a suspected thigh strain. The prognosis would not be as serious as first suspected, but Catterall didn't know that at the time, and he took his skipper off as a precaution. On came Birmingham City's Che Adams, who became England Under-21s' second debutant of the evening.

 

Southampton keeper Lewis faced his first major test in a Young Lions jersey after 14 minutes. Grasshoppers midfielder Fabio Quintoles, who was making his maiden bow for Switzerland's Under-21s, sidefooted an excellent ball to senior international Djibril Sow. However, the Borussia Mönchengladbach reserve-team playmaker saw his angled effort pushed behind by Lewis.

 

In the 17th minute, Sow was arguably guilty of a costly mistake at the other end. Kasey Palmer aimed an England corner for the far post, and Barnsley midfielder Sam Field beat a trio of Swiss players - Sow included - to flick in a header that bounced past goalkeeper Fabian Fellmann.

 

As with Lewis, this was the first time that Fellmann had played international football at this level. He didn't look overawed in the 26th minute, though, when he clawed away a Rashford effort that could've made it 3-0 to England. He also caught a 38th-minute effort from Palmer, whose next attempt four minutes later swerved just over the bar.

 

Lewis had only needed to make a couple of saves for England at the other end before half-time, and he would also be relatively quiet after the interval. He was left vulnerable when Manchester United forward Nishan Burkart found Ugrinic wide open, but the hometown boy from FC Luzern blazed his shot high, wide, and not at all handsomely.

 

A defensive lapse from Joe Gomez had left the Young Lions vulnerable there. Catterall quickly took the West Ham United centre-half off and brought on Manchester United's Axel Tuanzebe. The Blackburn Rovers loanee would make an instant impact, heading in a cross from Jay Dasilva after 60 minutes to increase England's lead further.

 

Brighton & Hove Albion left-back Dasilva had become the third England player to make his Under-21s debut in this match. A fourth rookie - Andre Green of Fulham - would be thrown on for the closing stages, by which point Switzerland's hopes of clawing back a result had all but disappeared.

 

The hosts could not get a single shot on target after the break. Servette forward Adler Da Silva blazed an effort well over in the 69th minute, while former Juventus striker Andi Zeqiri's free-kick nine minutes later failed to get near Bailey Peacock-Farrell, who'd replaced Lewis in the English goal for the last few minutes.

 

Though late England substitute Josh Sims failed to extend his incredible Under-21s scoring run into a fifth successive game, it was a job thoroughly well done for the Young Lions. An easy 3-0 away win over a team with arguably one of the best talent production lines in European football was not to be sniffed at.

 

22 March 2018: Under-21s International - at swissporarena, Luzern

Switzerland U21s - 0

England U21s - 3 (Marcus Rashford 7, Sam Field 17, Axel Tuanzebe 60)

ENGLAND U21s LINE-UP (4-3-1-2): Harry Lewis (Bailey Peacock-Farrell); Mason Holgate (Trent Alexander-Arnold), Joe Gomez (Axel Tuanzebe), Brendan Galloway (Reece Burke), Ben Chilwell (Jay Dasilva); Tom Davies (Joshua Onomah), Sam Field (Sheyi Ojo), Ruben Loftus-Cheek (Andre Green); Kasey Palmer (Patrick Roberts); Marcus Rashford (Josh Sims), Tammy Abraham (Che Adams).

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***

 

England Under-19s looked to take one giant step towards the 2018 European Championship in Finland when they welcomed the Republic of Ireland to Ewood Park. The Young Lions had won their first Elite Round group match in Greece, and another victory here would put their qualification fate in their own hands for the final game against Norway.

 

England had already seen off Northern Ireland in the Qualifying Round, and while the Republic arguably represented a step up in class, a comfortable home win was still expected in Blackburn. The English fans would not be left disappointed.

 

Surprisingly, it was Ireland who had the first real scoring opportunity after seven minutes. Southampton midfielder Thomas O'Connor - no relation to the Scouse comedian and 'Crosswits' presenter - quickly floated in a free-kick that captain Declan Rice of West Ham United headed hopelessly wide.

 

Ireland goalkeeper Tom Frost then kept out a ninth-minute strike from Reiss Nelson, though he was unable to prevent another Arsenal prodigy from putting England ahead three minutes later. Eddie Nketiah ran onto an exquisite lobbed pass from Jonathan Leko and then smashed in a fantastic finish not dissimilar to those that had made him such a popular figure whilst on loan at Milton Keynes Dons.

 

To their credit, the Boys in Green did put up plenty of resistance after Nketiah's opener. Cork City custodian Frost produced an excellent fingertip save to stop a half-volley from Nketiah in the 13th minute. Two minutes later, O'Connor bravely threw himself in front of a powerful strike from Leko.

 

In the 19th minute, though, O'Connor was arguably culpable for gifting England their second goal. A poor clearance rebounded off England debutant Dennis Adeniran and to Mason Mount, who had missed the Young Lions' trip to Greece with blisters. Mount slipped the ball ahead of Nketiah, who rounded Irish centre-back Ryan Nolan and put England in total control.

 

Nketiah was now on the cusp of a first-half hat-trick, but the prodigious striker from south London seemed to lose his way after that second goal. A couple of golden opportunities in the 25th and 28th minutes were fired wide, and the Young Lions still had some way to go before they could be confident of victory.

 

Nketiah's predatory instinct would desert him again in the first minute of the second half. Ben Brereton handed his strike partner a great opportunity on the plate after sidefooting Corey Jordan's long ball to him. Alas, Eddie's shooting on that occasion was far from steady.

 

Frost then managed to keep out a couple more promising shots from Nketiah early in the half. He secured the first strike with ease on 51 minutes, though the second attempt had to be parried away.

 

Ireland's goalkeeper faced his next major test in the 63rd minute, as Frost pushed behind a centre from England right-back Peter Turner just before it could squirm into his net. Another English defender went close to scoring a minute later, but Alistair Rattray could only nod Nelson's corner into the side netting.

 

In the 73rd minute, Nketiah searched out Nelson in space on the left flank. The winger then advanced forward before sliding the ball into Ireland's penalty area, where Brereton met it with an easy tap-in. England led 3-0, and they could now relax.

 

In truth, this match had hardly resembled a true contest. The Republic had registered four shots at goal, but two flew off target, and the other two - from Glen McAuley and Caoimhin Fowler - were superbly closed down by England defenders. Leeds United's Terry Cowling barely had to lift a finger in the home goal.

 

England had notched up back-to-back wins in Group 2, and so too had Norway. The Norwegians took the lead against Greece after just one minute, but surprisingly couldn't score again in the next 89. That meant they ceded top spot to the Young Lions ahead of their 'all-or-nothing' meeting at Ewood Park four days later. England only required a draw to qualify for the European Championship, whereas Norway had to go for the win.

 

23 March 2018: UEFA European Under-19s Championship Elite Group 2 - at Ewood Park, Blackburn

England U19s - 3 (Eddie Nketiah 12,19, Ben Brereton 73)

Republic of Ireland U19s - 0

ENGLAND U19s LINE-UP (4-2-3-1): Terry Cowling; Peter Turner, Alistair Rattray, Corey Jordan, Josh Tymon; Dennis Adeniran (Trevoh Chalobah), Joe Rankin-Costello (Ben Brereton); Jonathan Leko (Lawrence Warner), Mason Mount, Reiss Nelson; Eddie Nketiah. BOOKED: Tymon 29, Adeniran 58.

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***

 

Since Mark Catterall was appointed as England manager, most of the Three Lions' opponents in friendly matches had been from the highest echelons of international football. France, Germany and the Netherlands had all been seen off, while Argentina and Belgium had prevailed after some struggles.

 

Switzerland were perhaps from the 'second tier' of leading international teams. Ranked 14th in the world, the 'Nati' were a cosmopolitan team full of exceptional - and often enigmatic - talents such as Premier League midfielders Xherdan Shaqiri and Granit Xhaka. Other star players included 25-year-old left-back Ricardo Rodríguez and 21-year-old striker Breel Embolo, who were Bundesliga regulars with Wolfsburg and Schalke 04 respectively.

 

Switzerland had also qualified for their fourth consecutive FIFA World Cup, ending the hopes of England's old nemeses Iceland in a two-legged play-off to book their place in Russia. They would face the substantial threats of France and Mexico in Group B, as well as a Tunisia team that could not yet be completely written off.

 

England would surely be in for a tough ride when they arrived in the northern Swiss city of Basel to face these potential World Cup dark horses. To try and counter Switzerland's vast array of midfield magicians, Catterall lined his team up in a narrow 4-3-1-2 formation.

 

Amongst Catterall's starting XI were Manchester United defender Phil Jones - making his first international appearance for over two years - and Stoke City striker Saido Berahino, who won his maiden England cap at the age of 24.

 

Berahino was born in Burundi in August 1993, just months before civil war broke out in his homeland. Saido's father was killed during the fighting, and the youngster fled to Birmingham at the age of 10 after being granted asylum. His footballing talents were soon discovered by West Bromwich Albion, who signed him up to their youth academy.

 

Berahino made his senior breakthrough at West Brom in 2013, but after three up-and-down seasons in the first-team, his time at The Hawthorns ended acrimoniously. He was sold to Stoke City for £13million in the summer of 2016, scoring 25 goals in 64 Premier League games for the Potters before catching Catterall's eye. Now he had the opportunity to make his mark on the international stage for his adopted country.

 

The England newcomer wasted little time in taking the game to Switzerland. Berahino could've made the most of a third-minute through-ball from strike partner Callum Wilson were it not for an excellent save by Borussia Mönchengladbach goalkeeper Yann Sommer. Berahino had another shooting opportunity in the fourth minute, only for Hoffenheim centre-back Fabian Schär to deflect it away.

 

In the 12th minute, a wayward crossfield ball from Xhaka was intercepted by England right-back Nathaniel Clyne on the halfway line. Clyne moved the ball inside to Wilson, whose weighted pass was knocked into the area by Dele Alli towards Berahino. However, the striker's shot flew safely at Sommer, who caught with ease.

 

A 22nd-minute centre from Chelsea striker Wilson was nodded just beyond Sommer's left-hand post by the Manchester United left-back Luke Shaw. Alli then stung Sommer's palms with a vicious shot in the 26th minute, but Berahino was less impressive a minute later, heading a Clyne cross off target.

 

Though Switzerland's stubborn defence was holding firm, their midfielders were failing to create any openings for lone frontman Embolo, or indeed for themselves. The Nati's only shot of the first half came in the 39th minute, when Luca Zuffi flighted a free-kick wide after his compatriot Valentin Stocker had been fouled by England captain Jordan Henderson.

 

The second half saw the Nati begin to test England's defence a bit more. Zuffi fired another free-kick towards goal after 50 minutes, only to be denied on that occasion by a block from Three Lions midfielder Eric Dier. Zuffi's match would end three minutes later, after he clashed heads with Henderson and sustained a facial injury.

 

In the 62nd minute, Swiss left-winger Francisco Rodríguez - the younger brother of Ricardo - nodded a Sommer free-kick deep into England territory. Three Lions centre-back Gary Cahill tried to head the ball back to his keeper Joe Hart, only to meet it with a horrible connection that left AEK Athens striker Haris Seferovic bearing down on goal. Had it not been for a last-ditch saving tackle from Jones, Seferovic would surely have made it 1-0 to Switzerland.

 

A disappointing debut at the other end from Berahino culminated in him blazing a free-kick well over the bar after 64 minutes. He would soon be replaced with Nathan Redmond, while Catterall also gave Jesse Lingard his fourth cap at the expense of his struggling captain Henderson.

 

England fans were growing restless in the 71st minute, when Clyne hoisted the ball long into Switzerland's half. The punt evaded Swiss centre-back Timm Klose and bounced nicely to Alli, who found his Tottenham Hotspur colleague Harry Kane lurking just inside the penalty area. Alli's square pass was lashed in by Kane, whose 12th international goal gave the Three Lions a belated lead.

 

Another Tottenham man could've doubled England's freshly-gained advantage after 78 minutes, but Dier's drive was caught by Sommer. The 29-year-old Swiss goalkeeper also showed safe hands to catch an effort from Redmond shortly afterwards.

 

Switzerland had their first chance to equalise after 83 minutes. Francisco Rodríguez screwed an excellent right-footed cross into the England area, and the ball bounced promisingly to Xhaka. The home fans got off their seats in anticipation, only to see their captain horribly miscue his half-volley and fire the ball into the hoardings.

 

Undeterred, Francisco Rodríguez created another opportunity four minutes later. This time, the recipient of his cross was Eintracht Braunschweig centre-back Saulo Decarli, who was hoping to nod in a goal on his Switzerland debut. Hart was not in the mood to be charitable, as he made light work of Decarli's header.

 

Lingard almost finished the match off for England in the last minute of normal time, when he fired an Alli pass against the crossbar. That miss could've cost the Three Lions dear a minute later, but Hart beat away a last-ditch piledriver from Switzerland's experienced playmaker Tranquillo Barnetta.

 

In the end, it was a job well done for England. A clean sheet and a victory against Switzerland left the Three Lions in a confident mood going into their next friendly, at home to a very strong team from Mexico.

 

23 March 2018: International Friendly - at St Jakob-Park, Basel

Switzerland - 0

England - 1 (Harry Kane 71)

ENGLAND LINE-UP (4-3-1-2): Joe Hart; Nathaniel Clyne (Kyle Walker), Phil Jones, Gary Cahill, Luke Shaw (Danny Rose); Eric Dier, Jordan Henderson (Jesse Lingard), Adam Lallana (Danny Drinkwater); Dele Alli; Callum Wilson (Harry Kane), Saido Berahino (Nathan Redmond).

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***

 

The England senior and under-21s teams were up early on the morning of 24 March. After a couple of victories against their Swiss counterparts, they would shortly leave their training camp in Aarau and travel to Zürich, from where they would then fly home.

 

Manager Mark Catterall sat in the hotel lobby after breakfast. As BBC Sport reported in an 'exclusive' news article on their website, he'd had a couple of slices of black toast. No change there, then.

 

Catterall's assistant Michael Burke and tactical coach Glenn Hoddle later joined him. Hoddle asked Catterall, "How did you sleep last night, Mark?"

 

"Like a baby," Catterall said, in a somewhat hoarser voice than usual.

 

Burke quipped, "You mean you woke up every two hours screaming 'cos you'd s*** your pants?"

 

Catterall chuckled, but Hoddle could tell that something wasn't quite right. He said, "You don't sound too good, mate. What's up?"

 

Catterall coughed and explained, "Yeah, I could be feeling better, Glenn. I've got a sore throat at the minute, so..."

 

"That'll be Saido Berahino for you," Burke said. "That kid's high-maintenance, a nightmare to manage. I'm not surprised West Brom got rid of him when they did. Mind you, he's done pretty bloomin' good for Stoke this season."

 

"Shame he didn't turn up last night. I expected a lot more from him."

 

Hoddle came to Berahino's defence, "It was his debut, Mark. You can't excuse him for being nervous. How's about you give the lad another chance against Mexico?"

 

"I suppose that's a good idea," Catterall nodded. "I'll play him from the start. Hopefully the Wembley crowd will give him the support he needs and boost his confidence."

 

"Good man," Hoddle smiled, patting Catterall on the back as the manager coughed again. "You know, I think I've got some Strepsils lying around somewhere in my room. You want me to go fetch them for you?"

 

"Please, if you could."

 

As Hoddle got up and headed back to his room, a small group of Under-21s players passed by. Chelsea duo Tammy Abraham and Ruben Loftus-Cheek stopped to greet Catterall and Burke, as did Manchester United forward Marcus Rashford.

 

"Good morning, lads," Burke said.

 

Catterall then asked Abraham, "How's your thigh, Kevin?"

 

Abraham smiled awkwardly, "It's Tammy, gaffer. Yeah, my thigh, it's still a bit sore. I should be good to play Georgia on Monday, though."

 

"Nice to hear. By the way, I forgot to tell you on Thursday, but that was a great flick-on for Marcus."

 

"Cheers. I feel like me and Marcus are helping each other out a lot more, and that's great for the team, ain't it?"

 

Rashford beamed, "Yeah, you and me, Tam... we're like kinetic, aren't we?"

 

"Telekinetic," Catterall corrected Rashford. "But yes, you two are a great partnership - a bit like Shearer and Sutton."

 

"Sorry... who?" Rashford asked.

 

"Okay, maybe they were a bit before your time," Burke admitted. "What about Yorke and Cole?"

 

Rashford nodded, as any self-respecting United fan would have instantly recognised Dwight Yorke and Andy Cole from the late 1990s and early 2000s. However, Abraham admitted, "No, I don't remember them."

 

Catterall then asked, "Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink and Eiður Guðjohnsen?"

 

Abraham and Loftus-Cheek shrugged their shoulders, prompting Burke to exclaim, "Good grief! How young are you lot? Don't you remember 'Fire and Ice' scoring loads of goals for Chelsea?"

 

"They never really taught us about old footballers at school," Loftus-Cheek said, half-laughing. "We would've known [Didier] Drogba and [Nicolas] Anelka, though, for sure."

 

Catterall then said, "Anyway, Marcus and Kevin..." only for Abraham to interrupt him with a stern look. The manager corrected himself, "Marcus and Tammy, we've got some potential openings in the World Cup squad. If you can kick on further, then I'll definitely consider you two for selection."

 

"That's well mint, gaffer," Rashford smiled. "I'll knuckle down even more to impress you in the next few weeks."

 

Abraham was less confident. "But I'm playing in the Championship, gaffer. I didn't think you'd pick me 'cos I'm not in the Prem, or La Liga, or wherever."

 

Catterall said, "But if you and Reading blow everyone away in the Championship late doors, then... you never know. Steve Bull played for England when he was in Division 3... but I suppose not even your parents would remember who Steve Bull was."

 

"And what about me?" Loftus-Cheek asked. "Do I have a chance?"

 

"To be honest, Ruben, I don't think you're ready for the senior team just yet. You need to be playing regularly in the Premier League, or tearing it up in the Championship. I'm not gonna pick someone from Chelsea's Under-23s."

 

Loftus-Cheek sighed, "I can't say I ain't disappointed, but I get what you mean. You're gonna keep me in the Under-21s, right?"

 

Catterall half-smiled as he nodded a little hesitantly. The three youngsters then said goodbye before heading outside.

 

Burke then looked at Catterall and asked him, "Did you remember to buy a souvenir while we were here? For Jenny? Or Luke?"

 

"F***!" Catterall groaned, as he facepalmed in dismay. "I knew I'd forgotten something! When do we set off?"

 

Burke glanced at his watch and said, "About half an hour from now."

 

Catterall leapt from his chair and called out as he headed for the exit, "Tell everyone to wait for me!"

 

Burke said, "You could always buy 'em something from Duty Free!"

 

"Duty Free? DUTY FREE? Who do you think I am - a tourist?!"

 

Catterall then burst out the doors, just as Hoddle had returned with a packet of Strepsils throat lozenges. He called, "Hey, Mark, I've got your Strep-"

 

"It's too late, Glenn," Burke interjected soberly. "Catts has gone shopping. He might be a while."

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Considering that England would play Georgia at the upcoming FIFA World Cup, Mark Catterall felt it would be a good idea for the countries' Under-21s teams to meet each other before the finals. Loftus Road - the west London home of Queens Park Rangers - would provide the backdrop for that encounter.

 

Catterall watched on alongside head coach David Byrne as England's youngsters were given one last opportunity to impress the manager before he selected his World Cup squad.

 

Joshua Onomah almost got the Young Lions off to the perfect start after just 20 seconds, when the midfielder's header from Trent Alexander-Arnold's right-wing cross ricocheted off the crossbar. Georgia defender Zura Nadiradze then scrambled the ball behind for a corner.

 

Patrick Roberts' corner delivery was headed out of the Georgian area by Irakli Lobzhanidze, but not convincingly. Andre Green - making his first start for England Under-21s - moved the ball back across to Roberts, whose centre was driven into the net by Everton midfielder Tom Davies. Less than a minute after kick-off, the hosts were already in the ascendancy.

 

England continued to take the game to the Jvarosnebi, with Leicester City forward Roberts looking particularly eager to catch Catterall's eye. After 12 minutes, Roberts set up an Onomah half-volley that was awkwardly pushed behind by Georgia goalkeeper Artur Mkrtchyan.

 

Tottenham Hotspur midfielder Onomah, who was spending the second half of the season on loan at West Bromwich Albion, produced an even better shot in the 24th minute. Green knocked a sidefooted ball to Onomah just inside Georgia's box, and the Londoner drove it sweetly into the far corner of Mkrtchyan's net.

 

Green and Roberts each wasted chances to add their names onto the scoresheet in the 26th and 27th minutes, but it wouldn't be long until England did go 3-0 up. The identity of the third goalscorer would not surprise anybody.

 

After 35 minutes, Onomah was upended in the Georgian area by centre-back Luka Lochoshvili, prompting the referee to point to the penalty spot. Up stepped none other than Marcus Rashford, whose powerful spot-kick got the better of Mkrtchyan. That was the Manchester United striker's 22nd goal for England Under-21s, in just his 19th cap.

 

Rashford whipped his next shot over the bar in the 42nd minute, but he would not get any further opportunities. The 20-year-old Mancunian was rested for the second half, with Tammy Abraham taking his place up front as one of several half-time substitutions from Catterall.

 

Those changes briefly unsettled England's rhythm, and Georgia briefly looked like getting a goal back in the 52nd minute. 17-year-old Lokomotivi Tbilisi striker Davit Chomakhidze clipped the outside of England goalkeeper Ted Smith's left-hand post with a cross from out wide. Left-back Jay Dasilva then conceded a corner to the Jvarosnebi, who failed to make it count.

 

Three minutes later, Georgia's defence switched off completely. Left-back and captain Jimi Tabidze dwelled on the ball for too long, allowing Sheyi Ojo to take it off him and whip a cross into the box. The delivery ricocheted off both Nadiradze and substitute keeper Erekle Guluashvili before falling to Abraham, who provided a simple finish for the Young Lions.

 

England's rout ended at 4-0, as their players seemed to lose interest in piling on the misery for Georgia. Indeed, it was the visitors - now with nothing to lose - who finished the match more strongly.

 

Smith kept his clean sheet intact in the 57th minute by catching an audacious 25-yard drive from Georgian midfielder Konstantine Moniava. Later in the evening, Smith's replacement Bailey Peacock-Farrell was on hand to save an 88th-minute effort from striker Gela Akhaladze.

 

Thanks to England's goalkeepers, and solid defensive displays from the likes of Alexander-Arnold and captain Axel Tuanzebe, Georgia's attempts to salvage some pride would be left in tatters. It remained to be seen whether the likes of Rashford and Roberts had done enough to earn their seats on the plane to Russia, but Catterall had certainly been given food for thought.

 

26 March 2018: Under-21s International - at Loftus Road, London

England U21s - 4 (Tom Davies 1, Joshua Onomah 24, Marcus Rashford pen36, Tammy Abraham 55)

Georgia U21s - 0

ENGLAND U21s LINE-UP (4-2-3-1): Ted Smith (Bailey Peacock-Farrell); Trent Alexander-Arnold (Mason Holgate), Axel Tuanzebe (Joe Gomez), Brendan Galloway (Reece Burke), Ben Chilwell (Jay Dasilva); Ruben Loftus-Cheek (Kasey Palmer), Tom Davies (Sam Field); Patrick Roberts (Sheyi Ojo), Joshua Onomah (Che Adams), Andre Green (Josh Sims); Marcus Rashford (Tammy Abraham).

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***

 

England's qualification for the 2018 UEFA European Under-19s Championship came down to just one match. As long as they avoided defeat to Norway in their final Elite Round Group 2 match in Blackburn, they would be heading to Finland for the finals in July.

 

Both teams went into this decisive match on the back of back-to-back wins over Greece and the Republic of Ireland. England had the upper hand on goal difference, meaning that Norway needed to beat them to qualify.

 

A year earlier, England's Under-19s had fallen short in their 'all-or-nothing' qualifier in Serbia, losing 1-0 when they had to win. The disappointment of missing out on the 2017 finals would spur the Young Lions on to make amends this time around.

 

Matthew Wells' team could have been forgiven for playing it safe and holding out for a draw. Instead, they went on the attack right from the off, looking to finish off Norway's chances of victory as quickly as possible. Attacking talisman Reiss Nelson - on loan at Norwich City from Arsenal - could've got the Young Lions off to the perfect start after five minutes, but his free-kick swerved over the crossbar.

 

Nelson was at the heart of a very promising move for England in the 21st minute, when he cut infield and charged at the Norwegian defence. However, when the time came to shoot, his strike took a nick off visiting midfielder Torgeir Brun-Pedersen and lost a lot of pace. That resulted in a very easy save for Norway's FC Midtjylland goalkeeper Enock Mawete.

 

Mawete came to Norway's rescue again in the 37th minute, palming behind a headed effort from Arsenal striker Eddie Nketiah. He also caught another England header, this time from Nelson, in the 41st minute. Nevertheles,s there was a sense that the Young Lions would soon break through.

 

Indeed, once England found a chink in the Norwegian area in the 42nd minute, they made sure to exploit it. Norway centre-back Torkel Mellin-Olsen was guilty of leaving Nketiah in too much space, allowing the pacey striker to latch onto an incisive pass from Young Lions skipper Mason Mount and make a run for goal. He then coolly placed the ball into the net at Mawete's near post to end the stranglehold.

 

Norway had a chance to equalise in the last minute of first-half regulation time. Trond Christian Konradsen's free-kick was flicked on by Tobias Fagerheim into the path of Stabæk midfielder Hugo Vetlesen, whose half-volley was pushed away by England goalkeeper Steve Hilton.

 

That missed opportunity would prove telling for Norway, as they fell 2-0 behind after 59 minutes. When West Bromwich Albion wideman Jonathan Leko got ahead of Norway left-back John Kitolano to nod in a cross from half-time substitute Andre Dozzell, England planted one foot firmly into the finals.

 

Sadly, Leko's chances of joining his compatriots on the flight to Finland later that summer would soon be put in jeopardy. Whilst sprinting up the right flank in the 72nd minute, the winger suddenly pulled up clutching his thigh. Leko was almost immediately substituted, and scans later revealed that he had torn his hamstring. It remained to be seen whether he would make a full recovery within the four months leading up to the tournament.

 

After 79 minutes, the remaining England players made certain that they would be progressing to the finals. Substitute winger Lawrence Warner's cut-back to Nketiah resulted in the Londoner drilling in the Young Lions' third goal and rubber-stamping a third successive win.

 

Nketiah was a young man in the form of his life; that was the Milton Keynes Dons loanee's fourth goal of the Elite Round alone. Indeed, only three other players - including compatriot Ben Brereton - had scored more goals than Nketiah throughout the whole qualifying process for this European Under-19s Championship.

 

Watching England go through to the Euros at Norway's expense was particularly painful for the visitors' captain. 17-year-old Manchester City right-back Colin Rösler - whose father was ex-Citizens striker and current Wigan Athletic manager Uwe Rösler - was eligible to play for England or Germany. Instead, Colin had opted to represent the country where he spent much of his childhood.

 

27 March 2018: UEFA European Under-19s Championship Elite Group 2 - at Ewood Park, Blackburn

England U19s - 3 (Eddie Nketiah 42,79, Jonathan Leko 59)

Norway U19s - 0

ENGLAND U19s LINE-UP (4-2-3-1): Steve Hilton; Jordan Williams, Alistair Rattray, Corey Jordan, Ryan Sessegnon; Dennis Adeniran, Joe Rankin-Costello (Andre Dozzell); Jonathan Leko (Trevoh Chalobah), Mason Mount (Lawrence Warner), Reiss Nelson; Eddie Nketiah.

 

2018 UEFA European Under-19s Championship Elite Group 2 (Final Standings)

                                   P     W     D     L     F     A     GD    PTS
1.    Q     England U19s           3     3     0     0     10    2     8     9
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2.          Norway U19s            3     2     0     1     4     3     1     6
3.          Greece U19s            3     1     0     2     4     6     -2    3
4.          Rep of Ireland U19s    3     0     0     3     1     8     -7    0

 

England would form part of an eight-team field for the 2018 UEFA European Under-19s Championship, which would be staged in Finland during the latter half of July. Belgium, Croatia and Spain were perhaps the most likely contenders for the title. Czech Republic, Israel and Serbia had also qualified.

 

Back-to-back holders France would not be defending their title, and the team they defeated in the 2017 Final - Germany - would also be absent. Both sides had been edged out by Serbia in what was a nightmarish Elite Round Group 1. England could thank their lucky stars that their opponents were not quite so formidable.

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***

 

England's final friendly match before the announcement of Mark Catterall's FIFA World Cup squad saw them come up against one of the biggest teams in the CONCACAF region. Mexico were ranked 19th in the world and would give the Three Lions a taste of what to expect when they came up against Costa Rica in the Group Stage.

 

England and Mexico had met nine times before, with the North Americans winning twice, though only at home. The Three Lions had triumphed in all six of their previous meetings on English soil, most recently when they prevailed 3-1 in the build-up to the 2010 World Cup.

 

In each of the previous six World Cups, 'El Tri' had made it through to the Last 16, only to advance no further. Mexico's squad certainly looked decent, but a lack of genuine star quality suggested an elusive World Cup Quarter Final outside of their home country would probably not become a reality in Russia.

 

The Mexican frontline was headed up by Bayer Leverkusen striker Javier Hernández. Otherwise known as 'Chicharito' (or 'Little Pea'), the diminutive 29-year-old had scored 57 goals in his previous 100 international appearances.

 

Hernández had previously played for Manchester United, and two other Mexican attackers with previous Premier League experience were Giovani dos Santos and Carlos Vela. Three players were on the books of Portuguese Primeira Liga giants Porto, including captain Héctor Herrera.

 

Catterall expected a tough test against a team with a vast array of experience, which his frontline arguably lacked. Sitting just behind lead striker Harry Kane was Saido Berahino, who started for only the second time in an England senior jersey. Rolando Aarons made his full Three Lions debut on the right wing, while another relatively inexperienced international - Jesse Lingard - was on the left.

 

Catterall's suspicions that the Mexicans would start strongly were not unfounded. After five minutes, left-winger Jesús Corona - another of Mexico's Porto contingent - cut infield and curled in a shot that was met by an excellent diving catch from England goalkeeper Joe Hart.

 

Mexico's number 1 Guillermo Ochoa produced a similar save to deny Berahino a dream debut goal at Wembley in the sixth minute. The big-haired 32-year-old from Málaga then watched England midfielder Danny Drinkwater blaze over a chance to break his international duck in the 15th minute.

 

In the 17th minute, Toluca midfielder Jonathan Espericueta - the only rookie in this Mexican team - knocked an excellent ball to centurion Hernández on the edge of the England 'D'. Chicharito then entered the penalty area after turning sharply past Michael Keane, who was spared embarrassment by a strong save from his Manchester City team-mate Hart.

 

Keane could have made a more positive impact at the other end after 29 minutes. He got above a crowd of Mexicans to flick England skipper Jordan Henderson's corner on to Phil Jones, who tried to tee himself up for a maiden international goal, only for El Tri centre-half Diego Reyes to make a fantastic last-ditch clearance.

 

The Three Lions pushed forward again on 31 minutes, with Kane knocking the ball past Mexico's other centre-back Héctor Moreno and picking out Aarons. However, the Newcastle United attacker lost composure at the last moment and pulled his shot straight into Ochoa's hands. Another attempt from Aarons a minute later was lashed wide.

 

Mexico would eventually punish England's profligacy after 34 minutes. Porto right-back Miguel Layún floated in a cross that Hernández flicked to the far post, where Reyes sharply volleyed it home. The 25-year-old former Porto defender - now at Hoffenheim - hadn't scored in any of his previous 36 appearances for El Tri.

 

England did not react at all well to falling behind. Lingard sent a shot far too high in the 38th minute, though Drinkwater did test Ochoa three minutes later with a blistering effort that the goalkeeper did brilliantly well to divert over his crossbar. Despite that, the Three Lions were still trailing at the interval, much to the chagrin of their assistant manager.

 

Michael Burke's face grew redder - and his voice louder - than usual as he took aim at his players. "Have you heard what the crowd are f***ing shouting? 'Catterall's a c***!' 'Catterall's a b******!' 'Catterall's a w*****!' 'Why isn't f***ing Sterling playing?'

 

"They shouldn't be f***ing shouting at the manager! They should be shouting at YOU - the f***ing players - and do you know why? Because it's f***ing half-time, and WE'RE F***ING 1-0 DOWN AT HOME TO THE F***ING MEXICANS! What the f***'s wrong with you? Get your f***ing fingers out! Where's your bottle f***ing gone?"

 

Lingard continued to laugh and joke throughout Burke's tirade, which he was recording on his mobile phone. Burke stormed over to the Celta Vigo forward, grabbed the phone from his hand, and smashed it onto the floor.

 

The angry assistant then bellowed in Lingard's face, "And f***ing pay attention when I'm f****ing talking to you, c***! If you don't wanna wear the shirt, Lingard, then f***ing take it off! There's thousands of kids out there who'd die to put that f***ing shirt on and play for the f***ing England squad!

 

"I suggest you get back on the f***ing field, show those b******s what you can f***ing do, or you can f*** off on the next plane home to Spain and F***ING STAY THERE! You got that?"

 

Lingard's frightened face told a thousand words as he sheepishly meowed, "Er... squad?!"

 

Burke calmed down and walked back to Catterall, who asked, "Alright now, Mike? Has that done the job, or should I put some Atomic Kitten on?"

 

"No, Mark," an exhausted Burke replied hoarsely. "They've suffered enough."

 

Catterall made no fewer than three substitutions in the wake of Burke's rant, while he also switched to another new formation. He experimented with a 3-5-2, with Tottenham Hotspur wing-backs Danny Rose and Kyle Walker looking to drive the Three Lions further forward.

 

The tactical change brought about a positive start to the second half from an England perspective. Within a minute of the restart, Kane had played an excellent ball through the Mexican defence to Lingard, who comfortably beat Ochoa but couldn't keep his shot on target.

 

Leicester City midfielder Drinkwater was also looking a bit sharper, despite picking up a 51st-minute yellow card for tripping Espericueta. Just over a minute after that, Drinkwater ran onto a Berahino cut-back and blasted it first-time at goal. His shot rattled Ochoa's left-hand crossbar and was then pushed behind by the goalkeeper.

 

That was one of the few positive contributions Berahino would make in what Catterall saw as another underwhelming performance. Just after the hour mark, Berahino was replaced with Chelsea's Callum Wilson, whose square lob was volleyed wide by fellow sub Eric Dier in the 64th minute.

 

Mexico came on strong again after 66 minutes, when Moreno's free-kick was blocked by Drinkwater in the England wall. Two minutes later, 22-year-old Mexican substitute Orbelín Pineda beat Keane to a loose ball, which he blasted not too far off target.

 

Catterall later made another attacking substitution, with Adam Lallana taking over from Lingard. Ten minutes into his cameo, in the 78th minute, Lallana played an excellent short backheeled pass to Kane. The Tottenham striker's shot from just inside the Mexican area rebounded off Hernández and onto the post before Pineda cleared.

 

Another Tottenham man would rattle the woodwork eight minutes from time. When a vicious strike from Dier rebounded behind off the crossbar, England's supporters lost all hope. This would be only the Three Lions' third defeat in 18 matches under Catterall, and it would also be the first time that they had failed to score.

 

England's most disappointing display of the Catterall era ended on an even worse note in the final few seconds of normal time. Mexico got their second, game-breaking goal through an outstanding low drive from Corona that Hart could not quite get his fingers to.

 

Mexico had won 2-0, thus beating the Three Lions on their home turf for the first time. Catterall had been left with plenty of work to do if his England team were to avoid embarrassment at the World Cup later in the year.

 

27 March 2018: International Friendly - at Wembley, London

England - 0

Mexico - 2 (Diego Reyes 34, Jesús Corona 90)

ENGLAND LINE-UP (4-2-3-1): Joe Hart; Kyle Walker (Nathaniel Clyne), Phil Jones, Michael Keane, Danny Rose (Luke Shaw); Danny Drinkwater, Jordan Henderson (Eric Dier); Rolando Aarons (John Stones), Saido Berahino (Callum Wilson), Jesse Lingard (Adam Lallana); Harry Kane. BOOKED: Drinkwater 51.

 

ITV's pundits were understandably critical of the Three Lions at full-time.

 

Lee Dixon claimed, "England looked really lethargic tonight. We've seen signs of late that they were starting to lose their zip, attacking-wise, and they looked bereft of ideas whenever they got into the Mexican third.

 

"I'll give Mark some credit for trying something a little bit different for the second half, and playing with only three at the back. The team started to come out of their shell a bit more, and that was encouraging.

 

"In general, though, England's transition play from defence to attack was very one-dimensional. All too often, the Mexican defenders knew exactly what England were going to do next. I'd like to see a bit more creativity, especially from the likes of the Jordan Hendersons and the Adam Lallanas."

 

"We only have one Henderson and one Lallana, don't we?" Ian Wright asked. The ex-striker then said, "We could have done with a couple more Dele Allis tonight. In fact, I'm fuming that Dele didn't play at all. Lallana ain't bad, but Dele's a real game-changer, and Catts just left him on the bench when England needed him most. I don't understand that."

 

Wright also lamented Catterall's decision to substitute Berahino after a little over an hour, saying, "I don't think Saido got a fair crack at Mexico. He looked very nervous on his debut against Switzerland the other night, but he was much more settled tonight.

 

"For me, he was the best chance England had of getting any goals, so what did Catts do? He subbed him after an hour and brought on Callum Wilson. And I was like, 'Come on, Catts, give the lad a proper run! Give him 90 minutes! Let him prove to you that he could do a job at the World Cup.'

 

"I would take Saido to Russia, for sure. I like the look of Danny Drinkwater in midfield as well. Lingard was very, very poor, though, and I think he's blown his chance. He ain't going to the World Cup."

 

Dixon said, "When it comes to big tournaments, you want the tried-and-tested, and you also want a couple of younger, less experienced players who could give the team something different. Berahino could be that 'wildcard'; he's quick, he's high on confidence, and he can finish with the best of them.

 

"I'd take Demarai Gray as well, to be honest. He's taken huge strides over these past two seasons with Leicester City and already looks like an excellent creative winger. Sadly, we didn't get to see him against either Switzerland or Mexico, which could explain a bit more why England weren't quite the same attacking force that they were last year."

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Chapter 16 - The Cut

 

The last few weeks of the Premier League season saw the competition for places in England's FIFA World Cup squad heat up further.

 

Most of Manchester United's English contingent were making strong cases for inclusion on the flight to Russia. The Red Devils had enjoyed a fantastic second season under José Mourinho, claiming their first league championship since Sir Alex Ferguson's retirement in 2013. They went on to finish nine points clear at the top, while also making it through to the UEFA Champions League Final against holders Real Madrid.

 

Left-back Luke Shaw was almost guaranteed to go the World Cup, barring any disastrous injuries. Centre-halves Phil Jones and Chris Smalling were less certain of their places, having made only 21 and 14 appearances respectively in the PL this season. Jones' recent upturn in form was likely to count heavily in his favour in a potential battle with Smalling for an England place.

 

Then there was Marcus Rashford - the wildcard inclusion in Roy Hodgson's squad for UEFA Euro 2016. The 20-year-old striker had scored three goals in his last four competitive appearances for United, leading to speculation that he would make another last-minute burst into an England tournament squad.

 

Runners-up Chelsea had Gary Cahill and Callum Wilson, but neither was a certainty for Mark Catterall's finals squad. Centre-back Cahill had recently fallen out of favour with Blues manager Antonio Conte. As for Wilson, a hip injury meant that the striker had missed the final six weeks of his first season at Stamford Bridge.

 

Manchester City had again flattered to deceive under Pep Guardiola, finishing in 4th place once more. City had a strong defensive record, though, and goalkeeper Joe Hart and centre-halves Michael Keane and John Stones had surely done enough to justify their inclusions for England.

 

Just above the Citizens were Arsenal, whose only representative was likely to be Jack Wilshere. The 26-year-old attacking midfielder had produced five goals and five assists in 31 competitive matches for the Gunners this season, though a large number of those appearances had come from the bench.

 

Erstwhile league champions Tottenham Hotspur had fallen to 5th place, though they had lifted both major domestic cups. The five core English members of Mauricio Pochettino's squad - Dele Alli, Eric Dier, Harry Kane, Danny Rose and Kyle Walker - were almost certain to be selected. Though James Ward-Prowse had had an up-and-down first season with Spurs, the former Southampton midfielder was likely to join them on the World Cup plane as well.

 

Watford had surprisingly held 6th place for much of the back end of the season. 24-year-old left-back Charlie Taylor and 29-year-old striker Troy Deeney had both impressed, and some Hornets fans were even tipping the uncapped duo to break into Catterall's squad at the last moment.

 

However, Watford were overtaken on the final day of the season by Liverpool, who narrowly retained their top-six status under new manager Roberto Mancini. Captain Jordan Henderson headed a strong Reds representation in the England pool, with Nathaniel Clyne and Adam Lallana also set to travel to Russia. Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain and Daniel Sturridge harboured realistic hopes of making the squad as well, though their indifferent form would perhaps count against them.

 

Lower down the Premier League pecking order, winger Rolando Aarons had sustained his excellent form for mid-table Newcastle United, but Demarai Gray and Patrick Roberts had not done likewise for Leicester City. The youngsters' hopes of making the England squad were hanging by a thread, though Leicester team-mate Jamie Vardy had recovered from a torn calf muscle and was once again making a compelling case for inclusion.

 

Stoke City's Saido Berahino scored 19 Premier League goals this season, finishing joint-third in the Golden Boot standings alongside a couple of his compatriots. Kane was a shoo-in for the World Cup, but Sunderland striker Jermain Defoe wasn't. Defoe had not played for England for over four years and was now aged 35, so his time had surely passed.

 

10th-placed Everton had a few outside bets for the Three Lions team. Playmaker Ross Barkley had not been in particularly outstanding form this season, yet he would perhaps come into the equation were England to lose other attacking midfielders to injury. Meanwhile, 22-year-old centre-back Brendan Galloway had been consistently solid for the Toffees, as well as England's Under-21s, all season.

 

Further afield, right-back Calum Chambers had a strong chance of being included after helping Schalke 04 to a 5th-place finish in Germany's Bundesliga. However, attacking midfielder Jesse Lingard had been wildly inconsistent since joining Celta Vigo earlier in the year. England's other Spanish-based player - Villarreal winger Theo Walcott - would definitely miss the World Cup after dislocating his shoulder in April.

 

Catterall was not short on options when he named a provisional 30-man in the middle of May. That squad would then be cut to a final 23 following a week-long training camp at St George's Park.

 

ENGLAND provisional squad - for 2018 FIFA World Cup

NAME                      POSITIONS           D.O.B. (AGE)     CLUB            CAPS  GOALS HEIGHT WEIGHT     VALUE
Jack Butland              GK                  10/03/1993 (25)  Stoke           6     0     6'5"   14st 13lbs £20M    
Fraser Forster            GK                  17/03/1988 (30)  Southampton     8     0     6'7"   15st 8lbs  £10.5M  
Joe Hart                  GK                  19/04/1987 (31)  Man City        77    0     6'5"   12st 10lbs £11.5M  
Calum Chambers            D (RC)              20/01/1995 (23)  Schalke         6     0     6'0"   11st 6lbs  £8.5M   
Phil Jones                D (RC)              21/02/1992 (26)  Man Utd         22    0     6'1"   11st 4lbs  £22.5M  
Michael Keane             D (RC)              11/01/1993 (25)  Man City        10    0     6'1"   13st 0lbs  £28M    
John Stones               D (RC)              28/05/1994 (23)  Man City        22    1     6'2"   12st 1lb   £34.5M  
Eric Dier                 D (RC), DM, M (C)   15/01/1994 (24)  Tottenham       25    3     6'2"   13st 7lbs  £33M    
Brendan Galloway          D (LC), DM          17/03/1996 (22)  Everton         0     0     6'2"   14st 0lbs  £9.25M  
Gary Cahill               D (C)               19/12/1985 (32)  Chelsea         57    3     6'4"   13st 7lbs  £1.5M   
Nathaniel Clyne           D/WB (R)            05/04/1991 (27)  Liverpool       26    0     5'9"   10st 7lbs  £12.25M 
Kyle Walker               D/WB (R)            28/05/1990 (27)  Tottenham       29    0     6'0"   11st 6lbs  £21.5M  
Luke Shaw                 D/WB (L)            12/07/1995 (22)  Man Utd         17    1     6'1"   11st 11lbs £22.5M  
Danny Rose                D/WB/M (L)          02/07/1990 (27)  Tottenham       17    2     5'8"   11st 6lbs  £24M    
Jordan Henderson          DM, M (C)           17/06/1990 (27)  Liverpool       43    0     6'0"   10st 7lbs  £20.5M  
Patrick Roberts           M (RL), AM (RLC)    05/02/1997 (21)  Leicester       0     0     5'6"   9st 1lb    £17M    
Danny Drinkwater          M (C)               05/03/1990 (28)  Leicester       11    0     5'10"  11st 0lbs  £14.25M 
Rolando Aarons            M/AM (RL)           16/11/1995 (22)  Newcastle       2     0     5'9"   10st 5lbs  £11.5M  
Demarai Gray              M/AM (RL)           28/06/1996 (21)  Leicester       8     2     5'10"  11st 13lbs £11.5M  
Nathan Redmond            M/AM (RL), ST (C)   06/03/1994 (24)  Southampton     3     1     5'8"   11st 6lbs  £18.75M 
Adam Lallana              M/AM (RLC)          10/05/1988 (30)  Liverpool       42    1     5'8"   11st 6lbs  £15.75M 
James Ward-Prowse         M/AM (RC)           01/11/1994 (23)  Tottenham       5     0     5'8"   10st 5lbs  £17.75M 
Dele Alli                 M/AM (C)            11/04/1996 (22)  Tottenham       28    5     6'1"   12st 1lb   £36M    
Jack Wilshere             M/AM (C)            01/01/1992 (26)  Arsenal         45    5     5'9"   10st 3lbs  £21M    
Saido Berahino            AM (RC), ST (C)     04/08/1993 (24)  Stoke           2     0     5'11"  13st 0lbs  £17.5M  
Marcus Rashford           AM (L), ST (C)      31/10/1997 (20)  Man Utd         3     1     5'11"  11st 9lbs  £30.5M  
Jamie Vardy               AM (C), ST (C)      11/01/1987 (31)  Leicester       16    5     5'10"  11st 11lbs £8M     
Harry Kane                ST (C)              28/07/1993 (24)  Tottenham       30    12    6'3"   13st 0lbs  £35.5M  
Daniel Sturridge          ST (C)              01/09/1989 (28)  Liverpool       31    16    6'0"   12st 6lbs  £24M    
Callum Wilson             ST (C)              27/02/1992 (26)  Chelsea         13    3     5'11"  10st 7lbs  £41M    

 

In a repeat of UEFA Euro 2016, Marcus Rashford was the shock inclusion in the England squad. Manchester United's wonderkid had finished the season strongly and now had a real chance of making it to a second major tournament, even though he was not yet a regular starter at Old Trafford.

 

Rashford was joined in the England squad by colleagues Phil Jones and Luke Shaw... but not Chris Smalling. Despite having 36 caps - and appearances at two major tournaments - under his belt, the 28-year-old centre-back would have to watch this World Cup on television.

 

The inclusions of Everton defender Brendan Galloway and Leicester City forward Patrick Roberts - both newcomers to senior international football - also raised some eyebrows. Rashford, Galloway and Roberts had all displayed excellent form for England Under-21s and were now hoping to impress their manager sufficiently to make his final World Cup squad.

 

Though he had been sidelined from England duty since October, Daniel Sturridge returned to the fold just in time for the World Cup. Sturridge was the Three Lions' leading scorer in the qualifiers, and Catterall admitted that the Liverpool striker's natural finishing ability had been badly missed in their subsequent friendly matches.

 

Former captain Wayne Rooney notwithstanding, Sturridge's Anfield team-mate Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain was perhaps the biggest name to be left out of the provisional England squad. Oxlade-Chamberlain had joined Liverpool from Arsenal for £32.5million in August, but his performances since then had been very mediocre.

 

There was also no room for the likes of Ross Barkley, Jesse Lingard or Raheem Sterling. Meanwhile, Southampton manager Claude Puel expressed bemusement that his striker Charlie Austin had not been called up by Catterall. For the record, Austin had scored seven goals in 25 league appearances for the Saints this term.

 

Most of the players named in the provisional squad would now head to Burton-upon-Trent for a week-long boot camp, prior to the announcement of Catterall's final line-up on 27 May. The Manchester United trio of Jones, Rashford and Shaw were all exempted from this training camp, so that they could travel to Kiev for the Champions League Final.

 

The seven players cut from Catterall's squad after the first week would all be placed on standby, in case of any serious injuries in the lead-up to the opening World Cup match against Brazil on 16 June. Though he hadn't named him in his provisional squad, Catterall also asked Sunderland goalkeeper Jordan Pickford to keep his diary clear, in case either Jack Butland, Joe Hart or Fraser Forster had to pull out suddenly.

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***

 

Mark Catterall was about to start his formal preparations for the FIFA World Cup. England's 30-man preliminary squad would shortly travel to St George's Park in Burton-upon-Trent to be put their paces.

 

Barely a moment passed by without Catterall thinking ahead to the World Cup in Russia. On the evening of 17 May, though, he got a chance to forget about football for a moment, and figuratively let his hair down. Of course, he didn't have any literal hair to let down.

 

Having been born three weeks premature in May 2008, Luke Catterall had not been expected to live beyond his first week. He later developed a serious eye condition that led to him going blind. Now, the only son of Mark and Jenny Catterall was a vibrant and relatively healthy boy who was celebrating his 10th birthday.

 

The Catteralls arranged a small party for Luke at their Burton home, inviting select friends and family to celebrate with him. Mark's mother Barbara and sister Gemma had both travelled south from Lancashire, while Jenny's parents had driven all the way up from Surrey to be with their only grandson.

 

Mark's England assistant Michael Burke and his wife Julia, who'd been assigned as Luke's godparents, were also in attendance, as were some of the youngster's schoolfriends.

 

Most of the guests gathered in the living room while Jenny and her mother were preparing the birthday cake. Luke sat down on the sofa strumming a guitar, which prompted Michael to say to Mark, "I didn't know your lad played the guitar."

 

"Yeah, it was news to me until a few weeks ago," Mark admitted. "Apparently, he likes to play a whole load of instruments in music class. Right now, he's really into the guitar."

 

"Didn't you tell me a while back that he were a pretty good pianist?"

 

Luke stopped playing momentarily to say, "I don't play piano so much now. I like the guitar. It is much more fun."

 

"Fair do's," Michael smiled, before muttering, "If only Jamie Cullum had discovered that at your age, eh?"

 

As Luke started playing his guitar again, Julia asked Mark, "So you bought Luke a guitar for his birthday?"

 

Mark nodded, "Yep. One of Jenny's clients runs a guitar shop, would you believe it? He gave us a small discount - not that we really needed it, mind!"

 

"So what make is it?" Julia asked.

 

"It's a Yamaha, that much I can tell you. I may be a big music fan, Julia, but I'm not all that clued-up when it comes to the instruments."

 

Julia said, "Well, it's very generous of you two to get Luke a guitar. And I bet you're relieved you didn't have to buy a big ol' piano!"

 

Barbara chimed in, "I don't think they need one. Anyway, our Luke gets plenty of joy out of my piano when he comes to visit me. You really should come over some time and listen to him play."

 

Luke said, "Grandma has a really lovely piano. Apparently, it's very old as well, so I have to be a bit careful with it."

 

Mark smiled as Michael observed, "So you've got a pianist and a guitarist. If he asks for a drum set when he turns 13, you'll have yourself a one-boy band!"

 

Gemma added, "Yeah, he could be, like, three musicians in one! Imagine if he was a mixture of Stevie Wonder, José Feliciano, and... who's that blind drummer from Def Leppard?"

 

Michael corrected Gemma, "Ah, you're thinking of Rick Allen. He ain't blind; he's the bloke who lost his arm in a car crash."

 

"Oh yeah, thanks."

 

Mark then remembered, "Now that you mention it, Gem... I think we've got an old photo somewhere. It's of Luke when he was a baby, and he was banging pots and pans like they were drums."

 

Gemma gushed, "Oh, that just sounds so adorable! I would love to see that!"

 

"I'll have a scrummage upstairs. I won't be a moment."

 

Mark then left the room and headed upstairs, just as Jenny emerged with Luke's birthday cake, adorned with ten lit candles.

 

About a minute later, as Jenny led a rendition of "Happy Birthday" downstairs, Mark scoured through several drawers in the couple's bedroom. Eventually, he stumbled across the photo he'd been hunting for. Photographed at just a few months old, Luke could be seen smiling as he beat at an overturned kitchen pan with a wooden spoon.

 

Mark retrieved the photograph from the drawer and placed it on the bed. His eyes then gazed towards another photograph in the same drawer. It was of him and his first wife Kat cuddling their young daughter Ashley, who looked about two or three years old.

 

Mark picked up the photograph with his right hand. With his left hand, he took off his glasses, and covered his mouth to stifle sobs. He then knelt to the floor and broke down.

 

Moments later, Jenny rushed upstairs, calling out, "Mark? Where are you? You missed Luke blowing out the candles on his birthday cake!"

 

Spotting that the bedroom door was ajar, she stepped inside, and found Mark lying down on the floor in tears.

 

"MARK!" she exclaimed. "What's the matter?"

 

Mark hurriedly got up off the floor and stammered, "I... I... you caught me in a bad moment, Jen."

 

"A bad moment?"

 

"To cut a long story short, I was looking for an old photo of Luke as a baby, and... well, I found this." Mark then picked up the photo of his old family and handed it to Jenny.

 

"That's your daughter, isn't it?" Jenny asked timidly.

 

Mark nodded, "Yes, and I remember exactly when it was taken - 2004. Me and Kat were living in Yorkshire. Ashley was three years old. We'd spent the afternoon picnicking at Hebden Bridge; that's why she looks so happy in that photo."

 

Jenny sighed, "I thought you didn't keep any photos of your old family."

 

"Neither did I, to be honest with you. I guess that survived the clear-out when we moved over here from Blackpool."

 

As Mark dried his eyes, Jenny whispered, "You really miss your daughter, don't you?"

 

"Not a week goes by where I don't think about her. Me and her mum split up over a decade ago. Kat went back home to Liverpool and took Ashley with her. I've heard nothing from them since the divorce."

 

"How old would she be now?"

 

"17. She must be at college by now, maybe even doing some part-time work and starting to make her own way in life." Mark then let out a huge sigh and continued, "But part of me fears that she's f***ed it all up somehow, and there's now some grandkid I've never even heard of."

 

"Don't go thinking that, Mark," Jenny said, before reassuring Mark, "From what you've told me about Kat in the past, she's probably a wonderful mum who's brought up her daughter properly, just we've done with Luke."

 

Mark nodded, "You're probably right. I'd like to get back in touch with Kat one day, and see how our little girl's been getting on."

 

"Maybe it will happen one day. Now come on, Mark - there's a 10-year-old boy downstairs who'd like you to have a slice of his birthday cake."

 

"Ooh, I do like cake."

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***

 

England's first week of their pre-FIFA World Cup training camp had gone relatively painlessly. Tottenham Hotspur's ball-winning midfielder Eric Dier had picked up a minor knock, but there were no serious injuries or enforced withdrawals from the 30-man squad.

 

On Sunday 27 May, though, manager Mark Catterall was faced with the difficult decision of cutting seven players from his team. He had to submit a final 23-man squad to FIFA later that afternoon.

 

After a training session that morning, Catterall sat down with his assistant Michael Burke and coach Glenn Hoddle - a former England manager himself - to discuss who would stay and who would go.

 

Burke asked Catterall, "Have you decided on your squad yet, Catts?"

 

"Almost," Catterall replied whilst scribbling furiously at a notepad. "I've got most of them nailed down. It's just a case of deciding the last two who get in."

 

"Gizza look, Catts," Hoddle said. "Let's see who you've got."

 

Catterall passed his notepad to Hoddle, who scrutinised it and then asked, "Why only three strikers?"

 

"I don't think we need any more than three," Catterall stated. "We mainly play with just one man up top, so we can get by with those three."

 

"But there's no Vardy on there, no Berahino. They're two of the top three English scorers in the Prem, aren't they?"

 

"As an England manager at a big tournament, you need your strikers to have proven track records in international football. Kane's got that, Sturridge has got that, and Wilson's getting there. But Saido's just not ready for a tournament like this."

 

"And what about Vardy? He played at Euro 2016, didn't he?"

 

"He did, but that was when Roy Hodgson was in charge. To tell you the truth, I don't think Jamie will ever be the right fit for my England team. He doesn't really suit my style of play."

 

"That's a good point, Catts," Burke said, "But why haven't you picked Rashford?"

 

"To tell you the truth, Mick, I only brought Marcus into the squad so that I could see if he was ready. He isn't ready yet. Give him a year of regular Premier League football, and he will be, but not right now."

 

"And the World Cup's not the right time to experiment with an inexperienced player."

 

"Exactly, Mick. It's the same with Brendan Galloway and Patrick Roberts. Their time will surely come later."

 

After a pause, Catterall continued, "Now, I think I need a couple more options in defence, but I'm torn between three players - Cahill, Chambers, Jones."

 

Hoddle interjected, "You've got to bring Gary Cahill along, haven't you? He's been to a couple of major tournaments before. He's been there, done that, et cetera. None of our other centre-backs have. You need that experience at the back, especially with Chris Smalling out of the picture."

 

"That's what I was thinking. I just wasn't sure if Cahill would be sharp enough after dropping out of the Chelsea team, but he really knuckled down here last week. He's in."

 

"Now, with Calum Chambers, you've got that versatility; he can play in the middle or on the right. But Phil Jones has more big-match experience, and he's very strong, very determined. If you're deciding between those two, I'd take Jones."

 

"Yeah, if you're going to the World Gurning Championship!" Burke laughed. "But seriously... I'm not sure why, Mark, but I just think you should take James Ward-Prowse instead. Add a bit more depth to our midfield options."

 

Catterall shook his head. "He's not been in good form for his club, but Phil Jones has. Cheers, Glenn. You've made that decision a bit easier."

 

"My pleasure."

 

Catterall now knew which 23 players he wanted to take to the World Cup finals, and which seven to leave behind. He asked Hoddle, who'd picked him for the 1998 World Cup in France, for some man-management advice on how to break the bad news to the unlucky septet.

 

Hoddle replied, "You remember when we were in Spain before the '98 World Cup, right?"

 

"I do, Glenn," Catterall nodded. "You invited us to your hotel room one-by-one and told us whether we were in or out."

 

"Yeah... don't do that."

 

"Unless you want your room to be destroyed," Burke said, alluding to Paul Gascoigne's infamous reaction to being dropped by Hoddle ahead of France '98.

 

"Nah, I think I've got a better idea, Glenn," Catterall said.

 

Hoddle replied, "As long as it don't involve Kenny G, I'm on board with it."

 

Catterall instructed Burke - along with fellow coaches David Platt and Ray 'Butch' Wilkins - to speak to the seven dropped players in private, and ask them to wait outside his office at 2:00pm.

 

That afternoon, the seven men in question - Saido Berahino, Calum Chambers, Brendan Galloway, Marcus Rashford, Patrick Roberts, Jamie Vardy and James Ward-Prowse - stood outside Catterall's office, awaiting the manager's arrival.

 

Catterall showed up at 2:00pm on the dot and invited his players inside, where he broke the news succinctly.

 

"You probably know what I'm going to tell you, so I'll cut to the chase. You will not be in my 23-man squad for the World Cup."

 

Most of the players reacted quietly and solemnly, except Vardy, who muttered, "Oh, p*** off," as he stormed out of the room in a huff.

 

As the door slammed behind Vardy, his Leicester City team-mate Roberts asked Catterall, "Erm... should I have a word with Jamie, gaffer? He seems quite upset."

 

"No need, Pat," Catterall replied. "Butch will probably escort him off the premises soon anyway."

 

Catterall then continued, "This wasn't an easy decision for me, lads. You're all good enough to play for England on your day. Unfortunately, I can only take 23 of you to Russia.

 

"The good news is that you're all still young, and your best years are ahead of you. Keep working hard, and I'm sure be ready for the Euros in 2020, and for other major tournaments.

 

"And if anything happens to any of those players who are in the squad, then I suggest you keep your phones switched on, 'cos I want you to be ready to step in if needed. Got that?"

 

All six dropped players nodded, including Galloway, who was trying to hold back tears. Noticing the Everton defender was not coping with his disappointment as well as the others, Catterall patted him on the back and whispered in his ear, "I was very close to picking you, Bren. You're almost there."

 

"Thanks," Galloway said. "It's just… when you get so close and then have it taken away from you…"

 

"Yeah, it's hard," Catterall sighed. "Like I said, though, your time will come if you keep on going about your business like you are right now."

 

Ward-Prowse said, "To be honest, none of us are ready right now. We need more international experience first before we can go to big tournaments."

 

"What about me?" Rashford asked. "I hadn't even played for England when Roy [Hodgson] picked me for the Euros."

 

"James is right, lads," Catterall stated. "You need to prove yourselves at this level before I can really trust you at a World Cup or a European Championship. I'm prepared to give you lot opportunities over the next few years, if I feel that you've earned them.

 

"Until then, just use today as motivation for the future. Make sure that you don't have to go through this again."

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***

 

The 23 players in England's final FIFA World Cup squad spent one more week training at St George's Park in the build-up to the tournament. They then returned to match action on 5 June - 11 days before they would formally begin their quest to bring that gleaming trophy home.

 

The Three Lions' last friendly international at Wembley before the finals was against South American giants Chile. England fans were desperate to see their side deliver a fitting send-off, especially after the disappointment of the 2-0 defeat to Mexico in March.

 

Just like their fellow Latin Americans from the northern hemisphere, Chile would prove tough nuts to crack. Not only were they ranked 12th in the world, but they were also the two-time defending Copa América holders, having beaten Argentina to win the 2015 and 2016 titles. Arsenal winger Alexis Sánchez was the star attraction, but the likes of Bayern Munich's ball-winning midfielder Arturo Vidal and Bayer Leverkusen playmaker Charles Aránguiz were also widely respected.

 

Chile's last visit to Wembley in 2013 had ended in a 2-0 away victory, with Sánchez scoring both goals. La Roja would again give the hosts plenty to think about in this reunion.

 

England made the more positive start, although a wayward shot from frontman Harry Kane in the 7th minute was a sign of things to come. Seven minutes after that, his Tottenham Hotspur colleague Eric Dier unleashed a half-volley that was deflected away from goal off Chile's Mauricio Isla. The Cagliari winger - and one-time Queens Park Rangers flop - was making his 101st international appearance, just a week before his 30th birthday.

 

Dier missed the target again in the 19th minute, while Southampton's Nathan Redmond half-volleyed over in the 31st. It seemed that England had failed to heed the lessons of their shock failure against Mexico, when they had failed to break down a stubborn defence and were duly punished.

 

Manchester City's much-maligned goalkeeper Claudio Bravo didn't have to produce a single save for La Roja until the 36th minute. Even then, the 35-year-old Chile skipper was untroubled by a powerful but straight shot from England forward Adam Lallana.

 

Bravo's main rival for City's number 1 jersey - Joe Hart - had an even quieter first half in the England goal. This Chile team was built for direct, counter-attacking football, but they only threatened to hit England on the break once before half-time.

 

That sole Chilean opportunity came after 40 minutes through striker Eduardo Vargas - another player who would rather have forgotten about his brief time in west London with QPR. Vargas was perhaps wishing he could have erased this shot from his memory banks as well, having blazed Sánchez's sumptuous long pass harmlessly over the crossbar.

 

Chile's next scoring opportunity came from a close-range free-kick in the first minute of the second half. After England captain Jordan Henderson was booked for upending Vargas just inside the 'D', Aránguiz drove the set-piece over the Three Lions' wall. Much to the home supporters' relief, Hart rose high to catch the strike and keep it out of his net.

 

After that scare, the English defence had a relatively stress-free evening. Hart's back four looked assured, especially with his City team-mates Michael Keane and John Stones in the heart of the defence. At the other end, though, England were rather less impressive.

 

When substitute winger Demarai Gray latched onto an excellent crossfield pass from Dele Alli in the 63rd minute and drilled it across Chile's goalmouth, it seemed that an England breakthrough was imminent. However, Kane was hesitant to run onto the cross, leaving Lallana with a difficult shot from a tight angle. Bravo palmed away the Liverpool star's effort, and Isla then cleared the danger.

 

A minute later, Aránguiz conceded a free-kick and picked up a booking for a clumsy challenge on England's box-to-box midfielder Danny Drinkwater. Gray stepped up and hoisted the subsequent set-piece towards goal. Bravo spilled the youngster's delivery onto his right-hand post, but he retrieved the ball at the second attempt just before Rolando Aarons could stab it past him.

 

Gray was one of the bright sparks in an otherwise dull England display, forcing Bravo into another save three minutes before full-time. Kane had flicked a couple of headers wide of Bravo's target prior to that as the 24-year-old's inconsistency at international level continued.

 

Chile had spent much of the second period defending against mediocre home attacks, but in the second minute of injury time, they almost secured a smash-and-grab win.

 

Right-back Oscar Opazo - a key component of the Universidad Católica side that had won the 2017 Copa Libertadores - lifted an excellent long-range pass ahead of Argentine-based striker Carlos Muñoz, who got through a gap between Keane and Stones. Were it not for a last-ditch save from Hart, England would have surely been condemned to successive defeats.

 

As it was, this was another underwhelming Wembley display from the Three Lions. It was also the first draw of Mark Catterall's England career, and a goalless one at that. Needless to say, they would have to perform much better over the coming weeks if their World Cup adventure wasn't to be a brief one.

 

5 June 2018: International Friendly - at Wembley, London

England - 0

Chile - 0

ENGLAND LINE-UP (4-2-3-1): Joe Hart; Nathaniel Clyne, Michael Keane, John Stones, Luke Shaw (Danny Rose); Jordan Henderson (Jack Wilshere), Eric Dier (Danny Drinkwater); Adam Lallana (Rolando Aarons), Dele Alli, Nathan Redmond (Demarai Gray); Harry Kane (Callum Wilson). BOOKED: Henderson 46.

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***

 

Following a less-than-impressive goalless draw at home to Chile, England's players and coaching staff had one more full day of training at St George's Park. Wednesday night would give them some much-needed time to wind down before they flew out to Eastern Europe.

 

After a long day at work, England manager Mark Catterall returned home at 6:45pm. As the front door was opened for him, he announced his arrival, "Jenny? Luke? I'm home!"

 

Mark's 10-year-old son Luke had opened the door for him. Luke asked, "How was your day, Dad?"

 

Mark said, "Hard but worthwhile. Where's Mum?"

 

"She said she would be in the study upstairs."

 

"Cheers, son," Mark smiled. He gently ruffled Luke's hair before heading upstairs and changing out of his training attire. After a quick shower, he put on some more casual clothes and approached the study, the door for which was closed.

 

From inside the room, Mark just about heard the former BBC football commentator John Motson calling, "CATTERALL SCORES!"

 

He then heard the Geordie tones of ex-England winger Chris Waddle, who stated matter-of-factly, "Yes, good skill, and a tidy finish. Nice goal."

 

Mark opened the door and said, "Hang on, was that John Motson I heard? I thought he'd retired..."

 

Mark then hesitated as Jenny - sat down by her desk - turned her head from her computer monitor and towards him. She appeared to be playing a retro football video game.

 

"What's this, Jen?" Mark asked inquisitively.

 

Jenny stammered, "Oh, Mark, oh... I, er, have just been playing an old FIFA game. World Cup 98."

 

Mark laughed, "France '98! I played in that!"

 

"Yes, you did. In fact, you've just scored in the Last 16 against Argentina!"

 

"I don't think that's what actually happened, Jen," Mark quipped.

 

Mark then sat down on a chair beside Jenny as she paused the game. A mid-1990s drum 'n' bass track - "Soul Beat Runna" by Boymerang - blared through the speakers, prompting Mark to cover his ears and exclaim, "CAN YOU TURN THAT FREAKIN' RACKET OFF?"

 

Jenny quickly navigated to the 'Settings' screen and turned the music volume right down. Mark sighed, "Thank you. So, what brought this on?"

 

"Well, the World Cup's just around the corner, obviously. So I thought I'd get into the spirit of things, go back to my first ever football video game, from 20 years ago."

 

"I never had you down as much of a gamer," Mark said.

 

"You'll be surprised by some of the stuff I like, Mark. We've been together 11 years now, and I still haven't told you everything about me. Now this was a game I absolutely loved playing when I was, like, 14 or 15. I won the World Cup so many times that I'd lost count by the end!"

 

"And now you've got back into it, just like old times."

 

"Yeah. It still works fine on a modern PC, though I had to install a Windows 98 'virtual machine' on Windows 10 first, and then I needed to tweak some settings under the hood."

 

Mark stared at Jenny blank-faced and open-mouthed. Jenny laughed, "Yeah. Now you know what I was thinking the other day when you tried to explain the difference between a regista and a half-back!"

 

Jenny unpaused the game and started to play again, as Mark watched on. He observed, "Video game graphics have come a long way in 20 years, haven't they? Those players look like deformed Minecraft characters! Still, at least they got my likeness spot-on!"

 

Jenny nodded, "Yeah, and you actually had hair back then, didn't you?"

 

Moments later, Jenny celebrated as the in-game 'Catterall' scored another goal, promoting the virtual Motson to call, "Yes, he's scored! Into the top corner! No mistake! What excellent finishing!"

 

Waddle - then arguably at the height of his punditry career - added, "A tremendous goal, John. They don't come much better than that."

 

The real Mark then told Jenny, "You're quite good at this game, aren't you?"

 

"I'm not as quick as I used to be, but you never really lose it," Jenny claimed, before pausing the game again. She turned to her husband and said, "Mark, I'm a little worried about you..."

 

Mark tried to reassure her, "Don't worry, Jen. Like I always say, air travel is very safe nowadays, and I don't think there's much chance of our plane being sh-"

 

Jenny interrupted him, "It's not that. Part of me fears that you'll come back from Russia feeling... you know, all right-wing, crying about 'fake news' and saying that President Trump is the greatest politician of our time."

 

Mark chuckled, "You don't really think that, do you?"

 

Jenny burst out laughing. "No, of course not, you idiot! What do you think I'm like? I know you'll be safe and sound... at least if England do well."

 

"Yeah, we'll see. Anyway, I'll just leave you with your game and see what Luke's up to."

 

"Alright, love. See you later."

 

The couple then kissed before Mark went downstairs and sat down on the living room settee beside Luke, who was playing his guitar. Mark said, "You really enjoy your guitar, don't you, Luke?"

 

Luke nodded, "Hmm hmm," as Mark added, "I can tell you're getting better at that every day. You know, Uncle Andy was a mean guitar player when he was growing up, and Aunt Gemma's husband plays in a band."

 

"I know," Luke said. "Gemma told me the other day. But what happened to Uncle Andy? Why doesn't he see us anymore?"

 

Mark said, "It's a little complicated, son. Anyway... I don't want to interrupt you or anything, but would you mind if Daddy watched some telly?"

 

"I don't mind," Luke said as he continued to strum.

 

Mark switched on the television and then navigated to the family's Sky+ planner before playing a recording of the England vs Chile match from the previous night. He fast-forwarded to the kick-off, where ITV commentator Clive Tyldesley announced, "Following defeats against Argentina and Mexico, England have the opportunity to give their home fans cause for optimism before the World Cup in Russia. Anything other than victory against this robust team from Chile will provide more questions than answers for Mark Catterall."

 

Luke stopped playing his guitar and asked Mark, "Didn't England play last night, Dad?"

 

"Yes, they did," Mark answered affirmatively. "I'm just watching the match again to... work a few things out."

 

"What things?"

 

"Basically, Luke, I have to figure out why we're not scoring as much as we used to."

 

Luke said, "Daniel Sturridge didn't play last night. He always does great for England. Maybe that's why they don't score without him."

 

Mark nodded, "Yeah, Luke. You might be onto something there. Of course, there's more to football than just picking the best players, but I'll definitely give Sturridge a chance next week."

 

"Dad? Where are you going tomorrow?"

 

"Romania. We'll stop there for a few days, and then we're going to Russia for the World Cup. You do know I'll be gone for a few weeks, right?"

 

"Yeah."

 

"And you're alright with that? I know how upset you were when I went away last summer."

 

Luke insisted, "I'll be okay this time, Dad. I promise. And I can't wait for what you bring me from Russia."

 

"You like my gifts, don't you, son? You enjoyed that phone message I got Lionel Messi to record for you at the World Cup draw, didn't you? And that puzzle from Switzerland. I held up the rest of the team for over an hour just to buy you that."

 

"Thank you for all the gifts," Luke said. "You don't have to get me one from every country you go to, but I would love something from the World Cup. Please?"

 

"Sure thing, mate. If you are a good boy for Mum, and England do well over the next few weeks, then maybe I'll get you something extra-special."

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***

 

Thursday 7 June 2018. England's football team were about to embark on the first phase of their journey to Russia for the 2018 FIFA World Cup.

 

Mark Catterall's 23-man squad, along with his coaching staff, had all gathered at Heathrow Airport by 10:30am. They had chartered a British Airways plane, which would leave London within the next two hours and fly them off to a pre-World Cup training camp in Bucharest. They would spend a few days in the Romanian capital before moving on to their tournament base in Volgograd.

 

Many of the England players' wives or girlfriends were also at Heathrow to see their loved ones off. Catterall had imposed a strict ban on players and their WAGs socialising or living together during the tournament itself, so as to avoid any distractions. Phone and video calls would be permitted every evening, except on match days.

 

Catterall had himself said goodbye to his wife Jenny and son Luke early that morning, before he and his colleagues were driven to London from their Staffordshire headquarters.

 

Catterall was in a discussion with the Football Association's communications chief Ava Leggett as they walked into the departures lounge. Leggett explained the itinerary to the England boss, "We'll be having lunch at half-past-11, then a photo-call on the runway at noon, and then we'll hopefully be flying out at half-12."

 

Catterall nodded, "Thanks, Ava. So, how's this photo-call gonna work, then?"

 

"First off, we're gonna have a team selfie on the tarmac for our social network pages. Don't worry, you don't have to be in that, just the players. Then we'll have everyone standing on the staircase for one big photograph before we board the plane."

 

"By everyone, you mean players, coaches and physios?"

 

"And other FA personnel, like me."

 

"Okay. Anything else I should know?"

 

"Yes," Leggett said, before pointing at the top of Catterall's shirt. "If you're not wearing a necktie, you shouldn't have the top button on your shirt done up. It's just not a good look. Unless you're Olly Murs. Then again, Olly Murs is the kind of guy who'd even look good in a bin liner."

 

"Point taken," Catterall said as he undid the top button. "Jenny was giving me a funny look when I went downstairs this morning. Maybe that's why!"

 

"Well, we women do know quite a lot more about fashion than you blokes do. Take it from me. My mum used to write for Woman's Own."

 

Catterall expressed surprise as he said, "I didn't know that."

 

Leggett and Catterall were then interrupted by a cry from FA chairman Clark Gregory. "MARK! Over here!"

 

The pair turned their heads behind and saw Gregory, who was alongside the FA's chief executive David Whiteman. Leggett whispered in Catterall's ear, "I'll leave you to it. I've gotta go to the ladies' room."

 

Leggett walked away as Catterall approached Gregory and Whiteman, shaking their hands in succession.

 

Whiteman began, "How have you been, Mr Catterall? I trust you slept well."

 

"Like a log," Catterall nodded. "I would say 'like a baby', but if Michael Burke hears me, he'd probably reply with another of his witty comments."

 

Whiteman chuckled heartily, but Gregory was unamused. "This is serious business now, Catterall. And for Christ's sake, man, who dressed you this morning?"

 

"I did. And you do know I never wear a tie, right?"

 

"Yes I do, but in case you haven't noticed, you've got a shirt button undone. If you undid one more, you'd basically be Magnum P.I. with alopecia!"

 

Catterall laughed, "Funny you say that, Clark! I actually had this button done up, but Ava told me to undo it because it 'wasn't a good look'."

 

Whiteman interjected, "It may not be a good look as far as Miss Leggett is concerned, but such a style was considered 'de rigueur' back when yours truly was making one's own way in life. You might not believe me now, but back in the summer of 1965, I styled myself on Pete Townshend from The Who. He had every button on his shirt done up."

 

Gregory growled, "We're veering so far off track that we'll be in the Atlantic Ocean at this rate. Mark, I obviously can't trust you not to make a faux pas on the fashion front. Can I trust you on the football front?"

 

"Yes, you can. We're all ready to go to Russia and make the country proud."

 

"I hope you do, especially after our poor results in recent friendlies. You do know that if you fail to get out of a group with Costa Rica and Georgia, then we'll have no choice but..."

 

Catterall interrupted, "I know. My neck will be on the line if we f*** up, but we won't. You can be sure of that."

 

Whiteman said, "Yes, excusing the somewhat coarse language, those were also the famous last words of a certain Roy Hodgson two years ago. Unlike my esteemed colleague, however, I happen to believe that your self-belief is justified."

 

"I appreciate the vote of support, David."

 

"You are welcome, Mr Catterall," Whiteman acknowledged. "I would personally have loved to have accompanied yourself and the team to Russia. Alas, my dear wife Daphne is to undergo a knee operation next Tuesday, and thus I cannot leave her behind at this juncture."

 

"That's fine. Send her my best wishes."

 

Gregory said, "I won't be joining you, either. One visit to Russia was enough for my lifetime. If I wanted to see some ghastly, God-forsaken architecture, I'd rather go to Grantham."

 

Whiteman stated, "One of my sons lives in Market Deeping, and he would respectfully disagree with Mr Gregory's critique of southern Lincolnshire."

 

Gregory snarled, "I thought I'd got a reprieve from all this crap when Connie Millstone buggered off for the summer."

 

"Where is Connie, then?" Catterall asked of the FA's vice-chair.

 

"If you really must know, Millstone's on a big Asian tour, promoting the FA's bid to stage the World Cup in 2030. The last I heard, she was in Bhutan. The daft cow probably couldn't point to Bhutan on a map! And God knows how she'd cope in a country with no TV!"

 

Whiteman then stretched out a hand to Catterall, saying, "Anyway, Mr Catterall. I wish you and your compatriots the very best of luck on your endeavours in the Russian Federation."

 

Catterall shook Whiteman's hand again, and then exchanged another handshake with Gregory, who said, "All the best, Mark. Let's hope our next meeting is a happier one."

 

Catterall then went off to have lunch with the rest of the England contingent, before the pre-flight photo-call. Midfield playmaker Dele Alli was in charge of taking the squad selfie, which Leggett later uploaded onto the FA's Twitter, Facebook and Instagram accounts.

 

After posing for another team photo on the airstairs, Catterall and his team boarded the plane. As the flight went airborne at just after 12:30pm, the Three Lions left British soil behind, hoping not to set foot on it again for six weeks.

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***

 

The England squad's flight from Heathrow touched down at Bucharest's Henri Coandă International Airport on the evening of 7 June. Mark Catterall and his team would spend the next four days in Bucharest, culminating in their final FIFA World Cup warm-up fixture against Romania.

 

FIFA's World Rankings had Romania down as the 13th-best national team on the planet - one spot below England's previous opponents Chile. Though the Tricolorii had been very underwhelming at UEFA Euro 2016, a strong World Cup qualifying campaign - and a favourable draw for the Finals - had their fans dreaming of another lengthy cup run to rival their efforts from the 1994 World Cup.

 

Gheorghe Hagi - the volatile but brilliant attacking midfielder - was the undisputed superstar of that 1990s 'dream team'. The Hagi name lived on within the Tricolorii in the form of Gheorghe's 19-year-old son Ianis, who won his eighth senior cap here. Hagi junior was a two-footed winger on the books of Fiorentina, though he'd spent this past season on loan at Leicester City, for whom he scored four Premier League goals.

 

Crystal Palace fans had mixed opinions on striker Denis Alibec, who'd found the net just six times for the Eagles since his £2.8million summer transfer from Steaua Bucharest. Two other Romanian players with Premier League experience were centre-halves Vlad Chiriches and Florin Gardos, formerly of Tottenham Hotspur and Southampton respectively.

 

Romania's head coach was Christoph Daum - a 64-year-old German who'd been in football management for over three decades, winning numerous trophies. Catterall's CV wasn't quite as impressive as Daum's, but the vast amount of quality in his England team would more than make up for any shortfall.

 

The four outfield players who did not feature in the draw with Chile - Gary Cahill, Phil Jones, Kyle Walker and Daniel Sturridge - all started this match. Catterall would also give 45 minutes apiece to each of Joe Hart's goalkeeping understudies - Stoke City's Jack Butland and Southampton's Fraser Forster.

 

Chelsea centre-back Cahill took the captain's armband, but he didn't get off to the best of starts. In the sixth minute, Romania's diminutive attacking midfielder Nicolae Stanciu got above him to nod Alexandru Maxim's corner goalwards. Luckily for Cahill, Danny Rose managed to clear the header away from the left-hand post.

 

Tottenham left-back Rose then won England a couple of early corners after having crosses deflected behind by Romanian defenders. However, it was a cross from a rather more surprising source that resulted in the Three Lions going ahead after 16 minutes.

 

Chelsea striker Callum Wilson surged clear of Chiriches to run onto an excellent pass from Arsenal midfielder Jack Wilshere. Wilson then took the ball to the byline before floating it across to Sturridge, who marked his international return with a lethal bullet header.

 

Romania attempted to hit back quickly, registering three shots on target between the 17th and 21st minutes. Florin Andone, Dragoş Nedelcu and Hagi were all kept off by the scoresheet by Butland, who desperately wanted to impress Catterall enough to earn some gametime at the World Cup.

 

England's defensive players were eager to get stuck in. Separate incidents in the 24th minute saw Cahill booked for upending Andone, and Dier take out Maxim with a firm tackle that sprained the VfB Stuttgart midfielder's ankle. Maxim's match was over, and there were now serious doubts over whether he would play any role in the Tricolorii's World Cup campaign.

 

Daum had another injury concern on his plate in the 30th minute. Napoli striker Andone, who'd scored 12 goals in his first 14 internationals, strained his neck in an aerial challenge with Cahill. Andone would come off at half-time for further assessment of that injury, though it transpired to be nothing serious. He certainly hadn't shown any ill effects in the 35th minute, when he drew another save out of Butland.

 

Sturridge and Wilshere each missed chances to double England's lead late in the first half, with the former volleying an Adam Lallana chip against the post after 38 minutes. Sturridge would later have a couple of shots saved by Romania goalkeeper Ciprian Tatarusanu, leaving him wondering if he could've killed the game off before half-time.

 

England again struggled to find a way past Tatarusanu early in the second period. The Fiorentina shotstopper palmed away a 51st-minute drive from Wilshere, and he produced an even save six minutes after that. Romania left-back Steliano Filip could only nod Jordan Henderson's corner as far as Lallana, whose half-volley was parried away from goal by Tatarusanu.

 

The Three Lions missed another trick after 67 minutes. Walker floated an excellent right-wing cross into the Romanian penalty area, where Sturridge got in front of Gardos and flicked it over the bar. Two minutes later, Sturridge played the ball through to his strike partner Wilson, who fired tamely into Tatarusanu's hands.

 

England upped the tempo in the final 20 minutes to try and force a second goal. Their gamble paid off in the 75th minute. Sturridge played a one-two with substitute midfielder Dele Alli and then swerved in a shot that bent past Chiriches and Tatarusanu before finding the net.

 

Sturridge was once again looking inspired in an England jersey. Three minutes after that second goal, the Liverpool hotshot secured his hat-trick. Sturridge picked up a pass from club-mate Henderson and sprinted clear of Gardos before lifting an excellent effort beyond the goalkeeper's reach.

 

England's three-goal hero then came off to a tremendous reception from the away supporters. Harry Kane replaced Sturridge, but he couldn't join him on the scoresheet, with his only attempt being parried wide by Tatarusanu in the 85th minute. Tatarusanu then pushed Rolando Aarons' immediate follow-up shot back to the young Newcastle United winger. Aarons crossed the rebound to Lallana, whose finish made it third time lucky.

 

England's Liverpool boys had once again come good for the Three Lions. A 4-0 win against a team of Romania's standing was the perfect way to conclude their preparations for Russia 2018.

 

10 June 2018: International Friendly - at National Arena, Bucharest

Romania - 0

England - 4 (Daniel Sturridge 16,75,78, Adam Lallana 85)

ENGLAND LINE-UP (4-3-1-2): Jack Butland (Fraser Forster); Kyle Walker, Gary Cahill (Michael Keane), Phil Jones, Danny Rose); Eric Dier (Rolando Aarons), Danny Drinkwater (Jordan Henderson), Adam Lallana; Jack Wilshere (Dele Alli); Daniel Sturridge (Harry Kane), Callum Wilson. BOOKED: Drinkwater 13, Cahill 24, Jones 52.

 

Catterall congratulated his team on an excellent performance, but he was keen to wipe out any complacency before their opening World Cup fixture. After all, a bad start against Brazil would put them under real pressure to perform in later group matches.

 

The following day, England's team departed Bucharest for their final journey before the start of the World Cup. A six-hour flight east would take them to Volgograd, which would be their home base for the coming weeks.

 

Catterall's first two years as England manager had shown promising signs that his team were capable of achieving something truly special. Now 'Catts' and the Three Lions had to prove it.

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And so we come to the 2018 FIFA World Cup... but I'm afraid you will have to wait until after Christmas to find out how England get on.

Before then, there are some things I need to get off my chest. As I write this, I am quite a few years into the save game, and I've come to a bit of a crossroads.

For the first time in a long time, I am feeling a little bit burnt out from FM. In addition, a few things have crept into my game that have pretty much limited its shelf life as far as I'm concerned. I was never going to manage England for 20+ years or something ridiculous, but now it's highly unlikely that I'll even reach double figures.

In addition, while this story does have a decent level of support as far as FMS goes, it doesn't seem to have captured people's imagination as much as my FM13 stories, or even "Jeux Sans Frontières". I'm not sure why that is.

Don't get me wrong - I am still enjoying writing "An Impossible Man" and posting it up on FMS. I'm just having some trouble motivating myself to continue with it long-term, especially with all the stress that will come with moving house in the new year. Maybe I need a prolonged break from FM, and possibly even FMS.

I will commit to concluding this season (including the World Cup and the European Under-19s Championship) after Christmas. Once that's all finished... well, I don't know yet.

In the meantime, any feedback on this story would be greatly welcomed.

Christopher Fuller (CFuller)
15 December 2017

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Chris a break is always good especially if your feeling alittle burnt out with it. As for feedback about your story all I can say is that this is up with the rest of your work. Like I've said before that your work and a couple of others are becoming the benchmark for new writers to espire too

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We all know what its like when the fun starts to wane so like Mark says see how you feel after a break. Taking time out from any save might help you think about it in ways you would never consider otherwise, because all your juice for it is used up just playing it and writing about it.

I'm still new to FMS so I'm taking my time getting around all current stories but I've really enjoyed catching up with Catts - especially as a deliberate non-supporter of England in real life! So, thanks :thup:

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On 12/15/2017 at 13:36, mark wilson27 said:

Chris a break is always good especially if your feeling alittle burnt out with it. As for feedback about your story all I can say is that this is up with the rest of your work. Like I've said before that your work and a couple of others are becoming the benchmark for new writers to espire too

Thanks once again, Mark. I have now decided to take the rest of the year off from FM and play other games in the meantime. I've really enjoyed Motorsport Manager recently, and I'm looking to get Life Is Strange: Before The Storm finished before Christmas. (To be honest, the latter game is about as far away from FM as you can get, and probably won't appeal to many people around these parts. :D)

I will also be writing some story material over the coming days. Quite a lot of material for this World Cup is still unwritten, so I need to get cracking!

On 12/15/2017 at 15:48, shizzo said:

i'm a big fan. international football has never really been covered by especially at youth level so this has been great. really appreciate it.

Thank you. Another story that might be of interest to you is "Kracking Kyrgyzstan" by @neilhoskins77. He takes a similar approach to me, with a far more obscure nation.

12 minutes ago, Diego Imposta said:

We all know what its like when the fun starts to wane so like Mark says see how you feel after a break. Taking time out from any save might help you think about it in ways you would never consider otherwise, because all your juice for it is used up just playing it and writing about it.

I'm still new to FMS so I'm taking my time getting around all current stories but I've really enjoyed catching up with Catts - especially as a deliberate non-supporter of England in real life! So, thanks :thup:

I've been playing a lot more of this career in recent weeks, as FM13 has been on ice since mid-November, and I won't be resuming my Daggers odyssey until the house move is complete. I'd become used to playing this save almost exclusively on weekends (except for major tournaments), so that could explain why I'm now feeling burnt out.

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Hi Chris, a little late to the party on this but just to echo what the others are saying - this is some excellent storytelling, and really shows off how you're developing as a writer. So, if you're feeling a bit flat about the whole thing, rest assured it doesn't come across in the end product!

That said, taking a break is no bad thing. FMS is a fantastic little corner of the internet, but it is that - little. It can feel like we're talking to ourselves a lot of the time, with comments rare and views paling in comparison to what even the most basic updates get over in FMCU. When you pour so much time, effort and thought into characters and get no response, it gets tiring - I understand that. I also think I understand that, in a strange sort of way, the more in-depth a story - the more detail you include, the more well-rounded your characters - the less likely you actually are to receive comments, because it's more effort for people to read, and often those that do don't know what to say. There's also a fear of breaking up a writer's flow or the arc of the story itself - I know that's stopped me commenting on things before.

But ultimately, as cliché as it sounds, you've got to write for yourself. Even if you've got a multiple award-winner on the go, if it's no fun to play or a slog to write (or hard to post in this case), you're not doing yourself any favours by powering on. Take a step back for a bit, come back to it with fresh eyes, and if you feel like picking it up again, go for it. And if you feel the need to kill it, sometimes that's the right move too. Not that I'd advocate you ending this particular story - it's one of my favourites on the board right now!

I've rambled, but I hope that makes sense!  

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3 minutes ago, EvilDave said:

Hi Chris, a little late to the party on this but just to echo what the others are saying - this is some excellent storytelling, and really shows off how you're developing as a writer. So, if you're feeling a bit flat about the whole thing, rest assured it doesn't come across in the end product!

That said, taking a break is no bad thing. FMS is a fantastic little corner of the internet, but it is that - little. It can feel like we're talking to ourselves a lot of the time, with comments rare and views paling in comparison to what even the most basic updates get over in FMCU. When you pour so much time, effort and thought into characters and get no response, it gets tiring - I understand that. I also think I understand that, in a strange sort of way, the more in-depth a story - the more detail you include, the more well-rounded your characters - the less likely you actually are to receive comments, because it's more effort for people to read, and often those that do don't know what to say. There's also a fear of breaking up a writer's flow or the arc of the story itself - I know that's stopped me commenting on things before.

But ultimately, as cliché as it sounds, you've got to write for yourself. Even if you've got a multiple award-winner on the go, if it's no fun to play or a slog to write (or hard to post in this case), you're not doing yourself any favours by powering on. Take a step back for a bit, come back to it with fresh eyes, and if you feel like picking it up again, go for it. And if you feel the need to kill it, sometimes that's the right move too. Not that I'd advocate you ending this particular story - it's one of my favourites on the board right now!

I've rambled, but I hope that makes sense!  

I fully understand what you're on about, Dave.

I have always been an advocate of "write for yourself, not for others". If I don't like what I'm writing, it's unlikely that others will. Mind you, a little encouragement now and then certainly helps to keep me going, so the comments I've received these last few days are very reassuring.

I am now on an FM break until the new year, so there's plenty of time for me to recharge my batteries and focus on other things. I will also look to write up some more material for this story, as well as wrap up "Sometimes Love Is Not Enough", which I hope to have finished by the end of January (though that depends largely on the house move).

Rest assured, "An Impossible Man" will now continue beyond this season. Updates may be more sporadic in the coming months because of said house move, but I won't abandon a story when there's still so much left to tell.

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  • 2 weeks later...

Chapter 17 - To Russia With Love

 

"Volgograd - population 1 million. Founded as Tsaritsyn in 1589 on the western bank of the Volga River. Known as Stalingrad from 1925 to 1961, having been named after Soviet Premier Joseph Stalin. Famous for the Battle of Stalingrad in the mid-1940s, in which over 2 million people died and the Soviets recorded a decisive victory over Nazi Germany - a victory that many experts claim marked the turning point of the entire Second World War."

 

England manager Mark Catterall was finding that coach David Platt was not exactly the most interesting person to sit next to on a six-hour flight from Bucharest to Volgograd.

 

"Thank you for the history lesson, David," Catterall muttered, "but if you don't mind, I'm trying to get some sleep!"

 

Platt continued, "Oh yes, and do you remember Rotor Volgograd, who knocked Manchester United out of the UEFA Cup on away goals in the 1995/1996 season? They actually went bankrupt about a decade ago, but they've reformed and are now playing in the Russian second division."

 

"David... if you have to spend all afternoon scouring Wikipedia, could you please do it quietly?"

 

"No problem, Catts."

 

Catterall nodded, and then drifted off again, only to be woken up once more only a matter of seconds later.

 

"And you know what else Volgograd is famous for? The two-time Olympic pole-vault champion Yelena..."

 

Catterall bellowed, "YES, I KNOW YELENA ISINBAYEVA WAS BORN IN VOLGOGRAD!"

 

The plane fell silent, with many of the England players and staff looking towards Catterall, who took a deep breath and calmly asked Platt, "David, this is a long flight, and I only had about five hours' sleep last night. Could you please let me get some shut-eye? Please?"

 

"Sorry, Catts. I didn't realise."

 

"Thank you."

 

The plane touched down at Volgograd International Airport at around 4:00pm local time. Catterall - now rather more well-rested - and his England team were then driven to their hotel, which was located about half an hour away.

 

Upon the coach's arrival at the Park Inn by Radisson hotel, Catterall declared, "Here you are, gentlemen. Welcome to your new home for the next few weeks!"

 

Assistant manager Michael Burke added, "It's got everything you want from a 3-star hotel. Free Wi-Fi, a restaurant, a minibar..."

 

"Wait a minute," midfielder Jack Wilshere interrupted. "Did you say 3-star?"

 

"Yes. Why?"

 

Wilshere exclaimed, "Only THREE stars? Who do you think we are? Janitors?"

 

"Just because you're all Premier League footballers doesn't mean you'll get 5-star luxury with England," Catterall said. "God knows you get pampered enough as it is at your clubs!"

 

Burke added, "We don't want you lot living like the Queen and then playing like her as well!"

 

Catterall continued, "Yes, this may be a bit modest by your high standards, but trust me; 3-star ain't that bad. It's comfortable, but not too much so."

 

Eric Dier muttered disdainfully, "Yeah, alright, whatever you say."

 

Catterall stated, "You can thank your lucky stars that David Whiteman booked the hotel for you. If Clark Gregory had got his way, we'd be lodging in a run-down barn in the middle of nowhere, cut off from modern society."

 

"What?" Luke Shaw asked. "You mean Norfolk?"

 

"Siberia."

 

"Oh."

 

The squad then checked into their hotel and brought their belongings inside. A few hours later, Catterall paid a visit to the in-house restaurant, inviting Manchester City defenders Michael Keane and John Stones to join him.

 

Catterall asked Keane, "So, Michael, this is your first major tournament. How are you enjoying it so far?"

 

"It's great; I'm loving it," Keane smiled. "I've been to the Euros with the Under-21s before, about three years ago, but this is something else entirely."

 

"Isn't it just?"

 

"My family are so chuffed for me, though my twin brother Will is well jealous. Times like these make me so thankful I got the chance to play for England. I probably wouldn't have got this with Ireland."

 

Catterall joked, "To be fair, I think about half the country could've been called up by the Republic of Ireland."

 

"Not me," Stones stated. "We're all proper Yorkshire folk in t' Stones family."

 

Catterall then said to Stones, "You've been in this situation once before..."

 

"Aww man, don't mention t' Euros!"

 

"Yeah, alright... like I said, you've been here before, so can I trust you to lend some of your experience to Michael? Show him the ins and outs of preparing for big tournaments?"

 

Stones nodded, "Ah'm way ahead of tha, gaffer. I've already taught him how I go about things."

 

"Having Stonesy around is really helping me settle," Keane told Catterall. "We're great mates; we room with each other all the time. And we really bounce off each other, you know? You could say we're like the Chuckle Brothers..."

 

"Except tha aren't from Rotherham," Stones quipped.

 

"Neither are you, to be fair."

 

"Barnsley's, what, 12 miles from Rotherham! I'd darn well say that's close enough!"

 

Catterall chuckled and then said, "Now, John... I know you and some of the other lads asked for a games room at our training camp. You'll be pleased to know that's all sorted. You've got everything you need - a pool table, table football, table tennis..."

 

"What about a dartboard?"

 

"No dartboard, unfortunately. Apparently, darts is banned in Russia because there isn't nearly enough doping involved."

 

Stones groaned, "Chuffin' eck! So I brought me darts over for nowt!"

 

Keane suggested, "Don't worry, Stonesy. I've got, like, 20 photos of Raheem that you can use instead."

 

"Why t' heck would a man take 20 Raheem Sterling photos to Russia with him?"

 

"You never know when they'll come in useful, Stonesy."

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***

 

The time for speculation was almost over. Football fans across England expected every one of the 23 men selected by Mark Catterall to do their duty at the 2018 FIFA World Cup in Russia.

 

Truth be told, the odds were heavily stacked against the Three Lions winning the tournament, and ending '52 years of hurt'. It's quite strange how everyone counts England's so-called 'years of hurt' from 1966 onwards. That implies that supporters were agonising over their national team's lack of silverware as early as the day after the World Cup Final. If anything, the 'years of hurt' should be counted from 1968, when the then world champions failed to win the UEFA European Championship.

 

Anyway, England fans were now hoping to see the Three Lions roar again, following the car-crash tournaments that were the 2014 World Cup and the 2016 European Championship. Reaching a first World Cup Quarter Final since 2006, or even a first Semi Final since 1990, would represent positive progress.

 

A total of 14 players from Roy Hodgson's Euro 2016 team had been retained by Catterall, with three returnees and six tournament debutants completing the class of 2018. Significantly, this was the first England tournament squad since 2002 not to feature all-time top scorer Wayne Rooney, who'd been replaced as captain by Jordan Henderson.

 

These were the players who held England's footballing destiny at their feet (or hands):

 

1. Joe Hart

POSITIONS: Goalkeeper. CLUB: Manchester City. ESTIMATED VALUE: £12.75million.

AGE: 31. BORN: 19 April 1987 in Shrewsbury, Shropshire. HEIGHT: 6ft 5in. WEIGHT: 12st 10lb.

ENGLAND RECORD: 78 caps, 0 goals. MAJOR TOURNAMENTS: WC 2010, Euro 2012, WC 2014, Euro 2016.

Though largely derided by Manchester City fans, Hart had been firmly established as England's number 1 for the last eight years. His fantastic reflexes, strong handling ability and consistency made him one of the best goalkeepers in European football.

 

2. Nathaniel Clyne

POSITIONS: Defender/Wing-Back (Right). CLUB: Liverpool. ESTIMATED VALUE: £13million.

AGE: 27. BORN: 5 April 1991 in Stockwell, London. HEIGHT: 5ft 9in. WEIGHT: 10st 7lb.

ENGLAND RECORD: 27 caps, 0 goals. MAJOR TOURNAMENTS: Euro 2016.

Clyne was a spirited and explosive wing-back who was providing Kyle Walker with serious competition for a regular starting place on the right side of England's defence. Though his form for Liverpool had not been particularly hot, his work ethic could not be disputed.

 

3. Danny Rose

POSITIONS: Defender/Wing-Back (Left). CLUB: Tottenham Hotspur. ESTIMATED VALUE: £24million.

AGE: 27. BORN: 2 July 1990 in Doncaster, South Yorkshire. HEIGHT: 5ft 8in. WEIGHT: 11st 6lb.

ENGLAND RECORD: 19 caps, 2 goals. MAJOR TOURNAMENTS: Euro 2016.

Rose was barely two years into his senior international career, but the Yorkshireman was now very much part of the England furniture. Catterall was a big fan of the pacey left-sided wing-back, even if he did have a tendency to try and play his way out of trouble.

 

4. Danny Drinkwater

POSITIONS: Midfielder (Centre). CLUB: Leicester City. ESTIMATED VALUE: £14.25million.

AGE: 28. BORN: 5 March 1990 in Manchester. HEIGHT: 5ft 10in. WEIGHT: 11st 0lb.

ENGLAND RECORD: 13 caps, 0 goals. MAJOR TOURNAMENTS: none.

Drinkwater was very unfortunate to miss out on England's UEFA Euro 2016 squad after winning the Premier League with Leicester City. The aggressive box-to-box midfielder's consistently tidy performances for the Foxes had finally earned him a shot at the big international stage.

 

5. Gary Cahill

POSITIONS: Defender (Centre). CLUB: Chelsea. ESTIMATED VALUE: £1.2million.

AGE: 32. BORN: 19 December 1985 in Dronfield, Derbyshire. HEIGHT: 6ft 4in. WEIGHT: 13st 7lb.

ENGLAND RECORD: 58 caps, 3 goals. MAJOR TOURNAMENTS: WC 2014, Euro 2016.

The oldest member of Catterall's squad, Cahill was a central defender who thrived in big matches. Though he was no longer a regular in Antonio Conte's Chelsea team, the brave stopper would certainly provide a helping hand to the younger members of the England backline.

 

6. John Stones

POSITIONS: Defender (Centre). CLUB: Manchester City. ESTIMATED VALUE: £37.5million.

AGE: 24. BORN: 28 May 1994 in Barnsley, South Yorkshire. HEIGHT: 6ft 2in. WEIGHT: 12st 1lb.

ENGLAND RECORD: 23 caps, 1 goal. MAJOR TOURNAMENTS: Euro 2016.

Stones was England's most gifted ball-playing centre-half, and consistently of the first names on Catterall's teamsheet. After a shaky start to life at Manchester City, the second-most expensive defender in history had become more composed and astute over recent months.

 

7. Nathan Redmond

POSITIONS: Midfielder/Attacking Midfielder (Right/Left). CLUB: Southampton. ESTIMATED VALUE: £19.5million.

AGE: 24. BORN: 6 March 1994 in Birmingham. HEIGHT: 5ft 8in. WEIGHT: 11st 6lb.

ENGLAND RECORD: 4 caps, 1 goal. MAJOR TOURNAMENTS: none.

After reaching a European final with England's Under-21s, Redmond was now finding his feet at senior level. Whether cutting inside from the left wing or dribbling up the right flank, the ambitious attacker was capable of causing damage whenever called upon.

 

8. Dele Alli

POSITIONS: Midfielder/Attacking Midfielder (Centre). CLUB: Tottenham Hotspur. ESTIMATED VALUE: £35.5million.

AGE: 22. BORN: 11 April 1996 in Milton Keynes, Buckinghamshire. HEIGHT: 6ft 1in. WEIGHT: 12st 1lb.

ENGLAND RECORD: 30 caps, 5 goals. MAJOR TOURNAMENTS: Euro 2016.

Former boy wonder Alli was now established as one of England's key men, even at a still-tender age. The midfield playmaker possessed outstanding passing ability and a sweet first touch, though he also had a competitive streak that would occasionally get him into trouble.

 

9. Harry Kane

POSITIONS: Striker (Centre). CLUB: Tottenham Hotspur. ESTIMATED VALUE: £35.5million.

AGE: 24. BORN: 28 July 1993 in Walthamstow, London. HEIGHT: 6ft 3in. WEIGHT: 13st 0lb.

ENGLAND RECORD: 32 caps, 12 goals. MAJOR TOURNAMENTS: Euro 2016.

Kane had scored 92 Premier League goals for Tottenham in the last four seasons, though he was not quite as prolific in an England jersey. Catterall wasn't quite sure why, as he thrived in biggest matches and was regarded as his country's greatest centre-forward since Alan Shearer.

 

10. Callum Wilson

POSITIONS: Striker (Centre). CLUB: Chelsea. ESTIMATED VALUE: £40.5million.

AGE: 26. BORN: 27 February 1992 in Coventry, West Midlands. HEIGHT: 5ft 11in. WEIGHT: 10st 7lb.

ENGLAND RECORD: 15 caps, 3 goals. MAJOR TOURNAMENTS: none.

Wilson was one of the first players to break into the England set-up under Catterall. The former AFC Bournemouth striker had only found the net three times at international level, but his hold-up play and selflessness led to him setting up plenty more for his team-mates.

 

11. Rolando Aarons

POSITIONS: Midfielder/Attacking Midfielder (Left). CLUB: Newcastle United. ESTIMATED VALUE: £11.5million.

AGE: 22. BORN: 16 November 1995 in Kingston, Jamaica. HEIGHT: 5ft 9in. WEIGHT: 10st 5lb.

ENGLAND RECORD: 4 caps, 0 goals. MAJOR TOURNAMENTS: none.

Earning only £12,500 per week at 9th-placed Newcastle, Aarons was by far the humblest figure in an England team that was full of superstars. 11 Premier League goals and 8 assists had seen the young and energetic left-winger earn a place on the flight to Russia.

 

12. Michael Keane

POSITIONS: Defender (Centre). CLUB: Manchester City. ESTIMATED VALUE: £30million.

AGE: 25. BORN: 11 January 1993 in Stockport, Greater Manchester. HEIGHT: 6ft 1in. WEIGHT: 13st 0lb.

ENGLAND RECORD: 12 caps, 0 goals. MAJOR TOURNAMENTS: none.

Keane's strong performances for City and England over the past 14 months had earned him a first crack at a major tournament. The burly Mancunian was the epitome of coolness under pressure, and very few strikers could get past this excellent covering defender.

 

13. Jack Butland

POSITIONS: Goalkeeper. CLUB: Stoke City. ESTIMATED VALUE: £20million.

AGE: 25. BORN: 10 March 1993 in Bristol. HEIGHT: 6ft 5in. WEIGHT: 14st 13lb.

ENGLAND RECORD: 7 caps, 0 goals. MAJOR TOURNAMENTS: Euro 2012.

Butland was Joe Hart's main rival when it came to who donned the gloves for England. Tipped for the top from a young age, the agile custodian had recovered from a serious ankle injury sustained against Germany in 2016 and established himself as first-choice for mid-table Stoke.

 

14. Jordan Henderson

POSITIONS: Defensive Midfielder/Midfielder (Centre). CLUB: Liverpool. ESTIMATED VALUE: £22.5million.

AGE: 27. BORN: 17 June 1990 in Sunderland, Tyne & Wear. HEIGHT: 6ft 0in. WEIGHT: 10st 7lb.

ENGLAND RECORD: 45 caps, 0 goals. MAJOR TOURNAMENTS: Euro 2012, WC 2014, Euro 2016.

Catterall's assertion that Liverpool and England captain Henderson was "my Steven Gerrard" was most certainly not hyperbole. The tireless deep-lying playmaker was an assured and unflappable presence in midfield, not to mention a true credit to many of his peers.

 

15. Eric Dier

POSITIONS: Defender/Defensive Midfielder (Centre). CLUB: Tottenham Hotspur. ESTIMATED VALUE: £32.5million.

AGE: 24. BORN: 15 January 1994 in Cheltenham, Gloucestershire. HEIGHT: 6ft 2in. WEIGHT: 13st 7lb.

ENGLAND RECORD: 27 caps, 3 goals. MAJOR TOURNAMENTS: Euro 2016.

Dier's footballing skills were honed in Portugal, where this son of a former tennis professional spent much of his life prior to joining Tottenham in 2014. Catterall mainly utilised him as a midfield aggressor, though his aerial presence made him similarly effective in the centre of the defence.

 

16. Phil Jones

POSITIONS: Defender (Centre). CLUB: Manchester United. ESTIMATED VALUE: £21million.

AGE: 26. BORN: 21 February 1992 in Preston, Lancashire. HEIGHT: 6ft 1in. WEIGHT: 11st 4lb.

ENGLAND RECORD: 23 caps, 0 goals. MAJOR TOURNAMENTS: Euro 2012, WC 2014.

Largely ignored by Catterall until the start of the year, Jones had earned an England recall following a strong end to the season with the Red Devils. The central defensive stopper had a never-say-die attitude and would always throw his body on the line for his country.

 

17. Demarai Gray

POSITIONS: Midfielder/Attacking Midfielder (Right/Left). CLUB: Leicester City. ESTIMATED VALUE: £11.75million.

AGE: 21. BORN: 28 June 1996 in Birmingham. HEIGHT: 5ft 10in. WEIGHT: 11st 13lb.

ENGLAND RECORD: 9 caps, 2 goals. MAJOR TOURNAMENTS: none.

Gray's up-and-down season with mid-tablers Leicester had raised questions about whether he was ready for the intensity of a World Cup. However, Catterall had seen enough potential in the creative winger to blood him into the England set-up from a tender age.

 

18. Jack Wilshere

POSITIONS: Midfielder/Attacking Midfielder (Centre). CLUB: Arsenal. ESTIMATED VALUE: £21million.

AGE: 26. BORN: 1 January 1992 in Stevenage, Hertfordshire. HEIGHT: 5ft 9in. WEIGHT: 10st 3lb.

ENGLAND RECORD: 47 caps, 5 goals. MAJOR TOURNAMENTS: WC 2014, Euro 2016.

Wilshere was one of England's most creative and skilful players, but he was arguably just as frustrating. To be fair, his career had been ravaged by a string of serious injuries, though the worst was seemingly behind him and he was now playing regularly for Arsenal again.

 

19. Daniel Sturridge

POSITIONS: Striker (Centre). CLUB: Liverpool. ESTIMATED VALUE: £22million.

AGE: 28. BORN: 1 September 1989 in Birmingham. HEIGHT: 6ft 0in. WEIGHT: 12st 6lb.

ENGLAND RECORD: 32 caps, 19 goals. MAJOR TOURNAMENTS: WC 2014, Euro 2016.

Though largely ineffective for Liverpool since Brendan Rodgers' exit in 2015, Sturridge was a very different striker when representing England. The flamboyant but fragile frontman had scored eight goals in the World Cup qualifiers, thus justifying his inclusion in the finals squad.

 

20. Adam Lallana

POSITIONS: Attacking Midfielder (Right/Centre). CLUB: Liverpool. ESTIMATED VALUE: £15.25million.

AGE: 30. BORN: 10 May 1988 in St Albans, Hertfordshire. HEIGHT: 5ft 8in. WEIGHT: 11st 6lb.

ENGLAND RECORD: 44 caps, 2 goals. MAJOR TOURNAMENTS: WC 2014, Euro 2016.

Lallana was arguably England's most experienced and versatile attacking midfielder, being able to perform as an advanced playmaker or an inside-forward. Adept with either foot, he could always add more flair and creativity to the Three Lions' attacks.

 

21. Kyle Walker

POSITIONS: Defender/Wing-Back (Right). CLUB: Tottenham Hotspur. ESTIMATED VALUE: £21.5million.

AGE: 28. BORN: 28 May 1990 in Sheffield, South Yorkshire. HEIGHT: 6ft 0in. WEIGHT: 11st 6lb.

ENGLAND RECORD: 30 caps, 0 goals. MAJOR TOURNAMENTS: Euro 2016.

Wing-back Walker had been one of England's top performers throughout the first tournament cycle of Catterall's reign. His overlapping runs up the right flank were potentially lethal, though his decision-making could occasionally hamper the defence.

 

22. Fraser Forster

POSITIONS: Goalkeeper. CLUB: Southampton. ESTIMATED VALUE: £10.5million.

AGE: 30. BORN: 17 March 1988 in Hexham, Northumberland. HEIGHT: 6ft 7in. WEIGHT: 15st 8lb.

ENGLAND RECORD: 9 caps, 0 goals. MAJOR TOURNAMENTS: WC 2014, Euro 2016.

Forster had been an ever-present for Southampton in the league this season, though he worryingly conceded 47 goals. While that record was not particularly impressive, the giant Northumbrian's aerial presence made him a somewhat difficult goalkeeper to beat.

 

23. Luke Shaw

POSITIONS: Defender (Left). CLUB: Manchester United. ESTIMATED VALUE: £22.5million.

AGE: 22. BORN: 12 July 1995 in Kingston-upon-Thames, London. HEIGHT: 6ft 1in. WEIGHT: 11st 11lb.

ENGLAND RECORD: 18 caps, 1 goal. MAJOR TOURNAMENTS: WC 2014.

Having struggled with injuries earlier in his career, Shaw was now starting to realise his exceptional potential. The lionhearted left-back had just won his first Premier League title with United in a season that saw him pick up no fewer than 22 yellow cards.

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